Happy Feet

Meghan and Jason got me a pedicure gift certificate for my birthday. Today Meghan and I went to cash it in. I've never had a pedicure before, so lets just say...it was fantastic. There was a big comfy recliner, there was wine, and there was a foot/leg massage. Wonderful. By the end, I didn't care if they painted my toes or not, the massage with all the different lotions and exfoliaters was definitely the best part. My feet are definitely happy.

Girls' Night.

When Mike is on call, I try to do something fun with Claire. This past call night we decided to get a doughnut for Claire and a hot chocolate for me and watch Mary Poppins (which she loved). Claire sang the entire time we waited in line for our treats: "Supercalifragilisticexpiali - DOUGHNUTS!!" She had everyone in line with us laughing. And when we got home she said, "Mom, I'm having such a wonderful time today!" Its amazing how happy a doughnut can make a 3 year old.

My Hamster

Saturday we took some time to check out the Children's Museum in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. We also spent some time at Prescott Park, which was beautiful. There was actually a wedding party having pictures taken when we showed up, and if you look carefully you can see the groom inside the circle of the fountain below. I believe we will be in the background of many of their pictures, so fair is fair. Besides the flowers and fountains, there was a great view of a bridge. Portsmouth seemed to have quite a few really cool bridges.













































The Children's Museum was really fun too. My favorite exhibit was 'Mind Games'. You strap electrodes to your forehead and compete to see who can be more relaxed. Its gauged by a ball inside of a tube on a table. The ball rolls toward whoever is more relaxed. You can watch what your brain waves are doing on the screen above the table. Claire and Mike competed first, and as you can see, Mike took it very seriously and meditated to be more relaxed. Claire was more interested in what she could play with next. Interestingly enough, Claire was the more relaxed one, winning very quickly. When Mike and I tried it out, it took much longer, and in the end, he proved himself to be more relaxed than me. He didn't even gloat. Or do a victory dance.














They also had a huge Pin Impression board. We played with that for a while. Mike and I more so than Claire. I kind of want one for the basement.




























All in all, it was fun to go to a different museum and see different stuff. On the way home we asked Claire which children's museum she liked better, the one in Maine or the one in New Hampshire. She answered that she liked My Hamster better. And finally, this is a tree in our back yard. The colors are just so bright, its really unbelievable.

Looking at the Leaves

Yesterday we took a trip up to Lake Sebago State Park. It was an amazing day and we wanted to see some fall color, but we weren't sure where to go. The only tip we got was to stay away from Conway, NH. Its a beautiful spot, but its also no secret. Friends of ours who tried to get out there this weekend ran into standstill traffic and had to turn around. Acadia would be great, but its a little bit far for a day trip. Same thing with Burlington, VT. So I just looked at the map, figured we'd have to go north for peak color (its not quite peak here in Portland), and figured Lake Sebago would be perfect. And it was. Except for two things. First, I didn't get the best directions and it took us forever to get there. And back. Mike spent most of the trip looking at me like this:










Second, and probably the reason why it wasn't very busy, most of the trees in Lake Sebago State Park are pine trees.














But it was really pretty anyway. We sat on the beach and walked the trails. And we did see a little bit of color between all the pines.

I love Fall.

Its by far my favorite time of year.













Claire and I have been pretty busy lately. Its definitely a pleasant busy, though, as opposed to the crazy nutball busy so many people seem to be lately. We have a lot of stuff going on between two library story times, playgroup, and taking care of another resident's son. And now that we have the Children's Museum Membership, its almost as if we've taken up a second residence there. It really is a great place, we go two or three times a week to take part in activities. Claire absolutely loves it.

































I haven't posted in a while, and its completely because there isn't any internet access at the Children's Museum.