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art | art museums | boats | City Guide | Connecticut | family travel | hiking | history | ice cream | museums
10 Ways to Explore Coastal Connecticut during the Summer
ByJennRecord May 4, 2021September 1, 2022
Coastal Connecticut is the title often given to the area spanning from Branford to Old Lyme, which includes the towns of Branford, Guilford, Madison, Clinton, Westbrook, Killingsworth, Essex, Deep River, Old Saybrook, Lyme, and Old Lyme. The area is beautiful all times of year, but especially comes to life during warmer summer months. Conveniently located along Interstate 95 (which runs from the New York to Rhode Island state lines), many of the towns border the Connecticut River or Long Island Sound and offer plenty of riverfront and beachfront activities and open spaces. The area is also known for its numerous contributions to the arts and many museums and educational institutions honor the legacy of famous residents.
Read More 10 Ways to Explore Coastal Connecticut during the Summer
art | art museums | Boston | Colonial Williamsburg | Connecticut | family travel | Jamestown | living history | Maine | Massachusetts | museums | Mystic | Pennsylvania | Philadelphia | ships | Springfield | Virginia | Williamsburg | Yorktown
13 Living History Museums on the East Coast Kids Will Love
ByJennRecord April 5, 2021July 18, 2023
While traditional museums have priceless artifacts and works of art that are important to see (read why here), kids tend to be more engaged when they can get up close to history. One of the best opportunities for kids to engage with live interpreters and engage with tangible artifacts is a living history museum. Living history museums have indoor and outdoor exhibits, interactive displays, and daily programs and informative demonstrations. Many museums even offer summer camps for children. Most museums do close during winter hours (some spots keep indoor exhibits open), so we’re sharing this list now, as everything prepares to open for the 2021 season. Here are 13 of our favorite spots on the East Coast and two more that are on our 2021 list:
Read More 13 Living History Museums on the East Coast Kids Will Love
Connecticut | family travel | hiking | Mystic
10 Family Friendly Places to Hike in Mystic, Connecticut
ByJennRecord January 18, 2021November 12, 2023
One of our recent family goals, and new favorite activity, has been to enjoy the outdoors more by spending time exploring some of the 139 Connecticut State Parks and open spaces; see the full list here. Connecticut has over 210,000 acres of public, open spaces, and we’re slowly making our way through them all.
We spent time this fall exploring the western part of the state- mostly in Litchfield County- and you can read about some of those adventures in this post about 6 family friendly places to hike. This week, we want to share 10 places in the eastern Mystic region of the state we have recently explored:
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Berkshires | Children's Museums | family travel | farms | living history | Massachusetts
10 Things Kids Will Want to Do at Hancock Shaker Village
ByJennRecord August 3, 2020July 28, 2022
Traveling during a still present pandemic: If you’ve been following our adventures this summer, you know that our family has taken precautions to stay safe. We’ve limited our exploration to nearby states with lower COVID cases and to mainly outdoor spaces that take proper precautions to keep staff and visitors safe. Hancock Shaker Village was an easy choice- tons of open space to socially distance, only one family in a building structure at a time (with all doors and windows open to allow for better ventilation), and absolutely nothing to touch. While Hancock Shaker Village is a great place to visit anytime, it’s a very safe bet for family fun during these uncertain times.
Celebrating its 60th anniversary in 2020, the Hancock Shaker Village is the oldest working farm in the Berkshires part of western Massachusetts. The Village was originally home to the Shaker community from the late 1700s until 1959, when it was turned into a museum that includes over 22,000 original artifacts and a research library. The 750 acre complex has a 20 acre working farm, 20 buildings with live interpreters, a massive garden with a very popular Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), and tons of hiking trails, meadows, and woodlands that abut the Pittsfield State Forest.
Read More 10 Things Kids Will Want to Do at Hancock Shaker Village
Boston | family travel | Massachusetts | State Capitols | tour
7 Stops on the Tour of the Massachusetts State House
ByJennRecord January 28, 2020November 7, 2023
Located in downtown Boston, on the south side of Beacon Hill and overlooking the Boston Common and Back Bay, the Massachusetts State House was constructed in 1798 and served as the state house until the mid 1880s. The land where the capitol was built was donated by John Hancock, the first elected governor of Massachusetts and the building remains the oldest on Beacon Hill.
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family travel | Gift Guide | gifts | holidays
Holiday Gift Guide 2019
ByJennRecord November 4, 2019August 29, 2022
It’s the most wonderful time of year- a time for thanksgiving, celebrations, and gift giving! Since my children were born, my husband and I have made a conscience effort to “gift” our children with experiences over tangible items. The material possessions we do gift them are purposeful- educational, enriching, and challenging. The past two years we have shared some suggestions (you can read my 2018 and 2017 gift guides) and this year we’d like to continue the tradition with some new ideas for the children in your life. And read to the end, we’ve got a GIVEAWAY TO LEGOLAND DISCOVERY CENTER!
Read More Holiday Gift Guide 2019