Carlisle, PA

The birthday adventure I mentioned yesterday also included a stop at some spots in Carlisle on our way back home.  Despite it being pretty close to home, I've never really explored Carlisle.  We found some great antique places, a good place to get coffee and macarons, a neat little European food market, and the cutest candy store around.  You can check out some links and more photos from the entire day at Heidi's post, here.

 I am a sucker for vintage metal toys and this drink stand was no exception, but it was sadly out of my price range.  This find is from Serendipity Antique Gallery which also had a great selection of old military items and some really cool old Skee-Ball machines.

 This set of dolls at Northgate Antique Mall is one of many on my dolly wishlist.  I really liked this antique mall and found a couple super reasonably priced treasures.  The European market I mentioned earlier is right next door.

 We went to Helenas Chocolate Cafe & Creperie specifically for macarons and they didn't disappoint!

The macarons were delicious, but the cake at Helena's was to die for!  I had black forest cake, my very favorite, and I think Heidi's was a combination of lemon, blueberry, and lavender.  The downtown area, where Helena's is located, is so charming.  I think it definitely merits some more exploring!

Harrisburg Doll Museum

No one really makes a fuss of your birthday once you become an adult, but I think birthday adventures are a must, no matter your age.  This year, Heidi and I headed to Harrisburg to visit what I'm thinking is my future, a museum full of dolls!  The Harrisburg Doll Museum was something I just stumbled upon online while searching for fun things to do and I am so glad I did.  The museum is run by the sweetest lady.  There's a small shop in the front and then the museum itself is split into rooms of a house, each housing different styles of dolls.  There's also an ice cream parlor that can be rented for parties.  If you are ever in the area, this place is so worth a visit!

 This is the first "room" of the museum and houses the oldest dolls in the collection.  You can see two seriously adorable dolls in the mirror.  Hehe!  These dolls aren't typically my style, but I can certainly appreciate their beauty. 

 The collection of mascot dolls was just amazing!  I am so on the hunt for a Seltzer's Bologna doll for Heidi, after seeing it in this display.

 A lot of the fun for me was spotting dolls that I own and making mental notes of dolls to add to my collection.  See the Nancy and Sluggo dolls towards the center?  My grandma has the Nancy and I'm always on the lookout for the matching Sluggo.

 This is the ice cream parlor and it was filled with my very first doll love, Barbie.  This room is filled with so many dolls I remember from my childhood.

 The bathroom was full of so many cuties!

 These are currently my holy grail of dolls, wooden Girl Scouts!  I managed to find one old eBay listing online, but no luck finding any actually for sale yet.

As if this place was meant for us, there was a whole display of Scouting dolls, you know I love all things vintage Girl Scouts, right next to a display of nun dolls, something Heidi collects and loves!

Winter Adventures

For the very last day of winter break, we decided to let Oscar choose how we should spend the day. He's been really having some separation anxiety in the mornings again, so we thought that making the day a celebration would make for a smoother transition back to school.  He was great at quickly coming up with the idea of packing some snacks, taking a walk in the woods, and then stopping to eat our snacks when we got hungry.  We headed to one of our fairly regular spots, because he wanted a forest with streams and bridges and we knew this part of the Appalachian Trail has some picnic tables that happen to be perfect for stopping for snacks.  The weather and wind were quite chilly, but the sun was shining and the little waterfalls on the stream were lovely.  

  

After making it back to the warmth of our car, we asked Oscar what he wanted to do next.  He asked to go to a museum, not an easy task at 2pm on a Sunday and while in the middle of the woods.  We realized that we weren't far from Mister Ed's, though, and that totally counts as a proper museum!  I do really love this little place and, no matter how many times we visit, I'm certain I see something new every time.  The boys were probably most excited to buy some candy, but they really enjoy exploring the grounds outside the shop and museum too.

Oscar definitely knows how to plan a fun day!  His final choice of the day was to eat pancakes at Cracker Barrel, one of his two favorite restaurants.  After that, we headed home pretty tired from the day's adventure, but ready to start the week!