While we did not originally have a trip to Connecticut planned for this summer, time on our favorite shoreline never disappoints. We’ll file this whole vacation under COVID silver linings :) Our 2020 trip looked a bit different than past years, even beyond mask wearing and hand sanitizer – as our last two trips were both for friends’ weddings, and were co-scheduled with Natalie and Joe. While there were no big events or cousins this time around, we made the best of it. Here are a few photos, if you’d like to see! Naturally, much of our time was spent outdoors. We hiked at Avery Preserve, Candlewood Ridge, and Bluff Point (where we hunted for hermit crabs, a favorite from John’s childhood! Octonaut June was enthused.). That top picture is especially sweet to me – my father-in-law enthusiastically met the playmate needs of two children who had gone for months without much social interaction at all, and his and June’s bond was really cemented, I think. It was an unusually warm week while we visited, so we spent lots of time cooling off at the beach and in the pool! Though the pool was a balmy 92 degrees, so cooling off was a relative term :) And OF COURSE we spent plenty of time in Mystic, including repeat visits to Sift, MDI, and the brand-new Young Buns Doughnuts, which opened the week we were there! We scooted out to Noank, too :) A major highlight: my in-laws’ driveway being re-paved. This involved lots of “big trucks,” with Shep is quite predictably ob-sessed with at the moment. To indulge the other child, we also spent the morning at my family’s horse farm, where we scrambled around in the (400-year-old?) hay loft and pet a few noses. My highlight? Celebrating Shep’s second

Because it’s the summer I grew up with, a Connecticut summer will always seem like the most classic version: green everything, water everywhere, lobster shacks, ice cream cones, country roads… I know June will probably feel differently, and that’s okay! But I hope she also loves her New England visits, and if this year’s week in Connecticut was any indication, we’re off to a good start :) Here are a few highlights from our week at home in June, if you’d like to see! We kicked off the week with the wedding of a dear high school friend, the impetus for this trip in the first place! John was a groomsman, June was the only child in attendance and had a blast chasing the spotlights on the dance floor, and the weather was perfection. Plus, the wedding was at the Branford House, where Natalie and Joe got married, so that was extra fun! Every single one of our high school friends was reunited from across the country for the occasion, which was indescribably sweet! And there’s my Junebug, cheesing it up at 10pm just before we left for the night :) We generally had impeccable weather, which lent itself to several beach days (at Esker Point and Eastern Point, for locals who are wondering!). One extra-fun quirk in the timing of our trip was that we were home for my childhood church’s strawberry supper, which happens once a year. It cracked me up to get the mini-celebrity treatment (my church is very small and the older ladies were excited to meet June for the first time!), and June clearly enjoyed the signature dessert. We of course spent lots of time in Mystic — going to the aquarium (baby belugas!), Treehouse for dinner, Red36 for lunch, eating ice cream by the

Usually when we go home to Connecticut, it’s for a major holiday or a big occasion, like a family wedding. Every trip is fun, but on those occasions our schedule is often hectic and largely dictated for us. So to have a full week where we could simply enjoy some of our favorite restaurants, activities, and places in our hometown was a rare treat – and we took full advantage of it! Here are a few photos, if you’d like to see. At the bottom of the post I’m also sharing a list of our shoreline/southeastern Connecticut favorites, if you should find yourself in the area! The view from Abbott’s. The magnificent Ocean House. We went for lunch and it was as wonderful as you’d expect! June loved the penguins at the Mystic Aquarium! Everything else pretty much went over her head, but the penguins were a hit :) All dressed up for a high school friend’s wedding! Taking an evening walk to see my house. Favorite places to eat: Abbott’s Caffe NV and NV Market Sift Bake Shop Oyster Club Kitchen Little The Ocean House Mystic Drawbridge Ice Cream and Buttonwood Farm Paul’s Pasta Del’s Chinese Kitchen S&P Oyster Company Clyde’s Cider Mill Favorite things to do: Mystic Aquarium Picnic at Harkness Memorial State Park and Avery Point Hike at Haley Farm and Bluff Point Beach day at Napatree in Watch Hill Walk through downtown Mystic Walk through Stonington Borough Walk through downtown Madison Kayak on the Mystic River Pick berries, pumpkins, apples, or Christmas trees at Maple Lane or Holmberg’s Connecticut peeps, did I miss any of your favorites

Yep, still thinking about it (first post here, in case you missed it). It was so gratifying to read all of your sweet comments about how you, too, think it’s important to plan out the morning of your wedding and not just let it slip haphazardly away. In fact, just typing out that sentence gives me hives — the LAST thing I want happening on that day is to not realize how late it’s getting, and be forced to rush around getting ready at the last minute. Not that that would be likely to happen, but still. Anyway, I’m happy to say that we’ve decided where we’re going to be getting ready that morning: the Steamboat Inn! Here’s a little pic of the front: Photo by wheelmaker via flickr You actually approach from the back, but as my grandmother says, no one has waterback property :) Anyway, first, though, let me say that it might seem strange that I’m getting ready anywhere other than my childhood home, which is just as close to our ceremony venue as the Steamboat. Getting ready at home would certainly save us money. However, as we’ve already discussed, a calm wedding morning environment is very important to me. It sets the tone for the day, and I want the tone to be calm, loving, and joyful. I do not want anyone racing around picking up a house that, quite honestly, will probably be cluttered from a week of wedding preparations — not me, not my Mom, not my sisters, not my bridesmaids. I want a neutral environment in which we can all relax. I also want to give Tanja a lovely, simple background in which to shoot. Here’s a shot of the suite we’ve booked — isn’t it pretty? All that being said, I think