Dinner to Remember

I don't think I've laughed so hard at a single dinner ever - let alone a working dinner.  While in Boston we hit up the Barking Crab.  My co-worker Rachael and I saw how busy it looked our first night around the town and so we figured everyone must know something... and that it must be a good sign.

Monday night we thought we'd hit it up, but I was so darn tired after sightseeing that we postponed it for a night.  So Tuesday the four of us walked from the hotel to the restaurant - maybe 1/2 a mile or so.  We put our name in at both restaurants and waited to see where we'd be called. 

Well it turns out the bar was "calling" us! 

(L-R: Fred, Me, Rachael)

We decided to grab a few drinks while waiting for our table.  Well after about 20-30 minutes one of the bar tables opened up so we thought we'd take our chances eating in there.  About the time we placed our food order with the bartender... one of our two pagers went off. 

So we went to take our seat only to find out they wouldn't let us sit there since we'd already ordered our dinners from the bartender.  DOH!  So we went back to our little bar corner to kick out the girls who took our place - pleading they sent us back because we'd already ordered food.

Um yeah... we ordered food alright!

It's hard to tell here, but in the back left corner is a 2 lbs lobster and 4 lbs worth of crab.  No that's not my plate!  Oh and that's not even the biggest order on the menu. That claim to fame goes to a 10 lb lobster and 4 lbs of mixed crabs in a bowl.  You may have seen that on Man vs. Food on the Travel Channel (he's Dave's personal hero).

Yeah this would be Mike who is trying to finish his monstrous order....

And he did - he ate every last bite... included the coleslaw he added on.  Needless to say he didn't realize just how much food it was going to be. He sure offered up a few great laughs on the walk back to the hotel.  Especially all the little pit stops we had to make because he was too full to walk!

Boston: The Real Tour

OK I'm feeling a little better posting this time around... so I'll share with you the tour of Boston as seen from the camera versus the cellphone look you got yesterday (due to my fatigue and laziness).

To give my story justice I have to tell you - I came out to Boston a day earlier than needed so I can stay with one of my Mommy friends who lives in the area.  She was gracious enough to let me stay at her house and we went out to dinner on Saturday night and then drinks and dessert.  The next morning she took me to the craziest store EVER!

It's a furniture store - Jordan's - and inside they have... well furniture, but also a Trapeze School, a fountain light and music show, an Imax theatre, Jelly belly statues and store... and did I mention furniture?  Right when you walk in you're also greeted by a giant Green Monster eating a Yankee's player.

Sadly this was the only picture I got while I was there!  How horrible am I?  It just goes to show what a great time I was having and couldn't be bothered with such things as a photograph.

As I mentioned yesterday, my "tour of Boston by foot in a day" started with our look and walk around Fenway.  We made about 1 1/2 trips around the ballpark, but we did get a sneak peak inside.

Then we sat in a glove - ha!

From Fenway we took the Subway to Harvard - I have to say we were pros by the end of the day on the subway!!  Here's the only picture I apparently snapped with the camera of Harvard.

From Harvard we headed toward the Freedom Trail.  We got to the first and second location - Boston Common, and the State House and got side tracked with a little detour - Cheers!  We sat right at Carla & Cliff's seat - see....

After a pit stop which included a beer at Cheers we were refreshed enough to continue our venture along the Freedom Trail.  Rather than give you the entire history lesson here are just a few of the sights along the way.

The cemetery where Paul Revere and the victims of the Boston Massacre reside...

The Old South Meeting House (where Ben Franklin was baptized, and colonists challenged British rule)

Paul Revere's house - if memory serves me it's the oldest standing all wood house in the US.  I could look it up, but darn it I'm too lazy at the moment.  If you notice this area has cobblestone streets!! It's in North End or what looks like Little Italy.

The picture above is a shot of a Paul Revere monument with the Old North Church in the background... you know "One if by land, Two if by Sea" the lanterns to announce how the British were advancing.  The shot below is a different look at the Old North Church, which was also the conclusion of our escapade.

After this we were in search of the "T" (Boston's Mass Transportation system).  My feet were killing me.  And it was dinnertime.  So we headed back to the hotel for dinner.  Oh we didn't finish the Freedom Trail... there were still a few more things to hit.  Hey a girl's gotta have a reason to come back next year!

Oh and as a little birthday treat for myself today - I get to fly home late tonight to see the family.  Bummer the best part of my birthday will be working in Boston then traveling home.

Boston: A Cell Phone View

Because I'm writing this late at night in Boston and my feet hurt too much to walk across the room to drag my camera out of my purse (we're talking a distance of maybe 8 feet) - I'm going to first show you a look at Boston as seen from the photos I took on my cellphone today.  I show you these images from my phone because it emails me a copy of the message I send.  Therefore no walking. No moving.  No extra effort on my part.  Oh these are the pictures I sent back to the corporate office.  To everyone left behind to actually work on a Monday!

Let's just say I think we saw all of Boston in a single day - and I walked it wearing flip flops for fear of putting a real shoe on with my broken toe.  Yes I'm a woos.

The first shot is from Fenway Park - home of the Green Monster.  They were preparing for an upcoming soccer game by laying new sod.  So we snapped a few pictures of the field.  My shot from the Blackberry isn't as good as the one on my camera... but you'll have to wait for that.

From Fenway we caught the subway over to Hahvahd as the locals call it.  You and I may know it as Harvard.  Here we're on the steps of some random building.  I still can't get passed all the brick buildings out here. It's not like you can find that in California.  You know, for fear of earthquakes.

After Harvard we decided to walk the Freedom Trail - all the historical sites dating back to the 1600's through the Revolutionary War.  But we did make a pit stop shortly after we hit the first marker....

Wait... you mean Cheers isn't on the Freedom Trail?!  Oops.  Well we still had a good beer to keep us moving for the rest of our trip.  I'll be sure to share with you the whole story in the next day or so.  Once my feet have a bit of a rest and I can make the trip across the hotel room to grab the camera....

East Coast Adventures - Final

For the final look at our East Coast adventures, I take you to upstate New York where Daddy and Drew spent a whirlwind 36 hours.

Since I had to work Monday - Wednesday, the two of them went to stay with Dave's parents and to see Dave's Brother - Uncle Chris.

I hear Drew's favorite part of the visit up there - this swing. Grandpa Tim borrowed the swing from some neighbors, and rigged it to the underside of the deck. The way Daddy tells it, Drew threw a massive fit when it was time to get out of the swing and take a bath. That mean ol' Daddy...

Drew happily explored the backyard as well - for those of us from California land and an open backyard isn't something we're used to. So he was busy picking flowers with Aunt Brianna.

As I mentioned before, the weather was quite humid and warm. Something Drew hasn't dealt much with in his 22-months. So the neighbors were kind enough to let everyone cool off in their pool. Here Drew and Grandpa are having a good time drying off.

Then on Wednesday it was time to drive back to Boston to join me - since our flight was leaving on Thursday morning. One final kiss goodbye for Aunt Brianna.


It was quite sweet how much Drew took to his Aunt. On Wednesday night he was calling out for her in his sleep (Drew has talked in his sleep for months). He really loved hanging out with her.

Thursday morning we joined my friend and her daughter at the airport where we grabbed breakfast and let the kids hang out in this little playground inside the terminal. It was really sweet the two of them, they wouldn't really play together, but if they lost sight of the other, you'd hear them calling for the other. (If you ask me they're destined to go to Harvard together and get married...).

So while it was a work trip for me, I think Dave and Drew managed to have a good time vacationing and hanging out with family. Hopefully it won't be so long between visits (Drew was 9 months old the first and only time he saw Grandma and Grandpa).

Boston Buddies - Part 3

It's a trip of first for Drew. First time to Boston. First Fenway game. First time meeting his Aunt Brianna.

Drew wasn't warming up to her at first. As he likes to say "I being shy". But he's up for anyone that wants to play with him. So after the game at Fenway, we came back to our room, and Aunt Brianna was playing "get you" with Drew. The two of them were having a blast!

It was a great thing for two reasons.
1.) Drew was finally interacting with his Aunt Brianna.
2.) She was wearing Drew out for bed!

Both are equally exciting for us. The two of them got some serious bonding time.

We head home tomorrow, so hopefully I'll have some updates from Dave about the trip to Upstate NY by Friday or so.

The Green Monster - Part 2

What's a trip to Boston, without a stop to see the Green Monster at Fenway? That's right we managed to get tickets to see the Red Sox play the Baltimore Orioles. We had AWESOME seats that Dave scored, by calling Fenway directly for the tickets.

We were barely beyond the 1st base line, staring right at the Green Monster. The day was brutally warm and humid, so poor Drew had rosy cheeks the whole time, and we spent more time in front of the misting fan, in the breeze-way rather than in our seats watching the game.

But it was a great experience, and I think Daddy managed to enjoy himself - which is what it was all about.

We were joined by Grandma & Grandpa, and Aunt Brianna and her boyfriend were in the bleachers. In the end, Baltimore beat the Red Sox, but since we had a few Orioles fans, our gang was happy.

Here are a few more snapshots from the big game at Fenway.

Daddy, Grandma, Drew & Grandpa before the game

Family shot
Poor kid was so hot!

After the game, shot at the field

Aunt Brianna joins Grandma, Daddy & Drew

Boston Bound - Part 1

Greetings from Boston! I had to come here for work, and we decided to make it a mini family vacation while we were at it, extending my trip a few days on the front end. Reason number one, so Drew could see Dave's family - Grandma, Grandpa and Aunt Brianna.

The flight out here was a bit rough, since it was sold out, and it took off at 6am from San Francisco. That means we had to leave our house around 3am! Drew was awake from 3am until about 6:45am. He then napped for only about 45 minutes after we were in the air. Silly mama had to go and dig out some cereal for Daddy, and the movement woke him up.

The last 30 minutes of the flight he decided to snooze for a bit again. Talk about timing - oh, well at least he wasn't screaming or anything at the end.

We then waited outside for Grandma & Grandpa to pick us up and take us to the hotel. What captured Drew's attention while we waited... shuttle buses!


After we hitched a ride with Grandma & Grandpa, and checked into the hotel, we went out for our dinnertime walk. Destination? Why the place where everybody knows your name!

The original Cheers location on Beacon Hill. How cool was this place? Drew loved it until he hit his wall and only wanted to leave. Oh, and shortly before we left, and Grandpa, Drew and I were checking out the gift shop, and he spotted a ball souvenir, only he wanted nothing to do with the baseball. Rather he picked a golf ball! Yes, Drew has a Cheers golf ball souvenir. Daddy was disappointed until I told him how much cheaper it was.

As I mentioned, Drew hit his wall and wanted nothing, but a few zzz's.


Grandpa happily pushed him home again, while our little guy dozed.

Tune in tomorrow for a look at our trip to Fenway to see the Red Sox lose (we had a few Orioles fans in our group....).