road-tripping to NYC

ph took friday off & we rented a car to go see our friends in brooklyn. we had a great time while there, and it was especially nice getting to meet their son for the first time. the weather didnt agree with us, or else we would have spent all day outdoors.. but alas, there was a heat advisory in effect.. 95F/35C but with 93% humidity, so it was very uncomfortable. of course now that we're back its a lovely 75F/25C.. but what can you do? we got ice cream.

the car trip there was brutal, though. it took us almost 10 hours (google maps says 4 hrs, figuring no traffic or stops). we left at 10am, drove an hour.. and made a planned detour to the local "ye olde quaker village" to see some farm animals & how people lived back then (called old sturbridge village, if youre curious - was very interesting and fun for the kids, so it ended up being a 2-hr detour including lunch)

so we got back on the road, but passing through new haven there was something going with the US open (tennis tournament) that we were stuck for almost 2 hours! we said.. "man, this is slow!,, lets take the next exit & jump over to that other freeway! and ~bonus~ it's a scenic route!". ugh. oh no.. just when it was too late to turn around, it's construction delays.. and then a 3-car accident blocking the (very beautiful, but) two-lanes-and-no-shoulder road. so, we were just stuck. we were going about 5 miles an hour stop and go for more than an hour.. so i got in the backseat & unbuckled the kids and let them play around until the accident cleared and we were moving again.

after that ordeal we stopped at next rest stop -for about an hour- to shake our legs out and recuperate. luckily we had some serious snacks on hand (fruit, sausage, cheese, crackers), so we didnt have to stop for a dinner break too.

so we then sat in 1 hour of NYC friday afternoon traffic (which was to be expected) trying to get over a bridge with a ZILLION OTHER FOLKS. and got to our friends house around 830pm.

the way back we took a slightly diffrent route, made two good rest stops, and were home in 6 hours. the kids were road weary and seemed to take turns complaining... which was so very nice of them, but extremely tiring for me.

but its okay. next time we'll take the train. its probably worth the extra money. at least the terrible trip didn't detract from the nice visit with good friends we hadnt seen in four years!

ouch!

i have been limping around for a full week now.. and i dont even know how i messed up my foot! i finally went to the dr. on monday and foound out i have "extensor tendinitis" in my left foot. the remedy is simple: ibuprofen & ice packs three times a day.. even if its a little bit of a pain-in-the-FOOT! doc said it should be better in a few weeks. but im hoping for sooner.

anniversaries, of sorts

in a couple of weeks i'll be hitting a new kind of milestone in life. i just realized (now that lucas is 2y3mo) that i have been pregnant and/or breastfeeding for 3 years non-stop. lucas gave up the booby at 14mo, when i was almost 3 months pg with ruby.

recently we had our one-year anniversary of arriving in boston.. and philippe started his job by august 9.

we left houston in july (or early august?) 3 years ago.. and i got pregnant about 3 weeks after we left, and we moved to greece about 2 weeks after that.

walkability score

i found this really great website that measures how walkable your neighborhood is, and how easily you could do without a car. the answer will probably not surprise you, for example, our address rates a 91/100.. meaning: "90 - 100 = Walkers' Paradise: Most errands can be accomplished on foot and many people get by without owning a car." but this is great if you're relocating.. or learning a new area.

http://www.walkscore.com/how-it-works.shtml

go type in your address!

beach

this sunday we went to the beach. ph got the idea to go at 330pm .. so we rented a zipcar for 430, and picked up some subway sandwiches on the way & were having dinner on good harbor beach by 530 or 6pm. it was so beautiful and the weather was perfect, the water was temperate and lucas really had fun playing in the sand.. the real kicker was that the parking was free (not $20) for arriving so late in the day!.. definitely we will go again.

wierdboy theater

there;s this kid who always plays in the park behind my house. he's kinda chubby with dark brown hair and probably about 13yo. he dresses with the requisite loose-fitting nylon sporty shorts & baggy black tshirt, so i suppose he kinda blends in among his peers, despite the fact that we never really see jim playing with any other kids. and he seems oblivious to the fact that we (and presumably others) can see what he does alone in the park. and we have a particularly advantageous viewpoint. our breakfast table window is in the far back corner of the park - behind some large bushes. so he does lots of play-acting right in front of our window, unknowingly making a little private wierdboy theatre for us.

the first time we saw him he was running around with a big plastic shield & sword acting out a bloody battle scene in which he was defeating ... himself? but ah, boys will be boys. the next time he had a plastic gun. once he had no props, but was using the lightpost as a secret command post.. entering digits on an imaginary 10-key and talking to co-conspirators. he also does a good deal of the secret-agent gymnastic tumbling. jumping out of the way of imaginary gunfire to rolling on the ground and quickly running in a crouch from tree to lightpost, evading detection. or so he thinks. the irony of this is what really cracks me up.

recently he has started hanging out with some friends more often, and even has a young recruit. they play on the flat roof next door to us above the curtain shop, leaning out from the building laying in wait for their enemies.. with plastic guns cocked and headbands fastened.. shouting reconnaisance to each other.

its all pretty humorous, but also a little creepy. we wonder if he'll grow up to be a good guy or a bad guy.

the MIT turkey

this turkey is always wandering around near MIT ...

and there are new pictures and videos of us to see.