So, nearly two years ago, my friend Anywho and I escaped for a Mommy weekend away.  We didn’t venture far, but felt like new women when we returned home to our families.  We decided to do it again, so with our husbands’ blessings (they practically shoved us out the door!) we ventured a bit farther and took two fantastic nights away.  We headed down to Newport, Rhode Island on Friday night, arriving late at night in the misty dark.  Unwilling to simply go to bed when we were footloose and fancy free, we decided on a 9:30 pm dinner at The Brick Alley Pub.  Oh, my YUM!  We were so hungry by then that I could’ve eaten the napkin, but I’m glad I abstained…Being a Lenten Friday, I ordered the scallops.  My meal was SOOO good, I felt a little naughty, feeling it was not a sacrifice at all.

We luxuriated back at the hotel after dinner, drinking wine and reading trashy gossip  magazines without a single care in the world.  (I lie…I wondered about my family the whole time—but let’s not discuss that, shall we?)

We woke up to this view out our window in the morning:

What a way to start the day!  We headed down to breakfast, expecting a day filled with shopping, mansion touring, and eating, with an end of the day appointment at Belcourt Castle for their Ghost Tour.  (That experience deserves it’s own post.)  Our expectations changed a bit when the gentleman at the front desk wished us a good day and said, “Are you heading down to the Parade ladies?”  Our response, “What parade???”  He chuckled and informed us that Saturday was St. Patrick’s Day Parade Day, quite an event in Newport.  As we looked around the lobby, it should have been apparent to us since everyone was in green.  He informed us that driving would be impossible downtown and gave us some tips on avoiding the chaos should we wish to.  We decided, if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em, and chose to enter the Parade throngs for the spectacle.  We parked a little outside of town at the beginnings of Bellevue Avenue (Mansion Alley) and walked back into town and did some shopping while waiting for the parade to start.  Lots of neat little shops with such diversity!  Although I had a light coat on, it was extremely windy and cold, so I had to break down and buy myself a fleece, scarf, and gloves…all green of course!  I really didn’t want to lug around my camera with the 18-200 mm zoom lens because it is so heavy, so I chose to attach the 50mm and go.  I was quite limited in my ability to get some shots I would have wanted, but got a few good ones nonetheless.

If you look closely in the top left corner of the next photo, you can see me in the reflection, wearing my warm green fleece and mittens.  🙂

Things started to get a bit wild toward the end of the parade…drunk crowds of twenty somethings at Noon Thirty isn’t my idea of a good time, so we headed out of town toward lunch and some mansion tours.  We only had time to see The Elms and Marble House.  All the more reason to return at a later date, so we can see the others!  Since photography wasn’t allowed (Curses!) I don’t have much to visually share, but here is one photo taken outside The Elms.

These mansions were used as “summer cottages” by the rich and famous in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, left to be auctioned off or demolished over time.  The Newport Historical Society has bought several of them and maintain them as museums of sorts.  They are quite stunning and the historical background is fascinating.  To read more about them you can click here and here.

After a short drive partway along the coast…

…we ended the day with a Ghost Tour at Belcourt Castle which, again, will have it’s own post.

After a long day of walking and standing, we were ready to relax in the hotel lounge over a glass of wine and a bite to eat, and woke on Sunday morning anxious to get on the road to see our babies and husbands again, after one last shot from our hotel window:

What a gift the weekend was!  I’m feeling like a new person.