04 July 2007

Me Again...

Hiho,

I'm back in the saddle again. Sort of.

Yesterday, I rode my bike for the first time in several weeks. That went well, but my allergies are about to drive me into insanity. My sinuses are going haywire. I've had some minor allergy problems before, but this year is awful! I'm doing the whole sneezing, stuffy/runny nose, itchy eyes, hoarse throat thing.

Worse yet, my face and neck (and sometimes my arms) are still swollen every morning and they are still itchy. I have a gen-u-ine allergy to the sun. Oh yes.

You can't imagine how special this makes me feel. Now I can live in Maine and miss the sun 12 stinkin' months a year. O lucky me.

Vitamin D and St. John's Wort, here I come!

Actually, I can keep most of myself out of the sun. It IS the face and neck that are tricky. I had this reaction even after using 45 spf sunscreen and constantly wearing a hat. Now I'm going to switch to sunBLOCK. No, not the lovely white zinc oxide - although that does have possibilities if I put together a miming routine. I thought I'd try the more translucent titanium dioxide. Aubrey makes an all natural sunblock with TiO2, so I'm gonna give it a try.

OK, enough about me. Now it's time to talk about...um...ME, because it's my blog!

Last weekend we camped at Smuggler's Den Campground on Mt. Desert Island. That's pronounced Mt. "Dessert", even though it is spelled "Desert". This drives me bananas, but apparently, no one cares.

It was a lovely campground and we had a (mostly) lovely time. Unfortunately, I was doped up on Benedryl for the entire time, so I may not be remembering things accurately. We camped Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights. Then we packed up Sunday morning and visited Calvary Chapel in Orrington Maine on our way home.

We hiked, helped the girls ride their bikes (they're still a bit shaky), went to the coast to look for tidal pools, found some groovy rocks (I LOVE rocks!), and went to an over-priced, but quaint little oceanarium. (ie. we had a "school" field trip!) We also swam in the freezing heated (supposedly) outdoor pool with the girlies several times a day.

Actually, Mulletman swam. I sat in the shade like a good girl and zoned out watched.

Here are the requisite camping photos that I know you are just DYING to see so that you'll be firmly convinced that we had mounds of fun while you sat home twiddling your thumbs:

Here's our home away from home:



Now it's pool time. Aren't those BRAVE girlies? Isn't that a cute Mulletman?




There was the coolest cemetary right in the campground:



One of the tombs was for Jacob Lurvey who was a hero from the Revolutionary War. He was a prisoner of war twice, but he lived to be 92! Unfortunately, the inscription on his tombstone didn't show up the photo very well. The stone next to it belongs to a couple of his later relatives.



Oh Look! The Groovy Fam, having school during vacation! (They're SO dedicated!)



What can this be? Is it an actual photo of a female swollen-faced groove? Note her her colorful, sun-reflecting plumage. Note also how her "bill" hides her face!



And here are two cuties goofing off after a grueling search for tidal pools. We found crabs, barnacles, snails, millions of rocks (beautiful rocks!) and a dead jelly fish.



We'll be off again either tomorrow evening or Friday morning, depending on the weather. We'll be tenting at the Windsor Fair Grounds for Maine 4-H Days. It's all free and it's reportedly just LOADS of fun. Besides, if the girls make it through a couple of goating classes and shows and help sell snacks in our Caprine Crew's snack shack, we can call it "school".

It works for me.

We'll be coming back late Saturday. I'll have Sunday for church and recovery, then Mm has his surgery on Monday followed by TWO MORE weeks at home with us.

The anticipation is almost more than I can bear!

17 comments:

notcon4med said...

Nevermind the swollen face, look at that groovy shirt! Where'd you get it?! ; )
Sorry to hear you're gettin' so sensitive in your old age. : (

Unknown said...

Oh Groovy! This post was a great read and the photos were fun! The gils are cutie pies to say the least and looked like they had a great time with dad on the water slide! So sorry you weren't up to snuff! How long do you think you will experience such a bout with the allergies? All summer?

Marianne Arkins said...

I think one of the coolest things about New England is the little graveyards EVERYWHERE. You'll be walking in the woods and suddenly -- POOF! A graveyard. I love to walk through them, and so does DD.

DH, OTOH, is all freaky about ghosts and refuses to step foot inside one. He won't even buy a "used" house (we've built new both times) because he's sure it's haunted.

*sigh*

Looks like everyone had a wonderful time, even poor swollen Groovy.

Anonymous said...

Well,if you pronounce "desert" as a verb (i.e., the troops deserted their cowardly captain)it makes sense, yes?

That said, we always call it Mt. Dezert Island. So there. :)

We loved Smuggler's Den....but we always went when it was really hot and the pool felt air-conditioned. (that was a good thing!)

Sorry about the sun allergy. :(

Lori said...

It does look like you had loads of fun!

Tammy said...

You are one busy family, Groovy!

I was catching up a bit...sorry to hear about the allergic reaction! But that camping trip looks so fun!

(So glad that elusive female Groov was captured on film!)

Have a great time time at the 4-H days!

groovyoldlady said...

Cindyu! You've finally come and commented. I am crying real tears of joy. (well, almost!) Where did I get that shirt, indeed!!!

Pam,

The sun allergy hit me last year, just before VBS. Yes, I was sentenced to hours and hours of severe itching under my Bible story costumes in July heat.

So I guess this means the sun allergy is upon for good. Ugh. But hey, it's a whole lot better than cancer or some other horrid disease, right?

The sinus allergies? I'm clueless. I guess time will tell. I may actually have to do a doctor run, but I hate taking meds. Maybe I'll do a health-food store run instead. The only problem there is you can sink alot of money into alternative treatments before you find one that works.

Dawn said...

I'm so sorry about the allergy thing - so not fun! The camping trip looks great - for others, not me. But the girlies look like they're having a great time, whether playing or "schooling."

Pearls of Wisdom said...

Oh it looks like you had a great time. Hope the allergies are better.

Hugs,

Angel ( Angel Mama ) ():)

Anonymous said...

Good post. Reminds me of when I was a little feller camping with my brothers and parents. Lots of fun memories.

Marti said...

So sorry about your allergic reaction! The pictures are great, the trip sounds terrific. Hope you feel better soon!

{{hugs}}

Anonymous said...

AHAHA! <- my response to seeing dad with swimming goggles on. i love pictures, you should always post lots and lots and lots of pictures!

Ms. Kathleen said...

It sounds like you had a super groovy time camping, swimming, having fun! I am so sorry about your allergies. I pray it ceases soon so you can continue to enjoy your super groovy life.

Hugs!! ☺

Carole Burant said...

Well good morning you groovy lady you!! hehe Oh dear, I'm so sorry to hear that you're still having problems with your allergies...all I can say is...rather you than me! No really, I do feel lots of sympathy for you but still...rather you than me!! LOL Just teasing you....I think! hehe I so enjoyed seeing all the photos and hearing about your camping trip. My mom is allergic to the sun also and any time they come over and sit outside on the patio I have to make sure there is shade for her...she breaks out in horrendous hives if in the sun. You take care of yourself and good luck to Mulletman on his surgery!!! xox

Pearls of Wisdom said...

I hope your allergies are better my sweet friend. Hugs to you and know you are busy but ,I am hosting a women's blogging carnival this Monday please join if you can. New group etc to me and would love to have some of my sweet blogging friends join . As Christian women that are family oriented I want to make sure we are represented. Just pick one of your posts from last week or write one for the carnival and join if you can. I am trying to invite everyone so if there is someone that you think would like to come please invite for me.

Hugs and Smiles,
Angel ( D. )

Karen said...

Groovy, I loved the picture of the campsite and that darling little Barbie chair. Is that were MulletMan sat?

I'm a big fan of wandering through graveyards, and I've taken some cool photographs in my wandering. Lord of the Manor cannot quite grasp the attraction, but I guess my cooking makes up for that.

Oh, and the whole wheat pancake mix? Yeah, definitely a winner. We have one similar to that, and they are the BEST. Yum.

Corn Dog said...

Hey, Groovy. I had to ditch the St. John's Wart because of allergic reaction. Could that be causing your face to swell too. It caused a rash on mine, swelling and discoloration. Just wondering.