Day 2-Parades, squirrels, and treats.

We headed out early again Wednesday, but for a much more fun reason...The Red Sox World Series Champions Parade!  I was really excited about this, knowing it would be a unique experience for all of us.  We adopted the Sox as our MLB team the first year we came up here, thinking it was the least we could do in gratitude to the city that has done so much for us.  So we enjoy rooting for the Sox, and have seen first hand the amazing following that the Boston sports teams have.  I knew it would be crowded and crazy, but it was so worth it.  They estimated 1 million people would be downtown for the event, and with it being on Halloween, they figured it would be even crazier.  If we were going to go though, I wanted us to be able to see so it would be worth it.  We left early so to be able to get a spot on the rail.   I chose Boyleston street just off Copley square, a spot pretty much in the middle of the parade route.  We got there just in time to get a front row spot and sat down, holding our spot and keeping entertained by playing uno, as the crowd closed in around us.

After a couple of hours of waiting, amidst a growing crowd of revelers, we caught sight of the parade coming our way.  They made it to us, and it was so awesome!  Music and everyone screaming, confetti flying everywhere, it was amazing.

  Duck boat after duck boat, carrying all the players and their families and even the office and medical staff for the team, came down the street, lined with Sox fans going wild.   Jacob even caught a Red Sox bracelet tossed from one of the duck boats.  It was so much fun, and a truly amazing experience.  This city is unique in its pride.  This wasn't just a Red Sox parade, it was a celebration of the city of Boston.   I'm so grateful we were able to be there.

After that we slipped into the library to warm up and settle down.  We hung out in there for a bit and let the crowd disperse, before setting out for lunch.  We headed just a couple of blocks over to Eataly, which was a place someone told us about that we thought we'd try.  Attached to the Prudential Center, Eataly is an Italian marketplace, selling fresh pastas, breads, meat, fruits, vegetables, and wine.  It also had a multitude of different places you could buy already prepared Italian food of any kind you could want.  We ate lunch and of course had some gelato.  We wandered into the attached Prudential Center mall, and found a bathroom and changed the boys into their halloween costumes.

 We then set out for the Boston Public Garden and Commons, my favorite place in the city, and seeing it was a beautiful day, figured it was a good place to kill a couple of hours.

Mom and I thoroughly enjoyed the park as well.  It's a beautiful time of year here, with the trees changing colors, and the weather was gorgeous.

 Asa and Jacob had a great time running around in their costumes for a while.  We of course paid a visit to the ducklings statues, and we also stopped by the Robin Williams bench (from the iconic scene in Good Will Hunting), and met a man there feeding the squirrels.  We sat with him and talked awhile, as he was eager to share his treats and his love of squirrels with anyone who approached.  He said he comes there to that same spot 3 times a week and feeds the squirrels, and it showed!  They clearly trusted him and were all but swarming him for his almonds he had with him.  My boys sat by him and before long were in by association.  The squirrels were jumping and crawling all over them looking for treats.  One even got up close and personal with me,  to investigate my phone.  The boys loved it, so much so that they both later said it was their favorite part of the day.  Amazing how sometimes it's the small things, the little moments that become the most memorable.

After that it was time to start trick or treating!  We started on a quieter street in the Back Bay, well known for its trick or treating, which was great.  But we had heard that the adjacent Beacon Hill was the best place in Massachusetts to go trick or treating (outside of Salem).  So we went on to there, which was just one street over from the Garden and Commons.  Everyone was right and this apparently was a well known fact, as there were a ton of people there!  Everyone was dressed up, all the beautiful brownstones were decorated so cool.  The city closed the streets off to traffic, making navigating easy, and with them being row homes, it was so easy going from one to the next, with never a dull moment.  It was a very festive atmosphere that was also a unique Halloween experience.  The boys got a ridiculous ton of candy, and once they were worn out, we headed back to the house.

Every trip we do so many fun things and have so many great days, but this one was one for the books.  It was a true Boston experience, which I loved.  This city and its people are amazing, and I am thankful to call it our second home.