Fall Hiking

I missed all of last year's fall and spring hiking season due to school work.  I've never had so much weekend work in my life.  It was so frustrating and I promised myself that this year that won't happen.

So when I started feeling overwhelmed with my work this weekend I thought for sure I was going to have to skip the first hike of the season.  JO convinced me otherwise and I'm glad he did.

We headed up to Gunstock for an easy 5.2 mile hike.  The weather was perfect for hiking.  We had lunch at the top and it was actually cold.  Good thing I packed my earmuffs and gloves 😂

Gunstock was still running their summer activities so the restaurant was still open.  We decided to grab a snack and lunch on the patio of their restaurant. 

We decided to extend the day by stopping by an apple orchard to pick up some apples at Stone Brook Hill Farm. (I'd definitely come back here and pick apples.  It was so calm and not crowded!)  We weren't alone.  These "animals" were also visiting the farm.

Before heading back home, and back to my school work, we stopped at Chuckster's to play some mini-golf!

Opening Night at the Ballet

When my season tickets for the ballet arrived I realized I had a conflict with my first ballet.  As a season ticket holder I can switch my day so I called customer service right away.  My September calendar was quite crazy so I was having trouble finding a replacement date.  When the service rep informed me that for an $8 upgrade fee I could get a better seat and attend opening night of the season I obviously said yes!

My Thursday ballet tradition always starts at Teatro for some pre-ballet bubbles and yummy dinner!  I really love going out with JO, but I do love my solo city dates as well. They remind me that I really do live here now (and sometimes I still forget that that's my reality.)

It was so fun to attend the Opening Night of Boston Ballet's 2018-2019 season and the Opening Night of Genius at Play.  The ballet was great, with some whimsical and modern acts.  I loved the third act that included the entire ensemble.  I love watching a ballet when my eyes never get a break from the action.  

And of course, it wouldn't be the ballet without bubbles!

A Slow Saturday Morning

I looked at my calendar the other day and I realized that I only have two days left this month that I don't have a meeting, a practice, an event, etc.  I was feeling kind of stressed about that so I decided to take advantage of some extra time Saturday morning to head over to Longfellow's to read a book and drink some coffee!  It was the perfect antidote to calendar stress!

Outdoor Dining Comes to Inman

I love everything about my neighborhood.  Inman has it all.  Well, that's not exactly true.  The one thing missing is outdoor dining.  Sure, there are a few tables at S and S, Beauty's, and Pita, but none of these are truly offer an outdoor dining experience.   Oleana has an amazing patio (that we haven't tried yet) but I think that's it.

Until now!  Moona successfully worked with the city to offer outdoor dining.  Moona now has four small outdoor tables.  They can seat around 6-10 people outside on adorable wrought iron tables with umbrellas accented in a teal blue.  The tables are roomy enough to eat comfortably without being crowded.

JO and I have been meaning to check out the outdoor seating but haven't had a chance with all the craziness of last week.  When we saw a free table on our way home from the rock gym we decided to go for it!

It was such a fun way to spend a Tuesday night in Inman!  Moona's food is so beautifully crafted and delicious.  It was so fun to be outside, people watching and enjoying the finally cooler temperature, and drinking a delicious Cava!

Bukowski's

Sometimes, after surviving a crazy weekend of moving, sick cats, and school work, you take a little "restie" at Bukowski's to reset and recharge.  We don't go here often because the food menu is a bit eccentric and pricey for what the place is, but it's important for us to remember it's a great place to hang out!

Allston Christmas

I went my entire adult life without having to move on September 1st!  Now, I've had the pleasure of moving my dad two straight September 1sts!  It's as fun as it sounds!!!  We had the added challenge of dealing with a sick kitten during the move.

Poor Denali started getting sick Friday morning and proceeded to get sick every few hours for the entire day.  He wouldn't eat anything so we had to take Denali to the vet in the middle of the move on Saturday.  Thanks to some great friends who helped with the move, JO and I  were both able to take Denali to the vet who fixed him right up with some liquids and kitty Pepto (seriously, magic drug!) Denali's back to his old self and I'm feeling very relieved.

In between "pukes"

Sad Nali wouldn't eat

Off to the vet

Back to normal

To make the day even more exciting, I made a Target run on September 1st because I am making a strong case for "Daughter of the Year!"  Target on September 1st is pretty much the apocalypse.  Shelves were picked clean, people were yelling, Target employees were crying (for real, one guy had a breakdown when a mother asked him about curtains) and there wasn't a trash barrel anywhere!  [I've been watching a lot of Schitt's Creek and I channeled my inner David a lot during this trek.  I wish I had recorded my running commentary 😀] 

In the end, our kitten is all better, my dad is settled in to his new apartment, and I have some great Target stories to tell!!  Happy "Allston Christmas" everyone!

It's HOT!!!!!!!!!!!

You know what really makes the First Week of School extra fun????  Heat indexes of 105!

I decided to handle the heat with a little fun!  Those "Back to School" photos aren't just for little kids after all!

Also, shout out to Gather Here for the back to school window display!!!

A Taste of Paris in Boston

My trip to Paris was amazing.  I'm hoping to blog about it, but I make no promises because of school.  One of the things I loved most about the trip was the delicious food.  As a child, I remember loving French food so much and I was pleased to realize that hadn't disappeared in the 20+ years between visits.  What's not to love~ amazing coffee, champagne, cappuccinos, salads filled with super fresh vegetables in deliciously crafted salad dressings, French bread, salami, snails, cheese, salami, macaroons, salami (I may have a thing for really good salami.)

When I got home I was definitely having some difficulty adjusting to "American" food so when JO suggested we go out for one last dinner before school started I knew exactly where I wanted to go.  Petit Robert Bistro is a French restaurant in the South End I had been wanting to try for years. 

Petit Robert is super cute (I can't believe that is the phrase I'm going to use but it's been a long weekend and I'm not feeling too sophisticated this morning!)  There is a lovely patio that seats about twenty with views of the Prudential Center.  I wish the patio had those round tables like the brassieres in France but that's a minor gripe.  We ended up eating inside and the interior is very intimate.  I loved the pictures of various French scenes on the wall. 

I was very excited to see an affordable glass of champagne on the menu (because seriously, I'm going to have a problem switching back to prosecco after two weeks of French bubbles!)

We ordered the snails and I got the frisee salad and JO got the pork chop.  Everything was delicious.  The snails were perfectly cooked, the salad was perfectly crafted, and JO's pork chop was amazing! 

The only complaint I have is the fact that they served their bread warm.  French bread is never warm.  Petit Robert is definitely a restaurant we'll be visiting again!

After dinner we headed home because JO had to pick up his credit card at the Wine and Cheese Cask (where he had bought be some French goodies earlier in the day.)  On the walk home we decided to stop into Kirkland Tap and Trotter.  I loved the rustic interior and the beer menu was great.  We had a lot of fun reminiscing about the summer before heading home.

Patio before Paris

I've been gone for a while!  First, we went on an amazing road trip through Glacier National Park, Banff, and Jasper.  I followed that up, five days later, with a two week trip to Paris to visit my best friend.  The night before I flew out, I was feeling a little nervous, so JO suggested we go out and enjoy one last patio for the summer!  It was the perfect cure for my nerves (I hate flying solo) and we had the added bonus of getting to listen to a band that was playing a show in the courtyard!