The Maine Summer Event!

Ah... the annual summer voyage to Maine. I love it. Ron loves it. Sam is lovin' it too. This year was so nice, as Ron, Sam and I, Kathie, John, Tia and Tanner, and my folks all rented a cottage on Wilson lake, in the southern western part of Maine. It was SO NICE. The camp was cozy with two levels, allowing Mom

and Dad to have a little bit of privacy on the bottom level. The weather was cool and very comfortable, with very few mosquitos. We had many pieces of "equipment" to entertain us. Three bikes, a canoe, a kayak and our legs for walking around the perimeter of the lake (approx. 4 miles - perfect!). For a couple days, the adults took turns putting a puzzle together on the porch (that can be very addictive! Where's SAM?!). The kids played outside quite a bit, but also had the 'luxury' of watching t.v. or DVDs. Ron and I were able to take a few solo walks, which was really nice. One of those walks, we guestimated to be about 6-8 miles. We started on a 4-wheel trail which weaved and winded (wound?) thru the woods - very pretty - to emerge on a road a little farther from camp than expected. What a nice day though! I also managed one day to swim about a 1/2 mile, the length of the swim portion of the triathlon I'm

doing the end of September. I was THRILLED to learn it only took me about 30 min. While that is the slower end of that timed segment, it's not an embarrassing amount of time to swim it either. Phew! We didn't do too much sight-seeing. That said, we did venture to Old Orchard Beach near Portland, mostly for the kids. I think Ron enjoyed reminiscing a little, as he worked at "Splashtown" for a summer. Sam enjoyed a couple kiddie rides, and I went on a couple "big kid" rides with Tia and Tanner. My parents bought some salt water taffy on The Pier ("Oh Honey, this place has really changed from

what i remember!"). One day, the Telford Family drove to Saco to meet a dude that Ron's been chatting with through a message board online. His name is Jeff and his fiancee Danielle. Real nice couple. They took us to the Portland Lighthouse. Ron was also able to meet up with some college friends that live in Hiram. They came to the camp with their three boys, and all the kids had a good time running around playing flashlight tag (thank GOD that still lives!) and roasting marshmallows. What a super fun week!