Thanksgiving weekend in Boston

We arrived in Boston on the afternoon of Thanksgiving, its 185 miles from our home in New York so a perfect weekend get away. We stayed in a hotel in the Back Bay area, an area famous for its Victorian type homes and architecture.

We enjoyed a Thanksgiving dinner in Capitol Grill, a local steak type restaurant. During this meal we entered the 'entertain your child with an iPad club' keeping a restless Ethan happy with his favourite episode of Bugs Bunny. It became apparent on the walk to and from the restaurant that when people warned us it was going to be cold in Boston they weren't kidding! And very randomly, Matt received am email the following day from a lady from the EY London office who had been in the same restaurant that night and had seen us leaving.

On Friday we set off along 'The Freedom Trail'. This is a 2.5mile walk of Boston which is mapped out by a red brick (or paint in places) trail making it very easy to follow. It covers 16 nationally significant historic sites. It's s great way to see the city, take in some history in a very easy way. Especially if you're Ethan getting carried around by Mummy in a sling! 

About 2hours into a walk, we saw some Boston Bruins fans heading to the game. Realising we were right next to the TD Garden stadium and feeling very cold we went to the Box office and managed to get some tickets. So we watched Boston Bruins beat the New York Rangers 3-2. It was our second ice hockey game and reiterated my view as being my favourite American sport (baseball - too long, basket ball - average, American football - yet to full understand), its fast and easier to understand, plus they have some full on fights which adds to the excitement levels. It was Ethan's first game and he managed to sit through it reasonably well once he understood he couldn't spend the whole game climbing the stadium stairs. He learnt to clap along to the 'lets go Bruins' chant and flirt with the girl sitting behind us. By the third session he was overtired and the noise got too much for him but on the whole we we impressed by how well he coped.

That night we went to a nice Italian restaurant close to our hotel. It is owned and run by an Indian chef which made for a good mix of flavours, I had a pasta 'Indian Fusion Masala Pasta' which was delicious, Matt and Ethan kept it traditional with spaghetti bolognaise. The night was made slightly more interesting by the man at the table behind us passing out and what can only be described as an impressive response time from the emergency services (ladies, an added advantage over here is that the fire service often attend the same calls as ambulances!).

On Saturday we went to the Aquarium. Ethan decided to take his nap in the sling five minutes before we arrived so Matt and I walked round the marina area while he slept. It was such a beautiful aspect of the city and amazing how peaceful it was. In the Aquarium we saw three different types of penguins, seals and some large rays which Ethan was able to touch. A fantastic day out that Ethan really enjoyed. We finished the day with dinner in a local pizza restaurant.

On Sunday we went for a quick drive around Harvard before setting off home. A terrible journey home, 6 hours spent in the car instead of the 3 it should take (that's the Thanksgiving traffic we were warned about!) Ethan only slept for 45 of those 360 minutes so it felt even longer! Relieved to get home and after putting Ethan to bed have just enjoyed a takeaway, well the cupboards were bare!

Some photos from the weekend are below. We had a lovely time and would recommend it as a tag on to a trip out here.

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An afternoon in the Library

Today I finally discovered what the deal is with Libraries here. This afternoon's Newcomer Club playgroup arranged to meet in the Library as the weather was damp. 'Strange I thought, not sure Ethan will be up for quiet time in a Library'.

How mistaken could I be.

They had a two storey special Children's library. Full of thousands of children's books. A small playroom at the back whether Ethan played with the trains. Some computers with special children's software. A puppet stand with puppets where some older children kindly put on a show for Ethan (he liked the Moose). Tables to do jigsaws on. Overall a very impressive set up full of children spending time on a damp afternoon and will definitely visit again.

Oh, and I forgot the highlight of the visit for Ethan. A disabled access ramp about 15m long connecting two floors which Ethan and his new friend Nolan spent most of their time crawling up and down!

Happy Thanksgiving!

So, today is Thanksgiving. It's the biggest holiday in the USA, bigger than Christmas and people do as we would in the UK at Christmas, get together with families and enjoy a big meal together.

We have chosen to travel to Boston for the weekend (a 3hr drive away), apparently travel is a complete nightmare so wish us luck on the roads!

But what is the history behind Thanksgiving, in an effort to educate me and you, I did some research. I thought 'Thanksgiving history for kids' was probably pitching at the right level and after putting that into Google I discovered...

Celebrate on: Fourth Thursday in November

Thanksgiving Day is the fourth Thursday in November, but many Americans take a day of vacation on the following Friday to make a four-day weekend, during which they may travel long distances to visit family and friends.
The holiday dates back to 1621, the year after the Puritans arrived in Massachusetts, determined to practice their dissenting religion without interference. After a rough winter, in which about half of them died, they turned for help to neighboring Indians, who taught them how to plant corn and other crops. The next fall's bountiful harvest inspired the Pilgrims to give thanks by holding a feast.
The Thanksgiving feast became a national tradition — not only because so many other Americans have found prosperity but also because the Pilgrims' sacrifices for their freedom still captivate the imagination.
To this day, Thanksgiving dinner almost always includes some of the foods served at the first feast: roast turkey, cranberry sauce, potatoes, pumpkin pie. Before the meal begins, families or friends usually pause to give thanks for their blessings, including the joy of being united for the occasion.

The Friday following Thanksgiving is known as 'Black Friday'. This is the biggest shopping day in the year and shops have crazy sales, often opening on the evening of Thanksgiving and staying open all night. It sounds very similar to our Boxing Day sales at home albeit on a much grander scale.

So, Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Will update you on our Boston trip next week.

First NY haircut for Ethan

So we've all had our haircuts in NY now. Today we took Ethan to a local kids hairdressers called 'Fun Cuts for Kids'. Children get to sit in fun cars, or watch cartoons. Their website says 'There are so many fun distractions children may not want to leave when their haircut is over'. I'll let you decide from the photos whether we had that problem with Ethan!

Learner drivers again

Although you can drive in NY on your UK licence, once you become resident or buy a car, you need to get your NY Drivers Licence. So today we went to the DMV (Department of Motor Vehicles), filled in forms, passed our written tests and got our learner permits.

Now we just have to undertake a 5hour driving course and do a road test. Lucky us! Although apparently you can do the road test in your own vehicle which is good. The rear parking camera will certainly make things a lot easier!

Look what's covered in our driving licence theory!

Making friends

I know a number of people have been curious about how I would make friends out here. So I thought I'd explain how you go about it.

- Newcomers Clubs - local organisations that are set up for new people moving to an area. I have joined our local one and been added to a weekly playgroup of Mums all with children a similar age to Ethan.

- Expat group - there is a local expat group which we have also joined. They organise monthly coffee mornings and ladies nights out and I have also arranged a play date with another Mum through there.

- The YMCA - we are now doing three classes there and tomorrow I have a play date with a lady I met while we watched our children swim;

- Family contacts - on Tuesday I went to Manhattan to meet Mum's friend's daughter in law for coffee. We had a lovely morning and hopefully her and her husband will be joining is for lunch in the New Year. On Sunday we have some old friends of Ann and Phil's (inlaws) coming to lunch. They are also currently in New York on a secondment.

- meetup.com - put in your area and tells you all the local groups. I joined a couple of parenting/mum type ones and have just put in a request to join a new playgroup when the 'term' starts in January.

- Putting yourself out there - ok so it's a LONG time since I was in the dating game but it feels a little like that. You meet someone you click with. You ask for their number. You arrange a play date!