tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-68472585190943634492024-03-13T15:08:54.060-04:00Musings from Mom SchoolKrystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.comBlogger547125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-31845328427344106242012-02-23T13:03:00.000-05:002012-02-23T13:04:04.122-05:00Giveaway winnerRandom Integer Generator<br />Here are your random numbers:<br /><br />9<br />Timestamp: 2012-02-23 18:01:37 UTC<br /><br />Congrats to Rebecca Locke on winning the cold and flu season kit giveaway!Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-76348746784819969612012-02-17T13:35:00.004-05:002012-02-17T13:46:12.114-05:00An unbelievable findSo, on Wednesday, Logan came bounding out of school with a special smile on his face... one with a gap in it. His top tooth had been dangling for weeks, ready to fall out.<br /><br />But, he said, it had fallen out during recess when he was belly-sliding on some snow and ice, and he hadn't even realized it until he stood up and started walking away.<br /><br />He left the tooth fairy a note and still got a $2 bill for his tooth.<br /><br />Yesterday (Thursday) school was closed due to icy back roads, and today is a scheduled day off. It's nice and sunny out and we decided, just for the heck of it, to go look for the tooth. We wanted to get some sunshine anyway, and I love a challenge. I'm excellent at finding things like lost earrings or four-leaf clovers, so I thought why not look for a little, tiny tooth on the playground?<br /><br />We drove up to the school and Logan pointed to a long, paved section. That, he said, is where he had been sliding on the snow and ice. It was all melted, and I was dismayed to discover that the pavement was made up of tiny stones. It was going to be next to impossible to find a tooth there.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EjRo5EmgEPM/Tz6f1YaoNdI/AAAAAAAAEVo/jDa5QVbeD-g/s1600/DSCN1020.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EjRo5EmgEPM/Tz6f1YaoNdI/AAAAAAAAEVo/jDa5QVbeD-g/s400/DSCN1020.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5710177116988388818" /></a><br /><br />But... I walked a little way onto the pavement and just chose a spot to start looking. I had one false find, just a small white stone, and when I put the stone back down, lo and behold, there was the tooth!<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BVBF3QXuIeI/Tz6f0HvwZZI/AAAAAAAAEVQ/zuOnbwzF-M4/s1600/DSCN1016.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BVBF3QXuIeI/Tz6f0HvwZZI/AAAAAAAAEVQ/zuOnbwzF-M4/s400/DSCN1016.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5710177095333733778" /></a><br /><br />So I picked it up and told Logan I found it. He and Jordan were climbing on something and didn't believe me until I showed them.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zeSbaOwNdpI/Tz6f0pd72lI/AAAAAAAAEVc/ZzZo97byp7U/s1600/DSCN1019.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zeSbaOwNdpI/Tz6f0pd72lI/AAAAAAAAEVc/ZzZo97byp7U/s400/DSCN1019.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5710177104385792594" /></a><br /><br />So, yeah. Mommy's totally a rock star. I can't believe I found that tiny little thing so easily!<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SA2xIkMljfI/Tz6f10EejvI/AAAAAAAAEV0/0L1FF0VJolw/s1600/DSCN1025.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SA2xIkMljfI/Tz6f10EejvI/AAAAAAAAEV0/0L1FF0VJolw/s400/DSCN1025.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5710177124411674354" /></a><br /><br /><br />Logan thinks he's going to double his jackpot. I had to inform him that he's not making any more money on the tooth. Rather, we're just going to ship it off to ToothFairyLand with the next one that falls out.Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-14843365552228605862012-02-17T08:41:00.004-05:002012-02-17T09:20:46.966-05:00Famous feetNo, not really. My feet aren't famous... but they are present in a full-page color photo in a magazine.<br /><br />Over the summer, I wrote <a href="http://musingsfrommomschool.blogspot.com/2011/09/cant-win-em-all.html"><u>this blog post</u></a> about a backpacking trip we took with the kids. We hiked in a mile and a half or so to a backcountry campground, and then hiked out maybe a half mile or so to Lake Michigan, and there, we found our beautiful beach clogged with the cladophora algae that has been proliferating in the lake.<br /><br />A couple months later, I was contacted by someone from Michigan Tech's Research Magazine, asking if I'd consider giving them permission to use this photo I took in their publication, because they were doing a story about Cladophora.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tHx3g5x6e0Q/Tz5bT68T14I/AAAAAAAAEVE/IV81yVSL88U/s1600/DSCN8615.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tHx3g5x6e0Q/Tz5bT68T14I/AAAAAAAAEVE/IV81yVSL88U/s400/DSCN8615.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5710101775350224770" /></a><br /><br />I'm not sure how they found my blog, but I said sure, why not, and promptly forgot all about it until this week, when I received a couple copies of the magazine in the mail. <br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-r3NmLPMXzMo/Tz5bSvi1UBI/AAAAAAAAEU8/vqroVTzTV74/s1600/DSCN0964.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-r3NmLPMXzMo/Tz5bSvi1UBI/AAAAAAAAEU8/vqroVTzTV74/s400/DSCN0964.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5710101755110707218" /></a><br /><br />So, there it is. My photo of my feet and some algae in a magazine. Nifty.Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-13623245707104997002012-02-16T14:33:00.004-05:002012-02-16T15:27:05.232-05:00TV appearance and a giveawaySo, this morning I was up bright and early and headed to Saginaw, Michigan, to the WNEM TV-5 studios. I was contacted a couple weeks ago and asked if I would be interested in hosting a spot on the news as a "mommy blogger."<br /><br />I was sent a bunch of products that were designed to help moms get their kids through cold and flu season a little more safely and naturally. <a href="http://musingsfrommomschool.blogspot.com/2012/02/natural-cold-and-flu-kit-for-kids.html"><u>I blogged about it yesterday.</u></a><br />So, I showed up at the TV-5 building and was led into this studio. I set up my products and was informed that it was a three-minute segment. What?!?! I had been told it would be six minutes long, and was prepared for that.<br /><br />Anyway, I met Catherine Bodak, a meteorologist for TV-5, and chatted with her while I set up the stuff I had brought. She was very warm and personable (not to mention absolutely gorgeous) and made me feel comfortable.<br /><br />Except... I was looking out at THIS.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FhW_eXgG93c/Tz1dg7_qtfI/AAAAAAAAEUs/o04GtDhxZfc/s1600/DSCN0988.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FhW_eXgG93c/Tz1dg7_qtfI/AAAAAAAAEUs/o04GtDhxZfc/s400/DSCN0988.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709822723017586162" /></a><br /><br />Nothing like cameras, prompters, monitors and gigantic spotlights to make you feel secure.<br /><br />But anyway, we got to it. I had to stop her as she started the first take, because she pronounced my last name as Jones. We just started over, though. I am hoping I didn't do anything completely ridiculous on camera. It was kind of difficult because I was trying to pack my information into a much shorter time slot than I'd anticipated, but hopefully I was able to get it across. Catherine did have to rush me a bit by telling me we were almost out of time. <br /><br />So, it's supposed to air at 9 a.m. March 5 on Channel 5. We don't even GET that channel at my house thanks to DirectTV's oddball boundaries. They should be sending me a link to a video of the spot, though.<br /><br />Honestly, I'm glad it's over with.<br /><br />So, here's an idea of what it will look like, except Catherine and I were switched around.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HZ_co1C5yqM/Tz1dgO5j6zI/AAAAAAAAEUg/IUeuUkHUGVY/s1600/DSCN0986.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HZ_co1C5yqM/Tz1dgO5j6zI/AAAAAAAAEUg/IUeuUkHUGVY/s400/DSCN0986.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709822710912379698" /></a><br /><br />Here comes the exciting part for you, my lovely readers... See all that stuff on the table in front of me? One of YOU will win it all! You can learn more details about all the products in <a href="http://musingsfrommomschool.blogspot.com/2012/02/natural-cold-and-flu-kit-for-kids.html"><u>my blog post from yesterday</u></a>. You'll win a Mobi Dual Scan Ear and Forehead thermometer, BabyGanics The Germinator hand sanitizer, Hyland's Cold n' Cough 4 Kids and Xlear Kids xylitol/saline nasal spray.<br /><br />I would like you to leave me a comment and tell me the best advice you have for making your kids feel better when they're sick (or just share something your mom did for you when you were a kid).<br /><br />Don't forget to leave your e-mail address in your comment, so I can contact you if you win!<br /><br />I will end this contest on Wednesday.<br /><br />Good luck!Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-5086805602275048342012-02-15T19:34:00.010-05:002012-02-15T21:19:31.804-05:00Natural cold and flu kit for kidsEach year, almost as soon as school starts, my family begins a seemingly endless dance with colds and the flu.<br /><br />As a mom, there is nothing worse than seeing my children sick and miserable. I just want to do anything I can to make them feel better. But, I have to be honest, traditional medicines scare me when it comes to my kids. They contain harsh and questionable chemicals and it seems that every week, some type of medication is recalled off the shelves because it poses some sort of danger.<br /><br />So what's a mom to do when illness strikes?<br /><br />Well, I was recently given an opportunity to try out a few natural, safer cold and flu products for children.<br /><br />The first item in the kit was a children's nasal spray from the Xlear (pronounced "clear") company. This isn't simply a typical nasal spray. It contains xylitol, which is a natural substance derived from plant fibers.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jn-8vDtuiCM/Tzxbr6jsplI/AAAAAAAAEUU/SkH6aExnFHg/s1600/xlear.bmp"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 138px; height: 225px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jn-8vDtuiCM/Tzxbr6jsplI/AAAAAAAAEUU/SkH6aExnFHg/s400/xlear.bmp" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709539237610432082" /></a><br /><br />Xylitol, studies show, has unique properties that keep bacteria from sticking, so when this nasal spray is used, it can actually keep your children from getting sick. The spray also washes away pollutants, irritants and other contaminants, and keeps the nasal passages and sinuses moist.<br /><br />What's really cool about the Xlear spray is that it can be used on the tiniest of children--even newborns. That's important for any mom who's had a sick baby, because there isn't much you can do for them when they're that little besides coming at them with the bulb syringe. Xlear is safe for the little ones, though, and there is no danger of overuse or dependency.<br /><br />The Xlear company also makes a number of other products, including gum, mints and sweetener. Using products that contain xylitol can actually be good for your teeth because, as in the nasal spray, it helps keep bacteria from sticking. Personally, I put a container of the Spry gum in everyone's stocking at Christmas in hopes of counteracting some of the candy.<br /><br />Xlear products can be found at Vitamin Shoppe, Whole Foods and other stores. Locally, I purchase mine at Rebekah's Pure Living in Lapeer. You can find out more at <a href="http://xlear.com/nasal-spray.aspx"><u>http://xlear.com/nasal-spray.aspx</u></a><br /><br />The second item in the kit comes from the Hyland's Homeopathic company. I was given the Nighttime Cold n' Cough 4 kids.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CCClRVAevDw/TzxbrNtan8I/AAAAAAAAEUA/hc76BQmuUf0/s1600/hyland%2527s.bmp"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 130px; height: 212px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CCClRVAevDw/TzxbrNtan8I/AAAAAAAAEUA/hc76BQmuUf0/s400/hyland%2527s.bmp" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709539225571598274" /></a><br /><br />I was familiar with the Hyland's name because I, like many moms, swore by their teething tablets when my children were infants. <br /><br />The Nighttime Cold n' Cough (there is a daytime formula as well) is safe for kids age 2 and up. It relieves the symptoms of the common cold, including cough, runny nose, sneezing, nasal and chest congestion and sore throat, and it does it naturally, without side effects. It doesn't contain anything scary, either, like aspirin, acetaminophen, ibuprofen, naproxen, pseudoephedrine or dextromethorphan. <br /><br />It retails for around $7.99 and can be found at CVS, Whole Foods and Rite Aid. Learn more at <a href="http://www.hylands.com/products/coldcough.php"><u>http://www.hylands.com/products/coldcough.php</u></a><br /><br />The third item in my kit was a Mobi Dual Scan ear and forehead thermometer.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DV4oebS16ZI/Tzxbruw2o-I/AAAAAAAAEUI/Wpw6TCVnHV4/s1600/mobi.bmp"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 247px; height: 247px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DV4oebS16ZI/Tzxbruw2o-I/AAAAAAAAEUI/Wpw6TCVnHV4/s400/mobi.bmp" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709539234444387298" /></a><br /><br />It can be really difficult to get a child to sit still for a temperature check, and if they're asleep, you don't want to have to wake them up to take their temperature. That's where the Mobi comes in handy. It takes a reading in just two seconds, with a mere touch to the temple. The display lights up so if you're taking a reading in the dark (with the assistance of the built-in flashilight if you so desire) you can see the results. It also stores the last 20 readings, including date and time, for comparison, and there is a talk option that reads the temperature aloud. (That is a big hit with my three year old. He's been talking to his friend Mobi for days.)<br /><br />Although there are a lot of features on the thermometer, it is very user-friendly. My three-year-old can literally take his own temperature and get an accurate reading.<br /><br />The Mobi Dual Scan retails for $34.95 and can be found at Target, or online at <br /><a href="http://www.getmobi.com"><u>www.getmobi.com</u></a><br /><br />The last product I found in my cold and flu kit was The Germinator, foaming hand sanitizer by the BabyGanics company.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pPcYs9ThkgM/Tzxbq1qXZSI/AAAAAAAAETw/liJ-vPbaSAU/s1600/babyganics.bmp"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 241px; height: 241px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pPcYs9ThkgM/Tzxbq1qXZSI/AAAAAAAAETw/liJ-vPbaSAU/s400/babyganics.bmp" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709539219116352802" /></a><br /><br />As a rule, I've never been fond of hand sanitizers because they are harsh. They're alcohol-based and my hands get dry and cracked each winter just due to regular washing and dry air.<br /><br />Some situations just call for some sanitizer, though, and I'm happy to know that there are alcohol-free options like The Germinator when I happen to grab onto a sticky shopping cart handle, or when we leave the doctor's office and I feel all cootied out.<br /><br />The Germinator comes in a light citrus or tangerine scent, or a fragrance-free option, and you can purchase bottles of refill solution to cut down on waste. I love that. It uses Benzalkonium chloride rather than alcohol, so it still kills 99.9% of germs, but it doesn't strip your skin of its protective oils, and it doesn't become less effective over time either.<br /><br />There are also Germinator wipes that come in a pop-up canister for the home, or in travel packs for on-the-go. Just pop a couple in your purse when you leave the house and you're ready for cootie control, as I like to call it.<br /><br />The Germinator and other BabyGanics products can be found at Babies R Us, Buy Buy Baby and online at Amazon.com.<br /><br />It's nice to know there are some natural options during cold and flu season for moms like me who want to keep their kids comfortable without exposing them to dangerous chemicals.Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-56762111229825725802012-02-01T08:28:00.006-05:002012-02-01T09:27:38.995-05:00This is your warningEven though I can manage blogging, Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest, I am actually quite technologically ignorant. Basically everything I do online is what I've taught myself through trial and error, but when it comes to the mechanics of the computer or trying anything complicated, I get all flustered. It probably has something to do with that part of my brain that disallows me to retain math skills, follow written instructions or learn to play card games.<br /><br />Have you ever seen that Sex and the City episode, My Motherboard, My Self? If you haven't, Carrie Bradshaw, who is a writer, loses it when her computer crashes in a big, bad way and she loses all her columns. "My whole life is on that computer!"<br /><br />I totally get it.<br /><br />Late last year, our computer started making a weird sound when it started up. It was a clicking sound. I mentioned it to Hubby, but when he didn't seem concerned, I didn't worry.<br /><br />After a while, it started needing to be restarted a couple times in order to "catch" and actually start up. Again, I mentioned it to Hubby. "I think our computer is dying," I said. He said we'd start thinking about getting a new one, perhaps a laptop.<br /><br />Then it started getting really bad and it was taking a long time and a lot of restarts to get the computer to "catch." I remember one day as I was driving Logan to school, I heard a radio ad about Carbonite Online Backup. A person I know who had fixed a virus issue on our computer earlier in the year had also mentioned Carbonite to me, so I decided I would go home that day and do the backup, just to be safe.<br /><br />It took a really, really long time to get the computer started that day, but being the idiot I am, I didn't get around to backing up. Laziness is my only excuse.<br /><br />Then it happened.<br /><br />The next day... no computer. Couldn't get it to start up for ANYTHING.<br /><br />I took it to a local fix-it shop. The two guys behind the counter visibly winced and said "ooohhh" when I described what it had been doing. They had the computer for a couple weeks before they called back and said, sorry. Your hard drive is completely fried and we can't recover your information.<br /><br />The last time Hubby had backed up the files on our computer was in January 2009. One month before my second son Jordan was born. That meant his entire life worth of photos was gone, all my columns for the past three years were gone, everything. I was sobbing before I was even off the phone with the computer guys and I was very, very sad.<br /><br />How could it be possible that everything was gone? It made me physically ill every time I thought about it.<br /><br />I started scrambling, trying to find someone that could help. I found some companies, but you know how it is... with online businesses you don't really know who's shady and who isn't, and they were asking for a LOT of money. Thousands and thousands of dollars.<br /><br />For a brief moment, I'll admit, I entertained thoughts of selling my wedding ring to get my photos back. That's how important they were to me.<br /><br />So, anyway, that was that. All was lost. I was brokenhearted. And we were without a computer for a long time. That's why this blog has been stagnant.<br /><br />Christmas rolled around, and we did our family Christmas morning thing. We always save our stockings for last. Generally, we open the gifts under the tree, play for a while, maybe have some breakfast, and then it's time for stockings. Well, it happened that way this year, too. We were opening our stockings, and I got to the very bottom of mine and pulled out this black box.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3ir4qoJ0_Ds/TylFO44jVMI/AAAAAAAAES0/RmBobBOO6R0/s1600/DSCN9997.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3ir4qoJ0_Ds/TylFO44jVMI/AAAAAAAAES0/RmBobBOO6R0/s400/DSCN9997.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5704166525131510978" /></a><br /><br />I looked at it. <br /><br />What was it?<br /><br /><em>What IS this?</em> I asked Hubby.<br /><br />He looked at me and said the most beautiful words.<br /><br /><em>It's the entire contents of our old hard drive.</em><br /><br />Whoa.<br /><br />I lost it. I bawled my eyes out for whole minutes before I could even manage to squeak out a Thank You.<br /><br />I also received a backup system for Christmas, which immediately backs up several times a day, every time the computer is on. And we got a new hard drive for the old computer. The laptop will have to wait.<br /><br />I have my photos back. I have my newspaper columns back. I have my LIFE back.<br /><br />It might sound melodramatic, but I take dozens of photos of my kids and my life in general every single day. It is important to me to document things and I truly enjoy looking back on them. I am so happy that photos like these aren't lost forever. <br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-E4MlMb4qTfM/TylFQw0rZ3I/AAAAAAAAETo/pSCQWNuGN0g/s1600/boys%2Bin%2Bsepia%2B2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 255px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-E4MlMb4qTfM/TylFQw0rZ3I/AAAAAAAAETo/pSCQWNuGN0g/s400/boys%2Bin%2Bsepia%2B2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5704166557327517554" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--uGdF_Qnouw/TylFQZrgNCI/AAAAAAAAETY/aFETgbRX6gU/s1600/IMGP9268.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--uGdF_Qnouw/TylFQZrgNCI/AAAAAAAAETY/aFETgbRX6gU/s400/IMGP9268.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5704166551115019298" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YIoyeyzOqMc/TylFPhN8N5I/AAAAAAAAETM/ojy-ZLA7GO8/s1600/IMGP5570.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YIoyeyzOqMc/TylFPhN8N5I/AAAAAAAAETM/ojy-ZLA7GO8/s400/IMGP5570.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5704166535958640530" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Eor86lwSs_U/TylFPIXXtKI/AAAAAAAAETA/54WgI-uZZUU/s1600/IMGP5588.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Eor86lwSs_U/TylFPIXXtKI/AAAAAAAAETA/54WgI-uZZUU/s400/IMGP5588.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5704166529287304354" /></a><br /><br />I hae thousands upon thousands of memories captured in photo form that I thought were gone.<br /><br />So, Carrie Bradshaw learned a big lesson about backing up. So did I. Now here's my public service announcement for you.<br /><br />BACK IT UP. DO NOT WAIT.<br /><br />I never asked Hubby how much it cost to salvage my stuff. I don't want to know, because I know it was a hell of a lot. He had to send the hard drive to another state, and the people there had to suit up, take it into a dust-free "clean room" environment and somehow bypass the fried part of the hard drive to get to the data. It's terribly impressive. I have a new respect for engineers!<br /><br />So, I don't care if you use Carbonite or some other service or just an external hard drive, but please, back up your stuff today, and often.Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-61599440280885870232011-12-14T09:56:00.006-05:002011-12-14T10:27:16.592-05:00Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell, CRASH!I have a two-year-old. His name is Jordan. He's really adorable. He looks like this.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8Y_kkExPe04/Tui_RbnHwVI/AAAAAAAAESo/777GJF3PceQ/s1600/jordanado.bmp"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 259px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8Y_kkExPe04/Tui_RbnHwVI/AAAAAAAAESo/777GJF3PceQ/s400/jordanado.bmp" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5686004835745775954" /></a><br /><br />Life as a stay-at-home mom is really easy. I just sit around and eat bon-bons all day.<br /><br />I decorated the mantel for Christmas. Isn't it pretty?<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qIuvm1MAuLg/Tui-qQfe9YI/AAAAAAAAER4/ndcUSgKayI8/s1600/Picture%2B115.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qIuvm1MAuLg/Tui-qQfe9YI/AAAAAAAAER4/ndcUSgKayI8/s400/Picture%2B115.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5686004162746054018" /></a><br /><br />Jordan thought so too.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QqYuUq5AMsg/Tui-rHXrE2I/AAAAAAAAESE/_m-eg6jyg9c/s1600/Picture%2B259.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QqYuUq5AMsg/Tui-rHXrE2I/AAAAAAAAESE/_m-eg6jyg9c/s400/Picture%2B259.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5686004177477243746" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-j43qN4IovBg/Tui-rhOVEzI/AAAAAAAAESQ/dI6CJ8vx-eQ/s1600/Picture%2B250.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-j43qN4IovBg/Tui-rhOVEzI/AAAAAAAAESQ/dI6CJ8vx-eQ/s400/Picture%2B250.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5686004184417375026" /></a><br /><br />Oh my goodness, they killed Frosty!!!!!!!!!!!!<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BFzV15kMP34/Tui-sbj6wAI/AAAAAAAAESc/75aWLxEjGI0/s1600/Picture%2B258.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BFzV15kMP34/Tui-sbj6wAI/AAAAAAAAESc/75aWLxEjGI0/s400/Picture%2B258.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5686004200077180930" /></a><br /><br />Merry friggin' Christmas.Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-679959541954532902011-11-10T09:41:00.001-05:002011-11-10T09:41:46.194-05:00Get a Melissa & Doug 25% Off Coupon When You Take the North "Poll"<div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">Melissa & Doug want you to tell them which of their <a href="http://www.MelissaAndDoug.com/">educational toys</a> you think is the best! Just click on the image below to place your vote in the North "Poll!" You'll Get a Melissa & Doug 25% Off Coupon** to use at MelissaAndDoug.com just for voting!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://ww2.melissaanddoug.com/Holiday-2011/North-Poll-Toys-Promotion/vote-best-toys.php?blog=6da37dd3139aa4d9aa55b8d237ec5d4a"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8cKHx8FQHgw/TrviJVJro6I/AAAAAAAACZs/0BrEsR6ZLnc/s400/meldoug.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div>Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-16621258086947783572011-11-02T08:52:00.004-04:002011-11-02T09:06:06.409-04:00Waste not...Jordan doesn't really like to color right now but he LOVES to break crayons and peel the paper off them. It can occupy him for hours, and that has actually come in handy, like this summer when I had a garage sale. I put a blanket under a tree in our yard and he happily sat in the shade and peeled and snapped crayons all morning.<br /><br />We have so many random crayons from restaurants and places like that, that I don't really care if he breaks those. I get a little upset when Logan forgets to put away his "good" crayons, though, and little brother starts in on those, because Logan WILL NOT color with broken crayons.<br /><br />Anyway, we have all these broken crayons that I keep in a shoebox, because it seems so wasteful to pitch them. <br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Lzq3b5dDV9w/TrE-wUe4epI/AAAAAAAAEO4/bn8JD4_wirg/s1600/DSCN1241.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Lzq3b5dDV9w/TrE-wUe4epI/AAAAAAAAEO4/bn8JD4_wirg/s400/DSCN1241.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5670382405689047698" /></a><br /><br />At one point, I wanted the Crayola Crayon Maker, which basically melts your crayons down into new ones. It's THIRTY BUCKS though. Doesn't seem worth it.<br /><br />So, yesterday I decided to try a little project. I bought a Wilton star-shaped silicone mold (for MUCH less than $30, I might add) and put some of the broken pieces in them.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-reCXp4H6iaQ/TrE-wlPjwEI/AAAAAAAAEPE/v0Dphdz7fHo/s1600/DSCN1235.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-reCXp4H6iaQ/TrE-wlPjwEI/AAAAAAAAEPE/v0Dphdz7fHo/s400/DSCN1235.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5670382410188177474" /></a><br /><br />Then I put them in the oven at 300 degrees for a few. I just kind of kept an eye on them to determine when they were ready to come out.<br /><br />Half melted.<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Z2_7-1UMwuo/TrE-yNFcFyI/AAAAAAAAEPc/vM1rEkFNRKc/s1600/DSCN1239.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Z2_7-1UMwuo/TrE-yNFcFyI/AAAAAAAAEPc/vM1rEkFNRKc/s400/DSCN1239.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5670382438063019810" /></a><br /><br />Then, when they were done, I put them outside for a little while to cool, then tipped the mold upside down and out popped the new crayons, all swirly and pretty.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2KnWwcC3MIA/TrE-xM63Q_I/AAAAAAAAEPU/54yJMt8G7LQ/s1600/DSCN1237.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2KnWwcC3MIA/TrE-xM63Q_I/AAAAAAAAEPU/54yJMt8G7LQ/s400/DSCN1237.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5670382420838794226" /></a><br /><br />The star shape is cool, because there are still points, but it's too thick for Jordan to break. It's also easier for a toddler's hands.<br /><br />Jordan still doesn't like to color. He prefers to stack the stars into towers.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-W6x1LlGR0eA/TrE-yWtaGFI/AAAAAAAAEPo/wIrNHUFQlPk/s1600/DSCN1242.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-W6x1LlGR0eA/TrE-yWtaGFI/AAAAAAAAEPo/wIrNHUFQlPk/s400/DSCN1242.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5670382440646580306" /></a><br /><br />Oh well. At least he's not peeling and breaking them, and all those crayons didn't go to waste!<br /><br />I'm going to stick one in a sandwich bag in my purse so I'll always have a crayon handy. Just thought I'd share our little crayon-saving tip.Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-7894250091446791192011-10-27T06:46:00.009-04:002011-10-27T10:35:09.606-04:00My little writerWe had parent-teacher conferences this week, and Logan's teacher had nothing but good things to say about him. She is so impressed with his reading and writing, which she said is so far ahead of his grade level, she believes he's the smartest child she has ever taught.<br /><br />Wow.<br /><br />Anyway, letters, reading and writing have always been Logan's "thing." From a very, very early age, he was sounding out words and using his chalk to leave graffiti around my kitchen. I used to laugh at finding his name written under the table when he was only two. He was full-on reading at age three. Now, as a first-grader, he can read just about anything, and he LOVES to write stories and books. <br /><br />Each week, the students in his class are required to do an at-home writing project. It can be just about anything. Logan has written anything from a paragraph about friends to a chapter book about his girlfriends' pets.<br /><br />This week, in the spirit of Halloween, he decided to write a spooky story. I was laughing so hard I was crying last night as I read this story. I absolutely love it, and I'm going to try to get him to rewrite it in book form with illustrations, so I can cherish it forever. I am dying to see what a "squinty warlock" looks like!<br /><br />I decided to share his story here. A couple notes... Yes, my child uses ampersands. I don't even know any adults that use them, but Logan has used them since he was four. <br /><br />Second, I thought it was a riot that he included pronunciation keys for the names he made up for the ghosts. <br /><br />Third, I have to add a little picture because it's too funny not to share: When he writes a weird name, he draws little squiggles under it, because that's what Word does when he's typing his stories on the computer! Seriously!!!<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mKndCTiuZTQ/TqlOWgoaeRI/AAAAAAAAEOE/nAtWnzq6B-4/s1600/DSCN1024.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mKndCTiuZTQ/TqlOWgoaeRI/AAAAAAAAEOE/nAtWnzq6B-4/s400/DSCN1024.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5668147754646010130" /></a><br /><br />I typed it up exactly as he wrote it, misspellings and all. I especially liked "Grain Repar" instead of "Grim Reaper." I practically wet my pants when I read it.<br /><br />I had no idea what this story was going to be about until I read it. The only hint I had was when he asked, "Mom, is a boy witch a warthog?" and I had to tell him it was actually warlock.<br /><br />So, enjoy!<br /><br />Ten little ghosts in the haunted house <br />by Logan Johns<br /><br />Ten little ghost in the haunted house. Suenly (SOO-ENN-LEE) saw a Vampire Bat & ran out to the woods.<br /><br />Nine little ghosts in the haunted house. Ellyen (ELL-EE-ENN) saw a wild cat & ran out to the woods.<br /><br />eight little ghosts in the haunted house. Seilanax (SEE-LANN-ECKS) saw a one eyed freak & ran out to the woods. <br /><br />Seven little ghosts in the haunted house. Fialiianixxian (FEE-UH-LEE-AN-ICKS-EE-AN) saw Frankenstein & ran out to the woods. <br /><br />Six little ghosts in the haunted house. Zillialian (ZILL-EE-UH-LEE-ANN) saw a Evil Witch & ran out to the woods. <br /><br />Five little ghosts in the haunted house. Retreever (RETT-REE-VERR) saw a scelaton & ran out to the woods. <br /><br />Four little ghosts in the haunted house. Cimpminisan (CHIMP-MINN-UH-SIN) saw a Ghoul & ran out to the woods. <br /><br />Three little ghosts in a haunted house. Zelonix (ZEE-LON-ICKS) saw the Grain Repar & ran out to the woods. <br /><br />two little ghost in the haunted house. Riely (RIE-LEE) saw a massive Wizard & ran out to the woods. <br /><br />One little ghost in the haunted house. Zimix (ZIMM-ICKS) saw a squinty Warlock & ran out to the woods.<br /><br />Ten little ghosts safe in the woods.<br /><br />Well done, Logan! I'm proud of you, my son!!!Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-61864650632434306922011-10-26T08:36:00.016-04:002011-11-09T10:56:30.707-05:00Mission Point ResortA couple weeks ago, my husband and I celebrated a big anniversary: Ten years married (and 20 together!)<br /><br />We always said we were going to get back to Maine, where we honeymooned, to celebrate our tenth, but life got in the way and we just weren't able to do it this year. We still wanted to do something special together, though. After some thought, we decided Mackinac Island was a good choice. My parents live in the U.P. so it would be relatively easy for them to meet us at the bridge and take the kids for a weekend, so that's just what we did.<br /><br />When a lot of people think of staying on Mackinac, they think of the Grand Hotel. We had always wanted to try out the <a href="http://missionpoint.com/"><u>Mission Point Resort</u></a>, though. A few years ago when we ran the 8-mile Mackinac Island race, we started and finished at the resort, and we took the opportunity to walk through the lobby. It appealed to us and we decided we'd love to stay there sometime.<br /><br />So, as our tenth approached, I contacted the hotel and asked if they had any special rates available. They hooked us up with a lake-view room with a king-size bed at a good rate and even arranged for ferry tickets for us. <br /><br />The weekend before we went to Mackinac, the weather was glorious. Warm, sunny, fall colors everywhere. Then the forecast came for our weekend and it was just plain AWFUL! They were calling for rain, rain, rain and CHILLY temps. I started to get discouraged. That's the danger of a mid-October anniversary, though. The weather can be amazing or not-so-great.<br /><br />Finally it was time to go, so we headed to the island on a chilly, breezy, drizzly day. Right off the boat, we headed to a pub for a pint. NO KIDS! That meant we actually got to sit at the bar! Then we headed to the resort to check in. Our luggage was already there, having been valeted from the boat docks. We got our room keys (REAL keys, not cards!) and headed to our room in the main lodge.<br /><br />This is a view of the resort from the road along the bluff up above.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nEUAcWRmnps/TqgEc0hAi_I/AAAAAAAAEMY/ibQ_7sfsGlc/s1600/DSCN0532.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nEUAcWRmnps/TqgEc0hAi_I/AAAAAAAAEMY/ibQ_7sfsGlc/s400/DSCN0532.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5667785024225709042" /></a><br /><br />The lobby, as I mentioned before, is really cool. My dark photo doesn't do it justice. <br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0iyr_Rq9cdk/TqgO2d6pL9I/AAAAAAAAENs/DkOGg-eH7K4/s1600/DSCN0701.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0iyr_Rq9cdk/TqgO2d6pL9I/AAAAAAAAENs/DkOGg-eH7K4/s400/DSCN0701.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5667796459952091090" /></a><br /><br />According to the Resort website, "The Main Lobby is one of the most distinctive architectural structures on the Island. Nine-ton majestic trusses, converging at a height of 36 feet, resemble a 16-sided tepee. This structure fulfills the Indian prophecy that 'Someday, on the east end of the Island, a great tepee will be erected. All nations will come there and learn about peace.'"<br /><br />There are a couple sitting areas set up in the lobby, too. We enjoyed a rest by the fire when we came in after a chilly post-dinner walk.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-We24HWBXAJs/TqgEckMoe9I/AAAAAAAAEMI/qWK86Bht4pU/s1600/DSCN0448.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-We24HWBXAJs/TqgEckMoe9I/AAAAAAAAEMI/qWK86Bht4pU/s400/DSCN0448.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5667785019845278674" /></a><br /><br />When we first walked into the room, it wasn't really what I expected. Smaller, I guess. However, after some thought, I realized that it was exactly what it should be on Mackinac. It's an island resort, casual for those who don't want to HAVE to dress up, and it's cozy. It was built in the 50s and has that lodgy feel, down to the decor in our room: plaids, photos of elk, a duck painted on the headboard, etc.<br /><br />Our room had a great view of the lake.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-89j6EyWO_bI/TqgEeuEc6DI/AAAAAAAAEMw/MLuLYp_k4JQ/s1600/DSCN0612.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-89j6EyWO_bI/TqgEeuEc6DI/AAAAAAAAEMw/MLuLYp_k4JQ/s400/DSCN0612.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5667785056855058482" /></a><br /><br />We had a break in the clouds on Saturday, just long enough for a rainbow to peek through, right outside our window. That rainbow was out there for a while, too. Luckily, we had just come back to the room for a short rest before dinner, after a day of hiking, so we were able to see and enjoy the rainbow.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZkSujmc7f_Q/TqgEd7tkezI/AAAAAAAAEMo/wMb1WWdE1l0/s1600/DSCN0604.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZkSujmc7f_Q/TqgEd7tkezI/AAAAAAAAEMo/wMb1WWdE1l0/s400/DSCN0604.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5667785043337313074" /></a><br /><br />On Sunday morning, the day we were to go home, I woke up early as usual and popped a K-cup into the Keurig coffee machine. It was my first time using one of those things and it was pretty neat (and easy)! I took my cup, put on my coat and hat, and headed outside to watch the sunrise. <br /><br />The purple pre-dawn light in the courtyard outside our window was amazing. It was soooo peaceful out there without all the daytime touristy hustle and bustle of the island.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ea5qpUh68CI/TqgO0ZIFi1I/AAAAAAAAEM8/nZPpK7R5aas/s1600/DSCN0627.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ea5qpUh68CI/TqgO0ZIFi1I/AAAAAAAAEM8/nZPpK7R5aas/s400/DSCN0627.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5667796424306559826" /></a><br /><br />These are the stairs down from our courtyard to the main lawn and lakeshore.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wSHWf5iYFjI/TrqQ23UhMBI/AAAAAAAAEQA/QmENHhlat3E/s1600/DSCN0690.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wSHWf5iYFjI/TrqQ23UhMBI/AAAAAAAAEQA/QmENHhlat3E/s400/DSCN0690.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5673005952863907858" /></a><br /><br />I headed to the shoreline and walked along the path, taking in the scenery and the fresh breeze. It was a pretty spectacular morning.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-igQLkrKAffw/TqgO0iSGOiI/AAAAAAAAENI/TDxe0pziaIs/s1600/DSCN0664.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-igQLkrKAffw/TqgO0iSGOiI/AAAAAAAAENI/TDxe0pziaIs/s400/DSCN0664.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5667796426764466722" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xmDDhZmbzVY/TrqQ3eu7eZI/AAAAAAAAEQQ/9Lx6EHmz-m4/s1600/DSCN0653.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xmDDhZmbzVY/TrqQ3eu7eZI/AAAAAAAAEQQ/9Lx6EHmz-m4/s400/DSCN0653.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5673005963443665298" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZIMFxrap8ZA/TqgO1NdqJFI/AAAAAAAAENU/YrlX1g5MZ60/s1600/DSCN0684.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZIMFxrap8ZA/TqgO1NdqJFI/AAAAAAAAENU/YrlX1g5MZ60/s400/DSCN0684.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5667796438355682386" /></a><br /><br />I walked back around to the resort and paused to finish my coffee and admire the beautiful landscaping. Even though summer was gone, the flowers were still blooming. Pardon my tired face!<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qU6AgxQVrKA/TrqQ2VKnEuI/AAAAAAAAEP0/JWW9RXQgaKA/s1600/DSCN0695.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qU6AgxQVrKA/TrqQ2VKnEuI/AAAAAAAAEP0/JWW9RXQgaKA/s400/DSCN0695.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5673005943695545058" /></a><br /><br />I walked across the outside of the resort and snapped this photo of the sunrise reflected in the windows of the in-house restaurant, Chianti.<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-J51qhfPY458/TqgO1rbTttI/AAAAAAAAENk/esuocq5nAyI/s1600/DSCN0692.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-J51qhfPY458/TqgO1rbTttI/AAAAAAAAENk/esuocq5nAyI/s400/DSCN0692.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5667796446398887634" /></a><br /><br />Here's Chianti from the inside. We didn't end up eating there because we were out and about, exploring in town. It's got a great view though, and that same lodgy appeal as the lobby and the rest of the resort, yet it's still elegant.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Z43BksgQsJ0/TqgYE82ZvXI/AAAAAAAAEN4/M_HtGgmXTWg/s1600/DSCN0705.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Z43BksgQsJ0/TqgYE82ZvXI/AAAAAAAAEN4/M_HtGgmXTWg/s400/DSCN0705.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5667806604378619250" /></a><br /><br />Despite the rain, we had an absolutely fabulous time celebrating 10 years of marriage at the Mission Point Resort and look forward to heading back there for another stay in the future. <br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wwcwjyrYX0g/TqgEcdhhTZI/AAAAAAAAEMA/jCS3gBPPSLc/s1600/DSCN0377.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wwcwjyrYX0g/TqgEcdhhTZI/AAAAAAAAEMA/jCS3gBPPSLc/s400/DSCN0377.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5667785018053840274" /></a><br /><br />Who knows? Maybe it will be our annual anniversary destination! After all, we didn't have the chance to enjoy a number of the resort's offerings, such as the restaurant, the 18-hole putting course, the bicycle rental, the outdoor pool, the spa and the theater. In addition, there's a lot to do on the island, including tours, hiking trails, biking, watching freighters pass through the Straits of Mackinac, restaurants and bars. The scenery is fantastic, even on rainy days.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lVVsbE8zSqM/TrqhZi9TaLI/AAAAAAAAEQw/I33vSaoY2dw/s1600/DSCN0550.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lVVsbE8zSqM/TrqhZi9TaLI/AAAAAAAAEQw/I33vSaoY2dw/s400/DSCN0550.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5673024140879292594" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_rZEGpXArlQ/TrqhYz3UAiI/AAAAAAAAEQk/wpWhGK9qxUs/s1600/DSCN0554.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_rZEGpXArlQ/TrqhYz3UAiI/AAAAAAAAEQk/wpWhGK9qxUs/s400/DSCN0554.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5673024128237699618" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-38z-BaRdc1s/TrqhYp2AfsI/AAAAAAAAEQY/aRbAYylCZZM/s1600/DSCN0410.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-38z-BaRdc1s/TrqhYp2AfsI/AAAAAAAAEQY/aRbAYylCZZM/s400/DSCN0410.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5673024125547871938" /></a><br /><br />Next time you're looking for a Pure Michigan experience, check out the <a href="http://missionpoint.com/"><u>Mission Point Resort</u></a> on Mackinac Island. I don't think you'll be disappointed.Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-37003716972628184082011-10-03T11:41:00.012-04:002011-10-05T08:52:10.195-04:00While he was out...My husband just returned from 2 weeks in Germany and Hungary for work. Two weeks is a LONG time to be without Hubby/Daddy!!!<br /><br />But, I kept busy. <br /><br />On top of motherhood, school for Logan, Cub Scouts, soccer and play dates, I decided to take on a "While You Were Out" kind of project.<br /><br />We have lived in this nice big house for a year now, but our bedroom was kind of blah. I called it "vanilla." I have been waiting all my life to have a nice big bedroom and I really wanted to do something nice with it.<br /><br />In the old house, our room was so tiny that, with our queen bed pushed up against two walls, we could barely squeeze the dressers in there. We couldn't open the drawers all the way. It was tiny.<br /><br />See the cramped room at the old house?<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uDyUiEX8nWo/TonbKUXdRII/AAAAAAAAELY/6Edzcv8mKko/s1600/bedroom%2B2.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uDyUiEX8nWo/TonbKUXdRII/AAAAAAAAELY/6Edzcv8mKko/s400/bedroom%2B2.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5659295377080009858" /></a><br /><br />So, I've wanted to re-do our bedroom for a while, make it OURS, make it pretty, because it's a nice big room with a large east-facing window and a cathedral ceiling. I love the room, but it just had cream walls, cream carpet, cream curtains and the quilt my mom made us ten years ago for a wedding gift. I wanted something new, and I wanted to get rid of the green. Even though it's my favorite color, I've had green in my bedroom since I was in high school.<br /><br />Anyway, I started browsing at bedspreads and I decided I wanted to do a light purple and brown. At first I thought I was going to keep some green in there but I decided not to.<br /><br />I found a bedspread I liked. Actually, I went out and bought it pretty much the second Hubby left. I chose a paint color that night too. Then, I decided I wanted a big, ornate mirror over the headboard and I looked around on craigslist and stumbled across an antique mirror that I thought sounded neat. It once hung in the State Theatre in Detroit, and I looooove local and Michigan history. It also wasn't all that far from my house, so I contacted the owner and went to take a look. As soon as I saw it, I wanted it. The frame is carved wood and it has LOVEBIRDS on top of it! Perfect for my bedroom!<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9RNpisEs37k/TonY5tcz2II/AAAAAAAAELQ/ell4D8rXo_A/s1600/DSCN9267.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9RNpisEs37k/TonY5tcz2II/AAAAAAAAELQ/ell4D8rXo_A/s400/DSCN9267.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5659292892732315778" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oCwVZQ2dfXA/TonY5FapZaI/AAAAAAAAELI/as5bqMXalfo/s1600/DSCN9270.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oCwVZQ2dfXA/TonY5FapZaI/AAAAAAAAELI/as5bqMXalfo/s400/DSCN9270.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5659292881985824162" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H0DvZS_9T0c/TonY4p7TQxI/AAAAAAAAELA/tzRZ4PcZLVA/s1600/DSCN9271.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H0DvZS_9T0c/TonY4p7TQxI/AAAAAAAAELA/tzRZ4PcZLVA/s400/DSCN9271.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5659292874606592786" /></a><br /><br />I had our neighbor, who has worked as a professional painter, come over to help out with the painting and also hanging the mirror. <br /><br />I enlarged three photos I took while Hubby and I were hiking on North Manitou and made them sepia toned, then put them in some frames I bought last year because I saw them on clearance and liked them. They've just been collecting dust in our basement but they worked well in the new bedroom! <br /><br />These are the photos that are in the frames:<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-92kRrRFdEiM/ToncteMsrII/AAAAAAAAELw/e3D1qm0HVTw/s1600/sepia%2Bsand-levels.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 270px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-92kRrRFdEiM/ToncteMsrII/AAAAAAAAELw/e3D1qm0HVTw/s400/sepia%2Bsand-levels.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5659297080526285954" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DfDJPPjFaQU/ToncsIHrwZI/AAAAAAAAELo/vdeZBOYOcdE/s1600/NMI%2Bsepia.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 270px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DfDJPPjFaQU/ToncsIHrwZI/AAAAAAAAELo/vdeZBOYOcdE/s400/NMI%2Bsepia.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5659297057419805074" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-v1nl-obMZLg/ToncrumpE6I/AAAAAAAAELg/lnet0F4EhNo/s1600/DSCN7266-sepia.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-v1nl-obMZLg/ToncrumpE6I/AAAAAAAAELg/lnet0F4EhNo/s400/DSCN7266-sepia.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5659297050570331042" /></a><br /><br />I finished it off with a really tall purple vase I found on super clearance, in which I put some twisty twig things I had leftover from doing our mantel arrangements in the living room. I got a new lamp at Target and some purple doily things to go under the lamp and vase. I found some curtains that matched really well and even got purple sheers. Because everything else was new, I splurged on some high thread-count purple sheets too. Ahhhh luxury!<br /><br />and... VOILA! A much warmer, prettier room!<br /><br />BEFORE<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kZ-04WL7xIg/TonY3kVxDxI/AAAAAAAAEKw/7q0qfUBPb_I/s1600/DSCN3621.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kZ-04WL7xIg/TonY3kVxDxI/AAAAAAAAEKw/7q0qfUBPb_I/s400/DSCN3621.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5659292855927115538" /></a><br /><br />AFTER<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yOcMiH1Zdws/ToxPiFQJXmI/AAAAAAAAEL4/hSSZ0IVS3b8/s1600/DSCN9467.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yOcMiH1Zdws/ToxPiFQJXmI/AAAAAAAAEL4/hSSZ0IVS3b8/s400/DSCN9467.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5659986278641917538" /></a><br /><br />Once it was done, I loved it but got a little scared because my husband isn't exactly big on surprises... or purple! Logan looked at it and proclaimed it "girly" and said he didn't think Daddy would like it.<br /><br />Oh dear, what had I done?<br /><br />The room project took a week from beginning to end, so I had a week to wait until he got home to see it. I was soooo tempted to e-mail him photos but I managed to hold back.<br /><br />Well, when he got home and walked in, he said it looked "super" and he even complimented the color choices. He said I did a great job and said "I actually like walking into this room now!"<br /><br />Woo hoo!<br /><br />So, it turned out well. I can't believe I pulled this off!Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-77075830850874470902011-09-15T07:31:00.006-04:002011-09-15T08:25:44.852-04:00ChobaniThese days, when I open a Chobani yogurt, I am always amazed to think that at one point in time, the mere thought of eating Greek yogurt grossed me out. Something about the texture and thickness just gave me the heebie-jeebies.<br /><br />Then I tried it. <br /><br />I forget when, but at some point I decided I wanted to try Greek yogurt for a number of reasons. One, most of them are free of artificial sweeteners. Most non-Greek yogurts are packed full of sucralose and other nasties. Two, it's high in protein.<br /><br />So I picked up a Chobani and tried it. And loved it.<br /><br />Now I get about three of them a week (more if they're on sale) and they're MINE. Heaven forbid anyone else in the house touch my Cho! Actually, Logan and Hubby have zero interest in yogurt but when Jordan sees me with a cup o' Cho, he is ON IT. That has prompted me to hide while eating it. Actually, I'm happy when Jordan eats Greek yogurt, I just don't like it when he wants the one I'm eating at the time.<br /><br />I really look forward to my Chobani!<br /><br />So, one afternoon last week I grabbed a raspberry Cho out of the fridge and settled down at the table to eat it. My spoon was almost to the yogurt when I noticed it was green and furry. Gross gross gross.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YV1iKE37iHk/TnHj8glv2MI/AAAAAAAAEKg/5ijwgRNR3Y4/s1600/DSCN9079.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YV1iKE37iHk/TnHj8glv2MI/AAAAAAAAEKg/5ijwgRNR3Y4/s400/DSCN9079.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5652549636006598850" /></a><br /><br />I checked the expiration date, and it didn't expire until the 26th of September, so I snapped a photo of my moldy Cho and posted it on their facebook page. I will be honest, I was hoping they'd offer to replace it.<br /><br />Well, they did. Immediately. And they followed up, asking for a code off the package so they could investigate the specific line where it was produced. I was thanked and ensured that a replacement would be sent. I was happy.<br /><br />Then, I got an envelope in the mail yesterday, with a nice hand-written note. It contained not just one replacement coupon for my bad cup, but one for a free 32-ounce container, five for free 6-ounce cups and three 30-cent off coupons. They also threw in some cute magnets and a handy magnetic conversion chart for using Chobani in recipes. (I've seen a number of tasty-looking recipes on blogs and on the Chobani facebook page, so I plan to put that chart to use!)<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5ScecIAbzMw/TnHt94Lxz5I/AAAAAAAAEKo/N5iIY9ortaY/s1600/DSCN9184.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5ScecIAbzMw/TnHt94Lxz5I/AAAAAAAAEKo/N5iIY9ortaY/s400/DSCN9184.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5652560654636273554" /></a><br /><br />Anyway, I am not only impressed with the Chobani product, but also with their awesome customer service. Something was wrong and they went above and beyond to make it right. They have a loyal customer in me, for sure. <br /><br />I just wanted to share this with my readers because good customer service is so rare these days and I appreciate it when I find it.<br /><br />Thanks Chobani!Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-62862694460964641552011-09-14T19:35:00.004-04:002011-09-14T19:47:34.105-04:00My frustrating sit-shoe-ationI am no Carrie Bradshaw.<br /><br />I don't really have THAT many pairs of shoes. Especially not cute ones. I have my hiking boots, my trail running shoes (well, 2 pairs), my older running shoes, my new running shoes, my indoor workout shoes (for when I do DVDs or if my feet are bugging me), then I have my Teva sandals, my flip flops, a pair of brown flats, a few pairs of heels that I wore in this wedding or that (and never since), my one standard pair of black heels, some cruddy old flip flops that I use for shower shoes when camping, a couple cruddy pairs of shoes that I slip on when I take the kids outside...<br /><br />OK, well, it does add up, but still, I don't have anything cute. No Manolos or Louboutins or anything like that. For one thing, I can't afford them. For another thing, I can't wear anything with a heel unless I want to limp for a couple weeks, thanks to plantar fasciitis. Too bad, too. I used to love heels and they do wonders for my stumpy calves.<br /><br />I'm getting way off point here.<br /><br />So, I have those shoes. My sons have their shoes and my husband has his (big) ones.<br /><br />What that means is a big pile of shoes tripping us up every time we come in the house or try to go into the laundry room or whatever.<br /><br />How the heck do you keep your shoes organized and out of the way?!?!<br /><br />We have shoe cubbies, shoe racks, shoe boxes... still, we have a pile of shoes. I pick it up. A half hour later, the pile is back.<br /><br />What? Do they all crawl out and pile up when we're not looking?<br /><br />Here is my rack of "dressier" shoes in my closet (well, and my old ratty but super comfy pair of mooseskin moccasins!)<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pRUUpeoRg6c/TnE7xLQlTDI/AAAAAAAAEKY/DDaRiUCFlys/s1600/DSCN9181.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pRUUpeoRg6c/TnE7xLQlTDI/AAAAAAAAEKY/DDaRiUCFlys/s400/DSCN9181.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5652364723348655154" /></a><br /><br />The other rack of random shoes in our closet. <br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cGH1PIAG7Qw/TnE7wqm7eFI/AAAAAAAAEKQ/5KeDLyWmJG0/s1600/DSCN9180.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cGH1PIAG7Qw/TnE7wqm7eFI/AAAAAAAAEKQ/5KeDLyWmJG0/s400/DSCN9180.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5652364714584012882" /></a><br /><br />By the garage door where we usually come in is another cubby and also a box for our hiking boots, because they're big and don't fit in cubbies.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TbZD7NMlG7c/TnE7wOSDEhI/AAAAAAAAEKI/GoUn7JbOajo/s1600/DSCN9179.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TbZD7NMlG7c/TnE7wOSDEhI/AAAAAAAAEKI/GoUn7JbOajo/s400/DSCN9179.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5652364706980237842" /></a><br /><br />The bench/shoe rack and a typical day's shoe pile (which has been shoved to the side).<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PD3HY2JGeD4/TnE7vpgw6uI/AAAAAAAAEKA/8WYzIQx1JBw/s1600/DSCN9178.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PD3HY2JGeD4/TnE7vpgw6uI/AAAAAAAAEKA/8WYzIQx1JBw/s400/DSCN9178.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5652364697109850850" /></a><br /><br />I am open to suggestions as to how we should deal with this super annoying sit-shoe-ation. How on Earth do you organize all your family's shoes and keep them that way?Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-42356706610184115932011-09-07T13:45:00.017-04:002011-09-08T09:11:30.394-04:00Can't win 'em allRight before school started, we decided to take the boys on one more backpacking and camping trip. After all, Hubby had bought me a 4-person backpacking tent for my birthday in June and we'd not had the chance to try it out yet.<br /><br />So, we chose to hike the Platte Plains. We picked this spot because it's in the Sleeping Bear Dunes area, which we love, and also because there is a spot you can park that makes it only a short 1.5-mile hike to the White Pine Campground, which is good when you're toting a two-year-old and when your six-year-old is hiking with you (and carrying a pack) and when poor Hubby has to carry basically ALL the gear because you have the kid on your back. Also, because it has relatively easy beach access. It's only about a third of a mile from the campground to the beach, though it's a hilly, sandy third of a mile!<br /><br />Anyway, we drove the four or so hours up and started out on our hike on the same day, so when we got there, we were just tired of being in the car. It was pretty hot out, too. <br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AA8OSg1ctkg/TmevPTUfSFI/AAAAAAAAEGw/eBZiUezZjJY/s1600/DSCN8553.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AA8OSg1ctkg/TmevPTUfSFI/AAAAAAAAEGw/eBZiUezZjJY/s400/DSCN8553.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5649676934978685010" /></a><br /><br />As we started the hike, I decided to snap a photo of myself carrying Jordan.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-42Dn3LPiLXI/TmevOpvBAvI/AAAAAAAAEGg/NcS86Dm7moY/s1600/DSCN8554.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-42Dn3LPiLXI/TmevOpvBAvI/AAAAAAAAEGg/NcS86Dm7moY/s400/DSCN8554.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5649676923815658226" /></a><br /><br />But the sun got in my eyes. Photo fail.<br /><br />This one's a little better. <br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_fzPmjaGSGA/TmevPJOht4I/AAAAAAAAEGo/zxZhRYUd9KA/s1600/DSCN8556.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_fzPmjaGSGA/TmevPJOht4I/AAAAAAAAEGo/zxZhRYUd9KA/s400/DSCN8556.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5649676932269324162" /></a><br /><br />Note the white styrofoam container with the leftovers from Big Boy, where we stopped on the way up. There was one huge chicken strip and half a grilled cheese sandwich. About a quarter mile in, the boys ate them, leaving me with a stupid container I'd really rather have left behind. Oh well. Pack it in, pack it out.<br /><br />We got to the campground and set up camp in the same spot we camped when Logan was two. We found this gnarled old tree where I had photographed Logan four years ago. It's a cool tree. I put the kids in it. Jordan was scared. I didn't blame him. They were around five feet off the ground.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-V-Nk6Jw1nCU/Tmi7GpjCifI/AAAAAAAAEIg/rQ-46kRXwTA/s1600/DSCN8571.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-V-Nk6Jw1nCU/Tmi7GpjCifI/AAAAAAAAEIg/rQ-46kRXwTA/s400/DSCN8571.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5649971455442717170" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iShQFyXwCCQ/Tmi7GCX2pXI/AAAAAAAAEIY/lW2OUUkPo1A/s1600/DSCN8570.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iShQFyXwCCQ/Tmi7GCX2pXI/AAAAAAAAEIY/lW2OUUkPo1A/s400/DSCN8570.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5649971444926817650" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-25IGATO8zRQ/Tmi7FmHANPI/AAAAAAAAEIQ/XAu9CroZnIY/s1600/DSCN8566.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-25IGATO8zRQ/Tmi7FmHANPI/AAAAAAAAEIQ/XAu9CroZnIY/s400/DSCN8566.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5649971437339948274" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-anozc-IU2ic/TmevP3pdKQI/AAAAAAAAEG4/ss6yktaPkmY/s1600/DSCN8569.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-anozc-IU2ic/TmevP3pdKQI/AAAAAAAAEG4/ss6yktaPkmY/s400/DSCN8569.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5649676944730302722" /></a><br /><br />Then we headed to the beach because we didn't pack in any water and we were thirsty. When we hike, we dip a bag of water out of Lake Michigan and use a filter on the beach to fill our bottles.<br /><br />But Lake Michigan had a surprise for us. A rather large growth of Cladophora algae.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3Rvrsl2dcE0/TmevQSZrGuI/AAAAAAAAEHA/xpa83eqr9h4/s1600/DSCN8615.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3Rvrsl2dcE0/TmevQSZrGuI/AAAAAAAAEHA/xpa83eqr9h4/s400/DSCN8615.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5649676951911865058" /></a><br /><br />If you really care, you can read more about it <a href="http://dnr.wi.gov/org/water/greatlakes/cladophora/"><u>here</u></a> but basically it's a naturally-occurring and non-dangerous algae that grows in the lake. Increased water clarity, possibly due to the invasive zebra mussels, and higher levels of phosphorus, possibly due to fertilizer runoff and other human idiocy, are two things that might be to blame for the unusually large amounts. <br /><br />Anyway, it's pretty ugly and gross when you're used to clear, sugar sand beaches, but we found that if you can get to a spot where the beach forms a little point, the algae isn't so thick, and also, once you get past the first few feet, the water is nice and clear again, as long as it isn't too choppy.<br /><br />So, we were able to filter some water and swim and play a little.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--Vy9hvQ_JA0/Tme7ogGer5I/AAAAAAAAEHY/el1vNwm0Mss/s1600/DSCN8610.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--Vy9hvQ_JA0/Tme7ogGer5I/AAAAAAAAEHY/el1vNwm0Mss/s400/DSCN8610.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5649690562045849490" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vkZxIEiyUAo/Tme7oFbdniI/AAAAAAAAEHQ/SWIfDWLWt04/s1600/DSCN8603.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vkZxIEiyUAo/Tme7oFbdniI/AAAAAAAAEHQ/SWIfDWLWt04/s400/DSCN8603.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5649690554886102562" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AMcJXXCwVQE/Tme7nw41g5I/AAAAAAAAEHI/02Iyztc6MQ8/s1600/DSCN8595.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AMcJXXCwVQE/Tme7nw41g5I/AAAAAAAAEHI/02Iyztc6MQ8/s400/DSCN8595.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5649690549372158866" /></a><br /><br />Hiking with a 25-pound kid plus probably another 15 pounds of pack and gear on your back, on sand, isn't easy. Just sayin'. I was pretty sweaty here.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3IeRm0tj_Og/Tme7o080i2I/AAAAAAAAEHg/T1LuiBnhIwU/s1600/DSCN8653.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3IeRm0tj_Og/Tme7o080i2I/AAAAAAAAEHg/T1LuiBnhIwU/s400/DSCN8653.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5649690567642483554" /></a><br /><br />And this is my super sexy summer style. An old ratty mom swimsuit, with hiking socks and boots. Aww yeah.<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hyK9TA2vW_o/Tme7pYdlMVI/AAAAAAAAEHo/6BbAHaFzea4/s1600/DSCN8661.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hyK9TA2vW_o/Tme7pYdlMVI/AAAAAAAAEHo/6BbAHaFzea4/s400/DSCN8661.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5649690577175130450" /></a><br /><br />So we went back to camp and set about making dinner. Somewhere near the end of the mac n' cheese cooking, the camp stove just quit working. The food was edible, though. Of course, Jordan knocked his bowl off the log into the dirt. Didn't matter. He wasn't eating it anyway. The kids were pretty crabby. OK, Hubby and I were too. I don't know. We were just tired and... something. It was just one of those vacations where no one was in the best mood for some reason.<br /><br />Bedtime came. The tent had plenty of room, but Jordan's still too little to carry anything or even hike in on his own so we were unable to bring any kind of sleeping pad for him. I was going to share my bed. Sounds nice, huh? Snuggle time with my baby? Uh, no. First, he sleeps SIDEWAYS. <br /><br />Assuming the position<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jLMoRLw1aJc/TmfHFEDVnxI/AAAAAAAAEHw/FXKHDhnMXjk/s1600/DSCN8664.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jLMoRLw1aJc/TmfHFEDVnxI/AAAAAAAAEHw/FXKHDhnMXjk/s400/DSCN8664.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5649703147360591634" /></a><br /><br />Second, he sprouts about a thousand extra feet when he sleeps. Basically, when Jordan sleeps with you, you don't sleep.<br /><br />And I didn't.<br /><br />At ALL.<br /><br />Since it was, you know, the middle of the night and all, I couldn't exactly photograph it, so here is my amazing rendition using my computer's paint program. (A program, I might add, that Logan actually came home from kindergarten and taught me how to use. Yeah. A five-year-old.)<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aKg-JWm9Vyw/TmfM-Be_lkI/AAAAAAAAEII/IasBUr6YZig/s1600/no%2Bsleep.bmp"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 284px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aKg-JWm9Vyw/TmfM-Be_lkI/AAAAAAAAEII/IasBUr6YZig/s400/no%2Bsleep.bmp" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5649709623481964098" /></a><br /><br />So, I laid awake. After an hour or so, I heard thunder. Then I saw lightning. I listened to it get closer and then I woke Hubby so we could "batten down the hatches" and pull the stuff in from outside.<br /><br />A little while later, the storm came. Of course, I was awake for it. I honestly saw every hour that night.<br /><br />Logan woke up in the morning and wanted to get dressed and go outside right away. He did, exploring some trails behind the tent, and then I heard him say he got stung. Sure enough, he had a couple stings swelling up on him. I looked where he said he'd been and found a ground nest of yellow jackets.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KdgJ1CXQwpk/TmfHFldaa5I/AAAAAAAAEH4/0Qi6cqByG6Q/s1600/DSCN8669.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KdgJ1CXQwpk/TmfHFldaa5I/AAAAAAAAEH4/0Qi6cqByG6Q/s400/DSCN8669.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5649703156328328082" /></a><br /><br />Thank goodness he's not allergic! He handled it well, no tears, tough kid.<br /><br />Here's Joe, chilling on a stump, pickin' his nose.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZMJC5ttv91E/TmfHGJaUCZI/AAAAAAAAEIA/VK2-vHAHeM8/s1600/DSCN8683.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZMJC5ttv91E/TmfHGJaUCZI/AAAAAAAAEIA/VK2-vHAHeM8/s400/DSCN8683.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5649703165979003282" /></a><br /><br />I have a photo of Logan at the same age in the same outfit sitting on the same stump. Unfortunately, I don't have a digital version to share. :(<br /><br />We managed to get the stove lit and had some oatmeal for breakfast and I had a decent headache going on. We needed more water. It was kind of hard, having just our water bottles and having to hike to and from the lake to get it. We couldn't carry a whole lot back to camp, and I knew I hadn't been drinking nearly enough. This would come back to bite me later in a big way.<br /><br />We went to the beach, and it was soooo windy, it was sandblasting us. The kids were crying. The algae was all mixed up. Hubby had to go way out to get some water in the bag and filtering it was a real chore with the sand blowing around so hard. We got some, and I drank a whole 32 ounce bottle to try to help my dehydration headache. Wasn't enough, though.<br /><br />To the west, some really threatening clouds were blowing up really fast. The combination of another storm coming, the wind making the beach no fun, the wonky stove, the bee stings and the prospect of spending the whole day in the tent with cranky kids made us hurry back to camp, pack up and head for the hills. It was thundering over our heads for the hike back to the car, and toward the end, the lightning started, too. Just as we got to the road, it started raining. The kids and I parked on a log and Hubby ran ahead to get the car. Quite a feat with the huge pack he was wearing!!!<br /><br />We headed to Traverse City and spent the next few days at the Grand Beach and Sugar Beach resort hotels.<br /><br />The "fun" didn't end when we got there. My headache escalated, as I'd feared it would, into one of my infamous dehydration migraines. It's the only time I get migraines, and it's brutal. I can not handle light, the pain is amazing and I know at some point I'm going to vomit. It's the process. I chug a bunch of water with some ibuprofen, lay down for a few, the go throw up violently until I think my eyeballs are going to explode, drink some more water and lay down, and then it magically goes away. It's the exact same scenario every time. It's happened about four times in my life, almost always on vacation, when I forget to drink enough. Hubby was great and took the boys to the pool while I barfed my brains out, and after a while, I felt fine and went to join them. I was SO GRATEFUL that it hadn't happened in the backcountry. That would have been really bad.<br /><br />Also, the boys were still being stinkers. Jordan even shattered a hotel lamp. An accident, but still...<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xTSjMIJlHUo/Tmi7HHkF36I/AAAAAAAAEIo/Pb-4FTpkdig/s1600/DSCN8868.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xTSjMIJlHUo/Tmi7HHkF36I/AAAAAAAAEIo/Pb-4FTpkdig/s400/DSCN8868.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5649971463500193698" /></a><br /><br />But whatever, you can't win them all. We still did a few fun things on the trip. I'll probably blog about them at some point. For now, there you go. Even people who really love backpacking with kids like we do can have a bad trip sometimes.Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-32460106217412237832011-08-30T14:10:00.012-04:002011-08-30T15:05:29.227-04:00Andy: Monarch caterpillar to butterflyThis is the third year in a row that we've raised a monarch butterfly from a caterpillar, and I still can't get enough of watching it happen.
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<br />Between late July and mid-August, we start checking out clumps of milkweed, looking for a monarch caterpillar.
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<br />They look like this. Logan named him Andy.
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<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-31b4C5BhkQ8/Tl0yT7EeVwI/AAAAAAAAEGI/ltwwrRBAPDE/s1600/DSCN7859.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-31b4C5BhkQ8/Tl0yT7EeVwI/AAAAAAAAEGI/ltwwrRBAPDE/s400/DSCN7859.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646724825647830786" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-c5L7jopDqOE/Tl0yTf6NSlI/AAAAAAAAEGA/HVq1a532Lx4/s1600/DSCN7853.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-c5L7jopDqOE/Tl0yTf6NSlI/AAAAAAAAEGA/HVq1a532Lx4/s400/DSCN7853.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646724818357013074" /></a>
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<br />Then, we put him in our bug observation box, and once or twice a day, we empty out the poop (they eat and poop a lot) and put fresh-picked milkweed leaves in there for him to munch on.
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<br />After a few days the caterpillar will make a chrysalis. Last year I stayed up super late one night because I happened to catch the transition from caterpillar to chrysalis. It was really weird and wild to watch! For some reason I don't seem to have any photos of it. All I can think of is that we were getting ready to move. I don't have a lot of photos from this time last year.
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<br />Anyway, they'll climb up to the top of wherever they are and kind of attach themselves and hang upside down, making a sort of J shape.
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Y3KZJ0qM9QE/Tl0yUi0ZlxI/AAAAAAAAEGQ/MzR1k5wQe-g/s1600/DSCN7919.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Y3KZJ0qM9QE/Tl0yUi0ZlxI/AAAAAAAAEGQ/MzR1k5wQe-g/s400/DSCN7919.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646724836317828882" /></a>
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<br />After maybe a day, (this is the wild part I got to see last year) their skin splits and they whip about until the skin falls off in a little black blob and they look like a green wormy thing and then they harden into a bright green chrysalis with yellow spots on it.
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<br />Here's Andy after he made his chrysalis.
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gluGM9lzaWM/Tl0yU-XlehI/AAAAAAAAEGY/oddJF2cOHM4/s1600/DSCN7920.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gluGM9lzaWM/Tl0yU-XlehI/AAAAAAAAEGY/oddJF2cOHM4/s400/DSCN7920.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646724843713165842" /></a>
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<br />Then, yesterday, his chrysalis started being a little more transparent, so I figured he'd hatch today.
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RrklRpVW9q4/Tl0ySrpFsoI/AAAAAAAAEF4/7kVw-UIav9I/s1600/DSCN8380.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RrklRpVW9q4/Tl0ySrpFsoI/AAAAAAAAEF4/7kVw-UIav9I/s400/DSCN8380.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646724804326568578" /></a>
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<br />This morning, I found that you could clearly see the colors of his wings through the chrysalis, so I knew he was coming out soon.
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_g5jZ5P-q7E/Tl0pa3fLJnI/AAAAAAAAEEA/1tM7R6lJCfg/s1600/DSCN8395.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_g5jZ5P-q7E/Tl0pa3fLJnI/AAAAAAAAEEA/1tM7R6lJCfg/s400/DSCN8395.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646715049340511858" /></a>
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<br />We had some errands to run, but I didn't want to miss the emergence, so we waited. And waited. And waited some more. Finally, I decided Andy was just going to have to come along with us, so I packed up the bug box and we headed out to the car. Right before I touched the door handle I heard a small cracking sound and looked to find Andy was being born.
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2_XAKXnj_g8/Tl0pbCH-KlI/AAAAAAAAEEI/HQt_RHahVGI/s1600/DSCN8399.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2_XAKXnj_g8/Tl0pbCH-KlI/AAAAAAAAEEI/HQt_RHahVGI/s400/DSCN8399.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646715052195981906" /></a>
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<br />It's an interesting process to watch. When they come out, their wings are very small and kind of crumply and their bodies are big and fat. I haven't looked it up but I assume the fluid in their body gets kind of pumped out into the wings to help them expand.
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-i88Gf8ALt8k/Tl0pb3ikshI/AAAAAAAAEEQ/MYN0GgO-Iys/s1600/DSCN8401.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-i88Gf8ALt8k/Tl0pb3ikshI/AAAAAAAAEEQ/MYN0GgO-Iys/s400/DSCN8401.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646715066534638098" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-d9pQURCdNOc/Tl0pcd8Kv8I/AAAAAAAAEEY/GlNhpQnYjJU/s1600/DSCN8403.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-d9pQURCdNOc/Tl0pcd8Kv8I/AAAAAAAAEEY/GlNhpQnYjJU/s400/DSCN8403.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646715076842536898" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IJkz9bmt9qs/Tl0pcsdPSfI/AAAAAAAAEEg/Qmu_nQ-gsM8/s1600/DSCN8409.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IJkz9bmt9qs/Tl0pcsdPSfI/AAAAAAAAEEg/Qmu_nQ-gsM8/s400/DSCN8409.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646715080739342834" /></a>
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<br />Then, the butterfly kind of just has to hang around for a while and let his wings dry. I figured it would be good to put him on the beautiful butterfly bush my mother-in-law got me for my birthday.
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-O3UvGqb6W40/Tl0t6hmRrQI/AAAAAAAAEEo/fGsqgWKL_oI/s1600/DSCN8420.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-O3UvGqb6W40/Tl0t6hmRrQI/AAAAAAAAEEo/fGsqgWKL_oI/s400/DSCN8420.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646719991267044610" /></a>
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<br />So, he hung around and his wings plumped and I took a hundred thousand photos. I don't much like the macro option on my camera (times like this I really miss that little ole Pentax Optio M40 that I dropped in the sand) and got far more blurry photos thanks to that and the fact that there is a breeze today that was making the bush wave a little. I still managed to get some pretty shots, though.
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3_iEu0qGA7s/Tl0wZ_z3BqI/AAAAAAAAEFo/AHlVJbDedfM/s1600/DSCN8474.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3_iEu0qGA7s/Tl0wZ_z3BqI/AAAAAAAAEFo/AHlVJbDedfM/s400/DSCN8474.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646722730976282274" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dB_4VXORMZo/Tl0wZGgC5BI/AAAAAAAAEFg/8KTQRr4lFZ4/s1600/DSCN8466.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dB_4VXORMZo/Tl0wZGgC5BI/AAAAAAAAEFg/8KTQRr4lFZ4/s400/DSCN8466.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646722715592352786" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eFL_bYSHF50/Tl0wYWTAYAI/AAAAAAAAEFY/AAwWVjrcW0g/s1600/DSCN8459.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eFL_bYSHF50/Tl0wYWTAYAI/AAAAAAAAEFY/AAwWVjrcW0g/s400/DSCN8459.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646722702652760066" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NCPxURLhs30/Tl0wX0wOulI/AAAAAAAAEFQ/2aATyoyA3F0/s1600/DSCN8456.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NCPxURLhs30/Tl0wX0wOulI/AAAAAAAAEFQ/2aATyoyA3F0/s400/DSCN8456.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646722693648530002" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-F8Mf2krJncM/Tl0t8xbPCZI/AAAAAAAAEFI/0ZLSzkbifDY/s1600/DSCN8454.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-F8Mf2krJncM/Tl0t8xbPCZI/AAAAAAAAEFI/0ZLSzkbifDY/s400/DSCN8454.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646720029875440018" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uw9wa7w4KKg/Tl0t8FMU_sI/AAAAAAAAEFA/I18G3b98qYs/s1600/DSCN8442.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uw9wa7w4KKg/Tl0t8FMU_sI/AAAAAAAAEFA/I18G3b98qYs/s400/DSCN8442.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646720018001755842" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AByI4Pj3z3Q/Tl0t7rin4AI/AAAAAAAAEE4/5z5W_5i_LR0/s1600/DSCN8441.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AByI4Pj3z3Q/Tl0t7rin4AI/AAAAAAAAEE4/5z5W_5i_LR0/s400/DSCN8441.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646720011115945986" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-z3sWT2e7sT0/Tl0t7J5gTaI/AAAAAAAAEEw/E6hu6NY5arU/s1600/DSCN8421.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-z3sWT2e7sT0/Tl0t7J5gTaI/AAAAAAAAEEw/E6hu6NY5arU/s400/DSCN8421.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646720002085113250" /></a>
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<br />Then we bid Andy adieu and left for town. A couple hours later, we came home and he was still on the same spot on the bush. As I stepped out of the car, he opened his wings and took off in flight for the first time, landing high up in the neighbor's spruce tree. I had to use my zoom and my hands were shaking so I couldn't get a great shot of him up there.
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lugz91DC98Y/Tl0wao31IhI/AAAAAAAAEFw/ZqOEf0lht44/s1600/DSCN8507.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lugz91DC98Y/Tl0wao31IhI/AAAAAAAAEFw/ZqOEf0lht44/s400/DSCN8507.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646722741998789138" /></a>
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<br />Anyway, that's Andy's journey from free caterpillar to captive caterpillar to captive butterfly to free butterfly. Have fun in Mexico, Andy! Stay away from the tequila!
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<br />Tomorrow, we get to watch his little sister Sandy emerge!Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-87456122662903533562011-08-30T10:58:00.000-04:002011-08-30T10:58:13.376-04:00The CCC in MichiganAs residents, campers, hikers, nature lovers and travelers in and around the wonderful state of Michigan, my family has visited many a site that was touched in some way by the Civilian Conservation Corps, or CCC.
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<br />However, although I have seen signs indicating the CCC had been there and had done <em>something,</em> I was never sure what that was.
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<br />A little over a month ago, I saw that a man named Bill Jamerson was going to be coming to the local library to do a musical presentation about the CCC. I wanted to attend, but we were out of town at the time, so I missed it. I contacted Jamerson and he sent me a copy of his Dollar-A-Day Boys CD so the boys and I could hear some of his tunes.
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qeEYE4COWOs/TlzybqTSz6I/AAAAAAAAED4/8gDQsBSxtEo/s1600/dollar-a-day-boys.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qeEYE4COWOs/TlzybqTSz6I/AAAAAAAAED4/8gDQsBSxtEo/s400/dollar-a-day-boys.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646654589841362850" /></a>
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<br />The songs were interesting. Each told a story, and I wanted to learn more, so I checked his book, Big Shoulders, out of the library.
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<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dU5MKXsvd30/Tlzya2DPfRI/AAAAAAAAEDo/yr4BXI2ycYI/s1600/bigshoulders.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dU5MKXsvd30/Tlzya2DPfRI/AAAAAAAAEDo/yr4BXI2ycYI/s400/bigshoulders.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646654575815392530" /></a>
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<br />Well, I LOVED it. It told of a fictional character, Nick Radzinski, who went from getting into trouble on the streets of Hamtramck during the Great Depression to becoming a hard-working man at a CCC camp in the Upper Peninsula. The story, with the exception of a rather exciting fictional ending tale, was based on the real-life CCC experiences of a friend of Mr. Jamerson.
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<br />It was one of those books that made me sad when I finished it, because I wanted it to keep going on. It put a real, likable face on a piece of Michigan history that many have forgotten, or never learned about.
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<br />According to Wikipedia, "The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a public work relief program that operated from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men from relief families, ages 18–25.
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<br />A part of the New Deal of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, it provided unskilled manual labor jobs related to the conservation and development of natural resources in rural lands owned by federal, state and local governments.
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<br />The CCC was designed to provide employment for young men in relief families who had difficulty finding jobs during the Great Depression while at the same time implementing a general natural resource conservation program...
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<br />During the time of the CCC, volunteers planted nearly 3 billion trees to help reforest America, constructed more than 800 parks nationwide and upgraded most state parks, updated forest fire fighting methods, and built a network of service buildings and public roadways in remote areas...
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<br />Despite its popular support, the CCC was never a permanent agency. It depended on emergency and temporary Congressional legislation for its existence. By 1942, with the war industries booming and the draft in operation, need declined and Congress voted to close the program."
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<br />Reading Big Shoulders and listening to the songs (my boys especially love "It's Tough to be a Rookie" and "Fire Fightin' Tree Plantin' Blues.") made me want to learn a little more about the CCC, so last week, when Jordan and I drove up to Grayling to meet up with my parents and pick Logan up after his stay with Grandma and Grandpa, we decided to stop off at the CCC Museum near Higgins Lake.
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Wzqyy-Wjeio/Tlzx5gMlEKI/AAAAAAAAEDg/6vsK469_Hgk/s1600/DSCN8192.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Wzqyy-Wjeio/Tlzx5gMlEKI/AAAAAAAAEDg/6vsK469_Hgk/s400/DSCN8192.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646654003013292194" /></a>
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<br />It turned out to be a fun, educational pit stop. My boys and I learned a little more about the CCC and this particular historic site.
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uRdRwmcmnYM/TlzuM7KNrqI/AAAAAAAAEDI/eM2qrdRfb3s/s1600/DSCN8185.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uRdRwmcmnYM/TlzuM7KNrqI/AAAAAAAAEDI/eM2qrdRfb3s/s400/DSCN8185.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646649938622131874" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IsRuOk5-U84/TlzsxSiz1cI/AAAAAAAAECo/-c0MuYY8XPA/s1600/DSCN8171.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IsRuOk5-U84/TlzsxSiz1cI/AAAAAAAAECo/-c0MuYY8XPA/s400/DSCN8171.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646648364351346114" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GKPBmeDghpI/Tlzsw68P-LI/AAAAAAAAECg/lZ30xpHuogs/s1600/DSCN8170.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GKPBmeDghpI/Tlzsw68P-LI/AAAAAAAAECg/lZ30xpHuogs/s400/DSCN8170.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646648358015596722" /></a>
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<br />Here is a sample of what a standard CCC barracks looked like
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-w7fRUvRnRWw/TlzuLUTQGcI/AAAAAAAAECw/6Y8Vc0K1qzk/s1600/DSCN8172.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-w7fRUvRnRWw/TlzuLUTQGcI/AAAAAAAAECw/6Y8Vc0K1qzk/s400/DSCN8172.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646649911011187138" /></a>
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<br />The packing house (couldn't go in this one)
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wDzZew8pdLw/Tlzpbb7XnlI/AAAAAAAAECA/_cWCXMIdq8g/s1600/DSCN8166.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wDzZew8pdLw/Tlzpbb7XnlI/AAAAAAAAECA/_cWCXMIdq8g/s400/DSCN8166.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646644690378268242" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nw_8A5peSkg/Tlzpal7Tf8I/AAAAAAAAEB4/ccXokFpTJco/s1600/DSCN8165.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nw_8A5peSkg/Tlzpal7Tf8I/AAAAAAAAEB4/ccXokFpTJco/s400/DSCN8165.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646644675882483650" /></a>
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<br />The boys loved checking out the fire tower, even though they couldn't climb all the way up.
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<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MdUjfcaeSqM/TlzpZEYmIAI/AAAAAAAAEBg/GYvN6Mfyi0k/s1600/DSCN8158.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MdUjfcaeSqM/TlzpZEYmIAI/AAAAAAAAEBg/GYvN6Mfyi0k/s400/DSCN8158.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646644649698664450" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-f4CcuEG1fsk/TlzpaLT0djI/AAAAAAAAEBw/mo6Htx4xqr0/s1600/DSCN8160.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-f4CcuEG1fsk/TlzpaLT0djI/AAAAAAAAEBw/mo6Htx4xqr0/s400/DSCN8160.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646644668737549874" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-L1rUJNRpE3Q/TlzpZkQjH7I/AAAAAAAAEBo/TzXIpZrh0T8/s1600/DSCN8162.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-L1rUJNRpE3Q/TlzpZkQjH7I/AAAAAAAAEBo/TzXIpZrh0T8/s400/DSCN8162.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646644658254847922" /></a>
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<br />They thought the ice house was cool too (no pun intended!)
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-00grHOOpIVs/TlzsvvoDPHI/AAAAAAAAECI/CoENwihLu9g/s1600/DSCN8167.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-00grHOOpIVs/TlzsvvoDPHI/AAAAAAAAECI/CoENwihLu9g/s400/DSCN8167.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646648337798216818" /></a>
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<br />You can see Jordan looking at the example of the sawdust insulation. Logan thought it was neat that they cut the ice out of the lake and packed it in sawdust, and it stayed frozen all summer!
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-F4YfPDXntoY/Tlzsv1OhQAI/AAAAAAAAECQ/KYMBRa_xys4/s1600/DSCN8168.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-F4YfPDXntoY/Tlzsv1OhQAI/AAAAAAAAECQ/KYMBRa_xys4/s400/DSCN8168.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646648339301744642" /></a>
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<br />They also both liked the Cone Barn, where seeds were taken from the pine cones for planting. They had fun checking out the various machinery, like the pine cone tumbler.
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ayQc7DSKzBI/Tlzswaw3-YI/AAAAAAAAECY/_6YLm90mp4A/s1600/DSCN8169.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ayQc7DSKzBI/Tlzswaw3-YI/AAAAAAAAECY/_6YLm90mp4A/s400/DSCN8169.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646648349377952130" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uSX_hq6FwtY/Tlzx5FYgcuI/AAAAAAAAEDY/RtEs5l2VlME/s1600/DSCN8189.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uSX_hq6FwtY/Tlzx5FYgcuI/AAAAAAAAEDY/RtEs5l2VlME/s400/DSCN8189.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646653995815564002" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sy7InjQB_GE/TlzuNREYpiI/AAAAAAAAEDQ/10CK7WyokqA/s1600/DSCN8190.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sy7InjQB_GE/TlzuNREYpiI/AAAAAAAAEDQ/10CK7WyokqA/s400/DSCN8190.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646649944503264802" /></a>
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<br />And they liked the statue of the CCC boy.
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0KxzqfNUzVo/TlzuLqSHb2I/AAAAAAAAEC4/xkDg5kO8BQk/s1600/DSCN8179.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0KxzqfNUzVo/TlzuLqSHb2I/AAAAAAAAEC4/xkDg5kO8BQk/s400/DSCN8179.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646649916912004962" /></a>
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<br />Jordan was afraid to stand up on the pedestal.
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EtAwfEUnOBs/TlzuMaNiqSI/AAAAAAAAEDA/hp0jrtbpGAo/s1600/DSCN8180.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EtAwfEUnOBs/TlzuMaNiqSI/AAAAAAAAEDA/hp0jrtbpGAo/s400/DSCN8180.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646649929777719586" /></a>
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<br />Mr. Jamerson also made a PBS documentary film about the CCC called Camp Forgotten. I haven't seen it yet, but sure want to.
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dVbHTBWa0E0/TlzybPqwMEI/AAAAAAAAEDw/Rag8UXoLQW4/s1600/documenteries.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dVbHTBWa0E0/TlzybPqwMEI/AAAAAAAAEDw/Rag8UXoLQW4/s400/documenteries.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646654582691999810" /></a>
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<br />You can find out more about the CCC on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civilian_Conservation_Corps"><u>Wikipedia</u></a>.
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<br /><a href="http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,4570,7-153-54463_18595_18602-54448--,00.html"><u>Here</u></a> is some info about the CCC Museum in northern lower Michigan.
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<br /><a href="http://billjamerson.com/"><u>And here</u></a> is where you can find out more about Mr. Jamerson and purchase his book, CD and DVD.
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<br />I want to thank Bill, not only for inspiring me to learn more about the Civilian Conservation Corps, but also for his years of research and his work in sharing this fascinating slice of American and Michigan history with schoolchildren and other eager learners across the state.Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-16605186021157141282011-08-29T09:06:00.008-04:002011-08-29T09:40:32.346-04:00Toddler bed time!!!Way back at the end of March, I was <a href="http://musingsfrommomschool.blogspot.com/2011/03/great-toddler-bed-debate.html"><u>debating whether it was time to move Jordan to a toddler bed</u></a>.
<br />
<br />I decided that since he wasn't climbing out of his crib, it would be a good idea to keep him confined for as long as possible, especially since I have <a href="http://musingsfrommomschool.blogspot.com/2011/06/cheap-peace-of-mind.html"><u>an escape artist</u></a> on my hands.
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<br />Well, last week, Jordan finally decided to start climbing out of his crib... or at least trying to.
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<br />The first time was at nap time, and he got stuck on the rail. He was halfway in and halfway out and couldn't seem to figure out how to get back in OR the rest of the way out.
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BhgrYPcWhv4/TluQlnDWJBI/AAAAAAAAEBY/CgyJ7IvOLa4/s1600/DSCN8055.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BhgrYPcWhv4/TluQlnDWJBI/AAAAAAAAEBY/CgyJ7IvOLa4/s400/DSCN8055.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646265533651624978" /></a>
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<br />Looks pretty uncomfortable, no?
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<br />Then, that night, he did it again. I was awakened by Jordan hysterically screaming "get out! get out! get out!" I ran to his room and found him perched like a little bird on the side rail. He was holding on with his hands and feet and just couldn't figure out what to do next. It was the middle of the night, so no photo!
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<br />I did something I swore I wouldn't do... I brought him to our bed where he happily slumbered for the rest of the night.
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-E2ibn2qFxAc/TluQj_3SBlI/AAAAAAAAEA4/94irYLAFVFI/s1600/DSCN8142.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-E2ibn2qFxAc/TluQj_3SBlI/AAAAAAAAEA4/94irYLAFVFI/s400/DSCN8142.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646265505952171602" /></a>
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<br />Isn't he precious? I didn't get any sleep though, because he's not only a bed hog... he somehow sprouts about a hundred extra feet for kicking when he sleeps. Ugh.
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<br />So, that night, Hubby put together the little toddler bed. Isn't it sweet?
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nHx9PgWTgsw/TluQkUAJ_gI/AAAAAAAAEBA/m209eF0vq9U/s1600/DSCN8193.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nHx9PgWTgsw/TluQkUAJ_gI/AAAAAAAAEBA/m209eF0vq9U/s400/DSCN8193.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646265511358103042" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8DtSsxrQEDY/TluQkv0Ob4I/AAAAAAAAEBI/ALPJk-XsHOU/s1600/DSCN8194.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8DtSsxrQEDY/TluQkv0Ob4I/AAAAAAAAEBI/ALPJk-XsHOU/s400/DSCN8194.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646265518824255362" /></a>
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<br />We put Buppy (the puppy Pillow Pet) and Ees Hose (the musical seahorse) and his froggy quilt and afghan on his bed to make him happy, and then it was bed time.
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<br />To prevent escape, I put a baby gate across his doorway. It thwarted him for all of two seconds.
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<br />That first night, he escaped a couple times, and then I parked myself outside his door. It took probably 20 minutes for him to decide to get in his bed and stay there, but there he stayed, all night long.
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<br />The next couple nights, he went right down at bedtime. No escaping. Slept all night.
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<br />Even though I know he can easily scale the baby gate, I'm leaving it there for now, if just to mildly discourage middle-of-the-night house roaming. I've also been very careful to lock the doors and turn on the burglar alarms at night!
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<br />The toddler bed seems to be a success thus far but for one thing... naps.
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<br />Yes, you guessed it. The arrival of the big-boy bed has also been the arrival of nap-free days. He just won't stay there to nap.
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<br />He still needs to nap and goodness knows I still need him to nap, but this just might be the end of that.
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<br />I am still going to keep trying. Maybe once Logan's in school next week and there's no distraction? We'll see. At least he's been sleeping solid 12-hour nights!
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wbcNm1SFv2Q/TluQlCTGKSI/AAAAAAAAEBQ/FWjlcuWRDE4/s1600/DSCN8196.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wbcNm1SFv2Q/TluQlCTGKSI/AAAAAAAAEBQ/FWjlcuWRDE4/s400/DSCN8196.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646265523785574690" /></a>Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-71527955907422655712011-08-25T07:32:00.002-04:002011-08-25T07:51:27.871-04:00I hate cancerHate is a strong word.
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<br />I've been dealing with that issue lately, as my six-year-old has taken to screaming "I hate you so much" at his little brother when they're fighting over something. And now, the little one has taken to yelling "hate you so much" at ANYONE anytime they do something he doesn't like. It was fabulous when he said that to my neighbor the other day, for no reason. I was so embarrassed.
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<br />So, I have to figure out a way to teach my kids that they shouldn't say hate to other people, because it's an ugly word.
<br />
<br />But I hate cancer.
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<br />Hate it.
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<br />Cancer haunts me.
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<br />Every single day I think about it. I feel like I'm just waiting for my sentence. My dad had it twice when I was younger and my mom is still having treatments against the ovarian cancer she was diagnosed with last year. It was a crappy year for her. (She's doing well now, in case you're wondering. Full recovery expected. And she has normal-looking hair again. AND she can eat food again. AND she can keep up with her grandsons, which is saying a LOT.)
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<br />So anyway, with my family history and all the scary statistics out there about 1 in 4 people getting breast cancer or skin cancer or whatever cancer, I feel like I'm in a waiting game. I feel fairly certain I will be one of those people. It doesn't help that both times I've gone for a skin check at the dermatologist, I've had a mole hacked off. It also didn't help that when I was pregnant with Logan, I developed a fast-growing suspicious fibroadenoma that I had to have cut out of my boob. (It ended up being non-cancerous, but tell that to someone who's wide awake on an operating table with a six-month-pregnant belly sticking up, who then has to wait a week to hear the results of the biopsy. Friggin' scary.)
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<br />So yeah, age 35, three biopsies under my belt. All good outcomes, but every single time, I wonder, is this the one?
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<br />But what can you do?
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<br />Well, I SHOULD use more sunblock. I'm bad about that.
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<br />But I DO maintain an active lifestyle and while I eat a few too many treats (I'm working on it) I do try to include lots of healthy produce and whole grains in my diet.
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<br />Just in the past week or so, two sources of cancer-fighting diet information came across my radar, so I thought I'd share with you, my beloved readers.
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<br />The first is <a href="http://www.womenshealthmag.com/health/decrease-cancer-risk?cm_mmc=Facebook-_-WomensHealth-_-Content-Health-_-DecreaseCancerRisk"><u>this article from Women's Health Magazine</u></a> which includes some decent tips.
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<br />The rundown:
<br />eat less fat, don't remove the yolk from your egg, eat cabbage, eat spinach and other leafy greens, eat blackberries, eat lowfat dairy products, eat salmon and other Omega 3-rich fish, eat whole grains, drink hot green tea, get your vitamin D, use lemon and orange zest and eat lots of colorful fruits and veggies.
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<br />The other is a great blog called <a href="http://fightcancerwithfood.wordpress.com/"><u>Fight Cancer With Food</u></a>. It's written by a girl who lost her mom to cancer, and now she's doing what she can to help others prevent it through healthy eating. The tagline on her blog is "One simple girl, sticking her finger up at cancer."
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<br />That's how I feel.
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<br />Anyway, she's got some great info on her page. Look at "My anti-cancer plan" at the top of her blog. She's done a lot of research on the topic. It seems pretty sound (though I'm not so sure about soy.)
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<br />So, yeah, check out this information and use it to help yourself if you want. I plan to try to make better choices.
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<br />I don't want that phone call.Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-1806759143364701552011-08-24T07:20:00.000-04:002011-08-24T07:20:41.366-04:00Piloxing reviewOn Monday, my gym will be starting its annual week-and-a-half-long maintenance shutdown, so I'll be forced to either take my workouts outside or turn to my limited workout video collection.
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<br />While I love running, I simply can't do it every day. The wear and tear on my body is too much. But I don't have that many DVDs to do at home that are all that great, either.
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<br />However, I recently got the chance to review a DVD that I found to be fun AND a good workout: Piloxing.
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<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YWZdbO5Zows/Te9w9uRRS9I/AAAAAAAADqM/9He_vKg25Pw/s1600/piloxing.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YWZdbO5Zows/Te9w9uRRS9I/AAAAAAAADqM/9He_vKg25Pw/s400/piloxing.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5615831466049096658" /></a>
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<br />So what is Piloxing? Well, it's a mix of Pilates and boxing, but it's more than that. There was ballet-style stuff mixed in there, too, like barre-type plies and other leg work. Let me tell you, I took ballet classes and this stuff is great for elongating and strengthening your leg muscles and feet!
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<br />The motto on the Piloxing DVD is Sleek-Sexy-Powerful, and each of those are worked into the DVD.
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<br />Some of my workout DVDs feature instructors that are SO ANNOYING. Chalean anyone? I love the TurboJam workouts but that chick makes me bonkers. I've heard the same about Jillian Michaels, but I can tolerate her. Anyway, I thik Viveca Jensen is kind of fun. It seems like it would be a good time to take a live class from her.
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<br />So, yeah, the workout is geared toward women. And yeah, the box has pink on it. But don't be fooled... it's not a sissy workout. It's an hour long, and alternates between Pilates and boxing exercises, with some dance thrown in for fun. It changes up often enough to keep you from getting bored---something that's hard to do for an hour-long DVD, I think! I tend to start checking the clock around 20 minutes when I do DVDs at home! Well, Piloxing kept me interested.
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<br />Some of the exercises--particularly the Pilates ones--were quite challenging, I thought. Perhaps it's because I've never done a lot of Pilates before. The one Viveca calls "serve the platter" comes to mind. It's a leg move, done balancing on one leg. Let me tell you, that stabilizing leg and foot is screaming by the time you're done with that one!
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<br />For me, the workout targeted my legs much more than upper body, HOWEVER, I should add that they did not send me the weighted gloves to try for this review, so that could make a big difference.
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-f0EjE2HKCZo/TlTdu1XmDTI/AAAAAAAAEAw/bZZzGurs0Yc/s1600/piloxing_gloves.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-f0EjE2HKCZo/TlTdu1XmDTI/AAAAAAAAEAw/bZZzGurs0Yc/s400/piloxing_gloves.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5644380029671836978" /></a>
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<br />So, anyway, I enjoyed the DVD, found it challenging and will definitely keep it in my workout rotation, especially during the gym shutdown and when Hubby travels for work and I'm unable to go to the gym.
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<br />To learn more or to order your own Piloxing workout or gear, visit <a href="http://piloxing.com/"><u>the official website.</u></a>
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<br />Disclosure: I was sent the Piloxing DVD at no charge for the purposes of this review.Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-5193472850426137102011-08-22T07:44:00.012-04:002011-08-22T08:31:40.492-04:00Crossroads Village & Huckleberry RailroadI love history. Especially local history. My boys love trains. I also love doing things together as a family with my husband and sons. My boys and I love reading, too. So, it was absolutely perfect for us that the Lapeer District Library rewarded my boys (and any other kids who participated) with a free pass to <a href="http://www.geneseecountyparks.org/CRVDefault.asp"><u>Crossroads Village & Huckleberry Railroad</u></a> upon completion of the summer reading program.
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<br />We do the reading program every year. For many kids, it's a good way to keep them reading during the summer months. My kids would already be reading, but this gives them the chance to earn prizes for it. It's merely a bonus.
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<br />This year, the prizes were great. The kids had to read 10 books on their own or have 30 read to them, and they had to check in at the library four times (different weeks) during the program. My kids read their required books in the first week or two, but they didn't stop reading. I even participated in the adult program, and while I didn't win any of the prizes, I still got to read some great books. It was nice to have "quiet reading time" with the boys every day.
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<br />After they were done, the kids each got a cool yellow T-shirt, they got to choose a free book, a free ice cream cone at Dairy Queen and a free pass to go to <a href="http://www.geneseecountyparks.org/CRVDefault.asp"><u>Crossroads Village & Huckleberry Railroad</u></a> on Aug. 13. Quite the haul for doing something they enjoy!!!
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<br />Aug. 13 dawned with some rain, but we waited it out and went after the storms passed, and we ended up with great weather for our visit.
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LCLcJ5Z2zCI/TlJH3WkZY6I/AAAAAAAAEAo/VPaz6Z_wKhI/s1600/DSCN7721-sepia.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LCLcJ5Z2zCI/TlJH3WkZY6I/AAAAAAAAEAo/VPaz6Z_wKhI/s400/DSCN7721-sepia.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643652299325268898" /></a>
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<br />Crossroads Village is a collection of historic buildings salvaged from the area and collected into, well, a village. There is an old school house, a train depot, homes, a blacksmith shop, a barber shop, a gristmill, a cider mill, a barn, a chapel and much more. Each building is full of historical artifacts and there are people playing the roles of, say, the homeowners. You can go into the Buzzell House and the women will tell you about life "way back when." Out back, in the yard, there is an actual garden with vegetables growing as if someone was really living there. There are farm animals in a pasture near the barn. The blacksmith works in his shop, showing visitors how it's done. At the sawmill, from time to time they'll start up the old machinery and saw some logs into boards.
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<br />There are working hand pumps the kids can try out.
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Jd40lvQTb0I/TlJH2FbDZRI/AAAAAAAAEAQ/Ss61YOdYTag/s1600/DSCN7709-sepia.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 270px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Jd40lvQTb0I/TlJH2FbDZRI/AAAAAAAAEAQ/Ss61YOdYTag/s400/DSCN7709-sepia.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643652277542806802" /></a>
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<br />At the school house, there are swings.
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hgoW6omA6Rw/TlJH1_D6BoI/AAAAAAAAEAI/No1CoMsxsnc/s1600/DSCN7707-sepia.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hgoW6omA6Rw/TlJH1_D6BoI/AAAAAAAAEAI/No1CoMsxsnc/s400/DSCN7707-sepia.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643652275835111042" /></a>
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<br />In an old barn, they had a broom shop, and Logan got to try out a handmade broom. He wanted to come home and make one of his own! Hmmm... This could be a good thing!
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-blkzOJZtnc8/TlJH2r7BzBI/AAAAAAAAEAY/btjW4VJ3XYk/s1600/DSCN7711-sepia.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-blkzOJZtnc8/TlJH2r7BzBI/AAAAAAAAEAY/btjW4VJ3XYk/s400/DSCN7711-sepia.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643652287877467154" /></a>
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<br />There is a building with an elaborate setup of model trains. Hubby had to hold Jordan up to see it, and he didn't want to leave that building!
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mr9v0xEzdY4/TlJH24cfeHI/AAAAAAAAEAg/x6uqEVADYyA/s1600/DSCN7719-sepia.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 308px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mr9v0xEzdY4/TlJH24cfeHI/AAAAAAAAEAg/x6uqEVADYyA/s400/DSCN7719-sepia.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643652291239049330" /></a>
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<br />There are gift shops where you can find fun things like old-fashioned toys. The boys each got a wooden flute to play. They were only $1.99, not a bad deal for a working musical toy! The kids love playing tunes on them!
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Xyd17SpMT9w/TlJEtgS3o6I/AAAAAAAAEAA/5_YwyJrRWB4/s1600/DSCN7699-sepia.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 268px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Xyd17SpMT9w/TlJEtgS3o6I/AAAAAAAAEAA/5_YwyJrRWB4/s400/DSCN7699-sepia.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643648831602533282" /></a>
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<br />Anyway, It's just a fun place to explore and learn about how things used to be.
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<br />Of course, for the boys, the highlight of the adventure is the Huckleberry Railroad train ride.
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<br />We've been on the train ride a number of times. Every year, we go for the <a href="http://www.geneseecountyparks.org/pages/Halloween"><u>Halloween event</u></a> and the kids get to trick-or-treat through the village, play in a big strawbale maze and ride the "ghost train." It is SO much fun!
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<br />They also have <a href="http://www.geneseecountyparks.org/pages/Christmas"><u>special events for Christmas</u></a> though we've never gone for that.
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<br />Back to the train...
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<br />We have never before had the opportunity to ride in the caboose, but this time we got lucky. It was great!
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-XjfspTLcG6w/TlJC3y-uypI/AAAAAAAAD_A/UU2EACUJYL8/s1600/DSCN7641-sepia.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-XjfspTLcG6w/TlJC3y-uypI/AAAAAAAAD_A/UU2EACUJYL8/s400/DSCN7641-sepia.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643646809393777298" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WfHiOubZicc/TlJC3mstn3I/AAAAAAAAD-4/4MxUB0yjMJs/s1600/DSCN7639-sepia.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WfHiOubZicc/TlJC3mstn3I/AAAAAAAAD-4/4MxUB0yjMJs/s400/DSCN7639-sepia.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643646806096977778" /></a>
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<br />Cabooses are Jordan's (and my) favorite part of a train. They're just so neat! So, we climbed aboard and had a seat for the 40-minute train ride.
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IxFBEa_fMQ4/TlJC4j_DBFI/AAAAAAAAD_Q/mV_otKbkRrM/s1600/DSCN7670-sepia.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 327px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IxFBEa_fMQ4/TlJC4j_DBFI/AAAAAAAAD_Q/mV_otKbkRrM/s400/DSCN7670-sepia.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643646822548440146" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dPAGg6HV1xM/TlJC4KpnanI/AAAAAAAAD_I/HqHrtqclOu8/s1600/DSCN7650-sepia.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dPAGg6HV1xM/TlJC4KpnanI/AAAAAAAAD_I/HqHrtqclOu8/s400/DSCN7650-sepia.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643646815747664498" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-57NZrPEwHrc/TlJEsZgfpLI/AAAAAAAAD_g/KVQ3Es-5BxU/s1600/DSCN7677-sepia.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-57NZrPEwHrc/TlJEsZgfpLI/AAAAAAAAD_g/KVQ3Es-5BxU/s400/DSCN7677-sepia.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643648812600763570" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zAnkryCya0U/TlJC4zzqCyI/AAAAAAAAD_Y/45w7a2Cmr90/s1600/DSCN7671-sepia.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zAnkryCya0U/TlJC4zzqCyI/AAAAAAAAD_Y/45w7a2Cmr90/s400/DSCN7671-sepia.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643646826795633442" /></a>
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<br />I discovered the conductor also rides in the caboose, and after the trip, Logan and Jordan each got a chance to sit in the conductor's seat. They thought it was pretty cool.
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<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BH2R_v0AZ10/TlJEtF7YdlI/AAAAAAAAD_w/wuXKNCo_lIQ/s1600/DSCN7690-sepia.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 305px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BH2R_v0AZ10/TlJEtF7YdlI/AAAAAAAAD_w/wuXKNCo_lIQ/s400/DSCN7690-sepia.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643648824524699218" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CUb71zVBIZ4/TlJEssrygUI/AAAAAAAAD_o/BzGyBJzViOA/s1600/DSCN7687-sepia.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CUb71zVBIZ4/TlJEssrygUI/AAAAAAAAD_o/BzGyBJzViOA/s400/DSCN7687-sepia.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643648817748410690" /></a>
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<br />They also got to climb up to the top seats for a peek out the high windows.
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MECH6S0GRSQ/TlJEtdu6n-I/AAAAAAAAD_4/8HjrGf_U2hE/s1600/DSCN7697-sepia.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MECH6S0GRSQ/TlJEtdu6n-I/AAAAAAAAD_4/8HjrGf_U2hE/s400/DSCN7697-sepia.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643648830914863074" /></a>
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<br />The train trip wasn't included in the free pass, but I think it was worth the money for how much the kids enjoyed it. The trip goes through the woods, along Mott Lake, and across a couple regular roads, which the kids found exciting. Little fact: The name Huckleberry Railroad came about because the train went slow enough that people could jump off, fill a hat with the huckleberries that grew wild along the tracks, and jump back on the train to enjoy their snack.
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<br />We visit <a href="http://www.geneseecountyparks.org/CRVDefault.asp"><u>Crossroads Village & Huckleberry Railroad</u></a> a couple times a year. I love that there is a place like this within about a half hour of our house. It's a special outing for history lovers, train lovers and families. I remember visitng there on field trips as a schoolkid, too.
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<br />I'm sure we'll continue to visit Crossroads as the boys grow. Perhaps we'll visit for Christmas this year. I hear the lights are pretty spectacular!Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-33652068750999514272011-08-17T09:00:00.008-04:002011-08-17T09:33:27.191-04:00She's got legs...One of my favorite online friends, Tina, blogs often about loving yourself, just as you are. She is a big proponent of recognizing and being proud of your own strengths, both physically and mentally.
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<br />(Check out her blog, <a href="http://www.faithfitnessfun.com/"><u>Faith, Fitness, Fun</u></a>!)
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<br />Anyway, I have trouble with that. I am just not that great about lifting myself up, but I'm pretty fantastic at cutting myself down. At least, in my head. That dumb little voice is always criticizing.
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<br />Lately, I've been pretty mean to my legs.
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<br />I have been beating them up, first through the Warrior Dash, where I not only got them all muddy, but I also got some nice rope burns.
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uGZD9Ev-BMA/Tku_l3rb_eI/AAAAAAAAD-w/lZ8NuIx0img/s1600/warriordash%2521%2521%2521.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uGZD9Ev-BMA/Tku_l3rb_eI/AAAAAAAAD-w/lZ8NuIx0img/s400/warriordash%2521%2521%2521.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641813615533882850" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VP4oKSv81Fo/Tku_lo2HS5I/AAAAAAAAD-o/4fJpC9lIviM/s1600/DSCN7043.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VP4oKSv81Fo/Tku_lo2HS5I/AAAAAAAAD-o/4fJpC9lIviM/s400/DSCN7043.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641813611552131986" /></a>
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<br />Then on a four-day hiking trip.
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<br />And then with a muddy swamp walk through lots of black raspberry brambles. (Note to self. Dig that thorn out of knee before it gets infected)
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-A1ICMpCRwDU/Tku_lbrspzI/AAAAAAAAD-g/VIjRnInx05o/s1600/DSCN7773.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-A1ICMpCRwDU/Tku_lbrspzI/AAAAAAAAD-g/VIjRnInx05o/s400/DSCN7773.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641813608018782002" /></a>
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<br />And after all that fun, I look in the mirror and cringe at my "stumpy tree trunk legs."
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<br />The other night, I was out talking to a neighbor I don't know very well. I've only spoken to her a few times. We chatted about the walk I had taken in the woods with my family and she looked down and said "You have nice legs!"
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<br />I was taken aback. It was such an odd, out-of-the-blue comment. I stammered an "awww, well thank you."
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<br />Later, I had to admit to myself that the compliment was nice to receive.
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<br />So I've been trying. Over the past few days, I've been trying to be nicer to my legs.
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<br />OK, I COULD shave them more often. And use lotion. That would probably be a good way to show my appreciation.
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<br />But I've just started trying not to hate on them so much.
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<br />I am only 5'4" tall, so I'm never going to have those lanky model legs. I have what I've been given.
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<br />Yes, they're kinda short. Yes, they're kinda stumpy. But I've got STRONG legs and they do a lot for me. They let me have tons of fun when I run, hike, ride bikes with my kids, etc. They carried me down the aisle to marry my husband nearly 10 years ago. They take me where I want to go every day.
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<br />I am lucky to have them. Some people don't have strong, working legs.
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<br />I do.
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<br />Therefore... LEGS, I LOVE YOU!
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<br />Totally cheeseball post. but whatever. I'm showing myself some love today.
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<br />Shameless photo I took of them while reading under the oak tree yesterday with Logan. From this angle, not so bad!
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<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p3ynvGpuY3Y/Tku_lHs_j_I/AAAAAAAAD-Y/qyoL3Dcc9RM/s1600/DSCN7880.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p3ynvGpuY3Y/Tku_lHs_j_I/AAAAAAAAD-Y/qyoL3Dcc9RM/s400/DSCN7880.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641813602655506418" /></a>Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-40797441167179956012011-08-16T09:25:00.009-04:002011-08-16T10:35:20.599-04:00North Manitou Island hiking dateI realized I never wrote much about my recent hiking date with my Hubby.
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<br />Well, we just... hiked. It was really hot and humid, and we did a lot of bushwhacking and a lot of sweating and some swimming in Lake Michigan to "get clean" and cool off. It was a really nice time, though. We needed some "us" time pretty badly. Thanks to my mom for watching the boys for us.
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<br />Here are a few photos. Just a random glimpse into the 4 days, 3 nights we were there.
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<br />This is not a random shot of woods. THIS, my friends, is what my husband calls a trail. It WAS a trail... in the 40s. If you look closely, you can see him up ahead, through the trees. He loves to seek out old, overgrown trails out there. We've found some pretty neat stuff doing that.
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<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-63tYLBWQy-k/TkpzVpaymHI/AAAAAAAAD7g/GmnkxCoWPp8/s1600/DSCN7060.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-63tYLBWQy-k/TkpzVpaymHI/AAAAAAAAD7g/GmnkxCoWPp8/s400/DSCN7060.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641448298967636082" /></a>
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<br />Some neat old trucks from the logging days, left to rust in peace in the woods near the Stormer camp
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-81iZNsCoDMk/TkpzW8RadBI/AAAAAAAAD7w/5WdlrUHfgTI/s1600/DSCN7083.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-81iZNsCoDMk/TkpzW8RadBI/AAAAAAAAD7w/5WdlrUHfgTI/s400/DSCN7083.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641448321208448018" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HPpJ_v355e0/TkpzWaeq6EI/AAAAAAAAD7o/1gBRVimxfsc/s1600/DSCN7079.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HPpJ_v355e0/TkpzWaeq6EI/AAAAAAAAD7o/1gBRVimxfsc/s400/DSCN7079.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641448312137246786" /></a>
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<br />Beautiful Lake Michigan views abound while hiking on the island, from up on the cliff to down on the beach
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<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E9pMDiWuUpU/TkpzXgyWDwI/AAAAAAAAD8A/cNgiL8l80fw/s1600/DSCN7101.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E9pMDiWuUpU/TkpzXgyWDwI/AAAAAAAAD8A/cNgiL8l80fw/s400/DSCN7101.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641448331010248450" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Kt22zKBaEqo/TkpzXbvZUVI/AAAAAAAAD74/wnR5fGN6Ul8/s1600/DSCN7096.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Kt22zKBaEqo/TkpzXbvZUVI/AAAAAAAAD74/wnR5fGN6Ul8/s400/DSCN7096.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641448329655701842" /></a>
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<br />The sunsets on the west wide are nothing short of spectacular
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--V8YkVrFJ5U/Tkp2b1uy51I/AAAAAAAAD8Q/KM3FIxjHdgI/s1600/DSCN7155.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--V8YkVrFJ5U/Tkp2b1uy51I/AAAAAAAAD8Q/KM3FIxjHdgI/s400/DSCN7155.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641451703886866258" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IjzzlM8jCA4/Tkp2baxd5TI/AAAAAAAAD8I/U57lWv9R3VQ/s1600/DSCN7146.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IjzzlM8jCA4/Tkp2baxd5TI/AAAAAAAAD8I/U57lWv9R3VQ/s400/DSCN7146.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641451696650315058" /></a>
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<br />Lake Manitou, a little inland lake on the island
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4fO93_0Z_VQ/Tkp2cvaYUYI/AAAAAAAAD8Y/6hWbjj1WTwY/s1600/DSCN7199.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4fO93_0Z_VQ/Tkp2cvaYUYI/AAAAAAAAD8Y/6hWbjj1WTwY/s400/DSCN7199.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641451719370494338" /></a>
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<br />The ruins left behind where the Carlsons once had a place
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Rg1uHcJQJcQ/Tkp2fQHOIaI/AAAAAAAAD8g/SJT1ftaqPUM/s1600/DSCN7208.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Rg1uHcJQJcQ/Tkp2fQHOIaI/AAAAAAAAD8g/SJT1ftaqPUM/s400/DSCN7208.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641451762508243362" /></a>
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<br />This is the same Carlson family line that still has a fish shop in Leland's Fishtown
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-EIzRFepm4DQ/Tkp7JLE_ppI/AAAAAAAAD9w/ncT93nQMgfY/s1600/DSCN7048.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-EIzRFepm4DQ/Tkp7JLE_ppI/AAAAAAAAD9w/ncT93nQMgfY/s400/DSCN7048.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641456880757745298" /></a>
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<br />I don't think I've ever been to North Manitou and NOT seen a Petoskey stone
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-u39lznqONjM/Tkp2f26i3uI/AAAAAAAAD8o/CEL-syYjf84/s1600/DSCN7223.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-u39lznqONjM/Tkp2f26i3uI/AAAAAAAAD8o/CEL-syYjf84/s400/DSCN7223.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641451772924059362" /></a>
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<br />I always find a lot of different-colored beach glass too
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VZg3VVFSYQA/Tkp4eF1ysqI/AAAAAAAAD84/EJhWW5v33W0/s1600/DSCN7269.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VZg3VVFSYQA/Tkp4eF1ysqI/AAAAAAAAD84/EJhWW5v33W0/s400/DSCN7269.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641453941594174114" /></a>
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<br />This awesome lake view is from a super sacred secret spot on the west side beach
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RwFis9pX_UI/Tkp4d-7j87I/AAAAAAAAD8w/K5yogBQoHRo/s1600/DSCN7228.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RwFis9pX_UI/Tkp4d-7j87I/AAAAAAAAD8w/K5yogBQoHRo/s400/DSCN7228.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641453939739325362" /></a>
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<br />We always end the last day of hiking by climbing to a high point on the island and hiking through the treetops along what we call the Manitou Escarpment. This is the site of an old survey marker from the 1800s.
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mbo3Q32_o-w/Tkp4fWo8mpI/AAAAAAAAD9I/A5dYRM8KhRs/s1600/DSCN7304.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mbo3Q32_o-w/Tkp4fWo8mpI/AAAAAAAAD9I/A5dYRM8KhRs/s400/DSCN7304.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641453963283569298" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bI_Vf9G2Qr4/Tkp4e573BdI/AAAAAAAAD9A/CQyHNQ-tP-Q/s1600/DSCN7297.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bI_Vf9G2Qr4/Tkp4e573BdI/AAAAAAAAD9A/CQyHNQ-tP-Q/s400/DSCN7297.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641453955578267090" /></a>
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<br />There are a lot of abandoned houses falling to ruins in the village area of the island. People used to live here. Not anymore.
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<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UQevlQWzjpo/Tkp7HjoSoII/AAAAAAAAD9Y/RvD0gL2FN-I/s1600/DSCN7333.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UQevlQWzjpo/Tkp7HjoSoII/AAAAAAAAD9Y/RvD0gL2FN-I/s400/DSCN7333.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641456852988502146" /></a>
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<br />A neat shot looking in through the window of one of the old houses.
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qcWvHW9C3oY/Tkp4f8CAmjI/AAAAAAAAD9Q/_y6CV56zlFs/s1600/DSCN7326.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qcWvHW9C3oY/Tkp4f8CAmjI/AAAAAAAAD9Q/_y6CV56zlFs/s400/DSCN7326.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641453973320800818" /></a>
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<br />Seagull frenzy on the beach near the ranger station
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-r4-KIydqoVw/Tkp7IEqfSLI/AAAAAAAAD9g/j1gwzdajYRI/s1600/DSCN7337.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-r4-KIydqoVw/Tkp7IEqfSLI/AAAAAAAAD9g/j1gwzdajYRI/s400/DSCN7337.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641456861856090290" /></a>
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<br />We had rough seas going back to the mainland, and shared the boat with a bunch of campers from a camp called Tamarack. I have never seen so many seasick people in my life. Hubby and I were inside the boat, but we vacated our seats when a pukefest began. We opted to head out to the bow, where we found more seasick kids sprawled everywhere, moaning and looking green. Not exactly a pleasant way to end the hiking trip. We couldn't wait to get off the boat. The funny thing is, it wasn't THAT bad! We've come back from Manitou on MUCH worse swells. I think their seasickness, for the most part, was "contagious" and mainly mental.
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rLe04wBl9Po/Tkp7Is7BdaI/AAAAAAAAD9o/2v8yeHRsu8Y/s1600/DSCN7367.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rLe04wBl9Po/Tkp7Is7BdaI/AAAAAAAAD9o/2v8yeHRsu8Y/s400/DSCN7367.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641456872662857122" /></a>
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<br />Anyway, that's that. A nice date with my Hubby followed by a little hotel stay with our kiddies at the Ramada in Grayling. That hotel is getting kind of run down, which is sad, because they have a great one-foot kiddie pool and an indoor playground in addition to a deep pool, hot tub, and games. It seems to get a little worse every time we go, which is too bad.
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zxaaCZeFviQ/Tkp-G2EEEQI/AAAAAAAAD-Q/_1kx0_A8SFo/s1600/DSCN7414.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zxaaCZeFviQ/Tkp-G2EEEQI/AAAAAAAAD-Q/_1kx0_A8SFo/s400/DSCN7414.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641460139291840770" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gRAykn7g0go/Tkp-GJgfSqI/AAAAAAAAD-I/aaTxzXuEnc0/s1600/DSCN7398.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gRAykn7g0go/Tkp-GJgfSqI/AAAAAAAAD-I/aaTxzXuEnc0/s400/DSCN7398.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641460127331469986" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-e-DGHrBTfjg/Tkp-FkP7U_I/AAAAAAAAD-A/QFbyiQlsfKo/s1600/DSCN7390.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-e-DGHrBTfjg/Tkp-FkP7U_I/AAAAAAAAD-A/QFbyiQlsfKo/s400/DSCN7390.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641460117329892338" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-j7cpNVpgJNE/Tkp7Jndjp4I/AAAAAAAAD94/Q0myCyy2bu8/s1600/DSCN7383.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-j7cpNVpgJNE/Tkp7Jndjp4I/AAAAAAAAD94/Q0myCyy2bu8/s400/DSCN7383.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641456888376960898" /></a>
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<br />Oh well! We still managed to have fun!Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-37556044639774810182011-08-15T07:54:00.008-04:002011-08-15T08:48:37.289-04:00Out backOn a rainy Sunday afternoon, when you've got an hour to wait before the lasagna is done, what do you do to spend the time?
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<br />If you're the Johns family, you throw on your hiking boots (or old tennies) and head out back for a woods-and-swamp hike!
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<br />Our subdivision has 80 acres of land around it to form kind of a barrier so no one else can develop right on top of us. It's pretty cool. The 14 homeowners here all chip in to pay the property taxes for that land, and it's considered common property. From what I can tell, almost no one that lives here goes back there. That's a shame, because there are some neat woods and a little lake. The guy across the road and his son do go back to the lake, and he recently told me there's some good fishing (bass and pike) back there. We haven't fished yet, but we have been back to check out the lake and spent some time back there sliding on the ice with the kids this past winter.
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<br />This was at the lake late last fall.
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3wRklevtwjs/TkkTm98dPQI/AAAAAAAAD7Q/JqU1QLa3tuE/s1600/DSCN2260.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3wRklevtwjs/TkkTm98dPQI/AAAAAAAAD7Q/JqU1QLa3tuE/s400/DSCN2260.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641061568442350850" /></a>
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<br />Anyway, even though it was rainy yesterday, we decided to take a walk in the woods. We had originally planned to go to the lake to see how swampy the approach was, but we ended up running out of time, since dinner was in the oven.
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<br />We started out behind our house with the intention of seeing if we could blaze a new trail between our house and the one three doors down, where Logan's buddy Clayton lives. The boys love to play in the woods, but it's so thick back there, we're afraid of them getting lost. We managed to beat down some sort of a trail, but I'm going to go back there with the loppers and snip off some of the black raspberry briars. I'm also going to mark the trail with that colored tape stuff, so the boys don't get misled, because there are a lot of game trails back there, and they just lead right into the swamp.
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<br />After we beat our way down to Clayton's house, we cut into the woods where this crabby neighbor guy (not from the sub) has a nasty old permanent campsite set up. It's surrounded by all these blue tarps and it's visible from our neighborhood and from the main road. I hear it's been a bit of an argument over past years. He's got "NO TRESPASSING" signs up all over and the camp looks like someone set up and then just disappeared. There is a tent, hammock, sleeping bags, cookware, silverware, beer bottles and more all just lying around back there. I'm pretty sure the guy leaves it there now just to spite us. I also hear he once caught some neighborhood kids back there and marched them home and had words with the parents because they were trespassing. We've repeatedly warned Logan not to go back there.
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<br />But yesterday? We cut through. Hopefully he doesn't read my blog.
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-G9HryZQ2pJY/TkkM8n1lndI/AAAAAAAAD5I/XSl1UfjpP30/s1600/DSCN7749.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-G9HryZQ2pJY/TkkM8n1lndI/AAAAAAAAD5I/XSl1UfjpP30/s400/DSCN7749.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641054243883687378" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Q3C2Ub1D2ag/TkkM8Lrs-FI/AAAAAAAAD5A/KY2Vcl6LYBQ/s1600/DSCN7747.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Q3C2Ub1D2ag/TkkM8Lrs-FI/AAAAAAAAD5A/KY2Vcl6LYBQ/s400/DSCN7747.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641054236326033490" /></a>
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<br />And we saw that the guy had even fashioned himself a toilet in the woods. How utterly charming.
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-X_5DTaTb4ak/TkkM9KV3VXI/AAAAAAAAD5Q/saSRWNYE_zM/s1600/DSCN7750.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-X_5DTaTb4ak/TkkM9KV3VXI/AAAAAAAAD5Q/saSRWNYE_zM/s400/DSCN7750.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641054253145871730" /></a>
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<br />We came to the trail that divides his property from ours, and we followed it. There, we found ourselves distracted by these beauties.
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NeTNazGkL-o/TkkM-PHnkjI/AAAAAAAAD5g/WBCxCgBx11M/s1600/DSCN7752.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NeTNazGkL-o/TkkM-PHnkjI/AAAAAAAAD5g/WBCxCgBx11M/s400/DSCN7752.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641054271608164914" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0vlBzoMTntk/TkkM9lc5RpI/AAAAAAAAD5Y/4rcWQLQQJbc/s1600/DSCN7753.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0vlBzoMTntk/TkkM9lc5RpI/AAAAAAAAD5Y/4rcWQLQQJbc/s400/DSCN7753.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641054260423116434" /></a>
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<br />After we had our appetizer, we kept going and crossed where the power lines come through. It had been all grown up with bushes but someone came through and cut it down earlier in the year, so now it's all berry briars and wildflowers.
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZxJOAe5IDl8/TkkPOhTOkpI/AAAAAAAAD5o/uMX5dUFFetA/s1600/DSCN7754.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZxJOAe5IDl8/TkkPOhTOkpI/AAAAAAAAD5o/uMX5dUFFetA/s400/DSCN7754.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641056750389858962" /></a>
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<br />We entered the pretty woods out toward the lake and found the hollow tree we discovered last fall.
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Xi-wSeTOwUM/TkkPP9ZlLxI/AAAAAAAAD54/eRvC5gqeKSA/s1600/DSCN7761.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Xi-wSeTOwUM/TkkPP9ZlLxI/AAAAAAAAD54/eRvC5gqeKSA/s400/DSCN7761.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641056775112568594" /></a>
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<br />It was empty yesterday.
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RJria_IP2bk/TkkPPGeu25I/AAAAAAAAD5w/Sa2jtxPNRDI/s1600/DSCN7759.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RJria_IP2bk/TkkPPGeu25I/AAAAAAAAD5w/Sa2jtxPNRDI/s400/DSCN7759.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641056760370224018" /></a>
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<br />But in the fall there was a raccoon sleeping there when we found it. He wasn't that happy about me sticking my camera in the hole and taking his photo.
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tFeImFfcj9w/TkkTmUA26dI/AAAAAAAAD7I/cYIA7dV3_sQ/s1600/DSCN2350.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tFeImFfcj9w/TkkTmUA26dI/AAAAAAAAD7I/cYIA7dV3_sQ/s400/DSCN2350.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641061557186521554" /></a>
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<br />Then we followed some game trails
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xFaXLEJEnAE/TkkPQZkmLbI/AAAAAAAAD6A/bgAf9r2OdaM/s1600/DSCN7762.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xFaXLEJEnAE/TkkPQZkmLbI/AAAAAAAAD6A/bgAf9r2OdaM/s400/DSCN7762.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641056782674963890" /></a>
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<br />through the swampiness to the spot on the creek bank where all the deer apparently come to drink. Logan was charmed by this mucky little spot. He said he wanted to camp here. I bet he'll revisit this spot over the years, as he gets bigger and is allowed to explore the woods on his own.
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-R-QH2IH7lVQ/TkkQlqfedqI/AAAAAAAAD6Q/ZlvHpaCmd48/s1600/DSCN7767.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-R-QH2IH7lVQ/TkkQlqfedqI/AAAAAAAAD6Q/ZlvHpaCmd48/s400/DSCN7767.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641058247505770146" /></a>
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<br />After the creek, we just played in the woods for a few. Logan walked on logs and climbed on trees and stuff.
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xnMRHmanqDE/TkkPQ0TTU4I/AAAAAAAAD6I/z2zi7X8yyHw/s1600/DSCN7765.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xnMRHmanqDE/TkkPQ0TTU4I/AAAAAAAAD6I/z2zi7X8yyHw/s400/DSCN7765.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641056789850182530" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xEvmjj4Yk1U/TkkQn5kMrhI/AAAAAAAAD6w/3SD9BctZE3U/s1600/DSCN7775.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xEvmjj4Yk1U/TkkQn5kMrhI/AAAAAAAAD6w/3SD9BctZE3U/s400/DSCN7775.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641058285911846418" /></a>
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<br />Jordan decided he'd had enough of being carried in the pack on Daddy's back.
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AFSp-8iQceM/TkkQmCWOVzI/AAAAAAAAD6Y/Do1tGp83ZBI/s1600/DSCN7770.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AFSp-8iQceM/TkkQmCWOVzI/AAAAAAAAD6Y/Do1tGp83ZBI/s400/DSCN7770.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641058253909415730" /></a>
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<br />So he freed himself from the straps. He wanted me to carry him. I'd have made him walk but silly Mama didn't put shoes on him before we left home, so I ended up carrying him after all.
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-q-IAlWB_nSI/TkkTkQ_ulRI/AAAAAAAAD64/tcAmqq-XpyE/s1600/DSCN7779.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-q-IAlWB_nSI/TkkTkQ_ulRI/AAAAAAAAD64/tcAmqq-XpyE/s400/DSCN7779.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641061522016736530" /></a>
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<br />Then we went home for some nice hot homemade lasagna. It was delicious!
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<br />Oh, and we brought home lots of mud, seed cling-ons and mosquito bites.
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<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iMsUhaml8Rk/TkkQnR3thtI/AAAAAAAAD6o/EkG7p-pCqTo/s1600/DSCN7773.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iMsUhaml8Rk/TkkQnR3thtI/AAAAAAAAD6o/EkG7p-pCqTo/s400/DSCN7773.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641058275256272594" /></a>
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<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--jHa1C-cjYQ/TkkTmLanCMI/AAAAAAAAD7A/6XSl8nBkKzA/s1600/DSCN7781.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--jHa1C-cjYQ/TkkTmLanCMI/AAAAAAAAD7A/6XSl8nBkKzA/s400/DSCN7781.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641061554878613698" /></a>
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<br />All in all, it was a good afternoon hike! I just love going out and getting dirty with my men!Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6847258519094363449.post-46563190565349946242011-08-12T16:07:00.005-04:002011-08-12T17:39:03.129-04:00BissellWhen we moved back in September, we moved into a house with very light beige carpeting. It's practically white. It looks great, but I immediately knew living in this house with two little boys was going to take its toll on the carpeting. The carpeting is in the living room and master bedroom. The kitchen, dining area and library are hardwood. I decided we were NOT going to be having any drinks or snacks in the living room. (And when I say WE I mean the kids. Hubby and I might have a little snack or a drink out there after the kids go to bed.)
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<br />A few months after we moved in, Jordan snuck out there with a cup of chocolate (whole) milk and managed to dump the whole thing on the carpet and my equally light beige glider rocker and glider footstool. Perhaps the cup exploded. I wasn't looking.
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<br />Anyway, that incident led to us calling a professional carpet cleaner. It had to be done, and we'd not had the carpets cleaned when we moved in anyway, so it was time.
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<br />After the carpet and chair were cleaned, I realized I was going to have to get SOMETHING to clean up little messes, so I did a little research and bought a Bissell Little Green for spots that come up.
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<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cly9ksV11jw/TkWXaf-zMJI/AAAAAAAAD4w/8VR6ISn0tAg/s1600/DSCN7633.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cly9ksV11jw/TkWXaf-zMJI/AAAAAAAAD4w/8VR6ISn0tAg/s400/DSCN7633.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640080589868707986" /></a>
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<br />It has served me well. I've had to bring it out a number of times, like when Jordan un-diapered himself and peed on Hubby's recliner, or when he took off into the living room after covering himself with yogurt, and then dove hands-and-face-first onto the couch. It's easy and fast. You just plug it in, turn it on and push a button to spray out some cleaning liquid on the offensive spot, then suck it back out with the hose/brush thingy. Voila. I don't think we've had a spot that hasn't come out, including pizza sauce. I think the key is catching them right away. Plus, I'm sure if I dumped a nice glass of Pinot Noir on the carpet, the Bissell might not be able to tackle it. I'm not about to try.
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<br />Around that time, I also bought a Bissell Natural Sweep, which is one of those sweepers that you don't plug in. You know, they use 'em in restaurants to get the crumbs. I wanted one so I could do daily maintenance vacuuming in the living room when Jordan is napping, since our Hoover is pretty loud.
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<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MYXgLAU8IEM/TkWXaj0j-1I/AAAAAAAAD44/3u7OZOJtxLc/s1600/DSCN7632.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MYXgLAU8IEM/TkWXaj0j-1I/AAAAAAAAD44/3u7OZOJtxLc/s400/DSCN7632.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640080590899510098" /></a>
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<br />However, the second time I used the Natural Sweep, I took it outside to empty the dirt trap and it broke on me! It was totally useless, but I'd already thrown out the box and receipt. I figured I was out of luck, and the thing has been sitting in my closet ever since. That was last fall!
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<br />Well, I came across the Natural Sweep the other day and on a whim, I contacted Bissell Customer Service online and told them about it. Almost instantly, I was pow-wowwing with a lady who was asking questions about which part broke. I e-mailed her a photo and she stuck a brand new sweeper in the mail for me that day. I had it just a couple days later.
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<br />Why didn't I just ask earlier?
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<br />Also, why aren't ALL customer service matters resolved this easily and completely? (Eh, AT&T? DirectTV? Bueller? Bueller? Bueller?)
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<br />And that's why I wrote this post. Bissell doesn't know I'm doing it. They didn't pay me or give me free stuff (except for the free replacement they gave me for the broken sweeper). They just did it because apparently that's the way they treat their customers, and for that, they get this. A post telling you that I use Bissell stuff to clean up my boys' messes, that I LIKE the things I've purchased from them, that they have EXCELLENT customer service and that I am highly likely to be a repeat customer.
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<br />So there ya go. Krystalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15341112847255454593noreply@blogger.com0