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🧔🏽♂️ Dad Thoughts: Fifteen Visits
At 30, Sahil Bloom was living in California, 3,000 miles from his parents, chasing the usual markers of success. He saw them about once a year. Then a friend did some blunt math out loud: parents in their mid-60s, average life expectancy around 80, one visit a year. That's maybe 15 more times he'd ever see them. Forty-five days later, he and his wife sold their house and moved across the country to be close to family again.
I think about how lucky I am that I never had to have that math done for me. My parents live 15 minutes away. When Niam says "I want to stay with grandma and grandpa," he can, the next available weekend, as long as my parents aren't already out doing something (their social life puts the rest of us to shame).
I'm also lucky I got to spend so much time with my own grandparents, especially my dad's dad. He passed shortly after Niam was born, and while he never got to meet my son, Niam's middle name is after him. So in his own way, he's carrying him forward even without ever meeting him. And every day Niam spends with my dad, he's building the same kind of bond I had with my grandad. Different person, same shape.
I can never fully explain what it meant to grow up with grandparents I was close to, and a wider circle of uncles, aunts and cousins always around. Looking back now, I see exactly how much that shaped me. And it's exactly what I want for my own kids.
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🚗 FAMILY FUN FIELD TRIPS
Dad-approved outings.
This Weekend → 🌾 The Long Island Fair at Old Bethpage Village Restoration
The real deal: an old-fashioned county fair running since 1842. Trick horse riding, high divers, an animal stunt show, glassblowing, live music, competitive exhibits (pie contests, livestock, giant pumpkins), rides, and fair food, all inside the historic village. One of the best full-day family outings of the fall.
💰 $20 adults / $15 kids 5-12 / free under 5
📅 Fri Sept 25–Sun Sept 27, 10 AM–5 PM
🔗 lifair
🍂 Heritage Farm & Garden Fall Festival - Opening Weekend
A true farm-style fall festival inside Nassau: a corn maze, hayrides, a pumpkin patch, farm animals, a kids' village, and live music both days of opening weekend. Everything you want from a fall farm day without leaving the county.
💰 $25 weekend package (unlimited hayrides, corn maze, one pumpkin, kids' village, farm animals); crafts $5 each
📅 Sat Sept 26–Sun Sept 27, 10 AM–4:30 PM
🔗 heritagefarmandgarden
🎃 Fall Fun Fest at Sands Point Preserve
Pumpkin painting, puppet shows from WonderSpark Puppets, up-close animal presentations, and live music on the Gold Coast grounds. A full autumn family day with the mansion and trails as backdrop.
💰 Free with park admission ($15 per car; free for members)
📅 Sun Sep 27, 12 PM-4 PM
🔗 sandspointpreserveconservancy
Next Weekend → 🍺 First Annual Oktoberfest at the Barn
Step back in time for a day of German-American harvest traditions at Old Bethpage Village Restoration: food, music, and family fun set inside the historic village. A fresh addition to the fall lineup.
💰 $15 adults / $12 kids ages 5+
📅 Sat Oct 3, 11 AM–6 PM
🔗 oldbethpagevillagerestoration
✈️ Long Island Family Day at the Cradle of Aviation
A free, high-energy day: bounce houses, face painting, interactive games, raffles, and giveaways, plus local schools and family resources. An easy no-cost afternoon on Museum Row. (Free event; museum galleries and planetarium are separate admission if you go in.)
💰 Free
📅 Sun Oct 4, 12 PM–3 PM
🔗 cradleofaviation
✏️ PENCIL IT IN
Future you will be glad you read this.
🦪 The Long Island Oyster Fest
A waterfront celebration in Oyster Bay with food, music, and a laid-back fall vibe on the harbor. A fun, easy family outing with something for the grown-ups too.
💰 Check site for pricing
📅 Sat Oct 17–Sun Oct 18, 11 AM–6 PM
🔗 oysterfest
🎃 1880s Haunted Halloween at Old Bethpage Village Restoration
Trick-or-treating through a historic 19th-century village, a children's costume parade and contest, and a Sleepy Hollow marionette show. A perfectly spooky-not-scary Halloween outing for younger kids.
💰 $17 adults / $14 kids ages 5+
📅 Sat Oct 31–Sun Nov 1, 10 AM–4 PM
🔗 oldbethpagevillagerestoration
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Forward this to Nassau County parents you think would appreciate it.
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See you next Thursday,
Akash