Summer 2019 Family Photoshoot

We very rarely take family photos, but I saw my friend's pictures of her daughter and LOVED the style of the pictures. I found out about photographer, Amanda Peasley, and messaged her immediately asking about arranging a shoot. She was SO amazing, kept in contact, helped styled us, sent us a questionnaire, and made the overall experience so lovely. She spends the school year in Saudi and is home for the summer, so I was happy we could make it work!

Here are a few of the photos:

Mary Poppins Theme Bridal Shower

When I found out that my beautiful best friend (and my longest friendship) Ashley was getting married, I was SO excited! Then she asked me to be her Matron of Honor! You can imagine how excited I was for her and Joel. I just had to be the one to throw her a shower and to make the theme one of her favorite childhood movies -- Mary Poppins! I ran with the tea party theme and had SO much fun creating ideas and making decorations.

Ideas:

• I scoured resale shops and Facebook Marketplace for teapots, teacups & saucers, and old books.
• I bought a Mary Poppins themed cardstock & sticker set. I used the paper and stickers to cover the binding of old books. I also used my Silhouette to cut out shapes (umbrellas, teacups, Mary Poppins silhouette, kite, and more).
• I bought faux flowers and zip tied them together to make colorful bouquets for the teapots.
• I found carousel horse ornaments at Goodwill
• I used plain white tablecloths and then hemmed some fabric I ordered online in different prints (teacups & teapots, London map, flowers, and carousel horses).
• I had some stands and I placed pictures of Ashley & Joel on them, using the Mary Poppins cardstock to mat them.
• I ordered a tea box stand, hot water pump, and boxes of tea off Amazon
• I bought some artisanal honey at my local grocery store
• I used a letter board to display a quote from Mary Poppins
• I designed and printed a sign that has important dates in Ashley & Joel's relationship
• I designed, printed, and put together the invitations -- and I included a tea bag and recipe card in every invitation!
• I ordered games off of Amazon (along with golf pencils)
• I made a paper banner that says "joel & ashley"
• For game prizes, I had journals, plants, and candles
• We did a honeymoon fund raffle as well and there was a large basket of miscellaneous items for the winner
• I also got a piece of wood, wooden letters, and faux sunflowers (Ashley's favorite flower) and made a sign with the couple's initials.  
• I had a recipe box for everyone's recipes

Family Trip to Acadia National Park in Maine

Every year my husband, Will, and I try to take our kids to a national park. Our goal: to hit most, if not all, the national parks before our children graduate high school. So far, we've been to the Smoky Mountains, but next year we plan on heading west!

Here are a few things I wish we knew before we took our trip:

Crowds

We were on vacation from July 11 to July 25. Acadia in July is BUSY. So if your family doesn't care about large crowds of people and finding parking, especially within the park, then feel free to go during the summer months. We are more accustomed to a smaller crowd and being able to explore more freely. I think we would have had an even more fun time in the fall or spring.

Driving

We probably drove an hour to get anywhere from our cabin in Prospect Harbor. Maine is heavily wooded and the population density is low, so you do have to drive a bit to get to the different areas. Our kids did great in the car, but I can see how it might get monotonous. Thankfully, the scenery is breathtaking that you don't mind the drive.

Acadia National Park Pass

A one week pass to the park is $30 USD. It covers the cost of one vehicle. It was well worth it because we went to the park almost every day! It is a large park, expanding 74 square miles. And it does take time to explore and give the beauty of the abundant forested area justice. You can purchase a pass at the Welcome Center. They have more maps and an information desk.

Hiking & Biking

There are no shortages of trails to hike or bike throughout the park -- as well as the whole state! There were a ton of bike tours, which is great if you and your family are avid bikers. The coolest place, in my opinion, is to bike/hike the carriage trails, designed and built by Rockefeller himself! And there is plenty of freedom to explore! We found a random spot which had a gazebo set in the middle of the woods, and after our picnic lunch, we followed a path to a downward staircase that eventually led to a rocky beach. It was a happy surprise and we spend awhile there enjoying the serenity that comes with nature.

Here are some things we did and places we visited:

Carriage Rides

Wildwood Stables, within the national park, offers carriage rides for you and your family to travel the carriage trails that Rockefeller built. You do have to make an appointment ahead of time, so please keep that in mind. We had a wonderful carriage ride led by horse buddies Boo and Yogi! They also give the option to board your horse here and you can camp out here as well. 

Schoodic Peninsula

This was my favorite place we visited! We traversed large slabs of rock that overlooked the gleaming blue ocean. The sun was setting and the coveted golden hour would have made any photographer drool. Definitely a must see!

Thunderhole

This is a place in the park where there is a cave where the hide tide causes water to flow into and it makes a loud thunder sound. We went during low tide, but you could still hear the deep echo that the water created in the cavern.

Cadillac Mountain

This was probably Lucy's favorite spot! It is a big deal to hike this great mountain, but there is a road that you can drive up and take in the gorgeous views of Maine. If you head up to the top of the mountain before the sun rises, you can be the first people to see the sunrise in the United States! 

Jordan Pond House

Looking for a yummy pop over and amazing chicken salad? (That's what I ordered at the restaurant located near the expansive pond.) We did visit during one of the hotter weeks in Maine and not every place has air conditioning, so I was a bit hot -- but the refreshing iced coffee was perfect and the view of the pond is beautiful. You can choose to eat inside or outside al-fresco. 

Common Good Popovers

If you want to see a positive community, visit Common Good for popovers and coffee. The cost of your breakfast is donation based and they have AMAZING honey cinnamon butter for the delicious popovers! While we were there, they had live music.

Smokey's BBQ

You know how you can tell a place has good barbeque no matter how fancy or run down it looks? That it's busy every time you drive by - which Smokey's BBQ was. We just HAD to stop and try it, and I'm so glad we did! We ordered the clam chowder, smoked mussels (definitely order these!), smoked lobster, pulled pork, bakes beans, coleslaw (which had pineapple in it and it was amazing), and more! 

Morton's Moo Homemade Ice Cream

We tried going to as many local ice cream shops while on vacation, and this was our favorite! I mentioned that my son loves the color yellow and the server gave us a cup filled with every yellow topping they had! They also have a triple chocolate ice cream that I devoured and an iced coffee that kept me going! Inside you'll find a train track suspended from the ceiling that my kids loved watching. There are some kid chairs outside on the wrap around porch that the girls sat at and ate their ice cream.

Lobster

It's a given that you have to eat lobster if you're in Maine. There was a small learning curve when it came to de-shelling the meat (I watched a Gordon Ramsey video two times), but it was worth it! We bought them live from a local market and then put them in the crisper until dinnertime. We had a large pot that we filled with about 5-6 inches of water and then placed the lobsters in once it was boiling. 10 minutes later they were done!

Lobster Traps
Every evening we would see all the buoys from the fishermen who set their lobster traps from our deck and every morning we would take the binoculars and watch the boats slowly come and check on them. Sometimes there would be lobsters and sometimes not. The kids especially loved to witness the fresh catches. And the buoys are all so colorful and it became a symbol of Maine.

 

Lighthouses

There are a lot -- there was even one in view of our backyard! We visited: Portland Headlight, and the path to the lighthouse was along the water.

Seal Cove Auto Museum

A bit off the beaten path, this was a diamond in the rough. It is such a cool building filled to the brim with antique cars, which will inspire any motor-loving child or adult's eyes to widen. There wasn't anyone else there while we there and the kids had a blast exploring. There is a car in the middle where they encourage you to sit and take pictures -- so Levi had a blast "driving". Every car had more information about when it was made, who made it, and more. You can see the historical significance that advertising had on the car industry throughout the posters and museum. 

Questions? Comment below!

And if you've been to Acadia National Park and have another place you recommend, please comment below to add to the list!