Back to the Great White North

All of our avid blog followers will remember that for my past Spring break we did a road trip down the east coast. So naturally for my last summer vacation out here we took a trip up the east coast to the Maritimes. It took 11 hours to get to Saint John New Brunswick, our first stop in Canada. We checked out the St. John river's tidal bore which means that the river is so affected by the tides in the Bay of Fundy that at low tide the river flows out to the bay but as the tide comes in the river reverses directions and eventually comes to a complete stop.

 We did a couple of hikes in the Fundy trails park outside of St. John. On the way we stopped at a couple of places to document the low tide.

 

 Checked out some sea caves on the way to the hike. (Later in this post you'll see what these places look like at high tide)

You can see the beach we hiked down to in the background. It was such a nice hike. The cool fresh smell of nature along the trail was a welcome break from the hot summer city smells (ie. the garbage piles, people on packed trains, etc)

There were only a couple of people on the beach when we got there but by the time we left we realized that we'd been alone on the beach for a while. Again something that doesn't happen much back in Jersey/New York.

On our way back home we took pictures at high tide of the areas that were at low tide on our way out.

The part of St. John that we stayed in reminded me of Cardston, in that most of the houses were built 50+ years ago and looked like it had seen better days (No offense Cardston). Case and point these posters were all over the place in the area, so I had to have one. It's a poster for a local wrestling league that fights in the local community center in front of dozens of fans. I was so disappointed that we weren't around for this or one of the roller derbies also advertised at the same venue. This did make me think that if this whole dental thing doesn't workout, than I should just start my own wrestling league. Look at these guys. One of them is licking the belt! Awesome. Best thing St. John has going on.

Having seen the best of St.John we moved on to Nova Scotia. We went to a beach near the cabin we stayed in that night. I was surprised how comfortable the water temperature was this far north.

The next day we went back at low tide to walk around on the now much expanded beach and play in the tide pools.

You may have guessed that B has finally started walking. It was really fun now that she likes the water rather than crying every time a wave touches her feet.

Next stop...Halifax!

First Birthday!

Well, Bridget turned one! It's crazy how quickly the time goes by. It doesn't seem that long ago that she was a tiny little 7lb lump of a baby. Now she is standing on her own and is on the verge of taking her 1st step. She is such a character too. She makes us laugh on a daily basis.

Jason didn't get home until 9pm on her actual birthday so we had a little family party the previous Sunday and of course we let her have her very own cupcake. She was a little unsure about the icing and just kind of poked it at first but once we flipped it upside down she dug right in.

Sharing with Daddy





There are certain toys that she just loves putting in her mouth and this little frog is one of them. She has had baths where she kept that thing in her mouth the entire time. She also loves to pick it up without using her hands. It's pretty hilarious to watch.

All clean!

I thought I should also post some pictures of B on her actual birthday.

Her first meal as a one year old...bananas and toast. Mmmm.

Playing around the house.

B always has a great time at the park, especially when there is another baby in the swing next to her.

Such a big girl!

A few days later we had a "Princess Party" to celebrate with some of our closest friends. It was too hot to go to the park so we stayed inside and had a great time. B really loved playing with all the kids.

Trying on one of her b-day gifts.

Princess Bridget!

Wicked Awesome

We've wanted an excuse to go to Boston for a while and we finally found one last week while Melissa was here visiting. It's only a 4 hour drive from NYC but we hit Friday rush hour traffic and it took us about six and a half. We wanted to do all of the historic touristy things in Boston and they make it really easy to do. All you do is follow the Freedom Trail, which is literally a red brick line that weaves throughout the city's downtown leading you to all of the sights.

Bridget waiting in the grass while we made our plans for the day

One of our first stops was an old graveyard where Paul Revere, Samuel Adams, John Hancock and Benjamin Franklin's parents are buried. The Puritans that settled here often carved skulls with wings on their headstones so it added an extra creepy touch.

The freedom trail path

The actual steeple where Paul Revere hung the lanterns as a warning that the British were coming

Paul Revere's family pew

Sitting on a donkey. I have no idea why there was a statue of a donkey in the same plaza as the statue of Benjamin Franklin.

The USS Constitution first set sail in October 1797 and is the oldest warship still afloat in the world. On board the USS Constitution a.k.a "Old Ironsides". It was made of live oak, which is so dense that during it's first battle the cannonballs just stuck into the sides and bounced off.

At the USS Constitution museum. The ship's crew was allowed only 4 hours of sleep per night and they had to do it in these hammocks.

Walking around the historic Beacon Hill neighborhood

Bridget climbing the steps at Harvard

On the steps in front of one of the Harvard University libraries

The following day we decided to visit Salem, MA, the site of the infamous witch trials. It was such a cute, friendly little town that we actually enjoyed it more than Boston.

The town has constructed an outdoor memorial for the victims of the witch trials. Each victim has a stone bench engraved with their name and date of death. We are sitting on the bench for Bridget Bishop who was the first person tried and convicted of witchcraft during "the frenzy".

Giles Corey was the only victim who was pressed to death rather than hanged. He was in his 80s and was very wealthy. If he entered a plea of not guilty and then was found guilty he would have forfeited all his possessions so he refused to enter any plea at all so that his decendants would still inherit his fortune. The court was obviously not impressed so they ordered that he be pressed under stones until he entered a plea but instead he just kept saying "more weight" and died without ever entering a plea.

City Hall. This is the site where the first victim, Bridget Bishop, was dragged by a mob, tried, and convicted by the audience in attendance which acted as her jury.

Yeah, they are a little fanatical about the whole witch thing but it was actually really fun.

Gravestone of William Hawthorne who acted as a judge during the trials.

Bridget LOVES her pool time!

Bridget Skywalker

For some strange reason Jason has been seeing Star Wars in everything lately. Nolan looks like a Rancor, B looks like Luke Skywalker. I'm with everyone else though and don't see it at all. Maybe this will help.

Youngling

Kate showed me this picture that she took of Bridget the other day and it reminded me of a shot from Star Wars (see below).