Summertime!: Week #11

Winding down on summer, but still some fun to be had. A busy week but a good one! So nice to have Mom and Dad here, even if things are still a bit chaotic as they sort through things. 💗

Monday: A long day of work spent at the kitchen table, most of it on the phone. There were a few visits from Dad with items from the moving truck, as they moved everything into storage, but otherwise, I stayed put on my chair for about 10 hours. And then Sam and I got out for a walk on the powerlines to move our legs. Still a few blackberries to pick and some lovely late summer asters on view. (1.8 miles walked)

Tuesday: Out early into the waning darkness at 5:30 am. It was hot, heavy and humid out, and even though I ran a "winter" route, looping around Highland Green and Canam, there was no denying it still felt like full on summer out there. Rescued one red eft en-route, moving him off the pavement outside the high school construction site. These little guys always make me smile 😍 (6.0 miles)

Went into work for the day and got the news that Mom and Dad got the results of their Covid test back - negative! Hurray! We recognize that the test just pinpoints a moment in time, and there is no guarantee that one of us won't get sick at another time, but for now, we are joyful and grateful and enjoyed having them come into the house Tuesday night so we could have dinner together 💗 We will all continue to take precautions out in the world so that we can spend time together and so appreciate that Maine is a pretty safe place to be right now.

But before dinner, Sam and I walked up the street to get our hair cut! The salon was taking all the right precautions and the two of us were the only customers in the storefront, which made me much more comfortable. Because, seriously, I really needed a haircut! 

Home for dinner and some time with Mom and Dad to wrap up the day. We are so happy to have them here! 💗

Wednesday: Sam lucked out with a trip to Popham Beach with Neenie and Pip. What fun!

They found the tiniest sand dollar! 😎

Fun in the water! 😎

Thursday: Up early for a run out along the powerlines. Too overcast for a sunrise, but it was at least cooler! (7.0 miles)

Came home to find this little cutie sleeping in the zinnias 💗🐸 I love it! I don't think I've ever seen a grey tree frog (which is what I'm assuming he is), here in Maine but I am enjoying having him out front!

Later in the day, Sam and I got out for a walk along the high school road to check out the demolition of the old school. They are making progress! (2.0 miles walked)

Friday: Woke up just not feeling it. Still a bit stressed in general with a lot going on. Decided I just needed a no pressure, zone out run so looped around town on the roads. Beautiful morning. Nice and cool. (10.0 miles)

Saturday: Stomach not feeling great at all when I woke up, so I just ran nice and easy from home. I guess it is a sign from my body to chill out a bit! The cool, damp air smelled of the coming of autumn and the onset of the rainstorm on its way. Finished up just as the first drops began to fall. (7.0 miles)

I love the changing viburnum berries at this time of year

Perhaps I should be more like Gigi? Although not sure if she's trying to camouflage herself as a pillow and not be seen, or if she's just so comfortable she doesn't care? 😹

With the rain falling, we spent the rest of the day doing a bit of reorganization in Sam's room and up in the loft, relaxed a bit on the couch and watched the final two Harry Potter movies. I still stick to my assertion that the books are way better at telling the story, but the movies were definitely entertaining. It was nice to have a quiet day.

Sunday: Ryan was meeting up with the TMR group at 8:00 so I was out the door at 5:45 am to get in my miles. Just squeaked in 10 miles before arriving home in time for him to leave on time! Nice and cool, if damp, morning with a pretty mist laying low along the powerlines. Two red efts, one broad winged hawk and one bluebird seen along with a few handfuls of blackberries eaten. Thankfully, felt much better than yesterday morning. (10.0 miles)

Pretty morning light

Camofluaged 

Ryan got home for lunch and then Mom and Dad came over a bit later, so we headed down to Harpswell for an afternoon walk. Beautiful, sunny, cool and a bit blustery, but still, a glorious day to be outside! We walked the Widgeon and Wilson Cove trails. So pretty and a great way to wrap up the weekend! (1.4 miles walked)

💗💗

Summertime!: Week #10

I'll admit that the level of anxiety, which had quieted in the earlier summer months, has risen for me again recently. Some of it is thinking about school in this age of Covid-19. I am most certainly glad that Sam will have the option to go back at least 2 days a week (and hopefully more if it can be done safely), but I can't say that it doesn't make me nervous as well. 😷

And my parents, who for years have been talking about moving up here, finally put their house on the market 6 weeks ago, got an almost immediate offer and now have sold their house (officially closed and everything packed up and moved out this week!) and have officially moved up here to Maine! This is super exciting and I cannot wait to have them nearby, but it also makes me slightly anxious as well, as we want to ensure we keep them safe and we want to make sure they find a good place to live up here! It was too quick of a turnaround and too hot of a real estate market for them to find anything in the past 6 weeks so that will be a focus once they arrive. None of my anxiety is at all their doing, it is just that they are my parents and I want the very, very best for them and to make sure they are safe and happy 💗

With the slight increase of anxiety comes the return of baking, which Ryan wholeheartedly approves of 😂 ...hurray for chocolate chip cookie bars! 😋... 

Yum!

...and a slight apathy towards running. I took the first two days of the week off and then ended up making this a down week. In the end, it doesn't matter much, especially with no races on the horizon and having some flexibility to adjust and relax about the miles is nice. I also know that just finally admitting out loud that I was feeling a bit anxious helped. Oh, and honestly, once I am out running, I know it is the perfect antidote! It is just getting out the door. Always that. 

So, onward and upward. Trying to let go of the things I cannot control, try to be present and appreciate the wonders around me and do some baking when that all doesn't work! 😉😊

Monday: Busy day at the office, errrr, kitchen table, but we all got out for a nice late afternoon walk to pick blackberries and enjoy the gorgeous afternoon. (2.0 miles walked)

Cabbage white butterfly on purple loosestrife. (I know the loosestrife is invasive but I love its color)

Cotton sedge

The frog pond has almost dried up completely. I hope it holds out! 🐸

Tuesday: Another busy day at work but got in a nice walk with Sam once I finished up for the day. We walked the road loop by the schools so we could check out the progress on the demolition of the old high school. Good to walk and talk with the kiddo. (2.1 miles walked)

Wednesday: Finally got up and out for a run and it was just what I needed. Grateful as always to be able to get out and enjoy the world on foot in the early morning to start the day off right. Beautiful morning with cooler temps, lower humidity, rising fog, a few end of the season blackberries to eat, viburnum berries turning blush pink and one red eft seen. (7.0 miles)

The fog and light on the fish pond out by the transfer station just looked gorgeous this morning!

Hi little guy!

Thursday: Started out with one route in mind and then ended up just doing a random mishmash. I ran out to the main Cathance trailhead hoping it would be open but alas the closed sign is still there. Sigh. I so miss running down along the river. Legs felt a bit clunky and my right hip flexor is tight. Need to work on that! (6.0 miles)

Mist rising over the Heath

My parents arrived in Maine Thursday night! Yay! We did a hand-off of dinner to go in the parking lot before they headed to their hotel. They still have to get a Covid test, so we couldn't do more than that, but so looking forward to seeing them for real once they have that set and done! 💗

Friday: Halfheartedly had been thinking of a longer run for Friday morning but when I woke up, I was like, nah... so ran some roads instead and chased after a few segments to keep it interesting 😉 If nothing else, the segments act as a bit of speed work for me. Ha! (7.1 miles)

Even when running roads, there is time to stop and pick blackberries! 

Spent the rest of the morning doing errands and cleaning, and then helped Sam on her cat puzzle for a bit later in the afternoon before we headed out for some fresh air. Really nice afternoon for walk to and from DQ! Well, really, it's never a bad day for ice cream 😂😋🍦(2.0 miles walked)

Saturday: Met up with Emma over at Pinelands to keep her company for part of her last long effort before Georgia Jewel next month. It was so great to see her and have a chance to catch up! And I always forget, Pineland really is hilly 😆 Relatively cool temps but humid! 💦💦 Several deer seen running through the woods. (10.4 miles)

Had a quiet rest of the day, with some time spent relaxing on the couch reading and an evening spent watching the 6th Harry Potter movie. In between, we all got out for a walk across the street with a sprinkling of rain drops and one monarch caterpillar seen (2.2 miles walked)

Sunday: Didn't sleep well and decided to just scrap the early morning run plans and get back into bed after feeding the cats to sleep a bit longer. That isn't something I do very often, and it was nice to have a mellow morning! Had a leisurely breakfast and then finally wandered out for a run around 9:30, way later than I normally would, but with no running agenda this week, it was perfect!

Ran the powerlines out and back for a mellow meander, with multiple stops for blackberries. One garter snake, along with a plethora late summer flowers and the early hues of fall seen en-route. (5.5 miles)

Many of these sweet flowers blooming trailside. Pretty sure they are slender gerardia.

Yum!

Sam had her friend Anne over in the afternoon for some biking and outside fun, which was a nice way to wrap up a fairly quiet weekend!

Summertime!: Week #9

A fun start to the week with a camping trip up on MDI with Keri, Tyler and Elise, followed up by a few crazy days of work and a nice, mellow weekend. We are gearing up for the return to school, even if the school board did extend summer by a week in voting to delay the return to school until September 8th with questions still swirling about the exact details. We do know that the initial return will be a hybrid model - essentially splitting the amount of kids in school in half by dividing the classes in two and sending half the kids in for in person teaching on Mon/Tues and the other half on Thurs/Fri. The other days will be remote... Sam will be in the Thurs/Fri group. It is most definitely not going to be what we were expecting or anticipating prior to March but we are hoping that, much like this summer, we will be able to make the most of it and we trust that the district is doing its best to keep the students, teachers and community safe. 

Monday: Up early for a run on the powerlines before we headed north. Wicked humid and I felt slow as molasses. Pretty sky and some good berry picking, though. (7.0 miles)

Then it was time to head up to the island! We stopped for sandwiches at Cafe Milagro and then met up with Keri, Tyler and Elise for a short hike up Beech Mountain. It was so hot that despite a very leisurely 1+ mile hike, I was soaked. Nice views though and good to get in a bit of activity before setting up camp! (1.3 miles hiked)

More sweating ensued during camp set-up, so we all went down and jumped in the pool before coming back to the campsite for dinner and a fire. Definitely busier up here than when we were up at the end of June, but also really fun to share a camping trip with friends!

Tuesday: It was Keri's birthday and we started the day off with a run/hike up and over Acadia and St. Sauveur to celebrate! Ran the ninja trail from Hall Quarry Road and unfortunately met up with a swarm of bald-faced hornets - both of us got stung - ouch! - so that got the adrenaline going, and less than a mile into the run! Aie. After assessing, we continued on and enjoyed the rest of the loop, not meeting up with any additional hornets, or seeing any people. It was lovely to be out there on completely quiet trails. A very foggy, humid morning which meant no long views and lots of sweating for me but it was cool to get above the clouds as we summited Acadia. The mountain tops looked like islands. Fun to run this loop with a friend! (6.0 miles)

Happy Birthday, Keri!!

Then it was back to camp to get the families geared up and out for the day's hike. We knew it would be another hot one so chose a relatively short loop but one which we thought the girls would have fun on. 

Parked at Long Pond and headed up the Perpendicular Trail to Mansell. So many steps and so much sweating!! Still, I have come to really like these western mountains. They are quieter, a bit more rugged and much less traveled, but with some lovely mossy woods and vistas. We came down Razorback Trail, which has some nice ledges complete with vistas looking out to the ocean. A good loop. The girls did great and it was fun for Sam to have someone to hike with! (3.0 miles hiked)

Going up!

Love the rocks along this trail

Razorback ridgeline

Then back to camp for lunch, another dip in the pool and a quiet afternoon around the campground. Ryan and Tyler eventually got out for a run before dinner, which consisted of way too much pizza and some birthday cupcakes, and we finished up the evening with another fire. A good day!

Wednesday: It's always sad to pack up camp, but we did so fairly quickly and efficiently and then set off for a mellow walk on the Ships Harbor Nature Trail. It's always fun to wander along the rocky ledges and explore the lagoon. Plus, thankfully, it was much cooler along the water! A fair number of people out so there was a lot of mask wearing. (1.7 miles walked)

Fog rolling in

After our hike, we all had a picnic lunch in the shade at Seawall Beach and then just like that, it was time to head home. So happy to have been able to share this camping trip with Keri, Tyler and Elise! It was a ton of fun!

Thursday: Nothing on tap except work, work and more work!

Friday: Rather creaky morning run after two days of not running, but good to get out. So many berries to eat! Ran a random loop out along the powerlines to mix things up. (7.0 miles)

Then it was home to do all the errands and cleaning and stuff that needed to be done, including a trip to Target with Sam to finish up the school shopping and a stop at the library to drop off her summer reading log and to pick up her prize bag before we headed out for a walk. We parked farther down along the powerlines and did a nice loop, partially in the shaded woods and partially out on the powerlines so that we could hit the gully, which is filled with blackberries. Yum! Quite warm but a lovely walk with the kiddo 💗 (1.4 miles walked)

The critters like the blackberries too 💗

Saturday: Overcast and muggy. Ran a mix of roads and trails around town. No photos but there were several stops of pick berries 😉😋 (10.0 miles)

Sam got out in the afternoon for a few hours to ride her bike around the neighborhood and spend some time outside with her friend, Emma. Nice for the girls to be able to get together!

Sunday: Cooler this morning but still incredibly humid. Ran a big road and trail loop from home out into Brunswick. Yet again, finished soaked. So soggy! 💦💦 Ran out of water with a few miles to go, and it definitely wasn't the prettiest run, but I got it done. On the plus side, the fields are looking lovely right now with all the goldenrod, clover and queen anne's lace blooming, and I saw my first monarch caterpillar on the milkweed at Crystal Spring Farm! 🐛💗 First 20 miler since early May and hit 50 miles for the week too  (just barely...) - woohoo! 😃and zzzz! 😴(20.0 miles)

Pretty Bee Balm

Yup... 

And so, obviously, we finished up the day with ice cream!