Newport Mansions

We headed to Rhode Island in September to see the Newport Mansions. These were fascinating! On our way, we found a little slice of California... How cute. It's own mini Compton.

Our first stop was at the Green Animals Topiary Garden. This was my favorite stop. It was absolutely gorgeous. The air was so clean and it smelled so good here. It awakened something in me. It was awesome!

I loved these cute girls standing outside the visitor's center. We forgot our bug spray (it's all new to us) but the people were so kind to let us borrow some so we didn't get eaten alive. We first picnicked on the lawn overlooking the bay, then got down to business and checked out the garden.

The flowers were beautiful!

We got to swing on an old school tree swing.

Even Joe.

Some kind of squash hanging. I just liked what I saw.

Green Animals!

This was my favorite part of the garden. These are grape vines with grapes hanging. It smelled like candy! I never knew that grapes could really smell like a purple sucker but better. I loved it! I had to visit this particular spot more than once because it was so awesome.

Joe and Heidi on the porch of this home...

This is the home of the woman who owned the garden. Her gardener was the one who created the green animals. We got to tour this very old home.

On the second floor of the home was an old toy collection. Maia (and I) LOVED the dolls and tea sets and doll houses.

Serious doll houses. Check out the height of this one compared to Maia.

Bedroom

Dining Room

Library

The trees. If Joe could have, he would have uprooted this tree, strapped it to our car and planted it in our backyard. (We don't have a backyard so he couldn't do it)

It was a big ol' tree. GREEN ANIMALS TOPIARY GARDENS WAS A SUCCESS!

Next stop: THE ELMS

This place was at one point planned to be bulldozed and turned into a shopping mall. Uh, what? Luckily the preservation society saved it.

Interestingly, most of the house was empty because they sold all the furniture and stuff.

Maia thought the plans should have been put into action about 1/2 hour before this was taken.

And the trees. This was actually pretty nuts. Inside these hanging branches is a very nice place to hang out. It's open inside. Just some tree trunks and dirt. Very cool place to play if you were a kid living here.

Next stop: THE BREAKERS!

The view here was amazing. A huge lawn and ocean. LOVE!

This is the back of the house. The Preservation Society hosts parties on this lawn. If you're a member of the society, you can go to these parties with your kids. They're pretty extravagant I hear.

The inside of the home was decorated ceiling to floor with paintings, mosaics, tapestries, tiles, intricate woodwork, etc. There wasn't one inch that wasn't decorated. The furniture was interesting and the grand entrance was awesome! Staircases and indoor fountains.

I think the best part of the day was playing on the grass and Maia busting out her "robot" dance. Joe and I had no idea she even knew how to do the robot. Perfect ending to a great day!