Mr. and Mrs. Hepworth

The Hepworths came to visit us for a glorious week of fun. Riley was on Spring break and we totally took advantage of everyday. Even though we had a little snowstorm early in the week, we bundled up and explored the city. It was so good to finally meet Judd and see them together. They are a great couple and we had a lot of laughs. We're missing them already.

Here's the recap of the week:

Sunday we had a festive St. Patty's day dinner and of course...the traditional hats! Corned beef and cabbage and lots of green side dishes. And I'll never forget the back-and-forth-cut-throat game of Monopoly. In the end, Judd wiped the floor with us.

 Monday we headed to the heart of Portland, walked Commercial Street and Old Port and explored Monument Square. It was pretty brisk, so we stopped in a quaint, but all too green, coffee shop for some hot cocoa. I loved driving through the West End, admiring the old, elegant houses, but Hinder most enjoyed the East Prom park. That evening the boys went skiing/snowboarding at Shawnee Peak.

 Tuesday the snow hit. Boo, Mother Nature! We made the best of it at LL Bean in Freeport. Great pizza and window shopping. The stores were empty so we spent a good chunk of time playing in the fish tank bubble thing. I had heard about the DeLorme "Largest Globe in the World" and decided to check it out on the way home. We're kind of geography nerds, so we loved it. And the kids love anything involving a giant ball. We hit up a matinee, the new Wizard of Oz flick, and called it a day.

Wednesday was the best! Shopping with my sister, scoring some amazing deals, and lunch at Panda Express. The outfit Vyla is wearing was $10 total, including the shoes! Thanks Aunt D'laney!

 Thursday was the day we ventured out to the Prouts Neck cliffs. I think Hinder would say this was his favorite activity. It was very beautiful but COLD. He had a lot of fun searching for sea creatures and throwing rocks in the water. This was definitely something we will do again. That night, the Hepworths took H on a date while I had to work and Riley had to study. Getting to spend one-on-one time with them made him feel like a million bucks.

 Friday morning we were out the door early. I really wanted to browse through a few random stores that Portland has; Christmas Tree Shops and Mardens. I don't know how to describe these stores... but since Riley has a thing for D.I., I knew he'd enjoy them. We spent the rest of the afternoon at Old Orchard Beach. Again the weather did not cooperate, but it was gorgeous anyway. The guys broke open clams and fed them to the seagulls and Hinder flew his kite. This day made me SO excited for summer here.

Saturday our first experience with the New England Maple Weekend Festival. We loved every second of it. Driving out to the more rural towns outside of Portland was so good for us. We really miss rural. We stopped by two sugar houses. Grandpa Joe's and Hilltop Boilers. Maple on ice cream, maple whoopie pies, maple cotton candy, and of course...real maple syrup. No other syrup will eve compare now that we've sampled the good stuff! Watching how the trees are tapped and the maple is boiled was pretty interesting.

 The week was full of movie nights and late night games. There's nothing we love more than hanging out with our family. They're our best friends! We're so grateful they made the long trip to come visit.
In just a few days, we're excited to have a few more visitors and do it all again!