Chase's Trip to BOSTON

Last Spring, Ben and I started talking about taking a trip somewhere. Covid and a new baby had really halted our travel plans for awhile there, and we were both feeling a sense of urgency to travel, especially with our big kids who LOVE to travel and are just growing up way too fast. As we discussed different travel options and logistics, one theme that frequently came up was how hard Lila would be on most of the trips we discussed, and that she is happiest at home anyway. We talked a little about how fun it would be to travel one-one-one with our big kids and that idea kind of snowballed into this plan- we each take one of the big kids on their own little trip! I quickly chose Boston as my city to visit, knowing we could stay at Heidi's and I loved it so much last time I was there. And it was decided pretty quickly that Chase, our history loving 5th grader (5th grade studies American history) should be the kid who comes with me to Boston!

A few weeks later (and while Ben was still undecided on which city he should take Hudson to) Ben heard an add on the radio for Dude Perfect! They were doing live tours this fall, and while Salt Lake was not an option, Boston was! So our weekend to visit Boston was immediately decided to coincide with the Dude Perfect show and tickets were purchased! Then we looked at the list of other cities they were visiting and picked Hudson's city- Seattle, Washington! (More on that later)

Mid-July we surprised the boys with the news about their trips. They were over-the-moon excited! It was definitely something to look forward to! I was super nervous about the possibility of Covid ruining our plans- which came close to happening when Chase's class had an outbreak a week before our trip. Luckily, Chase never got sick and we were able to go ahead with the trip. I didn't really take a good deep breath until we were on the plane.

Heidi picked us up at the airport shortly after midnight and had her apartment all ready for us, complete with fresh cannolis and a new Red Sox hat for Chase. Her apartment is so cute and comfortable, it was so fun to finally see it!

The next day Heidi had to work, so Chase and I set off on our own to explore the Freedom Trail! We rode the T into downtown (Chase was so excited about riding the train) and started to explore. We started on Bolyeston where the marathon ends, which happens to be right by the Public Library. The building is beautiful and Chase really wanted to see it, so we went inside and explored a bit. It was stunning- and immediately I felt the joy and freedom of traveling with just one child- when he wanted to stop to see something we could just stop! Take all the time he wanted! It was glorious.

Also, Chase is the best kid to travel with because he is appreciative about everything and interesting in everything- fine architecture, historical sites, people watching, nature, new and yummy food. I could travel the whole world with that kid!

From there we headed to my favorite spot in Boston- the Public Garden. Chase was especially excited to see it because he loved the book "Make Way for Ducklings" when he was younger.

Then we began the Freedom Trail. Chase loved every minute of it. He especially loved this old cemetery with headstones so old you can't even read them. He's pictured here with Paul Revere's grave. Also in the cemetery are buried John Hancock, Samuel Adams, Mother Goose and Ben Franklin's family.

This is the site of the Boston Massacre. Of course, in preparation for our trip Chase had studied up on it and knew all about it.

As we looked at the Old Statehouse, Chase said, "Mom, what nursery rhyme does this remind you of?" I couldn't think of one and he quickly reminded me, "The Lion and the Unicorn were fighting for the crown..." Chase has spent a lot of time reading the nursery rhyme book to Davis- it was fun for him to see part of it come to life, especially after seeing Mother Goose's grave just a few minutes before.

We toured Paul Revere's home- where Chase totally schooled me in knowledge of him that I either never knew or had forgotten...

One of my favorite sites was the famous Old North Church. The plaza in front with this statue is so charming and beautiful. And we really scored with a sweet older lady playing the glass harmonica- an invention of Ben Franklin's. She had Chase help her as she playing "Take me Out to the Ball Game" for us. Seeing Boston in the fall was beautiful, the leaves were just starting to turn, and the weather was absolutely gorgeous.

We went to see Old Ironsides- but the real attraction right next to it was this WWII destroyer that was also open to tours. The tour guide here sweetly chatted with Chase and answered a whole bunch of his questions about stealth bombing and technology.

And then we made it to Bunker Hill! We sat down for a little rest (it had been a lot of walking) just in time for a full presentation on the Battle of Bunker Hill from a retired college history professor, who was very engaging. 

This is Chase at the very end of the Freedom Trail- he was really proud of himself that he did the whole thing. 

Thursday night I had tickets to take Chase to “Dude Perfect LIVE”. He was so excited about this show. I pulled up our tickets on Ticketmaster right before and my heart sank when I saw a notice that I must have proof of vaccination or negative COVID test to get in! I had my vaccine card, but I didn’t have one for Chase (who was too young to be vaccinated) and I didn’t realize I needed a negative test! After a little more research, it didn’t seem to apply to younger kids, but I didn’t fully relax until they let us in to TD Garden. My stress level this whole trip to this point had been pretty high- but everything worked out perfectly and after this almost-snafu-that-really-wasn’t I calmed way down! This show was SO FUN and Chase was so into it. It made my heart super happy to see his face light up!

Friday was our day at the Museum of Science- which was SO COOL! Chase spent quite a while building a Mars landing ship. He kept reworking his design so it would survive the simulator and even got himself on the leader board TWICE. Once he’d done that he felt accomplished and we moved on to other things. The electricity show was amazing, and there were so many other really cool exhibits. After a few hours there Chase kept saying “Okay, I’m ready to go…” and then he’d see something interesting and get distracted. We finally left after about 4.5 hours there!

We had thought of exploring some of Cambridge and Harvard, but I could tell Chase was fading fast. It had been two late, late nights in a row and lots and lots of walking. I remembered that kids need breaks (moms too), so we went back to Heid’s for some chill time before getting dinner down in the Seaport. The Seaport was absolutely beautiful and Chase got to try lobster! He gave it an 8.5/10.

Saturday we headed to Maine! We were a little early for peak leaf time (which hit extra late this year), but there were still lots of pretty leaves and the drive to Portland, Maine was gorgeous! After a yummy lunch we headed out to the famous lighthouse on Cape Elizabeth. We took a wrong turn somewhere and ended up at this beautiful state park with lots of waterfront to explore. It was a happy accident and we got to see a little bit more of Maine!

The lighthouse is pretty and iconic- I’m glad we made the trip! Also, Chase was psyched to cross two more states off his list (we drove through part of New Hampshire to get there). Also, I hadn’t ever been to Maine- and I totally get his excitement about this.

Heidi was the best hostess! Her place in Boston is so cute and I loved spending so much time with her and laughing until we cried. Chase loves his aunt and loved spending so much time with her.

Sunday we headed back home! This trip was really the best. Traveling with just one child was a dream. Especially going with Chase- he loves history, loves architecture, loves to try new food, loves pretty leaves… his excitement about everything was contagious and made the trip for me. I loved walking the streets of Boston, making memories with him, and giving him some much deserved one-on-one time!

 

September

Cute Lila had a rough start to September with an ear infection. She woke up one morning sobbing and grabbing her ear. She wouldn't let me set her down for hours.  Luckily antibiotics cleared it up pretty fast and she returned to her busy little self.

Hudson and Richie are really two peas in a pod. I love seeing those two together- it always looks like this. Their sweet 2nd grade teacher, Mrs. Evans, lost her husband suddenly over labor day weekend. I took these boys, plus Chase over to visit her with cards and a gift. These two basically had a wrestling match on her couch and she seemed to just enjoy their silliness. I figure she had them in her class for a whole year...she knows how they are! The boys made her the sweetest cards though and have been praying for her ever since.

Davis is officially done napping. I was sad for this, but also it was time. He was really resisting naps and I didn't want to fight that battle- and bedtimes were just getting later and later. So now, once Lila is down for her nap, I do story time with Davis and then he gets to watch his shows. I don't let him watch shows at all during the day, except during Lila's nap, so it keeps his attention really well. The downside is he frequently falls asleep at like 5 pm...
 

We had a fun end of summer swim on Labor Day! These two cousins are the cutest!

Except for maybe these two cousins! They sat and ate together so sweetly, although Rosie did keep directing Lila to eat her own food instead of Rose's. 

I sent this photo of Lila on the group text with the caption "When you are super girly but have three older brothers you wear pink bows and push around your baby stroller while wearing a superhero cape."

Halie quickly responded: This picture made me cry and I don't know why. I just love her so much! She IS a superhero!"

Davis was getting his costume on (which is normal). I asked him what he was doing, his reply "I'm off to save the day!"

More of Davis sleeping in random places...

I went to take a picture of Will and me in our respective college shirts before the rivalry game, and these two saw the camera and just lined up and smiled like this! They know what to do for a camera, and assume any camera must be there to photograph their cute little faces.

Definitely to note- BYU finally won the rivalry game! They haven't won that game since Ben and I attended there! We stayed up until midnight watching- it was worth it.

Davis started doing Upstart- a free online preschool. He does it 15 minutes a day and we are trying for 7 days a week (although only 5 are required). He's doing really well! I can already see progress!

The boys worked so hard all summer to sell produce! They made a lot of money, which meant I had to actually follow through with my promise to them- if they could earn enough for a day pass to Lagoon that I would take them!

And so one Saturday in September we found ourselves at Lagoon! I hadn't been there in about 20 years and can't say I missed it at all. But the boys had such a blast and it was actually a really, really fun day. We met up with Joseph's there first thing in the morning (they have season passes) which made it extra fun. These boys were fearless and rode EVERYTHING! They started the day with Cannibal (the craziest, scariest roller coaster in the park). Hudson was pretty rattled, but I think so proud of himself that he did it. Chase wasn't scared of ANYTHING. The faster and bigger, the better for him!

We were there for Frightmares- so everytime I tried to take a picture Hudson acted like a zombie. I swear we had perfect luck that day- we breezed through lines all day and shortly after we'd get off the ride it would suddenly have a super long line. So in the first 5 hours we were there we hit up the majority of the park!

Megan and I accidentally twinned!

Joseph's went home around 2:00 but my boys were still game, so we kept going! The lines had really picked up by then, but we had fun anyway, just at a much slower pace. Maybe the funniest moment of the day was when Hudson REALLY wanted to do a haunted house, which Chase really didn't want to do. Chase was super brave anyway and we all went. I will say, haunted houses really aren't my thing, but Hudson made it hilarious. It was full of creepy clowns and Hudson would just point at each one and yell "YOU!" It had me laughing and definitely lightened the whole thing up a lot!

One of the sweetest moments of the day was right at the end when we were going to do the Ferris Wheel- something Chase wanted to do (it's really tall). Hudson is scared of heights and started to freak out a little. Chase quickly back-pedaled and said, "I want Hudson to have fun on our last ride of the day, let's go do the Bat again!" Hudson was relieved and we went and rode that roller coaster again, which everyone loved. I loved seeing him look out for and sacrifice for his brother. We stayed for 10 hours and had so much fun! (And also I wouldn't mind not going back for another 10 years or so).

Davis is just the cutest. I love him so much. On this day he was so tired he was sleeping on the garage floor. If you look closely you can see he's actually wearing two layers of costumes- spider-man with ironman on top.

Lila now steals my purse and my shoes regularly. She's such a girl!

We are loving the Peloton would bought over the summer, and the boys love it too! Hudson was so funny doing this ride. The coach said "just work out all the stress from your life and job" and Hudson yelled back at the screen "I don't have a job! I'm not even ten!"