Ocarina at the Village Green Gallery

The Village Green Gallery is just a few steps north of the Vermont Country Store.  The last time Mr. Hunter's family stopped in Weston, we found some lovely and memorable Christmas ornaments there.  

The ornaments, made by an artist named Mary Stone, are clay whistles sculpted in the shapes of different birds like snowy owls and wrens.  We had to visit Village Green again to see if there were any more bird ornaments to tempt us.  

Of course there were!  And not only bird ornaments, but also some charming ocarina sculptures of elephants, rhinos, bears, penguins, and foxes.  We headed on our way after adopting a fox ocarina, a penguin ornament, and a kingfisher ornament.

I didn't dare to put the real Mr. Hunter into the display, so Flat Mr. Hunter had to make a quick (and shadowy) appearance.

Here's Flat Mr. Hunter with a bowlful of bird ornaments by Mary Stone.
Here's a profile of Stone from the Village Green Gallery.

The story of the Village Green Gallery, which was founded
by Japanese photographer Nobushi Fuji'i.

The Village Green Gallery

Weston, Vermont

September 2012

Official site for the The Village Green Gallery - http://thevillagegreengallery.com/

Official site for Mary Stone Clay Whistles - http://www.marystonewhistles.com/

Maple Sugaring Time

We were in Vermont, after all, so we had to stop to admire these maple leaf syrup bottles in the window of The Vermont Country Store.

The Vermont Country Store

Weston, Vermont

September 2012

Coke Glasses

Mr. Hunter's family used to have a few of this Coca-Cola themed juice glasses.  We remember them so fondly and were even tempted to buy a few of them.  Plus, the small and medium sizes of the Coke glasses made Mr. Hunter feel positively tall.

The Vermont Country Store

Weston, Vermont

September 2012

Taking a Cedar Bath

Mr. Hunter discovered his own kind of ball pit to play in at the Vermont Country Store.  And after he'd taken a quick bath in this box of cedar balls, Mr. Hunter also felt protected from any fabric-eating pests he might encounter.

Use cedar balls in your closets and drawers...
for aromatic insect protection.

The Vermont Country Store

Weston, Vermont

September 2012

Old-Time Toys at the Vermont Country Store

After meeting Mr. Bill, Mr. Hunter found himself in the clutches of one of those wind-up monkey toys. He has a smile on his face, so I guess he's okay.  But that monkey looks a bit too gleeful at the proceedings.

It seemed appropriate yet somehow creepy
to pose Mr. Hunter with this Martian Popping Thing.

And here's Lambchop.
Lambchop welcomed Mr. Hunter with open arms.

Vermont Country Store

Weston, Vermont

September 2012

Blast from the Past: Fisher Price Music Box Record Player

One of Mr. Hunter's favorite items at the Vermont Country Store was the classic Fisher Price Music Box Record Player.  I used to love playing with this record player!

The songs on these records were Jack and Jill, Edelweiss, Au Claire de la Lune, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, Humpty Dumpty, Oh Where Has My Dog Gone, London Bridge, Hickory Dickory Dock, Children's Marching Song, and... as you can see, Camptown Races.

Of course, I've just read some reviews of this new version of the classic toy, and it turns out that this newer record "player" is missing some of the most charming features of the original, particularly the grooved records that the record player's arm would actually read to play the songs. 

Oh, well...!

Vermont Country Store

Weston, Vermont

September 2012

Blast from the Past: Tab

Everywhere we looked in the Vermont Country Store, we'd find some product from way back when.

Mr. Hunter and I laughed to see a can of Tab nestled in a cooler filled with ice and cold drinks.  Tab!  We were immediately whisked back to the 70s.  

Vermont Country Store

Weston, Vermont

September 2012

Wikipedia article about TaB - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tab_(soft_drink)

Mr. Hunter Lives His Life with Moxie

Hey, you!  Don't forget to... Live your life with Moxie!

Moxie began not as a soft drink but as a patent medicine called Moxie Nerve Food.  Learn more at the Moxie web site.

Vermont Country Store

Weston, Vermont

September 2012

Drink Moxie official site - http://www.drinkmoxie.com/

Wikipedia article about Moxie soft drink - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moxie

Oh, nooo! Mr. Bill! And Mr. Hunter!

Remember Mr. Bill?

Mr. Hunter made his acquaintance on the shelves of the Vermont Country Store.  Luckily, both Mr. H and Mr. B avoided any misadventures during this encounter.  Although Mr. Bill does look a bit concerned; he's probably warning Mr. Hunter about all the things that could go wrong...

The Vermont Country Store

Weston, Vermont

September 2012

Mr. Hunter, The Candy Man

The Vermont Country Store boasts a selection of what they call Nostalgic Candy.

Mr. Hunter found plenty of scrumptious-looking posing opportunities.

Candy Buttons remind Mr. Hunter of Farrell's Ice Cream Parlours.

Candies familiar and unfamiliar to Mr. H, including
Smarties, Joys (?), Look!, Nut Goodie, Spree, Bottlecaps, and SkyBar.

Mr. Hunter had to pose with the Necco wafers!
Also on these shelves: Bosco milk chocolate bars,
Halvah, Chiclets Gum, and 3 Color Coconut bars.

Hard candy.

In the licorice section, we noticed some cute licorice Scotties.

On one side of the candy room,
there was a big counter devoted to chocolate.
You had your selection of truffles, sure.
But also chocolate covered potato chips!

Doesn't Mr. Hunter look happy here,
nestled among Slopokes, Black Cows, caramels, Squirrel Nut Zippers,
Watermelon Chews, and Lemon Heads?

Vermont Country Store

Weston, Vermont

September 2012

Visit the Vermont Country Store's Candy & Chocolate section online 

to see if they sell your favorite sweets.

Snacking His Way Through the Vermont Country Store

You can't find everything at the Vermont Country Store, but when you're browsing the shelves, you're likely to find enough surprises and products that are old friends that you want to keep looking, just in case.

You might recognize a familiar face on the shelves
with the jellies and preserves.
That's a canister of Vermont Common Crackers for some jelly tasting.

Mr. Hunter was hoping to find some squashed-fly biscuits--
indeed, he did find them further on in the store--but first he posed
with these similar-looking fruit biscuits.

Raspberry Wasabi Dipping Mustard
from Robert Rothschild Farm.

I took this photo in honor of Krumbs.

Ovaltine and Postum.

Mr. Hunter's uncle is a big fan of Otter Creek's seasonal Oktoberfest beer.
But if you're tempted to buy it, remember that you can drive to the grocery store down the road
 in Londonderry, where they might have Otter Creek beers for better prices.

Mr. Hunter found some of those Garibaldi "squashed fly" biscuits.  Yum!
And yes, he bought some of these.  

Vermont Country Store

Weston, Vermont

September 2012

Shopping at the Vermont Country Store

From the store's front on Main Street, the Vermont Country Store doesn't look like it would contain too much.  But when you step inside, you'll find a series of rooms stretching pretty far back, with sections dedicated to cheese, snacks, household items, Christmas decorations, clothes, kitchen tools, candy, toys, and even one area showcasing a variety of old-fashioned scales.   It's a fun place to browse.  And shop. ... And, of course, a great place to take pictures of Mr. Hunter.

Vermont Country Store

Weston, Vermont

September 2012

Official site for the Vermont Country Store - http://www.vermontcountrystore.com/store

Mr. Hunter Recommends... Bryant House Restaurant

Mr. Hunter and family made the trek to Weston, Vermont, to visit the famous Vermont Country Store.  And we timed our visit so that we could eat lunch at Bryant House restaurant.

Potato bacon soup.
Seriously decadent and utterly delicious.

One Bryant House specialty is the chicken pot pie, which is topped with biscuits.

Indian Pudding served in a classic Corningware dish.

Bryant House Restaurant

The Vermont Country Store

Weston, Vermont

September 2012

Official site for the Bryant House Restaurant -

http://www.vermontcountrystore.com/store/company/static/Visit-Us/Bryant-House-Restaurant