Christmas In Connecticut

Waaaay back in 1996...

It was our first married Christmas.  We were young and we didn't have any money.  Just twenty-two and twenty-three.  We were in our second year of teaching.  I taught third grade then and Scott taught eighth.  We lived in my childhood dollhouse.  Our first house looked exactly like my childhood dollhouse on the outside.  A white colonial... old (1932) and so perfectly romantic with a red door and black shutters.  It was darling and I never planned on moving out of that little house.

I can remember saying to Scott that first Christmas that I wanted to go away in December (not exactly on Christmas of course) but just to experience Christmas in New York City or Boston or anywhere like the old movies I loved.  Couldn't we, please?

But that first Christmas we needed help from my Dad to pay for our first tree, and we used our wedding money to buy ornaments.  So there was no money to go away.  But every year after that I found a way.

So from 1997 and on we didn't buy a present for each other; we gave each other the gift of a "Christmas Getaway Weekend" sometime in December.  My brother would stay at our little house and watch our puppy Chester while two young teachers left the to do's at home and just enjoyed the season.  We've done New York City, Boston and lots of places inbetween.  Before we had our girls we always ordered room service, breakfast in bed, found a quiet tea shop for afternoon tea, and walked the city.  It was woooonderful.  Every year.

But our Christmas Getaway weekend is ever so much more wonderful with our girls.  We've only missed two years in our married Christmasses.  One when Anna came home from China (that Christmas didn't need an ounce of extra magic... oh it was so good) and the one when I had Abigail (that one was just as sweet as can be too)

Yes, it's so much more wonderful with our girls that Scott and I driving up this weekend chatted about how sad it would be when our Christmas Getaway Weekend would be just the two of us again.  Oh how I love the new jammies, hot chocolate in the hotel room, holding little hands in the cold outside.

So this past weekend we had our annual getaway and it was woooonderful.  I got the idea when we stopped here on our leaf trip.  "Christmas in Riverton", experience an old-fashioned Christmas... yes please!

We stayed at the Old Riverton Inn. It was built in 1791. That's over 100 years BEFORE Laura Ingalls. Amazing, amazing inn!



Oh how we loved it!





The coziest 1791 room in the world. It had the opposite of the 'big city' hotel. It felt like we were home. Our room overlooked main street and well, basically the whole town.



Big, fluffy blankets and pretty wallpaper.







The entire town was lined with paper bag and candle luminaries.



And we ate in the most darling restaurant.















And then we went up the street to watch the town's theatre production of A Christmas Carol. They've been performing every December for tweny four years. We all loved it!



Back to the Inn for stories in bed



But breakfast, oh breakfast was my favorite (all for our little family)

(pumpkin chocolate chip bread for Abigail... I bring all of her food on trips) 




Have you ever seen this movie? Well the Inn in this movie is just like the Inn where we stayed.





On Saturday the town had Christmas activities for the family. But after paining and making ornaments I put my camera away.





We ate lunch (just like we did on that fall leaf trip) at the General Store and loved every minute of the little craft fair. It was the perfect, relaxing, country, Christmas Getaway.

And then we headed back to our little house for the rest of the cozy weekend.



2013