Texts

A text from a friend:

[Yoda] just asked where the bathroom is and my husband (who thinks he's hilarious) directed him to a tree outside. [Yoda] looked at him like "are you insane?"
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When I asked if I should buy the new Star Wars movie on DVD, Greg texted back:
"Parker says 'buy it quick' "

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As I walked to school with a neighbor kid and Yoda, I texted this to Greg:
"It's so cute listening to Zach and Yoda talk about asthma and inhalers"

Last of Spring Break

Wednesday was Greg's bucket-list day.  He never went to these places while we lived in Boston.  So we went to John Adam's home in Quincy and Plymouth, MA.

First up, the Adam's home.  Of course we were off season, so it was all closed, but still beautiful.  The visitor's center in town had lots of information so it ended up being worth the drive. 

Then to Plimoth Plantation.  Also worth the trip and the entrance fee.  It's a living museum with people in period dress. 

And because you know I want to include old photos, here's baby Parker, my mom and me back in 2004 visiting Plymouth.

Of course on this trip, Mayflower 2 is being restored and it away from the museum, so we missed it! 

And then the LONG drive home.   We got home at about 6am.  What a great trip!  

Spring Break Day 4

Still with me?

This is this fun little bridge, no tourists here.  When you stand on this platform you can create a fun echo.  Of course it's been here forever and has a long history, because this town is 300 years old. 

We checked out another old apartment and Yoda refused to get out of the car.  "I'm not participating because I never lived here!"

This apartment was right across the street from a T stop, or subway and an office building.  Greg would just walk to his bus that picked up reverse-commuters that came from Boston and it would take him to his office in Wellesley.  It was the best commute he's ever had!  Now that company is in the office building across the street! That would have been an amazing commute! 

 And of course I have to include an old photo in the same place! 

Boston Common, the public gardens and the Ducklings! 

 Aaaaand, here's baby Parker visiting the Ducklings back in 2006. 

We spent some time in Newbury Comics.

Mimi was less impressed by the location of the Boston Massacre and more interested in the unicorn on top of the Old State house

It was chilly and the kiddos were getting to the end of their ropes.  We cut short the Freedom Trail, got pastries and sat in the new park over the Big Dig. 

Waiting for the T back to our car. 

But before the night was over we HAD to go Candle-pin bowling.  Bowling in New England is not like bowling anywhere else!  The ball is smaller, the pins are narrow, and the pins don't get swept away until you roll the ball 3 times, so you can use fallen pins to hit standing pins, and you tell the thingy to sweep the pins away.  SO fun!

Spring Break Day 3

Off to Belchertown!  Home of our very old and weird apartment on the town's common.  We spent some time walking around looking at the beautiful old library and dumpy laundromat and talking about how poor we were. 

Here we are back in 2003 with baby Parker on the town's common. 

As we were driving east towards Boston, we stopped and talked about the Quabbin.  Which has a super interesting history.  They flooded towns to create the reservoir to bring water to Eastern Massachusetts.  The towns have been gone a long time but people still feel sad about it. 

And here we are back in 2003 at the Quabbin with Grandma Shauna! 

Visiting the North Bridge, importation to our nation's history

Next Salem.  Mimi's 6th grade teacher has an ancestor who was one of the people accused of being a witch.  This is the memorial built in 1992 to those that were killed. 

And here we are back in 2007 with aunt Jill and aunt Tina.  Look at that little Mimi and Parker! 

Of course we visited off-season so lots of things were either closed on a Monday or closed until April. 

  So we found a cool light house to take a picture with.  It was a beautiful day! 

One special request was to hit an amazing seafood restaurant.  My chef-friend Kimberly took me here long ago, so it's my go-to seafood place.  (Yoda had grilled cheese that so, so amazing!)

We ended the night with our visiting some friends who made us some yummy brownies.  We wish we could have visited more people but time just didn't allow.

Here's Parker with is long-ago friend.  They might not remember each other very well, but I do! 

 And here they are back in 2005 at a Thomas the Tank Engine Birthday party.  Look at those cheeks! 

 More to come! 

Spring Break Day 1 & 2

Day 1

We left early Saturday morning for Western Massachusetts.  On our way we had to stop and see Lake Erie. 

 First of two unplanned lighthouses we saw on our trip. 

We stopped at the Women's Rights National Park in Seneca Falls, NY.  We learned a lot.  We also lucked out and arrived just in time to see a woman reenactor who dressed up as Elizabeth C. Stanton. 

 We found a local place on Roadfood.com and ate our first of MANY yummy meals! 

 Swimming to wear out the kiddos before bed!

Day 2

First stop Emily Dickinson's house in Amherst, MA. 

Then to UMass to see Greg's old office. 

Mimi was beyond bored until we saw this random metal sculpture. 

Off to Yankee Candle Factory.  A place we visited many times back in the early 2000's with baby Parker.  The kiddos dipped candles.  Mimi was in heaven and asked to pick out a few candles to take home.  She's been loving to pick out which one to burn. 

Finding the Lego model of the Yankee Candle Factory was a thrill!

Off to Northampton.  Our kiddos appreciate an origin story.  This is the place where Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were first written or something.  This building has small turtle window ornaments in their honor. 

Found some good pizza. 

And we did a bit of Family History cemetery searches. 

Then we headed to the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art.  Parker was a new born when this museum opened, so they are both 15 :)

Before bed we got some wings from Greg's favorite restaurant from grad school.