Provincetown Vacation

Among the family-friendly activities are climbing Pilgrim Monument; dune tours, shopping for handcrafted souvenirs and casual and fine dining.

You don’t have to wait for a rainy day to drive up the Mid-Cape highway (also known as Route 6.) It’s about an hour’s ride from Hyannis.

Some of our favorite things that we’ve done on our visits, among my favorite family-friendly suggestions on the list of recommendations of  things to do in Provincetown are:

Dune Tours

Take the kids on one of the daily one hour narrated tour trips through the historic sand dunes and the National Seashore Park.

We traveled in air-conditioned comfort in a Suburban past dune shacks where famous artists and writers such as Eugene O’Neill and Harry Kemp once took up residence for the summer.

Race Point Lighthouse Tours and Sunset/Clambake tours also depart from Standish Street.

For More Information: Art’s Dune Tours

Pilgrim Monument and Provincetown Museum

If you’re in shape, you’ll want to chase the kids to the top of Pilgrim Monument and the Provincetown Museum.

The Museum was hosting an exhibition on the Whydah pirate ship at the time we visited.

The Pilgrim Monument commemorates the history of the Mayflower Pilgrims, their arrival and stay in Provincetown Harbor, and the signing of the Mayflower Compact. It is the tallest all-granite structure in the United States. Visitors can walk to the top on a series of stairs and ramps. During the climb, you’ll see many interior stones donated by cities, towns, and organizations from all over the United States.

The view from the top is Magnificent!

For More Information: Pilgrim Monument

Art Colony

In 1916, the Boston Globe ran a front-page story titled, “Biggest Art Colony in the World in Provincetown.” Hans Hofmann, Franz Kline, Mark Rothko, Blanche Lazzell, Milton Avery, Jack Tworkov, Norman Rockwell and Edward Hopper are only a handful of well-known artists with ties to Provincetown.

 

 

Do you have any favorite places to visit on The Cape?

© 2011 Moomettes Magnificents

Photo Credit: ornorth

Do you have a family and kid-friendly attraction, lodging, restaurant or event that you would like me to visit, write about and feature? To forward information and passes please Contact me.

Provincetown Massachusetts: Fun Things To Do With Kids on Cape Cod is a post from: Moomettes Magnificents

Related posts:

1. Old Cape Cod Baseball and Summer Winds – Massachusetts
2. Chatham Harbor Cape Cod Massachusetts
3. Cape Cod Rail Trail – Wellfleet Massachusetts

The Cape has to be my most absolutely favorite place to be. We’ve been going up since before the kids were born.

If you’re fond of sand dunes, and salty air
Quaint little villages, here and there
You’re sure to fall in love with old Cape Cod

….   Patti Page

This year I went camping with my oldest daughter, charming son-in-law, and the two grandkiddos. (No mosquito bites this year!)

Sigh

We’ve stayed everywhere from Falmouth to Wellfleet, and each part is so unique for what it has to offer.  I must say our favorite part is what’s referred to as the Outer Cape – from the elbow at Chatham on up to Provincetown.

Have you ever been to Cape Cod?  What’s your favorite part of the Cape?

If not, hope you’ll get a chance to visit New England some time! Enjoy the salt air, and don’t forget the fried clams, lobster, chowder suppers and Cape Cod Baseball League Games.!

Don’t forget to sign the Linky!

Provincetown Massachusetts: Fun Things To Do With Kids on Cape Cod is a post from: Moomettes Magnificents

Related posts:

1. Old Cape Cod Baseball and Summer Winds – Massachusetts
2. Chatham Harbor Cape Cod Massachusetts
3. Cape Cod Rail Trail – Wellfleet Massachusetts

The first Earth Day was April 22, 1970. That was the year I was a Senior in high school, the Vietnam War was raging, and it was a very tumultuous period. We all wanted to be Flower Children. My DH recalls Earth Day specifically as he flew out and back that same day from Connecticut to visit Marquette University in Milwaukee, WI where he ended up going to college.

The photo pictured above is one of my favorites that I took this past summer while on a camping trip to the Connecticut (come visit us!) shoreline. I can’t imagine living anywhere that isn’t close to some type of water or anything nautical ~ specifically the ocean, but I’ll take a lake. Summer and Fall are my favorite seasons. I love the smell of the salt water, marshes, (my family disagrees with me here,) the scrub pine needles. I love the four seasons; scents of beach Rose Begosa; and sand between my toes. Nothing is more peaceful than falling asleep to the sound of lapping waves. Cape Cod, Massachusetts has got to be one of my favorite places on the planet. I prefer to think of it in the past tense ~ think “Summer of ’42” ~ when it wasn’t so crowded, and “discovered”. You can’t beat Nantucket or Martha’s Vineyard for tranquility. Ask Bill. I’m looking forward to perhaps some day camping there again with my family, charming Son-in-Law, and ‘Lil Moomette, my granddaughter.

So much has changed since 1970. I’m a Boomer now, on the verge of retirement. Not only do I not look the same, but I know the earth isn’t the same as I remember, either. As a Paralegal, my profession is focused on Energy Conservation and heavily promotes Green Clean Products, Energy Efficiency, Solar, Wind Power, Fire Prevention, Environmental Protection, Recycling, Water Conservation and more. I am responsible for researching trends on a daily basis and keeping up with current events. What I’m seeing isn’t pretty.

Do something special this year in honor of the day. Save the Earth, for your children and grandchildren.

© 2011 C. Matthews

Provincetown Massachusetts: Fun Things To Do With Kids on Cape Cod is a post from: Moomettes Magnificents

Related posts:

1. Old Cape Cod Baseball and Summer Winds – Massachusetts
2. Chatham Harbor Cape Cod Massachusetts
3. Cape Cod Rail Trail – Wellfleet Massachusetts

One of my favorite things to do when we go up to The Cape is to ride the Cape Cod Rail Trail.

July, 2010

It’s a bike path that runs approximately 25 miles and cuts through the Cape Cod National Seashore, from Wellfleet to Dennis.

There’s bikes, rollerbladers and pedestrians of all types!  The scenic vistas of the cranberry bogs, salt marshes and kettle ponds are magnificent!

On this particular trip we rode 14 miles round-trip!

What’s your favorite thing to do on vacation?

© C. Matthews 2010

Don’t forget to sign the Linky!

For More Info: Cape Cod Rail Trail

Provincetown Massachusetts: Fun Things To Do With Kids on Cape Cod is a post from: Moomettes Magnificents

Related posts:

1. Old Cape Cod Baseball and Summer Winds – Massachusetts
2. Chatham Harbor Cape Cod Massachusetts
3. Cape Cod Rail Trail – Wellfleet Massachusetts

Chatham, Massachusetts on Cape Cod is famous for the
Chatham Light House, but also has many interesting visitors!

Summer in Chatham Harbor, Cape Cod

When I was vacationing up at the Cape with my daughter, charming son-in-law and the grandkids, I took them to visit Chatham Harbor.

When seals are in the harbor, sharks aren’t too far behind!

Just recently many of  Chatham’s beautiful beaches have been closed because of shark sitings about 100 yards offshore, Great Whites just like Jaws included!

© C. Matthews 2010

Provincetown Massachusetts: Fun Things To Do With Kids on Cape Cod is a post from: Moomettes Magnificents

Related posts:

1. Old Cape Cod Baseball and Summer Winds – Massachusetts
2. Chatham Harbor Cape Cod Massachusetts
3. Cape Cod Rail Trail – Wellfleet Massachusetts

While I’m on a much need vacation this week, I’m resurrecting several of my favorite parenting and family posts that I’ve done over the years, – to give you a glimpse into my life.

This post in particular is bittersweet, because while my kids are grown, I still think and envision them in my mind as … young kids, and myself as a “young mom.”

But I begin a new chapter this year, as I’m now the mother-in-law and grandmom who asked to tag along has been invited to go accompany my daughter and her family to Cape Cod(my absolute most favorite place to be) on a camping trip vacation with “the kids” and grandkids – just as my husband and I used to take my mother-in-law along on our family vacations each year to get her out of my sister-in-law’s hair because we enjoyed her company so much.

Empty Nest, Summer Camp and A Trip Down Memory Lane

Where Have All The Flowers Gone

It’s late, and I really have a few more things to do before I turn in for the night, but I wanted to get this post written while it was still fresh in my mind.

When I got out of the dreaded cubicle today, I had a few chores to run, that took me on roads that I haven’t been on in awhile, but that my car used to cruise on autopilot for years after work. Today I was driving down Memory Lane.

I started back to work full-time when my youngest daughter was two and my oldest was six.

During the summer months when they were a bit older, I always sent my daughters to day camp while my husband and I worked. Before suburban sprawl took over and McMansions popped up everywhere, I used to drive them to camp in the morning along back roads. We would pass cow pastures and duck ponds. A few cars would be on the road.

We’d have to travel up a big hill, past more cow pastures, old-fashioned New England red barns, and one time a cow got loose in the middle of the road and I had to wait for it to cross before we could continue. I once stopped the car to dig up Daylilies and ended up was a nasty case of Poison Ivy since I’m highly allergic to it.

Rumor had it that the swimming school and camp were built on an old Nike site, around the time of the cold war with Russia. You could see for miles from the top of that hill, even though it was only about 10 miles out from the city.

My girls really enjoyed those days at camp, and at the conclusion, there was always a “campfire” and “skit night.” The girls went until they were old enough to be CITs – Counselors in Training.

When I’d get out of work, I’d head to pick them up, the route from my office to camp took me past cornfields. I enjoyed the solitude. One day I had to leave work early, because looking out the office window, I could tell we were going to have a horrific storm and it really looked like Tornado weather – very similar to 1979 when the then-last tornado hit Windsor Locks, CT. I rushed to pick them up, and the camp staff had all the kids gathered for safety. I picked them up just in time, and we beat-feet down the hill – there was a brook that always flooded if we didn’t make it down in time. We had a heck of a time getting home.

So – today while I traversed that road once again, only this time on my way to go shopping at the now crowded, suburban sprawl mall that has overtaken the once tranquil, lazy back roads, I was on autopilot, once again. The car drove itself, while my mind wasn’t seeing what my eyes were seeing as I drove.

The cornfields are no longer – replaced by an industrial building. The turn to camp where the red barn and cow fields once were are now newly-built Over-55 adult-only condos.

I felt so sad driving along those roads – Memory Lane – how did my girls childhood go by so quickly? The landscape has changed, and so has my life.

Where have all the flowers gone?
Long time passing
Where have all the flowers gone?
Long time ago
Where have all the flowers gone?
Girls have picked them every one
When will they ever learn?
When will they ever learn?

Where have all the young girls gone?
Long time passing
Where have all the young girls gone?
Long time ago
Where have all the young girls gone?
Taken husbands every one
When will they ever learn?
When will they ever learn?

Pete Seeger

Provincetown Massachusetts: Fun Things To Do With Kids on Cape Cod is a post from: Moomettes Magnificents

Related posts:

1. Old Cape Cod Baseball and Summer Winds – Massachusetts
2. Chatham Harbor Cape Cod Massachusetts
3. Cape Cod Rail Trail – Wellfleet Massachusetts

When the kids were little we would camp up in Eastham, Cape Cod. The Cape is one of my most favorite places in New England. Every family vacation trip that we take reminds me of “Summer of ’42″ when life was simple, and more laid back. Biking the Cape Cod Rail trail sets me back in time. At least that’s the mindset I’m in when I’m up there. But that’s the subject of a whole ‘nother post.

Cape Cod Rail Trail

When the kids were little we would camp up in Eastham, Cape Cod. The Cape is one of my most favorite places in New England.  Every time I go up there it reminds me of “Summer of  ’42″ when life was simple, and more laid back.  At least that’s the mindset I’m in when I’m up there.  But that’s the subject of a whole ‘nother post.

We camped in a private campground that backs right up to the Rail Trail.  The Cape Cod Rail Trail runs from Wellfleet to Eastham (probably beyond.)  The girls would roller-blade, and the Hubster and I would bike.  The vistas and views were beyond gorgeous – salt marshes, ponds, cranberry bogs, wildlife and nature.

© 2009 C. Matthews

Provincetown Massachusetts: Fun Things To Do With Kids on Cape Cod is a post from: Moomettes Magnificents

Related posts:

1. Old Cape Cod Baseball and Summer Winds – Massachusetts
2. Chatham Harbor Cape Cod Massachusetts
3. Cape Cod Rail Trail – Wellfleet Massachusetts

4th of July,  Camping and Tornadoes, Oh My!

It’s time for another edition of Random Tuesday Thoughts!

Don’t forget to visit Keely over at The Un-Mom for more RTT!

Jawing about the Weather -

It’s hard to believe that the 4th of July is just a few days away.  I don’t need to listen to the TV or radio to check the weather – I can feel it in these Baby Boomer bones of mine – especially the formerly broken wrist that I crushed in Bermuda.

I’m almost past the point of wearing socks to bed now – and am hoping that I’ll be able to wear sandals when we go on our camping trip.  I keep getting tweets from friends out west in Arizona, and some in Miami letting me know how bright & sunny it is down there!  Perhaps I should heed the advice from 1851 and “Go West.” Up until recently, Connecticut’s had 3.61 inches of rain since Memorial Day.

Yes, Virginia, There Was a Tornado in Connecticut –

That was, until Friday, June 26th.  Then, Connecticut had a tornado pass right through town.  The National Weather Service, or whoever it is, declared that it was an F1.  The last time we had a tornado it was in Windsor Locks, in 1979.

Hi Ho The Dario, A Camping We Will Go -

Now, about this camping trip.  We head down to the Connecticut shoreline perhaps once or twice a year to camp out – we don’t have a fancy RV or anything, just a tent.  Years ago we used to take the kids from the time my youngest was 2, up to Cape Cod and camp in Eastham, along the Rail Trail, and then hit either Coast Guard Beach, or Marconi Beach.  We used to go every year before my DD26 got her driver’s license, and it’s hard to believe it’s probably been so long ago since we’ve been up there.  I know that my daughter wants us all to go up there, maybe next year with the grandkiddos so we can “re-live”  the good ole’ days. I can almost taste the Cape Cod Church Supper Chowdah, lobsters and fried clams.  Actually, I enjoy all of Cape Cod,  – we used to stay in Falmouth when my daughter was little, and make the 1-hour drive up to the Cape Cod National Seashore.  She’d get her nap in that way, and we’d get to experience the crashing waves of the Atlantic Ocean.

Have a Safe and Happy 4th of July.

What are your plans, I’d love to hear about them!

Provincetown Massachusetts: Fun Things To Do With Kids on Cape Cod is a post from: Moomettes Magnificents

Related posts:

1. Old Cape Cod Baseball and Summer Winds – Massachusetts
2. Chatham Harbor Cape Cod Massachusetts
3. Cape Cod Rail Trail – Wellfleet Massachusetts

There’s nothing more that I enjoy than a “Road Trip.” Each summer when I was younger, my family would always head out in July for one week somewhere. We live in New England, and my fondest memories included visiting the usual tourist sites ~ Washington, D.C.; Atlantic City (before it became a casino haven); Florida; Niagra Falls; Lake George, NY; Cape Cod and many other destinations.

When I had my own family, we piled the kiddos into our brand new Mini Van, and ventured down the DelMarVa peninsula, across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel “Take Your Car to Sea” and on to Virginia Beach & Colonial Williamsburg.

But I’ve never been farther ‘west’ than Chicago. My brother-in-law spent time in the Air Force in Texas, and when he got married, took his bride to San Antonio, and all the other sites. I’ve co-workers who have hailed from Texas, as well as those who have visited, and am amazed at how they spoke of its vastness and interesting sites.

So, I will travel vicariously, and suggest if you hit the open road, to visit the Stark Museum. Orange, Texas has so much to offer! The Start Museum explores the art of the American West. It houses one of the finest collections of 19th and 20th century Western American art and artifacts in the country. The Stark Museum of Art is a program of the Nelda C. and H.J. Lutcher Stark Foundation. The Stark Foundation’s mission seeks to improve the quality of life in Southeast Texas by encouraging, promoting and assisting education, the arts, and health and human services.

Although I’m familiar with Native American art as Connecticut has Foxwoods Casino and a renouned Indian Museum, the Stark Museum has different collections, including Western Art, American Indian Art, Decorative Arts, and Rare Books and Manuscripts.

This summer the Stark Museum of Art will feature a rotating exhibition entitled “Thirtieth Anniversary Treasures” running from August 19, 2008 – October 29, 2008.

In 2008 the Stark Museum of Art will celebrate its thirtieth anniversary. This special exhibition will highlight treasures from the collections, including works not previously exhibited.

So, I suggest you visit their website, and put The Stark Museum of Art on your itinerary of great places to see and visit!

The mission of the Stark Foundation is to improve the quality of life in Southeast Texas by encouraging, promoting and assisting education, the arts, and health and human services. The Foundation carries out this mandate, in part, through the programs of the Stark Museum of Art.

Provincetown Massachusetts: Fun Things To Do With Kids on Cape Cod is a post from: Moomettes Magnificents

Related posts:

1. Old Cape Cod Baseball and Summer Winds – Massachusetts
2. Chatham Harbor Cape Cod Massachusetts
3. Cape Cod Rail Trail – Wellfleet Massachusetts