A little over a week ago, I took a day off from work, and we all hopped in the car for a 3-day weekend in lovely Lancaster County, PA.
We’d done the HomeAway.com thing before, and 3/4 of us had done the Lancaster thing before, but we’d never done both together. A few weeks before our trip, I chose a pretty little house to stay in. I decided that I would be happy there, even if it rained all weekend. Bad weather would mean that I could sit in that lovely clutter-free house and knit for 3 days straight – what’s not to love about that?
Peach Bottom
So, Thursday evening arrived and we made our way to “Lancaster County’s Southern End Junction,” aka Peach Bottom, just a few miles from Maryland. We pulled up next to the house, and took a look around. The property shared a parking lot with what seemed to be some kind of Municipal scrap metal yard. And the house itself, which was a duplex, was only partially finished being renovated.
We had plenty of time to contemplate our surroundings, because a miscommunication with the property owners meant we didn’t know how to get inside.
Outside
So, there we sat for about an hour, darkness approaching, surrounded by old trailers and car parts, wondering if we’d made a big mistake. Neil was ready to pack it in and go home, but home was 2.5 hours away! We eventually got back in the car and started heading North. All the while, I was still holding out hope that we’d get a hold of the owner. I hoped we would be so happy with the inside of our half of the duplex that we wouldn’t care about the view out the window.
And that’s exactly what happened. At least, that’s how it happened for me. If Neil were to share his version, it might look different. He wasn’t as eager to turn a blind eye to the environment as I was, but what can I say? I had already set my heart on a creative weekend away in a pretty house.
I know I’m weird, but almost as important to me as the relaxing knitting time, was the new surroundings in which to photograph the relaxing knitting time. The idea of going back home to the same old cluttered scenery, or worse – landing in a badly-decorated hotel – almost made me want to cry. I’d been so looking forward to this little getaway!
So, we eventually made contact with the (very apologetic) owners and got into the house. I was giddy, imagining the vignettes I could photograph. And Neil, still not sure about the whole thing, was doing his best to suck it up and take one for the team 😜
In the House
I thought it was perfect inside! Bedroom, living room, dining room, kitchen, all nicely decorated, and with fresh flowers on the table. There were two other bedrooms that I would have photographed, except the boys had already made themselves at home in them. As far as I was concerned, the aesthetics were already severely compromised before I got the camera out 😂
My favorite spot, hands down, was the dining room table. I don’t have anywhere this nice to photograph my breakfast at home. And I loved the mug I found in the kitchen: “Make today amazing.” Challenge accepted!
BTW, I made coffee several times, and kudos to Neil for not complaining. That made me very happy. I tried to keep the smell down, just the same, by brewing right next to the open window.
Sunny Days
As it turns out, the rain we’d been expecting all weekend barely materialized. This meant that I didn’t spend as much time knitting as I’d expected. I envisioned having a big chunk of the Taryn Shawl pattern worked out by the end of the trip, but it didn’t happen.
And it was all fine, because that made time for exploring the beautiful rolling farmland nearby…
…visiting the Susquehanna River (a bonus, because we’d never consulted a map and had no idea it was even there 😉)…
…playing outside with sparklers, and experimenting with star photography.
As you can see, I took plenty of pictures, inside and out. It was a super photogenic weekend, which makes it a huge success in my book.
So, would we stay in this particular house again? It depends on who you ask. If it were up to me, I’d do it again. I thought the insides were lovely. And you only had to drive a quarter mile or so before the scenery outside was equally as enjoyable. Plus, I thought our hosts did all they could to make up for our initial miscommunication. They’re newbies at this home rental thing, and I wouldn’t hold it against them. In fact, I think it would be fun to go back sometime when the other half of the duplex is complete, and share the house with some friends or family!
Great attitude Lisa!! And beautiful trip!
Thanks, Chloe! It was really a nice time, despite a slightly bumpy start, and I wish we’d had a few more days!
I used to live in Delta, PA, which is very close to Peach Bottom. I loved it there, and miss it very much. Your photo are gorgeous!
I hope I brought back some happy memories with those images 🙂 I would love to live there – the scenery is so beautiful!
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