Blanche & Lucy are visiting Maine

We are in Waterboro, Maine this week.  My brother Dick & his wife Diane have a get-away home here and invited us here to visit and stay for a little R&R.

Getting to Dick & Diane's house is no easy task - after driving 2hrs north west of Boston to Sanford, ME - we have another long ride down a dirt road through the woods where we follow the signs to his house (his last name is Beaudoin - can you find it on the signs above?).

And tucked away on lake Sherburne is this cute little get-away home - which is all set for 4 season enjoyment.  Here are Dick & Diane in front of their home.

We are up in the cool Maine weather where Autumn colors happen a bit sooner than many other places in NE - the Maple near the lake is already turning red.

And unfortunately (for me) it's also Goldenrod season - so my allergies are challenged right now - Claritin on board!

Blanche & Lucy enjoy their walks in the cool woods around the lake.

Early morning the lake is like glass.

Folks that live around the lake all have water toys - boats, tubes and relaxing hammocks.

Sitting by the water and just looking at the lake is relaxing.

Blanche just jumped into the water - here she is actually swimming.

Lucy didn't go in as deep as Blanche but she is shaking off her little wading.

Totally drenched - Blanche went as deep as her chin.

Shake it off Blanche!

Thank goodness Dick has an outdoor hose that we could rinse off the girls -

This was like a nice cleaning for both girls.

On one day we decided to drive down to a little town nearby called Alfred, Maine.  Alfred was a little Shaker community in 1783 - this was the first and largest Shaker community in Maine. They left here 1931 and moved to New Glouester, ME which is still in operation today.

Little New England towns always have these beautiful little white churches.

The Alfred Parish Church is a busy church on Sundays with a strong community.

Behind the church is this wonderful old cemetery with many interesting gravestones.

There were many like this one of young women between 14yr and 24yr who may have died in childbirth during the early 1700.

In some cases entire families were wiped out within a couple of years - probably Typhoid, Smallpox or Yellow Fever that was rampant in those years.

The Grange Hall - right next door to the old cemetery and church is an active place where community events happen - like the spaghetti supper for $1 donation this weekend..... ($1.00 can you die?!)

The sign on the door of this Antique store says "Open by Chance" - you gotta love these little towns.

We visited the little Art Gallery in town - where there were many beautiful pieces of art work from oils, pastels, pottery and more on display and for sale at very affordable prices.....

The B-Grateful Studio is located in this wonderful old 17th century building.

And of course we couldn't pass by the local Ice Cream stand.

Cheryl is very happy with her Black Razzberry ice cream cone - $3 for a 'small' cone - she said it was the best she's had in a long time.

Blanche and Lucy were watching out the car window - knowing they would get a lick of ice cream soon....

The girls kept starring at the farm next door -

After awhile we saw what they were watching - chickens just walking around at the ice cream stand eating fallen seeds and poking at the ground.  Blanche & Lucy were not quite sure what they were and didn't know if they should bark or not so they just starred in wonder....

One of the things we love about small towns is all the fresh produce and fruits that are sold at many of the nearby stands.

The fresh 'sugar-butter' corn with yellow and white kernels was sweet and tender.

And of course we bought crispy just picked juicy apples.

And I couldn't leave a Maine produce stand without a pint of fresh Maine Blueberries for my morning oatmeal. We had a great full day touring this little town of Alfred, Maine and next week we will go to the 'Historical Section' of town to see the Architecture of that area.