What I Did Over Summer Vacation

Well, its been a pretty good summer, a little weird for having a new baby move in right in the middle of it, but with the spirit of "divide and conquer", we have been able to do some fun things, but usually not all eight of us at the same time.

For me, some of the funnest times this summer have been spent on Don's sweet boat. I was telling Bishop Hayes about it, and he pointed out that I have spent more time on Don's boat than I would have spent on a boat I owned myself, and of course he's right. I don't have the time or money to put into fuel, maintenance, slip fees, insurance, etc., etc. Never the less, it is an awesome boat, and Don is great company. So, without further ado, here are some pictures and captions of the summer:

Here is a picture from one of my few canoe trips this year, back in May. The fishing has not been very good, compared to last year. I don't think I canoed at all in June or July.



As I alluded to above, one reason I haven't spent as much time in the canoe is because we've gone out on Don's boat. Here are some pictures from a trip in June:

Eleanor




Zach watching Fort Knox slide by, or as Eleanor prefers to think of it, a castle, or in the alternative, Egypt.



Later, after the Magnus was born, Don and I went mackerel fishing early one morning. There were mackerel everywhere, even some bigger fish churning up the surface, but we got skunked. It was a beautiful morning, never the less

Don running the boat down the Penobscot River.



We had an awful lot of this kind of weather this summer.



"As long as the fog doesn't catch us, we should be fine"


Don, getting bored with fishing, decides to check out his sweet craig's list inflatable dingy. It looks like it could use a little more air, eh?



For Bucksport Days, I took Zoe, Emily, Eleanor and Zach to the Parade.



Then the bounce house, but I didn't get a picture of that. Zach was a little intimidated at first, then he got used to it and he wouldn't leave.

Then the car show. This is Brother Joe Jensen's car. Its a REO Flying Cloud. He was the Bishop in one of the wards in Manhattan. I am pretty sure he was the Bishop in charge of the building when they converted the top floors into a Temple. That would keep you busy. He has a summer home on Alamoosook Lake, but when he finally got released as Bishop so he could enjoy it, his wonderful wife got sick. She passed away this spring. He has been here a lot this summer though, with lots of family. He is a great guy.



After the car show, we went home, ate, dropped off Squeezie and then Zach, Emily, Zoe and I went with Don and Terri and Molly on a trip around Verona Island. It was a beautiful trip on a beautiful afternoon.



Zach showing Don how to run a boat.


Zoe and Emily hanging out on the bow.


Here is a picture of Don's wife Terri and their daughter Molly. The boat is named the Miss Molly in her honor.


Here is an old farm on Verona Island.


Here is a picture of the new Penobscot Narrows Bridge, with the old Waldo-Hancock Bridge behind it.

And the bridges from below



In August, Don, our friend Perry, and his two boys took the boat to Rockland for the boat show. As you can see, the weather was pretty typical. I spent a fair amount of the trip humming "three hour tour, a three hour tour."

Perry at the helm, while Don explains something important. You cannot shut off the engine unless the key is on. This may seem trivial, trust me though, its not.

Don in his typical mode. If Don doesn't get a brain tumor from talking on a cell phone, then nobody else will either. He is selflessly conducting an experiment on himself to prove once and for all, that there are no health risks posed by cellular telephones. Hopefully he is right about that.

This schooner was heading away from Rockland.

These schooners were heading into Rockland.



Saturday morning was clear and beautiful. This is a Buzzards Bay 30. My friend Robert Baird had done some of the bronze castings for these boats.

Here is a good picture of Don's boat. We woke up and Don cooked about 6 lbs of bacon, because that way he had plenty of bacon grease to deep fry the two dozen eggs we ate. Boy that was yummy, and you couldn't beat the atmosphere.


Here is some of the crew trying to move after eating.

Don at his home away from home, Hamilton Marine, trying on some rain gear.

Here is the galley on a boat similar in size to Don's boat. We took this picture for some ideas.


The ride back to Bucksport was beautiful. This is what Camden looks like from the ocean.



Before school started, we needed to have a campout at Camp Bravo.

Here is the set up, Zoe is tripping over a tent peg and falling towards the fire. Smooth!



The Crew. Zach, as usual, is heavily armed, but still smiling.


Emily, reading Charlotte's Web, the climactic scene of which takes place at the Blue Hill Fair, by the way.


Zach and Zoe enjoying the camp fire.


Classic Squeezie pose, classic Squeezie expression. I have decided that Eleanor feels no guilt, and can therefore not be persuaded by appeals to her better nature. She just doesn't give a crap. This is the same trait that makes her so accepting of everyone. I'm not sure its good or bad, its just Squeezie, and what you see is what you get, because she doesn't really care what you think of her, so she can't be bothered to pretend to be something she's not, unless that thing is a princess.


Bedtime. Zach kept falling asleep, sometimes with his eyes open.





Safely tucked in.



Here is another picture of Egypt. I took it Thursday. Don, two of his friends and I spent 8 hours fishing. Our combined catch was one mackerel. But again, good food, awesome weather, and wonderful company made for a delightful trip.

Today I took Zach and Zoe to the Blue Hill Fair. I love the Blue Hill Fair, or as Squeezie prefers to call it, the Blue Hair Fair.

"Zach, get close to the goat and I'll take your picture." Zach doesn't trust the goat though.

Notice the nervous fingers in the mouth as he dares to reach in to pet the goats.


Almost September, time to start getting ready for winter.


The Horse Pulling competition.

Zach and Zoe in the Army recruiter's HUMVEE.
Zoe, keeping it real.

Zach, checking out the hardware.

He was trying to talk the recruiter into sending him on an all expense paid trip half way around the world to a warm and exciting destination.

Zach has grown a lot lately. We checked him out on the growth charts this morning, and he is in the 25th-50th percentile. Here he shows he is taller than the tires on the sweet HUMVEE. He looks a little Chinese here.



We finished off our trip to the Blue Hair Fair with some Ox pulling. I love the ox pulling.




Well those are some of the highlights of the summer, there are many others: Zach falling out of the canoe head first, the birth of Magnus, the sweet Saab convertible, swimming at the Bucksport pool, Zions Camp at Flagstaff Lake and ice cream to name a few, but Joey has covered a lot of those, and I'm sleepy.

P.S. Utah beat Michigan 25-23 at Michigan.