Pajama Sale

Every year, starting some time before we moved back to Maine, the town started an annual pajama sale on the second Saturday in November. This year, since we have decided not to do Christmas gifts aside from stockings, I didn't think we'd go. I realized though, when Mike came home Friday night with two grocery bags filled with sausage, eggs, tater tots, and cocoa for hot chocolate, that the pajama sale had reached holiday proportions in his mind. 

"We're going to have a big breakfast--7 am sharp!--then head to the sale in town."

"But, why? We're not buying anything."

"Well, we need a new park pass," (they're discounted during the sale), "and we can get the free fudge and taffy at Acadia Country Store and just window shop!" 

So that's what we did! I think this was my favorite year yet, since Mike and I stayed together instead of trying to avoid each other while we shop for gifts. It is a really fun morning, and I like the festive feeling--a lot of people about buying Christmas gifts, people from other parts of the island running into others they don't see so much, and a lot of the shops have coffee, hot chocolate, and baked goods out. We still have never stayed for the bed races, which I'm told are hilarious. Maybe next year. 

We did hit up Serendipity to stock up on some winter gear--they all found hats they like, so we grabbed those and a pair of brand new pants for Mike. Scores all around.

Chores

Madie broke into tears on Tuesday when I pulled out the pair of snow pants a friend of mine gave us when they moved. They didn't fit last year but this year--like a glove. 

"What is wrong with these?" 

"I want snow bibs!"

"Okay, but that's not something to cry about. These are in great condition, no tears, a cute pattern--patterned snow pants!"

"They're ugly! I hate them!"

"Madie, why are these ugly?" 

"They just are!" 

Oh.

"Listen, we are not going to buy new snow pants just because you don't like the ones we already have. If you want different ones that badly, you need to buy them yourself."

"I can't! They're too much! They were $10 at Marden's and I only have $3." 

"You only have $3 because you never do any money chores. We are literally trying to give you money for things we can just do ourselves and you guys won't take it!" 

"By the time I earn enough they probably won't even be at Marden's." 

"You could earn $7 in a couple hours. Stop whining and do something useful."

And thus ended my pep talk for the week.

Fast forward to Friday. Here we are on a day off from school with a whole afternoon and nothing to do. I suggest after lunch that anyone who doesn't want a traditional quiet time (reading a book, taking a nap, drawing, etc.) can do some money chores. Finn opts for setting up a "desk" and writing out phrases like, "Madie is farty." (Thanks, Ms. P, for teaching my son to write.) Madie decides to pick a task from the money-chore list on the fridge. 

Now my windows are clean, my door knobs and switch panels are disinfected, my heaters and dining chairs are dusted, the garage is swept, and Madie is $7 richer.

We had a high today of 35, in the sun. And the wind was bitter.

But my garage is clean.

Here's hoping Marden's still has $10 snow pants.

Halloween

This year, I told the kids two weeks before Halloween that they needed to nail down their costume ideas THEN. This was mostly a message to Finn. He is one of the least decisive people I've ever met; always flip-flopping between one idea and another until the day before. He struggles to even pin down what he wants for breakfast on a week day when the options rarely vary: toast, bread, oatmeal, or eggs. Holy moly.

This year, Petya wanted to go as Fireman Sam. It is her absolute favorite show. Every day she asks to watch Fireman Sam. Every day she asks for me to sing her the theme song. Every day leading up to Halloween she told people, "I'm going as Fireman Sam." 

And of course, the week before Halloween we completely lost the fireman helmet we have had for three years. The morning of the Halloween party at church (the Wednesday before Halloween this year), we stopped at the fire station dispatch in town and asked if they had any on hand--that's where we had gotten our other one--but they just happened to all be away on a call that came in literally minutes before. So, Petya went as a cow girl and rode the hobby horse Finn made her for her birthday.

Just relaxing between cattle runs.

Of course, I never got back to the fire station--our town being so large and sprawled out--so she went without the hat for trick-or-treating too, but she didn't seem to mind. Here they all are just before we started out--and before it was too dark for a picture:

L-R: Hermione Granger, a tiger, and Fireman Sam.

The Friday before Halloween, there is big party at the Dorr Museum. Apparently this happens every year, but this was our first to hear about it. They had a table of cricket foods--fried crickets, caramel popcorn balls with crickets, chocolate cricket fudge, General Tsao cricket skewers. Aside from the legs getting stuck between your teeth, they weren't bad. Especially the skewers. I would definitely be down with those again. Upstairs they had a dim and quiet room with a man who cares for owls. He held them and talked about them and answered questions. Downstairs they had some crafts and some hands-on activities like holding snakes and scavenging. The scavenging was so clever: they took the hide of an animal--I can't remember which, beaver I think--folded it in half and hid candy in the fold. The kids had to stick their hands in to pull out the candy. 

I told Madie that we might get Petya a snake sometime, since she seemed so taken with  them. She shuddered and protested. I told her they make great pets, and can mouse just as well as any cat, making them useful, but she didn't seem to think that was justification for getting one.

Soccer

Soccer is such a great sport, particularly for little kids. It is so good for developing motor skills, and is a good introduction to team sports. Mal and I were probably overly ambitious in attempting to both coach different teams (Mal with Finn and myself with Madie), along with a new born, and a 3 year old. It was complicated, but we made it work. Our biggest worry was ensuring that the kids had a good experience with a consistent coach. I'm glad we did because we were the most consistent ones of all the ages groups! 

Finn loves sports, and immediately warmed up to soccer. He was excited to play, and would typically score 1-2 goals per game. His friends were on the team, and it was a smashing success. Great work, buddy!

Madie was reluctant about soccer at first. She wasn't interested in team sports because "...they are dumb." We told her she had to try it and see how it goes. Guess what happened? Guess what typically happens? Say...I like team sports, Sam I am! She was getting more and more aggressive as the season went on, and at the very end was eagerly contributing to her team. After the season, she admitted that she loves soccer! She wants to keep playing to get better and better. I think we'll work on some more basics indoors this winter and keep that flame lit. Very proud of Madie's change of attitude and newfound love. 

It was fun to coach my team. They are all very bright kids, and have a lot of potential. This was the first year the YMCA in Bar Harbor decided to participate in a soccer league, so there were a lot of first-time soccer players. It will only get better, and we will win more games as time passes. Great introductory season to soccer for everyone. Plus, the parents all chipped in to get me a Geddy's gift card. Very kind of those that contributed! We went out to Geddy's that night and took the night off cooking and cleaning. 

First Backpacking Trip

Earlier in the spring, I had been talking to the kids about backpacking and potential backpacking trips that I'd like to take them on. I love backpacking because you can visit some very remote places, away from roads and cars. Places that few people are willing to visit, or ever see. I wanted to take them on a trip that would be fun, but give them a taste of what backpacking is all about. The Daddy & Kids Canoe campout was the perfect opportunity. We paddled in last year, but decided to mix things up this year with backpacking in. 

On our way to the trailhead at Great Pond Mountain Preserve, we stopped by McDonalds to load up on provisions. We got to the trailhead by sunset, and began our hike. It got dark very quickly, and found ourselves hiking under the milky way. The kids clung closer to me, particularly Finn. Questions about wild animals, and Bigfoot came up. Finn's curiosity kept him asking questions, while Madie was on the other side of the coin saying "Okay, you can stop talking about that now!" Though she wouldn't admit it, she was a little scared too. 

We had a map, and knew where we were going...until we missed the fork. We must have overshot it by a half a mile, but figured out we were a bit off, then got back on the correct path. The kids were a little concerned that we had turned around, and thought we were lost. I tried to calm them down by saying, "That's the great thing about backpacking, we have everything we need right on our backs!" An hour later, we arrived at camp and had s'mores. We set up our hammocks to avoid a blood clot from sleeping on a 30 degree slope. Why this spot was chosen, I have no idea! It works, but tent camping with 25+ people is quite rough. We wised up this year with the hammocks, but I'm still trying to figure out how to sleep in a hammock (I usually only manage 2-3 hours of sleep per night). 

At the start...

The previous photo was too serious...let's spice things up. 

Everyone else canoed in, including a family that used ours. It was nice, because we still took it out for a canoe ride. The morning was gorgeous. 

Poor Finn woke up with some sort of rash. Not sure what it was, but it seemed to be connected to stress or anxiety, because it was gone after 24 hours. He seemed to have fun though!

The colors were incredible. 

It's always fun to walk back the next day in the light so you can see all of the things you walked by. There were a few swamps where beavers lived along the trail. When we walked by in the dark, they would slap their tails against the water to warn us away. It was alarming in the dark when you least expected it. 

These Happy Meal cameras were a huge hit at the campout. 

Madie didn't want to look at the camera, at all. 

Both kids had a good experience, overall. I think we have more trips in the future!

Fall, in Review

Since Amity was born, Petya has been hit with the hardest with adjusting to the changes in our family dynamics. She loves Amity, and wants to take care of her, but has also been regressing with potty training and in behavior (most likely for attention). We have really had to push and remind her that she is a big girl now, and she needs to act like one. We've changed the plates and utensils that she eats with, we have given her some other responsibilities, and have tried to spend some more one on one time with her. It's all been helping, and she is back to progressing...for the most part. I took her on this hike up Parker Mountain on a beautiful Friday afternoon. 

She still enjoys hiking in the backpack, but if there are some challenging rocks to scramble, she wants out. My kind of girl. 

On a cooler day in September, we decided to fire up the stove. Too cozy not to!

We also made it up to Grammy Haskins a few times. We took Elvis with us one of those times, and explored Dover a bit. 

Hanging out at the old Mill property down the street from Grammy. 

One thing I wish we had in our neighborhood was a sidewalk. It's so nice to be able to use walking as a mode of transportation. That's one thing I really liked about Livermore, we literally walked everywhere! We really didn't need a car, except for excursions to Yosemite or somewhere else off the beaten path. 

Some outside time with Mumma and Petya. 

Amity was happy hanging out with Grammy in her nice warm blanket while we watched General Conference. 

Madie turns 8

Madie had a great birthday celebration with family at Grammy Haskins house, where there was cake and ice cream. I can't believe how big this girl is getting!

Per usual, every even birthday means a birthday party for the kids. Madie celebrated her birthday at Seal Harbor Beach, and of course, it was beach themed. Mal made a dolphin pinata, there was cake, juice, etc. Madie had a bunch of friends there. One thing I have noticed about Madie is she is much less shy than she was a couple of years ago. She has really slid out of her shell, and likes to be with her friends. 

For her birthday, I took her camping in the backyard this year. We tried out the new hammocks as well. She was a little bummed that we didn't go backpacking for her birthday campout, but it was so crazy with Amity being born, family being in town, etc. I promised we would go backpacking later in the fall. But I did take her out to breakfast to Two Cats. I also interviewed her, even though I was falling asleep while we were hanging out on our hammocks. I was so tired that I was literally falling asleep mid-sentence while talking to Madie. Here are the responses I got:

1. Favorite Color: red
2. Favorite Breakfast: German pancakes
3. Favorite Lunch: hot dogs
4. Favorite Dinner: hamburgers
5. Favorite Season: summer
6. Favorite Month: "August...duh!"
7. Favorite Holiday: Christmas
8. Best Friend: Cora
9. Favorite Cousin: Sadie
10. Favorite Vegetable: "Nothing. I hate vegetables!"
11. Favorite Fruit: watermelon and strawberries
12. Favorite Book: Harry Potter
13. Favorite Game: B.S. (which we call No Way)
14. Favorite Sport: Swimming
15. Favorite Restaurant: 2 Cats
16. Favorite Meat: hamburger
17. Favorite Place to Visit: "Idaho, where I was born." (she really liked our trip out west this summer)
18. If you could live anywhere, where would it be?: Idaho
19. When you grow up, what do you want to be?: scientist, astronomer
20. What do you like about Primary?: "Nothing. It's boring because you have to sit in old hard plastic chairs."
21. Best friend at church?: Ruby Wilson
22. Favorite Ice Cream: Moose Tracks
23. Favorite Donut: Glazed
24. Favorite Pizza: Pepperoni at Pats Pizza
25. Favorite Cereal: Cinnamon Toast Crunch: 
26. Favorite thing about Mumma: She's a good cook
27. Favorite thing about Finn: when he acts like an old lady
28. Favorite thing about Petya: cute and funny
29. Favorite thing about Amity: "Adorable! Eeeeee!"
30. Favorite thing about Grammy and Grampy: nice and they spoil me
31. Favorite thing about Nana and Papa: See Grammy and Grampy
32. Favorite thing about camping: s'mores
33. Favorite thing about tents: Sheltered, warm
34. Favorite thing about Elvis: cute, nice
35. Favorite thing about Dad: nice and takes you camping
36. Favorite animal: cats
37. If you had a super power, what would it be?: walk through walls
38. Favorite Fish: tuna
39. Favorite Sunday activity: Playing games
40. Favorite Dessert: Moms clouds
41. Favorite flower: roses
42. Favorite Wild Animal: fox
43. Favorite Marine Animal: blue whale
44. Favorite Singer: Taylor Swift
45. Favorite Football Team: Patriots
46. Favorite Baseball Team: Red Sox
47. Favorite Instrument: Viola 
48. Favorite thing to do in the snow: snow fort
49. What's something new that you want to learn?: astronomy
50. Favorite Movie: Harry Potter