An Epic Journey Part III-My first trip to the cabin in Houlton, ME

After what seemed like forever, I finally had made my first pilgrimage to the infamous family cabin, in Houlton, Maine. Technically the cabin is in New Limerick, I think, but Houlton is really the town to see.

 Above, you can see that my name has already been added under Mom's on a quilt made to honor the family bond we have....all of the grandkids (and now great-grandkids) are connected to Granny and Poppy, who bought the cabin, and left it to all of us to enjoy for years to come! Suffice to say, seeing the star already was a great way to be welcomed to Maine!!

A little background...the cabin is actually 2 cabins (A larger main cabin, and a smaller sleeping cabin) located on a small site that sits on the edge of Drew's Lake. You really are in the middle of the woods up there! There are some logging trucks driving in the woods, sometimes...but really, it's so peaceful! A mountain view, a gorgeous lake, and temperatures in the low 70's in the middle of August with practically zero humidity.

It really is one of the best vacation spots out there!

It's a really relaxing place...this is the place Mom and Dad go to every year to get away from the world at large, and get some real rest. A lot of reading, puzzles, walks in the woods, paddle-boating, canoeing, visits to Houlton Dairy (I'm told it's the best, and least expensive ice cream on the planet, but will have to fill you in for sure when I try it myself next year...) and trips in to Houlton to go to some Mom & Mom-type places...We can also head on over into Canada (Only a few miles away) to spend the day if we want to, though this year we skipped it because apparently I need a passport.

Yeah. Me. I know, dumb, right?

JustRichy took me on a brief tour of the campsite, and showed me that, yes, one day this will all be mine...

Gramma Mindy and I hung out a lot, while Mom and Dad got to do some stuff on their own, and I had a lot of fun gazing out at the lake with her, and playing inside.

She also bought me some stacking cups, which have become some of my favorite toys to play with. There was also a new high chair in Maine that I got to eat in like a big boy for the first time! (everyone discovered that the cups, combined with the high chair was a clear winner!)

In addition to Mom, Dad, Gramma Mindy and JustRichy, I got to spend the last half of the week with Amber, my Godmother, and her fella John (Jon? I don't know how these silent letters work yet...for now, we're gonna go with John...)

I had a lot of fun with Amber, but it took us awhile to get connected, since she was wearing this nail polish that bugged me out. I can't explain why, but the delicate combination of that shade of purple and glitter just got to me in ways I can't explain...once everyone figured out that's why she was making me cry, she hid her fingers from me, and we had a great time...

She was a bit jealous of John, since he kept drawing my attention away from her, but c'mon...look at the faces this guy was making!

Below, you can't really see his face, but you can see my stunned reaction to it...

Stunned. 

Some activities went better than others...JustRichy helped me work on my independent standing (and Dad snapped one of the rare pictures of it)

Dad started the week by dipping my toes in the water...it was chilly, but felt great against my feet.  I just wasn't so sure about going into the water all the way...

Eventually, Mom and Dad got my in my adorable bathing suit, and submerged me fully...I was OK for awhile, and had a good time kicking my legs in the water (and I thought bath-time was fun! Here, I get to splash around, and there are no walls!) And as time wore on, I was OK as long as someone was holding me close to help keep me warm, but I finally had enough...c'mon, man...I'm tiny. But how awesome is my hat?!

Paddleboats (Not so successful) Why, you ask? Let's talk about how I looked like a marshmallow encased kid...

I tried to maintain some sense of dignity as my parents started paddling out, but I quickly realized how long they had intended to be out on the lake that day...and rather than freaking out when they were far from shore, I decided to make life easier, and freak out when they were close enough to drop me back off with Gramma Mindy...they  took the paddleboat out without 

me, and missed me, but I was happy to be on dry-land, and happier to be rid of my giant yellow marshmallow...

I got to relax with Dad in one of his favorite places next to the lake...

Yes, he's in his pajamas. Yes he spent most of the week like that. Yes he's OK with you knowing that.

Towards the end of the week, JustRichy showed me how the other half (The tall half) live, and took me on a shoulder-mounted trip around the campsite...man, the world looks a lot different from up here...Can you tell that I'm having fun? Just a little?

All in all, it was an incredible vacation, and I hated to leave, but I was excited to be getting home (With a quick return appearance in Connecticut to visit Dad's family!) 

I'll miss looking out onto the lake, and watching the sun set behind the mountains, but at least I have the trip to look forward to next year!