Gardens By The Sea - Madison Garden Tour in Madison CT

This weekend I joined Wendy from CT Lifestyles Magazine to enjoy a fun stroll through seven private Madison gardens located near Long Island Sound in Madison CT. The "Gardens by the Sea" Madison Garden Tour was sponsored by the Women's Club of Madison. 

Wendy had purchased our tickets in advance for $15 each, and on the day of the tour, tickets were available at the door for $18 at the Visitor Information Center. Proceeds from the tour will benefit the New Ambulance Barn Training Room.

Kathy DeBurra, President of the Madison Women's Club explained, 

"The Garden Tour is always a great event and ALL proceeds go back into our community! This project will raise funds to complete a training room for the Madison Ambulance Association. This room will be used for training, education, instruction and conducting critical incident stress debriefings. The room will need to be furnished completely including flooring, furniture, network connections and training materials."

The destinations were kept a secret until participants checked in and we received a brochure detailing the addresses, directions, and information about the property.

There were so many beautiful properties to view - here are the highlights from the stops we made in no particular order. At the end of this post is a link to additional pictures.

There was a great mix of garden styles, from cottage style to rustic to formal, and each one was wonderful in its own right. I can't pick a favorite and was wowed by something at each destination.  

Taking a garden tour is a great way to see the type of garden that you might want in your own yard - and now I have a better idea of what I want to do in mine. I know I'll mix many of the styles and include some formal boxwood hedges, lots of bright colors, and of course, I can't wait to include some statuary, window boxes, and container gardens.

For more pictures of our garden tour visit the Home Place facebook page HERE and while you're there, don't forget to like us!

Hope you enjoyed the Gardens by the Sea tour - have you been on any garden tours lately?

I'd love to hear about them!

Earth Day 2013 at Meigs Point Nature Center Hammonasset Beach State Park Madison CT

Today we headed out to Hammonasset Beach State Park in Madison Connecticut to celebrate an early Earth Day 2013. #EarthDay2013

Although Earth Day technically isn't until April 22nd, the folks at Meigs Point Nature Center, located in Hammonasset State Park, decided to get a jump on the festivities with a wonderful celebration of Mother Earth.

Today's event was sponsored by The Friends of Hammonasset, a non-profit group who work together to preserve Hammonasset Park's natural resources.

Meigs Point Nature Center is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10am to 5pm from April to October and features snakes, turtles, lizards, fish, and frogs. Oh my!

They even have a touch tank that features all sorts of creatures.  Today there was a lobster.  Nothing personal Mr. Lobster Man, but I prefer mine boiled, and served with butter.

Also available to hold for the brave at hearts were some, uh, errrr, boa constrictors. 

We then wandered outside to see the fun events going on!  One of the highlights was the Native American flute playing (press the arrow to hear a short melody)....

The music was hauntingly beautiful and a perfect background for a relaxing day.

Next we moved on to the spear throwing area that all the children were lined up for!
These "spears" are actually called atlatl and predate the spear by a couple of thousand years!
They're more like darts and have a special holder that allow for their amazing distance.

And we stopped for a moment to listen to talks by wild life safety experts and conservationists.

We capped off our day by taking a short hike around the area,

looking at beautiful Long Island Sound, the sparkling water, and the beautiful beach!  

Summer is just around the corner!

If you're looking for a great place to take the family for some conservation and wildlife information, you'll find that Meigs Point Nature Center at Hammonasset Beach State Park is a wonderful place to spend the day! 

For additional photos: Click HERE and "like" the Home Place facebook page

Do you have any favorite nature centers, state parks, or beaches that you frequent?

I'd love to hear about them in the comments below!