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Make Mother’s Day memorable with these 8 activities in Connecticut

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Make Mother’s Day memorable with these 8 activities in Connecticut


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May is almost here, bringing with it warmer weather, bright spring blooms and of course, Mother’s Day, this year falling on Sunday, May 10.

Looking for an activity to celebrate the women in your life outside of the house? Luckily, Connecticut has plenty of fun Mother’s Day events that mom, aunt or grandma would enjoy, all the way from a casual day of shopping at the farmers market to an elgant brunch inside a castle.

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Here are eight of Connecticut’s best Mother’s Day activities to check out with mom this year.

Cruise the Connecticut River

For moms who would love a day on the water, the Connecticut River Museum hosts special Mother’s Day cruises on RiverQuest, a tour boat that explores the river’s ecology and wildlife.

On May 10, RiverQuest will offer hour-long cruises at 10 a.m., noon and 2 p.m. Tickets are $10 for mom and one child, $15 for children under 12 or $20 for other adults.

Visit a vineyard

Does mom love a good glass of wine? Treat her to an afternoon at a vineyard. On Sunday, May 10, Stonington Vineyards will host a Mother’s Day celebration full of wine, sandwiches and sweet treats, shopping from local vendors and live music. Plus, create a custom bouquet with or for mom at the onsite Bloom Bar.

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Stonington’s Mother’s Day event is free to attend, with no registration required. The vineyard is located at 523 Taugwonk Road in Stonington.

Go flower picking

If mom is a fan of flowers, take her to Wicked Tulips, a flower farm with the biggest you-pick-tulip event in New England, complete with over 1.5 million blooming tulips of various colors and 75 varieties.

Admission, which includes 10 tulips, costs $5.50 for children, $24.95 for adults on weekdays or $29.95 for adults on weekends. Additional tulips can be purchased for $1.50 per stem. Online tickets for Wicked Tulips must be reserved for a specific date and time, though guests can stay as long as they want after entering. Tickets are also sold at the door, but entry is more expensive and not guaranteed.

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Wicked Tulips is open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday or 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday and Sunday from mid-April through mid-May. Located at 382 Route 164 in Preston.

Eat brunch in a castle

While Mother’s Day brunch is offered at tons of restaurants in Connecticut, one venue in Portland is hosting a special lavish brunch that will make mom feel like a queen. At Saint Clements Castle and Marina, mom can enjoy brunch in a literal castle from the 1800s, complete with lush surrounding grounds and breathtaking waterfront views of the Connecticut River.

The castle’s Mother’s Day brunch includes a gourmet buffet of decadent desserts and chef-inspired dishes, including a personalized omelet station, sliced prime rib and a cheesecake station. Tickets to the brunch cost $70 for adults or $30 for children ages 4-12. Reservations can be made online for 10:30 a.m. or 1 p.m. p.m. on Sunday, May 10.

Attend a craft festival

If mom is the creative type, take her to the New England Spring Craft Festival at Mohegan Sun this Mother’s Day weekend. This unique festival blends creativity with culinary excellence in a showcase featuring over 275 artisans.

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Shop for the perfect gift for mom, or let her pick it our herself, from handcrafted jewelry, luxurious spa products or specialty candles, and sample a lineup of food offerings all the way from unique salsas to handmade chocolates.

Online tickets cost $13 for one day or $18 for the whole weekend, and children ages 14 and under enter for free.

The festival will take place from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday, May 9 and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday, May 10. Mohegan Sun Earth Expo & Convention Center is located at 1 Mohegan Sun Blvd. in Uncasville.

Enjoy afternoon tea

Pamper mom with an elegant afternoon tea service aboard the Essex Steam Train. The train’s “Mommy & Me Tea” event takes guests on a scenic 90-minute train ride through the Connecticut River Valley in a restored 1920s era Pullman Dining car. Dress in your Sunday best, listen to comforting classical music and take in the scenery while enjoying an assortment of teas, finger sandwiches and pastries.

Mommy & Me Tea is offered from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, May 9, with tickets starting at $59.99.

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Go to the farmers’ market

For the moms who love to shop, head over to Bozrah Farmer’s Market on Saturday, May 9 for a special Mother’s Day Market full of handmade clothing, fresh baked pastries, unique crafts, flowers, plants and plenty of other goods from local vendors. From 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., enjoy a day of shopping, food trucks and live music with mom.

The market will take place at Maples Farm Park, located at 45 Bozrah St. in Bozrah.

Run a 5K

If you and mom are the active type, consider running a race together on Mother’s Day. This year, the annual Bridgeport Hospital Mother’s Day 5K will start at 7:45 a.m. on Sunday, May 10, starting and ending at the hospital’s Milford Campus.

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The event not only consists of a 5K, but fitness options for the whole family: a timed 5K run and walk, a 3K walk and a kid’s fun run for ages nine and under. Registration for the races costs $40 for adults or $20 for students ages 10-18, while the kid’s fun run is free to enter. Prizes will be distributed to the top runners, as well as the fastest mother-daughter and mother-son teams.



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A 300-Year-Old House, the Oldest in Ridgefield, Connecticut, Is Selling as Part of an Amenity-Filled Family Compound

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A 300-Year-Old House, the Oldest in Ridgefield, Connecticut, Is Selling as Part of an Amenity-Filled Family Compound


This two-house, two-barn compound includes the oldest home in Ridgefield, Connecticut, and stands right on the town’s historic and famously charming Main Street.

“It’s actually two distinct houses, two really iconic landmark properties on Main Street” that have been carefully restored and renovated, said listing agent Laura Ancona, of William Pitt/Julia B Fee Sotheby’s International Realty. 

“Over $10 million has been spent in top-of-the-line improvements and designer appointments inside and out,” according to the listing.

The older home, known as the Hawley House, was built in 1713 for the Rev. Thomas Hawley, a minister who was also the schoolmaster and town clerk, Ancona said. “It’s quite a stylish home for the time, with high ceilings, wide-board floors and multiple fireplaces,” she said.

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Other features include a gambrel roof, original paneling on the fireplace wall of one living room, original fireplace mantels, many of the original hand-blown glass windows, an original Dutch door and hand-hewn beams, according to information provided by the agent. An original double-seated, white clapboard outhouse rests about 100 feet behind the home.

The 300-year-old house is on the National Register of Historic Places as well as being one of the 32 “Stations of History” on Ridgefield’s “Museum in the Streets” tour, Ancona said.

MORE: Tour More One-of-a-Kind Homes In Out Listing of the Day Series

The 1777 Battle of Ridgefield in the Revolutionary War was fought on Main Street and it was also where Brig. Gen. Benedict Arnold’s horse was shot out from under him, she said. “We’re very historic, very Colonial.”

“It’s one of the top Main Streets in the country,” Ancona said. “It’s a Norman Rockwell-esque, tree-lined Main Street. Ridgefield is very protective of its Main Street.”

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The second house on the compound, a Gothic Revival Victorian, was built by Hawley’s descendants in 1826, she said. “It’s very grand, very colorful,” now with four finished levels. 

“It was not as well upkept as it should have been” when the sellers bought it in 2002 and began a multiyear renovation soon after, Ancona said. They were able to recreate much of the original architectural details from old photos.

The gray barn/carriage house associated with the Victorian has been renovated to now include a kitchen and great room that opens to the pool area, a gym and sauna, a poker room, a game room with a bar, an arcade and a movie theater for 30-plus people, she said. “It’s a completely tricked-out party barn.”

There’s also a circa-1900 red barn that now holds an indoor basketball court, an arts-and-crafts studio and a second-floor office with a conference room, according to the listing. It was updated and redone in 2012.

Both lots, which together are 3.16 acres, are quite deep with long driveways, which offers a great deal of privacy, even while being on Main Street, Ancona said. 

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“You can walk to town and still have all of this privacy,” she said. 

Stats 

The 8,934-square-foot compound has eight bedrooms, seven full bathrooms and two partial bathrooms. It sits on a 3.16-acre lot.

Amenities 



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Amenities include a heated pool and spa, a pool/carriage house, two two-car garages (one with two Tesla chargers), seven fireplaces, a gym and sauna, an indoor basketball court, a brick courtyard, a pergola, an outdoor kitchen, a home office with a conference room, an arts-and-crafts studio, a bar and game room, a poker room, an arcade and a movie theater.

Neighborhood Notes 



The home is within walking distance of everything Main Street has to offer, including museums, the library, Ballard Park, an old-fashioned hardware store and lots of independent shops and restaurants, Ancona said. “There is no fast food in all of Ridgefield.”

Ridgefield is adjacent to Westchester County in New York, and it’s about a 30-minute drive to the Westchester County Airport, she said. Ridgefield is about 90 miles from Manhattan. 

Agent: Laura Ancona, William Pitt/Julia B Fee Sotheby’s International Realty

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View the original listing.



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Child hospitalized after drowning incident at Connecticut campground

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Child hospitalized after drowning incident at Connecticut campground


GRANBY, Conn. (WWLP) – A juvenile was brought to the hospital on Wednesday afternoon after a reported drowning at a campground pool in Granby, Connecticut.

According to the Granby, Conn., Police Department, the incident was reported around 2:30 p.m. at High Meadow Day Camp, located at 311 North Granby Road. A Simsbury officer working a private detail at the campground was called to the pool area and began providing medical care. The patient was identified as a juvenile, whose name has not been released.

The juvenile was treated at the scene before being brought to Connecticut Children’s Medical Center. Officials have not released information on the child’s condition.

Azell Cavaan, the Chief Communications Officer for Springfield Public Schools, confirmed with 22News that a SPS student was taken by ambulance from High Meadow on Wednesday. It is unclear if the two incidents are connected.

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Police said numerous children who witnessed the incident later became emotionally distressed. Ambulance crews from Granby, Windsor Locks, Simsbury, and Suffield all assisted in response. In the aftermath of the incident, police encouraged anyone affected to seek support services.

“Witnessing traumatic incidents can be very unsettling. If you need to access support, the best way is by calling 211, which can connect individuals with crisis support services and other community resources,” the department said in its release.

Counseling and support services are also available through local municipalities, including the Granby Youth Service Bureau for residents.

This incident remains under investigation. Updates will be provided as more information becomes available.

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