Range Pond State Park

After all the rainy weather we have had the last few weeks, today's amazing weather was a welcome relief and a perfect opportunity to enjoy the outdoors.  My younger son and I went to Range Pond State Park in Poland this afternoon for a hike.  We were not the only ones with the idea of going to Range Pond today however.  There were dozens of teens and other crazy Mainers soaking up the sun and playing in the water.  I kinda wished that I had thought to bring our swim suits and sand toys, but our hike was amazing just the same.  Check out the photos I took at Range to see the beautiful blue sky and puffy clouds against the water.  What an amazing Spring day!  

Pineland Farms Market

Since I've started to read "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" by Barbara Kingsolver, I've been thinking a lot about incorporating more local foods into my family's diet. We already eat our own farm-fresh eggs and we drink milk from the farm down the road but we could be doing a lot more. So this morning I ventured over to  Pineland Farms Market  and came away with all of the following local fare:

Grandy Oats-Maine Grown Rolled Oats

Little Lad's- Original Granola

New Gloucester Village Store Bakery-Honey Wheat Bread

Olivia's Garden, New Gloucester- Fresh Basil & Spring Mix

Pineland Farms- Chicken Salad & Harvest Salsa

Pineland Farms Creamery- Cheddar & Fresh Cheese Curds

Pineland Farms Natural Meats- Boneless Shoulder Steak & Ground Beef

The Farmer's Eight Daughters-No Bake Cookies

I love that all of the items are made locally, have minimal packaging, and didn't break my food budget.  I love that I was the only shopper in the store and could shop at my own pace.  Also, as I drove the 6-8 minutes back to my house, I realized that this market (filled with local foods) is closer to my home than the grocery store (filled with food from who knows where) which is 20 minutes away.  So I saved gas to boot!   I am feeling so much more inspired now!

Owl Spotting

Walking up the driveway with Ehric I happened to look up into a tree and spotted a Barred Owl. The tree is located right near our chicken coop so I think the owl was on the lookout for dinner. When I spotted it I immediately pointed it out to Ehric, and then ran in the house and grabbed my camera. I was able to snap this picture of the owl looking at us. I have seen owls close up at the local wild life park but never in my own backyard before. I am so excited!! Next time I see it I will be sure to call out "Who Cooks for you? Who Cooks for you all?" Maybe it will hoot back.

Maple Sugar Time

Today we visited a local Sugar Shack to see how Maple Syrup is made. It was a beautiful March Day and we had a lot of fun. The owner did a great job explaining to the kids; and didn't mind answering my four year olds questions! What more can you ask for?

Showing us the tools used to boar holes and to tap the trees.

Talking a walk into the woods.

The lines carrying the sap

Where the lines end up.The tub where the sap is collected.

Outside the Sugar Shack

Inside the Sugar Shack--Boiling it down

The Final Product: Maple Syrup ($50/gallon)

Eating Ice Cream with Maple Syrup! Yummy!

Every Wednesday bloggers post pictures of the Outdoors. Please visit Outdoor Wednesday to see even more outdoor pictures.

Maine Maritime Museum

On Saturday Ehric and I had a special day out together. We went to the Maine Maritime Museum for their free event called, Crossing the Line. They had crafts for the kids, a little parade with King Neptune (the god of the sea) and various displays. On their grounds they have a really neat play ship for the kids that includes a slide and other fun things. The sky was so blue that day and we even saw two bald eagles flying in the sky! The ice on the water was floating down in big chunks. It was really a pretty sight, and a beautiful day despite the cold weather.

Ehric and I discovered this game amongst the displays. You are a ship trying to sail across the blue ocean. On your route you run into all kinds of mishaps like pirates, fire and other maladies. It was a really fun game and we must have played the game atleast five times while we were at the museum.

They had a captain's room were the kids could pretend to be in charge. Ehric loved it when we blew the horns to warn the ships in the harbor. Here he is in his dark-blue shirt holding his ears. He had a lot of fun in this small room and even got a few adults into his fun.

Ehric (in his blue coat) was so imaginative on this kid's play ship. He had so much fun steering the wheel, climbing up and down the stairs, going down the slide or making up stories about pirates. I really wish we had one of these at home. He burned a lot of energy there. Isn't the sky so blue?

Here are those chunks of ice. The sky was so beautiful. Too bad I wasn't able to get a picture of the bald eagles who were circling above in the blue sky.

Blue Monday is hosted by Smiling Sally.

Worthley Pond

I am really excited about a new meme I stumbled upon, Outdoor Wednesday. On Wednesday people all over the blog world are posting photos of the outdoors. The photos can be of anything outdoors: your yard, a forest, field, beach, etc. I can't wait to see what other people share!

I thought Outdoor Wednesday would be the perfect time to share some photos from our trip to Worthley Pond this weekend. It was so beautiful out (in the mid 50s) that we didn't wear a coat most of the time we were there.

The kids had fun cross country skiing, sledding, running through the slush, and Ehric even got to go on his first snowmobile ride!

Ehric talked the man on the snowmobile into letting him take control of the steering wheel. Or should I say he probably pushed the man's hands off.

A friend of ours caught this fish. When we checked it out up close you could really examine its gills. It was pretty neat. Apparently out of all the icefishing traps set this was the only one caught that day!

Ehric's Day Out With Daddy

Yesterday Ehric and Daddy went on an adventure together. It was special because Ehric got Daddy all to himself without little brother tagging along. Which meant that Momma and Aiden got to spend the day alone together as well. It was good to seperate the boys for a while. They have been fighting a lot lately. Too cooped up together.

Eating BBQ at Buck's (Daddy's favorite food).

Ehric and Daddy went out for lunch and then off to LL Bean for their Kid's Week activities. They tried to watch a magic/juggling show but the room was jam packed. So Daddy let Ehric be the leader and they had a big adventure around the store.

Inside the see through fish tank at LL Bean.

Ehric and the other child in the picture remind me of little pixies in a garden.

Daddy and Ehric getting a picture with LL Bear

Outside of the store Ehric got to pet some sled dogs, and drink hot chocolate. They had a really fun time together. I think Ehric really needed that special attention. I can tell by the pictures that hubby took that Ehric had such a great time!

Bradbury Mountain

Today was unseasonably warm in Maine...we were blessed with 50 degree weather in February! I wont hold my breath though, because I am sure the weather will change soon. But for today we got to enjoy the sun. My neighbor and her son invited us to go hiking at Bradbury Mountain State Park. We took her up on the offer and went for a winter hike.

When we first got there we had all the boys in just their snow pants (because it was 50 degrees after all--didn't want the boys to roast), but once we got into the shade of the trees Ehric decided that he had to wear a coat. I am glad that I went back for the coats, because it got chilly on the way up.

The boys all had fun climbing up the mountain. Momma realized how out of shape I am! When we got to the top the boys ran around playing tag with one another. Ehric started a snowball fight, but the boys realized quickly that the snow was cold without their gloves on. Guess we should have brought their gloves with us too!

A woman and her adult son joined us at the top. My neighbor and I spoke with the woman while Ehric decided that he was going to play tag with the adult son. He was a good sport about it and played tag right along with him. Ehric got a little rambunctious and Aiden was antsy so we decided to head back down the mountain.

We decided to take another way down...we thought it would be shorter to the ground but we were wrong. Aiden got tired after a while so my neighbor and I took turns carrying him down. Her son got a little jealous of Aiden so of course he had to be carried too. We were all relieved when we finally got back to the bottom.

The kids played on the playground while I got snacks and drinks. We all chowed down on teddy grahams before heading out. I know that we all left there feeling both tired and rejuvenated. I hoped that the boys would nap after all the excitement but no luck! Regardless we had a great time!

Toy Library

We got out of the house today and went and played at the Toy Library. I went specifically today because there was Sesame Street sing-along at 10 a.m. I think everybody and his brother went there today! Usually I am able to find parking either in their parking lot or out front on the street, but today I had to park on a side street a little bit aways. I felt bad for Aiden because I couldn't find one of his gloves this morning. So he had to walk without gloves on and it was pretty cold today.

When we got inside I was surprised by how many people were there. We were the first ones who went inside the sing-along room, so the boys decided to claim two chairs as their own. The man and his wife leading the sing-along are from Quebec. So when they pronounced Sesame Street it was a little hard to make out and they sound a little different. When the man started singing both my boys put their hands over their ears. After that Ehric decided he had enough and both boys decided that they were going to just go play. So we never ended up doing the sing-along.

Another mom from co-op showed up with her girls. So while the mom and I chatted Ehric became chummy with some other boys there. He likes to do flips on the tumbling mats. Aiden likes to play with either the cars of trains. So I felt like I was constanly turning my head to keep an eye on them both.

When I heard a roar coming from Ehric I knew it was time to check in on him. He was just about to bite a little boy when I picked him up. Usually when Ehric starts roaring he is on overload. So I made him stay in a time out for a bit.

Once Ehric cooled down we decided to go upstairs to ride bikes. I was really impressed by Ehric when he waited patiently for the one motorcycle they have (his favorite). Usually he is quick to try to take claim of that bike. He even said 'thank you' after. Much improvement over his behavior down stairs.

For the most part we had a pretty good time despite how warm it was and how many people were there. I even got to have some adult conversation!