Salem

Our first stop in Salem was the House of Seven Gables, we only saw it from the outside but it is very interesting place. There are a few other historic houses including the house that Nathanial Hawthorne was born in and of course the House of Seven Gables the house the book was based on.

As we were looking for the House of Seven Gables we saw this ship, Logan said it was a pirate ship and stopped on our way back. I liked these buildings too the building next to the ship was the House for Aged Women 1861 – it really makes you wonder what life was like back then and what they considered an aged women.

Our last stop was the Witch House built in 1642 and was the home of Jonathan Corwin a Judge , it is the only building with ties to the Salem Witch Trials of 1692. We didn’t go inside but it was fun to see and think about the history of this house.

Marblehead

Marblehead,MA is where my dad grew up and where we would come when I was younger to visit my grandparents. I has been a long time since I have been to Marblehead and it was fun to show my husband and kids a place I used to visit when I was a kid. Our first stop in Marblehead was Abbott Hall where the Spirit of 76 painting is displayed. The building is beautiful and we found some beautiful stained glass windows as we looked around

I loved the old house with great architectural details , beautiful doors , cute little garages and beautiful flowers.




Our next stop was Fort Sewall with gorgeous views of the water and fun places to explore not to mention tons of Dragon flies flying around! It was amazing, I have never seen so many huge dragon flies. Grandpa showed the kids where he used to race boats.

Our next stop brought us to Castle Rock where we climbed down some rock to the water. Logan had fun throwing rocks in the water. I loved the sound the water made as it moved over the rocks




Our last stop was Marblehead light on Marblehead Neck it was fun to look back at Fort Sewall where we had been earlier. Payton had fun climbing on the rocks and the lighthouse. Logan didn’t want to get out so he stayed in the van with grandma.

Enjoying the view with grandpa and learning where he grew up.Next we head to Salem…

Around Boston

Our first stop on this hot day was to the Public Garden in Boston where you can ride the swan boats and see the Make Way for Ducklings Statues. Payton and Logan liked both. On the swan boat we saw two little turtles on a little ramp they were so cute, we also saw ducks and swans . The kids had fun climbing on the duck statues who were wearing their Bruins capes.
Next we walked over to see the Old North Church and the Granary burying grounds where John Hancock and Paul Revere are buried. I love all the interesting building and we found a Starbucks on the corner for Kevin.

We had to go see Harvard while we were in town. I love the old college that have great brick building and there is such a history here , Payton had fun climbing on sculptures and stood by the beautiful gates.

Wednesday we went to a Red Sox game at the great Fenway Park. It was a fun game and we had a few rain showers . Most people ran to get down under cover, we just sat through it. The Red Sox won the game and the kids had fun. Then we headed over to UBURGER to eat dinner and wait for the crowds to get smaller so our ride home would be a little nicer. We met some nice people on the train home.One lady gave Payton a little pink bear she got at the game.

Our last day we went to see the U.S.S. Constitution and Bunker Hill.  The kids enjoyed the boat and Payton thought it was fun that ceiling was so low. I love the view around bunker  hill , more great buildings and some green grass for the kids to run on. Payton loved the columns and wanted her picture in front of them. Then we got a few with both kids and Kevin in front of that great door. We had a great time exploring Boston and will have to go back to see more.

East Coast Road trip

After a short stop at Dunkin Donuts we headed out on our road trip .We said good by to New York City and head on to our first stop New Haven Connecticut home of Yale University.

It was a great place for the kids to run around and I love the old buildings even though we didn’t find the section I really wanted to see , we did drive past it on our way out of town. Next time I will make sure to write down the name of the street so I can find those great gates.

Maybe one day we will be bringing one of these kids back here to go to school, you never know.



I loved these old houses that are now offices for different departments. Houses were so grand and beautiful in earlier times and I can only imagine who lived in these beautiful  homes.

After leave New Haven we headed North to Mystic Connecticut for some yummy pizza and a nice break. We had a great time at Mystic pizza, the food was good and Logan made a new friend.

The last stop before heading up to my aunts house in Massachusetts was Providence Rhode Island. I was excited to stop here and would have loved to have stayed over night and see the fire light park. We did see the First Baptist Church of America were one of our ancestors was a pastor. I loved the houses on Benefit street and took a walk to see more old buildings. The kids had fun posing on the church steps and climbing the long steps on a building we were parked close to.





I had a lot of fun taking pictures of the old churches and houses, it is something we don’t have  a lot of on the West Coast and I love that there is so much history in the places we visited. Next our adventures in Boston and areas around.