With just about 4 weeks to go until we meet our baby boy, we're relishing our memories of our recent Easter weekend trip to Vermont. I had briefly mentioned our trip here but wanted to highlight Snapdragon Inn, a calming bed and breakfast in Windsor, Vermont where we enjoyed our first familymoon.
I met the owners Michelle and Chris at ALT Summit SLC in January and mentioned to them how Mr. Lovebird travels to Vermont frequently but how I'd love to visit at some point especially since he tells me how beautiful it is. We made arrangements for a visit and I excitedly checked off the days until our trip came up.
It's always fun explaining special events like this to our Little Lovebird. She deemed our destination "Meh-mont" and has been talking about it ever since. We drove up on Good Friday morning. I was behind the wheel happily listening to NPR while my Lovebirds slept.
No real plans were made - we just wanted to spend time together and relax. Michelle understood this and made a few suggestions for us - she's so personable and her warmth drew us in, especially Nia who gave her a hug right away! Always a good sign!
Harpoon Brewery was a must for dinner and they were so accommodating with Nia making her a special sandwich and keeping her well stocked with pickles, crayons and coloring pages.
The next morning we headed an hour's drive over to Killington (you can read about that here) after Snapdragon Inn's complimentary continental breakfast featuring local favorites - maple, maple and more maple please!
I napped for a bit when we returned - Mr. Lovebird took Nia out to explore the grounds. Michelle had a few more dinner recommendations for us that night, and we decided to stick to walking distance and she made us a reservation at Windsor Station. I was fascinated by the history: a real train station that was the founding location of Vermont and used to have separate male and female waiting areas which you can still see today. Ahhhh the Victorian-era!
We tried not to fight over the bathtub and Lil Lovebird let me take one with her. That was her favorite part of Snapdragon Inn and she kept asking for baths in the special tub "with feet" daily even after we left. If only I could get one in our apartment . . .
I had explored a few local churches for Easter service and decided Old South Church, founded in 1768, would be a good fit for us. It was a special experience for us - being able to walk to church hand-in-hand, the sun shining and really reflect on the importance of Resurrection Day. Having attended Park Street Church when I lived in Boston, I really appreciated the history of Old South Church and was thrilled to know that Pastor Mandy Lape-Freeberg is at the helm.
Everyone was very welcoming to us and the beautiful service was unlike any other we had attended. It was rich with music, traditional and songs we hadn't heard before. And something we always appreciate: accommodating of children! Let the children come unto me is really the theme of the church. Nia made instant friends with a few little ones who played quietly in the lobby during service - we couldn't get her to join the kids at the front of the service for a special teaching moment, but she was happy to watch from our pew.
A few rounds of chasing her new friends outside followed service as well as a family picture.
We made our way back to Snapdragon Inn to pack up and Chris asked us to be a part of a special photography project for their blog. You can see our feature here, but here's a sneak peek:
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| {Photo Credit: Chris of Sublime Eye} |
Thank you Michelle and Chris for such a lovely weekend, and I'm already looking for a time to go back with my sisters for a retreat.
Would you like to visit Snapdragon Inn?
The Snapdragon Inn is sharing a huge discount with all Harlem Lovebirds' readers. Between now and the end of August they are offering $149/night to exclusive to my readers! To get the discount go online directly to their website www.snapdragoninn.com. Once you've selected your dates, before hitting checkout, enter the code HARLEMLOVEBIRDS to get your savings. Call the Inn if you have any problems during checkout or if you have any additional questions, 802-227-0008. Holiday and backdates apply, complete travel before August 28th, 2014.
I've added a sidebar button as well to make it extra easy to get to their website!
Have you ever been to Vermont? Do you have a special familymoon trip planned this summer for your family?
