Windows

The main purpose of this blog is still to give our family and friends an idea of the new experiences Meredith and I are picking up in Maine, and this one definitely qualifies as one of those.

In an attempt to trim a few dollars off of our energy expenses and prevent the house from seeming so drafty as the temperatures begin to drop, I decided to try my hand at adding plastic to the windows of our home.

Equipped with a pair of scissors, a hair dryer, a few window kits (plastic and double-sided tape), and 3 weeks time, I made semi-quick work of this daunting task for anyone from away.





Surprisingly, it's not as tough as my time table makes it out to be, and in reality, it was nothing more than some excessive procrastination that took so long (surprise, surprise!). It works though, and now I'm typing to you from the cozy comfort of our living room.

Kitchenaid

A perk of being self-employed in a computer-related field is the excessive time one can devote to online shopping. Finding a deal that would make even the greatest of bargain hunters jealous, I picked-up a gift for Meredith and my Christmas this year: a brand new Professional 600 Series KitchenAid stand mixer. . . for $65!

This beautiful piece of machinery makes even the toughest baking jobs. . . easy as pie. Speaking in cookie terms, this item from Meredith and my "28 by 28" list can power through the batter of 13 1/2 dozen cookies in a single bowl!

And it even comes with a bread hook! (too bad I have no idea how to use it)



Orvis wanted to give it a shot too.

To justify its presence in our kitchen, Meredith and I immediately began brainstorming baking ideas. So far, beer bread and brownies have been our first success stories. . .



. . .and tonight, we're going to try our hands at some German chocolate cake. If you guys have any ideas of more mixer-based recipes for us to try, please let us know!

Boston Bound

This year for our anniversary Meredith decided to try something that normally she's not too good at- keeping a surprise. She loves to try and attempt this, but it's just her personality to not let a good thing go unsaid. So a month ago when she informed me that she had a surprise for our anniversary, I figured it would be a matter of days before I knew exactly what we'd be doing. To my surprise, however, Meredith kept this one quiet all the way down to the end, and on the Sunday after our anniversary (once Meredith got back from a trip to NC) we found ourselves on our way to Boston to celebrate our third year together.

Meredith had been to Boston on a number of occasions, but I had not made the two hour trip south to check the big city out for myself, so Meredith thought that our anniversary would be a great time to do so. Taking advantage of off-season prices, Meredith booked us a reservation at The Taj, an absolutely amazing hotel overlooking Boston Common. And in trying to do as many Bostonian things in the short time we had in the city, Meredith and I immediately hit the town after checking in.





At first, our sightseeing expedition took us down brownstone-clad Newbury Street, where we grabbed a quick snack from one of many restaurants and shops before heading across the Boston Public Garden and Boston Common to find the Freedom Trail. The public garden and common were gorgeous spots of green in an otherwise sprawling concrete big city. Being a wildly historic town, there were numerous statues and landmarks lacing the common and garden, giving a magnificently historic feel, to an already beautiful city.








On the other end of the Common, the Freedom Trail only magnified this historic feeling, as you're given the opportunity to stroll the same streets and see many of the same buildings, as many of the original leaders of our nation. Since we had dinner plans with an old friend from UNC, we set our bearings on Faneuil Hall & Quincy Market, with the intention of returning to see the rest of the trail the next morning. Getting to our destination shortly after sunset, we were lucky enough to see the awesome sights of Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market in a lit-up display over the brick-laid streets. We even popped in to the Orvis store to pay homage to our furry friend back home!










For dinner, we met our old friend, Lauren, and our new friend, Ryan (her boyfriend), at Addis Red Sea for a new dining experience of Ethiopian cuisine. The food was delicious, our company was delightful, and on our way back into the city from Cambridge we even got to see the extraordinary Boston skyline.

Possibly the greatest gem of our excursion was our journey to Flour Bakery the following morning. Rumored to have the best sticky buns in New England, Meredith and I decided to test them out for ourselves. So far, they're right! Don't let word get back to Orvis, but there was even an exceptionally cute Bernese Mountain Dog waiting outside for some of Flour's homemade dog treats. Good news: Flour allows you to order its sticky buns online.

After breakfast, Meredith and I headed back up Dartmouth street past the public library and Trinity Church to explore Commonwealth Ave. and the rest of the back bay. Commonwealth is a grassy pathway lined with historic brownstones and beautiful trees. Next, our walk took us briefly through Beacon Hill, past the Massachusetts state house (John Hancock's old residence), and then back through the Public Garden on our way to check out from our Hotel.





After checkout, Meredith and I found parking in the North End, where we picked the Freedom Trail back up and eventually found our way to the Old North Church - where Paul Revere warned the city of the impending British Troop invasion over 230 years ago. Heading through the predominately Italian neighborhoods of the North End, Meredith felt taken back to her time in Florence, as we passed numerous Italian restaurants and stores, and even people speaking Italian in the streets. Luckily, our trip through the Italian neighborhoods coincided with lunchtime, and we were lucky enough to enjoy an excellent Italian lunch, gelato, and even a little bakery trip for the trip home. The almond cookies from the bakery were so delicious, that Meredith and I quickly returned after trying them to triple the original order!



Unfortunately, I don't believe that even blogspot.com has enough server space to hold all of the sights, stories, tastes, and adventure of our quick expedition, but Meredith and I will certainly cherish those memories for years to come - and hopefully return to Boston soon to see all that we missed our first time. I just want to say thank you to Meredith for keeping her first surprise, and making it an absolutely perfect one!

Breathe Easy!

Wyoming Comes to Town

Rounding out our planned visits, Meredith's father and stepmother from Wyoming came to visit this past week. Having planned to make it in perfect time for peak foliage season (not enough of those trees out in Wyoming to get a good taste for autumn), they will more than likely be the last guests to stay with us for awhile. In the spirit of Portland we made sure to show them every taste, sight and sound of the area as possible.

As with every visit from friends and family, the regular staples were there: Flatbread, walking around the Old Port, the Head Light and Freeport. Luckily for them, and sadly for us, there visit signified the last week The Lobster Shack is open for the season, so it looks like we'll have to stick it out at least until next summer. We've also added a newer attraction to our list of stops, thanks to Victoria and Savanna, we've started to take our guests to Spring Point Light in South Portland for a great view of the Portland skyline.







In an attempt to see as much foliage as possible we headed up mid-coast to Camden on Sunday morning. Big Papa Perdue had lunch with Richard Russo at the Camden Deli, and although there was a constant slight shower, we enjoyed seeing the town post-peak season. Unfortunately the view from the top of Mt. Battie in Camden Hill State Park was limited, to say the least. A slight detour on the way back ended up turning out to be a fortunate diversion as the sun peaked through the clouds over the water outside of Damariscotta. The beautiful trees and quintessential New England streets gave quite the backdrop for Mr. Perdue to test out his new camera. We even got to add a new gelateria to our ever-growing list of delectable Maine stops.







On Monday before they had to leave we headed over to Mackworth to try to let Orvis run some energy out. Although his normal swimming spot was stolen by a beach meditator, it gave us the chance to more fully explore the little gem of an island that we have been underusing. The casual stroll around the perimeter of the island provides a number of beautiful views of the Casco Bay and East End areas, and will definitely become more of a standard in our trips to Mackworth.

We enjoyed having the Perdues come visit, but now it looks like it will be just the three of us for a few months (nudge, nudge Cindy and Justin), so I guess it will be up to Meredith and I to discover some new seasonal adventures to write back home about.

Breathe easy!

A Few New Things

I, always being the pillar of health, suggested to Meredith a week ago that we attempt to follow suit with Meredith's client (and our Office-loving friend) Brook, and attempt a week-long raw food diet. That's right, Michael Cain, king of the processed and high-calorie goodness, braved through one week of smoothies, salads, fruits, nuts and veggies. In all honesty, it was a fun experience, albeit a hard one, that Meredith and I will be sure to incorporate much larger parts of in our everyday diets.



Orvis has some great news for all of his many followers out there. After reading an article in the Maine Switch, he goaded us into an interview at Camp Bow Wow, a daycare and boarding destination for the playful at heart. Truly a gem in the dog care world, the staff at Camp Bow Wow in Portland is extremely knowledgeable and the facilities are top-notch (and on top of that, the playpens even come with their own webcams - a feature that Orvis is in love with, as he tries to expand his acting career). After having stayed there an entire day, and then not moving for two days from total exhaustion, Meredith and I have decided that Orvis will definitely benefit from a once weekly trip to camp.



For our first time experiencing some of the local music venues, Meredith and I were lucky enough to catch an excellent Amos Lee concert last Monday at The Asylum. Although the crowd was surprisingly older than the Cat's Cradle followers we're used to in Chapel Hill, Amos Lee played an incredible set for the majority of three hours, singing in his both soulful and playful style. That show will definitely go down as one of our all-time favorites.

And finally, replacing years of pre-cut ceramic jack-o-lanterns at the Cain house, Meredith and I were sure to run down the street to Alewive's and pick out our own pumpkins for decorating. Meredith stuck to a much more peaceful painted style, where I took a cue from a book cover in town and let the ghoulish nature of Halloween guide my first-ever non-assisted pumpkin carving. (Warning: Not for the faint of heart.)





Mack goes to Mackworth

Savanna and Victoria were lucky enough to visit us over one of the prettiest weekends we've experienced in Maine so far... Meredith's sister, Mackenzie, and her mom, were not so lucky. Unfortunately the next weekend as Meredith's mom and Mackenzie arrived, so did Tropical Storm Kyle. Mrs. Peele and Mackenzie did not let the non-stop rain get in the way of their trip at all. While Meredith and I were busy working at the Cape Elizabeth Harvest Festival, the two decided to go for a walk around the city in the rain.



They were lucky enough to stay at the Regency, one of Portland's coolest hotels, right in the heart of the Old Port. Despite every one of their attempts to stand out as North Carolinians "from away," Meredith and I, in all of our local lifestyle, were able to keep them incognito. Of course we journeyed to some of our favorite restaurants: The Good Table, Flatbread and the Lobster Shack, but this weekend we were able to try out a new delicious favorite- Vignola. Located on the cobblestone Dana Street, in the Old Port, Vignola is a scrumptious Italian restaurant with a great atmosphere and awesome service. With Mama Warbucks paying, we were treated to a cheese plate, a delicious meal and a new favorite beer: Delirium Tremens. We cannot wait to go back!








On Monday morning, the day of their departure, the sun finally peeked out of the clouds. Before they had to head to the airport, we hurried over to Mackworth Island to play fetch with Orvis, and then returned to Cape to show them some of the beautiful trails, right in our neighborhood. Both Mackenzie and Mrs. Peele were finally able to see the natural beauty of Maine sans Kyle.













It was Mackenzie's first visit to Maine, and between the beautiful Old Port and the delicious food, we think she had a really great trip. In fact, we know she had a wonderful visit, as she has not stopped telling us both about how much she is in love with Portland! And of course, Mrs. Peele, who is one of the biggest Maineophiles ever, had a wonderful time too! We have a break from visitors until Mere's father and step-mother come in a couple of weeks!

Stay tuned and breathe easy!

Cousins come a callin'

As always, I am about three weeks behind where I need to be on this blog. Things have been kind of busy with work and I've been neglecting my job to inform you all of what has been happening. A few weeks ago my cousins, Victoria and Savanna, were lured up here by some of our previous food posts and the promise of a beautiful early fall in Maine. Almost immediately after they touched ground, we got their visit started off correctly, with a midnight visit to L.L. Bean. Needless to say, there aren't many locals hanging around Freeport at midnight, but it was quite the experience, seeing those normally bustling stores all but empty. Savanna and Victoria immediately got in the Maine spirit by picking up a few Bean jackets and pullovers that would come in handy as the fall weather got a little cooler.






The next day we tried to change things up by doing something new and headed to an apple orchard in New Gloucester. We had a great time picking the apples that would become the main ingredient for our dessert that evening that accompanied our lobster dinner: apple crisp!










We showed the girls as much of Portland on Sunday, as possible, with a fun side trip to Mackworth Island with Orvis. After a delicious seaside lunch at the Lobster Shack, we ran down to see the lighthouse at Cape Neddick in York, and made it back in time for a delicious dinner at our all-time favorite pizza place, Flatbread. My cousins, being the shopaholics they are, far from turned down the opportunity to return to Freeport for some more shopping on Monday morning. After a morning of shopping, we got them to the airport to catch their flight back to Charlotte. We were so glad to get to share this time with Savanna and Victoria, and hope they'll return next season for a little breathe-easy lifestyle in Maine.