No longer pushing toward Cushing...We've arrived!

We've arrived!! We've actually been here since Saturday evening, but are just getting back online now. The phone was connected today and we signed up for internet and are happy to be writing again!

The cottage is comfortable, though not the greatest for the unseasonably cold weather we are having (even by old time Mainers standards, this is a late and cold spring). Tonight's forecast includes 4 to 7 inches of the white stuff for the coastal region and temps are in the 40's by day, 20's by night. Brr! It's currently 21 degrees! We had 8 inches on the ground when we arrived, and it actually had mostly melted by this afternoon, but now we are replenishing the supply. Maine roads are quite simply amazing. When we arrived Saturday, they had received at least 8 inches and in many places along the coast upwards of 14 inches on Thursday evening. ALL the roads were completely clear, from the freeways to the tiniest of arterials (those were really fun in the moving truck!). The local driveways are plowed by locals who run routes and rig up plow attachments to their 4 x 4's. It's amazing, especially after being in the Seattle area and its environs for so long.

We've got a phenomenal view. The scene is always changing and as you can see, Felix is being richly rewarded for his lengthy cross country journey. He's adjusting really well, it seems. There's a lovely spot for a garden, at least a small one, out the window this picture is taken out of. The cove you are looking at is called Maple Juice Cove, and it's one of many in this area. There's water all around and wonderful architecture abounds, lovely capes, painted from the most austere New England white on white, to other variations on that theme, fantastic barn reds, even a pumpkin orange. Others are sort of a soothing yellowish or pale green with bright white trim and a high contrast color for the doors, which is especially gorgeous to look at when the fields are bright and clean with fresh snow. It's very cheery. Lots of lovely capes and the Big House, Little House, Barn style of attached buildings is everywhere. Wonderful!

The small towns near us, which include Friendship, Waldoboro, Thomaston, Rockland, etc. are wonderful little towns with vibrant downtowns, lots of people all about (very friendly people with great accents, impossible for us to imitate) - there are so many little local businesses, and everyone seems to know one another, as in Point Roberts. It's fun to start getting acquainted with the roads and the towns and the people. It feels like we have come home - which is a darned good thing, too, since we've come over 3000 miles and have left everything familiar behind!!

Tomorrow we may be snowed in for the morning, but we're thinking of heading north about 35 miles to Belfast on Saturday to start looking at some of the homes and land we've been hankering to see for what seems like forever now. It's still sometimes hard to believe that we are here! It's very exciting. It's also sort of disorienting to have left the springtime of the northwest coast and come to the Northeast, where spring isn't even peeking out yet! A few bulbs have begun up front of the cottage, but they are surely paying for it with this weather. The trees are all bare still and the only green out there for trees is in the evergreens (fir and pine in this immediate vicinity). And interestingly, the grass dies back completely here during the winter. It's as brown as our grass in the west gets during high summer when no rain has fallen for over a month.

Move in day was quite a crazy ordeal, and we worked like crazy. We couldn't use the dolly as the ground was covered in about 8 inches of snow, some of which had frozen to a crust, and some of which was banked in inconvenient spots. We got it all in, taking it box by box from the truck and transporting it the 150 feet or so to the cottage. Phew were we tired at the end, though at least we got some much needed exercise after being in the truck so long.

This cottage is going to be absolutely marvelous for the summer months, though, and that kept us going during the hard sloggy part of the actual move in. And sleep was very sweet that night!

We're glad to be back online and in touch with everyone through the blog. We'll be back!