Thanksgiving

The holiday has come and gone, but the memories and pictures remain. We spent some time with the grandchildren this year, and have lots of pictures to share. We are thankful for the family we have, and enjoy seeing them get together. This year we did not have Jon, Erin, and little Emily, but all the rest made it to the house over the holiday.

Here we have Jessica, Bridget, Bob, Gina, Andrew, and Gary on Thanksgiving Day.

On Wednesday night Gina prepared a wonderful chicken recipe, with help from the kids. Here we have Jess fixing string beans.

Ryan prepared the garlic.

Here we have the four grandchildren together: Meghan, Ryan, Jessica, and Bridget. Craft projects filled the afternoon.  Meghan and Bridget created a work of art:

The finished project was awesome! Bridget also painted with Grampy.

Bridget dressed up for Thanksgiving Day.

Gary cooked, while Andy carved, and Bob washed dishes.

At the end of a busy day, Jessica and Bridget snuggle up:

Grampy reads a book to Bridget. She had a great time and made it an exciting holiday.

Since Thanksgiving, the days have turned cold and winter is settling into the County. Our thoughts turn to Christmas.

Beautiful Fall Foliage

As the weatherman predicts snow and driving rain to end our beautiful fall, we want to share some photos of what it has been like here for the past few weeks. The trees have been absolutely beautiful this fall, with more color and longer lasting color than usual. We have driven around the immediate area, driven to Portage, and made a trip down Route 11 as far as Sherman to enjoy the views.

These beautiful trees are on the camp road, just above our camp.

This is also the camp road at Portage.

What a great fall scene here! That would make a great painting!

Great colors reflected in the water at the lake.

The leaves have fallen on the path leading down to the camp.

The boat ramp at Portage looking across to the hillsides.

This farm was in Perham, a beautiful spot in the fall.

As this season also comes to an end, we hope you enjoy our look at the beauty of it.

To King's Landing with Bridget and Jessica

We have had an incredibly busy past two weeks, and we will share the highlights of it here. As you can see in the photo, we visited the Mt. Katahdin lookout with Bob, Bridget, and Jessica. Bob and Jessica came to visit for four days and Jessica met them in Bangor to help with the ride. here we have Gary holding Bridget as Jessica look on.

On Friday of last week we visited King's Landing on a beautiful fall day. Here you can see the serenity and beauty of this village.

The village was in the height of their fall preparations, with the Canadian Thanksgiving just a week after we were there.

We rode on this wagon to get back to the Visitor Center. Jess had an allergic reaction after the horse ride, we suspect the horses set it off.

The store was well stocked with vintage items, and a shopkeeper to talk to the visitors.

We ate dinner at the tavern. Here you see Jessica and Louise looking over the menus. We were disappointed that the choices on the menu have been reduced to two.

Here we have Bob and Bridget. Bridget is inspecting her grilled cheese sandwich. She had a great time in the dining room with two other little girls, one of them named Bridget!

Later in the day we returned home by way of the pumpkin farm in Presque Isle. Bridget enjoyed a ride on the toy tractor.

Bridget enjoyed her trip and is seen here having a story with Grampy.

Massachusetts Sojourn

Last weekend was spent with our little granddaughters. First we have a picture of Emily with her parents. We stopped to visit them on our way to and from Massachusetts. What a nice little family they have become.

We went on to Massachusetts and spent two days with Bob and Gina and Bridget.

Here she is playing with her kitchen, serving tea.

We visited the mill at the Wayside Inn where Gary took many pictures of the scenery. It was a lovely day and this is one of Bridget's favorite places to run and play.

We also visited the playground where Bridget plays and the Honey Pot Hill Farm where there are animals, apples.pumpkins, and cider doughnuts. Above Bob and Bridget enjoy the day.

Bridget picked her special pumpkin to take home.

We had a very special weekend and loved getting to spend some time with Bridget. She is a very special little girl. Her cousin Emily is just an adorable baby, so we look forward to many future trips to visit these girls.

Family Excitement

We have a new granddaughter! Here you can see us visiting with her yesterday. She is a wonderful baby, and Jon and Erin are very happy with her. They are such a perfect family and we are so happy for them. She is a good baby and we haven't yet seen her with her eyes open.

What a precious little face!

Bridget Comes to Maine

Bridget ventured north this past week to visit her grandparents. What an adorable little lady she has become! Having just reached the age of two, she acts twice her age and keeps her parents on the move!

Here we have Bridget playing on the beach at Portage Lake.

A paddle boat ride with Daddy.

With Mama and Dada on the wharf.

Having a piece of chocolate birthday cake!

Bridget has conquered another piece of her world. Three days in Maine created new adventures and created fans of everyone she met. What a girl she is!

August and the Museum

So much has been happening in the Cole world this past month. The Salmon Brook Historical Society has taken a prominent place in our efforts. Painting the shed and replacing the roof on the barn have been two big projects this month. Here are a few pictures of this activity:

Ryan pitched in, scraping and painting. Here he is working on the cupola. Gary redid the horse atop it. The place was at its best for the August Festival thanks to lots of volunteer hours.