A travelogue of our trip to the Boston

It has taken me a few days to recover from our recent trip to Boston. Not because it was exhausting. Opposite. We had quite a relaxing time. Mostly it has been hard for me to get back in the pattern of feeling like I need to get up and actually get going in the morning. It was nice having Tony and other family members around to entertain Will and to be able to read or chat or take a nap. My body gets used to sleeping in and a life of leisure very easily. This does not bode well for our all the changes our family has in store come late October.

We flew into Boston Wednesday afternoon. Will was a champ on the flight. Anthony and I took turns following him as he wandered around the airport while we waited to board our flight and it paid off as he slept 2/3 of the way.


Doug and Tina picked us up and when we arrived at the John house we were greeted with a delicious meal of baked ziti, corn and strawberry shortcake prepared by Hillary and Ben. Will was extra shy at first, but by the end of our first night there he warmed up a bit and let Hillary and Nana read him some stories.


On Thursday Meredith arrived. Soon after she got to Belmont we put Will in the stroller and walked to Star Market in Cambridge. We were quite the entourage--there were 7 of us--but it was fun to get out and get some exercise. We picked up a few things, including water, and then walked home by way of Grove Street Park to let Will play. He loves to swing and it was nice having his Nana, aunts and an uncle to humor him as he wanted to switch to a new swing approximately every minute.

That afternoon we drove to IKEA. Anthony stayed behind so Will could nap and he worked on a presentation for work. After eating lunch, Meredith, Tina and I spent some time looking at stuff for our kid's rooms, as well as looking for various storage boxes. When we got home we dined al fresco on a some delicious BBQ chicken prepared by Doug. Will didn't much care for sitting at the table so the two of us explored the backyard. He is always wanting to "go, go, GO!"

He wasn't a fan of the fence either. That night we all hug out and played music and watched Will dance. He finally settled down and let Papa read him some books.


We started off Friday by taking a walk to Burbank (Anthony's elementary school), with Meredith. Will enjoyed the swings and the three adults lamented the lack of shade at most playgrounds. When we got home we were ate with a delicious breakfast prepared by Ben and Hillary. After cleaning up the girls headed over to a secondhand children's store. We found some treasures--including a chunky car puzzle for Will and some baby gear for Meredith's boy. That afternoon we headed to the Full Moon Cafe for a late lunch. They have a cool play area for kids, which is great for Will. After lunch we headed home and hung out while our food digested. We were all so full from lunch we didn't do much for dinner. Meredith, Tina and I ran to Target to get diapers for Will and look at baby stuff. We talked a lot about babies being that there will be three new John babies by the end of the year (Carly had Elise in May, I'm due in October and Meredith is due in December). When we got back we played some rousing games of nertz. Anthony and I were partners the first game and we won, clearly not everyone was warmed up yet. After that we changed the teams up and neither of were victorious again. Matt and Hillary are an unstoppable force when it comes to team nertz.

Saturday we woke up and got ready to head to New Hampshire. We figured since we didn't have a holiday or wedding to focus on this trip, we could check out Meredith and Steven's current stomping grounds. Doug made us some delicious french toast and we hit the road. The drive wasn't bad, although towards the end Will started to get a bit restless. When we got to West Lebanon we had lunch at the Maxfield's and then put Will down for a nap. While he slept the adults chatted. Steven had worked an overnight shift at the hospital the night before, so he probably should have been sleeping. We felt honored he gave up even more of his precious time to hang out with us. After Will woke up we went canoeing on the Connecticut River. We rowed for a bit and then got out to enjoy the water.


Will wasn't a huge fan of his life vest, so he was especially anxious to get in the water. We were surprised that he had no problems getting in the water, but he was perfectly content to follow his Uncle Steven around.


The water was so peaceful, and the setting so pretty, I left feeling very relaxed.


Then again, I didn't row once. Thanks, TJ, for picking up my slack. After our canoeing excursion we went back to the Maxfield's and grilled some burgers. They live in a really cool old farmhouse built in the late 1880s. Their living areas are really open with lots of windows. They have a large storage area adjacent to their apartment which is actually an old barn. There are also some cool old trees in their yard that Will enjoyed. We meant to get a picture outside their house but forgot. After dinner we went to an ice cream place called Ice Cream Fore You. I think they are associated with some sort of mini-golf. The best part (besides their generous servings) was the playground located right behind. Will wasn't interested in even a bit of ice cream. He was too busy swinging and climbing and going down the slides with his uncle. When we got home we turned on some music and let Will dance before he crashed and went to bed.

Here he is slow dancing with A.G. Bear. The rest of us stayed up talking for awhile and then the boys went to bed and Meredith and I continued to talk until much too late. It was fun though and luckily we didn't have to be at church until 1pm, so we all got to sleep in a bit. When you only see someone once a year or so it is okay to stay up late and catch up.

It was nice to sleep in and have a leisurely Sunday morning chatting, packing and getting ready for church. Will fell asleep on the way and slept through the first fifteen minutes of church laying across Meredith and Steven's laps. Anthony ran into some friends from his BYU days, proving once again that the world is very small.

We took some group photos and then said goodbye.


Meredith and I took a belly photo so we can prove to our kids they were friends before they were born. I am 31 weeks and Meredith is 24 weeks.

We're really glad we had a chance to see where Meredith and Steven are living. The Hanover/West Lebanon area is really beautiful. It had more of a small-town feel than I was expecting. I hope we can visit them in the fall sometime when all the leaves are changing colors. I've seen pictures, and they are breathtaking, but I would love to see it in person. Thank you Meredith and Steven for your hospitality!!

On the way home we got caught in a rainstorm and didn't make very good time. We did make it back in time for the event of the evening, Matt's Court of Honor. I didn't see much because Will was not interested in being quiet. Will really loves his Uncle Matt. He liked to follow him around and then poke his face. Matt was the only adult patient enough to let Will do that more than once.


Will had definitely just poked Matt in the eye right before I took this photo.

On Monday Doug once again made French Toast. Then Doug, Tina, Anthony, Will and I headed into Boston to explore the Public Gardens. We wanted to do something "Boston-y" where we could all (including Will) enjoy ourselves. I think we made a good choice. First, we rode the swan boats.


Will preferred to call them ducks, though. He did pretty well, but didn't like being told no when he tried to touch the water.

By this time in the trip he had totally warmed up to everyone. After the boats we walked over to the Make Way for Ducklings statues.

Despite the look on his face, he seemed to enjoy taking his turn to sit on each one.

He didn't really like being told what direction to walk, so Papa and Nana held his hands and lifted him up occasionally to keep him happy.

We stopped at the Frog Pond, which Will preferred to walk next to and then over to the playground.
He had a good time climbing and then the O's in the fence caught his eye. It was a fun park, but we were getting tired so we headed home for lunch. After lunch we chatted and packed. Doug grilled some hamburgers and before we knew it, it was time to head to the airport. I wish I could say the trip home was a sequel to the flight out, but it was not. Will struggled to fall asleep until he finally crashed about 15 minutes before we were to land.

We are happy to be home, but are missing our New England family. Thank you Doug and Tina for a great trip! You know it was a good when you wish it could have been just a little bit longer. Will still mentions Papa, Nana and Matt at least once a day, and although he won't say anyone else's name, he enjoys pointing everyone else out in photos.