Life’s a Beach

This may come a surprise to some of you, but I’m not a big fan of the beach.  Really.  Coming from the Midwest, I was never around water much other than a swimming pool.  My parents weren’t much for water.  My mom used to freak out when she came to the pool with us and the waves would get much higher than her belly button.  It must have really been a sight to watch my sister and I coaxing her into the deeper end of the pool.  I had never even seen my dad in shorts until a year ago when my brother-in-law made him wear them to the creek with us.  His legs were blindingly white!  In my early teens, my best friend’s parents convinced my parents to let me spend the weekend with her at her grandparents house on Grand Lake.  My first time out, I was not allowed on a boat and if I decided to jump off the dock, I had to be in a life-jacket.  Thanks, mom and dad.  Super cool.

I had never visited a beach until I was in college.  My boyfriend, aka super-hot-now-husband, planned a surprise trip for the two of us to Gulf Shores, AL.  It was unbelievable!  We had this cute little home with a private beach for a week.  I remember stepping out of the car when we had arrived and feeling this overwhelming drop of my stomach, the kind you get when plummeting down a roller coaster at top speed.  I had never felt so tiny in all my life.  It was the weirdest/coolest feeling ever.  To our dismay, however, we had arrived in late July, jellyfish season.  Needless to say, the shrieks heard throughout the beach kept me almost completely out of the ocean.  But I did get a great tan!

Now that we’re here in South Portland, one of the things we do daily, weather permitting, is visit the beach.  I love getting a tan, but I am a clean freak!  Beaches to me are so dirty!  The sand, salt, sweat, yuck!  And then you drag it all back home with you and are forced to sweep it up for the next three days.  That being said, I truly do appreciate the beauty and revere of the ocean.  The consistent sound of the waves lapping the sand are like a metronome, slowly lulling me to sleep with each beat.  The water is far too cold for my comfort, but the joy it brings my husband as he splashes around like a child are worth every minute.

Today we decided to take our dogs to the Eastern Promenade in Portland.  We started by having brunch at a diner, though briefly before that, my husband got pooped on by a seagull while inside our car!  You should check out his post on this site.  It was hilarious!  Anyway, the dogs hung out while we ate.  Then we scooted over to the Promenade.  There were plenty of people as it was one of the first sunny days in about a week.  We walked past sunbathers in the park on Munjoy Hill, sea kayak rentals (something we will be participating in soon!), joggers, sightseers, the works.  Then we found a nice spot for the dogs to play unleashed while the hubs and I enjoyed the sights of the bay.

Michael and Lulu fighting over who actually gets the stick.

Winslow, keeping watch, a safe distance from the water I might add.

Me trying to deceitfully convince Lulu that the rock I’m reaching for is the stick.

And the train on the walk back to the car allowing tourists a glimpse into what is now our new life.

Today, baseball games, more beach time, and fantastic food and wine.  Yep, just livin’ the dream, folks.

A New Day, A New Adventure

We are nearly one month into our new life here in South Portland and so far, I am even more impressed than I thought I would be.  Each day unfolds a new hiking trail, fresh and dangerously close fried calamari, and more incredibly kind friends than we could ever have hoped to meet.  The dogs seem to be in heaven here as well.  With our daily trips to the local bakery, we bring them home yummy, fresh-baked treats.  The city is so dog friendly that we take them everywhere and generally end up stopping at some park or trail along the way for some puppy playtime.  I could write pages and pages about the experiences of each day, but then no one would feel the need to come visit, and what fun would that be?

Today’s journey took us to Cape Elizabeth, a beautifully kept, and rather wealthy community just 10 minutes south of us.  When my husband and I had come to find an apartment in March, we blundered into this remarkable town.  Between the gently rolling hills, luscious greenery, paved walking paths, stunning seascapes, and fern-covered forests, we knew we would be visiting here often, especially with the dogs.  When we arrived at the trailhead, we were pleased to find another off-leash trail for our pups.  We began our 3 mile journey navigating through the most diverse greenspace I’ve ever seen.  The Robinson Woods Trail housed giant evergreens, beautiful  birch trees, and ferns nearly as tall as myself.  The dogs had a hay day hurdling tree roots and wading through pine needles.  This walk left nothing to be desired for as our trail ended, we crossed the street and continued down a short path which opened up to the ever famous, rock-lined, Atlantic Ocean.  Since the tide was out, the rugged coast created a perfect wading pool for us to enjoy without the mess. We waded through the salt water searching for crabs and other tiny wildlife.  The dogs played and even met a few new friends.  All this in shorts and a Tshirt, under a sky of clouds, and without the expense of sweating like a pig!  To top it all off, on the way home we stopped at a local deli for a slice of New York style pizza.

Even now as I write this, I can’t help but think of how incredibly content I feel in this very moment.  Joplin is and will always be my home, but the day-to-day adventures of this place leave me giddy to wake up each morning and explore.  I can’t remember feeling this light and carefree and I can honestly say this is one of the best things I have ever done for myself.  In my daddy’s words, I’m “taking care of my swamp.”  I know how happy he is to be watching us on our new adventure.  So…until tomorrows adventure…