Yep, four down-filled coats on Claire up there.
And Grace had four layers of pants:
We took the “T” in to the city this day.
Gotta love the “orange line” tile showing us the way:
I have always loved that place for it’s beauty…Copley Square in general is one of my favorite places, but Saydi has taken the appreciation of that beautiful building to another level. She told us all about the extra artistic details I never knew.
She helped us soak in this beautiful iron-work by the same guy who
…and to appreciate these gorgeous mosaic ceilings:
…and these lions that apparently commemorate the Massachusetts Civil War:
Lucy would have been in Heaven with these guys.
Saydi pointed out (from a tour she had had before) that these two ladies on the wall were using modern technology way before it was available…the “tablet” and the “cell phone”…ha!!
Loved seeing my favorite Boston building out the window: the Hancock Tower.
Aren’t books just so beautiful?
Next we explored the John Singer Sargent murals on the third floor. Oh man I had never seen these before. I love John Singer Sargent and these were just so very beautiful.
He considered these “his most important work,” all clustered in this library along these walls (this particular room was being prepared for an event at the time we visited).
By the time Saydi and I were done oooo’ing and ahhhh’ing over all this beauty this is how the girls looked:
Ha! They were ready to move on to the beautiful courtyard…
…and out to the rest of COPLEY SQUARE.
I know I’ve mentioned this a gazillion times, but I wrote a paper about that Hancock tower in college and right then and there I grew a deep love for that place. How it reflects the old and the new.
There we go.
We went inside that gorgeous chapel and I wrote a bunch more about how we felt in there, and what it looked like, and how we even sang a little, and how the organ was filling up the space with so much beauty back HERE.
Love the thoughts this good sister of mine shared in that place.
And stopped for this Burdick hot cocoa which is kind of like drinking a melted chocolate bar.
…and into the BOSTON PUBLIC GARDEN.
I talked about how someone made all these cute little knitted beanies for the “Make Way for Ducklings” statues back HERE.
…which Claire was pretty excited about.
We loved wandering the streets at BEACON HILL, where every nook and cranny was filled with Christmas bursting out of it’s seams, spilling out of every window box.
From there we started on the FREEDOM TRAIL…
Where we purchased the “wrong” kind of Boston hat according to Saydi (Red Sox fan…not the right kind of “B”, but Claire sure loved that thing)…
…and made a visit to the GRANARY BURYING GROUND.
…filled with so many famous graves.
I loved this one honoring Benjamin Franklin’s parents:
And
ABIAH, his Wife,
Lie here interred.
Fifty-five Years;
Employment,
(With GOD’s Blessing)2
Maintained a large Family
Comfortably,3
Be encouraged to Diligence in thy Calling,
And distrust not Providence.
She a discreet and virtuous Woman.
In filial Regard to their Memory,
Places this Stone.
Love the “constant labor and honest industry”, “Be encouraged to Diligence in thy Calling.” It all just hit me so beautifully standing there among those graves of so many people who were pious, prudent, discreet and virtuous…and for all the things so many of them did not only for our country, but for their families…the very building blocks of our whole society.
I thought these signs were pretty interesting as well:
…and these leaves quite beautiful:
OLD STATE HOUSE beauty:
Us Eyres have a weird thing. Well, lots of them actually, but one of the many is that we like to find ways to get up high in big cities to see awesome views. (a little more about that in this post back HERE.)
So, Saydi had a grand idea to see if we could get to the top of this old Custom’s Building:
It was Boston’s first skyscraper until the John Hancock building was completed in 1949, and at the time the clock was built it was the largest in America.
The dial on that sucker is 22 feet in diameter. The minute hand is 13’8″ long. Whoa!
Anyway, Saydi mentioned she had always wanted to get up to the top, which made Claire and Grace’s eyes sparkle with delight.
They were in for the adventure.
We walked around until we found the entrance…that was a good view of my pj pants btw:)
It is actually a Marriott (leasing the building), and we lucked out and found an elevator right to the top where we walked out to see a pretty spectacular view:
…and it’s shadow way down below.
We had so much fun up there in the glistening, cold sun, taking in all that beauty stretching out below us.
Looking up from below:
From that little adventure, Sayds had to get back to her kids.
So she left us to do some exploring without her.
We headed to the PAUL REVERE HOUSE and the NORTH END.
…where we actually took a little tour of this awesome house I’ve been to the outside of so many times…
…and we learned a ton in there.
So many thoughts on that man, one among many of the revolutionaries but became so famous because of a poem written by Henry Longfellow (“The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere”). 
Even though he was one among many, he was quite an exceptional man. We learned so many cool things about him in that little house with a very knowledgeable tour guide who was apparently quite the expert.
Had to stop for a Mike’s Pastry…
…and on to the OLD NORTH CHURCH, which I adore.
So simple and elegant, and so much historical significance.
We sat in one of the little “family pews” where families would sit during sermons (which are interestingly elevated so they could heat them a little while they listened).
This was the view from our perch while an incredibly animated tour guide brought a group in next to us and told them (and us) all kinds of the coolest things with arms flailing and eyes bugging out with excitement. Loved every minute of it.
They learned so much in that somber, so-tastefully-done memorial.
…just in time for the lighting ceremony of the giant Christmas tree there.
Let’s take a little look at what that was like because I’ve got to be honest, it was pretty magical:
We shopped a little bit, and headed back out to Saydi’s after a day well spent…
(she’s the best cook), and soaked in that family of hers for the evening.
…and warmed up our frozen bones with some hot cocoa.
I saw that you and your family drank hot cocoa while you were in Boston…for some reason I thought that Mormons are not allowed to drink hot drinks.. please correct me if I'm wrong. Thanks.
And, please – someone other than KMS/Kris answer me, please. Preferably an actual Mormon…
Great question! Mormons generally follow the Word of Wisdom that refers to "hot drinks." They define these drinks as coffee and tea (green,black,etc). Hot cocoa and herbal teas are not considered against the word of wisdom.
Thanks! Funny how you can hear things about a certain religion and be completely wrong. I had also heard about coffee and tea being on the "no" list, and assumed that it was because of the caffeine in them. Then I heard that it wasn't the caffeine, it was because they were "hot drinks". So some hot drinks are ok but not hot coffee or non-herbal tea? How about non-hot coffee or green/black tea, as in iced coffee or iced tea? Are they ok? And is it because of it harming the stomach in some way if you drink it hot? Thanks again!
To answer your questions:
1. Hot drinks like hot chocolate and herbal tea are fine.
2. No iced coffee or iced tea, as those drinks are brewed hot.
3. I understand the prohibition against those drinks to be due to the high levels of caffeine, which can be addictive. Interestingly, tea and coffee are also pretty bad in terms of staining your teeth yellow!
– a returned missionary and "actual Mormon"
Not drinking tea or coffee is part of the word of wisdom, a health code revealed to the prophet Joseph Smith and contained in section 4 of the Doctrine and Convenants, a latter day scripture. The section about hot drinks says "9 And again, hot drinks are not for the body or belly." Latter day prophets have revealed that that is to mean tea and coffee. To learn more go to https://www.lds.org/topics/word-of-wisdom?lang=eng&old=true
LOVE this post, Shawni! I am a native Bostonian, and work in the building next to 53 Exchange Place (the tall mirror building near the Customs House!). I walk past the Holocaust Memorial each morning on my to work, and on my way home, and each time I do, I say a prayer for all 6 million "numbers" that are etched into that Memorial. The poem by Martin Niemoller jumps out at me everyday of as a reminder that we can never let others be alone and on their own. Looks like you had an awesome trip, and so fun for me to see my home through your eyes!!!
Nice pictures! I worked all over that city (Boston) for thirty years.
Great memories..Thanks