New England 2005

Six states in Nine Days!

We're here!  Pennsylvania was the first state, but that was just for an overnight stay in a motel, where nothing photo-worthy happened.  Here we're at the shell-filled beach beach at Fairfield, Connecticut (state number two) on day two of the trip.

 

Walking on the beach with Mommy.

The Beardsley Zoo in Bridgeport, CT has a nice "Encounter the Prairie Dogs" plastic bubble thingie that kids love.  Most kids, that is.  Ours was terrified, but, it's interesting to note that this was her second time through it.  The first time--with me--produced the same result, but she asked to do it again!  Her persistence seems to have intrigued one of the prairie dogs.

A calm moment with Mommy a few minutes later.

Nap time back in Fairfield after the zoo.  Ava slept in her own big bed in each place that we stayed.  There were no complaints and no problems, which was nice.

 

A reward for being a good girl for a long stretch on I-95...A stuffed animal toy of one of her favorite characters, "Bullseye" from Toy Story 2.  Her beloved "Jessie the Yodeling Cowgirl" and "Buzz Lightyear" toys are also nearby.

 

But, she wasn't a very good girl later that night at dinner in Newport, Rhode Island (state number three).  I think that her face here reveals some of the mischief bubbling within her that evening, when it took both of us all night to get her to sit still and listen.  Note that Mommy is (as usual) working hard to entertain Ava with one of her many toys and games, e.g., Care Bear stickers.

 

On a beach in Newport the next morning with Mommy.  It was nice, but there was too much red algae to make us want to stay for a long time.  Besides, there was much to see in town, such as...

 

...The Breakers, one of the famous mansions in town.

 

Newport Harbor at sunset.

Asking Mommy for a kiss a few minutes later.

 

The sunset, a few seconds later.

 

In state number four, Massachusetts, Ava was able to see Cousin Susie again.  It had been over two years. 

 

Ava also got to play with Cousins Peggy and Susie together for the first time.  She was doted on all night.

Ava also got to see Cousin Mickey for the second time in ten days, as he'd just visited Ohio for her birthday party.

When everybody went to work (ours was a mid-week visit by necessity), we went to a local zoo and saw Meerkats, among other things.

The next day, she visited Grammy and Opa.  This was the first time that she'd seen them in the very long ten months since they moved to Massachusetts.

When I picked her up from daycare the last day before the vacation began, one of her teachers told me that Ava had been talking all day about going on a trip to see her Grammy and Opa, so, who's the more excited to see who here?

Playing with her different ponies with Grammy and Opa.

It's obligatory to stop and see the Big Duck as you enter the South Fork of Long Island at Flanders, NY (State Number Five).  We knew it was coming up and had some fun asking for Ava to look out the window and tell us if she spotted a large duck.  Here, Mommy was inside buying some trinkets.

Later that day at Montauk, the extreme eastern end of the South Fork of Long Island.  It was a better beach to play on than the one in Newport, but the rocks a few feet into the water were too rough to walk on for long, so time was better spent playing in the sand. We'll have to go to a real beach next summer.

On top of a rock at Montauk Light House with her trusty yodeling cowgirl Jessie.

A minute later, looking back east toward the lighthouse, the easternmost object in the state of New York, and looking like her Grandma Rita again.

Playing near the big sailboat that's inside the swanky East Hampton Point Restaurant.  I'm proud that our bill for lunch will help them pay off the last half of this!  You can check out their menus here.

Reflecting how we all felt after battling the brutal traffic from the Hamptons on I-495 in Long Island all afternoon.  And, this was state number six--New Jersey--in little more than a week.

 

Oh....She was just pretending to be worn out.

With me in front of the picturesque red mill in Clinton, NJ, where I lived (not in the mill, but nearby) when I was Ava's age.

 

A panoramic view of the same spot.

 

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