Finally, we have some fresh air in our main living room. A few weeks ago, we had no ventilation in our main living area. We had two large windows next to the fireplace that didn’t open, no screen on our back door out to the deck and no kitchen window screen. Each of those have been resolved!

This is Ginger’s new nickname. Unfortunately, while we were in Boston, Ginger chose to have some medical problems which required our dog sitters to take her to the emergency vet over night. She was not eating and in lots of pain. The emergency vet had many theories as to what was going on…and we still don’t know for sure. His initial thought was intestinal, then maybe something neurological or maybe a slipped disc in her back. After a night in the animal hospital, the doctors recommended she stay longer, then go see a neurologist to follow up with care. With a 10 year old dog, we knew that would mean surgery. The doctor seemed very adamant that this was very serious and she could become paralyzed if not taken care of properly. That Sunday we were worried that we might need to put her down as we decided not to spend more money on specialists. We opted for medical management…which is crate rest and pain medication, and hoped things would be okay.

And all in all, things are well. Ginger has some mild paralysis in her back legs, but still has the same old Ginger spirit and enthusiasm. She has no idea she is even walking with a new wiggle to her back side. She doesn’t like the fact that we aren’t taking her on walks, but hopefully she will get over it. Other than her wiggle, she is a happy girl. We are thankful for the care she got from our dog sitters, and that she is doing well.

Day One:
We boarded a plane very early in the morning head for Boston on Saturday. Our flight was over half filled with Boston Marathon runners getting ready for the race on Monday. We arrived in Boston and met up with our hosts for the visit…Ben, Liz and Rebecca. We drove back to Ben and Liz’s place and got our stuff settled. After that, we walked to Ball Square and Davis Square, two areas of Somerville where Ben and Liz frequent the local shops. Adam and I were instantly jealous of the variety and range of international foods available. And of course, we picked up some local microbrews to sip on. Liz, Ben and Rebecca made us a wonderful home cooked dinner, and after dinner we played Loaded Questions….as we all love to play board games. After dinner, we had some cake that was a smaller recreation of Ben and Liz’s wedding cake and watched their wedding video highlights. Then the girls painted toes…the boys decided to read instead. We’ll get them next time.

Day Two:
We woke up and had a nice family style breakfast. We headed out to Brandeis University where Ben is getting his PhD in neuroscience, and it was also the location of where Ben and Liz got married. We got to see Ben’s office, his lab, and even got to meet #41…the rat that has given him so much good data. After seeing Ben’s lab, we walked around campus some more. After our tour of Brandeis, we headed out to historic Concord. Needless to say, it was very patriotic. We ate at the Colonial Inn and spent some time walking the streets, reading historical signs and taking pictures. After our trip to Concord, Ben, Adam and I spent some time in Harvard Square and waking around Harvard University. We had the best hot chocolate ever at Burdick in Harvard Square. It’s like drinking chocolate….but make sure to get a small as it is super filling. After our walk around campus, we took the T (public transportation system in Boston) back to Somerville. We all regrouped and headed out to Highland Kitchen for a pub style dinner. After dinner, the ladies started on the Lego project of the week…the Eiffel Tower, while the boys read.

Day Three:
This day shall also be known as the day of endless walking. We headed over to Boston College, where my sister is a junior. My sister lives along Commonwealth Ave, which is also one of the main streets where the Boston Marathon is run. We got to see the leaders of the pack, preceded by police escort, run right in front of BC. We got a tour of Rebecca’s apartment and she gave us a tour of campus. The campus is truly beautiful. As we walked to catch the T, we got to watch packs of runners as they completed 23 of their 26.2 miles. We continued on and had lunch at the Publick House which had the largest selection of beers I had ever seen, both on tap and bottled. After a quick bite, we continued to watch the marathon runners make their journey as we headed into downtown Boston. We started our tour of downtown Boston with the Boston Public Garden, then walked around to view some of the beautiful architecture of the buildings and homes, and ended up at the state house. From the state house, we started to follow the freedom trail to see some historic sites, like where the Declaration of Independence was read, Paul Revere’s house and the site of the first public school. Every where you turn in Boston, there is something historical….it’s truly amazing! Our meandering lefts us in the North End area, which is one of my favorite parts of Boston. The area has a heavy Italian presence so the streets are filled with delicious smells from Italian food and wonderful bakeries. Liz wanted to have a cannoli taste off between some local bakeries, so we picked up a few for a later testing. Then we all headed for a nice dinner at Lucca. With our bellies full and our feet tired from walking, we immediately crashed as soon as we got home!

Day Four:
This day was paced much more slowly, as we were all pretty wiped from the day before. Rebecca had classes that day so it was just the four of us to start. We walked to an authentic 50s two-piece dining car diner called Kelly’s Diner and had brunch to refuel ourselves for the day. The dining car is just like what you would imagine it would be and the waitresses have thick Boston accents and call you ‘hun’. Our next adventure was the tour of the Sam Adam’s brewery. Even though I have not gone on a lot of brewery tours, this by far was the best tour…and it wasn’t just the free beer. They have you actually taste hops and barley, so you know what goes into your beer. The last part of the tour, the tasting, really teaches you how to taste beer and enjoy it for all its sensations, instead of just chugging it down. I wasn’t sure I was going to like their beers, being a self proclaimed beer snob, but I was really impressed with their Boston Lager, a staple in Boston. After our tasting, we headed to the famous Fenway Park to watch the Boston Red Sox take on the Texas Rangers. The game was not going so well for the Boston Red Sox for most of the game, and all of us but Rebecca left before the last inning…and then the game changed. The Red Sox were down by two as we left and as we started our walk to the T, the Red Sox tied it and ended up winning. Oh well! Go Sox!

Day Five:
This day was a day for Adam and I to explore Boston on our own as everyone else had school and work. We spent the morning at the Boston Museum of Science, which you can easily spend a full day in the museum with all the cool exhibits. Museums in big cities really do a good job. We continued our day with another trip to the North End for lunch. We walked around Quincy Market as well, watching street performers and doing some shopping. We all met back at Ben and Liz’s for a final goodbye dinner. Once again, Liz made a wonderful dinner and we had a sampling of desserts that Adam and I picked up in the North End. We played Apples to Apples, then said goodbye to my sister.

Day Six:
Our last day in Boston started with saying goodbye to our hosts. We had a leisurely morning then headed out for a walk and ended up at Tufts University, another beautiful campus with historic looking buildings. We wandered back into Davis Square and had a wonderful pub lunch at Joshua Tree, which was wonderful. If we lived in Boston, we would frequent this place. We ate lunch and reminisced about our trip. Then we gathered up our things and headed to the airport. We really could have used a few more days in Boston, but we were happy to return home.

We absolutely love Boston and there is no doubt that we will travel there again! Until next time Boston….

Boston is awesome. I don’t have time to post, but I have posted pictures everyday. So check out pictures and you can wait in anticipation for the blog posts. Enjoy!

April has only been here for 12 days…and life has been super busy. Here is what April has brought to me:

Easter with family
Bridal shower
Two new students
Track season
Report cards
Coordinating Shape Up Across Oregon program at work
Early parent-teacher conferences
Writing a week’s worth of sub notes
Numerous meetings
Birthday dinners

The saving grace of April: trip to Boston