Ringing in the New Years...

We were lucky enough to spend a few days in the city, between Christmas and New Years, with Mitch's sister Danielle and her family!  They drove up from Virginia to explore the city and we had a blast.  We went non-stop and the kids were great sports.  We hit Central Park, Rockefeller, Times Square, Bryant Park, Madison Square, and even made it down to Chelsea Market and the Highline.  We loved spending a bit of the holidays with family, and are so glad it worked out!

Remi all bundled up / Skating in Bryant Park with Jackson

Mitch's parents knew we were going to be in the city after the holidays, so they sent each grand-kid a Toys-R-Us gift card so they could pick something out at the big Times Square store.  It was fun to see what each kid chose, and how each picked something totally different!  

More skating at Bryant Park...and some falling.

You can't do New York City during the holidays without a carriage ride around Central Park! We were lucky enough to have Jayden ride with us.

We may have hit up Waffles & Dinges more than once!  It was just too good, and with their pop-up location just around the corner at Bryant Park, we decided to make it breakfast.  We may have indulged at Dylan's Candy Store and the Donut Plant too. Shhh!

Our weekend ended too soon, but we were happy to have at least a little Brown Family time!

Happy New Year!

Newport...

We love spending time in California's Newport, so we figured, why not check out Rhode Island's Newport!  It was so fun and so charming; we wish we had more days to explore.  We drove to the tip of Long Island to Orient Point and took a auto ferry over to New London.  We pulled out just as the sun was setting, and it made for a gorgeous departure.  

We pulled into Newport and drove straight to the Red Parrot where we had some of the best clam chowder I've ever tasted…for real.  It was official, we were in New England!  The next morning we woke up, had a delicious breakfast at the Hungry Monkey Cafe, and headed toward the Cliff Walk.  Some of it was closed due to damages caused by Hurricane Sandy, but it was still fun to see. We saw the "40 Steps", a place the servants from the nearby mansions used to gather on their time off, and made the walk down to the bottom to get a closer look at the ocean.  

We knew our kids wouldn't be too thrilled about touring more than one mansion, so we chose "The Breakers" because it was the most kid friendly, and famous, of the Newport Mansions.  It was amazing, complete with a 'playhouse' about the size of our actual house.  I enjoyed seeing all of it, but when I asked Finnley what her favorite part of the house was, she said "none of it, it was all boring!" So, if you're traveling with kids, maybe skip the mansions?

Day two started out with another breakfast at the Hungry Monkey (it was yummy)!  Then we were off to explore downtown Newport.  We checked out the Lobster Factory, ate at the Black Pearl, spied the sailboats and did a little shopping.  

Our favorite part of Newport was most definitely the 10-mile drive!  I only wish it was biking weather because it would have been so fun to bike the 10 miles along the coast, amazing mansions, and gorgeous scenery.  Its a must see, whether you see it in the car, trolly, or on a bike!

On my parents last day in New York we headed into the city to show them the World Trade Center memorial.  It always overwhelms me when I think about what actually happened, and how it must have felt to be living in New York City at the time.  After, we hopped on the subway to Times Square to eat potato pancakes and goulash at Junior's - the only reason my dad likes to come into the city!  

As always, we hated saying goodbye. We always have such a great time when my parents come to visit, and we are looking forward to their next visit soon!

Port Jefferson Harbor...

Here I am, playing catch up, again.

If you're like us, Sundays are beautiful, relaxing days.  But, there comes a time - usually around 4pm - that you just have to get out of the house.  One of our favorite spots to burn off some energy is down by the Port Jefferson Harbor.  There are rocks to be thrown, sea creatures to discover, and when we remember to pack them along, bubbles to be popped.  

A beautiful bonus, we usually get to watch the sun set over the harbor, and spot boats coming and going.  We can't wait until the weather warms up again, so we can resume our Sundays skipping rocks in the harbor.

 

East Coast Apple Picking...

A couple weeks ago we headed East to the North Fork of Long Island to Harbes Farm & Orchard for some good old fashion apple picking.  We met up with our friends the Sorbers, and ate apples until our bellies could take no more.  The kids were in heaven - picking, eating, picking, eating, picking, eating!  The weather was perfect too - sunny, with a slight fall chill.  

We filled up our bags with Honeycrisp and Gala apples, and took a few homemade cider donuts with us as well.  The kids loved the train ride back to the orchard, running around the apple trees, and checking out all the exhibits and animals that were out.

It really was the perfect way to kick-off fall.  Now, we just hope this weather holds for a little bit longer...we're not quite ready for another East Coast winter just yet!

We also picked up a huge bag of fresh corn and split it with the Sorbers.  We decided we needed to get together the following day to cook up some of that "candy corn" and had a yummy dinner.  The corn was DELISH.  Thanks for the fun day!

Dieter and Ossie waiting patiently for the cider donuts.

Lake George Olympic Triathlon...

Over Labor Day, we headed up to Lake George, NY to participate in the Triathlon Festival they have each year.  Mitch and I had both completed a couple sprint distance triathlons in the past, and decided we were going to try an Olympic distance this go-round.  It ended up being really fun, and we're excited about doing another.  I was nervous for the almost-mile-swim, but since I survived it, a half-ironman seems very do-able.  Did I just say that?!  We're both hoping to make that our next big race together! 

 

Lake George just happens to be one of the most pristine bodies of water in the WORLD!  It is fed by natural springs below the surface, so the water is super clean.  It was the perfect temperature for swimming, and super clear.  I kept thinking I was going to see a big huge pike swim underneath me.  I would have freaked out!

We both finished at or below goal time, so we can't complain about that.  We weren't quite sure what to expect, and will definitely push ourselves a bit more next time.  We were so grateful for Mitch's parents and that they were able to join us on our road trip and watch our kids that morning. 

 

These kids stole our swim caps and goggles and used them in the hotel pool.  They were hilarious, and kept us laughing.  The next day we took a tour of the lake and headed home.  It was such a fun, short trip, and we hope we have time to check out more of Lake George in the future!

Montauk Point...

A couple weeks ago, Mitch and our friend Josh Psillos decided to ride their bikes out to Montauk Point, the Eastern tip of the south fork on Long Island.  They ended up doing 75 miles and had a great ride.  Katie and I drove out to meet them with the kids, and we all spent the rest of the day enjoying Montauk together.  After lunch at a cute deli in town, we headed to the beach to relax.  We finished off the night with dinner at Bay Burger in Sag Harbor.  It was such a great day, with great people!

Cora & Remi

Finn found this crab leg and was so excited about it.  I guess she decided to keep it because a few days after our beach day I got in the car and it smelled AWFUL!  I said out loud, "ewe, what is that smell?  Is there a rotten sippy in here or something?" Finnley just looked at me and said, "Oh, that's my crab leg."  She had left it in the side compartment of her door and let it bake in our hot car over the weekend.  I told her to throw it away, but a few days later I found it wrapped up in tissue in a plastic baggy in her desk drawer.  This girl is such a hoarder, she makes me laugh.  I finally got her to throw it in the trash, and supervised her in the act!

Finnley has been working on her cartwheel all summer.  Luckily, Katie was a gymnast growing up and gave Finnley some tips to help her out.  She starts gymnastics this fall and is so excited about it!

 

 

 

Thanks Katie and Josh for such a fun day!