A New England Christmas on Cape Cod - A weekend in Osterville, MA
As I write this blog post, I can't help but smile when I think about the fun and magical weekend my husband and I enjoyed during a visit to Cape Cod. I was offered the opportunity to stay at a waterfront house rental in Osterville, MA through one of our partners, Sotheby's International Realty Cape Cod - through their Osterville Office. To top it off... the visit coincided with Osterville's annual Christmas walk. Pinch me!
Before I go any further, I would like to thank Realtor, Ellen Valentgas, with Sotheby's International Realty Cape Cod, for our mini-vacation. If you would like further information about the home we stayed at, Ellen's contact information can be found at the bottom of this post.
As we were driving along listening to Christmas music, I realized I threw a couple of necklaces with flashing Christmas bulbs into my purse and I had a bag of clear ornaments in the back seat. The necklaces were going to be put on a wreath, on the front of my car, for the night, but alas, I never got the chance ( I did end up wearing a necklace during the Christmas walk and dinner ;-) ). The ornaments and additional Christmas decor was packed with the knowledge we were going to be hosting some guests for a holiday cocktail party at the home and I wanted to make sure there was some visual holiday cheer. That said, since my creative brain sometimes works in odd ways, I tucked the necklace into the ornament, with the lights twinkling, and draped it on the dash board navigation screen for part of the drive. Did my husband give me that look of "really?" of course he did! Luckily for me he loves Christmas too, so I say... "let the the festivities began at 70 mph!".
Our home away from home - Osterville, MA
Upon arrival, dusk was slowly creeping upon us. We noted the home at the end of the road and was situated on a lot that had water on two sides with views of the marsh, open water, and some pretty grand homes. I found myself already looking forward to seeing the surroundings in the morning. Wanting to get to town before the festivities began, we carried our luggage and the food we brought inside.
There are exterior pictures of the home below, but I was thrilled to see that there were already some holiday touches added to the home. This pillow happened to be in the room we selected for our weekend stay. It was in the upstairs master bedroom; one of a few bedrooms that offered a water view, but I could tell the view from this room in the morning would be amazing.
a large dining table was set with glass candles and live greens.
In the kitchen a large farmer's table has an unobstructed view of the water (as does the dining room table).
Off the back deck: A few of the neighbors set up Christmas trees with all to see.
Osterville's Christmas Walk. I felt like I was part of a Hallmark Christmas show.
We arrived before the festivities of the evening began, and I am so thrilled that we did. I was able to easily peek inside many of the beautiful storefronts and enjoy their Christmas displays. Over the years, I have created a lot of storefront window and holiday displays for clients, so it is always a treat to see the creativity of others.
The window for this Bakery was to die for!
I can't even imagine how long it took to wrap this tree with lights. It was jaw dropping!
We even got a quick glimpse of Santa Claus!
We were given suggestions on where to dine that night, but did I make reservations soon enough? Nope, so lucky we enjoy "playing it by ear" and strolled along the streets until we found a place to eat. We soon found Crisp. With its fire pit and outdoor heaters aglow, we walked up the path like two moths to a flame. We were pleased to find that there were two seats available inside and plenty more outside. Since we were a bit chilled from the walk, we chose to sit inside. Their flatbread pizza was so good; so good that we decided to order it again the next day for our party (more on that later).
The Next Morning
Since we arrived late the day before, we did not get a chance to see the full exterior of our "home away from home". To give you a better understanding of my previous comment "the views from the master bedroom"... My back is to the water while taking this photo of the house. When I woke, I was looking out of the top windows from my bed. Thank goodness the tide was low so that I could follow a path out on the marsh to take this photo.
On the exterior of this Cape Cod home was a wreath adorned with silver-sprayed horseshoe crabs. I loved how creative, unique, and personalized it was! For those of you who do not know about these prehistoric creatures that are still around today, horseshoe crabs molt off their shells each time they grow, so spent shells are plentiful in certain areas. During my short walk on the marsh, I found a few shells myself.
A few interior shots of the home.
The view out the master bedroom window.
Two ghost chairs flank a table in the main seating area. Above, three photos of the Osprey next that is just outside the side entrance.
Like a magpie drawn to shiny objects, this nautical map caught my attention right away. A steady blue light on the map represents the exact location of the home we were in and other flashing or solid lights on the map were showing the exact location of local lighthouses and buoys.
Getting ready for guests.
Time for a party! As luck would have it, a couple of my husband's co-workers and their wives lived close by, so we decided to host a small cocktail party.
I like to create food stations, in multiple locations, when hosting a gathering. This photo was taken before all of the food was set out, but with serving dishes found in the cabinets, I created different height levels. Not only is it visually appealing, you can fit more dishes on a small space.
After enjoying pizza at Crisp the night before, we knew we wanted to serve it to our guests, so we called in an order in and picked it up. Before guests arrived, I re-heated it on cookie trays, then cut it into 1/16ths slices so that it became more of an appetizer. It worked out perfectly!
I brought the fixing to assemble another warm appetizer. Pastry cups with baked brie and cranberries. Just before our guests were due to arrive and just after the pizza came out, I popped these bite-size morsels into the oven; just long enough to melt the Brie and so that they could be served warm.
An impromptu bar was set up in the kitchen bay window. Luckily the home had everything we needed for this casual gathering.
For those who follow me regularly on Instagram, you know I'm an early morning riser ( note how dark it is out the window), but thanks to Ellen, she left coffee for us from the local bakery. We did pack our own coffee not realizing this simple, but much appreciate simple gesture would be here. I was thrilled to see it was from the bakery I photographed the night night before.
Second cup of coffee of the morning and second seating location. There are so many seating locations to choose from! I would have been sitting in the master bedroom chairs that offer an amazing view, but on this morning, my Mister was still snuggled under the sheets and I knew the smell of freshly brewed coffee in the morning would wake him out of his slumber.
Right outside, an Osprey nest can be seen resting within the limbs of a tree.
I hope you enjoyed this visual tour of our holiday weekend on Cape Cod.
For more information about this rental located at 64 Bayview Road in Osterville, MA, please contact Realtor, Ellen Valentgas. She is with Sotheby's International Realty and works out of their Osterville, MA office. Cell - 508-648-5086 or to view her website, please visit ellenvalentgas.com