Beach.

I can only remember going to the beach on two occassions. The first time was in the summer of my freshman year of high school. I was invited to fly down to South Padre Island, Texas by a friend from california that I had only met a few months prior. (I had the strickest parents in the world, so thinking back, I am suprised I was ever allowed to go). I remember how amazing that Island was- the water was so blue, I loved the combination of the heat, sand and the cool water against my feet. It was amazing!

The second time at the beach was even more magical. I dont remember the beach itself as much as I remember how much Issy loved the sand, how much Issy loved the water and how much Issy loved people watching on the board walk. At the time we lived in New Mexico, Issy was only 18 month old and San Diego would be our first family Vacation. The beach would forever be a place where our family would come together.

Yesterday was not only Father's Day, and we were able to celebrate Brandon becuase he is a terrific father, but it was also the first time since that beautiful week in san Diego that our family was able to enjoy the beach as a family. We enjoyed the trip to the fullest!

Aquarium

I think that at the time I was too exhausted to write about how fun this trip was. The trip to Boston by train with two kids (one that practically needs to be carried everywhere) and all of their "equipment" really beat all the energy out of me. I do love the city and having the opportunity to have public transportation is exciting, but there is a lot for this westerner to learn before the next trip, like:

1. First things first...Get to know the lines. And WELL! This will make the travel much easier. The stations were super busy and it was hard to find the line maps so we got a little (okay, A LOT) disoriented.

2. Learn to pack more efficiently. (I tend to over pack, and still forget things...it's so annoying!)

I can't say it was too horrible for a first trip, but who doesnt want a smoother trip.

Once we made it to our destination (and hour and a half later...when it should have only taken at most 45 min.) we were golden. The walk to the Aquarium was short and by then, the kids were ready for the visit to the Aqarium. I know I have said it before, but my kids are the Biggest animal lovers I know, and being near animals is what they live for. The penguins exibit is right smack at the center of the aquarium and for obvious reasons take center stage. People LOVE these cute little guys. I have always been facinated by them. Seeing them up close was great.

The rest of the tanks are amazing too. We were there for a good two hours just staring at the sharks, sea turtles, jelly fish, sea horses...you name it its there. My camera is only about two weeks old, and I havent had a chance to mess around with the settings so I apologize in advance for my horrible pictures.

In case you were wondering...the ride back was a lot smoother. It did only take the 45 minutes it was supposed to take,and by then the little one was out cold. Hooray for another fun family trip!

Museum of Science - Boston

Last week when we got the Capron Zoo Park annual pass we found out that we could also use our pass to get into a few other places in Boston for free or at a discounted price. One of the places we have been dying to take the kids is the Museum of Science . We got to walk through it during our first visit to the city, and it definatly caught all of our eyes. Today, we made the trip back. The place was packed, but it was just as awesome as we thought it would be. Not only was there enough exhibits for everyone in the family to enjoy, but it was also very hands on and kid friendly. The kids love it! Their favorite exhibit was the fosils and the life sized dinosaurs.

Berry Farm!

Strawberry season is in full swing here in Massachusetts so this morning I packed the kids up and we went to a berry farm. The kids absolutely LOVED it. Jackson and Issy made a great team, Issy did most of the picking and Jackson did most of the eating. It was a lot of fun!

When I came home I had no choice but to make a cheesecake with a YUMMY STRAWBERRY TOPPING!

Capron Park

We spent the day at the Park and Zoo today. The kids loved it, and I loved being able to get out of the apartment for a few hours. Between the playing, the walk and the water park area both kids crashed when they got home. Today is Brandon's first day at his new job in Lincoln, MA. I am anxiously waiting to hear what his day was like.

Another break from those boxes.

I have to admit, I really don’t have much to say. I am exhausted. We are still unpacking boxes and rearranging our things. It feels like we are never going to be done. I thought we had done a really good job of downsizing when we moved, but we have very little storage in our apartment and we have SO MUCH STUFF. We have plenty of storage in the basement so unfortunately most of our things have ended up there (including all of my craft bins…argh!). Our closet space felt tight before- the funny thing is that it’s literally been cut in half in this place. I have had to get even more creative with how things are stored and less emotional about what stays and what goes. I am annoyed and just want to be done already.

So far one thing that I have noticed is that that the days start early on this part of the country. By around 4:45 am the sun is starting braking through, and by 5:30 am the sun is totally out and day has begun. The days feels like it last forever. By 5:30 pm the sky starts to turn gray again, almost like when it’s going to rain, but it doesn’t. I am not a morning person and since I am still on Idaho (Mountain Time) the loss of those two hours really hurts. Today, I finally got around to putting curtains up, so I really hope this helps everyone sleep a little bit better. My parents left two days ago so now that things are starting to quiet down, I am really starting to realize how much we have to adjust to the new area. Brandon is getting ready for his first day of work as we speak and suddenly, the move doesn’t feel like a vacation anymore. I am nervous for him, and I just hope that he loves his new job, I hope they love him, but more than anything I just want some assurance that we didn’t make a mistake coming here.

Are we home sick yet? As much as I like to deny it…YES, I think so! Don’t get us wrong, we love it here, but if you can, definatly come visit us!

Oh, and Go Celtics! Today is the NBA finals and we are all cheering for our newly adopted basketball team.


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Here are a few pictures of the kids from a couple of days ago. We have been making daily trips to the park to get their wiggles out, but they have more energy than a pack of energizer bunnies.

Dear Grandma and Grandpa:

The park was amazing! We loved having you here with us. Please come visit us soon, we miss you already.

Love,

Jackson and Issy

Our Trip to Boston

We spent the day in Boston with my parents. Our first stop was in Quincy Market. We walked around poking around at the local shops, food and even playing with the dirty pigeons. We had lunch at a local pub, and then we eneded the trip with a ferry ride. We had so much fun!

The Blue House on Dennis

Yes, this is the VERY blue house that we are now calling home. The place is small, but it already starting to feel homey. We have a larger common area right out side our kitchen window where we let the kids and the dog burn off all of their energy. When they get bored we can also walk to the zoo,or the park a couple of blocks away. Our neighbohood is really great, I feel like we got really lucky specially considering that we leased the apartment sight unseen. So far we are really happy here.