{Maine} Kennebunkport

While driving from Ellsworth, Maine, to Boston, I wanted to stop at a coastal town. A couple different friends recommended a few different towns. Being the conservatives we are, we chose Kennebunkport.

Good choice, really. And, no, we didn't see George and Barbara Bush. But we did see their house.

Perfect location, if you ask me. And it seems huge. There appears to be a guest house, windmill and tennis court next door. And then on up the driveway toward the street were multiple SUVs and a house that I would bet is for the workers who drive those vehicles.

Plus, if you can afford it, who wouldn't want to look at that shoreline all day? The town itself is quaint and what I pictured a Maine coastal town to be.

Plus sharing the beauty of the beach with my daughter is always a good time.

I'm posting about our vacation as I have time. I'm sure you're not surprised I took a lot of pictures in Maine. You can see them here. And the posted blog installments are here.
________
Want more? Subscribe to get "Insights" in your inbox. Or follow me on Twitter.

{Maine} Lookin' at lighthouses

One of my favorite vacation activities was a lighthouse tour. We saw lighthouses, of course, but we also saw beautiful homes, plenty of shoreline, and close up of lobster boats, all while enjoying a boat ride.

Yes, I could live there. So, so pretty.

That's a lobster boat and the buoys that mark where the fishermen set their traps.

Another pretty lighthouse. Of course, none of this matters when you wake up at 5:30 nearly every morning of vacation ...

Right, Ben? At least he did nap while we were going about our vacation business.

Have I mentioned how much I loved the rocky shoreline? I couldn't get enough of it. And I'm making sure you feel the same. And, really, I just love being out on the water. Any water.

This is Southwest Harbor. See the house that sits the highest? Well, see the roof of the house that sits the highest? That belongs to Martha Stewart.

"Hey, Cate, let me take your picture ..."

"Take my picture again, Momma. I'll hold my hair."

I hope I taught her a good boat ride is always worth the crazy hair that follows.

I'm posting about our vacation as I have time. I'm sure you're not surprised I took a lot of pictures in Maine. You can see them here. And the posted blog installments are here.
________
Want more? Subscribe to get "Insights" in your inbox. Or follow me on Twitter.

{Maine} Watchin' for whales

I had no idea when we quickly posed for this photo that I'd end up liking it so much. We said, "Cate, stick your head through there." And she did. The lady snapped the photo. And we ended up buying it. The bonus was they emailed an electronic version.

We left for the whale watch tour from Bar Harbor, where the sun was shining and the temperature was in the mid-70s ...

I'm not sure who Ben was waving too. Probably an elderly man we'd never met that he called "Papaw" and asked to "holda." The farther out into the Atlantic we got {and we went 20-something miles out}, the colder it was.

Ben also stopped waving to "Papaw" and gave into a nap, representing our home state while he slept. So the rest of us cuddled up ...

And then we eventually saw a whale. Yes, singular. Its name is Canine and it's 7 years old. Yes, it. The whale watch tour guides track them by their markings, but they hadn't identified whether Canine is a girl or a boy. My girl insists Canine is a girl, go figure.

Honestly, I wish we could have seen more whales. But I'm glad we at least saw Canine come up near the boat a few different times. And Cate is still talking about how we saw a humpback whale.

I'm posting about our vacation as I have time. I took a lot of pictures in Maine. You can see them here. The posted blog installments are here.
________
Want more? Subscribe to get "Insights" in your inbox. Or follow me on Twitter.

{Maine} A view from the top

The top of Cadillac Mountain, that is. It's the highest point on the North Atlantic coast. We drove up and then walked around once we got up there. We even had a picnic while we were up there.

The view down toward Bar Harbor was beautiful. Something about looking out over the ocean is always magnificent.

And my kids liked climbing on the rocks. Climbing on the rocks became a vacation theme, especially for my boy.

Of course there are more photos from Cadillac Mountain and from other places in Maine. You can see them here. I'm posting about our vacation as I have time. The posted installments are here.
________
Want more? Subscribe to get "Insights" in your inbox. Or follow me on Twitter.

{Maine} The Coast @ Acadia

I love the ocean.

Looking out into an ocean always makes me feel small. It gives me perspective. It whittles away what's not important. It washes away fears. And even if I'm sharing the shoreline with strangers, I somehow feel like it's just me and God enjoying his creation.

The southern Atlantic coast and I are friends. And I was so happy to meet its northern counterpart, which was more of the same while being something new. Acadia National Park had a sand beach and beautiful rocky coastlines to explore.

Did I mention the rocky coastlines were beautiful. I watched the ocean waves come out of the calm waters and break against the rocks, creating a powerful splash. The waves are mighty and move. The rocks are still but oh-so mighty. It's a forceful yet beautiful meeting with the waves upon the rocks. I watched it over and over.

And I could have sat there watching it more, but my husband wanted to walk, my 4-year-old girl had questions and my 22-month-old boy was finding another rock to climb or stick to carry.

But that's life.

And I wouldn't trade it for anything. I'm thankful my vacation included some time on a beach with people I love. And, really, they're pretty fun to be around ...

After we visited Acadia's Sand Beach, Cate requested a second trip the next morning. I seconded the request and was happy to have another chance to walk barefoot in the sand. My heart also beamed watching my daughter enjoy the beach. That's my girl. And my boy didn't mind. There were rocks to climb and sticks to use to dig.

This is only a sampling of the pictures I took in Acadia National Park and elsewhere in Maine. Want to see more? You can. I can't help but to look at them and think about how majestic and powerful God is and how his personality came through in his creation of this beautiful coastline.

I'm posting about our vacation as I have time. I took a lot of pictures in Maine. You can see them here. The blog installments are here.
________
Want more? Subscribe to get "Insights" in your inbox. Or follow me on Twitter.

{Maine} Pumping on the Go

I told the security lady at Nashville's airport that I was wearing an insulin pump before I walked through the screening checkpoint ahead of my two kids who had been freed from the double stroller for security purposes. She nodded and told me to step over to a guy who was going to check my hands.

I still have no idea what he swabbed my hands for, but he said, "So do you have a Medtronic pump?"

"Yes. I've been wearing it less than a week," I volunteered on what was the early part of my fifth full day wearing a device that works as an external, mechanical pancreas.

He surprised me when his response was about how he'd been wearing an insulin pump for seven years. "You'll get so used to it that you won't think about it until you have to enter your carbs. Counting carbs is the most important thing."

I felt at ease as I walked away from him on the first leg of my day-long journey to Maine. I still had no clue why he had wiped my hands. But I felt good about the pump in my jeans pocket.

And, really, other than an exception that involved too much snacking on sweet treats while sitting in the van while going from Ellsworth, Maine, to Boston, I've had blood sugar readings that affirmed insulin pump therapy is welcome in my life. Even when life goes on the road, the pump provides freedom in its convenience. I spent my 10-day vacation on the go. The pump just went along with me and I often didn't think a thing about my new friend Izzy tagging along.

I'm posting about our vacation as I have time. I took a lot of pictures in Maine. You can see them here. The blog installments are here.
________
Want more? Subscribe to get "Insights" in your inbox. Or follow me on Twitter.

{Maine} The Bar @ Bar Harbor

Here is a view of the water at Bar Harbor one morning, when the tide is in. But then it goes out in the afternoon ...

And you can literally walk across to that little island. This bar at Bar Harbor is covered in shells and rocks.

See, that's Greg pushing the stroller and Cate walking next to him. And, so, the seashell hunt began ...

Yes, every one of those shells in that cup came home with us. And then the water returned to cover up the rocks and shells that remained. The next afternoon the low tide repeats, allowing more people to hunt for natural treasures on what is sometimes the ocean floor.

There are more photos on Facebook and many, many more to come. I'm posting about our vacation as I have time. The blog installments are here.________
Want more? Subscribe to get "Insights" in your inbox. Or follow me on Twitter.

{Maine} Timber ...

We spent part of our first day in Maine at a lumberjack show. Appropriate, huh?

The Great Maine Lumberjack Show is in the small town of Trenton, ME, which is between where we were staying in Ellsworth and Bar Harbor, where we went often.

When we got there, Greg and I noticed the news clippings hanging up about Timber Tina, who owns and operates the show. Turns out she was on Survivor: Panama, briefly. She was the first one voted out of the season. I mostly remember her job description as a "lumberjill," which is clearly her occupation.

During the show, Tina and three lumberjacks competed in various sawing and logging activities. The audience was split down the middle and each side cheered for a two-person team. Cate will tell you we cheered for the green team because she, me and the lady next to us were wearing green. Really, it's because we were sitting on the right half of the bleachers. Even so, the competition and banter that accompanied added to the show.

Greg got a try at the two-man saw during the intermission. And then it was back to business for Timber Tina ...

She made that log into a rabbit and then a chair, which she gave to Ben.

He really likes his chair.

And even though we had no idea what to expect going in, we loved the entertaining lumberjack show. It was definitely a fun introduction to Maine.

There are more pictures in my Facebook album. And there are many more Northeast stories and snapshots to come. I'm posting about our vacation as I have time. The already posted blog installments are here.________
Want more? Subscribe to get "Insights" in your inbox. Or follow me on Twitter.