Cousins on Kearsarge

We had such a great time hiking Kearsarge with Caren, Dave and Clara on their recent visit.  The cousins had a blast together and I was SHOCKED at how well both Camden and Micah did.  We hiked the Wilmot side for the first time (this is the longer trail up the mountain...in the past we've hiked the Warner side which is much shorter and more manageable with kids).  Camden walked the entire way and Micah insisted on walking too.  He started out in the Ergo and about 5 minutes into the hike he wanted to get out.  He did the rest of the mountain by himself and wouldn't even hold onto our hands on the steep parts!  It was a little nerve-wracking, but they did incredibly well! 

Allenby Portland Fun (Round 1 and Round 2)

We've taken two trips to visit family in Portland, Maine in the last 3 weeks.  The first weekend we went we were supposed to spend the weekend with the whole Allenby clan.  We hadn't seen Jeff and Ashley since Thanksgiving, but then, sadly, their flight got canceled and they had to postpone until two weekends later.  Steve and Nancy had a bed and breakfast reservation and so the rest of us stuck to the original plan and enjoyed a fun weekend even though we weren't ALL together.  One highlight of the weekend was taking a trip to Peaks Island, just a short ferry ride from Portland.  We rented bikes and rode around the island.  It was really fun!

 An attempt at a family photo - obviously it was a fail. 

 The boys had fun in their little double trailer, and Scott had fun lugging an extra 70lbs around.

 Beautiful coast of Maine...

 Humming to a snail to get it to come out of its shell...

 Playing in the tide pools...

 

A beautiful spot for  a picnic lunch...

 Here we are walking through the swamp to get to the old WWII bunker...

 

Battery Steel Bunker which housed two 16 inch guns.

 Nearing the end of the long, pitch-black tunnel connecting the two gun areas...

We got to see a boat bring in a huge load of lobsters that they were then bringing to restaurants in Portland...

This last Friday we returned to Portland for round #2 of the Allenby family gathering!  Jeff and Ashley's plane made it this time, barely, due to more storms, and we had a fun, but short, visit with them.  After hanging out at Brian and Sarah's for most of the morning (we left NH early when we woke up at 6:00am to no power) we went to a great little beach to explore before heading home around naptime...

 The little beach turned into a sandbar and you could walk way out.  The boys loved it!

 We found SO many hermit crabs...

 Camden was a brave boy!

 The rest of the gang arrived a little later (we had to get the boys out of the house...they were crazy...)

 Lots of crabs!

 Brothers - Brian, Scott and Jeff...

 Sisters - Me, Sarah and Ashley

 The original Allenby bunch...

The "kids"...

Thanks for all the Portland fun!