Michol and I booked a week in Newport Rhode Island for our first official family vacation. Even though we have been going down to Newport for many years, we didn't know what to expect since we have never travelled with Mallory and our 2 pups for an extended amount of time. Our first hurdle was packing up the car. Since the dogs were going to take up the entire cargo area of our wagon, we had to borrow a Thule carrier that secures to the roof. In addition to the carrier, which held all our clothes, we secured 2 dog crates, a pack & play for Mallory to sleep in, and her stroller. We tied everything down with bungee cords and crossed our fingers.
The Ol' Family Truckster!
The trip down went as well as can be...we only had to stop once to change Mallory and let the pups so their business. We hit very little traffic as we approached Newport and made it down in less than 4 hours. Upon arrival, we unloaded everything and then had to go back out to make a couple of purchases. We did not bring Mallory's high chair or plastic play pen due to the limited space in the car so we decided to buy them in Newport and then return them at the end of the week.
House at 38 Atlantic St
The house we stayed at was really nice. It had 2 bedrooms, full kitchen, nice size living area, and was only a short distance from the ocean and downtown shops. The only drawback was the "fenced-in yard" wasn't as secure as we would've hoped for so we could let the pups loose in the yard. To keep them active, I took them for runs in the early morning. They were beat after each run!
Pups and Mallory hanging out in the Living Room
Overall the week went really well and the weather couldn't have been better. It was about 75 degrees and sunny most of the week. Michol and I walked with Mallory just about everywhere. One day we walked about 8 miles along the Cliff Walk and through Brenton Point State Park. Mallory basically took her daily naps in the stroller as we walked around Newport. We didn't know what to expect when we took her to the beach, but she loved every minute of it. It was great seeing her try to walk on the sand and get her first exposure to the ocean water. We captured every moment on our camera and camcorder. Here are some of the many videos captured on the beach. Check out more videos on the YouTube site (link on the right side of the page):
At the end of the week, we took Mallory out for dinner at the Brick Alley Pub, which is a favorite or ours. Mallory chomped down on some pasta and rice and we finished the night off with a stroll to Ben & Jerry's for icecream. It was the perfect ending to a perfect vacation. We packed up the car on Saturday morning and headed home. We made it the entire way without making one stop beleive it or not. Mallory was asleep most of the way...probably dreaming of the sand and shells...
