Birthday fun

Today is my birthday, so the Rowe family decided to take a trip into Boston to visit the Public Garden and the Common. It was a fun time for everyone, most especially the kids. We got to ride the merry-go-round, swim in the Frog Pond, visit the Tadpole playground, and ride in the Swan Boat. For Madeleine, it was the first time ever on a merry-go-round, and she seemed to get much more enjoyment out of it than did Julia (who rode completely blank-faced) on her first merry-go-round ride:


Madeleine, August 2010


Julia, August 2007

Julia enjoyed seeing the ducks up close and personal during the swan boat ride, and we even had one duck that swam side by side the boat for a good chunk of the ride. We decided to give him a name, but we weren't in agreement on what it should be. Julia wanted to call him "Nice Duckie," but I thought that "Quacky" might suit him a bit better. At one point during the boat ride, Julia exclaimed loudly, "Mama, when I grow up, I think I want to be a DUCK!" I think she was a little disappointed when I told her that a human, no matter how grown-up, is not capable of morphing into a duck. After the Swan Boat ride we took a quick visit over to the gold "Make Way for Ducklings" statues, then decided it was time to head on home. The temperature was around 95 degrees, it was past time for Madeleine's nap, it was nearing snack time for Julia, and both kids began to melt down a little. Julia especially; she had a tough time on the car ride home because her bones hurt, and because she didn't want lemonade to drink because it always has little plastic things like plastic straw wrappers floating around in it. However, once we were home, with one child fed and one in her crib, all was once again right with the world.