Apple picking {Maine Monday 6}

Happy Monday, all! I hope you had a great weekend like we did :)

It's the last Monday of the month, which means it's time for this month's Maine Monday! This time, I'm featuring that quintessential fall activity

            ...apple picking...

Few seasonal activities top apple picking, I think: the crisp air, the happy little trees, the smell of fruit ripening in the sun and warm pastries out of the oven. We go to a couple different places around where we live, and we always make sure to head out early, because they usually get packed by 10 a.m. on a gorgeous fall day.

I'll pick any kind of apple, but my favorite are macs -- I love a tart, crunchy apple. I could eat them forever! Cortlands and empires are also yummy. Usually we pick a bunch of whatever is ready that day.

I just love walking through the orchards, enjoying the sun, the cool breeze and the hunt for the perfect apple. I usually find one I want that's way up high -- luckily the hubs is tall!

I also love pulling around that little cart...makes me feel like a kid again.

Oh, and of course -- the second best (or is it the best?) thing about going to the orchard are the treats -- the cider donuts, the mulled apple cider, the apple dumplings with caramel and ice cream. No photos of these, because I gobble them up!

I like to buy a few gourds too, for fall decorating. I've been working on some of that this weekend, but nothing is ready to show yet. Hopefully soon -- stay tuned!

And there are hay rides too. We don't usually partake, but maybe when we have kids...

We've been once this year already, but I can't wait to go again. But we have to eat all the apples we picked before we get more.

We usually make at least one apple pie with our bounty, and we've made applesauce before too. This year, we tried making an apple tarte tatin -- a French pastry where carmelized sugar is poured into a pie dish, topped with apples and then a pie crust. When it comes out of the oven, you flip it over. It won't win any beauty awards, but it sure was tasty!

Don't mind the wine cork in the background... :)

Do you go apple picking in the fall? What do you like to make with them?

Have a great Monday!

Check out past Maine Mondays here.

Town fair {Maine Monday 5}

Mornin', everyone! If you're on the East Coast, I hope you're safe and didn't suffer any damage during the hurricane. Things weren't nearly as bad as expected here in Maine. We got about three inches of rain and some gusty winds, but no broken branches or other damage. We never even lost power! As I see footage of flooding in other parts of the Northeast, I'm counting our blessing that all we ended up with were a bunch of leaves on the lawn that need to be raked up eventually.

Can you believe it's the end of August already? Where did this month go? I feel like I was just doing Maine Monday for the end of July...and now it's time for August's! This month, I've got photos from...

                          ...the town fair.

Early fall in Maine means it's fair season, and there are a bunch in towns around the state. They all have agricultural roots, but many now include midways with rides, games and other modern amusements. My hometown fair actually happens in August. I absolutely adore the fair! It's pretty much the same every year, but it's one of those traditions that I just love.

Usually the first thing we do as soon as we show up is wander along the strip of food vendors and get something to eat. The hubs is a big fan of this Mr. & Mrs. Sausage booth.

Once we've stuffed our faces, we head over to the barns to check out the animals. Lots of cows...

cuuuute piglets...

and some goats too (it totally looks like this goat is smiling!)

The hubs is usually less impressed with the farm animals since he had them growing up, but for this town girl, farm animals are about as cute as it gets!

There's lots of agricultural activities too, like a kids' pig scramble and cattle log hauling competitions -- which, I found out this year, is a team of two cattle that have to pull a light log behind them and navigate through a series of cones, with the handler giving them verbal direction. I was too busy trying to figure this out to take pictures.

No good town fair is complete without an exhibition hall, where locals submit their wares -- like best tomatoes, best apple pie, best quilt -- hoping to earn a blue ribbon. It's like a little slice of old-time Americana.

After touring the barns and checking out the exhibition hall, it's time to walk around the midway and take in the sights.

Usually this includes another food-booth detour for a sweet treat. I cannot leave the fair without a bag of these hot, fresh, deliciously-bad-for-you mini doughnuts. The dough is plopped into this fryer, then the doughnuts are flipped by little levers a couple times before being flipped onto a tray and scooped into a paper bag.

Then, you head to the sugar station, pour all kinds of sugar in that bag and shake it up to coat those yummy, hot doughnuts. OMG sooo good. (No photo of this, because I was too busy gobbling them up!)

We don't usually do the rides (mostly because I can't get the hubs on any of them!) or games, but I'm a little ashamed to admit that we usually like to watch the demolition derby. We sadly didn't catch it this year, but let me tell you, watching cars crash into each other, flinging mud and sending smoke into the air, is pretty awesome, in a redneck, this-seems-like-a-parody-but-it's-real kind of way.

Fair lights at night...love it!

Have you ever been to a fair? Are you as crazy about them as I am? Does that photo of the cow with its tongue in its nose totally gross you out? :)

Have a great Monday, all!

Check out all the past Maine Mondays here!

Maine Monday 4: Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens

It's the last Monday of the month, which means it's Maine Monday time (better late than never, right??)! This month, I've got lots of summery eye candy for you from the

           ...Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens. 

Open since 2007, the gardens encompass 250 acres near the coast in Boothbay, Maine. On Saturday, I went to the gardens for the first time with my mother and sister, and despite the record heat, we had a fantastic time exploring the gardens and pretending the lush, green and manicured property was our own backyard!

Note: The day started out cloudy then became sunny, so you'll see some photos in bright light.

We saw lots of pretty lilies, roses and other colorful flowers blooming in the height of summer...

One of my favorite parts was the children's garden, opened last year. It had a massive treehouse, a maze, stone whale sculptures that spouted water and little playhouses that even had grass growing on their roofs.

I loved the "bog" too!

And no kids' garden is complete without some animals-in-residence.

For the grown-ups, there was a lush meditation garden with a beautiful water feature and a view of an ocean inlet.

A garden of the five senses had aromatic plants like lavender and mint, silky-soft plants like lambs' ear, the soft sounds of water features and even tomatoes and blueberries you were encouraged to pop in your mouth (when ripe, of course!).

The gardens were dotted with sculptures and art from Maine-made artists, as well as pergolas with adorable outdoor seating where you could sit and rest. I want this in my backyard!

We spent about three hours there, but could have spent a lot longer, if it hadn't been so hot. We also spent some time browsing a handful of local vendors selling jewelry, art, food and other products.

A few more photos...

Cabbage and lettuce in the kids' garden

Weeping trees

 

If you're in Maine or planning to visit, I would highly recommend a visit to the gardens. But not if you're allergic to bees. That place was constantly buzzing!

Yep, there's my mom and sister!

Thanks for your patience with this month's Maine Monday (I'm sure you were all just hanging on the edge of your seats all day waiting for this...haha). Read the other Maine Mondays here!

Maine Monday 3: My favorite beaches

Happy Monday, everyone! It's the last week of the month, so that means it's time for another installment of Maine Monday. Since summer is fully upon us, I thought I'd share a few photos of my

              ...favorite beaches

I can't pick my top favorite out of the three -- I like them each for different reasons, so, in no particular order...

Popham Beach

Popham Beach State Park in Phippsburg is, according to some, the most popular state park in Maine. It's got miles and miles of sand, making it a great place to walk along the water.

At one end is Fort Popham, built in the mid-1800s to defend the coast and now on the National Register of Historic Places. It's a fun place to poke around and collect rocks and shells.

On nice Saturdays, the beach gets full fast, so we always make sure to go early (before 9:30) to get a prime spot. At low tide, you used to be able to walk across a sand bar to an island, but a river running along the coast has caused some erosion and made the passage risky.

Since it's so popular, it's a great place to people watch, run into friends and hang out with a crowd. During the spring and fall (and even winter, if it's sunny!), it's a great place to walk along the sand, looking for sand dollars.

Small Point Beach
Also known as Head Beach, this is the beach we went to a lot as kids. It's also in Phippsburg, on Hermit Island, but lesser known and less crowded, so if you try to get into Popham and can't, this is the place to go.

It's in a little cove, so the water is a little warmer and calmer, making it great for kids. It's not a state park, so you can bring your dogs and your alcohol too. :) And you can stay past dark, so we love to come here in the late afternoons, grill up some hot dogs and s'mores on our cookstove and watch the sunset.

There's a campground on the island and a great food shack too.

Reid State Park
This giant state park in Georgetown has tons and tons of beach, and lots of parking, so no worries about not getting in even on a hot Saturday. I have a soft spot for it because this is where my mom used to come as a kid with her parents and siblings every Sunday.

It's got quite an undertow and big waves, so make sure you're a strong swimmer if you decide to go out far. If you're not, there's a lagoon that fills up during high tide, where we loved to swim when we were little. As kids, we spent lots of time walking along the rocks looking for tide pools, and I still love walking on the rocks and watching the piping plovers run along.

It's a great place to fly kites too! We go every Labor Day with the hubs' family, and it's lots of fun.

We have a big appreciation for beaches here in Maine, because it's only really warm enough to enjoy them for three months out of the year (though I do love going in the spring and fall, when there's no one there and plenty of space to enjoy). And yes, I do swim in the ocean, and yes, it's very cold! Sometimes it takes your breath away it's so cold, but there's nothing like it.

I haven't been to the beach yet this summer, and I'm crossing my fingers for a hot and sunny Saturday very soon!

What are your favotire beaches?

See the first two Maine Mondays here and here!