Campground Winter Wonderland

Bob was at the campground on Sunday, December 7, and snapped these pictures. Look at all the snow - and it's not even winter yet!

Thanksgiving 2008

Becky and Jim hosted Thanksgiving at their home again this year. We always have such a nice time getting together. Everyone made something to go along with their turkey and that gave us women more time to talk (like anything could ever prevent that, eh?) The men spent their time watching football. The Lion's had their worst loss ever this year so I'm not sure they enjoyed themselves, but their spirits picked up when we told them it was time to eat. :-)

Enjoy the pics!

BOO! Belated Halloween Post!

Our campground had a Halloween party for the kids at the end of September and it was loads of fun. People decorated their trailers and golf carts, the kids had pumpkin carving contests and won prizes for best costumes, and of course they got to go trick-or-treating. We also had a DJ dressed like an Elvis impersonator and a haunted house.

Our friends, Linda and Gary, came up from South Carolina and spent the weekend with us too. The weather cooperated and we had a wonderful visit, along with some great campfires. The guys went crazy chopping wood!

Enjoy the pictures.

Visit to Pittsburgh

Gary and I visited the kids in Pittsburgh during October. It spite of everyone's busy schedules, we managed to see all the kids and grandchildren, including Eddie, the newest member of the family. We all congregated at Kim & Keith's house for dinner (yum!), and the weather was so gorgeous we actually got to sit on their patio.

Enjoy the pics! Gary Sr. isn't in any of them because he was behind the camera. If anyone has one, forward it to me so I can add it in. Thanks.

The Great Flood of 2008

The weekend of September 13th most of southern Michigan got torrential rainfall from Hurricane Ike. Gary and I were at the campground when the rain started on Friday night and by Saturday morning low lying places were already flooding. We packed up and headed home and heard on the news the following day that we had a total of between 6-10 inches of rain. (It wasn't any better at home either.)

We learned later in the week that the chain of lakes at our campground ended up overflowing the banks and many areas were flooded. Pontoon boats and paddle boats broke loose and started floating around by themselves and several docks were completely underwater, but the damage was minimal and no one got hurt. Thank goodness.

Anyway, here's some pictures to give you some idea how soggy we were!

Gone Fishing

As you might have noticed, there haven't been any recent updates. That's because we've all had a hectic, but enjoyable summer. So what have we been doing? We've spent a lot of time at the campground fishing, quite successfully I might add. Kerry wins the "largest fish" contest though. She caught a very nice bass as you can see from the picture below. (She set him free so she can catch him again next year!)


Gary and I did a lot of fishing too. We weren't as lucky (or skillful) as Kerry, but we caught enough bluegills to have a nice fish fry. I was the lucky person who got to clean and skin them all and Gary did the cooking.

I also had one memorable fishing moment - I caught a snapping turtle. See the picture below.


That turtle was not a happy camper. He kept snapping at Gary while he tried to remove the hook embedded in his leg (I snagged him, he didn't go after my worm), and then suddenly he swung his head around, yanked the hook out and spat it on the ground! We were amazed.

Anyway, that's what we've been up to. Hope your summer has been going well too.

UPDATE: Diane wanted me to mention that we've enjoyed watching hummingbirds at the campground all summer. The picture of the little fellow below was taken right off Diane's deck while we sat their watching him.

Happy First Birthday, Grace!

Grace celebrated her first birthday yesterday! (Can you believe its been a year already?) Kerry & Dave had a pool party for her at Diane and Bob's with immediate family and a few friends. The weather threatened to spoil the party, but after a few rain showers in the morning, the rest of the day was great.

Grace took several steps for the first time earlier in the week that her mom and dad got to see and she rewarded the rest of us with a couple more during her party. We all happened to be watching her when she stood up and started walking so we burst into applause. Grace was surprised to see us clapping and then she started smiling and clapping along with us. It was such a precious moment. She is a real sweetheart.

Here's some pictures Diane took for you to enjoy.

Ribbit

I keep a watering can on the patio and a friendly toad decided to claim it as his home! Gary snapped this picture of him last night with his cell phone. He's a cute little guy, eh? I didn't have the heart to tell him about the snake that lives under our shed, but something tells me he'll find out about him soon!

Memorial Day 2008, cont.

Here's the pictures Diane took when we got together with the family over Memorial Day weekend. Enjoy!

Memorial Day 2008

Grace visited us at the campground on Memorial Day. Enjoy!

Springtime Update

Sorry for the lack of posts, but we've been busy with typical spring stuff like our getting flowerbeds and gardens ready for planting (spinach and leaf lettuce are already up), and the times we've been together with family or friends, we either didn't have our camera or forgot to take pictures. Duh!

Anyway, we're all doing well. Mom had pneumonia, but she's on the mend now. The nurse said she keeps pulling her breathing treatment mask off and complaining she doesn't like it, so that's proof she's feeling better!

Kerry & Dave took Gracie to infant swim classes for the past month and snapped a few pictures that I posted below, along with the one of her playing in the bathtub above. Enjoy!

Easter 2008

Easter was on March 23rd this year. We all got together for dinner at our usual place. Gary and I went to church with Kerry, Dave and the baby in the morning (Grace loves church and tries to talk back to the minister during his sermon!) and then we visited with Dave's grandparents for a short time before heading over to the restaurant. We had a very nice day. The weather was warm enough that we didn't have to wear coats and the sun was out most of the day. Grandma seemed to enjoy herself too and she even had a glass of wine with dinner! Enjoy the pics.

This is Spring?

Someone forgot to tell Mother Nature that spring is here!

Diane took these pictures on 03/28/08. As you can see, about 4 inches of snow fell in her area.

Gary and I were a little luckier - we got less than an inch of snow - but we've been setting records all winter. We've had 80 inches of snow so far compared to the average of 38 inches. That's the second highest snowfall on record for our area. People are hoping we get another inch so we can break the all-time record, but I say phooey! I'd rather let that record stand!

The good news is that this snow didn't last long. It all melted within a couple of days and we're now enjoying temperatures pushing 60 degrees (accompanied by typical spring weather - sunshine interspersed with rain).

The snow was actually Diane's fault. She was so convinced spring was here that she hung up her "Welcome" flag in anticipation. She jinxed us!

That's alright. Diane can make it up to us later in the summer by inviting us over for frozen margaritas!

Emma's Princess big girl room

Daddy making the change from crib to full size bed.


Emma sitting on her new Princess bed!
















The finished product with Cinderella on the bed.

Family Get Together

Gary, Beth and their boys (pooches Scout & Rookie) came to visit us last weekend and we had a get together with the family. Kerry, Dave & Grace came to visit and so did Bob & Diane. Beth made a delicious apple crisp for us since we're all watching our weight or trying to eat healthy, so we popped some candles on top and celebrated Beth & Gary's birthdays at the same time. It was a very enjoyable weekend. Wish you all could have joined us. Enjoy the pics!

Dee-troit Basketball!

The four of us (Diane, Bob, Gary & I) attended a Pistons/Charlotte game at the Palace on February 10th. We walloped those Bobcats 113 to 87! It was the first time any of us had attended a live professional basketball game and the guys nearly dozed off, but Diane and I had fun watching all the people and walking around the arena. Enjoy the pics!

Happy Birthday Grandma!

The family celebrated Grandma's 87th birthday recently at Diane & Bob's house. We had such a nice time. Grandma was particularly lucid that weekend and even teased us about blowing out the candles on her cake. (She pretended she didn't understand what to do and then suddenly - whoosh!! - she blew them out on the first try.) It was a nice memory to tuck away in our hearts.

Diane was our photographer that day and we all forgot to snap a picture of her. Sorry, Diane!

Hey, Hey, Hockeytown!

Diane, Bob, Gary & I plowed through the snow on Friday to see the Red Wings play the Colorado Avalanche at Joe Louis arena. It was the first time Diane & Bob saw the Wings play live and they brought us luck. We won: 2-zip! Of course, the Wings aren't in first place overall for nothing - they're true champions. Diane took lots of pictures. Enjoy!

Winter Snowfest in Michigan

Gary and I went to Snowfest in Frankenmuth on Saturday. Brrr...it was cold, but it was fun watching the people and checking out the goodies in the warming tents. I experienced a couple of firsts too. Did you know people can actually bowl with frozen turkeys? That just doesn't seem right, but people were lining up to throw wrapped turkeys down a snow alley! The other thing I discovered was a new drink made from butterscotch schnapps and hot cocoa topped with a dollop of whipped cream. Yum! That helped take the chill away!

Here's a few pictures we thought we'd share. First up is a snow statue:


There were lots of ice statues scattered around too. My favorite was Minnie Mouse:


Gary took 25 pictures altogether. If you're interested, click here.