Part museum, part café, part tourist attraction, part library, part non-profit? It’s hard to pin down what Grace Farms is exactly but it’s a beautiful property with a stunning café encased in glass. It’s modern and cool, fun to walk around, and great to work in. I try to make it out there at least once a month to work in the library followed by lunch. On weekends, it’s fun to bring kids here to just hang out or for one of their art classes.

Take a tour of one of the coolest architectural features in Fairfield County. Be sure to buy tickets ahead of time for a guided tour or if you’d rather go on your own, buy a ticket for a Sunday to self-guide. This is more of an adult activity but kids over 10 are welcome!

Silverman’s Farm (which includes an apple orchard, farm, and seasonal market_ is the hottest place to be on fall weekends. I recommend going on a weekday or as soon as it opens to avoid crowds and lines, but you don’t want to miss apple picking, a train ride through the orchard, pumpkin picking, and the cutest feeding/petting zoo. It’s a great place to bring kids.

I take Boots for a hike in Mianus here multiple times a week. There are multiple entrances and tons of trails so it never gets boring. Technically you aren’t supposed to have dogs off-leash but everyone does it and we’re careful to leash-up if we see another dog or person. The most common question I get asked about Mianus is if I feel safe there and the answer is always yes. There are a ton of other people and I have a 90 pound dog!

Amalia loves going “to the farm” to see the cows, chickens, alpacas, bunnies and tons of other animals. We love that it’s an outside activity that the whole family enjoys. We became members which paid for itself after only a few visits. Don’t miss the farmer’s market on Sundays!

This super fun kids museum is clutch on winter weekends when we don’t have plans. Amalia can run wild playing in the water room, the dance room, and with the hundreds of activities in between. They have a separate section for little kids which was awesome last winter too. The café is also surprisingly good. They make a great mac and cheese for kids and I love the kale salad.