The Homesteady

February in the Florida Keys

We just got back from a week with my family on Islamorada, an island of the Florida Keys!

This was our first big vacation in more than three years, and our first multi-night trip with the boys. We drove to NYC in October for one night for my sister's engagement party, and while it felt brave and we had so much fun, it didn't feel quite as big a venture as this. Scroll for a few photos and details about what we did and where we stayed...

We flew into Fort Lauderdale, then rented a car and drove down to the Keys. (The kids did great on the plane; Logan even took an hour-long nap!)

My parents booked a rental that had enough room for all of us, and it was truly the perfect place for our group! We occupied two rooms on the first floor. Miles slept with Kristie and I in one, and we tucked Logan into the other.

We arranged ahead of time to rent all the gear we'd need, like a crib, rocking chair, baby monitor, and even toys that both kids loved. 

The rental has a deep dock right in the backyard (along with a heated pool and kayaks) and wild manatees visited us EVERY DAY!! They were so so sweet. 

Miles and Logan are the only grandchildren in my family (so far!) and it was such a treat to vacation with eight adults. Not only do I really adore my parents, siblings, and their partners, but the extra hands were so helpful. I actually managed to take a nap a few times, and lie in the sun by myself one afternoon for half an hour! Plus no one can make me laugh like this group can.

On Valentine's Day, Kristie and I ditched the kids with my folks and went to explore Village Square right down the street from our rental. The coffee was amazing, the shopping was great, the whole vibe felt like California. 

One afternoon my mom and Miles and I went to the Laura Quinn Wild Bird Sanctuary, which we all loved. It's very very low key and easy to just wander in and explore at your own speed. We saw some beauties. 

So much swimming! Oh, did we swim! Miles loved it, though still was loathe to go under, and Logan liked it too, preferring to be held by someone rather than in this floaty I got from Facebook marketplace before we left, but he did tolerate it. 

We chartered two boats one afternoon: the "grown-ups" went scuba diving, while the rest of us (me, Kristie, the kids) met up with them at a sand bar in the middle of the ocean for an hour of splashing around with a few drinks. This was very, very cool, made tolerable for me thanks to anti-motion sickness glasses (affiliate link). For someone who can conjure nausea just by thinking about being on a boat, these silly things were a game-changer! They really did work, and were funny too. 

As we were about to leave the sand bar, a beautiful big nurse shark swam by the boats, right where we'd been standing moments before. The wildlife really was just amazing the whole trip. In addition to the manatees (never getting over that by the way), we saw egrets, iguanas, pelicans, and geckos right outside our door. Add in two nurse shark sightings, barracuda, tarpons, rainbow parrot fish, and so much more -- Miles is on a big wildlife kick. I hope he remembers this trip for a long time. 

I can't imagine a more perfect trip, really, or a better crew to travel with.

A New England Water Park Day Trip

With baby #2 on the way, my wife Kristie and I wanted to do something special with Miles while we're still a family of three. Preschool was closed recently for a professional development day, so she and I both took the day off and got three day passes for the Great Wolf Lodge in Fitchburg, MA!

Like a lot of people I think, it feels like we really have not done much traveling over the past two years, aside from a day trip to Boston and a few visits to see family, so this felt extra special and indulgent. Especially the latter – visiting Great Wolf Lodge even just for the day was NOT cheap. We'd saved up a little bit, and our three tickets cost around $280 for a Friday during a week that I think was spring break for a lot of schools. (I think if we'd spent something like just $30 more, we could've booked an overnight stay in the hotel too – something we'll definitely look into next time!)

This place basically feels like a casino for kids. There's just so much to do and explore even besides the water parks (six restaurants, a Build-A-Bear, an arcade, a bowling alley), and special events happening all the time, especially for families who stay overnight. We decided to do just a day trip for now to see if we liked it, and maybe go back later in the summer for an overnight with just Miles! 

We got there in the morning and spent the vast majority of our time splashing around in the two indoor water parks. They're amazing and so much fun! Miles had such a blast (and we did too, honestly).

While Miles and Kristie did the lazy river a couple of times (above!) I waited in a long line at Buckets Incredible Craveables to grab some basic lunch (pizza slices, fruit, and burgers), which we ate at our deck chairs in the water park area. Miles had a mini meltdown around then too (asking to go home, saying he was tired) and we listened and decided to leave after lunch. We let him watch an episode of something on his tablet with his headphones on while we ate, and afterwards he was feeling a lot better and ready to play some more. It was so understandable that he needed a little sensory break – it is an overwhelming place. I'm so glad we made it a couple hours longer! 

We also spent a little time in the arcade, and Miles proudly created his first Build-A-Bear before leaving.

A note about Covid safety: There's no vaccine requirement for visitors at the resort, and we were literally the only people I saw choosing to wear masks when not in the water (including most of the staff). I'm not going to lie – it didn't feel great. But we did our best to maintain our distance from others, and to wear our masks most of the rest of the time. 

This was a fun day trip, and I'm excited to maybe go back again in a few months for an overnight stay (while the new baby gets to have a sleepover with the grandparents!) – we just have to start saving now, ha! (I have heard that it's a good idea to look out for the Groupon, though.) 

This trip was not sponsored by Great Wolf Lodge in any way. 

PS – My swimsuit is from Target; I found it on the sale rack of the maternity section and can't find it online, but this one is similar – and maybe even cuter! [affiliate link]

A Boston day trip

Miles's preschool was closed on July 5 for the Independence Day holiday, and we decided to spend it visiting an old friend of mine who lives in Boston.

We packed up the car the night before, and drove the hour and a half east in the morning (even managing to leave a little early for once!). After a year-plus of sticking rather close to home, this was Miles's longest car ride in his memory, and I was feeling a little apprehensive. We'd prepared, though – I used my favorite car trip trick, which is to collect a few new little toys and books, and wrap them in wrapping paper ahead of time. Then we wait until his boredom with other car activities has absolutely reached its limit before pulling one out. The anticipation and excitement of unwrapping an unexpected present is a distraction in and of itself, and then of course there is the toy to play with! On the way home he also watched about 40 minutes on his tablet. 

We met up with my friend at the New England Aquarium (Miles had been there once before as a baby), and then went together to Boston Common for swan boat rides, ice cream, and even a trip on the merry-go-round. I packed our copy of Make Way for Ducklings, which we read in the shade while dipping our feet in the pond, and we visited the duckling statues too. 

This trip felt charmed – which I think was thanks to part magic and part planning. I'm glad we purchased our aquarium tickets ahead of time, and prepared Miles for mask-wearing and hand-holding in the crowds. We followed his lead much of the time, like letting him wade in the Frog Pond with Kristie while my friend and I waited in line for the carousel, catching each other up on our lives. (It was such a gift to reconnect with him.) The day of course featured a couple near-meltdowns and two outfit changes (see soaked shorts below!), but we pulled into the driveway as evening settled marveling at our good, good day. I'm ready for more summer adventures with this crew.

A staycation sleepover at MGM Springfield

Last weekend, my wife Kristie and I had the perfect staycation at MGM Springfield, a new casino that just opened up 20 minutes away from us. My parents came up from CT to spend the night with Miles, and she and I snuck away down 91 after putting him to bed. 

I'd been so curious about MGM Springfield; I think everyone who lives in our area has probably felt the same way since it opened in August. I was really excited when they agreed to let us come visit, and share with you the ideal one-night staycation itinerary (scroll down)!

The room we stayed in was just cool. Like, Pinterest-cool. From the paint color (I kept referring to it as "evergreen" -- what would you call it?) to the gallery wall to the brass hardware and Edison bulbs, everything was on trend and on point.

I especially loved our bathroom. I took these pictures to share here, yes, but also to save for my own future reference.

That brass theme continued throughout the rest of the hotel -- through the hallways, and down to the Lobby Bar. 

Before I tell you about our drinks, I want to mention something. I was so impressed by the level of detail in the decor of each section of the casino that we visited. Down to granular levels, like velvet upholstery, carefully laid-out coffee tables, and mismatched throw pillows. I admire the quality of focus and attention that was evident just everywhere. In fact, we learned that the hotel's decor is inspired by the literary legacy of western Massachusetts -- my inner English major was especially pleased.

Every Friday night in the Lobby Bar is Study Hall, featuring literary-inspired cocktails (like Romeo & Juniper, and Gone With the Gin) and live music. I had the Catcher in the Rye Whiskey, and Kristie had the Peter Cottontail. 

The decor was so lush, and sipping our drinks while perusing the bookshelves, I said out loud for the first time (but not the last), "It doesn't even feel like we're in a casino."

I'd go back to the Lobby Bar again just to spend an evening in "Study Hall" -- even if it weren't connected to the other amazing things we experienced. Sitting in a velvet chair, drinking good whiskey, surrounded by old books? Sort of my happy place. 



We strolled next to the Chandler Steakhouse for a late dinner, and felt immediately transported back to Paris. (Specifically Les Deux Magots, once favored by Ernest Hemingway.) Again, the thought put into each aspect of decor and atmosphere was startling. Everything felt so velvet-y and indulgent and special. Kristie ordered steak, and I salmon. Both were delicious, but what we're really still mentioning to one another is the potato purée.

Here is the one-night itinerary my friend Saviero worked out for us, and for you too. (We didn't do everything on the list, but that's just another reason to go back!)

Friday

5 p.m.	Check in at MGM Springfield
6 p.m.	Study Hall at the Lobby Bar
8 p.m.	Dinner at the Chandler Steakhouse
9:30 p.m.	Post-dinner drinks at Commonwealth

 

Saturday

Morning	Breakfast in the South End Market
10 a.m.	Spa treatment
12 p.m.	Lunch & bowling at TAP
2 p.m.	Dessert/coffee/tea or adult milkshake at Kringle Emporium

The highest compliment I can think of for a hotel bed is that it feels like my bed at home, and this one did. Kristie and I both slept so well! After trying some of the chocolates MGM left for us, of course, and hanging out in our robes. 

The next morning, the South End Market wowed us too. It's a challenge with such a large space, to make it feel comfortable and homey, but somehow they did. No detail was overlooked. 

I don't envy the task of defining intimate-feeling seating in such a large area, but whoever was in charge did a marvelous job. I couldn't help but think while we ate breakfast that Joanna and Chip Gaines would have enjoyed the space. 

(My new motto, above.)

We returned home after breakfast ($6 richer -- thank you, slots) to a baby who, it seemed, had grown years older overnight. I can't overstate what a true departure this felt like. Thank you Saviero for such a thoughtfully crafted itinerary, and MGM Springfield for gifting with us a much-needed night away in exchange for this post. 

Salem season

Another fall weekend, another trip out of town. This time, to Salem, the day before my birthday! My sister Phoebe came all the way from NYC to celebrate with us for the weekend. We were all excited to spend so much time with her, and Miles especially adores his aunt. 

Phoebe arrived to Northampton Friday night, and we all piled into the car Saturday morning to drive to Salem during the baby's first nap. I'm glad we went the day we did (Sept. 29) because come October, parking is closed to all except Salem residents, and visitors must park out of town and take a shuttle in. 

A (grownups-only!) visit to the Big E

In the very last week of September, my wife Kristie and I both took Wednesday off from work. I dropped the baby off at daycare in the morning, ran a few errands, and then Kristie and I drove to the Big E in West Springfield, where we met our friends Brittney and Shana for a day of grown-ups-only fun. (Our sons go to the same daycare!) 

Do you go to the Big E? It's a crazy huge annual fair and expo. Kristie loves it and I like it, and so we try to go each year. Last year we skipped it because I was so pregnant, and the year before I didn't write a blog post, so I'll send you to 2015 if you want to see a visit from years past.

These vibrating chairs are so bizarre. They shake your feet sososo fast, which feels very weird and kind of good after a day spent walking around the fair. 

A day trip to the New England Aquarium

The first of a few recent Saturdays spent away from home involved a last-minute wedding videography cancellation, unexpectedly freeing my wife Kristie for the day. I knew exactly where the three of us had to go with our stolen time together: the New England Aquarium in Boston. 

Kristie and I lived in the city for a little while, almost a decade ago now, before returning to our beloved valley. I worked at a newspaper then, and loved living in Boston. It seems...cleaner, maybe? than NYC. Friendlier in its own unfriendly way. Maybe it's just the familiarity of having lived there that makes me feel comfortable. It's a 1.5-hour drive from Northampton that I got used to making every Wednesday once I started working remotely for the newspaper, and I was happy to sail us eastward on the Mass Pike again, to bring my son to an aquarium for the first time. 

Little Heaven, Rhode Island

We actually spent a weekend in Little Compton, Rhode Island. But you coulda fooled me. 

My cousin married his sweetheart on her family's farm and every inch of the weekend was saturated with love and levity. It was a truly fabulous event (the bride's dress alone!), and the second wedding Miles has attended. The baby, my wife Kristie, and I stayed in a modern rental home with my parents, brother, sister, and sister's boyfriend. The house overlooked the water – we absentmindedly argued over whether it was the ocean, or a river flowing from the ocean. (I know it could be solved with a quick Google search, but I think I'd rather not know for sure. And it doesn't matter. It was beautiful either way.)

This little town...it felt like driving through the wilds of Block Island. Some island, at least. I loved the crumbling geometry of stone walls that framed yards ands fields. Neighbors rode their horses single-file along the side of the street. Kristie and my sister bought iced coffee from a roadside farmstand. During a foggy four-a.m. drive (thanks teething!!) I spotted a fox slinking across the road, and an antlered deer standing unbothered in someone's front yard. 

When it came to the weekend's events, Kristie and I took shifts – she went to the rehearsal dinner on Friday evening and I stayed late at the reception on Saturday (each taking turns celebrating while the other mother stayed home making sure Miles was in bed on time). 

Teething aside, Miles championed falling asleep on his own in the pack-and-play – even for naps. Did you hear me? Even for naps. Oh, my child. How proud I felt – and a little sad that you didn't need me to nurse you and lay in bed beside you to help you tumble carelessly into sleep. (You better believe I jumped at the chance to do so the second day when you were just a little extra fussy.)

How lucky we were to see so many relatives! Twice this year, a wedding brought far-flung aunts, uncles, and cousins (and their dogs) together. It's a treat spending time with them, it really is. I want Miles to grow up knowing them all well. 

I ordered Miles's loafers from Amazon [affiliate link], and bemoaned how big they were when they arrived the day before we left. How would they ever stay on? Just my luck (and a little bit of heartache), they fit perfectly! He's 10 months old, and growing so fast. We all are, I guess, and I'm feeling more appreciative than ever for weekends like these that help slow time down just enough for us to all catch our breath.

A mother-daughter-sister-son weekend trip to NYC

Every summer my mom and I visit New York City to spend time with my sister Phoebe, plus half a dozen cousins who live there too, for a weekend. This year, someone new came along too. 

After vacationing on Martha's Vineyard last month, I was feeling a bit more confident about traveling with the baby – even though this time, my wife Kristie would be staying at home. Of course I was with my mother and Phoebe the whole time, but I was feeling the pressure of being the baby's sole primary caregiver for three days.

I needn't have worried that much, though. Thanks in large part to the women we wandered alongside, and my son's unflagging chillness, it was a great trip. He liked his first train ride (which in turn makes me less wary of that someday first-flight), was largely unimpressed by the tall buildings, and from the stroller waved with both hands at people, dogs, fountains, garbage cans, pigeons. Some even waved back!

Just like in Martha's Vineyard, I thoroughly enjoyed the suspension of our sleep rules and nursed him to sleep for a few naps. He slept sweatily in the crook of my arm whilst we laid on my sister's bed and I read on my Kindle (I just finished The Alienist [affiliate link] for the second time). 

Despite the change in nap scenario, my child blew all of us away when it came to bedtime. The ease with which Miles took to the pack-and-play, whether posted up in my childhood room at my parents' house (we stayed overnight in CT the night before riding into the city, and then somewhat unexpectedly for one night after) or wedged next to my sister's bed in her peaceful bedroom, he slept. He negotiated with himself a little bit – 20 minutes the first night, 10 the next, none at all the final – before falling asleep on his own and letting me spend even more time with family members I love so dearly. I had prepared myself to hold him all night, steeling myself for joining him in a 6:30 p.m. bedtime – and the cosleeper [affiliate link] I'd ordered the week before did itself come in handy in the early morning hours – but by and large we were all swelling with pride at his healthy sleep habits. 

Miles is always happy in the stroller, and we spent time wandering Phoebe's neighborhood of Gramercy. We walked to breakfast, lunch, dinner, around the block. The roasted asparagus and fingerling potatoes at Maman (pictured above) were so delicious. Miles loved the whipped ricotta, and even (surprisingly!) the caper-olive gremolata. Orange juice, however? Hard pass.

I also got to complete the one thing I want to do before I turn 31 in September: get my aura photographed. At Magic Jewelry in Chinatown, I sat for two pictures: one with Miles sitting on my lap (above, left), and one without (above, right). I thought it was interesting that the colors are so different. The aura reader explained that in the left photograph, pink represents love for the baby, and that orange-ish glow at my chest represents the worry I have for him. And in my solo picture, green is creativity and perfectionist tendencies (who, me?). As for blue? Well, blue means tired of course! 

My mom and I ended up leaving the city about 3 hours late, ha! Pretty typical if you know us. Miles napped against my chest in the carrier while we made our way back to Grand Central. A traffic jam on 91 meant that once we arrived back in New Haven, we had another hour to wait until my dad arrived to drive us back to their house. Carrying on the weekend's theme (flexibility and taking cues from Miles), I opted to stay one more night in CT rather than drive all the way back to western Massachusetts. Exhausted (happy), baby and I both slept soundly, and were gleefully reunited with Kristie the next day. 


See past trips to NYC: 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013.

Hello Martha's Vineyard!

Like all beautiful plans, this one started with a spreadsheet. 

My sister and I populated the cells of a Google Sheet back and forth, adding links, amenities, checkboxes. And soon our parents had booked a last-minute deal for an Airbnb on Martha's Vineyard – in Tisbury, to be exact.

The trip was so last-minute, in fact, that all of us couldn't be there the entire time. My siblings' stays overlapped with the beginning and end of ours, our parents and their dog Chance being the common denominators. (Plans are already in the works for next summer with the goal of having all of us together for the vacation's entirety.) 

Kristie, Miles, and I arrived two days into their stay. Miles's mother and I were feeling...let's say, apprehensive, about our first longer trip with the baby – primarily because we three had worked so hard on the baby's sleep. But from our favorite sleep-training book [affiliate link], Facebook group, and everything we'd read on the internet, we were planning to stick to the prevailing advice for traveling families: throw all sleep rules out the window. Get sleep for your baby and yourselves however that makes sense. 

THAT beautiful rule (or lack thereof, really) was a big part of what made this vacation so lovely and perfect for our little family. Miles slept in bed between Kristie and me, and I nursed him to sleep at night and for naps. It was dreamy. I felt tipsy on the closeness and freedom and sweetness of those moments. We all relaxed. Child wanted to be held while drifting off, though, so it meant Kristie and I didn't eat dinner together at all, but rather took shifts around the table with the rest of my family eating and playing Bananagrams [affiliate link] – I don't want to brag (or maybe I do?) but I won every round.

Another aspect of the trip that inspired tension was the travel it would take to get there. Two and a half hours in the car, 15 minutes in a shuttle bus, 45 minutes on a ferry (baby's first boat ride! and glimpse of the ocean!), five more minutes in a car. I was so proud of our babe. He transitioned, wide-eyed, from car to bus to boat to car with such flexibility and ease (well, aside from hearing the horn of the ferry which scared the bejeezus out of all of us), I thought, why don't we do this all the time? (A thought that was quickly repaired by a drive home colored by high emotions from a certain someone. But let's promise to remember only the trip there.)

The house my parents rented was a five-minute stroll from a small public beach that was rocky, but quiet, safe, and lovely. (PS – that's not the house we stayed in, nor is that our car, sadly.) We drove to visit bigger beaches (South Beach and Lake Tashmoo Town Beach). At each one, Miles carefully selected large pebbles that he then tried, unsuccessfully, to eat – I highly recommend, if you can, traveling with five babysitters, each of whom readily swoops in to pry rocks from pudgy fingers, provides an arm to catch a new sitter who sometimes still slowly tips backwards, or cheerily changes a diaper when two mothers who won't be mentioned have just about had enough.

I thought perhaps the baby would feel cautious or even fearful around the crashing waves, cold sea water, or crowds of people, but my child thrived. We dug a shallow hole in the sand and deposited him there with a small bucket clenched in each hand, and there he merrily sat, sneaking a mouthful or two of sand and crowing happily to his grandparents, aunt, and uncles. At Lake Tashmoo, the waves were gentler, and I planted him where they could lick his toes, thinking he'd soon be complaining about the frigid water. To my surprise (again!), there he sat as the ocean visited and retreated – simply issuing a sharp intake of breath each time it lapped around his legs – wholly content.

We continually dodged a marauding family of wild turkeys that lived in our neighborhood as my dad shuttled us all downtown, or to Oak Bluffs. Kristie and I stole away for an afternoon screening of Jaws (the Capawock Theatre plays it every Friday at 2); our group sampled as many different ice cream shops as we could find; my sister Phoebe and her boyfriend Alec took Miles on the Flying Horses Carousel. 

I'm so proud. And so grateful. And my confidence-in-traveling is up – which is good, because Miles and I are headed to NYC this weekend!

Here's a link to our Airbnb. Use this link to sign up and get $40 travel credit for your first trip (I'll get $20 for our next one). Past trips: Cape Cod (plus a video); Maine.