A Visit From A Loved One

Family (including extended family) has always been very important to me, and I ache to see them when we are not together. It takes a lot of effort and a lot of cash to get together with my side of the family because they live over 3,000 miles away. The more kids we have, and the more the airlines raise the prices, the less often we get to see them. It has been nearly 2 years since I have seen most of my family, with the exception of one. My dear sister. She blessed us just last week by flying out to see us. My sister, who is full of life and excitement, loves to bless me and my family.

Of course, the first stop on the agenda was Boston. Last time my sister visited (7 years ago), we took a late night trip to Boston and missed visiting all the old historical sites. And this time, Kaylynn joined us. She eats this stuff up. Oh, Boston, a city of culture, history, diversity, and entertainment. I am not a city girl, but I do enjoy visiting the city.

 Kaylynn took our picture in front of the Paul Revere House

On to Concord and Lexington where we stayed in a cute little bed and breakfast and made our most favorite tourist stop: the Louisa May Alcott House. Kaylynn just finished reading Little Women for the first time, and I had just finished reading it again. What a delight to see the desk where she penned Little Women, and the house that inspired her. What a surprise to see her sister's drawings all over the walls of the house and to learn that Little Women was actually written about her life with her sisters. She intertwined real life events with imagination and created a beautiful story that has been loved by so many.

A photo taken by Kaylynn of our room at the bed and breakfast.

 Our last stop before heading up to Maine was Salem. I had given Kaylynn a mini lesson on the Salem witch trials, and we were ready to see some historical sites. We were extremely dissappointed by this little town as it has taken its history and created a village full of witchcraft, haunted houses, and every nature of these things. The town felt more like an amusement park (without the rides) than a historical place. We did enjoy one house that was directly linked to the late 1600's. A house that belonged to one of the judges. We were fascinated by this place. We learned the hard way that much of the part of our nation's history is found in Danvers, Mass which used to be Salem Village. Salem lacked beauty and originality (which is why there is a lack of photos).

On to Maine where we explored some of our local hang out spots and Fort Knox. We spent some days just hanging out at home, playing board games or running around outside.  It is always so hard to say goodbye and return to normal life, but we do it all while remembering our time together and waiting expectantly for the next time we will see one another. We miss you already, dear Auntie Angie!