The Freedom Trail

Monday was suppose to be a stormy day so we planned on going to the aquarium. We walked through Boston Common on the way there and it started raining. By the time we got to the aquarium it was bright and sunny so we decided to walk on the Freedom Trail first. Here's a picture of me in front of the duck pond in Boston Commons. It was neat to see this area because it is where the book "Make Way for Ducklings" takes place.

Part of the Freedom Trail was seeing the ships in Boston Harbor. We got to go aboard one of the ships and we saw "Old Ironsides" too. Here's a picture of Michael on the ship . . .

This is a picture of us in front of the statue of Paul Revere . . .

After we finished we grabbed some lunch at Quizno's and then headed to the aquarium. They have a neat jelly fish exhibit that we went to first. We spent the majority of our time watching the penguins. It was fun watching them swim underwater and chase the shadows the people were making in the water! It reminded us of our cat Zoe chasing the sunlight when we open the front door! Michael loved watching the sharks swimming in the big aquarium. I tried to take his picture next to the shark as it swam by but it didn't turn out very well. We went outside to watch the seals. They look like they are having so much fun! We walked to the top of the big aquarium and listened to a question and answer session about all of the animals in the tank. There was a huge sea turtle and a cobia swimming at the top as well as a big eel! The eels freak me out!!! After the aquarium we went to dinner at Regina Pizzeria. It is a local pizza joint that opened in 1926. The pizza was awesome!

The Harbor Islands

We slept until 8am! I know this probably sounds early to most people but it is late when you have a nine month old who thinks 6am is sleeping in! We decided to go to the Harbor Islands today since the weather was nice. The ferry ride was fun. We went to Georges and Spectacle Islands. We walked around the fort and then took another boat ride to Spectacle Island. The ride was rough and we got pretty wet! I was glad to get off of the boat. We walked all around the island. The island was basically created as a landfill but you would never know it. By the time we were finished exploring we were exhausted so we took the ferry back to Boston. We ate dinner at Au Bon Pain and headed back to the hotel for the night. We were too exhausted for any more walking! Monday was suppose to be a stormy day so we planned on going to the aquarium. We walked through Boston Common on the way there and it started raining. By the time we got to the aquarium it was bright and sunny so we decided to walk on the Freedom Trail first. After we finished we grabbed some lunch at Quizno's and then headed to the aquarium. They have a neat jelly fish exhibit that we went to first. We spent the majority of our time watching the penguins. It was fun watching them swim underwater and chase the shadows the people were making in the water! It reminded us of our cat Zoe chasing the sunlight when we open the front door! Michael loved watching the sharks swimming in the big aquarium. I tried to take his picture next to the shark as it swam by but it didn't turn out very well. We went outside to watch the seals. They look like they are having so much fun! We walked to the top of the big aquarium and listened to a question and answer session about all of the animals in the tank. There was a huge sea turtle and a cobia swimming at the top as well as a big eel! The eels freak me out!!! After the aquarium we went to dinner at Regina Pizzeria. It is a local pizza joint that opened in 1926. The pizza was awesome!

Boston Trip

Michael and I went to Boston for a long weekend. This was the first time I've spent a night away from Austin since he was born. I enjoyed getting a full night of sleep but I missed him so much! Everytime I saw another baby it made me want to fly back to Tampa and give Austin a big hug and kiss. Austin stayed with my parents for the weekend. They had a great time playing in the pool and going for walks. Unfortunately he had a bit of a cold so he was a little cranky for them.

On Saturday, Michael and I left for Boston. We got to sit in first class! This is the only time I've ever sat in first class (we got bumped up since we were using frequent flyer miles). It wasn't anything too special but it was nice to have a bigger seat! When we got to Boston we decided to walk down to Fenway Park and see if we could find some "cheap" tickets from a scalper but we didn't have any luck. Instead we ate dinner at Cask & Flagon across the street from Fenway and watched the game on TV. The Red Sox won! After dinner we walked down by the river and then headed back to our hotel.

4th of July

We all went to Austin's Great-Grandma Sally's house to go swimming and dinner. We cooked hamburgers and sausages on the grill and then made ice cream sundaes for dessert. Austin had a blast in the pool! After dinner we headed to Bayshore to watch the fireworks that were set off at Channelside. Austin slept through the fireworks.

Father's Day

Today is Michael's first Father's Day as a Dad! My Dad, Will and Michael went out to play golf while my Mom and I ran some errands with Austin and got things ready for dinner. We all met at the lake and we grilled steaks and twice-baked potatoes. I made Michael a card with a picture of him and Austin and I wrote a poem for him. It wasn't extremely creative but I'm an accountant so what do you expect??? I think it was pretty good and I think (and hope) that Michael liked it too!

After dinner Will helped us write up our offer on the house on Granada. We're going to make the offer tomorrow!

The Open House

Michael went with me to look at the house on Granada. He liked it too! We see a lot of potential in it. It would be easy to add on to it (someday!) and we both fell in love with the backyard. It is a 100 x 100 lot and has a beautiful huge oak tree in the back. Now we have to decide if we want to make an offer.

We found our house!

I went for a walk with my parents last night (Michael was out of town) and we saw the cutest house that just went on the market. I looked up the listing and it looks perfect for us. Will scheduled an appointment to show us the house and I was very skeptical since all of the houses that we have looked at have either been too expensive or have horrible floor plans. This one actually has a good floor plan and we can afford it! What a birthday present (today is my birthday too!). There is an open house tomorrow so I'm going to take Michael by. I hope he likes it too!

My Mom and Dad took care of Austin so that Michael and I could grab some birthday dinner is peace. We went to Pappas, a local Greek restaurant. It was good but I still miss Sam's! My Mom made me a birthday cake - white cake with vanilla frosting and mini chocolate chips mixed in the icing - my FAVORITE!!!

Moving Day!

We rented a 26-foot U-Haul truck Saturday morning and started packing it up. Our first excitment for the day occurred when Michael hit the mailbox while attempting to pull the U-Haul into our driveway. Luckily we have fantastic neighbors and everyone came out and helped us. Elijah (not sure if this is spelled right???) took over the driving and backed the U-Haul into our driveway perfectly. Matt from across the street helped us with the mailbox. Luckily no damage was done to the mailbox or the U-Haul - thank goodness!!! Michael's parents came over to watch Austin so we could get more accomplished. We put a good dent in the work on Saturday and then we went to Sam's for one last time - so sad! Sam gave us a free dessert when we told him we were moving. The baklava was so yummy!

On Sunday we started working bright and early. Michael's parents came over for a little after church and my parents drove over from Atlanta (my Dad was playing in the Atlanta Senior Invitational). My Mom and Dad helped us finish packing and cleaning and then we fixed a pizza and ate it sitting on the floor since we no longer had any furniture! I had also packed the salt and papper so my Mom found little packets in her car which we used. She is always prepared!

We left at an ungodly hour on Monday morning. My Dad drove the U-Haul and Michael followed him. I had Austin in my car and my Mom followed me. I was hoping that Austin would sleep for a few hours at the beginning since we left so early but my Mom and I had to make our first stop in Columbus. We fed him in the Walmart and walked him around for a while and then hit the road again. We stopped at way too many Walmarts on the way down. I didn't think we would ever make it to Tampa. Finally, he fell asleep when we got on the interstate in Georgia and he slept most of the remainder of the trip. My Dad and Michael got to the lake an hour or so before us (due to our many Walmart stops!) so they started unpacking. My brother Will met them there and helped too. I can't believe we are going to have to move again once we find a house in Tampa. I'll just try not to think of it at this point :)

The Birmingham Zoo

Michael, Austin and I went to the Birmingham Zoo today with Grandma Shirley. Today is Earth Day so the zoo was free for everyone. It was truly a ZOO!!! There were a zillion people there. All of us just got over a stomach virus so it was nice to get out and do something. Unfortunately Grandpa Harold is still sick so he couldn't make it. We saw most of the exhibits before we got sick of the crowds. Austin slept through most of it though. My favorite part was the sea lion show!

6 Month Birthday!!!