Lil' Stinker...

Allison out of the clear blue: "Be rude to one another...hahahaha...it would be cool if the Bible said, 'Be rude to one another.'"

Mommy (a little caught off guard): "That wouldn't be very nice."

Allison with a smirk: "Yes it would 'cause then I could fight with my sister."

posted from Bloggeroid

Happy Birthday, Olivia!

Today, my niece Olivia turns 6!  We celebrated with an afternoon party on Sunday.

Such a beautiful little lady!

The windows played tricks on my camera.  :-(
 

Megan, Livvy, Eric

Ready to tear into that DELICIOUS cake that her mommy made!

Here Comes The Flower Girl!

Last Saturday Allison's dream came true. She was a flower girl. :-) It was a fairy tale for her, as she had watched her sister do the same thing and been a teensy bit jealous.

I didn't get too many pics, as I was the pianist, but here are a few.  The photographer is going to make better photos available to me later. 

So excited.

All smiles!

With Jennifer, the bride.

 

The Bible Bearer was Paul, who is Allison's classmate.

~Josh and Jennifer May~

Back To School 2012

Today was our first day of school! The kids were so excited, and...well, I guess I was too! We were up and ready way early, and before long we were with a bunch of other kids who were just as excited. Before leaving home, we took a few pics outside under the tree. It'll probably be the last time we get our "back to school" pics done in that particular spot, as it looks like our house will be sold very soon! Enjoy the photos...

L to R:  Evan (6th grade), Ryan (8th grade)
Allison (preschool), Kaitlynn (3rd grade)

Although the typical scenario is that all of our kids play together or the boys do their thing while the girls do theirs, we do see them each gravitate toward one sibling more than another.  This is usually how it shakes out:

And then with momma...

I have to admit...the ground where I stood was elevated.  Evan is taller than me.

Allison took this pic.  I was impressed!



 

And the first day was very good.  They love their classes, and are happy to be back to their friends!  And I'm a very thankful to have one more year of being in the classroom and in such close proximity to my kids.  Not every momma has that, and I may not always have it.  I don't take it for granted. 

 

Hope your school year is off to a great start, as well!







Anniversary Getaway...

We didn't have big plans for our anniversary this year, but #15 is pretty special and Greg's parents volunteered early in the summer to watch the kids for a few days.  That was all the encouragement we needed.  :-)

Last summer our family vacationed in Mackinaw City and the U.P, and we spent one day on Mackinac Island.  Although the kids loved the island, I remember whispering to Greg, "We HAVE to come back here by ourselves."  And that's exactly what we did. 

Day #1  Packed and drove to Grandma and Grandpa Burley's house in Cedar Springs, MI. Took Ginger (our 1 year old beagle puppy) with us.  She did great!

Day #2  Met family for breakfast.

Our kids and Kristen

Amanda, Tina, Harmony

Scott & Amanda (and our great-niece due in September)

Chris & Harmony

Gene & Tina

Grandpa & Grandma

Left for Mackinaw City via Petoskey and Little Traverse Bay.  Didn't care for the 90 degree temps...couldn't wait to get to a cooler Mackinac Island!

Little Traverse Bay - lunch at the park

Since we planned to splurge a little and stay a night on the island (and gas was hanging right at $4 per gallon), we went cheapo ($85) on our motel in Mackinaw City.  Although it was fine for what we needed, if we were to stay in that area again, I would probably pay the extra $60 and get something a little more, well...



Accomodations in Mackinaw City (web photo)







A real key...don't see that much anymore...lol.

It's fun to visit local eateries that aren't part of a chain, especially when traveling.  In Mackinaw City, there are few chains, which really enhances local flavor.  However, sometimes it's hard to decide where you might get the best quality food for the best value.  Trip Advisor helped us out on this one, and we weren't disappointed.  For pizza, calzones, salads, and pasta, this is the place.

web photo

Day #3  Had a picnic lunch by the bridge, adjusted our luggage, boarded Arnold Transit for our ride to the Island.

Riding the horse-drawn taxi two miles up to the condo.

Sunset rock, just down a short trail from Sunset Condos

View from the rock

Since there were just two of us, we rented a

patio room that was equipped with fridge/microwave/

coffee pot, sofa sleeper,large bathroom, and lake view.

No a/c, but we had to close the patio door in the night

because of the chill.  :-)  Lovely.

After exploring the room and some of the nearby trails, we walked about 4 miles through the upper middle area of the island.  We sat at the airport for a few minutes, and watched as a horse drawn taxi pulled up and a family entered the quiet airport, and boarded their plane to leave the island.  How convenient would that be!

Gorgeous sunset from the balcony

Day #4  Awoke to perfect temps and a blue sky.



Packed our luggage and checked it in at the condo office to be taxied back to Arnold's dock.  Walked 2 miles down to get some lunch.

(web photo) 

We had researched a couple of the restaurants online,

but our taxi driver recommended The Chuckwagon.

It was really good, and the prices were great. 

 In the abovephoto, it is the little red storefront with the

green and whitestriped awning.

The chef

Fresh cheeseburger on a pretzel bun.

After lunch, we visited a few shops, and rented bikes to ride the 8 miles around the island.  We had a bit of a wait, because the bike rental company is only allowed to have two hundred licenses out at a time.  There are several rental shops (plus people bring their own bikes, plus residents on bikes), so it would get crazy crowded if they allowed too many out at once.  The bikes were unbelievably comfortable, and it was a beautiful ride.

If we could come up with 3.5 million bucks, this would

be the perfect vacation spot for our family.  :-)

Streetscape

Couldn't leave the island without having some famous Mackinac Island Fudge peanut butter ice cream.  It was the perfect "after-the-bike-ride treat." 



Grand Hotel...we'd have to really want that

experience to pay the $.  Maybe someday.

If you click the pic, you can see the location of our condo.

Coming back to Mackinaw City

Drove to Houghton Lake where we stayed at the Comfort Suites Lakeside. 

Day #5  Left for Traverse City.  Walked the streets and visited some shops.  Had a nice lunch at Olive Garden before heading for Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes.  You can get my take on that experience here.

Warning: Object in front of you may be larger than

it appears.    :-)

Back to Traverse City...wanted a Biggby...apparently out of business there.  :-(  Sat at Grand Traverse Bay for awhile, enjoying the view, the sand, the breeze, and the warm water. 

Back to Houghton Lake for the night. 

View from our balcony at Houghton Lake

Day #6   Drove the back roads to Cedar Springs. Couldn't wait to see the kids again. The feeling was mutual. :-)  Before nightfall, we were back in our driveway, thanking God for protecting us over the 1,224 miles we traveled.