Visit to Beantown

I'm about a week behind in posting this item - we were in Boston a week ago, but I'm hopeful that late is better than never.

Sam and I flew into Boston on a cold and rainy Friday without any difficulty - quick, easy flight. After checking into the hotel, we walked to the nearby "T" station and made our way to Boston University (BU). We were greeting, upon exiting the T, by a car that drove through a huge puddle and splashed us with a huge wave of water. We didn't let it get to us, and just forged ahead in the driving rain. Despite the weather, we had a great visit to BU and Sam and I both really liked it. It's a cool place even in the worst of circumstances, so it's got to be even better when the weather cooperates. We did something called "The Experience Room," which is a "surround" type of video presentation about the school - very well done - showing famous people who have taught at or attended BU (i.e., Thomas Edison and Martin Luther King, Jr.) Next came the information session, and then a tour. Fortunately, the rain let up a bit for the tour so I was able to take a few photos. About 4pm, we headed back to our hotel via the T, stopping in the middle of the city to get a bite to eat at an Irish pub-type restaurant. We were so happy to be warm and dry.

The next morning we rented a car and set off for UMass Amherst, about a two-hour drive from the city. We got a little lost, but made it in plenty of time for the Info Session. We walked on campus to get some food and were immediately assaulted by the FREEZING wind - Amherst felt much colder, despite the sun. We had lunch in a sad little "basement" with virtually no students around. All day long we wondered where the students were - probably inside hiding from the elements. Later we sat through the info session, run by a guy who started every sentence with, "Ummm..." After only about an hour and a half on campus, we knew there was no way Sam (or I) were going to like this school. So we ditched the tour and went straight to her uncle's for an early dinner. Had a great visit with him and then drove back to the city. No problems.

The trip seemed very productive in that one school moved up on Sam's list while another moved entirely OFF the list. Every little bit helps!

Nineteen!

Joe's birthday was two days ago and I have to say that the last few years have been real eye-openers in terms of trying to deal with how OLD my older kids are! I cannot believe it's been nineteen years since he was born, though I'm sure I'm not the first parent to experience this. Sometimes it is very difficult to reconcile that tiny baby and little boy with the full-grown man I see now. It's true that regardless of a child's current age, a mother sees her child at all ages simultaneously. So now I have to get used to saying that my kids are 19, 17, 6, and 5 (soon to be 6). Not to mention that I am now 46! When does it end? Well, I guess we all know when it ends : )

Here's a pic of Joe in front of his blackberry birthday pie and adorned by his brand-new Vampire Weekend hat. One thing will never change: Joe will always be a character.

Happy Birthday Bunny Boy!

College Roadtrip - Part One

Yesterday dawned rainy and dank, the "perfect" day for Sam's first college visit. Oh, and don't forget to throw in the closure of Route 95 - which necessitated a very extended "back door" trip into Philadelphia. We definitely saw some new parts of the city!



After finally making it to the Penn campus, we got stuck in a pretty bad traffic jam, but eventually worked our way out. When I saw one empty parking spot on the side of the road, I jumped at it - despite it taking me ten minutes to jimmy my way into it - it was TINY! Fortunately we were close to where Sam's 11am "trial" Anthropology class was to take place - inside Penn's Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology - it was every bit as impressive as its name. Really gorgeous building. Sam loved sitting in the class and it was the highlight of the trip for her.



After class, we wandered the campus a bit, hit the bookstore (it was COLD so we got a jacket and sweatshirt on clearance!) and then grabbed a quick lunch. I would always get excited when I saw an area that was familiar from trips to Drexel, e.g., "Joe's CVS."



Afterwards we walked the main quad of the campus, which was absolutely beautiful. At right is a photo of College Hall, in front of a statue of Penn's founder, Benjamin Franklin. The architecture on the campus is just amazing - I'm sure it would have been even more amazing if it hadn't been such a dreary day. We met in College Hall to begin the Information Session and then the student-guided tour. The Info Session was a little dry, but the tour was pretty wet! : ) When we began, the rain really started coming down. We saw some gorgeous parts of campus and learned quite a bit, too. After about an hour we had had enough and cut the tour a bit short.

We made our way back to the car and since our parking meter had run out about ten minutes before, of COURSE I had a parking ticket. My contribution to the city of Philly, I guess. We hit tons of rerouted Route 95 traffic on the way out of the city and the rain made for an exhausting ride home, but it was a good day after all.

I mentioned to Sam on my way home that my grandmother had only finished about six grades of school. Then my mother made it all the way through high school. I then took the baton and finished college. Now it's Sam's turn and she stands a pretty decent chance at completing graduate work at a great college. It does make me proud. Meanwhile, there's Claire - whose parents probably didn't get very far through school, while with her intellect and current opportunities, the sky's the limit! It's a crazy world.

"It'll Grow Back"

At right is a photo of Claire as she sat in the hairdresser's chair, ready to donate ten inches of hair to "Locks of Love." I mentioned it to her about a year ago and she just latched onto the idea. She would mention it from time to time, but lately she really seemed READY to part with her hair for this great cause. I, on the other hand, found myself quite reluctant to part with her hair - probably because I never had great hair of my own. When I tried to make sure she understood that the hair would really be gone, she would always reply, "it'll grow back." Finally, I realized that I was preventing her from doing some good for someone else, and that that was totally unfair. So I finally gave in and made the appointment.

Here's a photo of Claire AFTER the cut. She has a surprising amount of hair left, but it's still going to be dicey trying to get a bun in her hair for ballet for a while! In any case, I'm really proud of her for doing something so selfless and can't help but think about how thrilled some boy or girl will be to have Claire's wonderful hair!