Last Day of Summer

School starts tomorrow. Yesterday the boys and I discussed all the things that we hadn't found time to do this summer. I told them that, within reason, we would do something special today. They decided that they wanted to go biking in Portland and swimming at the lake. So, that's what we did!

We met Dad at work and drove to Payson Park. However, when we unloaded the bikes we discovered that my bike tires were flat, even though I filled them yesterday. We decided that there was enough air for me to ride a short distance on them. We followed the trail around Back Bay to the Back Bay Bike Shop. For a small fee, they put a new tube in the rear tire, refilled the front tire (he said it was in good shape) and he lubed and adjusted the gears (finally, they work!). I LOVE my beautiful, old bike - it's a 1970s Schwinn Breeze in bright red. I changed the seat to a more comfy gel seat, but other than that it is original (and I did keep the old seat - it just hurt my butt!). With this tune-up it just cruises along...

From there we biked back out to the trail and headed for the Eastern Promenade. Other than a near mishap with some CRAZY teenage boys who were riding recklessly (and spraypainting graffiti), it was a perfect day for a ride. It was warm, but the breeze was cooling and fortunately blowing off the ocean and not the water treatment plant.

The boys really enjoyed riding along the waterfront. There was a tall sailing ship in port. They thought it was a PIRATE ship and that the pirates had taken over the city!! I pointed out that they weren't flying the skull and crossbones. That made them think for a minute. They decided that they must be GOOD-guy pirates and that they had fought off the BAD-guy pirates and saved the city. Thank goodness! ;-)

My mother works in an office building near the waterfront, so we stopped in to say "Hi!" It turned out to be her lunch break, so we went for a walk with her and her boss. It was a wonderful way to spend our visit. By this point we were STARVING, so after parking the bikes in the mailroom, we walked to the Old Port for a seafood lunch at Gilbert's Chowder House. Once a year I splurge on fried clams. These were about the best ever! (and possibly the most expensive!) Really tasty. Dad had a lobster roll and the boys had a grilled cheese sandwich and a hotdog - they are such culinary adventurers.

After retreiving our bikes, we headed back along the waterfront and the prom, but turned onto the bridge beside 295 and made our way to Payson Park, completing our circuit of Back Bay. What an awesome day!! Dad was the only one that was tired and sore - keeping up with the boys this summer has gotten me in shape, I guess. They said that they could have gone ANOTHER hundred miles! I'm just glad that we hadn't actually gone the first hundred miles. That might have worn me out...

It was time to head for the beach!! Sebago was FRIGID, but the kids didn't care and they splashed and played like wild things. I went in for a quick dip, but it hurt. I like bathwater...