A hodge podge of a day...

This morning we were out of stuff for breakfast so on our way to the train we grabbed something to eat at a place that's similar to LaBou. We kind of went all over the place today and did all kinds of things!

We started our morning off at the New

England Aquarium. We got to see penguins, a huge 600 lb turtle, jelly fish, etc. and I even touched a star fish and a sea anemone. We stayed dry for awhile in the aquarium and then decided to knock a few more things off of the Freedom Trail. Freedom Trail stop #13 was The Old North Church. This is the church where 2 lanterns were lit to let people know that the British were coming. Freedom Trail stop #14 was the Copp's Hill Burying Ground. This was the cemetery that most Bostonians were buried at during the time of the Revolution. Before lunch we walked back through Little Italy and stopped at Modern Pastry, which is supposed to be famous. We share a cannoli and a cappucino! It was amazing!!

We also visited the Museum of Fine Arts because tonight was free admission :) This is a very large museum, so we only saw part of it in the 2 1/2 hours that we were there. I'm always amazed when I go to an art museum. It's so crazy to see things that were painted by such famous people as Picasso, Monet, Renoir, Pollock, etc. It's also crazy to see things that were painted over 700 years ago. We also saw a drunk guy at the museum that was acting like he was going to touch the painting or sit on all of the VERY old furniture that was on display. He kept setting off the motion detectors that would beep when he got too close to the painting.

I am exhausted after going non-stop for the last 7 days. We've walked over 55 miles and we've seen over 40 of the things on our list. We have 6 days left to do another 25+ items. I'm excited to have another week to explore Boston.

Today's total mileage: 8 miles

Today's blessing: Getting to see a picture of my kids :) I've missed them!! Also getting to talk to my mom on the phone. I've missed her!!

Rain Delay...

It rained on us all day! I woke up really grumpy because I didn't sleep that great last night. We took the train into Back Bay/Fenway this morning after breakfast to see the Christian Science Complex and the Isabella Stuart Garden Museum. Unfortunately, the rain kind of put our plans on delay until tomorrow. Instead we hopped on another train to a restaurant that Layton had been wanting to go to. It was called Boston Beer Works. It's right across the street from Fenway Park. It was really fun! After lunch we trekked back through the rain and hit up the Massachusetts State House on our way back home. We took a really cool tour of the place. It was great getting to see where their House of Representatives and their Senate meets. The architecture of it was absolutely amazing.

When we got home, Layton made me take a nap while he took some clothes to the laundromat...hoping that a nap would help with my grumpiness. It did!! I woke up refreshed and ready for the Red Sox game at Fenway Park. Thankfully the rain let up. We hopped on the train AGAIN along with about half of Boston's population. We looked like sardines all crammed into the subway car. It was fun. It's all part of the experience. The game was AWESOME! Of course I had to get lots of junk food-a Philly cheesesteak and peanuts :) Layton got ice cream too. The Red Sox fans are really fun. Of course we sang "Take me out to the ballgame." They also have a tradition that during the 8th inning they sing Neil Diamond's song "Sweet Caroline." That was so FUN! We did the

wave and booed at the other team. I turn into such a little kid when I'm at a baseball game. I'm ending my day no longer grumpy :)

Today's total mileage: 5.5

Today's bum quote: Well, it's not really a quote. But I did get KICKED by a bum on the subway today!!

Today's blessing: Wearing my new Red Sox hat, eating baseball junk food, laughing and enjoying a wonderful evening with my husband in America's oldest baseball field!!

Simplicity...

We got up early today so that we could catch the commuter rail into Concord. You can't take the regular subway system, since its about 11 miles away, so we had to walk to the commuter station and wait about 30 minutes for the train. It took us about 30 minutes to get to Concord. Layton read online that Concord isn't a walking city like Boston. Boy was he right! I desperately wanted to go see Walden Pond and see the replica of Thoreau's cabin. He told me that it probably wasn't going to be an easy walk. I didn't really believe him, but he was right! Half of the time there was no side walk and we were actually walking down a highway at one point. We finally made it to Walden Pond. The pictures do not do it justice. It was SOOOO amazingly beautiful! We actually took the time to walk all the way around it, which was a little over 1.5 miles. It was quite an adventure and so beautiful and PEACEFUL!! I bought a handmade mug in the gift shop.

After we hiked back into town along the highway we grabbed some pizza and ice cream for lunch and then we headed in the opposite direction to find Monument Square, The Orchard House (Louisa May Alcott's House), Ralph Waldo Emerson's House, and Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, which has what's called "Author's Ridge", where Thoreau, Alcott, Emerson, and Hawthorne are buried. It was CRAZY for me to think that all of the great literary GIANTS walked the same streets that I was walking on and were actually buried under right where I was standing.

It was quite a crazy day of walking (my feet are getting so tired!), adventure, fun, laughs, amazement, and exhaustion! I absolutely LOVED the town of Concord and could actually see myself living there. Who wouldn't want to live right up the street from Ralph Waldo Emerson's house?!?!

Today's total mileage: 11.29

Today's blessing: Eating amazing raspberry sorbet with fresh raspberries in a quaint town full of so much history. I could almost hear Thoreau speaking to me :)

I would like to end with a few words from Thoreau:

"Simplicity, simplicity, simplicity! I say, let your affairs be as two or three, and not a hundred or a thousand; instead of a million count half a dozen, and keep your accounts on your thumb nail. In the midst of this chopping sea of civilized life, such are the clouds and storms and quick-sands and thousand and-one items to be allowed for, that a man has to live, if he would not founder and go to the bottom and not make his port at all, by dead reckoning, and he must be a great calculator indeed who succeeds. Simplify, simplify. Instead of three meals a day, if it be necessary eat but one; instead of a hundred dishes, five; and reduce other things in proportion."

A day of relaxation...

Today was a chill day for us. We needed to re-charge! We were both so exhausted from the last few days of non-stop walking that we decided to sleep in and not set an alarm. Little did we know that we'd sleep in until 10:30!! We needed to do laundry today and after a few attempts at the dryer in our building, Layton figured it out that the dryer wasn't working. Then I went to make lunch and our bread we just bought was already moldy!! So on the way to Whole Foods to pick up more bread, Layton stopped by the laundry mat to dry our clothes. Needless to say, we didn't get out of the house until about 3.

We walked down to Long Wharf and just walked along the water for a little while. I got a mint chocolate chip ice cream cone. YUM!! We walked around to take some pictures and then we came back to the house to catch up on tidying up and I edited uploaded some pictures and Layton worked a little.

We ventured in to Little Italy for dinner. What a great experience. It was soooo BUSY there. Apparently it is THE place to eat dinner! We thought we'd try out a place that supposedly is the best place get Italian food, unfortunately the line went all the way around the corner, so

we went to the second place on our list. The place we ended up at was great. It seemed very authentic to me. The owner sounded like he came straight out of The Godfather. He wasn't very polite, but it didn't really matter because it was so authentic. The food and wine was fabulous!! We had such a great evening talking, people watching and planning tomorrow's activities. We're going to Concord and Lexington tomorrow! I can't wait to go to Walden Pond!

Today's total mileage: 3. 28 miles

Today's bum quote of the day: "Hey miss, do you smoke?" To which I replied, "No." "Would you staht (Bostonian for start) for me?"

Today's blessing: Enjoying a fabulous Italian dinner with my hubby, relaxing and planning our next day's events.

God Bless America...

I've decided that Boston is THE best place to be for July 4th!! Everything here is so over the top and amazing.

Our day started off to a very sad start. My sister-in-law's mother passed away this morning after a very difficult struggle with cancer. The 4th of July is my sis-in-law's favorite holiday and she told my brother that she knew her mom would pass on this holiday. As I was sitting along the Charles River tonight watching the beautiful and celebratory fireworks explode against the black sky I was brought to tears remembering and celebrating not only our country, but also the beautiful life that Kathie Sutherland lived and the fantastic legacy that she left behind in her 3 children and grandchildren.

I have found myself brought to tears many times today. I'm not quite sure why. I think that it's just the overwhelming knowledge of what our country has gone through to have and maintain its freedom. I think it's the overwhelming memories that I'm making with my best friend. I think it's the fact that I'm learning to not take life for granted. There are so many amazing and beautiful things and people in this word.

It was breathtaking standing in front of the Old State House watching a general from one of the oldest artillery companies in the United States read the Declaration of Independence off of the same balcony that John Adams read it in 1776. It was simply beautiful standing in Charlestown watching "Old Ironsides" shoot her 21 one gun/canon salute. And it was unforgettable standing with over 1 million people singing "God Bless America" as I watched one of the most beautiful and awe-inspiring fireworks displays that I've ever seen.

Today's total mileage walked: 11 miles

Today's bum quote of the day: We were sitting on some park benches resting our feet when all of a sudden we heard a screeching voice singing, "Dude looks like a lady!" I turned around and it was some crazy bum. Every so often he would just sing this one line out as people walked by him!

Today's blessing: Sitting along the Charles River eating a Stars and Stripes

Dunkin' Donut with my best friend waiting for the fireworks to start.

Quite the day...

...of exploration!! Whew! We did SOOOOOO much today. We thought we'd take advantage of the lack of rain and the beautiful weather. Layton tried to get me up at 7:30, but that didn't quite work out :) We still got a pretty good start at about 10:30. We decided to hit up the Freedom Trail today. I've been told that this is the best way to see Boston. It has 16 VERY historical sites/places that are a must see in Boston. It was quite overwhelming to me.

Here is a quick overview of everything that we saw/did today:

#1-Boston common. This is a 44 acre park area that used to house soldiers and livestock. It was even used to hang criminals back in the day.

#2-Massachusetts State House-Built in 1798. It is one of the oldest buildings in Beacon Hill.

#3-Park Street Church-This used to be the first landmark that travelers saw when approaching Boston.

#4-The Granary Burying Ground-Established in 1660! Has MANY noted American's buried here including: Paul Revere, Samuel Adams, John Hancock, and the 5 men that died during the Boston Massacre.

#5-King's Chapel-Built in 1749. George Washington and Paul Revere attended church here a few times.

#6-King's Chapel Burying Ground-The first woman to step off of the Mayflower is buried here.

#7-Boston Latin School-America's oldest public school. Ben Franklin, Samuel Adams, and John Hancock all attended here.

#8-Old Corner Bookstore-I was kind of sad that this wasn't still a bookstore. It had been turned into a Diamond Store. It was still very neat to think that Hawthorne, Longfellow, Emerson, Dickens, Alcott, etc. used to frequent this bookstore!

#9-Old South Meeting House-Built in 1729 as a Puritan meeting house. Samuel Adams addressed a crowd here regarding the tax on tea.

#10-Old State House-John Adams first read the Declaration of Independence from the balcony in 1776.

#11-Boston Massacre Site-It's in the middle of an intersection now, but it is were 5 men died.

#12-Faneuil Hall-This is where American's first protested the Stamp Act.

#13-Paul Revere's House-Built in 1680. He was living here when he participated in the Boston Tea Party.

We even saw a Redcoat parade that went down the streets of Boston. Complete with muskets, bayonets, drums, flutes, etc. It was very surreal.

Those are the 13 main things that we saw today. The Freedom Trail is a red brick pathway that winds throughout the city of Boston. It takes you through so many amazing neighborhoods and there are so many awe inspiring things to see along the way. We stopped for about 5 minutes and walked through the Holocaust Memorial that brought tears to my eyes.

On our way home from walking The Freedom Trail we stopped at Starbucks for some coffee. We were standing in line and the man in front of us let out the nastiest FART that you've ever heard. He then turned around, kind of like a dog does when it doesn't really know that it farted. I'm not sure if he was shocked or if he was looking to see if we heard him. Layton was nearly convulsing he was trying so hard to keep his laughs in!

We had a fabulous dinner at a little Italian restaurant called Artu. After dinner we walked around Beacon Hill for awhile and I took pictures of so many fabulous doors! We

even walked up to Acorn Street, which is the most photographed street in the U.S.

My brain is so full of stuff right now! This entire day has been so SURREAL!I kind of feel like I'm on overload from today. We did so much, saw so much and I learned so much about our country. It definitely makes me want to go home and learn about history :) Layton and I have crammed so many memories into the few short days that we've been here. I can't wait to cram more into the next week and a half!!

Today's total mileage walked: 8.5 miles

Today's blessing: Getting to be in this extremely historical city during our nation's birthday. I couldn't think of a better place to be right now!

Old Hymns in Old Churches...

Today started out with us sleeping in a little later then planned. I think we were out the door by about 11. Let me just say...Boston's subway system is DEFINITELY not as easy as Chicago's. We spent quite some time trying to find the blue line. Layton finally broke down and asked someone on the street. The lady we asked really had absolutely no clue what she was talking about. She gave us about 5 different directions, none of which she actually finished. We decided to just try and find it on our own when a guy asked us if we needed help. Come to find out, he was a meth addict and he gave us MUCH better directions than the lady did, and she was a teacher.

We found our way to the blue line and then switched over to the orange line and made it to Back Bay. We spent the most majority of the afternoon exploring this beautiful neighborhood. We visited Trinity Church, Old South Church, the Boston Public Library (which was amazing) and the Boston Public Gardens. We grabbed lunch at a cute little cafe and even had to run through a torrential downpour (which was fun)! After our exploring we went home to rest our feet for a little while.

We ventured out again to dinner, and AGAIN we had a horrible time finding the orange line subway station. I've decided that they've made it a puzzle to find all of the stations. They sure don't make it easy on you. We dined at Coda Bar and Kitchen... in Back Bay. I had a fabulous dinner, Chicken Under a Brick!

Today's total mileage walked...approximately 7 miles.

Today's blessing: Sitting in both Trinity Church, built in 1877, and New Old South Church, built in 1875, listening to the organist play old hymns.