holiday with my boy

Sometimes, some very few times now, we are just the two of us. Jonas and I visited our old home for a couple of days, Mount Desert Island, which is sort of like a whole lot of beautiful in one tiny place.

our sea glass mosaic at our hosts' house

So if Maine's one of my favorite places in the world for natural beauty, MDI is sort of the essence of that; the best of the best. Most of it is owned by the National Park Service.

the view from Parkman Mtn.

We have so many favorite spots there and so many memories of when Jonas was small. I was always saying: Look, Jonas, that's where we went to the beach! That restaurant bathroom has special significance for you and your dad! That was our apartment when you were a baby! There used to be a goose at this beach we called Lucy!

We kayaked with friends, hiked up a favorite old hike (still great), and visited this lovely secluded beach full of rocks and sun (yes! SUN!).

I did not reenact being the troll under the foot bridge, but only because the stream bed was flowing quite strongly. Jonas was still game!

The Asticou Azalea Gardens are always a treat. And so much more relaxing now that I have an older child who is not about to shriek or run into the Japanese sand garden or stray from the path or otherwise disturb the meditative mood.

We camped out in the backyard of two friends (one of whom is Kate, my Unfurling Ferns collaborator) and listened to the rain on the tent, all snuggled and cozy. (OK, actually it was a little sweaty.) Both of these people are artistic food-lovers and have these amazing little treasures everywhere you look (driftwood accents, for example) around their very sweet and comfortable home. Martha Stewart has one of her houses on MDI and is probably sneaking around stealing their ideas.

Kate has this adorable tea cup, her grandma's. That I am in L O V E with. So here are two pictures, that's how much I adore it.

I couldn't even bear to use it. Kind of like having a crush on a boy in 8th grade that you can barely stand to look at, you like him so much. You might just fall into a really embarrassing swoon, just by glancing. Swoon away, in the comfort of your own home.