memorial day weekend

in what has become an annual tradition, we spent our memorial day weekend up in the catskills with andy's family at this gem of a historic farmhouse. my brother-in-law bought the place a few years ago from a couple that used to run it as a b&b and now it is the family's favorite retreat. so while everyone else was headed either south or east towards the beach for the holiday weekend, we drove seven hours north into the mountains of new york, where the closest grocery store is 45 minutes away on windy country roads. retreat really is the only word for it. the only sounds i heard all weekend were the buzz of carpenter bees pollinating the rhododendrons, the terrifying high slurred whistles of red winged black birds perched in the cattails (i was attacked once. fyi: the mamas are very protective when they're on the nest), and the occasional rat-ta-tat-tat from trigger-happy neighbors.

truely though, it was quiet and slow and a completely relaxing weekend. the guys went fishing, the girls waded in fresh spring water, and the baby boy threw rocks into that icy water. the whole thing felt wonderfully out-of-body, like i was floating above the scene and taking it all in without any rush or care in the world.  

and now, a few pictures from the weekend!

i love coming up to this place, everything is so exquisite and i'm completely inspired whenever i'm there, which is to say i am a total creeper and stalk around the house, taking pictures of every detail.

so i creep yeahhhhh, just keep it on the down low. said nobody is supposed to knowwww...

august has always been a fan of bath time, but he really loved this tub. he practically sprinted to it - tearing his clothes off on the way - to get the party started every night. the floor-to-ceiling marble made for a great echo, which i think may have been august's favorite thing about it though. every night, shouting and singing at the top of his lungs, testing out the acoustics.

better judgement would've had me save this picture for father's day. 

...and this one for grandma's birthday in the fall. oh well.

august was born two years ago ON memorial day. my [younger] brother-in-law suggested we make it a floating holiday, so august gets two celebrations now. 

so there you have it, enough pictures to slow your browser from fully loading. and now, to take us out, a few patriotic shots that could also double as print ads for tommy hilfiger. 

on a serious note, memorial day weekend strikes a special chord as both my father and brother served in the military. fortunately, neither died in combat, but that's all the more reason to acknowledge the lives of those that were lost. my brother was at the national cemetery paying respect to a fallen buddy on memorial day when he made this clip in the local news. i don't condone war, but i do admire the patriotism and sacrifice representative of those who chose to serve this country.