Christmas in Maine

Despite it seeming like Maine might be a bit of a Grinch state (you can be charged with a fine for leaving your Christmas decorations up after January 14th), it is actually a great state for Christmas. It’s the highest forested state in the country at 90%, which is why it’s known as “The Pine Tree State”. And they also hold the record for the World’s Tallest Snowperson (an impressive 122 ft tall snowwoman using 13 million pounds of snow, a 130 feet scarf, and 30ft trees as arms).

Maine lays claim to some iconic authors whose Christmas-related works we incorporated including Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and Edna Saint Vincent. Maine also had some great town names to work with including Bath (Christmas bath bombs) and Falmouth (dirty Christmas jokes).

For foods, we started the day with honoring Maine’s state flower with White (Chocolate) Pine (S)cones and also their contribution of 99% of the country’s blueberries. But our favorite breakfast element was combining two Maine claims to fame with the invention of the donut hole (1847) and the Toothpick Capital of the World (Strong, Maine) by making a donut hole Christmas tree. Lobster obviously had to be featured at some point and so we had a lobster bisque and Red Lobster Biscuits for lunch. And for dinner, we commemorated the infamous Christmas Eve sinking of the Annie C. Maguire ship with Shipwreck Casserole and also featured sides of bangers sausages (Banger, ME) and Maine-style Baked (L.L.) Beans.

And for dessert while we watched “Holly Star”, a holiday comedy set in Maine, we incorporated their state dessert of Whoopie Pies. And if that wasn’t enough, we topped it off with honoring their propensity for Queen Anne’s lace and architecture with a box of Queen Anne cherries and a snifter of Port(land) wine. 

ACTIVITIES:

• Edna Saint Vincent “Christmas Carol”

• Longfellow’s “Christmas Bells”

• “Christmas in Maine” Song & Book

• Christmas Fiddle(head) Music

• Felting Crafts

• Falmouth Jokes

• “The Christmas Whale”

• Creative Snowman

• Christmas Bath(tub)

• “Holly Star” Movie

FOOD:

• White Chocolate Pine (S)cones

• Donut Hole Christmas Tree

• Lobster Bisque w/ Red Lobster Biscuits

• Shipwreck Casserole

• Maine (LL) Beans

• Bangers

• Whoopie Pies

• Queen Anne Cherries

• Port(land) Wine

INTERESTING READS & CONTEXT:

• Kennebunkport Hat Parade Video

• "37 Things You Probably Didn’t Know About Maine"

• "53 Interesting Facts About Maine"

• National Geographic: Facts About Maine

• Wiki: Annie C. Maguire

• "Strong, ME: The Rise and Fall of the Toothpick Capital Of The World"

• "Fine Lace and a Drop of Royal Blood: Queen Anne’s Lace"

• "What Is a Queen Anne House? Your Guide to the Fan-Favorite Victorian Style"

• World's Tallest Snowperson & Video