soon to be new to the area - looking for advice and like-minded families

[Artichokie]

hi everyone,

my dh has been offered a job in norwich, ct and i'm looking for all kinds of information. :)

we lived in the area years ago pre-kids and were not impressed with norwich/groton/new london and were thinking about living in westerly, ri.  is it still safe to say that westerly is a better choice for a crunchy family?  i have two LOs and am a sahm.  I'd prefer a place with a walkable downtown, a whole food/organic food source, and no-vax friendly pedi nearby.  i really hate driving ans would love pedestrian/biking friendly.

i'd also love to find a group of like-minded mamas so i'm not so alone when i get there.

[Artichokie]

21 views and no one?

[jessjgh1]

Hi Artichokie- I looked before to see what state you were moving to, but was on my mobile so I couldn't cut and paste the link I wanted to.  I'm in MA and I'm not familiar with CT, but there are 4 Holistic Moms Network chapters there- maybe one is near where you are looking.

Good luck on your move!  -Jessica

http://www.holisticmoms.org/category/connect/local-chapters/

Connecticut

Fairfield County Chapter

Hartford County Chapter

Middlesex County Chapter

New Haven County Chapter

[Artichokie]

Thank you Jessica! I don't think any of those are in the area we're moving too, sadly.  :/

[lizfu]

I am not sure about Westerly- but I'm wondering if going a little farther afield from DH's work might get you more of what you're looking for in a town.  Would your DH exchange a longer commute for a better town? i'm wondering if New Haven or Middletown would better meet your wants/needs.

[Orionsmama]

Hi there!

We live in Wakefield, RI. Its about 20 minute East of Westerly. I love our little town. We walk everywhere. There is an organic market and a beautiful bike path for riding and running. We belong to a local community garden right in town which is so much fun. The people are pretty friendly and welcoming, (we just moved here last year from Brooklyn, Ny) As for a non-vax pedi, we havent really found one who is super supportive but the one we do have is very non-judgemental and is respectful of our right not to vax. The commute for your DH might be a bit far but the community is pretty great here, not to mention a great school system. PM me if you would like. Good luck!

[~Boudicca~]

Hi!  We live in downtown Pawcatuck (Westerly-Pawcatuck share a cute little downtown area even though its 2 states).  A lot of people hang out in Wilcox park, there are plays and summer concerts there, Westerly library is really nice, and there is Herbwise if you are looking for natural foods/herbs http://www.herbwisenaturals.com/

Perks and Corks in downtown Westerly is a good place to have a coffee or a good glass of wine, and they have live music just about every night.

Here is another link http://www.westerlydowntown.com/index.html

The downtown itself is very walkable but once you get out of that area it's like every other New England town with limited public transportation/crazy drivers.  There is RIPTA bus service down here on the Westerly side, you would have to look up the schedule I'm not sure where it goes or how often it runs.

We have seen Dr. Stokes for a few years now.  He is ok with non/selective vaxxing and very supportive of extended breastfeeding and natural birth.  He is located on Beach St.

Speaking of the beach, you'd be very close it so when in doubt just head to the beach :)  Watch Hill is nice and they have a carousel for the kids and a relatively tame beach

The commute to Norwich (I work in that area as well) will probably be a solid 35-40 minutes depending on where you are.  I've tried several different routes and it always seems to be around that.

Someone upthread mentioned Wakefield which is really lovely, oh how I love Wakefield.  It's a sucky commute to Norwich though, I used to live there too.

PM me if you move here and want to get together, I have a LO the same age as your oldest.

[Artichokie]

Originally Posted by Orionsmama 

Hi there!

We live in Wakefield, RI. Its about 20 minute East of Westerly. I love our little town. We walk everywhere. There is an organic market and a beautiful bike path for riding and running. We belong to a local community garden right in town which is so much fun. The people are pretty friendly and welcoming, (we just moved here last year from Brooklyn, Ny) As for a non-vax pedi, we havent really found one who is super supportive but the one we do have is very non-judgemental and is respectful of our right not to vax. The commute for your DH might be a bit far but the community is pretty great here, not to mention a great school system. PM me if you would like. Good luck!

wakefield sounds lovely but we've done the hour commute in the past and prefer to not do it again! :)

Originally Posted by lizfu 

I am not sure about Westerly- but I'm wondering if going a little farther afield from DH's work might get you more of what you're looking for in a town.  Would your DH exchange a longer commute for a better town? i'm wondering if New Haven or Middletown would better meet your wants/needs.

he really doesn't want to miss out of dinner time every night, so the hour long commute is probably not feasible right now.

Originally Posted by ~Boudicca~ 

Hi!  We live in downtown Pawcatuck (Westerly-Pawcatuck share a cute little downtown area even though its 2 states).  A lot of people hang out in Wilcox park, there are plays and summer concerts there, Westerly library is really nice, and there is Herbwise if you are looking for natural foods/herbs http://www.herbwisenaturals.com/

Perks and Corks in downtown Westerly is a good place to have a coffee or a good glass of wine, and they have live music just about every night.

Here is another link http://www.westerlydowntown.com/index.html

The downtown itself is very walkable but once you get out of that area it's like every other New England town with limited public transportation/crazy drivers.  There is RIPTA bus service down here on the Westerly side, you would have to look up the schedule I'm not sure where it goes or how often it runs.

We have seen Dr. Stokes for a few years now.  He is ok with non/selective vaxxing and very supportive of extended breastfeeding and natural birth.  He is located on Beach St.

Speaking of the beach, you'd be very close it so when in doubt just head to the beach :)  Watch Hill is nice and they have a carousel for the kids and a relatively tame beach

The commute to Norwich (I work in that area as well) will probably be a solid 35-40 minutes depending on where you are.  I've tried several different routes and it always seems to be around that.

Someone upthread mentioned Wakefield which is really lovely, oh how I love Wakefield.  It's a sucky commute to Norwich though, I used to live there too.

PM me if you move here and want to get together, I have a LO the same age as your oldest.

I am so happy you posted!  Yes, I wil PM you.  As an aside, I called Dr Stokes office and was told he is not accepting new patients,  I begged the nurse to ask him to reconsider but I never heard back. :/