New Jersey

Nutley, NJ was where we went to visit Matt's Grandma. While there we planned on doing her and the Donohue's family history, but we also discovered that Nutley had a lot of family history for the both of us. Matt's grandparents raised their family in Nutley and just around the corner from their house is where my Grandad went to high school and grew up! We had a lot of fun hearing stories about the family from Grandma Helen, and we definitely were testing her memory about people and places. It was really fun for me stepping in to her house for the first time because it reminded me so much of my Grammie's house, from the freezer stocked with ice cream, cardinals decorating the walls, right down to same comforting aromas as well. She had us well fed with delights from her garden, I couldn't get enough of her basil plant and fresh tomatoes! She lives really close to this great park that we were able to ride our bikes around in and also discover a WWII memorial that had my Grandad's name on it, as well as a Booth street near by too. We also visited Matt's Aunt & Uncle at their beautiful home in Lebanon and we finally were able to escape the NJ heat by going for a swim in their pool. Besides the sweltering heat we thoroughly enjoyed our visit there with all the family. 

Matt ordered Pizza of course when Grandma Helen treated us to dinner, but he didn't bank on getting that much, it was a huge pizza!

The plaque above with my Grandad and Great Uncle's name on it. Still trying to figure out if the other Booths are connected to us. And then we found this street sign which was right by the memorial and the high school where my Grandad went to school is right in the background.

We went to Mass with Grandma Helen, they had really beautiful music performances, like David Archuleta style kind of good.

We went to the 9/11 memorial on the NJ side, where you can see the NYC skyline in the distance.

We also went to Lebanon, NJ where Aunt Linda & Uncle Guerimo live. The little town nearby that they showed us reminded of a place where the Gilmore Girls would live.

Matt with Aunt Lynda and his cousin Rebbecca

The whole gang including sweet Christie Dog.

Rhode Island

We had a fabulous time exploring RI and felt very regal while we were there too! Probably because we went to Newport and explored the streets full of Mansions. When I say mansions I mean it, there really is no other way to describe them. We are dealing with the same Vanderbilts who created the Biltmore estate so you get the idea. I think I found some great tips and ideas for my dream home someday :) We walked along the cliff path which was a lot of fun, great views of the houses (backside) and you are right along the water's edge so you get a nice breeze which was much needed on the hot day we were there. Be sure to wear some good walking shoes for it though, it is a bit rocky and my sandals did ok but would have been better with something else. (you can take a tour of several of the homes but we opted out so we could admire more of them from the outside)

We also were able to see my friend Melissa from BYU and her family. Love this spunky girl and her baby Collin was just the cutest, most content baby. She showed us around a bit and introduced us to Del's which is an icy fruity slushy kind of thing, and it is amazing! We had it several times while we were in RI, our favorite flavor we decided is definitely Watermelon (we tried about 5 different kinds)

We also were able to visit more of Matt's family here in RI. They live in area called Barrington. We had a fun time exploring it in the best way possible- a beautiful bike ride around the area with them. We also saw some phenomenal sunsets on the water. I of course had ice cream here too but this one is at the top of the list of all the ice creams I had this trip- Maple walnut in a delicious waffle cone. Sounds simple but it was incredible, sadly it is not pictured. RI maybe be small but it has a lot of charm and beauty to offer! 

 

 

 

On our bike ride with Bill in Barrington

With Sara and Bill taking in the sunset

This house is one of Cornelia Vanderbilt I believe

I love the iron work on this gate!

Along the cliff walk

On the path, some parts are nice and paved like this was

Perfect spots, right along the water

I wish I had a better picture of this house, it was my absolute favorite. I love the green siding on it, the big wrap around porch, a nice big driveway, a fantastic yard, basically my dream home! Matt looked up the price of it on Zillow and that dream was quickly crushed, but who knows someday maybe, a girl can dream.

Thought this was cute and funny. It is an anniversary sign for her handsome husband, they have been married a year. I wonder what they do to land a house like this in their first year of marriage!

The hydrangeas around here were unreal, so gorgeous! I can't wait to grow my own someday.