Counting My Blessings: Week In Review
It was a wonderful week packed with adventures and memories with family and friends. We were able to spend time with people we hadn’t seen in quite awhile and meet some sweet little ones (new nieces and nephews that we are meeting for the first time). The girls have had a blast meeting the sweet babies, playing with family and friends, spending time with cute animals, and making memories with a lot of people in our lives. Thankful for an opportunity to travel and catch up with family from a variety of different areas.
I want to be accountable to you so the following are snip-its of some of the things I am thankful for this past week.
Counting My Blessings – Week In Review:
Monday –Thankful for an opportunity to spend a day with my cousin Renelle and her family. We even were able to go to Estates Park, a hike, and visit to Bear Lake. It was great spending time with family and in the Rocky Mountains!
Tuesday – Thankful for a chance to explore the Denver Museum of Science and Nature. The girls especially loved the Robotic Revolution exhibit! We spent a few hours there prior to going to the airport.
Wednesday – Thankful for safety as we flew back on South Carolina. Our flight was delayed, but we made it home with about 2 hours to spare before heading into work. Grateful for our friends who took really great care of our house and pets while we were away!
Thursday – Thankful for the girls help in getting the suitcases unpacked from our trip and for a full nights sleep back in our own beds!
Friday – Thankful that the kids had a chance to hang out with their friends from church at a pool party.
Saturday – Thankful for an opportunity to spend time with Jake’s cousin and his family, Luke and Kristen! Always great catching up and the kids played well together!
Sunday – Thankful for a chance to celebrate Father’s Day with Jake. We spent actual Father’s Day with extended family and waited until we were back home to celebrate with Jake. It was fun hanging out together and having fun. Thankful for Jake and everything he does for our family!
What are you thankful for today? I encourage you to take the time to write down a few blessings that you have in your life today. It will help cheer you up and turn your focus on the amazing blessings you encounter each day
Counting My Blessings: Week In Review
It was a wonderful week packed with adventures and memories with family and friends. We were able to spend time with people we hadn’t seen in quite awhile and meet some sweet little ones (new nieces and nephews that we are meeting for the first time). The girls have had a blast meeting the sweet babies, playing with family and friends, spending time with cute animals, and making memories with a lot of people in our lives. Thankful for an opportunity to travel and catch up with family from a variety of different areas.
I want to be accountable to you so the following are snip-its of some of the things I am thankful for this past week.
Counting My Blessings – Week In Review:
Monday –Thankful for the an opportunity to spend time with Jake’s cousin and family. See a little bit of Boston with its great history. As well as a chance to catch up with our great friends Mike and Ashley with their little ones in Maine.
Tuesday – Thankful for friends that are like family that we can spend time with and have a blast whenever we get together. It was wonderful catching up with Mike & Ashley. The girls were thrilled to meet Savannah, sweet girl with lots of personality, and Bradley. Grateful for the ability to fly as we head out to see my family in the Midwest, even though going through airports can be an adventure it does save time if were are wanting to see people that are spread out over many miles and more on a specifically on a limited time frame.
Wednesday – Thankful for a chance to spend some time on the farm in Kansas with my parents and family. The girls always love time spending with the family and animals.
Thursday – Thankful for time in the Midwest with extended family. Grateful that we can see a number of people in this area.
Friday – Thankful for another day with extended family. The girls have grandparents, great grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins, and more people to enjoy time with during our stay.
Saturday – Thankful for a safe trip to Colorado to see my cousin Renelle and her family.
Sunday – Thankful for some time to hang out with extended family in the Denver, Fort Collins, Johnston areas.
What are you thankful for today? I encourage you to take the time to write down a few blessings that you have in your life today. It will help cheer you up and turn your focus on the amazing blessings you encounter each day!
Counting My Blessings: Week In Review
It was a week fun filled week with a lot of work, travel, time with extended family, and neat activities. Thankful for an opportunity to travel for a few days to spend catching up with family. I added the weekend since this week as well. Grateful for safety as we traveled to see people and for the wonderful memories that were made along the way.
I want to be accountable to you so the following are snip-its of some of the things I am thankful for this past week.
Counting My Blessings – Week In Review:
Monday –Thankful for the girls help in getting some tasks done around the house. It was a busy day of prepping and packing. The girls packed their entire suitcases by themselves so that saved me time from rounding up all their items and getting them in the suitcase.
Tuesday – Thankful for friends that are willing to watch our house and pets while we were away visiting family in New England. It is good knowing that the everything is being cared for while we are away.
Wednesday – Thankful for a job that I can work part time so I can travel with my family as well. Jake dropped me off at work this morning and picked me up early afternoon to drive to the airport so we could fly out to see family in New England. Also, grateful for airplanes and the ability to travel places relatively quickly. Thankful safety in our travels.
Thursday – Thankful for time to spend with Jake’s Mom and grandparents in Vermont. It was cooler in Vermont but the girls had a grand time with Grandma Kay, Nana, PopPop, and their chickens, puppy, and exploring the woods.
Friday – Thankful for another fun filled day in Vermont to spend time with family.
Saturday – Thankful for a safe trip to Connecticut and an opportunity to spend time with Jake’s Dad. The girls had a blast!
Sunday – Thankful for a safe trip to Massachusetts to visit with Jake’s cousin Matt and his family.
What are you thankful for today? I encourage you to take the time to write down a few blessings that you have in your life today. It will help cheer you up and turn your focus on the amazing blessings you encounter each day!
Travel & Vacation: Boston Museum of Science
Our visit to the Boston Museum of Science
Another fascinating place to visit with kids is the Boston Museum of Science! The girls LOVED the Boston Museum of Science. We spent the first two hours in one room they enjoyed it so much. They probably could have spent an entire day going through everything. We covered the majority of the museum in several hours, but they would have been happy to stay longer if we had the time.
We went to the Lightening Show! It was awesome! If you look closely there is a lady in the giant “bird cage” which was struck by a large bolt of lightning.
Anything with animals is a hit with our girls
Mesmerized by the tornado display.
Karlie showing her electricity capicity.
The computer, electronics, and robotics room was a huge hit with the kids. In this picture they are putting together pieces to build robotic components that make noise, light up, turn on fans, and more!
Really Mom, it wasn’t me making that beeping noise!!!
Watching to see what robotics challenge is being giving. This was really neat! One of the workers kept giving them harder tasks to accomplish!
Working together to get the robotic to get through the course. They both finished their missions and earned their certificates.
Jake teaching Brina some computer coding skills!
One huge dinosaur!
Silly mirrors!
The musical steps were neat! I think the girls did several sets of stairs just so they could create music!
Yes, she is holding a skunk in her arms only a few feet from us!
Playing for a few minutes on the seesaw!
It was a blast exploring the Boston Museum of Science. The girls loved it! The only sad part is we had to go because the Museum was closing and we had to get moving on to our next stop. We stopped outside of Boston at a Ninety-Nine restaurant! Instead of serving bread before the meal they brought out fresh popcorn. The kids meals included an ice cream sandwich. It was nice to sit, relax, and talk about our fun adventures for the day. The food was delicious too!
Travel & Vacation: Learning About Old Ironsides & the USS Constitution Museum
Our family inside Old Ironsides next to the cannons!
We split up the Old Ironsides tour and the USS Constitution Museum into two days which actually worked out really well for our family. If you are planning on visiting Old Ironsides make sure you are carrying your driver’s license otherwise you will not be able to get into see it. We left my driver’s license at the hotel since I wasn’t carrying my wallet and we would be riding on the subway and trolley. Oh well! It let us spread the adventure out a little bit more.
Visiting the U.S.S. Constitution (aka Old Ironsides)
The first day we explored the USS Constitution Museum. Both girls really enjoyed the museum, history, and all the cool activities. They did a great job making fun and interactive displays for the kids at this museum. It was not huge, but we still spent at least a couple hours doing everything (some activities the girls did multiple times). I highly recommend going to this Museum if you visiting Old Ironsides, it’s right across the street. The kids will enjoy it (especially the second floor)! The second day we explored Old Ironsides the ship!
Brina put together her ship!
They both managed to build their ships using the diagram.
Huge model of Old Ironsides
Our little sailor girl.
This was a lot harder than it looked. They had to stand on a tight rope, pull up the sails, and tie them up without falling off. Took a little coordination, but they both had a blast pulling up the sails!
Yikes! The boats rocking the hammock a little too fast for Karlie!
Brina lounging in the hammock!
We were up early and ready to go the next day. The girls enjoyed riding on the T in Boston. Brina was very worried that I was too close to the subway or that I would get left behind if I didn’t hurry when it stopped.
Went from riding the MBTA (Boston’s subway) to riding the Boston’s Old Town Trolley! Jake and Brina sitting across the aisle from us!
Karlie loving her time exploring Boston!
Ready to go abroad the U.S.S. Constitution otherwise known as Old Ironsides! I am glad we visited Old Ironsides because we just recently found out that they are pulling it out of the harbor for the next 3 years to do restoration work on it.
We got there just as it opened so it was less crowded and cooler! Old Ironsides is still an active ship. Every year on July 4th they take the ship 1 mile out and bring it back into harbor. We were there a couple days before July 4th so they were preparing for their big annual one mile trip out to sea!
Checking out the cannons on Old Ironsides!
Karlie climbing down the steep steps!
We stopped to talk with one of the sailors for a few minutes.
Demonstrating one of their fighting drills after showing us how to load the cannons!
She’s thinking about something….I sense a question about to come!
Travel & Vacation: Exploring Boston – Freedom Trail, Swan Boats, Trolley Rides, Harbor Tour, and Cheers
One of the markers along the Freedom Trail in Boston!
Our next stop was Boston, Massachusetts! The hotel we were staying at was a few miles from downtown Boston so we walked across the street and a couple blocks to catch the subway or MBTA as it is called in Boston. We rode into town with a lot of people going to work. The girls were quite amazed by all the people who were packed into the subway. I didn’t get any pictures in the actual subway because I didn’t want to be rude. It was an interesting experience. The girls were curious how people could sleep on the subway because they may miss their stop.
Our first adventure required walking, but it was really interesting – the Freedom Trail! We decided to go with a guided group along the Freedom Trail. The girls enjoyed hearing all the history!
Brina on the green in front of Massachusetts State House!
Granary Burying Ground was first used in 1660 and is the place where several historical people are buried.
- Paul Revere – the girls are sitting by the marker for Paul Revere who was a silversmith and one of the midnight riders sent to warn that the British were coming during the American Revolution.
- John Hancock – Governor of Massachusetts and one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence
- Samuel Adams – organized the Sons of Liberty, signed the Declaration of Independence, and was a governor of the Commonwealth.
- James Otis – a lawyer in Massachusetts who said “Taxation without representation is tyranny.”
- Five Victims of the Boston Massacre, Peter Faneuil, and the parents of Benjamin Franklin –
Walking along the Freedom Trail in Boston. A lot of history and fascinating facts. You can go through the trail on your own or take a guided tour.
Karlie found an interesting place to sit while listening to the guide talk. The Freedom Trail is fascinating, but it does require a decent amount of walking which means when there was an opportunity to rest the girls took it!
Back on the Trolley! We rode the trolley in Boston too! It was actually the same company that we went on in Washington, DC.
We went on the Swan Boats! The girls loved it!
My bench partner on the swan boat. She was much more interested in looking at the wildlife than at the camera!
Daddy and Karlie on the swan boat!
A Boston Harbor Cruise was included in our Old Town Trolley tickets. It was really cool seeing Boston from the harbor. While on the harbor cruise we were able to relax, soak in all the cool views, and listen to them talk about Boston.
Brina enjoying the harbor cruise!
Having fun in Boston!
A view of downtown Boston from the harbor!
It was windy, but we still had a grand time!
Hanging out with my Karlie girl!
Another view of Boston from the harbor.
By the end of the day we were hot, tired, and ready to dinner. We chose Cheers because it was nearby and it is only located in Boston. The food was good and the company was even better.
We did a lot for one day in Boston! It was a great day packed with a lot of neat history and cool sights. Thankful for an opportunity to hang out and have fun with my family.
