The Adventures of Baby Arthur: A Baby's First Trip and Our First Family Vacation (Day 1)

by Lincoln

Now that Arthur is just over 1 year old, we decided that a short yet local weekend getaway would be a good idea. Not only was it also Liz's birthday weekend, we thought a weekend of firsts for Arthur would do wonders for this bourgeoning curiosity. We are not one of those bold parents who dare to take their young children on plane rides and we've also tried our best to not be one of "those" parents. You know what I mean by "those", the ones with the crying baby! With this in mind, we came up with the following requirements:

1- Must have something for everyone: Arthur, Liz and I.
2- No planes or public transport. So only we'd suffer a cranky crying baby.
3- Only 1 night away from home. Short and sweet.

Since Liz and I both love eating great food, breathing fresh air and the fact that site of any animal (Even rats with wings, a.k.a. an NYC pigeon) makes Arthur go berserk with excitement, our decided destination was Dutchess County. Dutchess County is a mere 75 miles or so from Manhattan and is what I like to call a "Napa Valley on a much smaller scale".

After a bit of research and reservation making, off we went on a Saturday morning.

Wild Hive Farm

An Anxious Arrival!

After reading a positive review about this place on Hammertown I thought this was a worthy spot to have some breakfast. Local ingredients and freshly baked goods. The egg sandwich was well made and the brioche bun was fresh and soft with a unique earthy flavor. Along with fresh toast topped with a habanero jelly that was hot enough to wake up the dead, this breakfast was a good start even if it did take forever to get it! Well, we were on vacation, who cares?

Kid Friendly?: Yes. high chair available and a steady stream of families with children of all ages going in and out.

I'm gonna club someone with this garlic if I don't get my food soon!!

Dog Show Hosted by Ledgewood Kennels

It took me a couple of days to find something specifically animal oriented aside from looking at livestock from behind a fence, but eventually I got lucky finding this event when I chanced on the Amenia Chamber of Commerce's Website. This was strictly a local affair with a focus on community participation. It wasn't a Westminster Dog Show, but it did the trick as the up close and personal interactions with the dogs was far more effective at piquing the interests of a 1-year old! And yes, Arthur was going berserk almost the entire time.

Kid Friendly?: It doesn't get much more kid friendly than this!

So after a quick stop at McEnroe Organic Farm to pick up some fresh produce and groceries to take back home, it was time to check-in to our lodging so Baby Arthur could have his nap time. This plan was enthusiastically sponsored by Arthur with piercing shrieks.

The Interlaken Inn

So after deliberating on the lodging for a bit, we settled on the Interlaken Inn. While we originally were planning to stay at a nice bed and breakfast ("b&b"), that idea was nixed because:

1- Many b&b's are not kid friendly. They even specifically put an age limit on their website. I guess it's to be expected since you're basically staying at someone's house.
2- We needed a bathtub. Not a given at a b&b.
3- Most of the b&b's wanted a 2 night minimum. (So did the Interlaken but they had a loophole if you booked online!)
4- I hoped to have a pool for Arthur's first swim! Not a given at a b&b.

While the Interlaken Inn served its purpose, I was not completely satisfied. We paid $300 for our one night and it wasn't the Mandalay Bay. I'll tell you that the place looks a lot bigger on their website! The place is a bit dated and could use a renovation. It was clean, but as clean as an old hotel could be. Here are the TripAdvisor reviews. They're mixed, so you be the judge. It wasn't all bad. The pool was heated and the staff was courteous. We were in & out so it wasn't a big deal. But, that price tag was too hefty for what we got in my opinion.

Kid Friendly?: Definitely. They not only encourage kids, they encourage whole families including pets. There were many other familes at the place. It's also a wedding friendly hotel. The place may be more worth the price in the townhouses.

Red Devon Restaurant

Red Devon was the highlight of our trip. Simply put, it's an awesome restaurant and the food is just exquisite. The restaurant was recently renovated with a focus on green guidelines and sustainability as the building itself has many green innovations. With reviews like these from About Town, and Hammertown, its focus on local ingredients and its green focus (I'm an engineer remember?) we just had to give it a try. They offer a nightly chef's menu and we ordered the grilled sea bass with potatoes and the pork belly with chanterelle mushrooms and red chard over risotto as our entrees. Both were cooked to perfection. The sea bass was served whole, was crispy and salted on the outside and incredibly soft and moist on the inside. All that we left behind was a pile of bones. As a pork belly fanatic, there's almost no way I wouldn't enjoy it. But the combination of the tender pork belly, crunchy red chard and base of risotto made each bite a harmonious melody. We'll be going back.

Kid Friendly?: Yes. They offer booster chairs (really fancy ones!) and the environment is sophisticated yet laid back. We did make a reservation for the earliest time possible to avoid a crowd, but as dinner went on, other families with small children came in. The staff was friendly and helpful with everything.