Newport, Rhode Island

do you ever just need to get away? to leave home and escape reality for a little while? to forget about work and house projects and responsibilities? a few days to relax and regroup without a care in the world?

well, this happens to us every couple months. please don’t mistake this as me being unhappy in my life.. because that is as far away from the truth as possible.. i love love love the life ben and i have created and continue to create for ourselves. but, work is stressful and sometimes we just need to get away for a few days and focus on each other.

i think this is something that makes our relationship so strong. we always make sure to put each other first and take time to be together. time is so important.. nothing can replace it once it’s gone. i have to admit, i definitely need to work on making more time for family and the holidays always make me remember this.. which is sad because it shouldn’t take the holidays to remember.. it should happen all year round. but anyways, i’m getting side tracked.. that’s a story for another day!

this past week we both had a couple days off together, packed a bag and headed to newport, rhode island for two nights. even though our work schedules cause us to miss so many events on weekends, i feel so lucky to get lots of week days off together. places aren’t so busy (which works out because i don’t care for large crowds) and hotels are a lot cheaper!

we stayed at the firehouse inn which quickly became one of my favorite places. walking distance from town, the rooms are spacious, the bed so comfy and the shower enormous. the innkeepers were so sweet and made DELICIOUS breakfast each morning (included in your stay!). there is a lovely sitting area (where you can watch them cook) that we took advantage of.. for breakfast in the morning and to sip on wine and chat in the evenings. such a charming little place that i can’t wait to return to!

besides booking a hotel, we didn’t make a single plan before arriving. our first day we headed to newport brewery and shared a flight. i’m not a huge beer person and didn’t care too much for theirs but ben enjoyed everything we tried. for dinner we went to twenty-two bowen’s which was delicious but pricy.

the following morning we woke up to one of the best smells: bacon.. i felt like i was a little girl again waking up to my parents cooking breakfast. our innkeeper maria prepared pumpkin coffee and amazing french toast as she recommended things to do for the day. i wish i could wake up to bacon and a freshly cooked meal every day!

i’m not a huge fan of history but we decided to visit a few of the newport mansions and i’m so happy we did! as we wandered the halls listening to our audio tour, i felt like i was living another life.. like i was the girl who came from nothing and became a princess in a hallmark christmas movie.. okay.. i know i’m being dramatic but it was so fun to imagine and hard not to let my mind wander when i was surrounded by such a fancy place.

the first house we toured was the breakers and it is absolutely breathtaking. the details in each room are so elaborate and the views of the ocean.. my goodness! and, by the way.. this house was considered the vanderbilt’s summer “cottage.” insane.

let’s talk about this kitchen! i asked ben if we could have it in our house.. i’m pretty sure he’s working on it..maybe a christmas gift? i’m hopeful.

and they were starting to decorate for christmas! in case you don’t know yet, i love christmas time so much and these tours really put me in the mood to come home and start decorating.. it’s most definitely not too early.. the breakers mansion already has about 8 trees up and decorated! so.. this week.. it’s happening!

next we toured the marble house which was also impressive.. but we should have visited the other way around. after seeing the breakers, nothing could compare! i kept thinking how small the marble house was.. yes, small.. pretty pathetic right? since i’m pretty sure i could still fit about 10 of our house in it!

after we had enough daydreaming about being royalty and living in mansions, we headed to town for lunch and a coffee date (my favorite) with amazing views (of the ocean and my hubby). i’m always looking for new coffee shops to try so if you know any good ones, please send them my way!

before dinner, we headed back to our room for a short nap (if you’ve never worked the night shift, take my word for it – you are constantly tired. avoid it if at all possible) and then lounged in the common area for a while drinking yummy wine before dinner at the mooring.