To Recap: Our Boston Plan was to definitely hit up the Aquarium, the Children’s Museum, and the Zoo- basically our go-to in any city we visit.
We also had a list of Bonus Adventures that we were hoping to fit in. We were able to squeeze a few of those in there, so in that sense, the overnight was a win. All of our ‘must-see’ attractions, and three of our bonus attractions. Not too shabby!
Don’t forget we had the additional hurdle.. the fact that the duo were barely potty trained. We were two weeks in.
TWO.
What on earth were we thinking?!
We started out with a bang, waking and getting an early start. We were pulling into the Aquarium parking garage just in time to grab breakfast at the Dunkin’ Donuts around the corner. A couple of bagels, egg wraps, and waters later, we were on our way into the Aquarium.
One item that made the trip possible was our ‘car potty.’ One of our Baby Bjorn potty chairs had made it’s way into the car, and remains there to this day. It is amazing. The kids have yet to vocalize their need to pee while in their car seat, but we use it anywhere there may not be an easily accessible potty (such as the park). Cousin G has even used it! This chair is one of the easiest to clean, and makes it really easy for the kids when we’re out and about.
Once we were done with breakfast, we gave that car potty one last shot before heading into the Aquarium.
The New England Aquarium is very impressive. There is an outdoor viewing area, indoor tanks and penguin habitats, and so many exhibits throughout the rest of the Aquarium. In the middle, the staircase wraps around a gigantic tank, and at the very top, there is an area for you to look straight down.
Our kids love them some penguins, and really enjoyed checking out each of the penguin habitats. That was the big hit. They liked the huge tank, and checking out all the sea life inside.
I have to say that while this Aquarium is wonderful, the kids enjoyed the Mystic Aquarium a little bit more.
One perk of this particular Aquarium was the Stroller Valet. We were able to park the stroller with them, and it stayed in a little coat closet type room, attended, until we returned with our Stroller Check ticket. We checked the stroller during our visit to the Aquarium, but we were also able to leave it there, while we added in our first bonus attraction.
You know the kids love trains, right? Well, they also love Busses. And Boats. And most transporation options. I bet you know where this is going. Of course we wanted to see if we could fit in a Duck Tour! There are three possible starting points, and one of which is the Aquarium. We headed over to the cashier stand, and made our purchase. We had about 10 minutes before our tour, so we took a chance, and rushed the kids up for one last chance on the car potty. They had tried to potty in the Aquarium restrooms, but I think it was just a bit overwhelming, since they both went without issue in the car.
We made it back down to the Duck Boats with about 2 minutes to spare- only to realize we had left the tickets back in the car. Thankfully, they were able to print us off another ticket, and we finally were posing for our boarding photo.
The kids were pretty happy to be on the Duck Boat when it was a bus. They liked that the windows zipped open, and they could easily see out the windows. TT Dad and I enjoyed the tour guide’s comments, and corny jokes. After seeing the kids absolutely light up when the bus turned into a boat, I’m so very glad we found time to make this happen.
After our Duck Boat Tour, we stopped over to check out the Boarding photo. It was a cute photo, and we wanted to remember how much the kids loved the ride, so we ended up buying it. We never buy those photos! We just couldn’t pass this one up.
The downside to the Duck Boat Tour was that we were pushing into the danger zone- we were getting closer and closer to the kids naptime, and they hadn’t eaten lunch yet.
Across the street from the Aquarium, we found one of my favorite Boston restaurants- Legal Seafood. We briefly debated just how big of a mistake this would be, and walked around the very small block to see what other options were within sight… Ultimately, Legal Seafood won. We went inside, and spoke to the hostess, who told us it would be about a 15 minute wait. Luckily, the waiting area had a gigantic fish tank, and the kids spent the entire time watching the fish.
I have always had a soft spot for Legal Seafoods. I can’t even remember the first time I had my delicious Legal Seafood clam chowder.. but I can tell you when I will have it next.. Legal Seafood chowder is always a staple at the PMC. Any additional chowder is a bonus 😉
As much as I love the chowder, and restaurant, I never actually thought bringing my kids here would be a good idea. I was quite anxious about how this lunch would go. Tired, cranky, hungry kids in any restaurant is never a good idea. Does it stop us? Not today.
Legal Seafood completelyl surprised me by handling the duo like pros. We put in an order for the kids when the menus were dropped off, and before we even had our drinks, the ‘Mac Cheese’ was at our table.
TT Dad and I each ordered a lobster roll (because Lobster Roll!) and those came quickly as well. The kids shaped right up once they were no longer Hangry, and G actually wanted to go check out the potty situation… with sister not far behind.
The countdown was on. We were working on borrowed time, trying to get the kids back to the hotel, checked in, and pack and plays set up in time for a good nap.
We failed. We did get the hotel, check in, and get their pack and plays set up, but we were so late that their nap was not exactly good. They woke up late, after a short nap, and were pretty cranky. We had heard about a carousel, The Greenway Carousel, and wanted to check it out. At $3 a ride, it was well worth it! We walked there, stopping through Faneuil Hall on our way, and stopping back in to the Aquarium gift shop to pick up some penguins.
We decided to head back to the hotel, and we picked up dinner at the Shake Shack on the way back. Loved it!
Finally, we were back in the hotel, and the kids had some down time before they happily went to sleep.
We had brought a potty with us, but the kids also used the hotel potty… much to our surprise. Z had yet to use a full size potty, even at home.. but she did in the hotel!
It was hard to believe we had just arrived that morning. We definitely packed a lot of fun into that one day, and we had even more fun planned for the next one!