♥: 4th of July Extravaganza Mini-Trip

Since hubby is unemployed we are not
taking a "big" trip this year so short weekend
trips are in the plans.

We decided to head to Mystic CT for an overnight
then hubby wanted to go to see The Hudson Valley
Renegades a minor league baseball team affiliated
with the Tampa Bay Rays.

We headed off early on Friday July 4th morning.
Even though this little guy was in the forecast.
Hurricane Arthur

We hoped we could get ahead of it and make it to
Mystic CT before the rain.

City Limits is a favorite of ours in White Plains NY ~
since it was on the way - why not breakfast !

No vacation can start without a big cup of JOE.

They have an awesome bakery on location and this
homemade blueberry muffin was so good.

I almost always order this waffle orange and lemon flavor
so good with fresh fruit topping. It is so light and airy.

Okay back on the road we need to beat Arthur to CT hah

We did very well and even had time to stop for some
shopping as we passed this Tanger's Outlet on the way.

I found a nice pair of capri's and hubby got a pair of shorts.

It began to rain on and off but nothing drastic.

Arrival in Mystic !

Decided to visit Olde Mistick Village first and save
some of the outside activities for the next day since it
was raining and the next days forecast was perfect.

Well some "folks" enjoyed the rain !

Then we checked into our hotel and decided to
have dinner at the local Mystic diner. It was really raining by then.
I had some delicious New England Clam Chowder &
New England Cod Fish with white wine.
Hubby enjoyed Seafood Bisque and Salmon for dinner.

After dinner back to our hotel to rest up for a day in

Mystic.

Our hotel was in the next town over so Gar thought it would
be nice to stay off the interstate and take the scenic route back
to Mystic the next morning.

I am always game for an adventure. Boy was I
glad we did. It was one of the best parts of our trip.
It was so lovely the drive and scenery.

Gar heard about a lighthouse and I am always a fan of those
so we set out to find it. We stopped at UConn Avery Point
and it was incredible.

It was 7 am and it was pretty windy and cold after the
hurricane the day before but the sun was shining bright !

Breathtaking view and the lighthouse !

I could have stayed here all day it was peaceful and
so quiet at 7 am. It was quite a long walk to the light
house and around the grounds. Worked up a good
appetite for breakfast hah.

Above is The Branford House Mansion on the Avery Point.

You could smell the honeysuckles along the path walking
by Long Island Sound.

Hubby was freezing hah

Here he is ~ was he pointing towards NYC?

We left Avery Point and continued the lovely drive and
ended up in Mystic in time for breakfast.
Gar found a place in his "research" called
Kitchen Little. It was mentioned in Food Network Magazine.
We rode around and around and couldn't find it. So we
asked the "locals'. Turns out it moved and was in an
out of the way location ~ but we persisted and found it.

The food was really good and a lovely water view.
Gar and I got a kick out of the owner he was acting as
hostess and he sounded really gruff like he was in the
mafia. hah

Then we headed to Downtown Mystic.
A quaint little town with shops.

I loved this shop. I am a big fan of Puffins since
our honeymoon trip to Alaska. It is on my "Bucket" list to
see one in the wild. That have them in Cape Cod for a
short season in the fall. We just missed them one year.

Can't forget Mystic Pizza. Loved that movie.

This draw bridge really impressed me.
It was so cool. Can you see the huge stones!
How about the photo when it opened.
The street lamps go right along with it hah

Mystic River Bascule Bridge

You can see why it had to open for this large vessel.

We are sitting enjoying the boats go past and I see it.
Oh Lord, I can't get away from work. hah
Usually I see the "Wheelock" fire alarms in every building
but this time I see our new companies product ~ Eaton

Enough shopping in the downtown.
It was time to visit the Seaport.

I really enjoy going back in time to visit an old seaport.

More beautiful scenery

An old School

An old Church

A garden with flowers that are recorded growing
in gardens from this time period.

A home . . .

Quaint little laundry hanging . . .

Playground for the children

More amazing scenery

Mystic has the Whales, we've seen the Bears in New Bern, NC,
the Moose in Bennington VT, Dolphins in Georgia, our list
is growing.

Soon it was time say goodbye to Mystic to head to Fishkill NY.
Hubby treated us to tickets to see a minor league
ball game with fireworks.

Arrived, checked into our hotel and had dinner at Cracker Barrel.
Then off to the baseball game at Dutchess Stadium.

Love the mountains in the background.

It was so darling, they had little "fans" run out on the
field with the players. Each player had one or two little ones.
I mean 3 - 5 years olds. They had their little mitts and
they ran along next to the player to their position.
It was adorable. You can see the little red person
next to each player below hah It was during the
National Anthem and the ball players had their
hats across their chests in honor and the "little" guys
did the same. ADORABLE

The Hudson Valley Renegades are a minor league team
affiliated with the Tampa Bay Rays.

They played the Staten Island Yankees the baby bombers.

I was playing devil's advocate and was cheering for
the Yankees but they lost after a very close 10th inning.

(They had the cuter uniforms - hey how else does a
girl pick a team to win? )

Hubby and I were exhausted and just about flipped when
it went into extra innings hah We just wanted to see the
fireworks and head for rest ~ we could see some fireworks
from a nearby town (as below) but ours were after the game.
I said Gar this can go on for a L-O-N-G time.
Finally one of the Renegades hit a home run to win it.

Here we are exhausted hah
Hubby is almost asleep and I am trying to force a tired smile hah

But our persistence paid off and we had fireworks
Good ones too. Close up view !

Okay Happy 4th America ~ Back to hotel to "crash"

Next morning up and off to a local diner down the road.
Which we "walked" to - never tell my hubby you want
to walk a lot on vacation to exercise. He will certainly
take you up on it. hah

After a nice breakfast chocolate chip pancakes with
bananas and blueberries.

On the way home we stopped at the
Stormville Flea Market. More mountains!
Dutchess County is so pretty.

Then we drove to Cold Springs to
get a "cold one" from my favorite place in town.
I love the Cold Spring area ~ it is where we spent
our honeymoon night. It is a lovely town.

Go Go Pops is the place !