I didn’t leave my heart in San Francisco, but I did leave my purse in Ellenville along with my wallet, keys, medication and brain, apparently. I guess this is what happens when I spend two days finding my inner “chi”.

Let’s rewind and take it step-by-step. Starting with an intro and of course, the food.

Very spontaneously, we booked a short getaway for Mother’s Day this past weekend. I Googled “kid-friendly resorts in ny” and came across Honor’s Haven Resort & Spa in the Catskills. Judging by the pictures and descriptions online it seemed like a place we can all relax while still being accommodating to a family with a preschooler. The price was right, it wasn’t too far of a drive and most importantly, they had room for us on such short notice. Still, in the back of my mind, I was picturing pulling up to something resembling the Bate’s Motel in the middle of the mountains. Thankfully, my first instinct was right (as was Google) and we were beyond happy with our experience.

For only $99 per person (kids under 6 are free) we all received breakfast, dinner, access to all the spa amenities, the option to participate in the daily activities and classes and this view…

While we didn’t get to take advantage of all that Honor’s Haven has to offer, we definitely indulged and are already planning our next trip up, sans kid.

Honor’s Haven has a lot to offer, but I’d like to recap our vacation from the beginning which started with a very hungry 4-year old.

We arrived a few hours before dinner so we headed out to town for a quick bite and stumbled across Aroma Thyme Bistro. Located on Canal Street, a cute thriving block in town, Aroma Thyme Bistro immediately reminded me of a place we’d frequent in Brooklyn, something urban in suburban, possibly. They specialize in serving fresh, organic, local foods and offer a variety of both vegan and meat dishes. Yelp offers a pretty good description of what to expect there if you’d like to learn more. In my opinion, the food was excellent, the staff was friendly and the atmosphere was on point. They were extremely accommodating to Angelina, creating a personalized dish for her that wasn’t on the menu, a teriyaki shrimp with brown rice,  simply because it was all she was “in the mood for“. We tried a variety of other dishes including their pizza, local cheese platter, hummus and pesto burger and would highly recommend any of them. The portions were generous and the quality was outstanding.

Back at the hotel a few locals commented on how pricey Aroma Thyme Bistro was, but I have to disagree. Our bill was only $69.09 and we had a lot of food. We ordered two appetizers (both with humongous servings) and had an entree each, with plenty of food left over to bring back to the hotel.  Maybe I’m a city snob thinking that seventy bucks for lunch wasn’t “too pricey”, but I can’t imagine getting such fresh, healthy food anywhere else for less.

When we come back without Angelina in the future, we’ll be stopping in at Aroma Thyme Bistro again to try out some of their wines along with the live entertainment. If we didn’t live over two hours away, I could see this becoming a favorite spot.

I want to explain every detail of the trip, and I will, but my brain is still in weekend mode and my eyes are already crossed from thinking so much, so early in the day. Please enjoy some of the photos from our trip and I promise to continue the story tomorrow. I have a lot more to share about the resort, the Tulip Festival and the very thoughtful gift that was waiting for me at home.

Related articles

• Teriyaki Stir Fry (ordinarydayinparadise.wordpress.com)
• Infamous N.y. Moms (musingbymoonlight.com)
• Best Mom-Daughter Getaways (foxnews.com)