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Trick or Treat 2014
Trick or Treat finally arrived for a very anxious James who only had a half a day of school this day and by the time 6pm came he was ready to go.
James went down Tulane to Dartmouth, then Vassar to Annapolis and back before making his first candy deposit. He then went down Tulane to Annapolis and back for his second deposit, and finally Parker and into Dearborn for his third.
For the third year in a row the weather did not cooperate and we could not put up the inflatables. Always a bummer until Trick or Treat ends then you are glad you don’t have to mess with them at 9pm.
James did a cute pumpkin that was angry birds on one side and pig king on the other. A great day despite the weather (and yes, there were a few white flakes).
Halloween at Greenfield Village 2014
After a thrilling Lion victory in England, we decided to celebrate by going to Greenfield Village and enjoying another beautiful autumn day. For the second straight day the temperatures were in the mid sixties and it was bright and sunny.
Greenfield Village was lined with pumpkins and various Halloween decorations, perhaps the best example of this was the band stand and a graveyard by the Church. There were plenty of witch items and even a creepy woods for visitors to enjoy as they passed through various creepy things. James played a bit in the new playground and enjoyed visiting the lake with all the ducks. He also met one of his teachers from Hoover Elementary while he was at the Village, a small world indeed.
Halloween at Frankenmuth 2014
In what many expect to be the last really nice weekend of the year, we decided to visit Frankenmuth during the heart of the Halloween season and see what its like. James was able to participate in some very unique Halloween activities including pumpkin bowling (he threw a spare), exploring through a hay maze, and a pumpkin catapult. We then ate dinner at the Bavarian Inn and then explored Bronners. We finished up the day at a couple antique stores where we picked up a couple Halloween cookie jars at less than half price (which we added to our Halloween cookie jar shelf in the basement) and a Halloween blow mold of a ghost coming out of a pumpkin which we added to our Halloween display.
What a great atmosphere they have in Frankenmuth, so much to do and best of all most of the really fun stuff is free or very inexpensive. Very creative in this city, their chamber of commerce should be proud at how well all the businesses work together to put on a great show. All in all a great “summerish” day in late October.
Halloween at Manuels Taco Hut 2014
For the third year now we made it to Manuels Taco Hut for their Halloween event. I do not know how many years in a row it takes before its considered an annual event but it certainly is well on its way for this family. They have the entire restaurant decorated for Halloween in black with glow in the dark spider webs on the ceiling and ultraviolet lights everywhere. Halloween music fills the air and several of the decorations came to life and performed for us while we were there.James enjoyed the event as always and its a great way for us to get back into the Halloween spirit especially after a weekend of Halloween at James party. Located at 16806 Ecorse Road in Allen Park, Manuels Taco Hut seats 48 in a cozy dining room atmosphere that is perfect for Halloween. The place is usually packed so its best to arrive between lunch and dinner or you may experience a long wait.
James Halloween Party 2014
James held his fourth Halloween party for his friends, this time students from his new “middle” school attended as well as the elementary school. James was much more involved in this years party in everything from the planning and decorations to the beverages that were served. James had several highlights including playing UNO with his teacher and seeing both his new teachers and his past teachers. The costume of choice for the kids seemed to be Mario Brothers and Mom got several compliments on her pumpkin cake. The favorite decoration seemed to be the Exorcist although the graveyard and pumpkin bar got several compliments as well.
All in all a great day! James says next years party will be October 10th.
Please note that the video below is a multiple video playlist, to play from the beginning simply click play, to view the list and jump around click the upper left corner of the playlist with the three horizontal lines.
Lunar Eclipse 2014
The family enjoyed the lunar eclipse which was very well publicized and easy to see due to the nice clear weather in October. It was visible from North America, parts of Australia, China and Japan. Parts of South Asia, and Eastern Europe saw a partial eclipse.
Taking pictures of this was not easy as you can tell, but we tried. James also has a telescope that came in handy during this time period, but does not have the capability of allowing us to photograph the images.
All in all a very fun experience that the whole family enjoyed. Anything having to do with the moon in October has to be enjoyed by this family.
Haunted Garage Sale 2014
We have had much success the past few years picking up Halloween items at garage sales and such. Finally we made it to the ultimate garage sale, the Haunted Garage Sale held annually in Belleville Michigan on the County Fair Grounds. Mary found out about this through a friend on FaceBook and as it turns out this was the 13th annual time they had this event which really surprises me that no one in this family found out about it until this year.
Plenty of surprises and fun, the event was free to attend and I would suggest this to any Halloween enthusiast if for nothing else than to get some fresh ideas.
Bowling at Woodhaven Lanes 2014
James came out to Woodhaven for a bowling fundraiser that supports his summer VIP Camp and had a blast. In addition to the bowling, he enjoyed, pizza, pop, and cake! James got to meet many of his friends from the camp including the counselors and parents. It was only a little more than a week ago that VIP camp ended, but it was still a reunion for James. James bowled very well but did not throw a strike, however he did do a spare and finished up nicely. All in all, it was a great day that constantly looked like rain but never actually did – and we have had enough rain for one summer.
Aunt Louise Grave Marker In Place
On Saturdays we enjoy going Garage Sale shopping since its relatively inexpensive and teaches James alot about the value of money. This day, however, we decided to do our “saling” near Michigan Memorial Cemetery so we could check on the status of Aunt Louise’s marker.
It was in and in place, the temp was gone, and they also had repaired Grandpa Graf’s marker, which had began crumbling after the harsh winter (it was made in the 50’s after all).
We let Aunt Peg know and she was very happy. This all began a few months earlier when cousin Sandy visited us and put down some money for a marker for Aunt Louise. Aunt Peg then paid off the balance and six weeks later Aunt Louise has her marker. The next project for Michigan Memorial will be raising Uncle Raymonds marker. Uncle Raymond died in WW2 and his marker has sunk down about an inch, making it difficult to see in the grass.
Great Flood of 2014
James kept telling us a big storm was coming and boy was he right. After one of the most brutal winters in history no one expected to see a summer storm which would dump the most water on us in one 24 hour period in the last 100 years (1925 is the record).
The rain started late morning and continued for about 8-10 hours straight. Twice dad had to go out and clear gutters on the house during the down pour.
When it was all over, over 4000 cars were stuck in flood waters and billions of dollars in flood damage occurred. Fortunately for us, we did ok, although the water got almost up to the sidewalk on our street before subsiding. A day or two later the Governor flew over the area and declared us a disaster area. While we did ok, many of our neighbors lost much in the flood as many basements (and some houses) were under several feet of water. We hope the insurance companies do their best to help our neighbors in their time of need.
