a happy fourth

Dave came out to Long Island for a long weekend over the 4th of July. We had planned to drive and meet some place in between Michigan and NY, but his car was acting up, so he used miles to get a last-minute flight to NYC! It was our first opportunity to explore Long Island and see what kind of fun there is to be had. Apparently there are some famous beaches around here:

I feared that Jones Beach would be a cesspool of humanity, but even on a holiday weekend, we were able to find a nice patch of sand right near the water to call our own. You can play shuffleboard for $2! We didn't try it, but maybe next time.

the elusive sand crab

We contributed to the household by setting up Stephen and Grace's new grill and giving it a try:

 Time to learn how to grill! Dave and I are already talking about the possibilities – paella? pizza?

Then we checked out the Long Island Aquarium. Verdict: it is expensive, feels very manipulative, and suffers from an identity crisis, but if you're already in the Hamptons and need to take the kids somewhere, acceptable. Mainly because of the awesome shark tank. But before you get to the shark tank, you can enjoy many experiences that can be upgraded for a small fee. There was a butterfly habitat (entirely sunless and indoors) that was being run by one lonely entomologist. When I expressed interest in entomology, he was so happy to talk that he invited us into his lab to check out the pupae and chrysalides. 

There was one particularly friendly butterfly...

...that went in for a kiss!

For a small fee, you can feed the birds some seeds in a sunless, indoor room:

The Snow White moment I've always wanted, procurable with just a small fee:

 We also explored Port Jefferson, on the North Shore. There was a rather scenic bay, and you can see the ferry to New Haven in the background:

 All in all, a lovely Long Island weekend.