We recently enjoyed a week-long, fun-filled vacation in the beautiful state of Massachusetts. Not only does the state have several of our country’s top-notch hospitals and universities, but its seafood is world-famous, and the vast sports culture thrives. Additionally, Massachusetts is home to endless summertime and wintertime activities, and it is chock-full of magnificent history (Incredible Massachusetts). However, our trip wasn’t for any of those reasons. Instead, it was to enjoy a visit with my daughter and son-in-law. We just happened to experience many remarkable things while there. Below is an acrostic (MASSACHUSETTS VACATION) of noteworthy stuff during our trip.

My daughter and son-in-law (time spent with them was priceless)

Altruist Brewing Company (quaint little brewery)

Ski Ward (snow tubing — fast, cold, and fun for all ages)

Sturbridge Seafood Restaurant (best scallops and salmon ever)

Airline (Jetblue: our favorite airline to fly)

Cornerstone Ranch (enjoyable horse-drawn wagon ride)

House (their house backs up to a beautiful pond)

Unwind (a wonderful week spent relaxing)

Siblings (my sister & brother came to visit as well…delightful)

Ed Markey (while at Altruist Brewery, the US Senator showed up to give a speech)

Treehouse Brewing Company (fantastic beer & perfect ambiance)

Timberyard Brewing Company (too loud music, but it had decent ambiance and good beer)

Sturbridge Porterhouse (my son tried steak marrow for the first time)

Vacation (airplane, restaurants, breweries, activities, and lots of laughter)

Americano coffee and asiago bagel (delicious offerings at Milk & Sugar Café)

Charlton (a pleasant residential city in Massachusetts)

Adventures (experienced numerous amazing and awesome ones)

Ted’s Montana Grill (we tried bison steak and burgers)

Impractical Jokers (tons of laughter from watching this TV show)

Oysters (my son tried his first—and probably last, oyster)

Novel (many story ideas came to me while vacationing)