Long Birthday and Graduation Celebration Weekend in the Poconos

Recently, my family and I returned from a long weekend stay in the Poconos. We had a great time! We brought our Shih Tzu pup with us and were there to celebrate my twins’ birthday and their recent graduations from college—one just graduated from Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania (my alma mater) and the other got her degree from Smith College in Massachusetts. It was awesome to enjoy some quality family time together! I can’t believe that my kids are now college graduates!

Cute and Cozy Cottage in Tobyhanna, Pennsylvania

I rented a sweet and comfortable home in Tobyhanna, PA, which is in the Poconos, a beautiful mountain area filled with fun towns to explore, places to hike, and lots to do.

My family and I got there late the first night, so we picked up some delicious pho and banh mi sandwiches from Pho Saigon 3 and enjoyed some birthday cake—I served my kids their favorite strawberry cake, which I made at home just before our trip.

The house that I rented was perfect for us—it had a downstairs bedroom my husband and I shared and two bedrooms upstairs with their own half bath that my kids stayed in. We loved the big and updated kitchen and its side porch. The home was stocked with everything we needed, from coffee and tea, to snacks and games. I even played a fun round of cornhole—one of my favorite games—one night with my daughter. (I think we were getting pretty good towards the end!)

A Rainy Saturday

Our first full day in the Poconos was cold and rainy, so we headed to Hanna’s Farmers Market for a little shopping. It’s a really great shop filled with wonderful cheeses and other foods, cute gifts, and a lovely greenhouse—I was tempted to buy myself a spider plant but wasn’t sure how it would weather the trip home so I didn’t. But my husband surprised me with a cute zippered pouch for my phone charger and charging cord (I am always misplacing them), some candy fruit slices (that I adore), a heart keychain, and some kettle popcorn. It was a sweet surprise—I love getting gifts!

After our mini shopping trip, we picked up some wings, collard greens and mac and cheese for an early dinner from Wingz and a Prayer. We loved trying out their various flavors—my favorite was Thai Peanut.

We also played Azul (a board game that’s both fun and beautiful) and Worst Case Scenario (a fun game where you can demonstrate how well you know your friends and family). I was lucky that night as I won both games!

A Day in Stroudsburg

The next day we attended the Pride Festival in Stroudsburg and got our pup a cute rainbow bandana! I thought he looked cute!

We also ate really big slices of pizza from Goombas Pizza. The slices were SO BIG and tasted great!

After the festival, we tried to hike to a nearby waterfall at the Austin T. Blakeslee Natural Area, but we had to turn around since the trail required crossing a small creek via a felled tree! Since I don’t have the dexterity or balance for that, we headed back to our car. I was bummed to miss the waterfall, but the pine trees along the trail were really pretty! The Pine Trail in the park was so serene.

Last Day in the Poconos

We checkout out of our cottage on Monday, and that day we visited a fun antique store, Olde Engine Works Antique Marketplace. We loved browsing; my daughter bought a really pretty bracelet and I found some cute floral stud earrings—although they’re simple, I’ve never seen any like them before. We were glad that the shopkeepers let our pup browse the store with us too!

I especially enjoyed our other stop that day, the top of the mountain at Big Pocono State Park. We drove up to the summit, and visited two different parking lots that had great views of the Poconos. I really loved looking out over the mountains!

Although our trip was fairly short, I loved our little getaway and enjoying a weekend with my husband and kids! Even though we only traveled a few short hours from our home, our long weekend gave us a wonderful opportunity to explore some new-to-us towns and sights! We will have to plan another Poconos weekend sometime!

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