Boston

Oh how this city has a newfound place in my heart.

If you don't follow me on Facebook, then you aren't aware that the first weekend in August, Josh and I traveled to Boston!

For Christmas he'd told me we'd be visiting Boston at the end of this summer so that I could attend Patriots training camp. I'm a die-hard Patriots fan so I was ecstatic. The beginning of July, training camp dates were released, so we booked our hotel.

We woke up at 5am Friday morning and were on the road by 6.

It didn't seem like it took 6 hours but at about noon we arrived in Hingham, MA. We decided that we'd take a little detour and visit Wahlburgers on our way up. If you haven't heard of Wahlburgers, here's a little background. Mark Wahlberg, Donnie Wahlberg, ever heard of them? Yeah, well they have a brother, Paul, who is a chef. The three of them started this restaurant and even have a TV show about it. (Now back to the regularly scheduled program, my trip.) The restaurant was close to the water front and despite the popularity we didn't have that long of a wait. We sat at the bar and each ordered an "Our Burger" with a side of fries and onion rings. The atmosphere of the place was fun. The food was phenomenal. Paul is there every day but was across the street while we were there. I did, however, get to meet Mama Wahlberg (Alma)! Such a sweet lady and you could see the joy she gets by seeing so many people enjoy her family's place. She was more than happy to take pictures with anyone that wanted.

After Wahlburgers, we headed to check in to our hotel. After weaving our way down side streets, avoiding potholes, people in the street and taxis, we pulled up to a beautiful building, the Omni Parker House Hotel. If you haven't heard of this hotel before, it's absolutely amazing. I was so glad we found an amazing deal to be able to stay here. The history and design of the place intrigued both of us. Founded by Harvey D. Parker in 1855, the Omni Parker House is the oldest of Boston's elegant inns and the longest continuously operating hotel in the United States. The hotel was home to the Saturday Club, which met on the third Saturday of every month except in summer. It included literary luminaries such as Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr., and John Lothrop Motley. Charles Dickens resided in the Parker House for five months in 1867-68 in his own apartments and first recited and performed "A Christmas Carol" at the Saturday Club at the Parker House. Generations of local and national politicians - including Ulysses S. Grant, James Michael Curley, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, Colin Powell, William Jefferson Clinton, and Deval Patrick - assembled for private meetings, press conferences, and power breakfasts. JFK actually proposed to Jackie in the hotel's restaurant and later had his bachelor party there. The Omni Parker House kitchen is also one that's made history books. Their bakers and cooks invented the famed Parker House Roll and perfected the Boston Cream Pie. Their kitchen and wait-staff has included greats like Emeril Lagasse, Malcolm X, and Ho Chi Minh.

Friday afternoon and evening we spent exploring. We visited the first few stops of the Freedom Trail and then made our way to the Seaport World Trade Center. We didn't realize it until we got to Boston, but Comic Con was happening. We're both geeks at heart so it was cool to see all things comic book. Friday night we made our way to a pub right down the street from our hotel called Beantown Pub. We fell in love with the place. During dinner we overheard one of the bartenders explain that this was the only place in the world where you could drink a cold Sam Adams while looking at a cold Sam Adams (he's buried in a cemetery across the street). Of course we ordered a Sam Adams right after we heard this. The staff was awesome and treated us like we were locals that came in regularly. We met an awesome guy named Sean who we hung out with the remainder of the evening. The place was so great and we had so much fun that we returned there Saturday night too (I'll get to that later).

Saturday morning we allowed ourselves to sleep in (a little) and then grabbed a quick breakfast and started our trek to Foxborough, MA, home of Gillette Stadium and the New England Patriots. I could not stop freaking out as we arrived. I couldn't get over how big it was and the fact that I was there. Despite controversies, scandals, and suspensions, this is my team. To actually be there and see these players, in-person, and have Tom Brady be five feet away from me at one point, it was awesome. I did some shopping and got some shirts to remember the occasion, after all this was the whole point of going to Boston (or so I thought. I'll explain I promise). It was such an amazing gift from Josh. I could not stop saying thank you the entire time. And for being an Eagles fan, he did really well with not making too much fun of the Patriots while we were there.

Once we arrived back to the hotel we figured it'd be smart to make a game plan for the rest of the night. We knew there was still a lot we wanted to see of the city so we scheduled a Trolley tour. These things were awesome. You bought your ticket for the day and it had a total of  20 stops. You didn't have to continually ride, you could get off and on at any of the stops. We were able to see so much in such a short amount of time. It was cheaper than a taxi, wasn't as tiring as walking, and we even got to hear great narratives and facts of the things we passed. We saw MIT, Cheers, Fenway Park, the Observation Deck at the Prudential Building, Berklee College of Music, and so much more. We exited the tour for the evening at Stop 1, which was right by the aquarium and the Boston Harbor Cruises. Through the Boston Harbor Cruises, we'd signed up to take a sunset cruise. At 6:30 we boarded the boat and at 7 we were off. It was such an informational ride with such great views. We truly hadn't realized how much of Boston is man-made until we saw it from the water. The sunset was gorgeous over the city. We even got to ride by the naval yard at sunset for taps and a cannon firing. It was a relaxing and enjoyable ride. I was able to capture tons of photos too.

We arrived back at the pier at the end of our sunset tour and Josh suggested we walk to the end to get a few more pictures before heading to dinner. I wasn't complaining at all. Photography is one of my hobbies and I always enjoy getting more pictures of the two of us. There was a great spot at the end of the pier right under the flag pole that had a spotlight. It was just enough light to be seen without ruining the city lit up behind us. Josh didn't want us to do selfies so luckily we found a kind lady who was willing to take them. She got a few regular shots of us and then Josh turned to face me. He got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. I was in complete shock. People want to know if I had any idea it was going to happen and the answer is simply no. I truly thought it was just my Christmas trip, I had no idea he had had all this planned too. Tears started running down my face the moment I saw him drop to one knee. I was speechless. In fact, it wasn't until he stood up after putting the ring on my hand that I'd realized I hadn't said yes. I quickly said yes and could not stop hugging him. I'm so grateful to the lady who took all the pictures. I'm so happy that I have that moment captured. In that moment, my life changed forever. From the moment I met Josh, I knew he was different from everyone else. I could not be more excited to spend forever with him. (I love you handsome!)

(The flagpole which Josh proposed under)

We started making our way back to the hotel and I was in freakout mode the entire time. It's that moment where you really can't believe what just took place. I kept staring at my hand and people probably thought I was crazy with the gigantic smile I had on my face. I got to call my best friend and share the news (I think it was a mixture of screaming and crying). I don't think it'd hit me on the pier that I was engaged. Telling someone though made it pretty real. I had a fiance and there was a ring on my hand.

The rest of the night was great. We did dinner at Hard Rock Cafe (we try to visit them in each city we visit). I stared at my hand A LOT. Josh made fun of me for staring at it a lot. We went back to Beantown Pub to celebrate because little did I know, Josh had shared his news the night before. We were welcomed with open arms and free drinks. They made it feel like we were home and celebrating with close friends instead of 6 hours away. Sean (guy we met the night before) was there again and he kept reminding us that last night we were just boyfriend and girlfriend but tonight we were fiances. It was awesome! Josh and I were both exhausted from such a busy day but the adrenaline and excitement of everything kept us out way past midnight.

While I crashed hard when I hit the bed, the excitement later got the best of me. I was wide awake at 7:30am. While Josh soundly slept next to me, I saw the sparkle on my finger and was reminded of everything from the night before. I laid there, thinking of how lucky I am to have found this amazing man. We now have a wedding to plan. We have a future to plan together. He's officially my forever and always.

After breakfast we hit the road home. The General Manager of our hotel even sent us off with a parting and celebratory gift, a miniature Boston Cream Pie. He told us it was an early slice of wedding cake. One thing is for certain, Boston turned out to be so much more than I expected. On its own, it really is a great city and I recommend visiting if you ever have the opportunity. With the memories I now have there, it's probably top of my list. It holds a particularly special place in my heart. It was "wicked awesome" as Josh would say.

Now, we have a wedding to plan!!! :)

Founded by Harvey D. Parker in 1855, the Omni Parker House is the oldest of Boston’s elegant inns and the longest continuously operating hotel in the United States. It was here where the brightest lights of America’s Golden Age of Literature—writers like Emerson, Thoreau, Hawthorne, and Longfellow— regularly met for conversation and conviviality in the legendary nineteenth-century Saturday Club. It was here where baseball greats like Babe Ruth, Ted Williams, and David Ortiz wined, dined, and unwound. And it was here, too, where generations of local and national politicians—including Ulysses S. Grant, James Michael Curley, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, Colin Powell, Thomas “Tip” O’Neill, William Jefferson Clinton, and Deval Patrick—assembled for private meetings, press conferences, and power breakfasts. - See more at: http://www.omnihotels.com/hotels/boston-parker-house/property-details/history#sthash.HFJePpdf.dpuf

Founded by Harvey D. Parker in 1855, the Omni Parker House is the oldest of Boston’s elegant inns and the longest continuously operating hotel in the United States. It was here where the brightest lights of America’s Golden Age of Literature—writers like Emerson, Thoreau, Hawthorne, and Longfellow— regularly met for conversation and conviviality in the legendary nineteenth-century Saturday Club. It was here where baseball greats like Babe Ruth, Ted Williams, and David Ortiz wined, dined, and unwound. And it was here, too, where generations of local and national politicians—including Ulysses S. Grant, James Michael Curley, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, Colin Powell, Thomas “Tip” O’Neill, William Jefferson Clinton, and Deval Patrick—assembled for private meetings, press conferences, and power breakfasts. - See more at: http://www.omnihotels.com/hotels/boston-parker-house/property-details/history#sthash.HFJePpdf.dpuf