Connecticut Foodies: Blackie's Hot Dog Stand

Unintentionally had hot dogs two meals in a row...but we were in the neighborhood. If you're in the same neighborhood, you should go. 

*Know before you go that Blackie's is cash only. There is an ATM on site if you forget. 

Barker Character, Comic, and Cartoon Museum

Cannot believe I waited this long to pay a visit to this treasure! 

This is one you may need to come back for, if you don't have a lot of time to spend. So much to see. 

As it was described to me by the staff; these are all the toys you wither had or wished you had when you were a kid. 

Nostalgia spanning from the 1920s to the 2010's from what I could see. I found all of my old loves as a kid. My kiddo found many familiar favorites.

Makes us want to set up a display case of our own!

Farmington Ice Cream and Mini-Golf

Found this place 100% by accident. 

We were on our way home from the Windsor area and got hungry. We stopped and ate at a little Chinese place, Green Tea Restaurant, but the food was meh. Better than starvation but not worth the trip to get to it. 

Almost across the street is the Farmington Miniature Golf and Ice Cream. They serve some food, but everyone we saw was there for the ice cream and mini-golf. (we didn't know or we would have eaten here instead.)

Loved this little place. The golf course is fun, ice cream was tasty, and the landscaping is gorgeous. 

Know before you go;

• prices are $5/pp before 6pm. After 6, it's $10/pp. 
• they have a little water station in the middle of the course, which was great as the day we went it was toasty!

Bones in the Well

Dino on display at the Warehouse Point Library....kinda.

A cast made from the bones of little fella they found by a farmer while digging a well in 1818. 

In 1885 Othniel Charles Marsh, a paleontologist from Yale’s Peabody Museum, examined the fossils and deduced that they were from a small sauropodomorph, a herbivorous ancestor of large, long-necked sauropods such as Apatosaurus. He dubbed the specimen Anchisaurus, which means “near lizard.”

The bones remain at the Yale Peabody Museum, which is sadly undergoing renovations. 

Fun Facts;

• The term "dinosaur" didn't even exist until 1841. Richard Owen coined the word Dinosaur (originally Dinosauria) and it originates from two greek words deinos – terrible, powerful, wondrous and sauros – lizard. Before 1841 people just called them dragons!
• Some researchers believe that the “Bones from the Well” as the fossils are often called, were the first scientifically-documented dinosaur bones found in North America.

What to know before you go;

• it's a tiny little display, but it's right by the font door. 
• there is a rock in the parking lot that has dino footprints but you have to look for it. (if there are cars parked there, you won't see it easily.)

Connecticut Foodies: Rawley's Drive-In

Rated as one of the top 6 hot dog stands in Connecticut, so we gave it a go. 

It was pretty good. Not too pricey. 

Things to know:

• tiny parking lot; there are a few places to park up front and to the right but if you go around the back you are sharing space with the Dairy Queen next door and there were people standing in the available spaces and several kids running around. beware!
• and really small dining area. There are 4 booths in the seating area, 2 tables, and up front there are some stools at the counter. We ordered our food and luckily someone was leaving so we grabbed their booth

On the Calendar: Fairs, Festivals, and Cultural Performers

Things coming up but unsure if we'll go;

Bridgewater Fair, 8/18-8/20/2023

Hartford River Dragon Boat and Asian Festival 8/19/2023

Plainville Hot Air Balloon 8/25-8/26/2023

Schemitzun 8/26-8/27/2023

Shore Line Trolley Museum

If you have ever visited the Danbury Railway Museum, the museum displays at the Shore Line Trolley Museum are similar. You can play with model trains, see railway history and artifacts, visit the gift shop. And they have a pressed penny machine, this one is $1.01 for each elongated penny...but if you don't have the change, the gift shop will make some for you.

What I love about this museum;

• most laid back and chill staff members. very friendly. 
• you can set your own pace. absolutely no rush here. 

Things to know;

• open Wednesday – Sunday, June 25 – September 1, with the first trolley ride at 11AM and the last trolley ride at 3PM. There is a stop to see "the barn" and if you feel like you need more time to poke around and look, you can stay and board the next trolley. 
• I booked my ticket for 1pm as that was the time slot available. We got there a good bit early since we had never been to this area before and were able to take the noon trolley. Your ticket is basically good for the entire day.
• there is a Little Free Library out front. 
• there are several osprey nests along the route and the trolley driver will stop at one of the larger nests near the tracks so you can get good photos. we also saw swans, ducks, a variety of gulls, barn swallows, and an egret (great or snowy, I didn't see the beak...he flew over while we were boarding.)

Sunflower Maze at Lyman Orchards

Another romp among the sunflowers was a lovely excursion. 

We headed back to Lyman Orchards to visit their sunflower maze. 

Navigate your way through Connecticut's original Sunflower Maze!  350,000 blooming yellow, red, and orange sunflowers are crafted into a design featuring Clifford the Big Red Dog®! $1 of every admission goes to support Connecticut Children's Center for Cancer & Blood Disorders.  The Lyman Orchards family wants children battling cancer to reach for the stars and never lose hope. The Lyman Orchards Sunflower Maze, Connecticut’s original Sunflower Maze officially opens Saturday, July 29th at 9 am and runs until August 27th. 

More information here.

Things to know:

• bathrooms are at the Apple Barrel store, I highly suggest hitting those before continuing on to the sunflower field
• bring water, wear sunscreen, definitely bug spray
• do the trivia game to get through the maze, they had different topics like sports, Halloween, and animals. 
• if you opt to pick your own blueberries or peaches while you're there...the peach trees are about picked clean. check the website to see what's available that day.  

An Awesome Day...and no pictures.

A big adventure day. Three stops; Stamford Connecticut, Greenwich Connecticut, and Sleepy Hollow New York. 

For the first time I can remember, I deleted the entire day's pictures.

But, no worries...adventures are still adventures whether we can share them with others or not. 

First, to Stamford to finally find that elusive goose. We got the new clue and off we went! 

The clue;

Second destination was Greenwich, Connecticut to visit The Bruce Museum. We've never gone but am very glad to have gone. Now, we got in free because it was Tuesday, but The Bruce is also participating in the CT Free Admission program. It was a good day to go. Highly recommend.

• Fun fact, Alexis Rockman (the artist who's exhibit was at Mystic Seaport when we went) is on display at the Bruce as part of the Journey to Nature’s Underworld exhibit with Mark Dion.
• Lots of littles were there, as there are plenty of interesting things to amuse those of even the younger ages; rocks, dinosaurs, hands-on science fun. We met a little fellow that decided his favorite part was the stairs. He went up and down them about eleventy-seven times while we were there. 

Third was a side mission, a little jaunt into NY, as it was just 24 minutes away from where we were in Greenwich. The child is on an urban legend kick as of late, so Sleepy Hollow seemed like a great destination! 

Things to know before you go;

• Sleepy Hollow Cemetery is the final resting place for Washington Irving, however it is a HUGE cemetery; so go to the North Gate to get the map. Mr Irving resides in the family plot which is closer to the South Gate. There are signs, but they gave a vague indication of where the plot is. The Irving plot is closed to the public, surrounded by a wall and a gate, but you can still see the grave *there were also flags posted on either side, so you can find it. 
• The Old Dutch Church, also at the South Gate of the SH Cemetery, is not open to the public, except for a limited number of hours during the weekend. 
• The Headless Horsemen Bridge and statue are within walking distance of the South Gate entrance. 
• Bring water, wear sunscreen and use bug spray too!

Stamford Nature Center

Stamford Nature Center was the first stop. And then we went hunting for the ducks and elusive goose again...found all the ducks but the goose clue expired the day before. Darn it, we are so close to completing the mission. If you haven't read about the Stamford Duck Duck Goose art installation, read about it further Here.

We always like going to the Nature Center to see the animals but there is also an art exhibit in the mansion. We didn't see the exhibit that day, as we had already seen this artist's show in another space. That hardly ever happens. 

Things to know;

• This adventure was free, but only because we had the library pass. This one is not on the CT Free Admission list this year. 
• The building of the observatory is now under way. They have broken ground but we didn't see much as the construction fence was up. 
• We went early, as the otter tends to camp out under the shrubbery in the afternoons. The only other time he comes out is when it's feeding time. 

On the Road Again...

I didn't forget to post, we just haven't gone anywhere. The kiddo had one week of nature camp that turned into three weeks. Came home from camp every day hungry, tired, and filthy...so you know a good time was had. 

We have 33 more days of summer vacation, and we're back to exploring!

Griswold, Connecticut. If you love sunflowers and are anywhere in the vicinity of Buttonwood Farm? Get in the car and go. It's absolutely gorgeous. 

Things to know: 

1. the cows across the street are waiting to eat these flowers, and they will be allowed to do so next week. The walking trail will be open until after the Sunflower 6k on August 6, 2023.
2. there are porta-potties on site, no handwashing station. 
3. plenty of parking
4. bring bug spray and sunscreen.
5. there is a little hill overlooking the sunflower field where you can take pictures, have a little picnic. 
6. ice cream. get some at the little farm stand. plenty of shady areas and benches.

Cows LOVE the sunflowers