Doing a house swap is nothing short than a leap of faith. I was a bit nervous to see, in real life, where I had committed us since it was so remote and I had brought my in-laws across the country to join us. We arrived late at night and so the general impression of the area was... dark?

But when we woke up the next morning, we realized what a perfect place this house was.

The house had a screen-in porch with rocking chairs on it. They overlooked the back of the property and it was the sweetest place to start the day. We kept ourselves a bit jet lagged, and were always the first to rise. It gave us the chance to spend the mornings alone with coffee and time to read. After a few years in the city without outdoor space, it was a really nice treat.

But our favorite part about the house was beyond the porch.

Outside the porch and down a little hill ran the sweetest little river. That first morning when we sat together drinking coffee, we knew that we hit the jackpot. (And with it being so low, it was even better because we didn't have to stress over the kids playing in it.)

We spent a lot of our time on the trip playing out there. Wading in the stream. Eating raspberries off the bush. Filling pockets with rocks. And all the other things that I wish Viola got to do more of in London.

(The sweatshirt says "Tallyho!" and I love it.)

While the weather during the day was warm, the temperature would start to drop and hint of the autumn days ahead. It was so nice. (It was the perfect place to break-in some new fall clothing from Joules!)

I love Joules Wellies. They just make something that can look a bit dumpy so much cuter. (Next purchase will be these boots.)

So there you have it. Our successful house swap... and some family pics in the river to commemorate it.

Thank you Joules for sending over the threads. And thank you, Blair, for taking a leap of faith on our place, too.

Have an apartment overlooking the Eiffel Tower? A villa in Tuscany with a vineyard? A cottage on the beach in Nantucket? A picturesque apartment in Spain? We can always be persuaded to swap our 2bd in Notting Hill for the right spot! ;)