2023 Summer Family Vacation — Part 1, Upstate NY

We just got back from our summer family vacation! We spent a few days in Upstate NY and a few days in Philly and it was great to have time off from work and time for us to spend as a family.

In NY, we had tons of fun spending time with my family and friends. Here are some of the highlights:

Spending time with my parents. We stayed with them and it was nice to join them for meals, on walks with Sweetie, reading with the kiddos and just doing normal everyday activities.

Going to Huck Finns playland – formerly Hoffman’s playland, a kiddo amusement park I used to go to growing up. The kids LOVED it!

Getting ice cream with my parents. There’s a local ice cream shop we used to go to, and it’s always fun taking the kids there.

Enjoying pedis with my momma. I don’t spend nearly enough time with her – and it’s mostly when the kids are around, so it’s such a treat to get alone time with her.

Seeing my friends from high school. We went to a local science museum and met up with one of my friends, Lauren, and her family one day. I hadn’t seen Lauren in many years (they live in Vermont) and it was great to see her and her girls!

We also met at a playground with my best friends Jane and Melissa for a picnic and playdate. I’ve never met her kids, which was unbelievable – I started crying when I saw them I was so emotional about the experience! It was so much fun to watch the kids hang out while we got to catch up.

I got in a girls night with my friends- we met up at a taco bar, did a mezcal tasting, and then went to a bar in Troy. We used to do girls weekends every year after college, but then with COVID and then kids, they stopped. We hadn’t all been together since 2019, and I missed them so much!

We also took a side day trip to Connecticut to spend a day at a local lake with my good family friends. The kids had so much fun swimming in the lake, playing tennis and running around the area. And I loved seeing family I hadn’t seen in many years.