Red Roads and Red Hair

For the Road Trip Family, our year has been a crazy and exhausting year, with constant on the go activities, work, and school. My Chandler and I have felt that we’re on one of those hamster wheels running and trying to keep up with our kids and the world around us!

So, it makes perfect sense that I would want to crank my blog back up after a (not-so-brief) hiatus with some memories of a relaxing and quiet vacation our family had last summer in Prince Edward Island.

For a number of years now, as we’ve thought about where to plan our next vacations, both friends and family members have suggested Prince Edward Island as a destination. I’d hear about it and would think, “oh, that’s nice.” But, I never really entertained the idea of spending a vacation further north.

I guess my brain was stuck in the notion that in order to have a vacation, you needed to travel south?

Anyway, when we started making a list of places to visit, My Chandler brought PEI up. So, we looked online at our favorite home rental website to see what the cost would be. When I discovered that we could rent a beautiful little A-frame house for a very reasonable price and that it was within walking distance of one of the best private beaches on PEI, I was sold.

I mean, an A-frame house! Remember that Fisher Price little people A-frame house with the green roof? Ever since I had played with that as a kid, I had been enamored with the idea and have always wanted to stay in a home like that.

The house was available for a week and after inquiring, we were penciled in and had our destination. Now it was time to start planning the vacation.

Because we were going to another country for vacation, there were some new details to take care of that we don’t normally need to deal with, such as passports/birth certificates and what you can and cannot bring over the border.

A lot of time was also spent pouring over tourist websites and checking out all the attractions centered around the books “Anne of Green Gables.”

I have always been a fan of Anne. I have read the books numerous times and loved the movie with Megan Follows. So, I was excited to see “all things Anne.”

I’m not sure My Chandler was.

Or Sweet Pea, Peanut and Pumpkin.

But, that’s okay. Because I had enough excitement for all of us.

We started out on a Thursday and took our time getting to PEI, by way of the Maine coast and LL Bean outlet.

We stopped for taffy in York, ice cream at Brown's near Nubble Light, rode the trolley in Ogunquit and dipped our toes (or whole bodies) in the cold Atlantic Ocean!

But, Saturday afternoon, we crossed the Confederation bridge and entered a whole other world.

Prince Edward Island world.

I’m not sure words can even explain the feeling that washes over you on this island. There’s a slower, more laid back pace on the island. The people we encountered on our trip seemed to be relaxed and stress-free and happy. There was a feeling of peacefulness surrounded by a beautiful landscape. All the worries and daily stresses seemed to just lift right off our shoulders from the moment we stopped at the Gateway Village welcoming us to PEI. (More on that place later!)

We spent time every day at the beach, playing and relaxing and being a family. We did “all things Anne” and drove around the island taking in the beauty of the blue skies and green grass and red/pink sand. We moved slower and were relaxed.

You know it’s a good vacation when no one wants to leave. In fact, Peanut burst into tears as we were packing the car and said that she "didn't want to ever leave!”

But, leave we must and we did, dragging our heels all the way back to the Confederation Bridge.

So, over the next couple of weeks, I’m devoting my entries to Prince Edward Island world. I will do my best to try to share what this island has to offer and hopefully I can share just a little of how special this island is. A friend of mine said it perfectly when she remarked the other day that “it’s hard to fully understand the impact this place has on people until you have actually visited the island.”

Grab your red braids and straw hat and get ready for a week with Anne Shirley.

Comments

[CFS]

Great last picture