{Travel} A Few Days in Boston

 We took a very last minute trip to Boston last month.  It worked out that we had 3 days during the week to get out of town.  We picked Boston because we haven't been there since City Girl #2 graduated from college and we've been wanting to make the trip back.

We left late morning and got to Boston in time for a late lunch/early dinner  at Eva. I think my entree was an avocado salad.  

After dinner we strolled around Newbury Street and stopped in some shops. We also hit up Trader Joe's for some snacks.  

The next morning I enjoyed my hotel coffee in the room. We stayed at our old favorite, Hilton Back Bay for the nostalgia of it all (and we love the location!).

It was going to be a hot day and we planned to spend most of it outside so here was my OOTD.

We walked through town and the Public Garden.

It's still just as stunning!

We wanted to go to the Quincy Market area.

We like walking around and going in the shops.  

I had to put my feet on The Freedom Trail. We didn't do the whole trail this trip but have in the past.

We took the subway back toward our hotel area to have lunch at Pressed Cafe.

  The menu is still overwhelming and huge but everything sounds amazing.  

After lunch we tooled around the Back Bay area.

and visited City Girl's college, hitting up the book store too. We needed some new merch.

The neighborhoods were looking so pretty.

We stopped in at Bukowski's Tavern for a beer before taking an uber to the North End for dinner.

We tried Little Sage and really liked it.  Of course I had to get some pasta.

We walked around the North End and figured we should check out Bova's Bakery since we hadn't been there before.    The line was out the door and as you made your way to the front, you had a little time to decide what to get.

Decisions, decisions!

A blurry shot of what we got but it was good! The next morning we checked out and started on our way home.

{rainy day}

We made a stop in Canterbury Connecticut to go to the Prudence Crandall Museum.  It was always closed (or under reno)when CG2 was at school so we finally got to see it.

We had tickets for the 11am tour and we got a private tour.

It was fascinating to learn about Prudence Crandall.  From the museum's website.

 

"What Happened Here in the 1830s?

In 1832, Crandall, the white principal of the Canterbury Female Boarding School, was approached by a young Black woman named Sarah Harris asking to attend the school. Encouraged by conversations with both Harris and Maria Davis, a Black woman who worked for Crandall and shared copies of the abolitionist newspaper The Liberator with her, Crandall agreed to admit Harris. When residents protested the school’s integration and parents threatened to withdraw their students, Crandall closed her school and reopened in 1833 for Black and Brown students. Students traveled from several states to attend the school. Connecticut responded by passing the “Black Law,” which prevented out-of-state Black and Brown people from attending school in Connecticut towns without local town approval. Crandall was arrested, spent one night in jail, and faced three court trials before the case was dismissed. In September 1834, a nighttime mob attack closed the school. These events made national and international news in the 1830s and galvanized the burgeoning abolitionist movement. Many of the students, such as Julia Williams, Mary Miles, and Mary Harris, went on to become educators, reformers, and leaders in their communities. Crandall v. Connecticut impacted two U.S. Supreme Court decisions: Dred Scott v. Sandford and Brown v. Board of Education, Topeka and laid the framework for the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution."

About the Museum

"Located in the Town of Canterbury, Connecticut, the Prudence Crandall Museum is an International Site of Conscience, a National Historic Landmark, and an Archaeological Preserve.  The museum is part of The Last Green Valley National Heritage Corridor, in the northeast part of the state, known as the "Quiet Corner."  Prudence Crandall is Connecticut’s Official State Heroine."

{Prudence Crandall}

About the Tour

"The Prudence Crandall Museum is not decorated as a traditional historic house museum or historic school. Teachers, students, and supporters left few primary sources on how rooms were used during the time the Canterbury Female Boarding School was in operation, and few artifacts connected to the school have survived. 

The exhibit Canterbury Female Boarding School: Courage, Conscience, & Continuance shares the stories of the school's teachers and students and demonstrates expressions of support and opposition at the town, state, national, and global levels during the tumultuous seventeen months the school remained open.

Tours are conversational. Dialogue between guides and visitors show how the legal expansion of education opportunities connects the Canterbury Female Boarding School to the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education, Topeka U.S. Supreme Court case. We hope visitors leave inspired to continue the mission of Sarah Harris and Prudence Crandall by addressing current barriers to education."

The museum has received a Bench By The Road from the Toni Morrison Society and this plaque sits on a rock beside the bench.

You can see the bench and rock with the plaque. I loved the sentiment on the pole.  

After the tour, we stopped for brunch at this cute diner in town then got back on the road to HOME!

That was a quick few days but we packed a lot in!

Pin It

Summer Faves/Bucket List

I didn't make an official summer bucket list but I always have things that I want to do/experience each summer.  Here's how I did:

Make the pool area feel more "resort like". We added some lounge chairs and an umbrella to this section of the pool deck and it's my favorite spot right now. I also planted perennials in large pots and added a basket with faux stems as well as other decor around the pool.

Eat some fresh, local produce..it doesn't get fresher than right off of your neighbors' tree.  They offered me some peaches as I was walking by.  I love my neighborhood!  We also enjoyed local tomatoes and white corn from our local farm store.

Go night swimming-we finally got one in!

We attended a local Summer Fun Wednesday Night.  We were watching the band in this photo.

There was an outdoor bar and lots of activities for adults and kids as well. It was the most pleasant evening to just stroll along the closed road and enjoy the night.

Have a beach day with our little niece and nephews.  We had some crafts and this was my favorite one (and easy!).  

We celebrated our niece/cousin at her lovely bridal shower. It was book themed and her mom made that amazing backdrop.  Remember her engagement photo shoot?

Enjoyed some outdoor concerts. This one happened to be Mr.Click's band back in our old hometown.  We had so many friends and family that came out to see him. Pictured here are three of my friends (and bridesmaids...we go WAY back) and my very hip mother in law.  We also attended two other concerts (JJ Grey & John Waite and we see Ringo this weekend!)

Added a proper bed to our guest room.   Here's Mr. Click putting the new bed frame together. I wanted something very minimal with the smallest footprint I could get for a queen size bed.

Here's how the room looked before (at Christmas, obvi!). We had a tiny, full size sofa bed for guests and now we have a queen size bed. 

We changed the layout of the room with the new bed and love how it looks.

We also got new window treatments that are so much lighter and easier to operate. I'm still looking for a slim side table for next to the chair and more artwork.   

We had another summer project in this room, the Thrifted Gallery Wall is across from the bed. 

We also hosted six Sunday Fundays, went to two beach fireworks shows, took four trips and kept very busy this summer! 

Linking up:

Talking About it Tuesday

 

Pin It

More Instant Pot Cooking & Food Prep/Storage

 I had a very productive day of food prepping and my Instant Pot got quite the work out.

1) Veggie Chili-I made this for a Sunday Funday and froze the leftovers in Souper Cubes, then popped them out into ziplock bags.

2)Instant Pot Hard Boiled Eggs-The easiest method for perfectly cooked hard boiled eggs. I used this recipe.  

3) No Soak Instant Pot Black Beans. I used this recipe. I portioned out the cooked beans in the Souper Cubes and froze them

4 )I roasted up some carrots that needed to be used up.

5) I made a big batch of jasmine rice in the Instant Pot and froze it in zip lock bags.

We've used the Instant Pot quite a few times at our Sunday Fundays this summer making Instant Pot Mac & Cheese with this recipe.

and Instant Pot Pesto Cavatapi with Costco Pesto sauce. 

The Instant Pot has become a real work horse in my kitchen. 

Do you have an Instant Pot? What's your favorite thing to make in it?

Linking up:

Talking About it Tuesday

Pin It

{Garden} Morning Glory Appreciation [And Everything I Planted From Seed]

I've grown morning glories quite a few times but this year they are absolutely taking over and thriving.

This one in the back yard keeps trying to climb the fence over to our neighbors' house.

I'm greeted by these beautiful blooms when I go to yoga in the morning.

They've taken over our Japanese Maple and are climbing the railings of our front porch.

I'm loving all of the different colors we're seeing.

The white blooms are nice...

..deep pinks are eye catching...

...but I really love this deep purple.

The lighter periwinkle is pretty with their darker accents.  

In other flowers planted from seeds news--the cosmos have gone crazy as well. I love cutting them for bouquets.

They've toppled over but are still going strong.

They come in some pretty shades too!

They make me happy!

The naturtiums are just ok, I love their foliage but the flowers don't give much "wow".

I guess I could put them in a salad.

I pruned all of my flowering zinnias last month and they are all about to (hopefully) start blooming again.   I see lots of buds!  I think it was a pretty successful seed sowing year!

Linking up:

Talking About it Tuesday

Pin It