Renting A Vacation Cabin

Looking back, we typically vacation in cabin rentals.  We did for our honeymoon, for Christmas and we even rented a one room cabin at a KOA when we went to Niagara Falls.  Ryan did the same when he surprised me with this New Hampshire vacation!  For this trip he chose to rent a cabin on a picturesque lake in North Conway, NH.  Vacation rentals can be found all over the inter-webs simply by googling the location and cabin rentals.  There is always Craigslist (be careful of scams) and vrbo.com where Ryan found this cabin.

Reasons I like to vacation in rental cabins:

- We could invite lots of friends and family to join us.

- We could bring our dog Glacier!

- There's a kitchen to cook our own meals, which is very attractive if you are allergy free.

- We could relax! and not always have to be on the go to find our next meal or place to go.

- We could take advantage of the property for things we would have to pay for if we were staying in a hotel.  In this cabin we were able to swim (at all hours, even the night), have camp fires, kayak, canoe, grill and enjoy the scenery!

- We could play loud music and laugh all night during our spade tournaments.

I'm already wondering where our next vacation rental will be!

xo

Erin

DIY Gourd Wreath

I love decorating this time of year, especially with all the gourds and mini pumpkins you can get from an orchard.  I usually get the gourds and set them on the deck railings or up the stairs but this year I wanted to try something a little different and make a wreath.

I don't love buying materials for DIY projects and tend to make due with what I have on hand, so instead of buying a wreath base I made it all from ivy in the yard.

Items You Need:

 (Giant Dog Not Needed)

Ivy - I used some that was growing up trees in my front yard, I know one kind was English Ivy but I'm not sure what the other type of ivy I grabbed was.  Although, I know it wasn't poisonous, so don't be grabbing any poison oak.  Any branch or ivy (non-poisonous) that is bending will probably work for this.

Wire - I used some floral wire I had on hand. Most any wire will do.

Scissors - or wire cutter

Gourds and/or Mini Pumpkins

Start by making one of the ivy branches into a circle and then secure and then continue to add ivy branches until it looks like a full wreath.  Secure each main branch as you go and I tucked the off shooting branches in where they fit so they didn't stick out everywhere.

Then lay out where you want your gourds and/or mini pumpkins before you start securing so you get the look you want.

Now start securing the gourds and pumpkins to the wreath with your wire.  This is the hardest part.  I have no great way to do this.  A little tip though is to know which way is up when you will be hanging your wreath and wire according to which way gravity will be pulling.

And viola, hang your gourd wreath!

I love how it looks and adds more interest then just setting some gourds on my deck railings.

xo

Erin

 

UPDATE:  We made this wreath our centerpiece at an Autumn dinner party here!