Over the years, my mom and I have kept the tradition going of mother daughter trips. I've always believed that travel is the best way to create memories. This time, we decided a weekend in Boston followed by a week in New York City was perfect for the Spring.
When my mom was young… my Grandfather was a Naval Intelligence Officer (think NCIS) working for the Federal Government. So my mom moved every two years up until 6th grade. She lived in Illinois, Virginia, Arkansas, Kansas and then finally settled in Texas where my Grandfather decided he needed a break. After a short stint doing other things, my Grandfather was re-hired… but as often happens… life took an unexpected turn.
Even though he had accepted an offer and was supposed to start on a Monday, Kennedy placed a Federal Government hiring freeze on Saturday. Thus, Texas became the final stop and where I would eventually be born and raised.
My mom never explored the Northeast so I wanted to give her a taste of Boston and then a few more adventures in New York City. Thus, our early Mother's Day adventure begin…
It's funny how each trip I learn a little bit more about my mom and our family. Some things to be shared, and some things just for me. That's how mother-daughter relationships go.
Our Boston itinerary was packed and fun. We took the famous Old Town Boston Trolley Tour, tried a very delicious lobster roll and chowda from Boston Chowda Co. and hopped on a Boston Harbor Cruise to float the sights.
I really love Boston. It has so much history and charm! Oh yeah, our hotel also caught on fire… so we made a quick logistical decision. Margaritas! The hotel was absolutely fine, but provided guests a fun view of fire trucks! ;)
Boston Commons is always fun to walk around in and we had such a funny time watching this gigantic swan in the Public Garden. This swan could have swallowed Pickle and Sundae. No question.
Two of my favorite things included breakfast and tea at Pavement Coffeehouse (a local fav!) and a quick shopping trip to the open-air markets at SOWA. I bought Alex's Ugly Sauce for dinner that night - the hottest for this Texas family, of course!
We took the Amtrak train back down to New York City - a first for my mom!
And the weather was… perfect. Hello Spring!
We had a lovely lunch in Central Park from the original, Papaya King.
We got our Cinco de Mayo celebration on at Sriracha… because nothing celebrates Mexico quite like margaritas from an Asian restaurant.
We had an early Mother's Day celebration with tea and scones at one of my favorites, Alice's Tea Cup. Yummmmm.
After cupcakes at another favorite local shop, Two Little Red Hens… Richard and my mom did a crossword puzzle. I caught up on celebrity gossip.
I declared one of the days as "Take My Mom to Work Day!"… I just loved sharing a bit of my career with my mom and getting to show her some of the work that fuels my passion in the corporate philanthropy and nonprofit realm. We did a site visit to see my company's volunteers teaching financial literacy to group of elementary students in Queens.
And, on her final day in New York City, we did a bit of relaxing on the beach! A beautiful, breezy day. Life is good when you can sit on the beach in a sweatshirt, with a glass of wine and listen to the ocean.
I'm so thankful for our mother daughter trips.
Happy Mother's Day 2014, Mama, I love you!
