MyMaineLife: Lavender Field Forever

It's indeed summer in Maine. The air is warm and comfy. The breeze is refreshing. And the sun is bright and lovely.

The #OronaSquad in Maine - Part 1

WARNING: This is a very very late post.

I know I should have written about this important event last summer but I didn't. I was in vacation-coma for the entire year. But anyway, since this summer is not going to be as exciting as last year, I decided to write about it to relive that special event that took place last summer.

Why I want to RUN to the Lighthouse

The Portland Head Light in Fort Williams Park in Cape Elizabeth is one of Maine's most important landmarks. To Mainers... it is the "beacon of light" that contributed to Maine's rich maritime history. To tourists... it is a must-see place in Maine. And to me... it is all of the above and much more. It is where I pledged my love and devotion to my Sweetest - Mike.

I could have written a more dramatic introduction to this post but I can't think of any other way to put words together to express my joy in achieving my seems-to-be-impossible goal. Summer is definitely doing a lot of tricks to my brain lately. Or maybe it was because I have been slacking in the blogging department for a long time and my blog-hiatus state of mind put my brain on freeze-mode. But this is not my excuse. In fact I have no excuse. I just don't feel like blogging - Period! (And that goes for my 5 other blogs that are suffering from blog-drought, as well.) To say the least, I have nothing to say about the famous lighthouse because this post is not really about the lighthouse. This is about me!

A Day in Boston

Boston, Massachusetts is just a couple of hours away from Maine. However, it's not very often that I get the chance to visit it. I can come up with 2 reasons -  traffic and traffic.

It's a good thing that I have a friend who loves to drive and doesn't really mind traffic. Well, not as much as I do.

Last Hurrah for Summer 2014

We just got back from another weekend camping. This I presumed is our last for the season. I will be back to work starting this Tuesday. This means fun is over for me. But then maybe not. I will surely find time to have fun even if summer is over, I promise!

 Our luxury accommodation for the weekend. LOL

Camping with Fam Bam

The weather last weekend was really gorgeous so we took advantage of it. We spent it at Byron again. This time B joined us. Though it took a little convincing because B also knows that camping with Daddy means gold panning which means he will be bored all day waiting for him to be done with his thingy in the river. LOL

Our accommodation for the night.

Cool Coos Canyon

Coos Canyon in Byron, Maine has been our favorite place for camping since my Sweetest introduced me to camping. Though I didn't really do a "camping" camping during my first year here in Maine, (because for some reason we always ended up in a hotel. I call it - glamping) my first "real" camping experience was fun and memorable.

I'm having fun Summer-ing!

This is a late post. I have lots of stories to tell about my summer but I was busy summer-ing, so bear with me. I will post all of them before summer is over. Promise!

I have 2 more weeks left of my summer vacation. In a couple of weeks I will be back to work and fun is over. Well, not really. I will surely have fun working with kids again. But working for 12 hours straight is really tough, so to speak. But it is what it is. I just want to spend the last few weeks of summer with my Sweetest doing some fun things.

The familiar School House in Byron, Maine near the Coos Canyon picnic park.

Spring is in the air

Winter this year was long and cold. I thought it will never end. But everything as an end as the saying goes. Right now we are having a fair share of rain and sun which are the mainstays of spring in Maine. And yes, we are budding.

This year I have finally come to terms with my dirt-o-phobia. Yeah, there is no such word. I know there is a specific term for what I meant but I'm too lazy to google it. Anyway, as some people know, I have issues with dirt. That is one of the reasons why I can't do any mud challenge.

Japol's Maine Adventure - Day One

After all the trouble that my baby brother caused me, I was still so excited to see him and show him around my "other" home - Maine.

@ Parsonsfield Seminary

He arrived about half an hour before midnight. Since the following day was a Monday and my itinerary for him was already messed up we just went home from the airport instead of driving straight to LL Bean which was the original plan if his flight wasn't cancelled the day before.

The Eagle has landed

After 24 hours of waiting and worrying about my brother in cold Chicago, he finally arrived in Maine. The aircraft touched-down a couple of minutes earlier so it only took me about 5 minutes of waiting in the airport

We left the house a little late actually but got in the airport just in time when a plane flew above us as we traversed the airport road.

Maine Winter Survival Kit

My baby brother is coming to Maine. Yup, this is Japol's first trip to the U.S. and of all seasons he chose to come in the middle of this brutally long and cold winter in New England.

So, as a good sistah, I made preparations. I need to get all the stuff he needs to survive winter in Maine. Oh boy, if only I can write about my whole feeling... it would be too graphic. Well, yes I am exaggerating. Anyway, I gathered all the necessary stuff that he needs and here they are...

I got him a face mask (the Ninja style) to cover his face from the harsh wind. A hat to cover his newly shaved head. (I told him to not shave his head so that he could have some hair to protect him from cold... but did he listen? Of course not!) A pair of gloves for his hands. A fleece scarf. An ear muff. And 3 pairs of wool socks. These are all necessary to keep him warm.

Only When

When it is like this...

Yah it is snowing again like crazy as of this writing.

Ice, Ice, Baby!

I supposed to run today. I signed up for another 5K which is scheduled for today. But alas, it was raining ice pellets here in my neck of the woods. So the organizers postponed it for next month. Grrrr!

I can't blame them, the road is icy. Everything is icy.  And just to let you see what we are dealing with, here are some photos I took this week.

Life in Maine - The Beauty and the Beast

Last night we had another storm. Seriously? We just had an ice storm last week and some Mainers are still in the dark and freezing cold because they haven't gotten their power back since then.

Well, that's what life in Maine is all about. I don't have a choice but to deal with it. And how do I deal with this kind of situation? I fix with with ice cream.

Silvery Trees

I'm a horrible person. Oh, let me re-phrase it. I'm a horrible person! LOL

Well, I have not blogged anything about Christmas. That is why I am horrible. I'm a blogger duh. Why am I not blogging? All bloggers all over the blog-o-sphere have been blogging about the magical season since September (ate least for Pinoy bloggers where Christmas starts on the "Ber months", that is).

Christmas will be over in few hours and I am still not writing about it. And instead I'm writing about the horrible weather we have here in Maine.

Bridal Shower Party Favor

Steph's Bridal Shower was not a disappointment considering the effort that her sister and Mom put into it. We did surprise her.

The food was delishhhhh and the party was small but intimate. I cannot take credit for anything but the candy bar. Which to tell you the truth, was a practice for my "real" candy bar for the wedding.

1st Day of a long Winter in New England?

I'm not very impressed but someone across the globe is happy to see what I woke up to this morning. It's not even winter yet!

 My car has some frosting already. I wished it was cool whip, though.

Do you have 5-minutes?

I have 2 jobs so I work 12 hours a day. I am not complaining. I am grateful because I have 2 jobs while I know there are lots of people who don't have one or even a part-time job.

I work from 6AM to 6PM. That is when the last kid at our Before and After Care Site is picked up at 6PM. If the the parents are late I will be working more than 12 hours.

Being on your toes 12 hours a day can wear anybody out. But that doesn't mean that I should look worn out or haggard or worse - a walking dead. LOL And how do I do that? Just give me 5 minutes.

This is my 5-minute routine which can last for 12 hours. And this wasn't photoshopped either.

My Beloved Philippines

I am a Filipino even if my passport says otherwise. I may have denounced my rights as a Filipino a couple of years ago to be a citizen of my adoptive country but it doesn't change the fact that I am still a Filipino in my heart and in my mind.

We all know what happened to my beloved country a couple of days ago. It's all over the news. And for us Filipinos living outside the Philippines, we can only feel for them but we cannot truly say if we really know how it feels to be in their situation.

I shed tears when I saw the devastation brought by the typhoon. In my mind, I can rest assured that my loved ones are safe because they are all in the bigger island where they only experience strong wind. I felt relieved to be honest with you. But I cannot rejoice either knowing that in the other part of the archipelago, thousands of people have to suffer and die as a result of Mother Nature's wrath.

I am half across the world right now. The only thing I can do is to pray for my beloved country and my countrymen. I can only hope and keep the faith that God is watching my Philippines. And that more kind-hearted people will help them.

My friends, please think of a moment and be grateful for all the blessing that we have. Now, let us think of some ways we can reach out the help my countrymen in the Philippines.

Here are more links where you can send help:
1. Huff Post: Following Philippine's Typhoon Haiyan: Here's how you can help
2. World News: How to help: Organizations offering relief to typhoon Haiyan Survivors
3. USA Today: How you can help Typhoon Haiyan survivors


Photo Credit: Japol