Road Warrior Momma

Monday, June 11, 2012

Behind a day:)

Sorry I missed yesterday! At dinner, I ran into an old frined of my parents, believe it or not...very interesting. WIll fill in on todays blog (hopefully).

Wonderful, lazy, relaxing, day! We had breakfast and took a short drive through Harwich (my hometown). We went by my schools, my childhood home, and the beach where my family always went. We all walked out on the jetties, and collected some shells. It was so beautiful. Then we got sandwiches and parked it on the beach in front of our hotel. The weather was perfect! All of us, except Camden, actually made it into the ocean (it was cold, though). You should have seen Bear’s face when Rich tossed him in the hair, into the water. Ohhh…we found his Achilles Heel, he does not like the icy water of the North Atlantic. He was mad.

We’re getting ready to walk down the street for dinner, then some ice cream and back to watch the sunset. We have a very early departure tomorrow, as we have a FULL day planned in Boston. No more lazy timeJ.

Pond in my old neighborhood

Rich teaching Camden how to skip stones

Me & the troops in fromt of my old house, 18 Wendy's Way

At "the wall" at Red River Beach....it was so big when I was a kid. My brother and I used to hide from blowing sand there.

At the edge of the jetty

Red River Beach - EXACTLY as I'd remembered.

My favorite jetty

We caught a Camden

Bear, trying to get teh nerve to go in

Saturday, June 9, 2012

Day 12 - JUNE 9, 2012

Day 12 – June 9, 2012

Dennis Port, MA

Okay - wasn’t kidding about the group beneath us partying all night long. At midnight, I called the front desk (am I getting old or what?). I tried to be cool about it…told the night manager that I understood there was a wedding, etc…but I had four kids trying to sleep (for the record, all four kid & Rich were sleeping, but I couldn’tL). He assured me he’d take care of it. Well…within 5 minutes, they did move inside, which I’m sure helped all the other guests in the courtyard (the motel is u-shaped with a pool and nice big yard, facing the beach). But then…they partied inside till 3a.m., right below us. It was bad.

So I woke up tired, grumpy & with a headache. Bear was woken up at some point, too…so we headed to Dunkin Donuts at 6a.m….COFFEE! & we brought back breakfast. BTW, first Dunkin Donuts I’d been to in 10 years that was run by…well, to be blunt…ah, how to say this…they were born and raised on the Cape. Time warp.

Scrambled to get everyone up and ready and to the ferry dock by 8. We were in Nantucket by 9. The day was so pretty. The ferry ride was great. The kids loved it (& no one -me- got seasickJ). The kids weren’t interested in the Whaling Museum, so we walked all around town. Some very cool shops – it was good that the kids were there, or I would have gotten into serious trouble. We had lunch and hopped the ferry back to the Cape.

We played miniature golf…and then a very, very quick trip to the beach. Water was warmer today – Hunter and Audrey got in, Bear still wouldn’t do it.

We drove back to Hyannis and had dinner with Karen & Leslie, at a great restaurant on the harbor. It was so nice and I loved catching up with them. We walked the docks for a little bit after dinner, before saying yet another goodbye (which I hate doing).

Back at the hotel, one more swim.

Side bar: I’ve been driving Rich c.r.a.z.y talking on a Baw-ston accent…I can’t help myself, it comes right back, but he thinks I sound bad...wicked fun messin with him.

Go Celtics!!!

Bye-Bye Hyannis Port

Bear loves a boat

Hello Nantucket

A rare moment for frick & frack

Our ferry

Dinner with Karen & Leslie

Hayannis Port

Last swim of the day

Friday, June 8, 2012

Day 11 - June 8, 2012

Day 11 – June 8, 2012

Boston, MA/Dennis Port, MA

8o miles/1 hour, 45 minutes

We picked Rich up at Logan about 10:30…the kids were besides themselvesJ. We drove straight to Plymouth, MA and it was gorgeous…both the town and weather! We parked along the harbor and walked to Plymouth Rock and the Mayflower. We also had an excellent lunch on the bay. Honestly – it was so pretty , weather was (finally) perfect.

We ended up skipping Plimouth Plantation, because the cost was very (surprisingly) high and we all (mom & dad) wanted to get to the cape.

We crossed the Sagamore Bridge with such excitement…the day was so glorious, it was so cool. Then, I swear, ten minutes late…a blanket of FOG.

Anyway…we checked in, and we gave daddy time to unwind. I took the kids to the pool. I was in jeans and a sweatshirt, so I have no clue how they all swam, but they did!

We basically chilled out for most of the afternoon and then had dinner down the street. The food was fabulous, but the company was even better. The kids were quizzing Rich on Brady Bunch episodes (they’ve been watching the old episodes on DVD, while on the road trip). Well…it just turned out to be gooffy laugh fest, and fortunately, we were the only ones in the dining room!

Great day! We are all soooooooooooooooo hapy daddy is here!

Only “story “ I have for today, involves Bear, Rich & the ocean. Rich has to swim in the ocean of any city we visit – no matter what. Bear LOVES water! SO Rich was soooo excited to swim in the ocean with him. Well, it’s cold up here (not to beat a dead horse). Rich is like, “Bear, do you want to swim at the beach?” “Yes!” he answered enthusiastically. Not so much…once he was on the shore, Bear was like, no thank you! For the record…Rich still swam.

Another side bar…old Cape Cod Hotel…we were very nervous about the kids disturbing our neighbors ((particularly since we’re on the 2^nd floor and they like to JUMP/DANCE). Presently, it’s almost 11 and, MY gang is fast asleep and the two rooms beneath us…MAJOR PARY!

Awwww…shit…

Daddy in the house!

Plimouth Rock

Bear missed his daddy!

Posing with William Bradford

The Mayflower

Bear ain't goignin the ocean!

Daddy is!

Audie..teasing, but no way.

FUN NIGHT!

Thursday, June 7, 2012

Day 10 - June 10, 2012

Day 10 – June 7, 2012

Boston, MA

I decided to go easy on the kids today, given their epic, historical journeys of yesterday. We slept in till 7 a.m. and hit the road at 8 a.m….in search of a Laundromat. We found one rather quickly and I dragged the kids in. While I did our laundry, they read, played with the phone or got in knock-down-drag-out fights over the doodle pad (Bear & Cammy).

After laundry (never fun, but it was kind of nice getting three loads done in just over an hourJ), we headed north to Lowell, so I could do a drive by of my mom’s childhood home and put flowers on my grandparent’s graves.

Then we went back to Lexington and did the Minutemen National Park. They had a very cool, 30 minute, interactive presentation about the events of April 19, 1775, along the battle road.

Somehow we timed it perfectly and met Uncle Louie and Aunt Mary right on time. I was a little nervous about my children, given the last time we dined with Louie & Mary - they were out of control. I’m happy & relieved to report that all went well.

We went to Barnes and Noble for well over an hour, because the skies opened up and it was easier to hang out. Then we meandered our way back to the hotel and I was looking out the window and what did my wandering eyes see??? Oh, just the birthplaces’ of John Adams and John Quincy Adams, right there, 10 feet from the side of the road, literally, at a busy intersection in Quincy. I did a quick pull over and then met a Park Ranger who gave me the skinny. We missed the last tour, so we’re going to go back on Monday, after the Cape. Rich is definitely going to the Cape with us (yay!), he’ll love to see that!

We got a pizza for the room and watched Mirror Mirror, which was really good. And now we’re tuned into the Celtics, which so far, ain’t lookin’ too good. Cape Cod tomorrow!!! Home sweet homeJ!

Bear & Aud passing time at the laundromat

Camden was fascinated by the high speed dryers, with see-thru windows!

Minutemen Museum

Lunch with Uncle Louie & Aunt Mary

My accidental discovery.

John Adams' birthplace (1735)

Birth place of John Quincy Adams (1767)

Aud & Hunter, never missing a photo op!

Wednesday, June 6, 2012

Day 9 - June 6, 2012

Day 9 – June 6, 2012

Boston, MA

What a busy day we had. I think we set a sightseeing record! And the weather has finally improved, it got as high as 69 degrees today and we saw the sun more than the rain!

The kids really deserve a medal for today…they did great . That is, until we got stuck in traffic at the end of the day, on 95 South, and Barrett went Off. The. Rails. I made a detour & found a Fridays, where we made a pit stop for dinner. That helped some…but when we got back to the hotel, he finally went to the bathroom….so I think we’re all good for a few daysJ!

After yet another DISGUSTING breakfast at Dunkin Donuts, we headed into Boston…encountering traffic and rain on the way. We got to Fenway and it was surrounded by school buses…which made me fearful that we’d be out of luck. Fortunately, not the case, we got our tour. Very cool. I’d been there before, but it was cool to see it through the kids eyes.

Next we drove to Cambridge, through Harvard University (where the traffic was crazy and no parking). Then we drove along the Charles River and found our way to Brookline and JFK’s childhood home, which was also where he was born. It was really neat. Very small house (this was before old Joe made his millions on liquor/Wall Street/and Hollywood). You can’t help but be awed when you see the room and bed where he actually came into this world.

The Park Rangers who run the place, are awesome. After the tour, they tested Audrey (who passed, apparently) and then made her a Junior Park Ranger, with a swearing-in ceremony.

Next, we headed to Concord. We a beautiful town!!!! I could totally spend a (adult) weekend there. We toured the Concord Museum, the homes of Thoreau and Louisa May Alcott, the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery (where many famous New England Authors are buried (Thoreau, Hawthorne, Alcott & Emerson)), downtown historic Concord, Walden Pond (yes the Walden Pond) & the North Bridge, where the first battle of the Revolutionary War took place, “the shot heard round the world.”

How’s that for a full day? Kids are watching the Red Sox game and I am soon off to bed!