Got Summer Plans?

[Letsgohuskies11]

Been on paternity leave the last couple of months. I need to escape NYC for a week or so before returning to office but the wife thinks is a bad idea.

Is it okay to drive out 2-3 hours away with a 10-week baby for a 4-day shore getaway? For the experienced folks - would you recommend it?

In my head I don't see the big deal as long as you bring everything the baby needs. But wife is making a big fuss about it.

Really depends. If you time it right during their nap, you could get lucky and they sleep for a bunch of it. Is there a compromise to find somewhere closer? There's tons of shore with in an hour or two of NYC unless you are specifically trying to go to a place.

 

[Imdone]

Currently riding from Florida to Lebanon Tenn for BMW motorcycle owners national rally, then to Nashville for a few days. Riding to the Keys in July. Then trip to Sturgis SD area in August. Finally a month at Lake Winnipesaukee in Sept / Oct.
Lot's of riding this summer ... escaping the Florida heat and humidity.

 

[Rocktheworld]

Family reunion at some Autocamp in late July and OBX (Duck this year) a couple weeks later in August.

My folks have a place in Corolla. Not sure how well you know the northern part of the island but I can definitely help with food/booze recommendations

 

[Rocktheworld]

Summer is basically already over for me, burned through all my PTO last year for wedding stuff and holidays, just had a two-week honeymoon in Nice and northern Italy. Incredible. Maybe I’ll get down to OBX after Labor Day once rental season officially ends. Also just bought a starter home (North Grafton MA) and we are cleaning/painting/moving over the next few weeks. And we rescued a puppy (now 8 months old) in February so that complicated plans. And obviously we have no money either now. Maybe we make a few day trips up to Maine or CT/RI coast but don’t anticipate much. Probably also will be looking to check out neighboring towns for good breweries/restaurants and get a feel for Worcester county. Will just be living off fresh memories of the honeymoon

 

[CCSUblue]

My folks have a place in Corolla. Not sure how well you know the northern part of the island but I can definitely help with food/booze recommendations

Have been going down there for 10+ years rotating years between Corolla/Duck and Nags Head. Always hit up Corolla Village BBQ when we're up north. That said, were always open to recommendations!

 

[HuskyHawk]

Summer is basically already over for me, burned through all my PTO last year for wedding stuff and holidays, just had a two-week honeymoon in Nice and northern Italy. Incredible. Maybe I’ll get down to OBX after Labor Day once rental season officially ends. Also just bought a starter home (North Grafton MA) and we are cleaning/painting/moving over the next few weeks. And we rescued a puppy (now 8 months old) in February so that complicated plans. And obviously we have no money either now. Maybe we make a few day trips up to Maine or CT/RI coast but don’t anticipate much. Probably also will be looking to check out neighboring towns for good breweries/restaurants and get a feel for Worcester county. Will just be living off fresh memories of the honeymoon

North Grafton will probably be an upcoming town in years to come. Good commute location and not overpriced yet.

For breweries, obviously you're close to Treehouse in Charlton. There are some decent ones in Worcester, Greater Good, Wormtown, some others. Armsby Abby in Worcester is an absolute must visit location, Hill Farmstead on tap and good food. You are also close to Cold Harbor Brewing in Westborough, which is solid and has a full restaurant. 146 also gives you quicker access to Providence than you might expect. Nashoba Valley winery is a nice date/couples spot with your wife. BT's Smoke house in Sturbridge is the best BBQ in the area. Julio's liquors in Westborough is a top tier shop for beer and spirits.

 

[DCHuskyFan]

Summer is basically already over for me, burned through all my PTO last year for wedding stuff and holidays, just had a two-week honeymoon in Nice and northern Italy. Incredible. Maybe I’ll get down to OBX after Labor Day once rental season officially ends. Also just bought a starter home (North Grafton MA) and we are cleaning/painting/moving over the next few weeks. And we rescued a puppy (now 8 months old) in February so that complicated plans. And obviously we have no money either now. Maybe we make a few day trips up to Maine or CT/RI coast but don’t anticipate much. Probably also will be looking to check out neighboring towns for good breweries/restaurants and get a feel for Worcester county. Will just be living off fresh memories of the honeymoon

Did you make it to Turin at all? We are going there for 4 days before Munich.

 

[SoFla Steve]

I'll be traveling to CT for the 4th, Labor Day and Thanksgiving. I'm hoping to reschedule the trip to Ireland that got cancelled at the beginning of Covid.

 

[nomar]

Portugal is great, completely biased opinion since I have a house there. We were supposed to go this year but the kids convinced my wife we should go back to Aruba. So we will be going to Aruba in August.



Do it. My son and daughter had been to 5 countries before turning 5. We took my son to Europe at 3 months old and my daughter on long trips starting around that age too.

Kids.

I've been to Aruba many times, and if I had to pick between Aruba and Portugal in March, Aruba would sound great! I'm sure it's nice in August but so is wherever you're visiting from, unless it's Australia.

I'm excited about Portugal. Should be fun.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

Long weekend in Napa when the kids are gone, that's about it this year. We're both working like crazy. We're trying to sneak in a quick trip to Mexico City at the end of the summer when they're both back in school. Blowing it out with the whole extended family in the Caribbean for X-Mas and New Years so I'm geeked about that.

 

[ecasadoSBU]

Summer is basically already over for me, burned through all my PTO last year for wedding stuff and holidays, just had a two-week honeymoon in Nice and northern Italy. Incredible. Maybe I’ll get down to OBX after Labor Day once rental season officially ends. Also just bought a starter home (North Grafton MA) and we are cleaning/painting/moving over the next few weeks. And we rescued a puppy (now 8 months old) in February so that complicated plans. And obviously we have no money either now. Maybe we make a few day trips up to Maine or CT/RI coast but don’t anticipate much. Probably also will be looking to check out neighboring towns for good breweries/restaurants and get a feel for Worcester county. Will just be living off fresh memories of the honeymoon

Busy and productive year for you bud. Congrats!

 

[Rocktheworld]

Have been going down there for 10+ years rotating years between Corolla/Duck and Nags Head. Always hit up Corolla Village BBQ when we're up north. That said, we’re always open to recommendations!

The cheesesteak place is actually solid. Been to the beirgarten past the lighthouse? Always a favorite for us. Wish Corolla pizza was better but there really aren’t any good pizza options anywhere down there. They’re building up the area by the horse beach, including some Cantina type place that could be good but looks not so great online. Haven’t been yet

Otherwise we mainly eat in/around Duck so I’m sure you know all the places.

 

[Rocktheworld]

Did you make it to Turin at all? We are going there for 4 days before Munich.

Nope, went from Nice to the Cinque Terre (made a pit stop overnight in Portofino), then cut up to lake Como (pit stop overnight in Modena), then spent a couple nights in Milan and flew out from there.

If I ever do a combined Switzerland/Italy trip then Turin would probably be on the wish list

 

[Rocktheworld]

North Grafton will probably be an upcoming town in years to come. Good commute location and not overpriced yet.

For breweries, obviously you're close to Treehouse in Charlton. There are some decent ones in Worcester, Greater Good, Wormtown, some others. Armsby Abby in Worcester is an absolute must visit location, Hill Farmstead on tap and good food. You are also close to Cold Harbor Brewing in Westborough, which is solid and has a full restaurant. 146 also gives you quicker access to Providence than you might expect. Nashoba Valley winery is a nice date/couples spot with your wife. BT's Smoke house in Sturbridge is the best BBQ in the area. Julio's liquors in Westborough is a top tier shop for beer and spirits.

Yup know treehouse well and know of cold harbor, that’s high on the list of next place to see. And yeah I’ve seen that we are basically equidistant with Boston and Providence, plan on taking advantage of having Providence close by.

Been to Bay State in Worcester and love it since it’s dog friendly inside and the food has actually been solid

We are only planning on being in this townhouse 5-8 years until kid 1 is school age, then re-assess. Know that grafton already has very solid schools, hoping that property values indeed keep going up. My commute to/from Cambridge is gonna suck, but my dad commuted from central Jersey to Saks 5th Ave and back every day for years, so I’m just going to suck it up. Wish we could’ve gotten something along the Fitchburg commuter rail line but those towns are all super expensive besides Maynard, then eventually you’re out in the weeds in Ayer

 

[J187Money]

Cabo for 3 weeks - other than that the pool at the house (if we ever get a sunny weekend again).

 

[CCSUblue]

The cheesesteak place is actually solid. Been to the beirgarten past the lighthouse? Always a favorite for us. Wish Corolla pizza was better but there really aren’t any good pizza options anywhere down there. They’re building up the area by the horse beach, including some Cantina type place that could be good but looks not so great online. Haven’t been yet

Otherwise we mainly eat in/around Duck so I’m sure you know all the places.

Beergarten is nice. A cantina would be nice. Hasn't been much good up there like that since bad bean closed their Corolla location years ago.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Yup know treehouse well and know of cold harbor, that’s high on the list of next place to see. And yeah I’ve seen that we are basically equidistant with Boston and Providence, plan on taking advantage of having Providence close by.

Been to Bay State in Worcester and love it since it’s dog friendly inside and the food has actually been solid

We are only planning on being in this townhouse 5-8 years until kid 1 is school age, then re-assess. Know that grafton already has very solid schools, hoping that property values indeed keep going up. My commute to/from Cambridge is gonna suck, but my dad commuted from central Jersey to Saks 5th Ave and back every day for years, so I’m just going to suck it up. Wish we could’ve gotten something along the Fitchburg commuter rail line but those towns are all super expensive besides Maynard, then eventually you’re out in the weeds in Ayer

Are you driving or taking MBTA to South Station and Red Line north? Either are indeed pretty bad.

 

[huskeynut]

Alaska in July for us. Cruise leaves out of Portland. Celebrating our 50th anniversary.

August is the annual trip to CT to see two of ours sons and 4 grandsons.

Staying home in September but October we are heading for Japan. 3 day layover in Hawaii to do some sight seeing including the USS Arizona. Then on toTokyo and from Tokyo to Okinawa to see our third son. The three of us will be taking a 6 day cruise around Japan. Looking forward to the stop at Nagasaki.

 

[Rocktheworld]

Are you driving or taking MBTA to South Station and Red Line north? Either are indeed pretty bad.

The best I could do would be go to Boston Landing and take a scooter up from there to Cambridge (I work right by Harvard). But that isn’t super viable, especially given weather. We are only a 10 minute drive from the grafton station, which is nice (and only a mile from the pike) but along with the $300ish monthly pass for being so far out, doesn’t seem worth it.

 

[Conndog]

For the 5th year in a row, to finish kitchen remodel

 

[HCCForever]

The cheesesteak place is actually solid. Been to the beirgarten past the lighthouse? Always a favorite for us. Wish Corolla pizza was better but there really aren’t any good pizza options anywhere down there. They’re building up the area by the horse beach, including some Cantina type place that could be good but looks not so great online. Haven’t been yet

Otherwise we mainly eat in/around Duck so I’m sure you know all the places.

I've never been to Duck but need to go there this summer. The wife and I usually grab a bunch of seafood around Nags Head. She loves the OBX as much as I do which is welcome and also rare.

 

[HooperScooper]

Yup know treehouse well and know of cold harbor, that’s high on the list of next place to see. And yeah I’ve seen that we are basically equidistant with Boston and Providence, plan on taking advantage of having Providence close by.

Been to Bay State in Worcester and love it since it’s dog friendly inside and the food has actually been solid

We are only planning on being in this townhouse 5-8 years until kid 1 is school age, then re-assess. Know that grafton already has very solid schools, hoping that property values indeed keep going up. My commute to/from Cambridge is gonna suck, but my dad commuted from central Jersey to Saks 5th Ave and back every day for years, so I’m just going to suck it up. Wish we could’ve gotten something along the Fitchburg commuter rail line but those towns are all super expensive besides Maynard, then eventually you’re out in the weeds in Ayer

Cold Harbor isn't too far from my house and I've been many times. Nice place. Beer is pretty good. Nothing like Tree House or Trillium but it's solid. Definitely better than a lot of other breweries around here.

Commuting from Grafton to Cambridge is going to wear on you. My brother-in-law did Grafton to Back Bay in Boston for a couple years before he just couldn't do it anymore and then moved closer to Boston. Suck it up and save as much money as you can so you can move closer to Cambridge. Are you planning to drive or take the commuter rail? Both suck. Driving because the traffic is horrendous. I do it everyday although I work from home in the morning and go in later so I can miss the morning traffic. Commuter rail because you have to get to Cambridge from a stop in Boston. Yeah would have been easier if you could have bought up north on 495 and taken the Fitchburg line. Is the area around Littleton that much more expensive than Grafton? Obviously Concord and Acton are very expensive. But other than that I really don't know the home prices in that area.

 

[Rocktheworld]

Cold Harbor isn't too far from my house and I've been many times. Nice place. Beer is pretty good. Nothing like Tree House or Trillium but it's solid. Definitely better than a lot of other breweries around here.

Commuting from Grafton to Cambridge is going to wear on you. My brother-in-law did Grafton to Back Bay in Boston for a couple years before he just couldn't do it anymore and then moved closer to Boston. Suck it up and save as much money as you can so you can move closer to Cambridge. Are you planning to drive or take the commuter rail? Both suck. Driving because the traffic is horrendous. I do it everyday although I work from home in the morning and go in later so I can miss the morning traffic. Commuter rail because you have to get to Cambridge from a stop in Boston. Yeah would have been easier if you could have bought up north on 495 and taken the Fitchburg line. Is the area around Littleton that much more expensive than Grafton? Obviously Concord and Acton are very expensive. But other than that I really don't know the home prices in that area.

Man I definitely wouldn’t drive into Back Bay. At least I get off the pike a little sooner back at the Allston/Cambridge exit. My work day also starts earlier than most so I know I’ll be beating a decent amount of the commute in the mornings at least. Definitely hoping to move closer to the city in 5ish years… or who knows we may move to CT if I can get a job with Yale New Haven or Hartford Health.

Littleton is indeed expensive. The top of our budget wasn’t good enough for a home the size and quality we wanted. Weird how many 1.5 bathroom houses there are in this state. And most places up there (within our range) needed a fair bit of work; our place was finished in 2005. I also considered how “young family ready” a given town was. I like that Worcester and UMass Health are right there, and just that there are plenty of options for OB/GYN, pediatrics, dental, etc… when you live out in Westford, what happens if you don’t like the one internalist in the town? Schlepp over to Lowell?

 

[Rocktheworld]

Beergarten is nice. A cantina would be nice. Hasn't been much good up there like that since bad bean closed their Corolla location years ago.

Totally forgot about Urban Kitchen at the Harris Teeter in Corolla. Next to a pour-your-own beer bar and a donut shop. Been three times; consistently excellent food. Have a feeling it flies a little under the radar.

Whale head brewery is a relatively newcomer too and I enjoyed it.

 

[QDOG5]

Road tripping Chicago to Denver next week. Stopping in Omaha to break up the drive on the way out. I told my wife that I intend to wear UConn gear all over Omaha. Going to check out the sights in Denver for a few days. We will meet up with some friends and see a Rockies/White Sox game(we should be paid to watch it). On July 4th we'll see a concert at Red Rocks (Blues Traveler, Gin Blossoms, Spin Doctors). After that we head down to Manitou Springs and take the train up Pikes Peak and finish the trip off hiking around Rocky Mountain NP. On a side note, in 2013 I participated in the Pike Peak Ascent. Which is a half marathon up Pikes Peak(a guy from West Hartford won it that year). The next day they run a marathon up and down the mountain. Many participants do the double. Not me If any of you extreme fitness folks are interested look it up or PM me.

Ascent

The Pikes Peak Ascent is a grueling 13.3 mile race from Manitou Springs, Colorado, to the 14,115 foot summit of Pikes Peak. With a vertical climb of 7,800 feet up the historic Barr Trail,...

www.pikespeakmarathon.org

 

[RuffRuff]

Road tripping Chicago to Denver next week. Stopping in Omaha to break up the drive on the way out. I told my wife that I intend to wear UConn gear all over Omaha. Going to check out the sights in Denver for a few days. We will meet up with some friends and see a Rockies/White Sox game(we should be paid to watch it). On July 4th we'll see a concert at Red Rocks (Blues Traveler, Gin Blossoms, Spin Doctors). After that we head down to Manitou Springs and take the train up Pikes Peak and finish the trip off hiking around Rocky Mountain NP. On a side note, in 2013 I participated in the Pike Peak Ascent. Which is a half marathon up Pikes Peak(a guy from West Hartford won it that year). The next day they run a marathon up and down the mountain. Many participants do the double. Not me If any of you extreme fitness folks are interested look it up or PM me.

Ascent

The Pikes Peak Ascent is a grueling 13.3 mile race from Manitou Springs, Colorado, to the 14,115 foot summit of Pikes Peak. With a vertical climb of 7,800 feet up the historic Barr Trail,...

www.pikespeakmarathon.org

Was in Omaha last year for the CWS. Check out Buffets favorite steakhouse - like going back in time.

 

[Lafayette]

The elementary school I went to was having its 100th anniversary year. The PTO had a huge banner for the front entrance made saying, "50 Years of Excellence!"

The funniest part is nobody noticed for months.

The 50 was not in a row!