3 Showers, 7 days...

Alright, two weeks later and I'm finally ready to post all about my Maine trip. To sum it up in one word: A-MA-ZING. I'm not even gonna lie, this post will probably be a little lengthy but to do my trip justice there are few details that I can leave out.

Just getting there was a process. My first flight got canceled which of course caused me to miss my connecting flight in North Carolina (why fly South and then North, I don't know). I had to get re-routed and ended up barely making another flight that headed into Philly. I had a 1 1/2 layover in there and then I was off to Maine. It was really nice though because there was practically no one on the plane and I didn't have to sit beside anyone. I got into Portland around 10:20 (earlier than scheduled). Bud and Leslie picked me up and we drove to their house in Bridgton, Maine. By the time we got there it was around 11:30 or so and I was exhausted. Les and I talked for a little bit and then we headed to bed.

So Tuesday we got up and hung out around the lake. We went swimming, kayaking, and played some volleyball. We stayed down at the doc and played with the dogs. It was really relaxing. Then Tuesday evening we watched the Sailboat races and had a campfire. Bud and Mr. Spangler shot off some fireworks which was pretty amusing.

Wednesday we went to this other place that I cannot pronounce and will only butcher the name. I'm just going to call it Andrew's. Haha. We went there and climbed down into some of the pools and went swimming. The water was so low that people could get down to the bottom. Then when, Leslie's mom made us take pictures in the waterfall. It was kind of silly and REALLY cold, but it's another memory to look back on.

We also went to Frenchmen's Hole (that one I can pronounce/spell). We jumped off the rock into the water below. It was actually a lot of fun. Les and I swam further down and explored. Maine/New Hampshire is really beautiful. The sunsets and various scenery had me constantly reminded of what a wonderful God I have. I thoroughly enjoyed just spending my time outdoors.

On Thursday we did some hiking. And of course took more pictures. This bench was the perfect photo opp.

If you look closely, you can see some of my bruises on my legs. They were pretty banged up.

We also did went caving. We crawled through (literally) on our stomachs, hands, knees, etc. to go through all of the caves. It was awesome! This was definitely one of my favorite day trips that we took. I definitely banged my legs up some more though. I should have gotten a picture of that instead.

We also went to the Cascades. It's basically a natural water slide with a few rocks thrown in. It was a lot of fun. I tried going down on the tube which was fun, but going without the tube was a lot better. It was kind of rough though. At one point I went down without the tube, hit the three main sections and then got turned around by the water. I turned myself around and right as I did, I ended up banging my knee and leg into a huge rock. It left a pretty wicked bruise, but was definitely worth it.

Thursday night we also played some games and even though I didn't win Yahtzee, I still beat Bud.

Friday we went on a kayaking trip down a river. It was a lot of work but so much fun! I kayaked a little bit before in high school but never like this. I really enjoyed it and am looking at some places in Harrisonburg where you can rent kayaks and go on day trips. Afterwards, we went home and went out to a movie. We had planned on seeing Salt but when we got to the theater, Bud agreed to see Charlie St. Cloud (which was horrible) with us (he must have been in a good mood that night).

Saturday we went into town to the library and roamed some of the shops. We went to a town fair that ended up not being as fun as we thought it would. We went candle pin bowling which is really hard. Small balls and ten pins is not a good mix.

Sunday we went go karting which was awesome. We had to wear these full length suits, neck braces, helmets, the whole getup and sign our lives away in legal forms. That's how fast these indoor go karts went. It too was awesome!

We went to downtown Portland and wandered around some shops. I tried Bubble Tea (which I still haven't decided if I like yet or not).

After getting lost for an hour or so on the way back, we finally made it home. Afterwards, we decided to venture out again for another movie. This time we did go see Salt (which was pretty bad too).

Monday we just spend the day jet skiing and sailing. I can't remember when, but at some point during the week we went tubing. I had one wicked wipe out (which left me with more bruises) but a lot of fun.

I loved driving the SeaDoo and sailing. We played some volleyball and some other games. Then I had to say good-bye and they dropped me off at the airport. It was so much fun! I was so glad I got to experience Maine and spend time with such a fun family!

Kim picked me up from the airport that night and of course we had to catch up too. I was sad that she couldn't make it to Maine when I was there, but I'm so glad that she lent me her family for the week. The next day we headed to my house and hung out at the lake at my house. We went and saw Inception (which I loved-a lot of thinking but so good). Then I went home and got ready for my trip to Georgia.

All in all, Maine was probably the best week of my summer. We did so much and got to spend so much time with each other. I know I'm leaving out so many details that I had wanted to include, but so much went on that I can't remember everything.

It's sad now because all of my Spanglers will be in different place. They're all only two hours away from me, but it won't be the same as heading down to Lynchburg. Hopefully we'll all be able to make it to someone's apartment or house.

It's weird to think how as you grow-up, all of your friends become scattered around. A few of my friends are at JMU but are leaving Spring semester. I have some in Richmond, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Louisiana, and Colorado. And those are just the people that I'm closest to. My plans are to stay in touch with these people because they all means so much. Hopefully I'll mean as much back to them, as they do to me.

As for now, Adios!