Last Day And On Our Way Home!

Friday in Camden was the most perfect day...it involved waking up early and then falling back to sleep again...then Zoot's coffee...then a long walk...our goal was to find the famous Camden Galway cows...the cows that look like Oreo cookies.
We couldn't find them. So sad...




A quick drop off...Lucy back to the room...and a yummy lunch of local oysters and an heirloom tomato salad at Fresh...plus a nice glass of chilled white wine. We made a new friend...a 19 year old college junior named Watson...apparently long winters in Maine are conducive to fast tracking...Watson was a junior in college his first year!




Then I sent Den back to our room so I could pop next door to a cool shop...I bought three summery gauzy dresses in minutes. Fast track shopping...lol.
Then tons of fun watching a sort of local talent show from our room. A huge barge pulled up into the harbor and there were local musicians. Plus after every act the MC asked people to step up to the barge and tell a family friendly joke. It looked as if everyone in Camden came out for this event.
After dinner we finally got our ice cream!!!
We had to stampede over every high schooler in Camden but on Friday's this teeny little shop stays open until 10:00!!!




Oh happy day!
After a long rainy wet drive home we are here! Home! I love Maine but it's so nice to be home.




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Here Comes The Sun...

Dinner last night was here...outside...and lovely...I am hooked on halibut!
Entertainment was provided by two fishing diving seals...a first for us in Camden Harbor. They stayed between our table and the red building in the distance for most of our dinner....I was saving a little piece of my halibut just in case they moved closer but Dennis ate it when I wasn't looking. The restaurant owners provided us with blankies to wrap around us because it was so cold but so nice to be out on the patio part.
















Yesterday we had a minor car issue that could have been disastrous. My window went halfway down and would not go back up again! The nearest dealer was over 65 miles away! Panic ensued! Tempers flared! And that was just Lucy!
We were on our way to a winery. We were going to cross a suspension bridge and go to this glass walled conservatory place where you go up in an elevator and can see almost across Maine to Penobscot Island. I think. I was humoring Dennis!
Anyway...while calling the car place and prepping for a long drive and long wait...a kindly mechanic told Den how to try one last time to get the button to work...and it did! Whew! He also said not to touch it 'til we get home. And of course that is the one button that we always hit by accident. I think I will sit in back with Lucy!




On this trip to Maine I am realizing that we have two different ideas about what we want when we get here.
I want a walk in the morning and a book and my iPad during the afternoon. We are right on the water, you can see mountains and boats and people walking all around. I love to sit on the deck or in the living room and read and chat until dinner. I want coffee or tea mid afternoon and then a shower and dinner. A lovely drink and a lovely dinner. Then back to our room and Lucy and tv and more reading. I am happy...so happy staying in Camden and never moving the car.
It's not complicated at all. I don't want to look at stuff in shops. I don't want a sweater with lobsters on it. I don't want a "You Are My Maine Man" tee. There are lovely things to buy and usually we get a new print or hand made mugs or something special. I am buying a hand carved fish on a stick...later today...you won't be laughing when I show him to you later...lol...but...
Camden shuts down at nine at night...we were starved for ice cream last night and at 9:01 the ice cream shop shut down. This kind of trip is not for everyone but I love it! I cannot even begin to tell you how much! We have been coming to Maine on and off for years and this is what I love. My life in Maine is just like my life at home...who knew?
Dennis the Explorer needs action...he worries about what we are not doing even while we are doing something else and even if we have already done it. Usually taking an afternoon and letting him plan something helps. See yesterday's car fiasco. Sending him off for a power walk in the afternoon helps. Forcing him to read three chapters in his book before I will talk to him works the best...why didn't I think of that sooner?
Books...
finished this...




Reading this...almost done...didn't like it at first but really enjoying it now...




Saving this for the ride home...




Lucy feels the same way I do about how to spend time in Camden...she is basking in harbor views here...








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A Very Good Day! Uneventful...

Life is good when everyone's stuff is put neatly away in closets. We each have our own closet and all the extra bags are folded and put away. Den even likes his new Reny boat bag for stashing away laundry. We are spread out into two rooms and I keep my closet door shut...tightly...of course we still have stuff in the car...shoes, etc.
Aaah...the turmoil won't bubble up again until we are loading up for the drive home. This is what our room looks like...lovely room 5 at the Grand Harbor Inn. A lovely breakfast tray every morning, Keurig coffee maker in the little baby bar part...it's just so lovely here this time of year...no crowds yet, one of our favorite restaurants is closed for a pre summer break...it's all peaceful and pleasant. We walk and read and go to dinner. We nap and read and walk some more. There is no pressure to see stuff because we know what's out there. I think this is why we love Maine so much.












Dinner last night was here.




This is the most amazing restaurant. Anthony Bourdain has filmed here. It wins awards all of the time. Gardens are everywhere. Chickens, ducks, piglets, bees, berries, herbs...all are steps from the restaurant in lovely beds or cute houses. Last night while having dinner we swear we saw staff race from the kitchen to the gardens to grab a handful of something that will be in a salad or entree in minutes. This place is a foodie's dream. From the breads to the wine to the hand made chocolates served at dinner's end...it's all amazing.




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We opted for salads and hand cut house made pastas last night...I had a baby spinach salad with pine nuts in a grainy mustardy dressing. Den had the Farmer's salad with a backyard poached egg in its center. Both were incredible.




I had gnocchi...this one...I think those pea shoots were the ones in the garden minutes ago...lol...




More of Primo's gardens...




The buzzing happy bees...




The Primo piggies...




Every plant and living thing is respected at Primo's. We were talking with Sarah, our server, last night...about what it's like when the piggies time is up. This was on our minds because piglets were arriving on Friday. Sarah said that it is a day of celebration...the piggies have a wonderful life...until they don't any more...sad but factual. The kitchen has bins that are clearly labeled for food waste...that the chickens, ducks, guineas and pigs eat. Melissa and Price...Primo's owners...are incredible. Nothing is left to chance...everything is perfect and delicious. I love that it closes for the winter and has just been opened for a few weeks...we are here at just the right time!




This is usually what we see Lucy doing as we are leaving for dinner...Settling down for a little rest...until we get back!




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Camden...Reading...Dinner?

Yesterday...an odd duck of a day...lots of rain...in fact the night before yesterday began...there were lightning storms everywhere...and tons of rain...of course I am in full summer mode so I had nothing warm ish...I had wraps and some light dressy sweaters...gauzy fun things that would get sopping wet in minutes!




I am such a great packer...lol...
And...I had the brilliant idea of packing lighter...and stopping in Camden before we checked in to our hotel...to do laundry...right after we had a Red's Lobster Roll for lunch! We are not huge lobstah eaters but Red's is kind of a tradition.








Ok...the laundry? Very bad idea...we had no clue what the rules were and we kept feeding quarters into all the wrong machines...who knew arrows meant anything? And folding clothes on the wrong tables...more knowledgeable people than us kept moving our stuff. People who use laundromats appear to be very territorial...I learned this very quickly...
And the laundromat lady would not let me use her bathroom. Ok...so I did look sort of drowned rattish...did I mention it was pouring? The rain made me want a bathroom even more...but she said I had to go to Remy's next door.








Ok...bear with me while I explain Reny's...in a nutshell it is unexplainable...it is a store that carries anything you need ever...I went in to find a bathroom and came out with three sort of canvas boat bags...two pink and one blue...a warm black zippered hoodie to replace my cold wet one...a nail file...I think I spent $3.00...not really but Den reads this...I could have purchased dishes, towels, food, shoes, literally anything...and if you are thinking it's like a Target? No way...it's a one of a kind Maine store...Reny's!!!
Ok...laundry finally done...those dryers are a total ripoff...thank God someone took pity on me and told me that very hot meant nothing and to use it...otherwise I would still be there!
Off to our hotel...where the next fiasco occurs. We are the last room on the right.
Lucy's favorite room...lol...




Now to the official unloading of the car...this is an 11 room lovely hotel...Den began the unloading...a bag of clothes for each of us, his bag of chargers, book, iPad, my bag of chargers, two books, Kindle, my iPad, my day purse, my night purse, my walking cross body bag, bag of shoes, Lucy's Hello Kitty backpack, her litter box, her stroller, bag of toiletries, three extra new bags from Reny's with freshly washed clothes inside...I think that was it...there is still a bag of fine washable clothes in the car that I like to hang and not put in the dryer plus our snack basket! And beer mugs and my white duck...OMG...
We were all good until someone asked Den how long we were staying...and then we both lost it!!!
I resumed speaking to him at dinner...which was lovely and put us in happy moods again...
we ate at Fresh!!!
A skip hop and jump from our hotel...it was still pouring!!! Dinner was fantastic...I had a wedgie lettuce salad and another starter...falafel...sounds odd but it was perfect...Den had steak and mashed sweet potatoes and an amazing tomato salad...




Book news...finished this...so good!




Reading this...so good!




Waking her up for a walk!
Sun is out!!!
We will all be happy until we have to pack the car again!!!




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And A Good Time Was Had By All!

This was taken after a long walk by the water yesterday morning...Lucy was pushed in her brand new all terrain stroller and appears to be exhausted. Den and I are pleased to be able to provide enriching experiences for Lucy Grace...lol. So far Lucy has been in two different hotels, strolled the streets of Portland, taken an hour walk along the beach, put up with doggies staring into her stroller as well as enduring the actual drive up here...sat by a fire pit and had a drink with us...in her stroller of course...and when housekeeping came to see if we needed anything...Lucy answered the door with me and promptly dashed into the hallway...freaking me out...lol...is she a little too comfy?




We are off to Street And Company for dinner...we have been coming here for years...all of these neat restaurants are in Old Port in these amazing old buildings. Beams and old wood and great architecture...it's what we love about this part of Maine.



We had local oysters as a starter for dinner...I had sole. Den had halibut...grilled and yummy. Delicious breads, a great glass of wine, a yummy salad. Maine oysters...if you like oysters, are my favorites in the world...small, icy cold and served with a minuet sauce. So good.



Then we walked the cobblestone sidewalks in search of gelato...which we found...yeah!!!






This place was great...they stuff the size cup that you want generously with as many flavors as you want...I had S'mores and this baby...I don't even know what it was but I will crave it forever.



This is the cool thing about Portland...it's not as pretty as Camden...but if you just want a day or two of seriously unique shopping and eating...it is a foodie's paradise...you do what we do and stay for a few days...the shops are delightful...more than delightful...lol. This is Old Port. Every shop more fun than the next.



We usually always stay at an amazing boutique hotel called The Portland Regency but because of Lucy we opted for the Marriott Residence Inn...a pet friendly hotel...and we had water views and were just a block or two from Old Port. We would stay here again. But I do miss being in the heart of Old Port.

So...tons of rain today...and we were craving another yummy long walk but I am quoting my husband after begging him to hit the shops..we can't walk in this...it's raining sheets of rain...

But I am determined!



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I Want A Parade!!!

In the town where I grew up...there was a parade for everything and there wasn't anything that we could not walk or bike to.

There were parades for opening the park, closing the park and every holiday you can imagine.

At the drop of a hat there would be baton twirling high school majorettes, the high school band, at least one fire truck, scouts both boy and girl and the mayor of McDonald sitting in a convertible tossing candy...which my mother would never let us touch even though it was wrapped...

Every parade ended with the police chief and his siren or kids riding decorated bicycles and tricycles...a stash of crepe paper at home was a given.

I love parades...we are off to find one today...I have a secret stash of crepe paper ribbons for Lucy's stroller...I am an expert at small vehicle decorating!!!

Happy Memorial Day!!!




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Happy Sunday!!!

Yummy hot dogs!!! We were more hungry for Yank's Franks and homemade root beer than a lobstah roll!!!



I bought a hand carved white duck here...I know it looks like junk but it was full of the coolest stuff!!! Twiggy stuff and peeled shutters...I love shabby chic anything...




Just came in from a walk around Old Port...had a yummy iced coffee from Crema...Lucy very patiently "chatted" with a three year old who wanted to get into her stroller...so funny...we left a trail of toddlers shouting "gato"...



Everyone is tired and resting before dinner. Tonight it is Fore Street...one of our favorite places here.







Lucy stays home for this one...Den and I need a night out alone!!!