Our Fifth Anniversary as Innkeepers!

I’m back in New Hampshire after a great "back-to-college road trip" with Noah, just in time to celebrate a very special day! Today, January 24, marks the beginning of our 6th year as innkeepers at The Lodge!! It was on this date in 2005 that Dana and I signed our names (in about a million places, on documents about 2 feet thick!!) at the real estate closing which made The Lodge our family’s brand new venture! And ever since that wonderfully fateful day, it’s been more like a continuing AD-venture for every single one of us. Each day is always different, we meet the most amazing people, and there are endless opportunities to express ourselves creatively here at The Lodge. There isn’t a member of our family who wouldn’t agree that this was the best decision our family has ever made!

It was five years ago to the day, after that lengthy real estate closing, that we returned to The Lodge where our children were patiently awaiting. But unbeknownst to us, two of our dearest, truest, most loyal friends in the whole world were there as well, wanting to be our first ‘official’ guests! They had made a reservation under an assumed name so as not to spoil the surprise, and as we pulled into the driveway, out came our kids along with Whitney and Joan -- to officially welcome us to our new home!!! It is a treasured memory we will never forget. That evening we all sat in the living room with our feet up in front of a wood fire, excited about our new lives as innkeepers, if not, perhaps, a little bit afraid of this very big commitment! What had we gotten ourselves into? What would our new life hold for us? If we had only known the wonderful things that were in store …

One of this week’s typical adventures, for example, included meeting four lovely (and most interesting) women who were first-time guests at The Lodge. These long-term friends hailed from various parts of the country and converged here for a week of cross-country skiing, exploring, and general fun together. As we all became acquainted, we had delightful conversations with them on a wide range of topics, which included one of our favorite authors, Elizabeth Gaskell, (on whom one of the ladies is a world-renowned authority, having written several books on the topic herself). See what I mean about life here being interesting?

In my previous blog entry, I wrote about the road trip I took with our son Noah last week back to college. I was unaware of the significance at the time, but the day we left was actually a 5-year-to-the-day historical reenactment of our family’s original move here in the middle of a blizzard. No exaggeration … we had originally driven through a storm that dumped more than 3 feet of snow across New England. A trip that should have taken about 6 hours turned out to be over 12 of the most grueling driving hours of our lives!! When Noah and I left this past Tuesday along the same route, it was actually 5 years to the day, and the weather was almost – but not quite -- as miserable! We drove through snow and fog the whole way, which was very stressful and exhausting. We chuckled that evening, however, when we realized the historical significance of the date! Our first two nights were spent at my mom’s … it was wonderful to see her. The next day we drove to Baltimore, got his stuff back in the room, and went down to explore the inner harbor, which is the restored waterfront area reminiscent of the South Street Seaport in NYC. There was a great bookstore nearby, so needless to say, I was in my glory! I treated Noah to dinner on the waterfront, then we headed back to campus where we watched a movie, played a word game we like (Bananagrams), and then I camped out on his floor. Noah is safely set up for his second semester now, which he starts tomorrow. I’m finally back at The Lodge, where the rest of us are starting our second FIVE YEARS as Innkeepers!! With the good foundation we have already built here, I think the next five years will be even better than the last! We are going to give it our ALL!