Wrapping it Up...

Back downtown:

Old Orchard:

("WHAT?!?!?  Winter coats at the beach?  WHAT!?!?!?")

(p.s.  There's one lone surfer behind the kids, just coming out of the water.  He was in a full wetsuit, including gloves and hat!!)

We tried all kinds of other favorite food spots:  Otto's Pizza, Gorgeous Gelato, Starbuck's (for cake pops), Dunkin Donuts, and...(below) DiMillo's (for our last night there, the girl cousins had a "nail and movie night", and the "big girls" went out for fresh seafood on a ship!)

More explorations...

Falmouth:

A little relaxation time downtown...aaaaaahhhhh...

 Boda-a DIVINE Thai restaurant!

More of Beautiful Portland...

Friday through Sunday, we explored around Portland area, trying to take in as much of the local flavor as possible.  We saw lots, we ate TONS, and we truly enjoyed the whole time together!

Portland Head Light:

Downtown Portland:

Freeport:

(Note:  Freeport is full of little shops, all name-brand stores in cute little buildings, as well as the L. L. Bean Flagship store-it's actually a "campus" with many buildings, one for each department!  HUGE!!!)

(And yes, it's actually all about the food!)

Boston

Bwo-ston, where they eat "lobstah" and "chowda'" (and they even spell it that way!)...  LOVE IT!!

We girls took the train (Amtrak's Downeaster) to Boston on Thursday.  THAT is a fun way to travel.  No gas.  No parking (parking is very expensive and inconvenient and hard to find in Maine and Massachusetts).  LOTS of great views.  Blueberry soda.  Plenty of self-imposed entertainment...

We hopped of at the North Station, and walked down the cute little streets to Boston Commons.

Boston Commons:

Downtown:

(Georgetown Cupcakes!)

We took a Duck Tour, which packed in all sorts of fun and LOTS of important Boston sites, including many Freedom Trail sites.

Jen's awesome reaction when our "bus" entered The Charles (river):

 Her cousin even got to steer the boat!

After trying a little of just about every food in Boston (and taking the leftovers with us for the ride), we took the subway back to the train.  The conductor laughed at us about 2/3-way home, saying "You guys have been eating since we left Boston!"  That's how we did it-we had to try everything!  :)

The Trip, Part 2 (Maine)

We flew through Newark to Portland on Tuesday night.  (Flying into Newark, alongside Manhattan, just as the sun was going down and the lights were coming up, was breathtaking!  We saw all the sites, including famous buildings and the Statue of Liberty, just as we were about to land.  Incredible!)

Portland Highlights:

This is a park (with a boat dock just off of it) which is literally a block away from Care's house.  Her backyard looks out onto the water, and the neighborhood is ALL about boating, lobster, and the ocean.  So refreshing!

One funny thing--we were there just at the tail end of winter, so there were covered boats in everyone's yards, buoys pulled out of the water and left on empty lots, lobster cages in parking areas just waiting to be taken out for spring...  Care said in just a couple of weeks, the docks will be extended, tourists will return (cruise ships pour into downtown Portland a couple times a day, bringing thousands), and the harbors will be full again of hundreds of little boats.  Such a fun place!

We took the kids out of school for lunch and went to this awesome hamburger joint where we tried new "local fare":  hamburgers with "red relish" and grilled onions, and fries topped with celery salt and vinegar!  Yum!

Girls' afternoon out:  the cousins made "nail supply dishes" at Color Me Mine, while the moms got to relax!

We had a special chance Wednesday evening to visit the kids' school for a wonderful 4th grade arts night, then we headed home to prepare for a big day Thursday...