The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

When I arrived at my beach house last Friday night, the temps were in the high 60s and there was a beautiful sunset.  Ocean City was quiet - no motorcycles or hot rods, and most of the homes in my neighborhood were vacant.  In other words, everything was perfect.

Vintage-look metal sign from Gidgets Gadgets in Rehoboth

After a bit of rain on Saturday morning, the weekend turned out to be sunny and comfortable.  It was perfect weather to hit the Rehoboth Beach outlets and the sidewalk sale on Rehoboth Ave, where I picked up the coolest metal "distressed" sign from Gidgets Gadgets.  After stopping in a few of my favorite stores (LEH Soap Company, Downtown Cowgirl, and Bella Luna), we grabbed some freshly-made Chicken Salad sandwiches at Café Papillon.  They were delicious (as always) and the owner was nice enough to give us some free desserts!  We learned that this coming weekend will be the last weekend of the season for them.  We will have to wait until next year for those delicious crepes and croissants.




Chicken Salad on Croissants at Café Papillon

We stayed in the OC area on Saturday evening to dine at Touch of Italy again with my Aunt and Uncle.  This time, I tried the Fettucini with Pancetta.  The portion size was so enormous that I took 2/3 of it home.  I ate some for lunch yesterday and finally finished it today!  Like the last time we were there, the service was great and, although it seemed busy, we didn't have to wait for a table.


Sunday morning, I awoke to a crisp and sunny Fall beach day.  As much as I wanted to stay in town, there was much to be done up North (plus - the Philadelphia Eagles were playing at 1 PM and I knew that they wouldn't be showing it down there).


As I was driving down Coastal Highway yesterday morning, I was reminded of why I decided to buy a home at the beach.  When the area is not bogged down with tourists and traffic, it is at it's most beautiful.  There is a certain calm that comes along with the shuttered condos and stretches of empty sand.  You get a sense of ownership or, perhaps, a feeling that you are literally sitting in a place where the rest of the world busily toils behind you.  It is, without a doubt, the time and place where I feel most at home.