Dance competition in Boston 2018

Since Mary Grace moved to 25 North Dance, we've been so looking forward to her dance competition in Boston over winter break.  As the day approached, so did the excitement about the trip.

After a long drive in somewhat bad conditions that finally relented as we crossed into Massachusetts, we arrived at a beautiful hotel in downtown Boston.  Weston Coplet plaze

For the first night, we explored the attached mall which had lots of high-end designer stores.

The next day was our only free day and we took the opportunity to walk around Boston.  It was a cold blustery day though and Mary Grace packed for warm weather so we needed a plan.  At one point, we decided to duck into a CVS store to warm up.

William wanted to get some candy, but after many "no", answers, he finally stumbled upon some pocket warmers.  "YES!"  And that made a big difference in the perceived temperatures for the afternoon.

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We finally made our way to Fanuel Hall and explored there for a while.  It was there that we had lunch and William captured this photo of me talking a photo of Anne taking a photo of Mary Grace.  Artsy

The rest of the day was shopping, sightseeing, shopping, eating and shopping.  This was our big chance to see the city since the competition was going to be in full force for the next few days.

The second day, William and I got to enjoy a dinner at Legal Seafood.  William chose (of course), steamed Clams.  Here he is before gobbling one up.  They were delish except for the blackpart that you can see dangling off the fork... Yuck.

We thankfully found Star Markets, a huge grocery store right near the hotel.  We ate a few meals from their prepared food section and were amazed to discover this Kimbuchu setup

This is what the stage looked like at the end of the competition, the awards ceremony.  Since this was Mary Grace's first competition we didn't expect her to win anything but we were THRILLED when she was called up on stage as a "finalist".

While she didn't win a scholarship to the next competition, she was recognized for her hard work and showmanship!

And here's a picture of our favorite dancer in the world,  We're such proud parents!

Finally, it was time to head home.  We had snowy start to the trip, just like the trip to Boston, and a peaceful weather transition once we reached the Albany area.

We're all looking forward to the competition next year and hope that Mary Grace is awarded with a scholarship!