Each fall, The Eastern States Exposition (Big E) is held in West Springfield, MA. It’s known as New England’s State Fair, with representation from Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont.
Everyone goes to the Big E!
It’s within an hour from our house!
There’s good food, good fun, and good food!
TT Dad and I hadn’t been in YEARS. In fact, we had never gone together. I think I was a child the last time I went. I never wanted to go on the weekend, as I’d heard it gets extremely crowded, and I never had the vacation time to use during the week.
But in 2015, I was home with the duo, who were closing in on their first birthday. That meant we were closing in on our agreed upon check in, where we would decide if I was going back to work or not. I had planned on going back after a few months, but when the time came, I needed a few more months. The duo weren’t taking bottles, and I couldn’t imagine leaving them for more than a couple of hours at a time. I knew it wouldn’t last forever, but in the moment, I felt it wasn’t time yet. I wasn’t able to get an extension on my leave from work, so TT Dad and I decided we’d revisit the topic at their birthday.
Knowing my flexibility could become quite limited soon, I decided we should take advantage of every opportunity, including the Big E.
We were quite impressed by the experience- we weren’t sure what to expect, and knew that it wasn’t going to be your average trip, with twin infants in tow.
We left our house and drove during their morning nap. When we arrived, they were ready to go! They loved all the people watching, and were in great spirits most of the day. Around lunch, they started to get a little antsy, so we found a corner of a tented grill area to let them explore.
Shortly after charming the other lunch patrons, the duo was ready for a snooze, and happily dozed off as TT Dad and I explored the rest of the fair.
We treated ourselves to a couple of favorites (The baked potato! The mac & cheese! The Fried Oreo!). We ended the day by strolling through the State Houses (each state has a house filled with their most popular offerings, as well as a plethora of tourism information.) We excitedly filled bag after bag with pamphlets, magazines, and coupon books, and dreamed of future getaways.
After all, we’d survived two weeks on vacation with family! We were experts, now, right?!