Tatum Goes To Beantown!

With the extended weekend here, we decided to join our friends for a weekend in Boston, which is only 2 hours south of us. This trip included many firsts for Tatum! It all started off with her "semi-first" train ride on Amtrak's Downeaster line. After arriving and getting settled in, everyone was hungry for lunch so we headed to the North End (a.k.a. "Little Italy"). We found a small restaurant where Tatum enjoyed the authentic rigatoni! Just outside of the restaurant on a neighboring street there was a festival of food and Italian music going on, so we stopped by that as well for some oh-so-good Italian dessert. After lunch it was nap-time for our friends' children so we decided to walk the Freedom trail with Tatum (thinking that she too would nap - but that did not happen!). We stopped by Quincy Market, the Granary Burial Ground (which has Sam Adams' tombstone), and ended at the Boston Common. By this point, Tatum was exhausted and passed out for about 15 minutes in her stroller while Lindsey and I walked around the commons. We enjoyed some of the famous sites including Frog Pond and the swan boats on the lake in the Boston Public Garden. After this we decided to take a walk down the trendy street of Newbury, which is home to many boutiques and outdoor cafes. As we circled back to start heading to the hotel we walked down Boylston Avenue where we saw the finish line to the Boston Marathon. This has special meaning to me as I ran the Boston Marathon in April 2003, roughly 2 months before we were married. After a 45 minute power-walk we made it back to our hotel in the Charlestown neighborhood where we met up with our friends for dinner at the Warren Tavern, Massachussetts oldest tavern. Former patrons include both Paul Revere and George Washington!


Day two was also a busy one as well. Before heading out into town, we stopped by a playground in order to enjoy the beautiful morning. We then took a water taxi from the boardwalk outside of the USS Constitution to Long Wharf, home to the Boston Aquarium. From there it was a short walk to the Boston Children's Museum. This is a great place and it is free to active duty military members and their family. Most of the exhibits are geared towards older children, but there is a toddler area reserved for crawlers only that Tatum enjoyed. One of the highlights included a waterbed-like depression that Tatum did not seem to enjoy too much! After the museum we headed back to Quincy Market where we shopped for some souvenirs for Tatum. Although it took a little while, we finally found what we were looking for....a Pink infants Boston Red Sox cap! Tatum has been wanting one since she is a part of "Red Sox nation." After all the walking, shopping, and playing, we were exhausted and it was time to get on the train back to Portland. Before this we did make time for one final stop in the North End in order to get some authentic Italian pastries. After a yummy chocolate dipped cannolli and [true] butter cream frosted cupcake the trip was complete and it was time to head back.