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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.
Abbotts 77th Magic Get Together 2014
With VIP camp ending the same week as Magic Week, James has not been able to spend as much time at Magic Week in Colon as he has in the past, but we still make sure he gets out there for at least one day of fun and magic. James had a blast looking at magic in the dealers room, seeing magic in the street, and seeing magic shows inside. This year was special as it celebrated the 80th birthday of the Abbott Magic Shop in addition to the 77th Magic Get Together. During this event, the small town of Colon doubles in size and becomes the Magic Capital of the World with everything from Vegas quality magic shows to a graveyard tour where many professional magicians are buried.
Next year the dates are August 5-8 if you want to add a little magic to your summer.
US 12 Garage Sale 2014
Imagine a garage sale that goes from Detroit to Chicago and you have the U.S. 12 annual garage sale.
This year everyone in the family did good as Mom found a birdhouse she liked, James found a box of National Geographic magazines, and Dad found two zombies for Halloween.
Our tour usually starts in Saline at the farmhouse where you can visit all sorts of booths and still see chickens on the farm. A true throwback and done in a very organized manner. Our garage saling takes us into Clinton, then to the Irish Hills, then to the Michigan Speedway, then to Jonesville (where dad found the zombies), then to Quincy (which is also the antique capital of Michigan), to Coldwater on U.S. 12 and 69, and finally to Colon where we visited garage sales as well as took advantage of all the wonderful things the magic capital has available for us.
VIP Camp Party 2014
The 2014 VIP camp came to an end with a party where all the family was invited. Mom and Dad joined James for the luncheon which included games and all sorts of fun.
The festivities began on the indoor field where the kids (and adults) participated in several games, races, and activities while the lunch was being prepared.
The lunch was alot of food, no other way to explain it. Everyone had plenty to eat and after the lunch the adults challenged the kids to a competitive game of “pass the ball”.
At the end of the party, James said his goodbye’s but fortunately he should meet up with most of the kids either through the fund raising parties, the winter skating activities, and (of course) his own Halloween party.
Blimp Chase of 2014
While watching a Tiger game on TV, James and Dad noticed the blimp floating around Comerica park and James decided he wanted to go “Down Town” and see it in person.
Hopping in a car, we headed down to Comerica Park and navigated so that the car was almost directly under the blimp. It was actually a Direct TV blimp, not Good Year, but regardless we followed the blimp till it made its way down 94 and across the river into international waters.
