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Christmas 2007
Most of the snow had been washed away with a rain, so we replaced the snowman who had melted with a Tony Stewart race car inflatable decoration which we got on Ebay at the last minute. You have to use your imagination a little bit since we now have all the Rudolph characters on the lawn with a racing car.
Lots and lots of presents waiting for James this day, thanks to all the relatives who helped make this day possible. I don’t think James didn’t like anything, he even liked the toothbrush Mom and Dad got him.
So we did have a semi white Christmas after all, just not as white as I remember them as a kid.
Bronners on Christmas Eve Eve 2007
We try to get to Bronners at least once a year, usually when we are coming back from a trip to Mackinaw or around Christmas time. Bronners is the largest Christmas store in the world and Frankenmuth is well known for its hospitality as a resort town. A trip to Frankenmuth during the Christmas season is well worth while and you will be shocked by all the decorations and how well lit up the city is.
Frankenmuth also has one of the last covered wooden bridges in Michigan that you can either walk through or drive a car through (if you ever saw the movie Beetlejuice it looks sort of like that, only longer).
A White Christmas In 2007
This year we were hoping for a white Christmas and it looked like we were going to get a really white Christmas. We got hammered with snow on December 17th, my birthday no less. James had to help shovel the snow because there was so much, and afterward we put together a snowman from a kit his Aunt Peg had gotten him a while bit. They kit came with everything except the snow, and mother nature provided plenty of that.
This would be James first snowman, and we had a ball putting him together. He lasted for about a week until a rain washed away most of the snow right before Christmas. The house really looked good with the now and the decorations, especially at night.
Nascar Race MIS 2007
We had never been to a Nascar race before, so we bought 3 tickets to the Sunday race at MIS. We drove out there but unfortunately it was raining and the race was cancelled, so we drove back home. The next day I took off from work and the 3 of us drove out to MIS and once again the race was cancelled due to rain so we drove back home.
I was slowly becoming an expert at driving to MIS, yet have never seen a race. finally on the third day, after a fog delay, the race was finally ran. Check out the pics of Jeff Gordon spun out in the mud and the crew having to push him out. Those are Mary’s favorites.
Some of the pics may look blurry, but its actually fog. These were 3 really rotten days for a Michigan August. After the race we stopped at a bar in Clinton the people behind us owned. We got a free dinner and brew/pop. Turned out to be a great day. The race was won by Kurt Busch.
Greenfield Village Motor Muster 2007
It was Motor Muster time at Greenfield Village and we all went down to see the cars. Mary took a bunch of pictures of the automobiles that were on display and James and I enjoyed seeing all the cars mixed in with the historic village. They had a parade down mainstreet and awards were given out for several categories of classic cars.
James takes after his mom and really enjoys cars and such, hopefully he will be more mechanically oriented than his dad who cannot even change his own oil (I tried once but poured the oil into the radiator and everything had to be drained, what a mess).
St Albert Festival 2007
This year at the St Albert Festival James got to do a little exploring, he went to the playground and made a couple friends, then went off to the sand box which is located between the Jr and Sr buildings at St Albert. Such a shame James will not be going to this school, since it will be closed down. I have no idea what will happen with the buildings and all, or what will happen to St. Alberts but from what I understand this will be the last festival because most of the people involved with it have kids in school, and next year they will be going somewhere else.
James was much more mature this year and we were able to keep him out a little later so that he could ride some of the rides at night. He fell asleep on the wagon ride home.
Comerica Park Tigers VS Mets 2007
We got some great seats to a Detroit Tiger game vs Mets from our neighbors and James had a blast there with the merry go round and ferris wheel. The Tigers put on a good show and won the game handily, lots of scoring on both sides. One thing I will never forget about this trip was James eating peanuts, I had assumed that Mary bought them for him, while she assumed that I had bought them for him. As it turned out they were the people sitting behind us, James simply turned around and started eating their peanuts. Both parties laughed and we got them another bag of peanuts. They were from NY and were here to see the new stadium and their beloved Mets.
Mackinaw Island State Park 2007
Another trip to Mackinaw and a walk through the Mackinaw State Park with highlights like the Skull Cave, the old cemetery’s, and Arch Rock. We usually finish up with the state park by noon then go through the city which has many tourist attractions including a haunted house and several magic shops. Mary and I spent our honeymoon here so it always has a special meaning for us.
This year we found a plaque from the movie Somewhere in Time starring Christopher Reeve. The movie was filmed on Mackinaw Island at the Grand Hotel so if you want to see more of Mackinaw Island, rent the movie. Also if you enjoy time travel and science fiction in a non shoot em up way, rent the movie.
Mackinaw City 2007
Mackinaw City is really getting to be fun with all the shopping areas and fun places to go. There are magic shows in the Mackinaw Crossing shopping complex and also tourist trap stuff like the house of mirrors. A shoppers paradise for sure.
In the evening they have a laser show in the complex and if you time your stay right, fireworks over the lake on certain weekends. James has fun playing in the many assorted playgrounds all within walking distance of our hotel. He also enjoys walking on the beach but prefers the beach under the bridge since that is where all the rocks are that he likes to throw in the lake.
Easter 2007
We really went all out this year, bringing out the dolls to celebrate with us. It was a multi holiday event with James in his Halloween costume and the Christmas Huggums dolls and everyone had fun. His relatives really went way out as well with the presents, there was even a little motorized motorcycle in this years gift list. Thanks to everyone who helped make this such a memorable experience and hopefully we can keep James from eating all the candy the first day.
The chocolate bunny is sort of a tradition in our household, our Aunt Louise once took us to a drive in and brought a chocolate bunny to eat. However she had kept it in the freezer and we could not cut the thing, even with a knife. It was a very funny experience and a great memory for us.
