So. Much. STUFF!

Wow! Where do I even begin? We have been so busy the last two weeks just gallivanting along the New England coast… And it has been so much fun. It does a soul good to get out of the house and go on little road trips here and there, especially to some of the most beautiful places you've ever seen. We were fortunate enough to drive up to the Canadian border in Maine and cross over while Shawn worked one day. I took the girls, my passport, their birth certificates, and just us three ladies trekked into Canada. We didn't venture far because we only had a few hours to spare but we drove into Woodstock, New Brunswick and spent the day exploring. It is such a cute little town and it was so fun to say that "we went into Canada for a day!"  Since it was all the way on the Eastern part of Canada it's where all the French-Canadians live and everybody up there has these crazy-thick French accents, or they only speak French. Every sign in Canada is written in English and in French as well... (I bet their phone systems say "Press 1 for English"). 

Now, I have a funny story to tell. I told it before but I'll tell it again. When we first crossed the border into Canada the speed sign said "SPEED 110." It didn't say anything else. My silly little head thought  "Woo! Party up in Canada! We can drive 110 miles per hour! Let's go girls!!" So I hit the gas and look around and see that I am flying past everybody else who's driving. Very quickly I learned that it meant 110 KILOMETERS. Not 110 MILES per hour..... I completely forgot that the Canadians go by kilometers. I felt so dumb! But now it's a story I can laugh that! 

Then we went back to the States, picked up Shawn and drove a couple hours down the coast of Maine where we were able to see some of the most magnificent sights I have ever witnessed. We went to Cape Elizabeth where we fed Seagulls and put our toes in the tide pools and saw beautiful Light houses. After Cape Elizabeth, we traveled a little bit around the coastal areas to watch the waves coming in and breaking on some big rocks on the shore. There is nothing better than the sound of waves coming in and the smell of the salt in the sea air. I was in awe, and I truly think Maine is one of the prettiest places I've ever stepped foot in. 

*A side note, the citizens of Maine are actually very snobby people, and after visiting I realize that they kinda have the right to be. They live in the most beautiful place in the nation.  But still… New Hampshire comes second in beauty (and Oregon's a close 3rd) in my opinion, and the people of New Hampshire are the some of the nicest people I have ever met.* 

Anyway, later that night we went to a little lobster restaurant right on the water. Literally, we were on a dock on the water eating fresh caught lobster (as the Easterner's call it- Lobstah). That was in Portland, Maine. It was one of the coolest places I've ever been to and I can't wait to go back! Portland is only about two hours from our house so I know I'll be going back soon. It's pretty crazy that in three days my girls and I were able to go all the way up to Canada and then all along the New England/Maine coast line and back to our house in New Hampshire. We saw some stunning sites; unfortunately the girlies will never remember all of these experiences, but that's what this blog is for! :)

This is an old school house that they have restored and still use!  I love it.  It is a one room tiny little thing, and it's just so old fashioned that I had to take a picture :)  There are so many of these out in New England!

Back at home....getting into trouble!

After the Gilley's finished globetrotting for a few days, we drove down to Boston and I finally got to go to a Red Sox game! The Red Sox have been my favorite baseball team forever (other than the Padres).  The Red Sox got stomped by the Rays....but I have loved the Sox longer than I can remember so going to a game was a big deal for me. I walked into the stadium and just felt this awesome feeling of comradery with the other Boston fans as we all shouted and sang together. It's a Boston tradition that during the Eighth Inning (to get the crowd revved up for the end of the game) you sing "Sweet Caroline" at the top of your lungs. It's really cool to hear a whole baseball stadium singing such a classic and doing the whole "bum, bum, bum" thing all together! No one seems to fully know the history behind that tradition....there's been rumors that years ago one of the player's wives was named Caroline, or a daughter....who knows....but I do know that because of this awesome tradition, a restaurant across the street from the Fenway Stadium opened up and named themselves "Sweet Caroline" and is always very busy! It's just a big tradition out there and quite entertaining! There was also the singing of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" which was great belting that out with fans as well. Shawn's work treated us to the game and told us we could eat whatever we wanted (uh-oh).... so Shawn went and loaded us up on all kinds of 'baseball food' and it really was such an enjoyable night indulging a little and become part of the Boston Red Sox community. I absolutely love Boston with all my heart and I am so glad that I can go there whenever I want. Never in a million years did I think that I would be neighbors with Boston. It's been one of my most favored cities since I was a Nanny at 19! I went and visited and then never knew when I would be able to come back.  For me to live 2 hours North of there is kind of a big deal to me :)
After the game we went to a hotel to go to sleep since we didn't want to make the drive 2 hours north at 10:30 at night. It's so funny to see my little three-year-old and almost 2-year-old walk with their suitcases and acting like they own the place. They have stayed at so many hotels in the past six months! They know the drill and exactly where to go, how to get there, and what to do. It cracks me up!

Before we left Boston this morning I took the girls to a park to play....I was thinking:  I wonder how many City Parks these girls have been to in their short lives.  I have taken them to a park on every single one of our Road trips from the most Western Coast to the most Eastern Coast.  That's pretty cool :)

I am extremely fortunate that Shawn has the job that he has and that he is able to provide for our family. We went through a really dark time before he had this job and I've said it before and I'll say it again: I am SO thankful and so blessed and I thank my Heavenly Father every single night for the blessings that we are currently receiving. While driving home from Boston, I was looking at the beauty of the world I live in right now and it was bringing me to tears because it's honestly so breathtaking. I wish I could capture New England's beauty perfectly and adequately describe it so that I could share it with everybody who isn't here to witness it. I've truly never seen a prettier place in all of my life and the pictures don't do it justice at all. The foliage right now (with the vibrant reds and oranges and yellows) is to die for and it's just beginning! I hope everybody has a chance one day to come to New England in the Fall. As much as I miss my family and have those 'homesick days,' I know this is where I'm supposed to be right now and my heart feels comfort in that fact.

Now I am excited to go home with my girls and stay there for a couple weeks. Little three-day trips are fun when it's just yourself; when you have to bring little kids it's exhausting! BUT it's definitely worth it.

In a couple of weeks we're going to a place called Castle in the Clouds and then we are going to take a train ride through New Hampshire's National Forest and look at all of the crazy, amazingly beautiful Fall foliage. Then we're going to try to take Gondolas up to the ski resort next to our house and visit some caves up there at some point. We have a lot of things to do on our list before the snow hits!  There's endless things to do out here.  Once the snow greets us, we might be snowed in for a bit so we're trying to take advantage of all there is to do before the harsh Winter comes. We are loving our life out here but missing everyone else. We love you guys so much and I hope some of the pictures that I post help you picture where we are right now. We are safe, healthy, comfortable, and happy. I don't know what more we could ever ask for.