The seals

The seals are not on the island, they are in the water.  Look for shiny, gray, rubber ball looking things and you have found their heads.  This is anti-climactic......it was better in person.

Boat trip to see the seals

We took the kids on a seal watch boat trip this year out of New Harbor.  We had done this trip before when Potter was 2 and had a really good time.  There is a particular island out just a bit from the harbor where the seals tend to congregate, so it is a sure thing that you'll get a good look at them.  (When you are shelling out $$ for 5 people to do this, a guarantee is nice!!)  These are the shots of us as we have a snack on the way out to the island, watching the other boats and bouys.  It was so nice to be out on a boat, with the wind and sun.  Aaahhhhhhhhh, vacation!!

Hammock time

Kamahe has a really cool hammock that everyone spent some time in lounging around.  The big kids enjoyed it the most.  They always wanted it to go higher and faster.  Sort of the opposite of what a hammock is for really.

Lobsta night

Part of the week we spent at Kamahe, Jeff had his friend Andrew up for a few days to visit (unfortunately, I have no pictures of Andrew to include, but he might be grateful for that) from Jacksonville.  We had lobsta one night for dinner and the kids got a kick out of playing with our dinner before we ate it.  Molly, we don't think, understood that we were going to actually EAT the lobstas, as the next morning when she woke up, she asked where they were.  All we said was 'burp'.  She does not seem to be permanently scarred from this.  Thankfully.  

Marshall Point Lighthouse

Marshall Point Lighthouse is one of our favorites.  It is only about a 20-25 minute drive from where we stay and it is always a fun time, as the kids can climb rocks, throw rocks and get into the water a bit while visiting.  The day that we were there the weather was fabulous.  Caleb got into one of the early shots with a super background of the lighthouse.  We found a couple from Philly who took a family picture of us (we returned the favor to them) right in front of the lighthouse, so we have one picture from the whole trip that shows us all together.   Then a couple shots of the kids having fun and goofing off.  

Kayaking

Dave took Molly and Potter out in the kayak on an absolutely gorgeous day.  Sadly, it was the only time that any of us went out on the kayak, we were busy doing so many other things.  Caleb didn't really appreciate the kayak.  There is always next summer!!

Sunny day!!!!

We had a nice and sunny day that we decided to spend, surprise, at the beach!!  Dave and Jeff ambled down to hang out in the late afternoon sun, which is really a nice time of day at Pleasant Beach.   It was high tide when the kids got to play, and although it isn't as good for finding critters, they practiced swimming and dunking in the 60 degree water.  And then there was also a rare spotting of me at the beach (I am usually behind the camera, not in front of it).  What a great place to hang out and relax!!

Climbing big rock!!

Once we moved from Woolley cottage to Kamahe for our second week, the kids loved, loved, loved climbing the huge rock right outside the porch.  They could scale it up in seconds.  Caleb, sadly, couldn't do it and so he had to be content just on the steps of the porch.  

Cold day - we're still at the beach though!!

Caleb and I share a moment at the beach with a chilly wind blowing off the Atlantic.  After telling Molly that we were NOT going to get wet this time because we 1) had no swimsuits on and 2) because it was cold and 3) because I said so, she kept on being the free spirited girl that I love and went and got soaked anyway.  Well, it is vacation after all.  Potter just kept on getting his net full of crabs.

Crabbing it up!!

The kids spend almost every day at Pleasant Beach catching crabs, both hermit and fiddler, as well as mud shrimp, snails and any other unfortunate creature that crosses their path!!  At low tide, the catchin' is easy, high tide is harder.  Low tide produces tons of tide pools and we have a couple favorites that are full of stuff to catch.  The picture of all the kids is right at the tide pool where we have tons of luck finding things.  Oh, and this year, we did find a starfish, alive, under one of the big rocks.  Really cool!!

Caleb at Pleasant Beach

This was Caleb's first year that he could really enjoy running around the beach in Maine.  He is a very confident climber and runner, not really taking as many tumbles as you would expect from a guy his age.  As you can tell, he didn't mind the seaweed at all, loved standing on the rocks, climbing the rocks, and saying in his own way 'ta da' when he did something really cool.  He wasn't into the crab collecting as much as the other kids, but he did love to throw the rocks in the water every single day!!

Climbing on the rocks!!

One of the things we do everyday at the beach, climb on, around the rocks.  Bazillions of rocks, big and small.  Caleb and I are hanging out, watching the big kids until he can't stand to not be with them.  At 22 months, he is an amazing climber, but I am still nervous about letting him do too much on his own.  Birdee (the dog in the background of the picture) loves to chase the rocks the kids throw in the water.  Dave and I have an unexpected picture together and Caleb perfects his crab catching skills!!

Blueberries everywhere!!

On our first full day at Pleasant Beach, while staying at the Woolley cottage with Jeff (and Chloe and Birdee), we were surprised to find just how many blueberries there were growing in the front yard.  So many this year, in fact, that I had enough to make a pie.  I could have made more than one, but my pickers got bored and wanted to go to the beach.  But Dave and Jeff did ultimately enjoy the pie.  

Starting our vacation in Yarmouth

Dave and Jeff start vacation by doing a little pickin'.   The kids were happy just to be on the jungle gym.  Caleb was happy just to have a sippy and a leg to hold onto.

Updates are coming

We have been on vacation for the past couple of weeks, hence the lapse in blog postings.  If I have time tomorrow during naps, I will begin the process of showing you what we have been doing the last two weeks in Maine.  It was a fabulous trip!!!