Happy New Year Hawaii!

Received your card! Thanks for the update on the family! Glad you enjoy reading the blog as this is the only way I can communicate...we've lost your email address.

You know, Brooklyn is not all that far from Maine...5 hours, maybe. Hope we see you soon...

New Year's Eve in Freeport, Maine

December 31, 2012-

New Year's Eve in Freeport-

OK, you've waited this long, don't wait another moment! NOW is the time to be sure you have your room booked for your New Year's Eve celebration in Freeport!

Here's what's happening (the short list). Freeport is a great location for ringing in the New Year- walk to all the venues, restaurants and shows!

• KidNight at LL Bean- Hot cocoa, fireworks and entertainment, 11 AM - 6 PM Discovery Park. Free

• Don't forget you can chill out with a great dinner at one of the terrific restaurants here in town. Dress up or dress down, there's the perfect location for the way you want to celebrate.
• Maybe you just want to toast the New Year with the love of your life in front of your own fireplace here at White Cedar Inn. Come for New Year's Eve and start your New Year off in style.

However you want to celebrate New Year's Eve, Freeport offers a variety for couples, singles and families alike. Bring along your Christmas gift cards and go shopping. Or, do what we do on New Year's Day and head to the beach. Nothing like starting off the New Year by enjoying the great outdoors at the beach. (Really. Popham Beach is usually packed when we get there!) Hope to see you here!

White Cedar Inn Bed and Breakfast 178 Main St Freeport, Maine 04032

Merry Christmas from LL Bean!

We had a really nice surprise while shopping at LL Bean yesterday...on exiting the store we were greeted by an LL employee who presented each of us with a live Christmas wreath! It was interesting to watch other recipients who walked away each holding their wreath with a big smile on their faces. It's not the sort of thing that happens everyday.

Thanks LL Bean! That was a really nice present to give out to the shoppers.

BTW, even tho the lines were long, they moved quickly and everyone seemed to be in a festive mood. The very stressed employees in the shoe department were happy and helpful and again, the folks at LL showed why it is a pleasure to shop there, no matter the season.

Fabulous Fruit Cobbler Recipe of the Month-December

Fabulous Fruit Crisp

7 tbsps COLD butter
1/2 c flour
1 c oatmeal, uncooked
1 c firmly packed brown sugar, light or dark
1/2 tsp cinnamon
4 c fruit, peeled, pitted & chopped into bite size pieces (mix and match the fruit!) Good choices: apples, pears, nectarines, plums, peaches
1/2 c sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 c blueberries or blackberries
whipped cream

You can make this the night before and cook in the morning.

Butter a 9x13 baking dish. Heat oven to 375 degrees.

Mix 4 cups of fruit with 1/2 c sugar and 1/2 tsp vanilla extract, let stand.

In separate bowl, mix flour, oatmeal, brown sugar, cinnamon. Cut butter into small chunks and quickly cut into flour mixture. Should be crumbly.

Pour fruit mixture into greased baking dish, top with blueberries or blackberries, spread out evenly in dish. Top with flour mixture, spread out evenly over fruit.

Bake for 45 minutes, until bubbly. You can cover with tin foil for the first 30 minutes to retain moisture, then uncover for last 15 minutes.

If you use a smaller baking dish, put a cookie sheet under the dish so it doesn't bubble over onto the oven.

Scoop out with a big spoon into a dessert bowl and put whipped cream on top for a special treat.

Makes 8-10 small servings.

Printable recipe page.

White Cedar Inn Bed and Breakfast 178 Main Street Freeport, Maine 04032

iPhone locates White Cedar Inn!

A pretty neat new service available for iPhone users is a search feature for locating B&B's while you're traveling. The service, called InnTouch, lists B&B's found on the ILoveInns online directory. The screenshot here gives you an idea of what the service looks like. It includes features such as a search by location, using your present GPS coordinates and a one-click call button so you can just call us by clicking the big, green CALL button! You can also go to our website, send us an email or get a map, all with the click of a button on your phone!

No time for emailing or viewing the whole website? Then just scroll thru a description of the inn as well as view pictures of the rooms right from the details page on your phone.

A big thanks to Chris at ILoveInns for the work behind this application and for sending me the screenshot to post here!

If you would like to download this app for free onto your iPhone, just click on 'InnTouch'.