Alrighty - I'm home!
It's been a fabulous trip which ended... not unexpectedly with illness.
Boston was amazing. We stayed with some friends in the country, and we had such a fabulous time - we arrived and visited on Thursday, they took us to Scarborough Beach on Friday, then we went to Plymouth and Plimoth Plantation on Saturday, and then was the conference from Sunday-Wednesday.
Monday and Tuesday evening, I met up with avecvu and we (with the whole family) went for dinner. She not only managed to refrain from killing the children who were acting like they'd consumed copious amounts of caffeine, but she also watched them while I drooled over laptops, and didn't panic when they decided to play hide and seek and were running around the Best Buy like they'd never before been allowed out of the house.
On our way back to the hotel, we passed by one of the oldest firehouses in Boston - Engine Company 33, and the firemen were out and invited the kids to come inside and play in the firetrucks. Stephen and Alex both loved it, but Alex became obsessed with the fireman's pole, and insisted on sliding down (from part-way up).
Wednesday afternoon, I went with Jason and the kids for a trolley ride to the aquarium - such a lovely day. When we got back to the hotel, Tanya and Beck were there, and we all got to go out for dinner again. The children were reasonably well behaved this time - thank goodness they served us quickly though! On the way back, we stopped again at Engine Company 33, and this time the firemen taught Alex to climb the fireman's pole. Big mistake. They (and we) were a little concerned with the speed with which she immediately understood how to climb, and she quickly climbed over our heads. I think Tanya accurately summed up the situation with, "Oh fantastic - yet another skill you wish she didn't have!"
Thursday morning was a relaxing morning of packing up, and we left for the airport around noon. The flight to Toronto was uneventful, but we got stuck in Toronto for an extra hour due to lightning. This was unfortunate, because the kids were too riled up to rest, and the flight home was... painful. Alex was fine - she loves flying. Stephen - not so much. He figured out how to get out of his seatbelt, and so trying to keep him contained for the approximately 3 hour flight, was quite the challenge. He finally fell asleep for the last 20 minutes, and was crying inconsolably when he woke up. We didn't know if he was over-tired, or if it was his ears, or both. Alex's friend Danika (yes, the infamous Danika who poops in her panties) was at the airport to meet her mom, so we were all treated with an adorable little greeting between Danika and Alex. We got home around 11pm, and he was just beside himself. It was a rough night - he didn't sleep well.
We found out the next day that both he and I were sick - me with a head cold, and Stephen with an ear infection. He's now on antibiotics. I've been in bed until this morning, and he's just starting to eat again, and is a bit more chipper. We may have to cancel his scheduled surgery on June 02nd, but I'm hoping that he's 100% better by then - we've still got a couple of days to go.
Sorry I've been out of touch - I didn't expect to be. I was a bit shocked to find out that Boston does not have free wifi downtown, nor did the Hilton provide it. It cost $15/day for wifi. That's just stupid. And not only that, but I had little to no cell coverage - and I wasn't the only one. So yeah, I was out of touch for a bit.
But I'm back now! How are you all doing?
Boston was amazing. We stayed with some friends in the country, and we had such a fabulous time - we arrived and visited on Thursday, they took us to Scarborough Beach on Friday, then we went to Plymouth and Plimoth Plantation on Saturday, and then was the conference from Sunday-Wednesday.
Monday and Tuesday evening, I met up with avecvu and we (with the whole family) went for dinner. She not only managed to refrain from killing the children who were acting like they'd consumed copious amounts of caffeine, but she also watched them while I drooled over laptops, and didn't panic when they decided to play hide and seek and were running around the Best Buy like they'd never before been allowed out of the house.
On our way back to the hotel, we passed by one of the oldest firehouses in Boston - Engine Company 33, and the firemen were out and invited the kids to come inside and play in the firetrucks. Stephen and Alex both loved it, but Alex became obsessed with the fireman's pole, and insisted on sliding down (from part-way up).
Wednesday afternoon, I went with Jason and the kids for a trolley ride to the aquarium - such a lovely day. When we got back to the hotel, Tanya and Beck were there, and we all got to go out for dinner again. The children were reasonably well behaved this time - thank goodness they served us quickly though! On the way back, we stopped again at Engine Company 33, and this time the firemen taught Alex to climb the fireman's pole. Big mistake. They (and we) were a little concerned with the speed with which she immediately understood how to climb, and she quickly climbed over our heads. I think Tanya accurately summed up the situation with, "Oh fantastic - yet another skill you wish she didn't have!"
Thursday morning was a relaxing morning of packing up, and we left for the airport around noon. The flight to Toronto was uneventful, but we got stuck in Toronto for an extra hour due to lightning. This was unfortunate, because the kids were too riled up to rest, and the flight home was... painful. Alex was fine - she loves flying. Stephen - not so much. He figured out how to get out of his seatbelt, and so trying to keep him contained for the approximately 3 hour flight, was quite the challenge. He finally fell asleep for the last 20 minutes, and was crying inconsolably when he woke up. We didn't know if he was over-tired, or if it was his ears, or both. Alex's friend Danika (yes, the infamous Danika who poops in her panties) was at the airport to meet her mom, so we were all treated with an adorable little greeting between Danika and Alex. We got home around 11pm, and he was just beside himself. It was a rough night - he didn't sleep well.
We found out the next day that both he and I were sick - me with a head cold, and Stephen with an ear infection. He's now on antibiotics. I've been in bed until this morning, and he's just starting to eat again, and is a bit more chipper. We may have to cancel his scheduled surgery on June 02nd, but I'm hoping that he's 100% better by then - we've still got a couple of days to go.
Sorry I've been out of touch - I didn't expect to be. I was a bit shocked to find out that Boston does not have free wifi downtown, nor did the Hilton provide it. It cost $15/day for wifi. That's just stupid. And not only that, but I had little to no cell coverage - and I wasn't the only one. So yeah, I was out of touch for a bit.
But I'm back now! How are you all doing?