Mother's Day 2015

My mom flew in from Idaho for the weekend and we had the opportunity to spend Mother's Day with her! I haven't been home to celebrate Mother's Day with my family in several years, so this was a real treat. I was fortunate enough to be able to take Friday off from work and to spend the day exploring Boston with my mom. We started at Newbury Street, where it is always requisite to stop by Georgetown Cupcake. They were already out of their "secret flavor of the day" (by 10:45am!) but we sampled a few of their other options and determined that the Lavender Earl Grey Teacake and the Coconut were our favorites.

               

mmmm, springtime in boston

Original Cheers restaurant, where everybody knows your name.

After our sugar fest we visited a few more shops along Newbury Street and made our way back through the Public Garden toward the financial district to meet Jeff for lunch. He took us to Flour Bakery & Cafe in the Seaport District where we ordered some delicious sandwiches! I recommend the applewood smoked bacon, arugula, and tomato!

   

Jeff headed back to his office for a few more hours and mom and I stopped in at the Boston Tea Party Museum. 

If you do the tour they'll let you throw "tea" off the ship! Huzzah!

It was a bit windy outside so we ducked into Abigail's Tea Room for some warm Chowder.

We also walked around Chinatown before heading back home. Boston is such a neat city, so much culture and energy; a great place to see by foot.

The Chinatown Gate

On Mother's Day we woke up early hopped in the car and headed to the Cape. We took the Ferry from Woods Hole, a village on Cape Cod, to Vineyard Haven on Martha's Vineyard! I have long wanted to visited this part of Massachusetts and what a delight it was!

After about 40 minutes on the ship the captain called for all passengers with bikes to go below deck to wait with their bikes. One of the shipmen asked me if I wanted to help open the big door of the ferry. Naturally I said yes! Turns out all you have to do to open the deck of a ferry is push a button : )

The "big door"!

It was the loveliest place to celebrate Mother's Day. Our first stop was the Black Dog, a delightful little restaurant and great place to enjoy brunch by the sea.

After enjoying our fill of chocolate chip strawberry pancakes, lobster roll, and fishcakes we made our way to the nearest bike shop (which conveniently turned out to be just across the street) to get my mom a bike. We were to cycle around the island and take in the sites!

While researching what to do in Martha's Vineyard we discovered that there is an Alpaca farm on the island that you can visit. Jeff was really excited about this so we put it on our list. It was a few miles ride from the bike shop to the farm with a great bike path the whole way there!

Enjoying every minute of the Alpaca farm visit : )

This furry-faced guy was our favorite : )

Alpacas are so soft and funny! They can contort their bodies in all kinds of ways and they make this nice humming sound "ehhhh". Very curious creatures to watch haha. The female herd was a bit nervy when we were there because, as the owners told us, some land had been cleared nearby for a herd of horses. This was making the alpacas a bit concerned; they wouldn't stop staring.

The leader of the Pack 

 After bidding farewell to our furry friends we biked on to West Chop (the northwestern tip of the island) to see the lighthouse. I didn't get a photo, which is not too much of a loss because the lighthouse was pretty small and basically just an old house with a tower. But the ride there sure was pretty!

It was a great way to spend mother's day! Thanks for coming out here mom, we sure love you!

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Book Club Meeting

We finally got around to holding our Goblet of Fire book club meeting! It only took us four months, but it was worth the wait! Spring has officially sprung in Boston and it was the perfect sunday to get together and lounge outside. We finally got to share the treats we got from Harry Potter World during our trip to Orlando last December : /

Michelle brought her Harry Potter trivia game and we had fun dividing into Hogwarts houses and testing our knowledge.

Sorting into our Houses for the game

Thrilled to be a Hufflepuff

Christian and Carolyn were our victors! Ten points to Ravenclaw!

Always a great time at the HP Boston book club! Ready to tackle book five now!

The World's Greatest Sport

Feeling a little out of the soccer loop since the world cup ended last July, I have been wanting to become a more regular spectator of European football. We have the New England Revolution -an MLS team- to root for and we even have semi-season pass tickets to their matches this upcoming season, which we are stoked for! But their season doesn't begin until March. So how to scratch that soccer itch during the cold and dreary winter months?

In January I had the chance to visit Jeff while he was working in Ohio. We went out to dinner with his manager and friend, Corey, who plays soccer with Jeff on a weekly basis. Corey is a huge Bayern Munich fan, a team which I discovered has many of my (as well as Jeff's) favorite players who we grew to admire during the world cup games. It's basically the German National team with a few other stars from various countries, which means they are fun to watch and actually have a shot at winning often. Corey and Jeff watched some of Bayern's matches together during their month-long stint in Ohio and Corey showed Jeff how to access a station that airs all of Bayern Munich's games! And there it was. Suddenly an opportunity presented itself to follow a European team who we already have an affinity for, that we can watch on a regular basis! We've already become saturday morning regulars for Goal TV. Say hello to Bayern Munich's new biggest fans.

As a brief aside I'll share (for posterity's sake) why I think Soccer, or rather real football, is the best sport:

1. It's 90 minutes of uninterrupted athleticism and drama. There are no commercials, few delays, and no annoying halftime shows with bothersome cheerleaders or performances to be subjected to. It's about the game. It's simple, intense, and action packed.

2. The game commentary is nice to listen to. The commentators are usually British and therefore not only have lovely accents, which gives this "gentlemen's sport" a touch of sophistication, but they also say hilarious things like, "DYNAMITE! Absolute DYNAMITE!" or "...the ball bounces back, and he'll get another bite at the cherry!". They get so excited when a big play happens and it adds to the charm and energy of the game.

3. Best looking athletes. Without a doubt footballers are the most attractive athletes. And it makes sense. They're out there on the pitch sprinting around and working hard for ninety minutes unencumbered by bulky pads or helmets . They're not calling constant time-outs, switching lines, or taking excessive breathers. Soccer players have to be truly in shape and athletic. The sweet as jerseys are an added bonus.

4. It's "the beautiful game". The fluid movement of the game and pure athleticism of the players (in the form of jumps, sprints, headers, and goals) is stunning. Additionally, one of football's most pleasing thing to view is a series of good passes between one team. As author Nick Horby articulates, "there is a pleasant geometry about [football]". It's easy to be passionate about such a beautiful looking game.

5. Different teams have different styles, which makes it even more interesting to watch. From the English Premier League to the Spanish Liga, Europe to Africa every nation has a different way of playing the game. This is one reason it's fun to watch Bayern Munich play in the Bundesliga - the Germans tend to play with such discipline and intensity which leads to big plays and lots of goals. Mia san Mia!

So there you have it. Soccer is my fave and I'm excited to have more of it in my life. The end.

A Dash of Panache

Jeff returned after a month long stint of accounting busy seasoning in Ohio and we were both thrilled! We made it through January, the month we had been dreading, and it wasn't even that bad. The weeks went by surprisingly fast (thankfully) and I even got to visit Jeff during one of the weekends in between, which made the separation more bearable. When he got home we partied! Actually his flight was a bit delayed on Friday night due to all of the snow and wintry weather we're having here, so we started the party on Saturday.

We ventured into Harvard Square with our pals Jake and Rose to eat a delectable belgian waffle breakfast at one of our favorite Boston eateries: Zinneken's. It was most enjoyable and delicious as always. We noticed several people in the restaurant wearing those Canadian Goose coats, and started talking about how expensive they are and whether the coats really merit the hefty price tag. Jake asked one girl where she got hers and she said The Tannery, a boutique just down the street. Just for the heck of it we decided to pop into The Tannery to check out these extreme weather jackets for ourselves. Jeff and I both tried a Canada Goose jacket on and can say that they will for sure keep you toasty, at least when you're indoors lol.

 

We did not get the chance to try them in the winter chill, but I'm fairly certain they would stand the test. They come with a lifetime warranty, and I'm told you'll never have to buy another winter jacket lol. Tempting if you live in Boston where it is relentlessly cold and have an extra $800 burning a hole in your pocket : )

After the coat store we saw a really cool looking hat shop next door called Goorin Bros. We all wanted to check it out, and we ended up spending the next hour being charmed by the delightful employees who flitted around us pulling down different hats and letting us try them on with various accessories. The store itself was so cool! Lovely wooden floors adorned with giant rugs, shelves filled with the most beautiful hats you've ever seen, a sweeping staircase, and a couple of sliding ladders to add to the charm. The whole thing was very enchanting, so much so that three out of the four of us left with hats in hand. I mean, they had hat boxes! How could we not get one?