In Memory of Marielle.

On June 1st, the day of my daughters first wedding anniversary, one of my sweetest and dearest friends passed away. It was a bittersweet moment as we did the four hour drive to and from Boston on the same day. It was raining but somehow the rain seemed so fitting for a funeral. I was so happy that we made it and that we met the rest of Eddie and Barbara's family. Everyone gave the most beautiful talks of memory about their mother. Every pew in the chapel was filled to capacity. Marielle was surely loved and a legend! Oh the things she accomplished while she was living.

A Snowy Weekend In Boston.

Enjoyed a little bit of snow this past weekend in Boston and it honestly felt surreal to be surrounded by it. Winter this year in Jersey has been long and dreary and being surrounded by snow in Boston was just what we needed. I think we all got our snow fix and to be honest are ready for spring! Not sure if we will get any more snow in our neck of the woods but if we do I'm sure it'll be a dusting and that it'll all be gone by noon! Oh, and guess what? We woke up to some snow this morning and it was definitely gone by noon! Crazy weather we've been having but I am enjoying the sunshine and 40 degree temps especially in the winter time! Now for some photos live from Acorn street...

Robert Gould Shaw Memorial in Boston.

 

The movie "Glory' has been one of my all time favorite civil war movies and when I saw that this monument was placed in Robert Gould Shaw's honor in Boston I immediately wanted to go and see it. It is such a beautiful sculpture and I can't believe it took me almost 20 years to finally see it! I love everything that this man did for his fellow man in leading an all black regiment into battle. Sad ending being that the fort was never taken but what an example of courage to stand up for black men in inspiring other colored men to join in. Glory is a well done movie and the civil war is something that's obviously gone down in history. Who knew we would be in battle with each other. Hope that history won't repeat itself and that we can continue to pray for other countries who are in war at this time. 

With Gratitude We Remember.

 

Another year of remembrance. Another year of 37,000 flags. This garden of 37,000 flags was planted in memory of every fallen Massachusetts service member from the Revolutionary War to the present. These flags are put out every year on Memorial Day for all to see and pay their respects (and of course photograph). We are so grateful to be able to come here once again to remember and appreciate all that our fallen soldiers did in serving our country and for those who continue to serve. Thank you!

A Few More Photos From Boston!

A week late in posting these but I wanted to add these in for the archives, and because it was one of the most funnest trips we've taken in a four day holiday felt the need to share! Brace yourselves for a big photo dump because i love to take pictures! 

Happy Memorial Day From Boston!

Boston sure knows how to remember Memorial Day! Every year 37,000 flags are placed below the Sailors and Soldiers monument in Boston Common honoring the service men and women who have served since the Revolutionary War. I really appreciate this as well as the volunteers that do this each year who keep a close eye on them all week long! Thank you for your service and hope everyone has a nice Memorial Day! More photos below! 

While In Boston...

Acorn street is the most visited, most photographed street in Beacon Hill in Boston. It is so photogenic, and we were lucky to have been able to walk through it. I captured a few shots of the kids, but being that it's fall in the middle of the day with perfect weather had so many people doing the same thing, and it's understandable. After all...it is Acorn Street! 

Days For Girls & Women's Conference In Boston.

What an amazing weekend! The fact that I shared in the joy of assembling kits for the Days for Girls service project was the icing on the cake. We joined my dear sisters in Boston to help them out with this project, and it was the best evening that I had with my girls too! If you want to know more about this project, and see more photos you can follow them on their Facebook page. 

Labor Day Weekend in New England.

Labor day weekend for us was unforgettable. This is the one holiday where I look forward to a last hurrah before school resumes. And although I'm excited for the kids to start school it's always nice to finish the summer off with a trip where we can relax, eat good food, and enjoy each other's company. Even if our two youngest nag on each other on the drive up the fact that they are in loving arms upon our arrival assures me that their bickering never lasts. And it's all good. 

Here's a little video I made too, you can view it here on vimeo. 

On Sunday we drove by the temple in Connecticut which is located in one of the sweetest towns I know which is Farmington. It's 20 minutes away from Hartford, and this temple is so beautiful, and so white! I love the architecture, and it is so new england! The kids really love and appreciate the temples, and so I captured a few moments of them on the lawn. It's pretty much complete, and will be ready to be open to the public for free tours on September 30 through October 22. So if you live anywhere close to Hartford I encourage you to please attend. We are so excited to attend once it's opened! 

On our way to Maine we made a pit stop in Boston to see the temple there as well. This is one of my favorite temples. We didn't spend too much time here, but were so grateful to have had Rich take our picture for us. While we used our selfie stick to take a picture of us in front of the Connecticut temple it's always nice to have someone get a full photo of all of us with the temple in the background. 

I absolutely love taking photos in front of this sign. This seems to be our usual spot for photos since Noah was a baby. I look back at this post, and can't believe how quickly this boy has grown!!

I also captured a few moments of Noah walking around the temple. He's always willing to strike a pose for me. 

We stopped at a rest stop for potty breaks, and let the kids run around for a bit. I absolutely love this part of Maine. So outdoorsy! Noah saw Smoky, and once again he let me take a picture of him! 

As we were driving towards Cape Neddick we stopped to capture a few moments with this scenery! So picturesque! 

Cape Neddick is one of our favorite places to go and take in the sounds of the waves crashing against the rocks. I can tell that it also relaxes the kids. Noah kept saying, "I wish i lived here." He absolutely has a love for the ocean as we all do so. 

We had lunch at one of our favorite restaurants in Kittery. Oh my gosh! I absolutely love this place. The food here is truly authentic to the taste, and the barbacoa here reminds me of home. This mexican restaurant for Maine is perfect! The first time we ate here I was in shock that it was so good. Being mexican-american and from Texas I know how true, authentic mexican food should taste, and this place hit it on the nose! Those tacos are truly loco!! 

My cheat for the entire trip! A sundae split! 

There are two things that the kids look forward to when we come to New England...the temples, and lighthouses. We absolutely love visiting here, and I swear it never gets old. 

our adventures in New England.

This is how much we love New England. 

Although we spent most of our days in Newport we also drove to Maine, ate at this magnificent Mexican restaurant in Kittery, explored the outlet stores, saw two lighthouses, and also stopped by the Boston temple on the way home.

A lot of driving was done, but when you have three wonderful states of New England huddled within a 180 mile radius it's worth the driving time. Luckily we are a singing, license plate, i spying game playing kind of family while traveling on the road. I'm pretty archaic when it comes to road trips without the movie watching, always sleeping (unless your really tired, and have been lacking sleep all week like Sierra), and nonstop radio playing. Okay...so I may have given in a little with Noah by handing him my phone to play a game, but he was such a good little traveler I couldn't say no.

There was so much that I wanted to record, and vine but I was appreciating every moment spent with these kids. They all knew that this would be the last long traveling trip with Sierra...at least for a while.

Enjoying this time without documenting their every move actually felt good. Sometimes it feels so nice to just walk along the ocean without a camera in hand, pick up rocks with your kid without creaking your neck trying to take a selfie (which I hardly ever do), and sit on the rocks off of the Cliff Walk with your little one to hear the waves crashing.

Okay...so I do take a lot of photos, but we do need memories for our posterity right?

So here are some moments of our trip to New England, and I hope that everyone has a wonderful long Labor Day weekend!

Jamestown-Verrazano bridge

 Point Judith lighthouse & rock towers.

Cliff Walk at Narragansett, RI

 Mansions at the cliff walk.

^^ Nubble lighthouse, in Cape Neddick, Maine ^^

^^ woke up to a foggy morning in Maine but still had smiles on our faces ^^

Special thanks to my husband who was my photographer throughout this trip.

And to the tripod that helped in taking this family photo of us! 

**The stars were definitely aligned in giving us these wonderful moments!**