Gary's 50th Bday

We kept the party small, but had a great time nonetheless. Even Shiner helped celebrate:



The Hopkins:



The Clarke boys entertained us with their daring acrobatics:





We all enjoyed the refreshing Lake Texoma water:



Then Cody and Kaity put on their show:





Gary gave Dara the ride of her life (which is saying a lot since she's a barrel racer).



The Clarke boys felt the need for speed:



Lovely ladies (Rhonda, Dara and Kaity):



James, Richard, Gary and Leon are all about the same age and have been solid friends since their bachelor days. I think James was the first to turn 50 in March.



The Birthday Boy:



Beth, Dara and Rhonda:



Our awesome neighbors, the Henderson's:



Beth giving Bruce a little nudge:



More fishing:



Then it was time for dinner, which was BBQ catered by a great little place called, Cackle and Oink. Love that name! Food was awesome, too. After dinner, we had cake (decorated by Mags), no-bake cookies (made by Cort) and peach cobbler with home-made ice cream (made by Lynne). Mmmm...mmmm.





Then we sat around, chatted, and Leon, Cort and Bryce played a little acoustic guitar for us.

Below Beth, myself, Rhonda and Lynne are enjoying the show:



Bryce dazzled us with his skill on the guitar.



Cort played some Jimmy Buffett:



Cody is a true cowboy (the strong silent type), but he fit in with the group very well.



He and Kaity make a cute couple:



Rhonda took this picture of Kaity upside down. Being the obsessive compulsive that I am, I had to turn it right side up. Cute picture, either way.



Afterward, Rhonda and Beth headed back to the dock for serious fishing. Check out this kitty:



It was a great birthday weekend celebration, and we had a great time.

--Photo credit: Rhonda Boswell

Stripers - Saco River, ME

On the last day of our vacation, Gary set up a striper fishing trip with Cal Robinson of Saco Bay Stripers. Cal took us out on the ocean to check his lobster traps.



Cal explained how to tell the males from the females, and which ones he releases:



He took us by the Wood Island Lighthouse in Biddiford Pool. It has an illustrious past and is claimed to be haunted.



A couple of years ago, some people were out fishing, and a bad storm blew in. Their boat ended up on the island and has not been retrieved yet. It's the white speck on the right side of the photo.



We headed back up the Saco River, and Mags caught the first fish! This photo captures the pure joy of fishing.



Below, Cal was unhooking the saltwater striped bass.



Maggie was intensely focused as she fished...and quiet, which is not like her.



And...it pays off!



Like father, like daughter...



I was sure I'd snagged bottom when I caught this monster (29.5" and 14-15 lb). It was all I could do to hold him up for the photos.



We saw this beautiful sailboat, called "Texas", so I had to take a picture. I think we were all getting a little homesick for our beloved state.



Gary caught this monster. He told Cal not to measure it because he didn't want his fish to be bigger than mine. How sweet is that?!!



Cal fileted the fish for us. His trick was to bleed them out 30 minutes before he filets them. I don't know what he did, but they tasted great!



Even the seagulls thought so...

Miscellaneous Day - OOB & Portland, ME

OOB was full of beach roses:



Almost every day, Gary and I would take a hike. We would head north from the condo about two miles then head east to the beach and walk back.



One of the days, Mags joined us.



We saw a lobster boat...



Random image of a chocolate moose that Mags picked up at LL Bean:



We went back to J's in Portland that evening for dinner. After waiting inside for an eternity, finally finding a seat at the bar and having crab stuffed mushrooms, we finally were seated outside after a 45 minute wait. Gary and Mags were very happy to have a seat.



The view was awesome:



But...I was very happy to see my lobstah.

Touring LL Bean - Freeport, ME

Gary wanted to visit the home of LL Bean, one of his favorite retailers. We drove up to Freeport, finally found a parking space and decided to eat lunch at the Jameson Tavern.



Freeport has a lot of cute shops, and this is a great sign that we saw:



The mecca of hunting, fishing and all things outdoors:



Entering the mecca looking for shorts for Maggie, who did NOT want to buy shorts:



Self portrait while we were waiting for Gary to try on shirts:



Gary, the shopper of the day, after trying on his shirts:



And...finally, another great sign for our TX friends: