adventures in maine!

This past weekend, we had the best time adventuring through Maine! It all started back in May, when Dallin's mom was visiting. She mentioned a half marathon up in Maine that a friend had told her about, called the Blueberry Cove Half Marathon. It sounded like the quintessential Maine experience, a run to support a kids' camp, followed by a blueberry pancake breakfast. So we signed up!  And thus began the planning for our Maine adventures.

One thing you should know about Dallin is that he is the best vacation planner.  Whether you're spending a weekend, a week, or more in a particular destination, he will set to work constructing the most fun itinerary.  Last summer, when we went to the Outer Banks with his family, he even made the car ride fun, planning stops along the way at the zoo and scouting amazing parks in the cities we drove through.  For someone as directionally challenged as I am, I am beyond grateful that he excels in travel planning--and our long weekend in Maine was certainly no exception!

Dallin's mom arrived on Wednesday evening so, after picking the kids up, we headed to the airport to meet their Grammie Eccles--and Dallin, who was coming from work since his office is very near the airport.  We headed straight to dinner, thinking that it's never too early to start carb loading!  After a frantic night of packing (because, really, who has time to pack?) and a morning Starbucks run, we left for Maine on Thursday morning.

Kennebunkport was our first stop, where we had lunch.  Lobster rolls were a must for this trip so we figured we would hit the ground running.  It was a foggy day, but somehow that makes Maine all the more magical--not to mention, cool and misty weather are a welcome respite from the summer heat.  After lunch, we walked through the town a little bit, picked up a few souvenirs and treats, and then got back on the road.

Freeport was our next stop, a sweet little Maine town with some super fun outlet shopping. The LL Bean outlet is our favorite, not only for the giant boot in the front, but the store itself is like a playground for kids. It was the perfect chance to get our car-ride wiggles out. Of course, we also needed some ice cream; Harper had been asking for it since Kennebunkport so we had to deliver. And what is vacation really without lots of treats? They have a Ben and Jerry's store right by the LL Bean outlet so it couldn't have been more perfect. Plus, the sun had come out a little so it was a nice chance to enjoy some fresh air before climbing back into the car.

Cutest moose I've ever seen

Ice cream pit stop

Littles Hs, big Bean boot!

After spending the night in the sleepy ocean side town of Belfast and a continental breakfast at our inn the next morning, we made our way up to Acadia National Park on Friday morning. Many of our friends have spent time in and around Acadia and the Bar Harbor area so we were excited to make the journey for ourselves. We stopped at the visitor center to get the lay of the land (and for Dallin to get a map) and then decided we would walk along one of the carriage roads with the kids. Six and a half miles later, our "walk" was bit more than we had bargained for. We had exhausted our reserve of kid snacks in the diaper bag, and after a few whiney miles, Hunter had fallen asleep completely. But as long as it was, it was such a lovely place to walk. The forest was so quiet and misty, pure Maine magic, and it was a beautiful and rare opportunity to spend such uninterrupted time in nature with our family. I think we all wished we had worn sneakers instead of flip flops, but there's always next time! We had earned our lunch so we headed into Bar Harbor to find a good local spot.

Junior Park Ranger!

Harper hikes Acadia!

Boston boys in Maine

After a quick and long overdue lunch break, we walked around the Bar Harbor town center for a little while. It was so lovely, all the little shops and the sidewalks crowded with families doing the same thing that we were. We investigated the location of the sand bar that we had heard so much about; at low tide, you can walk clear across to an island just across the water. We planned to come back at low tide, but in the meantime, the Hs just couldn't help but get their feet wet--literally. It was cool and misty and the water was freezing, but gosh was I proud of these tiny little New Englanders who just went for it!

After a little bit more walking, we headed over to our motel to check in.  We were staying at a place where lots of our friends stay each year, a friendly little family style motel with the perfect set-up for our crew: two rooms adjoined by a closet and bathroom.  Once we got settled in and set up the kids' pack and play and little bed, we decided that we simply had to eat ice cream for dinner.  We had passed three different ice cream shops in the town earlier in the day so we picked one, grabbed our treats, and ate on a sweet little park bench down near the water.  It was the dinner of champions for sure.

Dinner of champions!

The next morning, after loading up on bagels at the continental breakfast at our motel (aren't complimentary breakfasts just the best?!), we went back to the sand bar for a journey into the ocean. At low tide, it was a completely different place! The wide sand bar stretched out across the water, and we made our way across, stopping along the way to collect rocks and shells in our buckets. Harper and Hunter were mesmerized, splashing in and out of the water. Hunter couldn't get enough of all the rocks, and Harper would have gathered every last shell if given the opportunity. We just couldn't get over the fact that we were literally walking on the floor of the ocean! We stopped for a little while on the island, to build a few little rock towers, and then we headed back across, enjoying the walk back to land just as much as we had the journey out. I could see the wonder in my children's eyes as they skipped and splashed and got to hold and touch little pieces of the ocean. This was absolutely my favorite thing about the trip.

Searching for ocean treasures on the sand bar

Harper found a grouping of rocks in the shape of a heart;
she said she and Hunter needed to hug inside the rock heart!

Little aquatic adventurer!

This little New England girl was not deterred by the icy water!

Feeling crabby?

After we brushed all the sand off, we went back to our motel to get cleaned up, packed up, and then checked out. From there, we drove back over to Acadia to make the drive up to the top of the infamous Cadillac Mountain. We had seen dozens of photos of the view from the top of the mountain, but in our case, the view was pure mist. Up, up, up we drove, and as we got closer and closer to the top of the mountain, the mist was so thick it felt like we were surrounded by a blanket of white. So our view wasn't as spectacular as we knew it could be, in different weather conditions, but frankly there is something about cool, overcast days in Maine that soothes my soul; I wouldn't have traded it for anything. And we can always do it again another time; I definitely want to go back next summer, not to mention that Acadia would be absolutely magnificent in the fall, surrounded by the brilliantly changing leaves.

On top of the world

We then made our way over to Sand Beach, still in Acadia National Park. The interesting thing about Sand Beach is that, true to its name, it is the only sand beach in the area; the rest are the quintessentially Maine rocky shorelines. Hunter, unfortunately, is not a huge fan of the sound of crashing surf; interestingly, Harper was the same way when she was his age (and she's grown out of it--so there's hope yet for our littlest H). So Hunter preferred to stay back from the water and to instead play with the sand and a few found sticks, but Harper stripped right down her "unders" as she calls them, and skipped joyfully in and out of the water. It was fairly quiet on Sand Beach, and I wished that we had time to stay longer and to let Harper frolic to her heart's content. That's the thing about weekend trips: you really only get to scratch the surface. I suppose the silver lining is that you are left wanting more, planning for another trip.

From there, it was time for us to get back in the car and continue our northward drive, to our final destination of Tenants Harbor. Lucky for me, Tenants Harbor is right by Port Clyde, which is where my family and I took the ferry over to Monhegan Island during several summers when I was a teenager. My father used to paint over on Monhegan, under the tutelage of Don Stone, who sadly passed away a few years ago. My dad started going to Monhegan on his own for painting workshops and loved it so much that we then started going as a family, renting a house for a week or two. 

Monhegan is a special place, seemingly untouched by much of modern society; there are hardly any cars on the island. When you visit, you ferry over on a tiny boat, and taking your car isn't even an option, though a few of the hotels and inns there send a truck down to pick up luggage at the dock. We didn't have the time to trek over to Monhegan during this visit, but our bed and breakfast was right there in Port Clyde, so close to the ferry dock that we could practically touch it from our front door. Just the proximity to so many happy memories was special for me, and I was glad to share a magical spot with my own little family. Dallin and I had gone over to Monhegan with my mom and sister the summer after my dad died, when I was pregnant with Rex; we had not been up in the area since, and it felt right to return under much happier circumstances. This feeling was only reinforced when I noticed a small painting by Don Stone hanging in our room at the bed and breakfast.

After we got settled, we drove over to Blueberry Cove Camp to check in for the race and for the pre-race dinner. Blueberry Cove Camp, a 4-H camp for kids ages 4-12, was just the neatest little place. It had a very Maine, hippy feel to it, with a giant camp garden and little wooden cabins sprinkled throughout the pine trees. The dining hall was aglow with Christmas lights, and much of the produce used in the pre-race dinner came from the actual camp garden. Not to mention that the race medals that they were giving out the next day were made of clay by a local potter, then stamped, glazed, and strung through with twine. When we checked in for the race, our bibs were cut up pieces of cloth with our race numbers written on them in Sharpie. It was such a unique race experience, which I could recognize immediately despite my limited running background.

Dinner was incredible, and it was topped off by the very best part: blueberry pie for dessert. Is it wrong to admit that this was part of the reason I wanted to do the race to begin with? To eat homemade blueberry pie in the woods in Maine? Well, if that's a crime, then I am more than guilty. As we headed back to our bed and breakfast to settle in for the night after dinner, we passed underneath the finish line, strung with buoys, at the entrance to the camp.

Another dinner of champions

The race began early on Sunday morning so Annette and I were up with the birds (truly--seagulls start making noise SO early in the morning), when it was still dark. One other special thing about this race was that it was held on my birthday. I had decided earlier in the month that I wanted to run in memory of our sweet little friend, Marjorie, whose birthday was just the very next Sunday. I was nervous for the race but knew that it was going to be a truly special one. So despite the rain, my heart felt calm that morning.

Dallin and the kids dropped us off at the camp, and then they went back to the bed and breakfast to get dressed and ready for the day, planning to meet us at the finish line in a couple of hours. The start of the race was so funny and casual; they drew the line in chalk across a quite little road, and we were off!

  

The rain was really coming down, but I just kept looking down at the "M" for "Marjorie" that I had drawn on my forearm. With each passing mile, the memories of our sweet friend and her amazing family made my feet light. My friend, Mary, is one of the best moms in the whole world, and she and her husband, Derek, have been on a long, hard journey for seven months and counting now. I kept thinking of them as I ran hill after hill after hill in the rain. It was a really hard course, but it was also beautiful; life is so much that way. Hunter S. Thompson (the inspiration for Hunter's name), once wrote, Life is beautiful and living is pain.

Miles for Marjorie

It wasn't my fastest race, but I kept going.  As I passed the Monhegan ferry dock and turned up towards the light house, I passed Annette, who was already headed back from the light house.  She is a rockstar!  And then the best sight ever: my little family!  Dallin, Harper, and Hunter were waiting for me at the light house, and of course, I had to stop to hug them.  Just the sight of their sweet faces was a boost!  Then it was back to the course.

As I hit mile 11, they drove past me in the car, Harper yelling out the window, "Hi, Mommy!!!!"  These sweet little spirits are my everything, and it made me dig deep to get to the end of the run.  By now, the sun was peeking through, and mostly, I was just glad it wasn't raining.  It had been a really emotional run, thinking of Marjorie, thinking of my dear friends and their tragic loss, thinking of my beloved Daddy and our Monhegan memories, buoyed up by my own beautiful little family.  The finish line was a welcomed sight, and I was smiling as I crossed it.  I did it!  Happy birthday to me, happy birthday to sweet Marjorie.

Annette, Dallin, Harper, and Hunter were waiting for me at the finish line.  Annette won first in her age group!  We were happy to gobble up some breakfast before we headed back to our bed and breakfast to shower and pack up.  It was sad to say goodbye to Maine, but we were looking forward to getting back home and seeing what the heck year 32 has in store for us.  Until next time, Maine!