Massachusetts Holiday

Well, we are on our annual summer visit to Grandma & Grandpa's house, and are having a grand ole time. The drive up here last Saturday was uneventful, except for a brief bout of possible food poisoning for a couple of hours after lunch... yeah, not too much fun. But I just curled up in my seat and slept and Mark kept driving, and we made great time, arriving in just under 14 hours!

Day 1 was pretty laid back ~ it was raining, and we just hung out at the house. That was okay with me, but the kids complained of being bored...

Day 2 : we drove to Putnam to see my sis and her husband at their cafe, Victoria Station Cafe. They moved into a much larger location just a few months ago, and this was my first chance to see it in person! Very stylish and comfortable and warm and elegant! I am not a coffee drinker, but my addicted hubby says the coffee is great, and the pastries are homemade on site and out of this world! If you are ever in the Quiet Corner of Connecticut, do stop by for a visit. Tell them that Beth sent you!
Later we went out to dinner with my mother-in-law, and afterwards socialized with the neighbors at Robin & Larry's weekly Friday-night Porch Party! What a great tradition! The neighbors from up and down the street have an open invitation every Friday night during the summer, and they come with plates of cookies or pizza or nacho chips or watermelon, and their drinks of choice. The kids played variations of kick ball, dodge ball, and tug of war on the front lawn while the adults chatted on the porch and deck. My only complaint was the mosquitos.

Day 3: We picked up my mother-in-law this morning and drove to Cape Cod to spend the day with Mark's sister and her family at their vacation house in Dennis. We decided to head to a beach with waves, so we drove waaaay down to Wellfleet, to Marconi Beach. What a gorgeous day! The weather was perfect - sunny, warm, and breezy! The water was COLD - just the way I like it! How else can you cool off and feel refreshed on a hot day? The beach was packed, but we staked out our square of beach with blankets, beach chairs, and towels, and slathered on the sunscreen. Jason grabbed a boogie board and jumped right into the waves. The other kids took a while to get in, and the rest of us just got our legs wet. It was one of the more exciting days we've ever spent at the beach, because a huge seal kept popping up in the water about 15 feet directly in front of where we were standing!!! Amazing! He'd just stick his head out of the water and look all around, and maybe float there for a minute... then dive back under water again. At one point, the lifeguard jumped down off his stand and ran along the water's edge, blowing his whistle and waving everyone out of the water. Now THAT will get your attention! Just then we saw a huge dark shadow moving through the water parallel to the beach - it was a school of fish. Apparently, the concern was that a school of fish like that is often followed by BIG fish trying to eat them ... big fish like sharks? So we stayed out of the water until the school passed by, and then a few minutes more... and then waited until we saw other people back in the water... and they didn't get eaten.... and then we ventured back in. A small plane was flying overhead, doing acrobatics... loop de loops and dives and things like that. And we didn't get sunburned! It was an awesome afternoon at the beach. After packing up and heading back to the cottage, we had a supper of grilled hot dogs and hamburgers, potato salad, corn on the cob, and watermelon. Then we kissed the cousins goodbye and drove back to Grammy & Grampa's house, tuckered out but happy.

Stay tuned for Day 4 and beyond...

Sorry.. no picture... camera troubles. :-(