We arrived at DandK's home (actually located in New Hampshire, right next to the state line) late Wednesday evening and went straight to bed. Thursday morning after eating breakfast and introducing our kids to one another we headed towards our first destination, Nubble Lighthouse. This lighthouse is located on a small island that is very close to the mainland. It was fun to take a few pictures and explore the rocky coast. E seemed mesmerized by the waves, but wasn't too excited when the water got close. I think the cold and loud crashing of the waves startled her.
E and her new friend C
For our first meal in Maine we had to grab some seafood. Danielle took us to Bob's Clam Hut in Kittery(featured on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives) and we enjoyed calamari, a clam burger and onion rings.
After lunch we headed out to sea on a Lobster Cruise! The boat cruised up the coast past the Church former President Bush attends as well as his huge coastal home. We also sailed by a rock where sea lions/seals typically play and spotted a few playing in the water. Then the boat stopped near a bouy and pulled up a cage. It had two lobsters in it. The guides briefly described how they measured the lobsters and the regulations that told them if they could keep the lobster or if it had to be thrown back in. They even passed around a lobster for us to hold and take pictures with. While I was holding the lobster and posing for a picture, E reached out and touched the lobster too. She seemed very intrigued by it!
After the cruise we headed to the Cape Pier Chowder House in Kennebunkport for more yummy seafood. Matthew and I have never shelled our own lobster, so we decided we had too. We split a lobster and although it was a fun experience, we both felt like you get little meat for all the work. We also split the best seafood chowder I have ever had...delicious! We took a few more pictures off the pier near the restaurant and then headed back to the house. Day one in Maine was everything I dreamt it would be.
Friday, Matthew, E and I headed up north toward Portland, Maine on our own. We stopped at Old Orchard Beach to see the iconic pier and enjoy the beach. It was the perfect sunny day and the water felt great. It was still too cold for E, but she enjoyed the sand and breeze. We had "Mexican" food (A taco and burrito) on the pier followed by a deep friend Reese's and an ice cream cone. This ice cream was called Maine Survivor; it is a vanilla based ice cream with fudge swirls, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, whole peanuts and big chunks of baked chocolate chip cookies. I am pretty sure it was the best ice cream I've ever had and I ate it before I got a picture. I've since tried to look up where it is sold, but unfortunately it is not sold widely. I have been tempted to contact the manufacturer and get it in bulk!
Next we headed to the Portland Head Lighthouse in Fort Williams Park. In the distance you could see a second lighthouse, I believe it is called Ram Island Lighthouse. We wandered the paths and climbed up and down the small cliffs. We watched the ships sail by and explored the ruins of the fort. As we were about to leave the fort Matthew observed a strange narrow opening on either side of it and wondered if the openings connected, so he decided to take a walk into the darkness. It did in fact connect and Matthew actually ran into other people curious about the passageways and they told him that they happened upon a geocache. We thought it was a fun and tricky place to hide a cache!
Portland Head Lighthouse and Ram Island Lighthouse in the distance
Later that evening we met back up with Danielle at her house and joined her, Kress and her brother and sister-in-law for pizza and s'mores.
Saturday morning we left bright and early to catch a ferry to Peak's Island to search for sea glass. On the ride over we saw giant kites and old forts. E of course loved looking around and feeling the wind through her hair. Once on the island we strolled to one of the sandy beaches to begin our search. It was beautiful and although we did find a few pieces of sea glass, they were small and mostly brown, so we decided to head to a more rocky beach to see if we would have better luck. I am so glad we did, because in every handful there were rocks, shells and sea glass. Again, most of it was brown and white, but I also found two shades of green, yellow, blue and even lavender. The yellow, blue and lavender are pretty small, but they are also more rare finds, especially the lavender. Danielle was floored that I found lavender since she had never found a piece that color and she grew up in the area, but about 5 minutes later she also found a lavender piece, but hers was much bigger. She was pretty happy too!
When we got to the main land we enjoyed food from a wonderful Thai restaurant called Pom's Thai Taste. Matthew and I both ventured from our normal go-to of curry and we weren't disappointed.
We decided it would be a good idea to walk off all that food so Kress and Danielle took us on a popular coastal walk called Marginal Way, but after all that walking we got hungry again. As it was our last night in Maine, Matthew and I had to get our fill of seafood and we enjoyed Bob's Crab Hut so much (and it is super kid friendly) that we went back for seconds. This time I got a jumbo lobster roll and Matthew was somehow able to convince the woman taking our order to give him a free "sample" (an entire basket) of clam strips with his order. Needless to say, the food on this trip did not disappoint.
Sunday morning we went to church and then began our journey home. We decided to take a different route home so that we could visit Keene, New Hampshire where the movie Jumanji was filmed and Sharon/Royalton, Vermont where the Prophet Joseph Smith Jr. was born. It was a beautiful drive and we enjoyed stopping to take a few random photos as well as buy Maple syrup from a road side stand.
A foundation stone of the Smith family home
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