Trip: Day 4 Bar Harbor, ME

We arrived in Bar Harbor around 3:00 and drove around while the boys finished their naps. Michael's mom had told us about The Bar Harbor Inn and when we drove past it we were very impressed and hoped that they had a vacancy as it was still peak season in that area. I called to see if they had any rooms and to our luck they had one left...a two bedroom/living room suite with 2 balconies overlooking the harbor for a very reasonable military rate. It was exactly what we needed...a lot of room (and two levels) for the boys to run and explore, a chance to bathe the boys (in a jacuzzi tub), put them to bed close to their original bedtimes, and an opportunity to catch up on two of our favorite TV shows after they had fallen asleep.

The view from our balcony.

I don't have any pictures of our evening in Bar Harbor, but it was fun nonetheless. There was only about an hour before the quaint shops closed so we bundled up the boys and went shopping. Then we ate in a restaurant on the corner with a good view of the water. Mikie was excited that we ate on the second level (the upstairs dinning room). After dinner, Mikie wanted ice cream (burrr!) but Zach couldn't have any; so, while Michael and Mikie got two scoops of strawberry, Zachary and I ducked into a shop that was still open and played with wind chimes and a very large black and white poodle that liked to lick Zach's hands.

The next morning we drove up to Cadillac Mountain and braved the chilly air to take a few pictures.

Mikie found a rock with a huge crack that he could walk through.

Here we are at Thunder Hole. It's a place along the shore where the waves come crashing into a large hole in the rocks sending water shooting up into the air with a loud "whoosh".

The picture below was taken only a few minutes before a VERY large wave came in. Michael and Mikie had moved forward, up the steps and were only a few feet away from where the wave soaked a family of four. I was so thankful that Mikie only got sprayed slightly on his face and leg; because, our son does not like to have wet clothes. He will freak out if he gets a dribble of liquid on his shirt; so I was shocked when they returned to the high ground, where Zach and I were viewing this all from a safe distance, LAUGHING and asking to go back down and watch it again! "Mommy, the water went all the way up to the clouds!"

We returned to Bar Harbor around noon and ate lunch "in a tent" according to Mikie. It was actually an awning covered outside dinning area where we enjoyed the last of the beautiful fall days before driving for hours and hours to reach Michael's parents house late Monday night.

Trip: Day 3 Penobscot Narrows Bridge, Fort Knox, Maine Maritime Academy

This was one of the coldest mornings of our trip (or at least it felt like it walking around another Fort). Zachary was taking his morning snooze and our goal was to get to Castine, Maine to see where Michael went to college....a slight detour was involved when we got ready to cross over the brand new Penobscot Narrows Bridge. We noticed a sign that said "Observation Tower Open". Well, I knew that would be fun for Mikie since he loves riding elevators and counting the floors. Initially, I told Michael to just go "quickly" with Mikie and then we'd finish driving while Zach slept. However, as soon as we parked the car Zachary woke up and I'm so glad he did. He was so cute looking down and pointing to all the cars traveling over the bridge. I think he thought they were toys and wanted to pick them up. It also gave us a chance to visit another Fort (one of which Michael said he never actually went "in" while living this close to it but tells me stories of how he and his college buddies would "visit" the grounds surrounding the fort after it closed.)

This is a postcard of the bridge. The fall colors looked just like this! If you look closely you'll see the triangle observation deck at the top of the left point.

Zachary pointing to the "toy cars" going over the bridge.

When I asked Mikie to tell me something to write on the postcard, he replied "I loved going all the way to the top because I saw all the sights."

Mikie took this picture.

This way to the top!

FREEZING cold & windy patriotic picture

Here are some real cannonballs, Zachary.

Again, he continued to taste the air the entire time we were here.

Hurry up, take the picture and get back to the warm car! Now, let's drive to the middle of no where (seriously, his college town is smaller than Sigourney, Iowa). Luckily, as the sun rose higher so did the temperatures and we ended up with a slightly chilly but bearable autumn afternoon.

A lot has changed in 14 years! After hearing the college stories (and now seeing where they took place), I'm amazed that Michael lived long enough to marry and have 2 children). It was fun taking this picture. While Michael was trying to get the camera propped up on the hood of the mini-van, the boys were smelling (and picking) the mums, playing in the leaves, and even watched a parade. Ok, it wasn't a formal parade, more of a neighborhood walk that involved about a half dozen dogs on leashes (one of which was in a costume...ok...sweater...close enough) to which Zachary pointed and panted at each one. It really was a fun photo shoot and it only took about 4 tries to get one that looked like this!

The dock was a great place to let the boys run, spin around, and fall down. For some reason, they both think it is just hilarious to turn in circles and then fall down on their backs.

We took a short hike past a lighthouse down to the water. In this picture, Zachary decided to throw a fit and refused to stand up so we took it anyway.

Now he's in the mood to cooperate.

Mikie skipping down the "secret path" towards the water.

Another self-timer photo op without a proper platform for positioning the camera

This picture reminds me so much of Whidbey Island; in fact, the entire hike was reminiscent of the Northwest.

We even ended the day by throwing a few rocks in the water.

Trip: Day 2 (Fort Ticonderoga)

After driving for a while longer, we stopped in Ticonderoga at a very interesting motel. They put us in an "A" framed room with 2 king beds. This picture captures exactly what our children did each night we stopped to "rest"....the beds became trampolines....and we were always too busy unloading and setting up to care. Zachary would get his blankie and Mikie would grab his "bashi" and they would jump, wrestle, and play to expend all their pent up energy. This bed was only about a foot and half off the floor and had a little "seat" for Zach with a mirror that he loved to look into. The next morning, we ate breakfast at a cafe across the street and then headed to the fort.

We drove up to Mount Defiance and took pictures overlooking Fort Ticonderoga.

This is one of MANY pictures beside a CANNON.

Mikie wanted his picture taken next to all of these cannons on the second level. He counted them and kept saying, "Ok, now take my picture by number 4...number 5...number 6....etc...." Don't worry....I won't post them all!

At the end of a musket demonstration, they fired it off which surprised Mikie and upset him slightly. He quickly got over it when we walked into the courtyard and found it full of rocks. They both enjoyed 10 minutes of digging, throwing, and plopping rocks in every direction. Oh, the joy of having two boys.

Notice he still has a rock.

They had a small scale puzzle model of the fort that Michael was trying to teach them how to put together, but Mikie insisted on lining them up "in order".

Have you ever tasted air? Apparently, it tastes pretty good. Zachary spent most of the day with his tongue hanging out tasting the cold air.

Human Cannon Ball - Since we have so many pictures of us beside the cannons, we thought we'd change the pose a little.

The perimeter is clear. No redcoats here.

The boys each got a rock candy from the gift shop before we left. Next, it was time to take a ferry (which held a total of 4 cars...I know....that's a small bathtub toy in comparison to the Washington state ferries we were used to) across Lake Champlain to start another day driving for hours while the boys watched videos and napped peacefully.