April 2013 Newsletter
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At any rate, it's good to see them back, and it's exciting to see the return of all our migratory birds.The flute like song of the season's first hermit thrush in the early morning woods, the spiraling flight dance of the woodcock at dusk in old farm fields, the great honking vees of geese winging north toward the boreal wilderness, the return of the loons to our lakes, all of these migratory birds herald spring in a special way with their arrival. There may still be snow on the ground but these birds are on the wing even as I write this newsletter, flying to their summer homes to raise their young.
That same wild stirring is in all of us as winter melts away. We get restless. We want to go somewhere, anywhere. We want to get out of the house. Fly the coop. Cabin fever sets in, big time. If you can get out into the garden, this helps. If you can't, this is a good time to start some seeds. To go along with National Gardening Month, here's a recipe for repelling this summer's garden pests using an infusion of dried herbs:
Ingredients include the grated rind of one lemon, 1 cup tansy, 1 cup lavender, 1 cup sage, 1 pint boiling water, and 1 teaspoon nondetergent soap such as castile or Murphy's Oil Soap. In a heat-resistant quart jar, mix lemon and herbs. Pour water over the mix. Let it steep until cooled to room temperature. Drain, reserving the liquid. In a plastic spray-pump bottle, dilute 1/8 cup of the herbal liquid to 2 cups water and add the teaspoon of soap.
While you're waiting for that herbal brew to steep, the seeds to sprout and the garden pests to arrive, the best cure for cabin fever is to take a road trip. See below.
Special Offerings:
Habitat for Humanity: The Maine Innkeepers Association and the Harraseeket Inn announces the 10th Annual Hospitality for Habitat program. This program is designed to raise funds for local chapters of Habitat for Humanity while encouraging travel in Maine in the Spring season. The offer is very simple. Between April 22 and May 24, 2013, we'll offer our guest rooms at half the regular rate, in exchange for a $35 check payable to Habitat for Humanity. These funds will be distributed among the ten local chapters of Habitat for Humanity. Habitat for Humanity International is dedicated to eliminating poverty housing. Founded in 1975 by Millard Fuller, along with his wife Linda, Habitat for Humanity International and its affiliates in more than 3,000 communities in 92 nations have built more than 300,000 homes for partner families around the world. Their website is www.habitat.org. Reservations must be made in advance, and the contribution to Habitat for Humanity must be in the form of a check. This is a great deal that supports a great cause.
April 27 & 28 Feathers Over Freeport Welcome back our migratory birds with two days of informative programs and bird watching trips!
LLBean Spring Clinics: Everything from Basic Bicycle repairs to fly casting to map and compass.
LLBean Kids' Camp Give your child a Summer to Remember! By the day, week or month, this is a dream come true for kids and parents, too. Plan your own vacation around making some very special outdoor memories for your children!
May 12-Mother's Day! Join us for our elegant Mother's Day Grand Buffet and leave the cooking and clean up to us. Doesn't your mom deserve to be treated like a queen after all she's done for you?
May 30-June 2 Kaleidoscopes: Reflections in History
The Brewster Kaleidoscope Society will be holding their annual convention at the Harraseeket Inn, May 30 through June 2, 2013. The 2013 convention will feature over 30 world renowned artists from around the globe displaying over one thousand of their wonderful kaleidoscope creations. These kaleidoscopes will be on display and for sale in the Casco Bay Ballroom. Public showroom hours are Saturday, June 1, 2013 from 10 AM to 5 PM and on Sunday, June 2, 2013 from 12 noon until 4:00.
The 2013 convention focus is on the nearly two hundred year history of the kaleidoscope. Brewster members attending the convention will be treated to a program packed with talks, presentations and "make you own kaleidoscope" classes. Featured will be talks about Sir David Brewster, the Scottish
Over half of you missed the map at the bottom of the newsletter that gave the answer to last month's trivia question. For those of you keen eyed enough to find it, good job! For those who didn't scroll down far enough to spot it, the answer to the trivia question was: There were 13 forts at one time or other guarding the settlers along the Kennebec River as far inland as Bath. There were over twenty forts in all, as far inland as Winslow. This month's trivia question:
Yesterday morning I went out into the wood shed to gather an armload of firewood. An animal the size of a small house cat with a long fluffy tail growled at me from somewhere inside the wood pile, then poked its head out from between the back row of wood and the wood shed wall, causing me to drop my armload and beat a hasty retreat back into the house. What was the animal? (Hint: it is pictured at left!)
First correct answer wins dinner for two in the Broad Arrow Tavern or Maine Harvest and all the rest who answer correctly win a voucher worth $5. toward food or lodging on your next visit. You may use up to one year's worth of vouchers at a time, a total value of $60. Keep your eyes peeled for special offers that will double the value of your hard won vouchers!
Good luck, and we hope to see you soon! Penny Gray The Gray family, and all the staff here at the Harraseeket Inn
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Greetings from the Harraseeket Inn! T.S, Eliot wrote, "April is the cruelest month..." but fortunately for us, April is also National Gardening Month, a month devoted to getting the garden ready to plant while Eliot's immortal lilacs slowly awaken from their long winters sleep. On April 13, Maine received four inches of new snow atop the existing snow pack on the Canadian border in Fort Kent, while in Freeport, crocuses are blooming, daffodils are emerging and the robins are gathering nesting materials. Our resident pair seem to have moved their nest into the clump of thick evergreens alongside the Broad Arrow Tavern in order to shelter their little ones from prying eyes. Over the past few years there would be a line of us at the hallway window, employees and guests alike, gawking at the nest cradled in a branch a mere two feet from the window The robin parents didn't like being on "Reality TV" one bit. Nor did they like the fact that one of their fledglings, on its maiden flight, tumbled to the ground and fell through the heavy iron grate over the storm drain in the courtyard. The agitation of the parents alerted my brother to the dire situation and a successful rescue operation ensued. 
Weary and worn out from weathering Old Man Winter's wallop? It may be too early to talk about May Day, but it's never too early to talk about ME Days! Treat yourself to a glorious getaway at the Harraseeket Inn. Stay in one of our stylish suites, soak in a bubbly bath, savor a delicious meal in the Broad Arrow Tavern or Maine Harvest and snuggle in a sumptuous bed. Return home refreshed, relaxed and rejuvenated, ready to tackle all those spring gardening projects. We have the perfect Maine packages and special rates to beat those mud season blues. We also
have select pet friendly rooms, too, so you don't have to leave your best friend behind. Pack light because Freeport Village has everything you need and then some. There are great sales going on this time of year, and no summer crowds to contend with. 
Upcoming Events:
Admission to the showroom is free to anyone who wishes to view or purchase the kaleidoscopes, so put a little dazzling color in your life and plan on checking these beauties out!
inventor of the Kaleidoscope and Charles Bush, the 19th century American designer of kaleidoscopes from the New England area. Registered convention attendees including artists, collectors and retailers look forward to the unveiling session when the kaleidoscope artists' display their latest innovative designs. Full convention and registration information is available at
And now, a brief story about Goldilocks, personal preferences and the mattresses we use here at the inn. Our mattresses are all Sealy Pillow Top, Presidential Model, and while most of you love them, every once in a while we get a comment card remarking on how the bed was too soft or too firm. The same goes with the pillows. Please don't wait until check-out to tell us this. Let us know as soon as YOU know, and we'll do our best to make your night's sleep just right. This policy goes with anything and everything else that you might feel needs adjusting in order to fine tune your experience. We're here to please you and to make your stay memorable in all the best ways possible. We have a crew that's here around the clock so you never need to feel you can't call the front desk at any time to voice a concern, or even ask for a glass of warm milk if you can't get to sleep. 
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At any rate, it's good to see them back, and it's exciting to see the return of all our migratory birds.The flute like song of the season's first hermit thrush in the early morning woods, the spiraling flight dance of the woodcock at dusk in old farm fields, the great honking vees of geese winging north toward the boreal wilderness, the return of the loons to our lakes, all of these migratory birds herald spring in a special way with their arrival. There may still be snow on the ground but these birds are on the wing even as I write this newsletter, flying to their summer homes to raise their young.
That same wild stirring is in all of us as winter melts away. We get restless. We want to go somewhere, anywhere. We want to get out of the house. Fly the coop. Cabin fever sets in, big time. If you can get out into the garden, this helps. If you can't, this is a good time to start some seeds. To go along with National Gardening Month, here's a recipe for repelling this summer's garden pests using an infusion of dried herbs:
Ingredients include the grated rind of one lemon, 1 cup tansy, 1 cup lavender, 1 cup sage, 1 pint boiling water, and 1 teaspoon nondetergent soap such as castile or Murphy's Oil Soap. In a heat-resistant quart jar, mix lemon and herbs. Pour water over the mix. Let it steep until cooled to room temperature. Drain, reserving the liquid. In a plastic spray-pump bottle, dilute 1/8 cup of the herbal liquid to 2 cups water and add the teaspoon of soap.
While you're waiting for that herbal brew to steep, the seeds to sprout and the garden pests to arrive, the best cure for cabin fever is to take a road trip. See below.
Special Offerings:
Habitat for Humanity: The Maine Innkeepers Association and the Harraseeket Inn announces the 10th Annual Hospitality for Habitat program. This program is designed to raise funds for local chapters of Habitat for Humanity while encouraging travel in Maine in the Spring season. The offer is very simple. Between April 22 and May 24, 2013, we'll offer our guest rooms at half the regular rate, in exchange for a $35 check payable to Habitat for Humanity. These funds will be distributed among the ten local chapters of Habitat for Humanity. Habitat for Humanity International is dedicated to eliminating poverty housing. Founded in 1975 by Millard Fuller, along with his wife Linda, Habitat for Humanity International and its affiliates in more than 3,000 communities in 92 nations have built more than 300,000 homes for partner families around the world. Their website is www.habitat.org. Reservations must be made in advance, and the contribution to Habitat for Humanity must be in the form of a check. This is a great deal that supports a great cause.
April 27 & 28 Feathers Over Freeport Welcome back our migratory birds with two days of informative programs and bird watching trips!
LLBean Spring Clinics: Everything from Basic Bicycle repairs to fly casting to map and compass.
LLBean Kids' Camp Give your child a Summer to Remember! By the day, week or month, this is a dream come true for kids and parents, too. Plan your own vacation around making some very special outdoor memories for your children!
May 12-Mother's Day! Join us for our elegant Mother's Day Grand Buffet and leave the cooking and clean up to us. Doesn't your mom deserve to be treated like a queen after all she's done for you?
May 30-June 2 Kaleidoscopes: Reflections in History
The Brewster Kaleidoscope Society will be holding their annual convention at the Harraseeket Inn, May 30 through June 2, 2013. The 2013 convention will feature over 30 world renowned artists from around the globe displaying over one thousand of their wonderful kaleidoscope creations. These kaleidoscopes will be on display and for sale in the Casco Bay Ballroom. Public showroom hours are Saturday, June 1, 2013 from 10 AM to 5 PM and on Sunday, June 2, 2013 from 12 noon until 4:00.
The 2013 convention focus is on the nearly two hundred year history of the kaleidoscope. Brewster members attending the convention will be treated to a program packed with talks, presentations and "make you own kaleidoscope" classes. Featured will be talks about Sir David Brewster, the Scottish
Over half of you missed the map at the bottom of the newsletter that gave the answer to last month's trivia question. For those of you keen eyed enough to find it, good job! For those who didn't scroll down far enough to spot it, the answer to the trivia question was: There were 13 forts at one time or other guarding the settlers along the Kennebec River as far inland as Bath. There were over twenty forts in all, as far inland as Winslow. This month's trivia question:
Yesterday morning I went out into the wood shed to gather an armload of firewood. An animal the size of a small house cat with a long fluffy tail growled at me from somewhere inside the wood pile, then poked its head out from between the back row of wood and the wood shed wall, causing me to drop my armload and beat a hasty retreat back into the house. What was the animal? (Hint: it is pictured at left!)
First correct answer wins dinner for two in the Broad Arrow Tavern or Maine Harvest and all the rest who answer correctly win a voucher worth $5. toward food or lodging on your next visit. You may use up to one year's worth of vouchers at a time, a total value of $60. Keep your eyes peeled for special offers that will double the value of your hard won vouchers!
Good luck, and we hope to see you soon! Penny Gray The Gray family, and all the staff here at the Harraseeket Inn
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