Month: September 2010
Happy Birthday James and Peg 2010
It was truly a toy story 3 birthday celebration for James, his day began by playing his video game early while Mom and Dad secretly decorated the kitchen. Dad and James went to pick up Aunt Peg and Mom went to pick up Grandma and we met at Applebees for lunch. James and Aunt Peg went to Toys R Us where James spent all the money he got from relatives on Toy Story games including another Toy Story Wii game (thanks to all who made this possible). While James was at Toys R Us, Mom put the finishing touches on the kitchen decorations and when James came in he was greeted with a table full of toys, cards, candy and more cash. After sharing some cake with the neighbors, James played with just about everything and toward the end of the night he was so tired he could hardly keep his eyes open but kept playing till he fell asleep (His cousin Mark would be proud). We think James enjoyed this birthday more than any others because it was so diversified. Aunt Peg who also celebrated her birthday received several gifts as well including having Happy Birthday sung to her by her sister Criss.
Thanks again to all who made this possible.
James Starts Second Grade 2010
School days are here again ! James arose a few minutes before 7 AM and got ready for school. Mommy supervised as he dressed in a new pair of shoes, a new shirt, and new shorts and socks. Last year, James and Mommy watched Curious George together while waiting for the bus. This morning, he was too excited to watch.
At approximately quarter after seven, the bus pulled up and Mommy walked with him to meet the bus for the first time. James, of course, carried his new Toy Story 3 backpack. Barb is the new school bus driver. Pearl is the attendant. James and Pearl are well-acquainted since Pearl was the attendant on the bus that he rode last year. A little boy from our block will be riding the bus with James for the first time this year. Unfortunately, the child attends a different school than James.
James is once again attending Hoover Elementary in Lincoln Park. Mr. Elia will be James’ teacher for the second year in a row. As always, Dad documents James’ milestones with photographs. Share James’ excitement and nervousness by looking at Dad’s photo gallery.
Mom’s Birthday
Mary had a very interesting and different birthday. She has lost much weight and all her souvenir shirts from past Mackinaw visits no longer fit her, so while we were there we tried to replace most of them. You can see the new souvenir shirts displayed by Mary that she got for her birthday.
When her birthday actually came, James helped decorate the house with balloons (not one did he blow up). We took Mary to her favorite outlet mall in Birch Run, then took a quick trip to Bronners Christmas store in Frankenmuth. It began to rain so we headed back and Mary had one of her favorite meals of all time, barbecued ribs and chicken from the Boneyard restaurant.
Thanks to all who sent cards, gifts, and well wishes.
Bronners Visit 2010
We decided it would be a nice break to go to Bronners and start our day off from there. Moms birthday is today and we wanted her to have a good time with good eats. We also wanted to replace some of her shirts at the outlet mall which is very close to Bronners so why not Bronners on a birthday.
Everyone got something and there were lots of Christmas items that we had never seen before. We really like the new icicle lights (not sure if they are new but they are to us) where the light seems to drop down the icicle as if its melting. Mom added some bulbs to her candy tree and James picked up a couple items as well. It was such a nice day its hard to believe summer will soon be over.
St Ignace Deer Ranch 2010
On our way back from Mackinaw Island we realized that outdoor activities were really going to be curtailed due to the oncoming storms so we grabbed a quick bite to eat, hopped in the car, skipped past the high wind escort on the bridge, and got James to the deer ranch. James certainly remembered it from past years because when he went in he did not say hi to the teller but instead said “crackers please”.
The cost for going through the deer ranch is $5 per person plus carrots and crackers (we got a dollars worth which was plenty) so for a relatively low cost James had a lot of fun. About the time he finished, the first drops of rain were hitting St. Ignace so we got out of there just in time.
Mackinaw Island City 2010
One of the best main streets in all of the United States. Complete with the famouse fudge shops, haunted houses, magic shops, carriage tours, and tons of souvenir shops. James insisted on another ice cream cone so he could keep up his energy, Mom went browsing for new clothes, and Dad checked out the haunted house and magic shops on main street.
Something new we found was a Haunted Mackinaw Island Tour, which we did not go on but we put on the schedule for next year. James did very well this day and was rewarded with a couple toys, a megaphone that changes your voice (It reminded me of one his Grandpa had in Michigan), and a mouse game where you “bop” the mouse with a rubber mallet and the computer tells you how well you did.
Macinaw Island State Park 2010
Each year we travel through the State Park and always find something new along with old reliable sites (like the arch rock). This year there were several first’s. James went for the first time without a wagon so he had to do all the walking by himself. Another first was going up a stairway we found in the woods that took you to the highest elevation point on the island, the pictures really don’t do it justice.
We stopped at the little rest area which is North of the Grand Hotel as we were exiting the State Park. James always gets an ice cream and Mary has a chance to check out some of the souvenir shops there. In the center is the collection of horse drawn vehicles including the hearse (which they still use when someone dies).
The key to a successful day at Mackinaw Island is to get there early, before the crowds. This year we did very well at avoiding the crowds and the weather held off for us till we were finished. The boat ride home is when the weather made a turn for the worse but our day was already complete by then.
Mackinaw Island Cemetery 2010
There are 3 main cemeteries on Mackinaw Island and each year we visited all three since they are right next to each other. There is a Protestant cemetery, a Catholic cemetery, and a Military Cemetery. Each has its own atmosphere with burial sites dating back well over a century ago (1835 is the oldest we found). To be buried on the island you need to either have been born there or own property there.
One fascinating bit of history is the Military Post Cemetery. It is one of only 5 locations where the American flag is flown at half mast every day. The other 4 places you may have heard about, they are Arlington, Pearl Harbor, Gettysburg, and Normundy France.
A bit creepy we admit, but an annual stop on our visit to Mackinaw Island State Park.
Boat Ride to Mackinaw Island 2010
The Mackinaw bridge connects Michigans lower peninsula with its upper peninsula. Many think it goes to Mackinaw island which is not true and also would be silly since automobiles are not allowed on the island. If you want to go to Mackinaw island you have to take a boat ride over. The price for round trip varies throughout the season but can be as high as $24 per person depending on what time in the season you are visiting. However the boat rides are a blast and James thinks they are the best part of the trip. The boats are fast and they give you a great view of Mackinaw Island and the Mackinaw bridge.
Each year the boat ride is a little different and this year was no exception. High winds created waves 5-8′ high and the boat was bouncing around like a carnival ride. James loved every minute of it, especially the high water splattering on the windows of the boat.
Mackinaw City 2010
With only 2 days of rest since the Nashville trip our vacation continued with our annual visit to Mackinaw. On the way up North we stopped off and visited Aunt Criss at her work (which is about the half way point to Mackinaw). James and Aunt Criss had not seen each other in quite some time but got along great and James came away with some candy to help him on his journey North.
The weather forecast for the next few days called for rain on and off, but we were very lucky because whenever we were inside it seemed to rain, whenever we were outside the weather was fine. Mom found a bunch of good deals on t shirts (Mom no longer fit into her older Mackinaw T shirts so Dad inherited them). As usual we spent a good amount of time at the Mackinaw Crossings which is fast becoming a sort of board walk for tourist with fun houses, movie theaters, and some virtual rides along with about fifty or so souvenir and specialty shops (aka Tourist Traps).
The last night of our trip the winds were so strong they knocked out the power in the hotel and half the city, the final couple pics were taken in gale like winds.
