Mad About Madison

Hello, dear friends.  I hope that you enjoyed your weekend.  Ours was low-key, but we got a lot done. 

A few months ago, my old high school buddy Madalyn, who lives in New York, and I planned a mini-reunion.  We decided to meet in the middle which turned out to be Madison, Connecticut.

The last time that I spent time in Madison was when I was a little girl.  My parents used to take us to Madison for a craft fair hosted by a convent at Christmastime.  

Needless to say, Sista and I were never thrilled to go because we felt that we spent enough time kowtowing to nuns during the week.  But I'll save that for another blog post and therapy session.

Last week was a different story.  I was looking forward to getting to know the town of Madison.  Madalyn was not due to arrive at the hotel until 5ish, so I left early and looked forward to spending a good part of the day browsing Madison Center.

My first stop was R.J. Julia Booksellers.  I had read about this well-known store on the New England Today website which awarded it Best Bookstore in Connecticut.

My first impression of the store was its warmth and charm.  

The relaxed ambiance, substantial inventory, and the bustling of eager customers and helpful sales personnel had me thinking that this would be the ideal setting for a Nancy Meyers movie.

Are you listening, Hollywood?

Speaking of Hollywood, can you see all of those black and white photos on the wall?  They are autographed headshots of stars that have visited the store.

The moment I heard this I started to pay closer attention to the clientele.

The second-floor houses Young Adult and Children's books. This is the YA room.  I bet there is plenty of lively discussion around that lovely antique table. 

The store also has plenty of unique gift items.

And games too!
I gave some thought to buying this one just in case there was a lull in conversation that night.

I took advantage of the on-site cafe.  
It was very busy.

It's no wonder I had to wait for a table - the food was delish.

So many shops, so little time.

My keen window shopping skills brought me inside Maggie's.

This is the lovely owner of Maggie's.  I bet you think her name is Maggie.  Nope.  Her name is Gretchen.  She has owned the store for several years.  She grew up in retail - her parents owned a large shop in Naples, FL.

I wish that I could highlight every piece of Maggie's gorgeous inventory of home decorating as well as gift items.

I don't know why this photo came out so yellow.  I fell in love with this bedding ensemble.  Maggie's has beautiful linens, towels, as well as everything needed to set a stunning table.

Maggie's has an on-site design center including custom furniture.  Gretchen told me that she just finished decorating a beautiful home in my neck of the woods, Hingham.

I bid goodbye to this adorable preppy Santa and was on my way.

My next stop was my new home-away-from-home for the next 24 hours, the Madison Beach Hotel.

I was greeted by Annie, a lovely young lady at the helm of the front desk.  Annie filled me in on this gracious 82 room hotel and all its amenities including a spa. 

She also gave me a free drink ticket.
I knew I was going to like this place.
  

I got this photo off the website because my pic of my room didn't come out very well.  My lovely guest room looked just like this with a gas fireplace and spacious bathroom. 

The room was heavenly, but the view was the show stopper.

I met my bestie, Madalyn in the bar for a celebratory glass of free wine and then enjoyed a delicious dinner in the restaurant.

Even though I had not seen Madalyn in many years, it seemed like yesterday that we were getting in all sorts of trouble with the nuns.  

There I go talking about nuns again!

The next morning I was up in time to take in the sunrise with coffee in hand.

Over breakfast, we perused the yearbook and started planning next year's reunion. 

We agreed on same time, same place.

I'm already counting the minutes. 

Until next time...

Mary Todd Lincoln Coffman at Parnassus Books in Nashville, TN

Linking up with:
Inspire Me Monday
Wine'd Down Wednesday