The Beach House

The dirt road dead ends just before the beach begins. We take a left on to another dirt road. Our home for the week is tucked close to the end of this road sitting above a quiet stretch of beach with a view of the sunset. Our house is comfortable and quiet – or at least it is when the boys are sleeping.

To say our beach is quiet is a quaint understatement. The sand is red – as red as Eli’s hair; and the surf is calm. So calm, that Evan will wade in, fearlessly. The only other people on the beach are out of ear shot, and nearly out of sight. We have a giant tract of beach to ourselves. We can run and shout and play to our heart’s content and never have to worry about disturbing anyone.

Just down the beach we can see the North Cape Canadian Wind Farm. The windmills look like great pieces of modern sculpture and provide an elegant backdrop to our relaxation. Evan is fascinated by the windmills. He takes every opportunity to look at and study the windmills, peppering us with questions about their purpose and operation.

It's foggy today, so we decide to head out in search of supplies and do some exploring along the way.

On the road - Day 2

After a quick stop at Bagel Central for the world's best, hot fresh bagels, we headed out of Bangor for the long drive across Maine and New Brunswick. It was overcast and cool again, but it was a good day for travel.

After a couple of hours of driving we stopped at New River Beach Provincial Park outside of St. John, New Brunswick. Pat and I camped here years earlier on one of our Canadian adventures, so we knew it was a great place to run around and get the sillies out.

The tide was out, and since New Brunswick has the highest (and lowest) tides in the world we had a massive expanse of beach all to our selves. Pat and Evan immediately began a game of chase. Not to be left out, Eli quickly joined in the fun. Then all four of us were running, screaming and laughing down the beach.
Once "chase" was over the boys took turns being thrown into the air by Dad. As you can see Eli got some serious hang time. Evan was more cautious, and only wanted be thrown "a little high".

Feeling refreshed, we dug out our picnic food, and climbed back in the car to enjoy a moving picnic.

On the road to Prince Edward Island

We arrived at our hotel after a rainy but quiet ride. The boys slept for most of the ride and Pat and I had a chance to talk and enjoy each other’s company. Which sounds silly, since we do live together, but the past few months have been a whirlwind of activity, projects, illness and general chaos. Rare is the day that we can have an uninterrupted conversation about dinner choices, never mind anything of importance. But today the snoring from the backseat was a special break. Even though it was cold and rainy we were off to go a good start on this adventure. After all, escaping the house and it’s unending clutter, and the deck project that will not end, is just what this family needs.

We checked into a Comfort Inn next to the mall in Bangor. It was your standard sterile Comfort Inn room, far from fancy but clean and livable. However, as far as Evan was concerned, we had just checked into the Four Seasons. As we walked down the endless brown hallway (brown carpet, brown walls, brown ceiling even) Evan was giddy.

“Oohhhh, I’m so ‘cited!” he cooed with delight.

Once we unlocked the door and went inside the room Evan could hardly contain himself.
“I LOVE this place!” he screamed and immediately headed for the beds to begin jumping.

If he’s this excited by the Comfort Inn, wait until the real adventure beings.

The batting cage

Last night we made a family outing to "Mel's" a family entertainment complex complete with go-carts, batting cages, mini golf, ice cream, and perhaps most exciting waterfalls!

Pat went inside to buy tokens for the go-carts but instead came out with a baseball bat. To my chagrin he gave Evan a helmet and brought him into the slow-pitch softball batting cage. Call me crazy, or over protective, or a fun spoiler (they're all true) but I was afraid that Evan was going to get beemed by a ball.

I should have had more faith in Evan's abilities. Despite the fact he is not yet four, and just barely over 3 feet tall, Evan was making contact with the ball! He had a couple of solid hits and a whole bunch of foul balls. He was delighted with himself and begged to go again. This time I was happy to oblige.

Strawberry Picking

We took the boys strawberry picking today. It's an annual tradition that just seems to get bettter every year. Last year Eli slept in his car seat and Evan was more a "helper", taking the berries I had picked and putting them in the basket for me.

But this year, Evan picked his own berries, thank you very much. And Eli, he was just hungry. He would pick berries out of our baskets, take a big bite and throw it back. Since I was busy picking it took me a while to notice that he wasn't eating the whole berry. I then spent several minutes picking out the half eaten berries, (which I happily ate) before I eventually had to move the basket to a different row out of reach of his red stained hands. When he wasn't eating, he happliy wandered up and down the rows taking off his hat and putting it back on. Perhaps next year he will be ready to be my helper.

At the end of an hour, despite Eli's appetite for strawberries, we had more than enough berries to bring home and enjoy.

So Tired...

I'm tired. No, make that exhausted. I can't remember the last time I slept for more than three consecutive hours. Eli has yet another head cold, acquired just days after recovering from Strep Throat. Oh! And speaking of Strep Throat, Pat was diagnosed with his second bout of it today. For those keeping score, this is our third round of Strep in 4 weeks.

I'm frustrated. The house is mess and no one feels well. I know there are better days ahead. I know that in the grand scheme of things we are very fortunate. And I also know that these setbacks in health and house cleanliness are temporary. But, sometimes it's hard to see the silver lining. It's hard to remember that this is only temporary when it has felt so permanent for so many weeks.

If only I could sleep. If only Eli could sleep through the night (instead of in his high chair!) . If only his nose would stop running, he might.