A trip to the Bedford Village Inn

Every year after Christmas, my sister, me, and our friends Duane and Lori Lee visit the Bedford Village Inn in Bedford, NH.  We have dinner, exchange presents, and then we tour the inn and view all the beautiful holiday decorations.

We sat in a lovely room with a warm glow. I ordered the pork chop with pomegranate puree, polenta, and cauliflower. It was delicious.  My sister had the halibut and Lori Lee and Duane had pasta fra diavolo.

For dessert, I had the chocolate bag, the Inn's signature dessert.  It is a "bag" made of Belgian chocolate filled with sponge cake, chocolate mousse, assorted berries and whipped cream. I knew I was ordering this before I ever entered the inn!

After we ate, we went to the various rooms to see the decorations.  There were snippets of Robert Frost poems on chalkboards throughout one of the rooms.

This chandelier had a frosty glow, so pretty!  I should steal this idea!

All of the wreaths at the inn were gorgeous. The decorations are always unique.

This dining room looks so inviting. Maybe next time we will request this room. The inn is so old and many of the rooms are very small. It makes for an intimate dining experience.

I love the clock display on this wall. My sister thinks it looks like steam punk.

 A fireplace graces another of the small dining rooms. Any room you choose to dine in is special.  I have eaten in a few different rooms and each experience was enjoyable.  The service is excellent as well.

A number of designers decorate the inn so each room has a totally different look.

If you get a chance to visit the Bedford Village Inn by all means go, you won't be disappointed!

What I did with my week off

I had eight vacation days to use up by the end of the year. I really had no big plans between Christmas and New Year's I really just wanted to relax. So here's the recap of my days off.

Actually I did have some plans. I had tickets to the Nutcracker Tea in Melrose. My sister and friends Lori Lee and Karen attended with me. We knew it was sort of geared to children but I was told adults would enjoy it too.



And I did enjoy looking at all the little girls and boys dressed for a tea party.



The Christmas Tree at Corinthian Hall was lovely and had some very over sized candy themed decorations on it.



The children decorated a castle with candies.



All the little girls were dressed in their party finery. So cute!



I thought this girl looked perfect as she waited for tea.



Then she caught me snapping her photo and well, not so pretty!



A local group of dancers performed some scenes from the Nutcracker. This is the Sugar Plum Fairy.



Our tiered tray was filled with delicious treats- sweet and savory.



Another look at the candy castle.



The ballerinas won over the audience.



Our centerpiece. I loved his hat.




The ballerinas graciously posed for photos with their fans.




And then they served us dessert. One for each of the dances.



Even the cupcake holder had a tutu!




I think the dancers really enjoyed themselves too!



I know the children enjoyed it.



After Christmas we had a blizzard so no shopping after Christmas sales on Sunday. But later in the week I did stop by my favorite store in Concord, Nesting on Main. They had some beautiful decorations for sale at 40% off. Yippee!




Here's the view as you enter the store.



This angel is made of paper. She went home with me. I am thinking she is more of a Winter angel than a Christmas angel and so I can display her through the Winter.



All their displays are so gorgeous.



It really was a Winter Wonderland and it got me to thinking about my New Year's Eve tablescape. I always have a small party on New Year's Eve.



One more photo of Nesting.



While I was driving to Nesting I passed by a farm with a snowy field, very picturesque. Out of the corner of my eye I spied what looked like a beautiful white horse illuminated by the sunlight. I decided to head to Nesting and check it out on my way back.




I was so happy that the horse was still in the same spot when I returned. There was a no trespassing sign so I parked my car and walked down the snowy path towards the horse. He was
magnificent!



A man came down the path almost immediately to see what I was up to. I told him I just wanted to take a few shots of the horse. He proceeded to tell me the story of Drummer.

Drummer was rescued by the man 3 years ago. He was about to go to a slaughterhouse in Maine. He had been abused and was a former dressage horse. He is 20 years old.



Drummer has some good days and bad days. Lucky for me he was having a good day. He is one gorgeous animal and I can not imagine who could possibly abuse him.

The caretaker/owner of Drummer had been planning to put this sign out front. He was putting it up just as I was leaving. I was thankful I had met these two even though it brought tears to my eyes to hear the story. I am so happy that Drummer is now in a loving home.




On to the Bedford Village Inn for another holiday tradition. My sister and I try to meet up with our friends Lori Lee and Duane for a post Christmas dinner. We love to see the Inn decorated for the holidays.

This is the entrance to the restaurant.



This is one of the rooms of the restaurant. We did not eat in this room.



Fast forward to dessert. The big one was my dessert.



My sister had the chocolate pudding cake.

I opted for the chocolate bag. What is it? A chocolate shell filled with cake, chocolate mousee, berries and whipped cream. Yum! I took half of it home to enjoy the next day.



So here's my New Year's Eve tablescape inspired by my shopping trip to Nesting on Main.

Hope everyone is enjoying their New Year! As for me, it is back to work tomorrow.

Holiday Stroll and Brunch at the Bedford Village Inn

On Sunday, I went to the Bedford Village Inn for a holiday stroll and brunch. This was the month for my friend Kim and I to pick an event for our afternoon tea group. We knew the ladies would enjoy the elegance of the inn, the fabulous cuisine and on top of that 30 local artisans selling their wares in the great hall of the inn.



The inn and surrounding property is absolutely gorgeous.



There's a charming tavern for drinks or a casual breakfast or lunch.



A sweet gazebo and a little gift shop.



There were 14 of us in our group. Here are some of the ladies outside the gift shop.




I have a thing for old keys so I was drawn to this jewelry display. The necklaces were lovely and both the keys and chains were antique. I did not buy one. They were a little too pricey.



I did buy some tea and potpourri from this vendor. She had a lovely display.




I thought this wreath was really cool.



Here's an overview of the area with the vendors. The hall was beautifully decorated.




Would you ever think of hanging your Christmas tree upside down? I really like the look.




Isn't this clever? Angel ornaments made from chandelier crystals.




The inn has several dining areas so we took a tour before we sat down for brunch.



This guy looked kind of creepy.



The entrance/exit was exquisitely decorated.



Looking in at one of the dining areas.



My first course was butternut squash and creme fraiche soup.



Lori Lee eyes Debbi's parfait. It was made of vanilla yogurt with chocolate and topped with an orange and cinnamon spiked chantilly cream



This is where we ate brunch.



Pretty decorations on the sconce. I might steal this idea.



My second course was poached eggs in a puff pastry with a mushroom sauce. My third course was a chocolate bread pudding served with creme anglaise and candied hazelnuts. Yes, I waddled out of the dining area.



This photo came out worse than I thought! These ladies were seated at my table. We had two other tables reserved.



Look at this pretty conservatory filled with lights and ornaments.



It was a gorgeous day inside and out!



Another look at "our" dining room.



At the end of the afternoon, we said goodbye to each other and a wonderful afternoon.