Tag: Prince Edward Island

Prince Edward Island, Oct. 2023

The minute we crossed the bridge, I felt at home. Passing quiet, tiny towns in the dark of a late autumn evening, I felt welcomed by this tiny Canadian island. Home, like the potato fields of Aroostook County, but with a salt smell in the air that reminds you the sea is just on the other side of the horizon. Home, with Pride flags flying and rainbow stickers in the windows, and with more diversity on one tiny island than I’ve seen in my whole home state. Home, a safe place with a deep sense of community and the same stoic resilience I’m used to from New Englanders, just in the Maritimes.

No place is perfect, but I think PEI is perfect for me.

As family vacations go, it was a rich one. We explored Charlottetown’s restaurants and shops, and ate Cow’s ice cream every night. We drove up to Brackley Beach, enjoying a warmer-than-average day searching for sea glass and shells and skipping iron-rich stones into the briny, ice-cold water. I forgot to pack my painting kit, which gave me an excuse to support a local art shop and try some Canadian-made paints from Beam (now I need all of them, damnit). I had the fried fish at Richard’s seafood for the second time in my life, and it’s just as tasty as I remember. Gwen and I took a late-evening walk to her favorite playground at Victoria Park.

When we left, I felt a familiar pang; the sinking feeling in my stomach I used to get when returning to boarding school after spending a long weekend with my family. The feeling that I was leaving something vitally important behind. I, not for the first time, Googled our eligibility for citizenship. Tim started looking at homes, eyeing the prices.

I think we might do this. Not right away, but someday, sooner than retirement.

I think this might be my mid-life crisis, but it’s a good crisis.

sabbatical & pei, 2022

Oh, hello, blog! I wandered away for a while, didn’t I? I’ve been avoiding my computer since it’s mostly for work stuff, and I can’t type fast enough on my phone, so blogging fell by the wayside when I started my sabbatical in August. Photo dump ahead!

I’m just over halfway through my time off, and my days are mostly spent puttering around the house, painting, building LEGO, playing video games, and hanging out with the kids when they’re not in school. I’m grateful to have this break, but it’s a bit weird not working. I’ve probably overcompensated by taking on more responsibility at home, but I still don’t feel like I’m doing “enough” sometimes, whatever that means. I’m definitely enjoying the increased number of walks and naps (as is the dog).

I’ve also enjoyed all this extra time with the kids. By September I’m usually more than ready to ship them off to school for a few hours’ peace, but this year I was sad to see the summer end. The time off has allowed me to be more fully present with family life and reminded me how cool it is to raise new humans. Last time I was on sabbatical they were just coming out of babyhood, and now they’re entrenched in tweenager-dom. In five years, they’ll be getting ready to fly the coop. They’re coming into their own, and it’s a joy to follow along and cheer them on.

We took a family trip to Prince Edward Island in Canada last weekend, something I’ve looked forward to since Tim and I first visited in 2019. It’s such a beautiful place. Things looked a little rough post-hurricane, and unfortunately most of the national parks and beaches were closed, but everyone was gracious and welcoming. I treated myself to a spa day, we spent some time exploring the city, ate lots of Cow’s ice cream, and visited Green Gables Heritage Place.

Tim and I were smitten, and already planning to do a summer trip when we can visit the beaches. I could see us living there; it feels just like home, the perfect marriage of potato fields and farms with little seaside towns, with the added diversity and culture of Charlottetown just a few miles (or kilometers) away. We floated the idea of immigrating to Canada with the kids, but Gwen is hesitant and Ellie is not at all interested in pulling up roots, and I suppose I can’t blame them.

Now I’m in the process of planning our next adventure: Christmas at Disney! We’d tentatively planned this back in 2020, but the pandemic put a pause on everything. Fast forward a few years and we’re all twice-boosted against Covid, so I feel better about flying longer distances, and at Disney we can spend a lot of time outside. This will also be the first time we’ll stay on premises at an official Disney resort (Wilderness Lodge) and the first time we’ll be away from home for the holidays. It’ll probably feel a little weird to break from tradition, and to experience a Christmas without freezing temps…but it’s a risk I’m willing to take. 😜

Nova Scotia/P.E.I.

The week before last, we dropped the kids off at sleep-away camp in the middle of the woods for six days of screen-free adventures. Then the grown-ups set off on a mini-adventure of our own; two nights in Halifax, Nova Scotia and Charlottetown, PEI.

It’s funny (to me) that we’ve lived up here for several years, but never made a point of exploring the eastern provinces that are relatively close by. In contrast, we’ve visited Boston and points south many times.

We crossed the U.S./Canadian border at our usual spot and let the Trans-Canada take us where it would. I re-upped our Audible subscription so we could listen to The Stand on the way (Tim has never read it, a travesty) and when we got tired of that, we talked about grown-up things and enjoyed the peace and quiet.

  • Poutine in Moncton
  • Welcome to Nova Scotia!
  • Lamb stew
  • Canada <3
  • Halifax waterfront
  • Side by side
  • A delightfully creepy Ronald McDonald

Halifax seems like a nice l’il city. We made our first stop the mall, because: LUSH. And an Apple store. And a bookstore. We’re starved for modern shopping options where we live, and it shows.

With our consumerist itch scratched, we headed to the waterfront for dinner at an Irish pub and a little walk around. I’d love to go back when we have more time to explore the city. It’s small enough so as not to feel overly chaotic but large enough that there are plenty of things to do. It reminded me of Portland.

The next morning, we made a pit stop in Dartmouth to check out the IKEA. Tim had never been, so I showed him the wonder and glory that is Swedish-made household goods and showrooms. I’m happy to say our marriage survived the trip intact. Our bank account did, too.

We crossed the big bridge to PEI that afternoon. Someone told me PEI is a lot like Aroostook County, and I agree; it’s northern Maine, but with an ocean around it. Farms and potato fields for miles, red soil against the blue sky. I felt right at home driving to Charlottetown on the narrow two-lane highway.

We stayed at a bed and breakfast called the Eden Hall Inn, which was within walking distance to downtown and the boardwalk, and spent the afternoon walking around Charlottetown. I had tasty vegetable curry at Merchantman, and ice cream from Cow’s for dessert. My favorite part by far was Victoria Park; I spent a lot of time enjoying views from the waterfront.

Our last day in the Maritimes was spent on the northern part of the island, in and around Cavendish. Anne with an E on Netflix re-ignited my interest in Anne of Green Gables, so we visited the Anne of Green Gables Museum and the Heritage House provincial park.

I really can’t wait to bring the kids out to PEI someday. Ellie has expressed interest in Anne of Green Gables, so we’ve started reading it together before bedtime. Soon I’ll have an excuse to revisit the museums!

We capped off the trip with a visit to Richard’s Fresh Seafood for fish and chips before the long drive home. This was such a great way to spend a few days together as a couple. We’ll celebrate 12 years of marriage in mid-August, and it made for a perfect almost-anniversary trip.