iPod Boston

Kyle and I had our first excursion to Boston this weekend. Our main purpose of going was to attend the Boston Massachusetts Temple. We loved every moment there.

Kyle found a free walking tour of Boston on an iTunes Audissey podcast so we decided to give it a try. I'm sure we looked somewhat comical in our hoodies and iPods wandering in sync throughout the city. We had so much fun though! The tour guided us to places we would never have seen otherwise and included many interesting stories and interviews. We walked the streets for about three hours and hardly noticed the time pass by. We can't wait to go back for tour #2!

Beautiful Boston!

We saw this piano sitting in the Boston Commons...
I'm bringing my Broadway books with me next time!

Podcast begin!

Granary Burying Ground...Kyle looks like one of the ghosts

View of Park Street Church

I love this man.

Faneuil Hall

Faneuil Marketplace

Green Dragon Tavern
where the Sons of Liberty met to plan the Revolution

Paul Revere's home

Boston Harbor

Misty cityscape

How I looked for most of the day :)

A lovely end to a lovely day

Talcott Mountain State Park

Kyle and I are antsy to take advantage of every free moment to see the beautiful leaves here in Connecticut. We've learned that the real enthusiasts are called leaf-peepers and keep websites devoted to sharing where the foliage is at its peak.

On Monday, Kyle and I laced up our hiking shoes and made our way to the trail head at Talcott Mountain State Park. Just like Mt. Tom, this site includes a tower with a 360 view of the gorgeous state at the top. Just like Mt. Tom, Kyle and I arrived 15 minutes before closing. Unlike Mt. Tom, we made it too late to climb the tower to see the view despite the fact that we trail ran up the 1.25 mile hike (never fear...we made plans to go back in two weeks). We had a great time anyway and got some nice pictures at several vistas along the way.

Mt. Tom State Park

Kyle recently read about a hike at Mt. Tom State Park that includes a tower view of 360 degrees of gorgeous New England fall leaves. We left after work a couple of weeks ago and arrived at 6:45pm...only to discover that the park closes at 7:00pm. The hike was only a mile round trip so we decided to go for it anyway. We made it to the top, climbed the darkened and slightly creepy tower, took about thirty seconds to view the scenery, and then busted the trail trying to make it down the unfamiliar path before complete darkness set in. We luckily made it back without getting lost. 

We stopped on our way home in Litchfield after we discovered how cute of a town it was. We had dinner (PB&J on homemade bread) and took a stroll through the town...a wonderful night with my wonderful guy.

Wesleyan Potters

As every newlywed couple, Kyle and I are trying hard to live within our budget. On one of our date nights last month, we realized that we were out of restaurant funds. Still wanting to get out for the evening and see more of the area, we looked online for local events. We were happy to find an art auction at Wesleyan Potters in Middletown...that just happened to include appetizers. It turned out to be a very fun and interesting event. The potters were so happy to have visitors, the artwork was beautiful, and the food was delicious! We felt so thankful for such generous people and for local events like these (aka free food).

Meeting Hartford

A couple of weeks ago, I happened upon an announcement for Envisionfest Hartford. During this annual event, many museums and buildings downtown open their doors to the public. Even though Kyle had to work and couldn't come with me, I decided to take advantage of the festival in order to finally meet my new city Hartford.

I started with the Butler-McCook House and Garden and learned about the three generations of family that lived in this home before donating it to the city.

I made my way after to the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art which is apparently the longest running art museum in the country. I took a tour, not as good as the Yale one, but still thoroughly enjoyed the artwork.

I later visited the Phoenix Boat Building (the first two-sided building in the United States) and got a nice view of the Connecticut River and the city.

My next stop was the Connecticut Old Statehouse. (I'm glad I got to go in for free because I don't think it would have been worth the fee.)

Finally, I strolled through the food venue where I saw a man giving away free ice cream in exchange for sharing a personal life dream. Cool idea!

I had a great time discovering the city by myself, but I will admit, the day would have been just that much better with Kyle.

Yale Museum of Art

My friend Breanne came up last month to visit Kyle and me in our new home. It was so fun to see her! She and I spent the day in New Haven (unfortunately, Kyle works Saturdays). We started at the New Haven Green where we shared a picnic lunch over the music of an Evangelist church using the park for an event.

After we visited the Yale University Art Gallery and arrived just in time to join a tour given by a Yale grad student. He did a fabulous job and we left in awe at all we had seen (we stood feet away from Van Gogh's The Night Cafe!). We also visited the Yale Center for British Art which was also amazing and we wished we could have taken a tour there as well. We stopped at a local bookstore, walked around the Grove Street Cemetery, and then bought a few cannolis at Libby's Italian Pastry Shop. The night ended by meeting up with Kyle in West Hartford at a delicious Peruvian restaurant called Cora Cora (after driving around chasing incorrect GPS directions for an hour...the joys of technology). Anytime with Breanne is always wonderful, and this day was no exception. Thanks Breanne!