Mount Greylock

We sat atop Massachusetts' highest mountain Monday. Mount Greylock State Reservation was the state's first State Park and at the summit is over 3400 feet above sea level. It was breathtaking. Stretched out before us were the Berkshire mountains with little houses and towns sprinkled throughout the hills and valleys. Wow. It was like being on top of the world. It made me wonder how many people have always lived here and never been to this beautiful place. That's usually the way though; we travel to see interesting places while our community holds some of the most wonderful treasures. On the very peak of the mountain sits a war memorial. It reminded me of a lighthouse. On the front are the words, "Erected by Massachusettes in grateful recognition of the loyalty of her sons and daughters in war. They were faithful even unto death." It seemed a very appropriate place to be on Memorial Day. It was interesting to me to see folks just staring over the scenic vistas. You see the same look on people's faces as they watch the ocean. I never thought about that before. I'm still getting used to having mountains all around us, I love it. Mountains are majestic, strong, silent, and proud. The ocean has it's own beauty although very different from the mountains. It can be peaceful and soothing one moment and angry and dangerous the next. No matter what it's mood, just like the mountains, the ocean is awe inspiring. Being from Mid coast Maine and having lived on one of the Azore Islands for two years I have a love of the ocean. The view from my bedroom window in our island home was of the water. Sometimes I'd see a family of dolphins swim by or boats on their way to somewhere. It was a short walk down our driveway to the rocky beach where we'd see crabs scurrying into the cracks and crevices of the lava rock. They looked like spiders, and you know how I feel about spiders... Anyway, it really was the experience of a lifetime to live there.

Anyway, back to Mount Greylock. The road to the summit was about 8 miles long and very windy. Instead of repairing trouble spots on the pavement such as potholes or large bumps, these areas were painted bright yellow so you'd notice them. Clever. There was room for two cars to pass eachother but it was tight and at some spots we were very close to the edge of a very steep drop off. The trees made a natural canopy over the roadway and we saw countless little waterfalls along the way. Very beautiful. At the summit there is also a Lodge. Many hikers stop here as the Appalachain Trail runs directly over the summit. There is a bulletin board in the lodge with some interesting A.T. facts. The trail runs through 14 states and 2/3 of the US population live within a day's drive of the trail. How can that be I wonder. After we left the lodge we went looking for a letterbox which really was the excuse we had for going to Mount Greylock in the first place. Not that we needed an excuse but it made the trip there feel more like it had purpose. We found our box with no trouble and then headed home. What a nice day we had.

We are headed to the Boston Museum of Science tomorrow. Katie's 5th grade class from Woodside will be there, it's their class trip for the end of the year. We've been planning to meet them there since we found out we'd be moving. I'm really looking forward to it! It'll be fun to see Katie's teacher and friends. We figured we make it a family trip, Ed is taking the day off from work. Should be a fun time.

Can I just take a minute to tell you that I love Target. I love Target. And I love the Target pharmacy. Their stuff is good stuff. I think Ed doesn't like Target, at least he doesn't like how much money I spend there. I also love my front loading washing machine and matching dryer. If you ever need a new set buy the front loader. I feel like a commercial but it's true! I don't even mind doing laundry anymore. It also helps that our laundry room is on the second floor so I'm not having to go to the basement to do the wash. Ahhh...life is good.

I'm having some difficulty loading pictures today. I'll definately post some as soon as I'm able. Why doesn't this work!!!! Have a great day.

A Busy Weekend

The Cooks have been on the go this weekend! Katie's soccer team competed in a tournament both yesterday and today. The first game was at 8:30 a.m. which meant out the door by 7:00 because it was about 45 minutes away and she needed to be there early. Ugh! The weather was absolutely beautiful, sunny, upper 70's!! The team won one, tied one, and lost two. They played their hearts out and made an excellent effort. My girl made a couple of great plays and Becky and Allison endured the long games and hot weather with smiles on their faces. It was also nice to go someplace we wouldn't otherwise have gone. We were in Huntington which is in the Pioneer Valley (?). Anyway, it's quite pretty all along the trip there.

After we got home from today's games we regrouped (quickly) and headed back out the door for our church picnic at our Pastor's house. I almost talked myself out of going but I knew we should go. Ed agreed, so off we went. It was nice. This is the first church event we've had the oppurtunity to attend so I was a little nervous about being there. No need. We felt welcome from the get go and Pastor even made a point of introducing us to everyone when we were getting ready for lunch. I made pasta salad and my friend Heather's Whoopie Pies! Yum! I've never made whoopie pies before so I was pleased that they turned out well. We had a good afternoon.

Tomorrow is stay home and do nothing (yeah right) day! Actually I have some pots to plant, Ed is staining the front porch, and the girls and I will probably wash the van and truck. After that we may go letterboxing. I will miss the Brunswick/Topsham Memorial Day Parade. I liked living in a Navy community and having that sense of patriotism and pride as sailors and soldiers both past and present would walk passed. Folks around here don't seem to have that same patriotic spirit. There aren't as many yellow ribbon magnets on the backs of cars, or flags hanging off the front porch. That disappoints me. Even the music the kids sang at the Memorial Day concert at their school was more Bob Dylan like as opposed to patriotic. They sang a couple, but when "Blowing in the Wind" was sung I wondered about the political stance of the music teacher and what the kids discussed relating to the musical choices. It makes me realize how important it is for us to pass onto our girls how we feel about Memorial Day or war or Iraq or whatever it may be. I want them to know that while I don't have strong political opinions I do have great pride in our country and great gratitude for the people who make the sacrifices they make so I can have the freedom I have.

Ed is installing ceiling fans at the moment. Move fasta Ed, we's got to put the kiddos to bed! I enjoy this time of day. Right now the birds are chirping away, the sun is setting soon, it's cooler and enjoyable to be out on the back deck. Everyone is tuckered out and I'm confident we'll have a quiet night. Maybe we'll even sleep in a little in the morning...maybe.

Today is my brother's birthday. He's 31!!! Happy Birthday to Robby. My brother is very knowledgable about birds and other wildlife too, but especially birds. I'd say, in my opinion, he's an expert. I think of him often when I see a bird I don't recognize or hear a pretty bird song. I hope he's having a great birthday.

Happy Memorial Day!

Ed's Birthday

Today is my husband's birthday. It's funny how birthdays can make us think about the people in our lives. When I think about Ed I think about the kind of father and husband he is. I could never ask for anyone more wonderful. As a dad he's silly and funny, always ready to play, attentive, and supportive. He understands the importance of his role in the lives of our daughters and he tries to be just what they need. They each need different things from him and he totally gets that. I'm so glad for the kind of dad he is. As a husband, he's supportive, and thoughtful, helpful, my teammate and my friend. He never forgets special occasions and he doesn't complain when the laundry isn't done, the dinner isn't cooked, or I shop too much. He's a wonderful husband, I love him. We've known each other 17 + years and I sometimes wonder how it's been that long. Then I look at the time in smaller increments and see how much has happened in that time. I look where we've been, what we've accomplished together, the goals we've achieved, and I feel proud of him, proud of us and our family. I am richly blessed to share my life with such a wonderful person. Happy Birthday Ed, I love you.

Ed painted clown faces on the girls at Halloween.

Check out the goofy head lamp Ed's wearing while we're camping.

He's a pretty good juggler. The girls are fascinated by his amazing talent!

Allison or Becky?

As I've been studying the scripture passages Pastor Dave sends each day regarding the DaVinci Code, I have come to the definate conclusion that no matter what we face that challenges our faith, it boils down to the fact that it is our FAITH that keeps us believing what we believe. Faith - Believing without seeing, trusting, listening to the voice inside. Not everyone has faith in God or the Bible. They are the ones who are seeking a way to the truth. That's where the controversy comes in I guess. Religious groups fear for the ones with no faith. They fear the faithless will take what the read or see in The DaVinci Code and believe it's true. God created us with a soul. It is our soul that seeks the peace and contentment we can find in a relationship with our Creator. Every soul seeks the same peace and contentment. Unfortunately, some search pathways that can never lead to God. That's where the Believer comes in. We need to share our faith with those who are seeking. This movie may provide oppurtunities to lead a seeker to the peace and contentment that we know through our relationship with Jesus. Therefore, I don't feel that I need to defend what I believe, I just need to share it. I hope some of this makes sense. It was a good week of study for me, I learned a lot, and I am hopeful that I passed something of value onto someone. And thank you Deborah and Lisa for your helpful and insightful comments, they meant a lot.

We had a spider incident this morning. If you know me at all you know that any confrontation with a spider is an incident. I love to start my day with the words, "Mom there's a spider in my room!" When these words are spoken by Katie they are usually spoken with a bit of hysteria (I don't know where she gets that.) I went to look in her room and didn't see it. Katie pointed out that it was on the ceiling, over her bed...the worst place to try to kill a spider, especially when you are SCARED of the foolish thing! I bravely took off my slipper and stood on the bed within reach of the nickle size, black, yucky, spider! I couldn't do it. We all (by this time Becky and Allison were standing in the doorway watching) just watched the thing walk around the ceiling light. All of a sudden it started to drop!!! There was a collective SCREAM from all of us! It landed on the bed. I knew if I didn't smoosh it fast it would get away!!! Not only would it get away, it might've gotten into the covers somehow! Katie would never sleep in her bed again! With all the courage I could muster I KILLED it! There were several spider pieces to clean up when I was done, I wanted to be thorough, actually I would've FREAKED OUT if that thing wasn't dead so I HAD to be thorough. What a way to start the day.

My parents are coming down this weekend. We are going to Six Flags. I can't wait for them to ride Superman, they're going to be so scared!!! I will definately not be riding it again. Allison, Becky and I will find something less life threatening to do while the rest of them do that one! Hopefully the weather will cooperate, it's supposed to. I'll let you know how the folks do on the ride. Maybe I'll take before the ride, and after the ride photos of them!! Sorry Mom and Dad, it's not that bad really...

By the way, the picture at the top is Becky. She was 3. It's the perfect picture of springtime, don't you think so?

Have a terrific weekend!!