BRRRRRR! It's cold in Boston

There cannot be more of a shock to the system than going from summer in Rio de Janeiro to the dead of winter in Boston. Although we are happy to be back, we soon discovered that in logistical terms, going anywhere was a bit of nightmare. Compare:

1) Clothing and gear necessary to go out in Rio: (Julie) sundress, flipflops, hat, sunscreen, wallet, keys; (Roque) shorts, t-shirt, wallet, keys; (Alex) diaper, onesie, extra diaper, wipes, stroller, cloth to cover stroller in case of nap, water bottle, food, jingly toy. TOTAL: 19 items.

2) Clothing and gear necessary to go out in Boston: (Julie) tights, pants, socks, shoes, t-shirt, turtleneck, sweater, coat, gloves, hat, scarf, Kleenex for runny nose, wallet, keys; (Roque) long underwear, pants, socks, shoes, t-shirt, turtleneck, sweater, coat, gloves, hat, scarf, wallet, keys; (Alex) diaper, long-sleeved onesie, pants, sweater, socks, snowsuit, hat, bunting, two blankets, extra diaper, wipes, water bottle, food, toy, stroller, stroller cover. TOTAL: 44 items.

While the number of items may seem insignificant--try getting out the door (and walking down two flights of steps) with everything on the first try!! And then try semi-undressing on the subway, then dressing again, then undressing when getting to the final destination, then dressing again...

Luckily, Alex didn't complain too much, although when he was all bundled up and outside in the snow for the first time, he looked up at us with an expression of "what the hell is going on?".

Before long, we were all feeling pretty snazzy in our winter gear.