MAINEly more pictures...

I got tired of scrolling up and down to place the pictures--it became tedious since I had so many...so here are the rest!

*Day in New Hampshire at the Storyland amusement park

*Day trip to Freeport: the LL Bean store (more like headquarters--it was like shopping in an LL Bean mall) then to Gritty McDuff's Brewery for lunch

I don't know if you can see Caed's face clearly, but it's evidence that he is SO over the picture-taking stuff!

I know it looks like I wore that brown "Life is Good" hat every day. I didn't, but many times we just got up and went on our adventures, so showering didn't happen until the afternoons. With my hair + no shower + a bit of humidity, a hat is the only option...unless I want to look like a clown.

*Low tide at Pine Point Beach

I had so much fun visiting so many different places this summer...and as you can tell, the more comfortable I get with my new camera, the more pictures I take. The camera will continue to get more use as I learn the ropes and you're all in trouble once I start buying new lenses.

This One's MAINEly Pictures...

I feel very fortunate to have had the summer I had. First, Colorado to visit the Sheppards, then Arizona to visit my mom, followed by camping in Carpinteria and Laughlin with the Browns, and finally, the focus of this post, flying all the way across the country (literally!) to visit the Myles in Maine. I met my friends, Larry and Joanne, in college. Joanne was one of my closest friends in college, so getting the chance to go to Maine, see her, see her husband, Larry, and also meet their kids, Caedmon and Sheridan, well, I just couldn't let that opportunity pass me by. Even though I haven't see Jo in years, the minute I stepped off the plane, it felt like no time had passed. I had so much fun with them and appreciated how they drove me all over the place taking me to enjoy things that they see all the time, yet not acting bored since it was probably the millionth time they had been there. It was a blast and a week I will always remember. I hope they don't mind me showing up again to hang out some more! I hope you enjoy the pictures as much as I enjoyed taking them! Oh, and once again, more proof that my friends have the cutest kids--as you will see Caed and Dani throughout. I don't want to bog you down with explanations, so here's a brief summary of what we did:

*Lighthouse at Two Lights--Lobster Lunch at the Lobster Shack--Hiking on the rocks near Lobster Shack

*Day at Pine Point Beach
*Blueberry Picking (I totally ignored the sign that said, "Please refrain from over-indulging while in our fields." In my defense, though, I don't think Jo, Caed, or Dani refrained either. You may think us criminals, but really, we were doing them a favor. The ones we ate were just going to fall on the ground and go to waste anyway. In the long run, I am the one who loses out--I have now tasted Maine blueberries fresh from the source. I don't know if I can settle for just regular blueberries from the store now!)
*Day in Oldport walking around town, eating yummy clam chowdah--then on to buy LIVE lobsters for the lobster pot pie.
As Rachel Ray would say, YUM-O!

Colorado or Bust

Are you familiar with the Anne of Green Gables series of books? If not, and especially if you are a girl, I strongly suggest becoming familiar with these books. For those of you that are not familiar with the books, they follow the life and adventures of an orphan named Anne Shirley. I could go on and on and on about these books (and how I was certain that I would find and marry Gilbert Blythe someday), but the point of this post is to explain one relationship in particular that I found on the pages of this series. Fairly soon after arriving in Green Gables, Anne is introduced to Diana Barry. They become fast friends. Diana understands Anne better than anyone. They declare that they are "kindred spirits." The whole point of this is to tell you that I found a kindred spirit this summer. I didn't know I was lacking a kindred spirit, as I treasure and appreciate all of my friends so much. However, the moment I met Shannon Sheppard, I knew that she was someone I would know forever. This whole post is not meant to be about Shannon, but I am so thankful to have her in my life now, that I just had to share that to start. How did I meet Shannon? Well, her husband, Keith, and I went to college together. We stayed in touch a little bit after college, but really got back in touch more recently because of Facebook. Keith thought Shannon and I might have a lot to talk about since we are both teachers. So, we started corresponding online. We all talked a lot about me visiting them, so, at the end of June, I flew out to Grand Junction, Colorado. They live in a smaller town east of Grand Junction, called Fruita. I was a tad nervous when I got off the plane because I hadn't seen Keith since college and I had never met Shannon in person. I have no other explanation besides the "kindred spirit" thing to explain how Shannon and I got along. I immediately felt at-ease and the longer I spent with her, the easier it was. We laugh at the same things, we like a lot of the same things, and I felt like I had known her my whole life. I had so much fun while visiting them. Their two boys, Keigen and Kolby, are absolute charmers, as you can see from the pictures! Colorado is a beautiful place and I look forward to the next time I get to head out to see all the beautiful scenery, and, more importantly, spend time with such dear friends.

Shannon took me up to see Twin Peaks Bible Camp, where they spend the month of July. (Pictured above) Their entire family helps run the camp.

They took me to Black Canyon of the Gunnison. It was absolutely breathtaking!

On my last day, they took me on a drive through the Colorado National Monument. It was simply gorgeous.

From the Beach to the Lake...From 70 Degrees to 119 Degrees

Have I mentioned how much I love my friends? I have great friends. Couldn't make it through life without them. My friends also have some of the world's cutest children. I am not biased or anything. A great example of what I just mentioned above would be my friends Kevin and Tara and their daughter Ella. They invite me to go camping and other places with them often. In this particular post, however, I am specifically referring to camping in Carpinteria and then heading to Laughlin the next weekend for some time on the lake. In Carpinteria, the temperatures were lovely and even more surprising, there was virtually no overcast skies in the mornings.

We woke up to bright sunny blue skies. Ella enjoyed the sand, even to the point of putting some in her mouth and chowing down.

Laughlin was very different. Still bright blue skies and lots of sun...but the first day we were there it was 119 degrees. I thought it was hot at my mom's house. Truly, I cannot remember ever feeling heat like 119 degrees. It was pretty miserable outside, so we were thankful for air conditioning, the cool lake water, and even the lukewarm pool. Boy did we get treated to a spectacular sunset as we headed back from the lake! It was fun to stay in the hotel, enjoy the dinner buffet (HELLO, crab legs...so nice to make your acquaintance!), and just continue to soak up every moment of summer.