day 3: bennington, vt to chester, vt to portsmouth, nh

day 3: bennington, vt to chester, vt to portsmouth, nh

It’s just not a trip to Vermont if you don’t make it to Sonny’s Blue Benn Diner for breakfast:

Blue Benn and Blue Lollipop Road

If you have followed here for any bit of time, you have definitely heard about this place before. I am a serious repeat offender. The Blue Benn has long been written up and praised in publications like the New York Times, countless magazines and a bunch of road food books, but even with all that mega-popularity, I love that it’s always stayed the same:

(Yikes. I’m also a bad hair day and outfit repeat offender! After watching this video I am thinking my no shopping and same haircut for about 5 years habit might need to be broken…)

I digress…back to the good stuff:

I asked Jeannie, one of the always friendly Blue Benn Waitresses if I could ask her a few questions before our breakfast came out:

…as we nibbled on a fresh made cinnamon sugar doughnut for an appetizer:

Blue Benn doughnuts

Finally, scrambled eggs, perfectly seasoned red potato hash browns, and homemade sourdough toast:

Blue Benn breakfast

Of course I had to snap a photo of this sign that made me laugh:

Blue Benn Diner signs

Blue Benn breakfast builds strong bones and big muscles!

Blue Benn muscles

With a full belly, it was off to NH on a much different route than I would usually take. Detours a plenty because of Hurricane Irene which added a bunch of miles and time to my destination, but I am more than Ok with that. Detours and new roads mean new things to see and new people to meet. Like this super cool truck I spotted:

Roadside trucks

Unfortunately in this detour case, there was some damage to be seen:

Hurricane Irene

Hurricane Irene

Hurricane Irene

A couple miles from the above sad scene, I spotted this lighthearted display on the side of the road:

Hurricane Irene- lighthearted

…and once again had to whip out the video camera. (Boy, I am really digging having a video camera along with me this go- around!):

I saw a few people across the street, so had to ask them if they knew what the deal was with the above. Turns out, one of the women was the creator of the fun scene. Meet Kim:

We agreed making good out of a not so good situation helped keep spirits up and was needed for worker morale. Kim also talked about how her quirky set up had brought the neighbors together; They had started coming over and asking if they could add more to her project. (Yay! Neighbors banding together!) I wonder what the display will look like in another week! (Kim if you are reading this, thank you for the chat. I’d love for you to send me any photos in the coming days/weeks of the additions. I will post them here of course!)

I kept on my way, and was giddy to pass a lemonade stand with a bunch of adorable kids around it. I was a lemonade stand entrepreneur myself when I was a little girl, so I make sure always to support my peers in business (even the ones that are 25 years younger.) Meet Aeden, Anika, Ella, and Gwen

Cutie-pies at a lemonade stand

Would you believe I did not stage this? I mean, not only is this the most perfect looking lemonade stand structure, but these 4 girls were like the poster children for cute, and they were raising money for Hurricane Irene victims. (And did you notice that hat on Ella? Just precious.) The best part of all of this was that they were really working well together like a perfect team, and they were smart and organized.

There were a bunch of adults milling around (that I asked permission to take this photo) as there was a bbq happening and a wine and cheese shop open on the property. I spoke with several friendly women who turned out to be the girls Mother’s, Grandma, and Aunts. They asked if I was a reporter and were curious about my car and website name on the side of it. As I was chatting with this sweet group of kids and adults, it dawned on me; The blue lollipops! I have a couple boxes in tow, have had them for a few months now. I’ve never once given what I protect as the most special lollipops ever made- out to a single “stranger” yet in my travels. (I have racked my brain as to how best to gift these out to the special people I meet and spend time with. These blue lollipop are so much more than piece of candy to me.) So, as I was standing in the sun, sipping my .50 cent lemonade on this sunny and warm Sunday, I felt like the world went silent for a moment.  This was the time to gift the first special lollies. A butterfly fluttered in my stomach, and I excitedly grabbed them to give the girls each one. (After asking mom of course.) They immediately ripped the wrappers off and in no time were sticking out their blue tongues to each other, not even being coached by me to do so. To you few women out there who will read this, and fully understand the overwhelming feeling of joy and memory I had watching this scene- hello! Remember these times? 🙂

Blue lollipop tongues!

As I look at this photo, all I can do is smile. (Really? Can I not get through this portion of the post without tearing up?) Such the perfect moment of pure fun and friendship.

I drove away grinning ear to ear as the girls yelled after me: “Come back soon, come back soon!!!” I am still grinning now, 8 hours later. Thank you girls. Driving past your lemonade stand on my detour today was serendipitous, and you gave me a precious gift I won’t forget.

After near 5 hours in the car, I rolled into Portsmouth to be whisked away immediately by a gracious host to a dinner bbq at an absolutely gorgeous Rye Beach house. I left my cameras in my purse as I was busy meeting new friends and having good food and conversation. A very late 2am night again now getting all the days photos, videos and stories uploaded and here to share and make sure I fit it all in. I have a feeling this will be my normal routine over the next couple weeks; full days and staying up much to late to post here, finally hitting the pillow fully exhausted falling asleep like a baby with a big fat smile on my face. Now that’s what I call a good day.

Up tomorrow: Exploring around the gorgeous NH coast!

***(Side note here to say I have been having a blast finally doing video posts starting a few days ago! I am clearly a rookie and don’t have a team of media peeps along in this particular ride, so thanks for being patient with my shaky hands and sporadic snippets. Next go around I am so bringing a videographer along! Ohh- that gives me a few ideas. If anyone out there is interested in talking about some Blue Lollipop Road video stuff, drop me a line!)

***Total miles driven today, day 3: 223

***Total miles driven since trip start (9/2/11): 563

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