Mermaid Dreams

We are in our last month of our New England life style. While our life style has neither been rich nor famous, we have done some fabulous things, and seen some great places. This past week we decided to venture out and see some of the the most famous coastal areas of New England. So we started our venture in Falmouth, MA. Where is Falmouth you ask? And do all the people have Tourette's Syndrome? Falmouth pronounced (falmuth), is one of the southern most ports of Cape Cod. Though you might expect people there would have a cussing problem we really only had one waitress that seemed to know a few foul words. To my disappointment and Callie's delight the Historical society Museum was closed and the sea life conservatory had an age limit that Callie did not meet, so we drove around the quaint town and headed for the beach. We climbed out on some rocks and Callie dictated whose turn it was to splash their foot in the water. It was a fun game for all and we got a lot of good pictures from it. The area was lovely and we dreamed of living there and having a light house of our own thinking that might be an easy job, and you get to live in a great house. This is the one we picked out. The next day we took the ferry over to Martha's Vineyard. Only a 30 min ride from Falmouth. Deciding that we would rather be outside and get some exercise than take the long bus tour of the island, we rented bikes. Callie, resistant at first, did not like leaving her stroller and blanket behind for a carriage and helmet. After telling her she was in Cinderella's carriage, the helmet was her crown, and promising ice cream she soon changed her tune. We had a beautiful 6 mile bike ride (12 miles round trip) out to Edgartown where the famous Jaws was filmed. We ate ice cream and headed back. We found a beautiful quiet beach and spent a few hours letting Callie have her mermaid moment for the day. She could have stayed there forever splashing around in the frigid water. She is so timid about most things but very brave when it comes cold water. The last hour or so before our ferry was to leave we rode around Oak Bluffs. There were beautiful Victorian mansions, and cottages all adorned with grill work, turnings, and painted in fantastic colors. We had dinner in the harbor at this sandy little bar and grill. It was about as much as Callie could handle, she wanted back in her carriage. In order to get close to our next vacation spot we drove to Salem, MA, and stayed in a noisy hotel. Then our adventure took us to Ogunquit ( pronounced "a-gun-quit," emphasis on the second syllable). Our hotel there was a beautiful resort called the Milestone. This location may have been my favorite because of the nice accommodations we had; heated pool, spa, shuffle board, and Bath and Body Works soaps. This was also the first hotel we did not have to wear our flip flops in the shower. The best part was it was discounted to $90 from $250. We were in walking distance to the Ogunquit beach. A gorgeous beach with yards of smooth sand slightly sloping to the water, and miles of coast line. We felt we had the beach to our selves. Callie again desiring to trade her feet for flippers had a blast playing in the cold water. We made a sand castle, played a little Frisbee, and ran from the gentle waves. The most memorable moment was when Callie for no apparent reason started chasing "Scuttle" (a seagull about 50 yards away). As she ran to him he dropped his lunch and flew away. Callie proceeded to pick up his meal to give to him. To her horror it was a live crab. "Oh, scary!," she screamed while dropping him on the beach. We caught a video of the after reaction as we explained it was "Sebastian" (a crab), and that Scuttle was eating Sebastian. She laughed as her dreams of the happy Edenic lifestyle of critters from "The Little Mermaid" were dashed. From then on she sat on a towel and pointed to all the divots in the sand saying "Oh, scary mama!," thinking a crab may be hiding in our innocent foot print. So we left the beach and took a coastal walk on the "Marginal Way," foot path. We stopped at Prego's Italian Cafe for a delicious lunch and pastry (Callie slept soundly in the stroller). Strolling along rocky bluffs and scenic vistas we decided that this was our favorite spot on the trip. The town was pristine with white wash resorts, upscale shops, and 4-5 star restaurants and cafes. We even took a little dip in the spa before dinner. It was Heaven until our tired bunch went to dinner at the Beachfire bar and grille. Daddy and Callie nearly had a melt down. Not because we were too close to the beach fire, but the atmosphere was nice and Callie sitting by Daddy was not behaving very nicely. With this Daddy concluded this is why his parents, having 7 kids, never went out to eat or on vacation. The next day we drove around some local towns and neighborhoods then headed home having had our fill of the New England Coast. Once home we immediately called the Collings who came over to play games. Our history of playing games with the Collings has been trying for Cameron. Most of the games are Collings dominated while I have had a fair share in the winnings. Earlier last week we discovered Cameron was a natural at speed Scrabble, his first in a personal winning streak series. Saturday was a good ego booster. Cameron's team won every time. Making him the ultimate winner of the evening. Oh, we forgot to mention we had a casualty on the trip. Sadly Snow White, Callie's most beloved princess, was decapitated. We have had several surgeons try to refasten the head with no success. Callie now pulls her out of her purse and laughs "Oh funny, Snow White."