Boston Day 5

This was our day to walk the Freedom Trail. I was really excited because this was one of the main reasons I wanted to go to Boston. The weather was crazy that day. Boston set a new high record that day- 90 degrees. We walked for miles and miles and sweated and I loved every second of it. It was great to finally put all of the events leading to the Revolution together spatially.

This is the grave of John Hancock. The man dressed in colonial clothing was our tour guide. The first half of the tour was included with our Go Boston Card (highly recommended). We had to pay for the second half but it was worth it because he had a lot of interesting stories to tell.

The Granary Burial Grounds are just around the corner from the Boston Common. They estimate that 12,000-15,000 people are buried there. The cemetery is not very big meaning there are bodies piled on top of each other.
This gravestone marks the location of the remains of those killed in the Boston Massacre. I never realized the role that propaganda played in getting the revolution started. I guess propaganda still plays a big role.
Mom aboard the U.S.S. Constitution. The ship was built in the late 1700s and is still commissioned by the US Navy. It fought in several battles during the 1800s and never lost.

Paul Revere statue and the Old North Church.

At Giacomo's Ristorante in the North End of Boston. We ate Italian food there twice and it was incredible both times.
Eating gelato in one of the old streets of Boston. The streets needed to be wide enough for a man and his cow. Therefore, they are pretty narrow.
The Freedom Trail day was great but exhausting. I woke up the next morning with a sunburn.

Boston Day 4

We spent the morning in Salem and the afternoon in Boston. Our first stop was the Peabody Essex Museum. It had a great collection of maritime art. Salem used to be one of the wealthiest cities in America and it owed that to all of the shipping they did from the Orient. We also went to the Witch Museum but didn't get any pictures.

Our next stop was The House of Seven Gables. It was built in 1668. Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote a book based on this house. The tour was really cool. They added in a hidden staircase a few years ago to make the house more like the book and it gave a good visual for places slaves may have gone on the Underground Railroad.

We had nothing planned for Boston the first evening we were there so we walked around Copley Square and Boston Common. Here new reflects old, kind of a cool aesthetic.

Mom was really excited to see the duck statues.

Me too.

The trees were in bloom on the Common so it was absolutely beautiful.

We ate at The Cheesecake Factory that night because it was close to our hotel. The food was good but the portions were HUGE!!!

Boston Day 3

On Monday, we packed in three major cities: Lexington, Concord, and Lowell. It was early April so most of the sites were closed but we did get to see some things. I think the best part of Lexington and Concord was the Minute Man National Park. It is a walk/bike trail that takes you along the path that the British marched on their way to Concord. It was beautiful and peaceful.

Here Mom stands on the Battle Green in Lexington. One guy was shot and he dragged himself home to the house in the top left corner, then died in his wife's arms. Tragic.

Along the Minute Man trail.

A tavern sign. I guess that most signs didn't have words on them since most people were not literate.

The Old North Bridge where it the war officially began.

The river under the bridge was really flooded as evidenced by this sign on the trail to the visitor's center.

We stopped at Lowell too to see the textile mills that are still running as part of a museum. It was a little out of the way but I have studied the Industrial Revolution in America with my kids and I really wanted to get a feel for what factory life might have been life. I can't imagine working here.

Double lobsters?! I felt like a glutton but I had to do it.

Mom jumped on the double lobster bandwagon too. They were so good. It's hard to believe that lobster was looked down upon in colonial America and fed to prisone.

I can't get this picture to delete. Enjoy the double lobsters again.

Boston Day 2

We went to Plimoth Plantation on the most pleasant day, weather-wise, of the entire trip. The sun was shining but it wasn't too hot.

Mom prepares to battle the other tourists for the attention of the 1627 villagers.

This would be the winter home for the Wampanoag. They call it a 2 fire because there are 2 fire holes in the roof. Why can't all things be named so simply?

The summer home uses reeds that help suck the humidity out of the air. Genius.

The view from the trail connecting the two villages.

This picture is the only proof that my mom and I were actually in Massachusetts together at the same time. We sort of failed and the whole getting pictures taken together thing.

In the 1627 village, I had the chance to try my hand at various tasks. Crushing things.

Tending sheep.

Baking bread.

Napping in a bed way too small for me.

Fighting the enemy (in the church).

Sawing wood.

In trying to keep everything authentic, they concealed the drinking fountain and trash cans in barrels. Hilarious.

We had stuffed quahog and succotash for lunch.

Our view from the lunch table.

Our last main stop of the day was the Mayflower II. Mom poses at the ocean.

I am grateful for airplanes.

After our time in Plymouth, we drove to Cape Cod and then drove up to Woburn. The first Red Sox game of the season was that night, so we ran into insane traffic. Mom was pretty white knuckled and narrowly escaped a fender bender. But, we survived.

Boston Day 1

Our first day started insanely early because morning flights seem to be the cheapest with Southwest. Unfortunately, we didn't start early enough. We got to the check in line at 6:30am and our flight left at 7:15. The line was eternal. We finally made it through security at 7:10am. The gates for Southwest are on the far side of the airport so Mom and I ran as fast as we could (which is not very fast at all.) We made the flight but barely. They didn't even print out boarding tickets for us.

We got to Boston at about 4pm. Our street smarts are seriously lacking and getting to the lot and then out of the lot was somewhat of an adventure, but eventually we were on the road to Plymouth, MA.

Since it was evening and within 50 miles of the ocean, we opted to get seafood. The fish and chips were heavenly and began my week of eating without considering calories or cost. It was pretty fantastic.

A Challenge for Anyone Who Wants It

Helping other people manage their conflicts is definitely not one of my greatest talents. It is something that I have really had to work at as a teacher because 5th graders tend to have a lot of conflicts. Gossip has been a problem in my classroom this year. I've racked my brain for ways to help these kids understand the damage that gossip can do.

Some experiences have been popping into my head lately. One was a date I went on in college with a boy named Ryan. He was double majoring in physics and philosophy and had really interesting ideas about things. We spent the entire date talking about Plato's Republic and I loved every second of it.

When I was flying back from Indiana this fall, I sat next to this lady from Ohio. We ended up talking for most of the flight about cognition, gender differences, and learning potential. It was a fascinating conversation.

I had dinner at the Barlow's a few weeks ago. The conversation turned to a discussion of some of the themes in a book we had recently read.

A few days ago, a possible solution hit me. I decided to challenge my kids to spend an entire day talking about ideas rather than other people. During class meeting we had a conversation about elevating the level of our conversations and the benefits of doing so. Then, I gave them the challenge to not talk at all about other people for an entire day at school. Most of the kids took the challenge today. I still haven't talked to them to get any feedback but I hope that it at least helped the kids think more about their conversations. I tried it today and it wasn't as easy as I thought it would be. I was tempted more than a couple of times to say something less than kind about another person. I am going to continue with the challenge and try to elevate my conversations.

You are welcome to try the challenge as well.

She's Getting Married

I still remember the first day I met Steph in fourth grade. I remember the day that we decided to become roommates. I remember our late night Sunday talks. Why Sunday? I am so happy that Steph is getting married.

She's happy too!