L.L.Bean

Once upon a time I had a pair of boots. Then, one day I saw they had a rip in them. And it got bigger, and bigger, and it was joined by a couple of buddies. Whaaat? These bean boots are only 2 years old! Heigh Ho! To Freeport we go! I avoid LL Bean like the plague, but at 9 am on a Sunday morning it isn't bad.And really, every couple years it's kind of fun. At least as fun as the Children's Museum. They have a really big boot (but for our safety we may not climb on it).

And a very cool fish exhibit, which is fun for children and adults.

Around every corner there is another surprise. There are dogs to be sorted by sex: boys over here, girls over here. Or lined up to take a walk with mama dog.

And the large bear - well - the large bear was electrifying.

I tell ya - someone from Beans must have taken a trip to Ikea. Used to be there was just a dinky little trout pond.

I had a hard time believing Jason when he said it was a little boring. Seriously. How often do you get to watch your kids lick their palms to leave their mark on a big, germ laden chalkboard?

I'm pretty sure Violet's favorite part was the little houses with the wiggly bridge between. She helped every single baby across. Every. Baby. Regardless of how much they wanted or needed her help.

 

And yeah, Stella had fun, too.

And just when we thought there could be no more excitement?

There were sled dogs outside. All incredibly tame and patient.

And the Outward Bound guys were there advertising with free hot cocoa. Letting little girls help stoke the fire.

We did make a little side trip to Chuck E. Cheese's, which wasn't nearly as much fun. In fact, it left me reeling. Can anyone say "Last day of winter vacation"? Gah. But Violet wanted to go, so we went. Now we've been there and we don't need to go again.

All in all it was a nice day. I sure do like my family.

Oh, and my boots? Yeah, they don't make those anymore. But I came home with a new pair of Keens. Isn't that just... wait for it... Keen?