Only one week after our return to Heron House (which still looks pretty much like a construction zone amid a sea of unpacked boxes), Craig and I flew to Maine to spend a week with my son Steve, daughter-in-law Jenn, and granddaughter Grace. We rented a house in East Boothbay Harbor through AirBnB (love AirBnB!) with a view of the water. The house was big enough for all five of us, and we took turns making meals for each other. We went on day trips to various nearby spots, and returned almost every day to nearby tidepools, to gather sea glass and hunt for crabs.
Craig and I agreed: this was one of our best vacations ever! Spending this time with Gracie filled my heart and nourished me in a way I don’t think I can even express.
Here’s the view from our deck one morning when we woke to fog . . .
A couple of mornings later, we woke to this. (That’s Monhegan Island in the distance.)
Grace was thrilled (well, we all were) to watch the ospreys that flew overhead and perched in the trees nearby. We came to know their call very well, and raced for the binoculars as soon as we heard them.
The rain didn’t keep us from visiting the tide pools. Grace was fascinated by all the crabs and gathered as many as she could find in her hands and in her bucket, then let them all go when we left.
We all collected sea glass. I didn’t know until this visit that my son Steve picked up the practice from me, and now we are passing it on to Gracie. Love that.
Grace and I kept a nature journal of some of our favorite moments of the day.
We went out to lunch at the Blue Moon Cafe (gluten free!!) and Gracie took this selfie of us. (Am I a happy grandma or what?)
In the evening, we sorted our sea glass by color, and we each filled a bottle with our treasures. Now we have matching Grandma-and-Gracie bottles of sea glass!
One day we went on a boat to Monhegan Island . . .
I fell in love with the energy and beauty of this special place, and hope to return. No cars, no cell phone or internet, just that magical sense of being apart from the rest of the world. (Oh I do love islands!)
And we found fairy houses in the forest!
There was ao much more . . . my heart is full to overflowing, just to look at these photos and remember our week together. I hope it is so for her as well.
I love my Gracie.
I lived in Maine for ten years and loved the wide variety of beauty from the very rocky coast to the wooded forests inland. Monhegan Island was THE place to go for artists and the group I was with at the time scheduled an annual trip there for a day of painting, photography and good food.
I’m envious of all the sea glass you collected. When I lived in Port Angeles, Washington, from which I moved to Flagstaff, Az a year ago, I only found a small handful. The coast was ruthlessly picked over on the peninsula. So glad, really, that you and your family had so much fun! 😀
Thanks Lea! I would love a full day (or more) on Monhegan Island, to soak it all in and to paint, paint, paint.
A lot of the sea glass we found was tiny, tiny, tiny pieces. My son has a good eye for it. I was amazed at how much he found.
Blessings of the desert to you!
I live in TN but also vacationed in Maine this summer with my 85 year old mother. We stayed 1/2 way between Bar Harbor and Lubec so we could explore all of downeast Maine. We had a wonderful cottage on the bay and watched the tides come and go, the clam gatherers at low tide, the eagles, the lupines (fabulous) and enjoyed the utter peace and quiet of the rocky coast. So many little sea coast towns! Such delicious food! And, most importantly, making memories of and with my mother.
Joanna, I’ve been a reader and fan of you blog for quite awhile. I’ve have always delighted in seeing your photos and reading about your adventures with Gracie (: She has grown so much!
As an upcoming Grandmother, I know how blessed you are and how much I have to look forward to! 😉
You made me miss home….. a lot! Found your site on a search for a child hood friend with the same name and also typed in Maine and this is where I landed. Thank you for such a wonderful read. Your granddaughter is very lucky to have someone as special as you in her life, keep teaching.
You are so welcome, Becky. Glad you landed here by serendipity. I am headed back to Maine in a couple of weeks. Many Blessings.