Goodnight Sun (day 3)

If you're wondering what this last picture is- it's the light outside my hotel room. I forgot my key when I left for the photoshoot, so I sat down and waited 20 minutes for Peter to come back from his conference. Got very boring.

Kayaking and Sea Creatures (day 2)

"If I paddle three more strokes, my arms are going to fall off. And then the sharks will sense the fallen limbs and come have a feeding frenzy and tip my kayak, and I'll be eaten."  My thoughts, as I kayaked out toward a shipwreck over a mile away.  But despite my fears, I persevered and my arms did not fall off and I had a lovely ocean kayak/snorkel tour while Peter was busy with his conference.

Our first stop was a shipwreck.  The water is clear enough that you can see it from the surface, even though it's about 75 feet down. I dove down a dozen feet or so to catch a closer look, but our guide is an amuteur free-diver, and caught some awesome footage.

Next we paddled over to a reef and swam with many a sea creature, including: sea turtles (3- I pet one of them on the shell on accident), a manta ray (our guide was surprised to see one), an octopus which I wore as a bracelet for a while, a sea cucumber (I "squirted" it),  a spiny sea urchin-like thing that I held in my hand, and of course, fish galore.

Perhaps my favorite part of diving is that if you listen very carefully, you can hear the faint sounds of whale song under the sea.

The pictures and video were taken by the guide's camera on our trip. He then sold them to us for the price of a disposable camera.

A View From a Sunday Lanai (day 1)

 Our first afternoon/evening in Maui exceeded my already grand expectations.  The view from our room is breathtaking (first and last shots- saw my first ocean sunset!), we visited the beach near twilight and saw three whales making their way through the waters, ate a delicious meal of macadamia nut encrusted mahi mahi at Humuhumunukunukuapua'a while surrounded by a salt water lagoon, and soaked up the warm Hawaiian air.

 

Beware of Pterodactyl

(Calvin)

Thanksgiving in Maine

Peter's cousin [once removed] Pat and his lovely wife Erin invited us, along with another of Peter's cousins (Spencer) and his family, to spend Thanksgiving with them in their home in Kennebunkport. The next day, yet another cousin showed up who lives in Cambridge (Taylor, son of Jeff [who was also there], son of Maurice). It was a veritable family reunion.

Games of all sorts ensued, along with post-dinner moonlit walks, campfire smore-roasting, beach trips, crabbing (like fishing- dangling pieces of turkey encased with netting into the ocean until a crab grabs on), and good old fashioned chat sessions (not of the cyber space kind).

What's black and white and red all over?

Ivy's new hat set- black and white on the outside, almost red on the inside. She loves zebras.

Saturday Specials

Bryn has opened a new line in Duct tape clothing fashion. Here, the lovely Arial sports a stunning gum wrapper skirt with a Duct Tape tunic- so brave even though she lost her foot in the war. And Polly dives into a new undersea realm with her   brand new mermaid tail. Mark my words- everyone will be wearing them this season.

Calvin proves yet again that the best toys grow on trees.

They call this the Totem Pole Pose.

Ivy was such a good sport about the rollers- my mom can attest to the fact that I did not looks this happy after a evening with Lawrence Welk and curlers.

This shot of these freshly bathed beauties reminded me of another set of sisters long ago...

Flashback: me and Laura- (sorry Karen, I'm guessing you were drowning in the tub while this picture was taken)

A 9th Birthday Metamorphosis

Pumkin pie, her favorite

 

12+ inches- gone to a good cause

Thanks, Sandy

Many peoples' lives were and are horribly affected by Hurricane Sandy. I, however, benefited greatly. Karen and her family came out to visit for the weekend, and instead of flying back home Tuesday, the storm forced them to fly out Friday. Three extra days of play! I've never had such an unlikely gift from a storm, and we'll treasure the memories (with all the families involved) we made that week forever.

Photo by Lance

Art Park

[with karen visiting] DeCordova sculpture park was also on the docket. It's nice to visit a place that is as appealing to adults as it is to kids.

the ultimate tree hideout

she's slightly (and by slightly I mean ridiculously) photogenic