Birthday/Babymoon in Boston

My hubby turned 30 on Friday.

I told him to pick somewhere we could jet off to for a weekend.

He chose Boston.

I think I said things like, "what about San Francisco?" or "what about somewhere with temperatures are in the positives?"

He declined.

 

So off to Boston we went.

We = me + hubby. Quinn had an extended sleepover at Grandma and Grumpa's. Since we'll be a family of four in four short months (HOLY MOTHER OF EFF), we thought it wise to take one last parentals-only vacation.

 

Before I begin our trip recap, I would like to start off with some thoughts on letting your significant other book your air travel:

 

When they tell you they got a ridiculous deal on roundtrip airfare to Boston, ask some questions.

 

Here are my suggestions:

 

- What is the name of the airline and is it a reputable company?

- Does the airplane have more than 9 seats?

- Does the airplane resemble a glider more than it does a commerical airplane?

 

The reason I suggest asking these questions, is to avoid arriving at the airport and seeing this waiting for you on the tarmac...

 

 

 It also avoids things like:

- being asked to co-pilot the flight (I'm exaggerating slightly, but they will make you sit beside the pilot)

- sitting through the most frightening flight of your life. It honestly felt like riding a roller coaster. At several points during the flight I seriously contemplated whether the pilot knew what he was doing.

 

 (smiling to hide my TERROR)

 

Oh and since I mentioned THE pilot, um yeah there's only one. If said pilot has some sort of life threatening health emergency, the plane is going down. There's no backup, no other trained person on board. You are totally screwed.

 

So yeah, it was terrifying. But it was a fucking bargain, let me tell you.

 

Anyways, Boston.  

First day we stayed at a hotel across the street from Faneuil Hall.

 

 

We perused Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market. 

We ate an expensive meal at The Chart House in the harbour. 

 

We took cute selfies by the harbour.

 

 

We returned to Faneuil Hall for dessert and then went back to our room and watched Wolf of Wallstreet. 

Next morning we had breakfast in the North End.

 

 

We then packed up and drove to an outlet in South Boston, then we headed to two outlets in New Hampshire. Tilton and North Conway to be exact.

 

We stayed the night in North Conway, NH and then drove to Salem.

 

Here's a funny fact for you - did you know there are two Salems in the US? One in New Hampshire and one in Massachusetts. When you ask the cashier at Target in Salem, New Hampshire about where all the Salem Historical places are, don't be surprised if she looks confused. If you want to see Salem witch-related stuff, please get back in your car and drive to the appropriate state. Lesson learned.

 

So after a detour in Salem, New Hampshire, we finally ended up in Salem, Massachusetts. We ate lunch and saw this creepy house where the first witches of Salem supposedly lived.

 

 

There really wasn't much to see there so we got back in the car and drove back to Boston.

 

On our final day in Boston we went to the New England Aquarium.

 

Turtles, penguins, seals oh my!

 

 

Overall great trip.

Thankful to be back home in one piece, albeit our wallets came back home a little worse for wear. 

 

 

On the plus side, our unborn child now has an extensive wardrobe of adorable clothes.

 

xo, Vicky 

Halifax!

I've been meaning to post this for about a month, so now that I have a bunch of free time with the sick leave, I figure I better play catch up. 

Ahhh Halifax.

 One of our favorite places to visit.

Not only is it a beautiful place, but there are awesome people living there too.

Two particularly awesome Nova Scotia residents got married last month, hence our trip to Halifax this year.

Before I get into all the wonderfulness that was our East Coast trip, I think I'll get the logistical aspects of air travel with a tiny human out of the way.

Our experience went a little something like this:

Our flight was delayed 3 hours. Damn you Murphy's Law. Being stuck in your own city's airport is probably a lot like purgatory. Pretty sucky.

We bought Quinn a Sesame Street sticker book and a Dora the Explorer colouring kit for the plane. It saved our butts, I can't even tell you how many times.  We did however end up covered head to toe in stickers.

Simon insisted on bringing our backpacking pack for Quinn and am I ever glad we did. She ended up napping in it while we were at the airport and it was so convenient strapping her in there when we didn't want her running around the airport.

We fed Quinn things she should not have eaten (eg. sugar covered donuts) but they kept her quiet and entertained for all of ten minutes. Worth it.

Quinn also spent a good chunk of time looking out the windows of the airport. Watching planes land was pretty cool for her, but not as cool as watching a little moth fly around outside.  

Speaking of windows, Quinn loved nothing more than looking out the little plane window. Our flight was only an hour and half so she spent a good chunk of time looking out at the clouds and searching for birds.

Simon also got creative with his toddler distraction techniques. 

Overall Quinn was awesome both in the airport and on the plane; thank you toddler gods.

Now on to our awesome trip...

We hung out by the waterfront:

We trolled around downtown:

And we of course, went to Mike and Meg's wedding! 

Simon was Mike's best man and Quinn was the flower girl. 

Quinn did so well walking down the aisle, I was so proud!

My Aunt Heather visited Halifax the same time as us and offered to watch Quinn while we enjoyed ourselves at the wedding. After the dinner, Heather and Quinn headed up to the hotel room we reserved while Simon and I got some mingling and dancing in. Thanks again Heather!!!

Not only did we get to hang out with friends, we also got in some family time as well. 

I, of course, took no photos. But I stand by my reasoning that we were having too much fun to take pictures. 

My Uncle Ralph and his wife Susan live about twenty minutes outside Halifax and graciously hosted us for a few days. We stayed in their RV on their property, and let me tell you, it was pretty swanky.

All in all, we had a wonderful time and are looking forward to our next visit to Haliwood. 

xo, Vicky