Camping!

The weekend after Pleasure Bay Beach we went camping with some friends. It was so much fun! Harold Parker State Park is only about 30 minutes away and there are tons of trees so even though it's pretty close to the city, it feels like you're in the real woods!

We headed out after Braden finished class for the week. Knowing we only had a few hours of daylight left, we quickly set up the tents and started the fire to get the dutch oven dinner started. What a dinner we had! Spare ribs, corn on the cob, baked beans, and cherry-peach cobbler and peanut butter cup s'mores for dessert. Delicious! (We don't have any pictures of dinner, unfortunately. We were hungry enough by the time it was ready that we just wanted to get that goodness in us!)

After getting a stern talking-to by the rangers for being too noisy we decided it was probably time to go to bed. The kiddos had been sleeping until that point, but I think all the zippers woke them up. Kayla thought it was awesome that Mom and Dad were there to play with her. I thought otherwise. I don't think anyone got a ton of sleep that night...

For breakfast we made breakfast burritos with eggs, peppers, bacon, and cheese. We also had delicious hot chocolate. Katie and I took the kids for a stroll around the campgrounds while Braden and Brad took down camp.

Then we headed off to find a good hiking place. The hike we found led to a beautiful pond completely covered in lily pads and frogs. There were thousands of lily pads! We took some family pictures and had a simple lunch of pb&j at our little resting stop then headed back to the cars. We had so much fun (in spite of the lack of sleep) that we're going camping again this weekend!

Time to Catch Up

We've been having so much fun in Boston that we've neglected our blog a bit. Our apologies. So now it's time to catch up on all those exciting adventures we've been having!

Several weeks ago we headed to Pleasure Bay Beach. It's only about 20 minutes away and is free! We played on the beach for a while then walked around to the old fort.

We saw this awesome sail boat taking off.

Kayla found some apples on the beach and thought eating the sea foam would be a good idea. We, however, did not and promptly discouraged this (after a quick picture of course).

Daddy and daughter testing out the water.

The Fells

father: [fah-ther]

-noun

1. a male parent

2. any male ancestor, esp. the parent of a race, family, or line; progenitor

3. Informal - valued as a work animal, having strong muscles, a body shaped like a horse, donkey-like long ears, small feet, and surefootedness. Compare "mule"

School has been incredibly busy of late, but we've still managed to get in some quality family time on the weekends. This last week we went on a hike in the Middlesex Fells Reservation. It was a little odd - it's a patch of forest in the middle of a major interstate corridor, so while everything looks very "nature-y" you can hear traffic until you get 1/2 mile or so in. Anyway, it was a lot of fun, we'll likely go back, and we're enjoying the adventure of getting to know New England!

Kayla loves being outside and getting dirty (daddy's little girl!!), so on our hike we let her free to roam for a while - she promptly got in touch with her inner squirrel and tried to hoard some acorns in her cheeks. It took some doing, but we finally convinced her that a cracker would be more her style, at least until she gets her molars in.

Just like Kayla, Tiffany also loves being outside and getting dirty, so when we came across this downed tree (I bet it made a sound) she first posed for a picture, and then simply insisted on getting the full experience of clambering.

What a gal! That's 10 points for sure!

Revere Beach

Yesterday we enjoyed one of the country's biggest sand-sculpting contests, just a 20-minute drive away! It was very cool to see what people can create out of a big pile of sand.

(Kayla thought the sculptures were really exciting...)

After viewing the sand art, we headed down to the water for play time!

After so much fun in the sun, time for a nap!

The beach was a success and we will definitely be coming back!

Happy Independence Day!

For our 4th of July weekend this year, we walked into Boston and saw the Shell where the Boston Pops play (along with all the other famous singers; this year was Toby Keith) and experienced the celebratory atmosphere. We saw the General on his horse in the Garden.

Near Faneuil Hall we found a not-so-elusive star...

We got all dressed up to go to church then headed to a BBQ with some friends.

Music was playing and patriotic crowds were everywhere as we walked along the Charles River to await the fireworks. Kayla thought the firework display that accompanied the end of the 1812 Overture was pretty awesome and we probably should have headed home after that, but we waited it out until 10:30 when the real fireworks began. New fireworks were on display this year, which were all very impressive. We could only stay for about 5 minutes of the fireworks because our Little Miss was much too tired to stay up for so much excitement. As we walked home we saw the lights reflecting on the MIT buildings. Of course we stopped to watch the finale...AMAZING!

Although we miss being able to spend every holiday with Kayla's Grandparents and Aunts and Uncles, we are very happy to be in Boston this year to celebrate the birth of our country.

So much excitement for such a little girl!

We hope everyone had a happy 4th of July!

Look Who's Walking Now!

Kayla is officially walking and here's the video to prove it:

Don't you love how she couldn't care less about falling. Our little girl gets up every time!

(Sorry about the video being of her back...getting a video of her walking towards the camera is nearly impossible!)

Discovery Museum

Today Kayla and I joined one of our new friends and her little boy on an outing to the Children's Discovery Museum, just a few minutes from our home. The kids had a lot of fun playing in the water, hanging out in the honeycomb, and playing with the toys. Kayla figured out the Ball'n'Tube toy right away and got the biggest kick out of it!