We celebrated a day early with fireworks, a fire and s'mores, and good company in our own driveway.
At least it wasn't full of water when he put it there...
Either he's trying to eat her sparkler, or she's about to turn him into a newt.
And not to forget the S'mores.
holidays, summer, traditions It came and went in a haze of beautiful weather. What happened to the annual Easter snow storm? I'm still thinking that spring got confused and sent summer to descend upon us two months early. Most of our usual party suspects were out of town for the holiday this year and we missed them, but we had a great time with Gram and Grandpa (my parents), Nonnie (my Godmother, Lonnie), several brightly colored eggs, and duckcakes. This is the second year in a row that we've waited until Easter itself to decorate the eggs (nothing like waiting until the last minute) and also the second year in a row that it has been warm enough to hide and hunt for them outside, the difference being, of course, that this year the outside was much greener than last. We hunted for eggs, we grilled dinner, we ate with the house open and light, and we finished the night with duckcakes. We hope you had a wonderful Easter, too.
And now, a final installment of our holiday times. Like we have in previous years, we packed up the car and headed north to celebrate the new year in snowy and frigid style. As it turns out, they definitely had more snow up there, something we'd been missing down here, but the three degree weather wasn't actually any colder, not that we'd have noticed anyhow; once it gets down that far we tend to stay inside.
Our trip was as delightful and relaxing as always. We did some snacking, some napping, some eating, some shopping, some napping, a lot of reading, some snacking, some movie watching, some eating, and some walking. Yes, outside. Hey, if the deer can do it, why can't we? (to be fair, we walked when it was 20 degrees, not 3).
New Year's Eve was quiet and fun. Well, sort of quiet; my mother and godmother thought fit to open a package of party horns before Calvin went to bed. Thankfully not too long before.
We did our usual goofy gift exchange while sipping champagne. If you think the pooping santa claus candy dispenser ever gets old, you must be wrong; I think it has circulated now for upwards of four years. The cork coasters, on the other hand, have only just started their lifetime of riducule.
I'm sure you've caught on that we do a lot of eating when we on this trip. Most of that is a combination of snacking (mmm smoked fish), and traditional meals (mmm bot bie), but whenever we've made it that far north we always have to trek those last 45 minutes north to Mackinaw City to eat at the Key Hole Bar where the fried perch is to die for (and I don't just mean because of the grease content).
While in Mackinaw we usuallly shop, too, between the few clothing stores that remain open, the Hush Puppy place, and the fudge shops, you really can't go wrong. We didn't find much to bring home this year, though it took some convincing to get Calvin to leave the monkey behind. The Indiana Jones getup (yes, that's a cow backpack), was slightly less of a problem.
We didn't find anything to buy in Mackinaw, although on New Year's Eve, while shopping in Petoskey, we came away from the used book store there with a 1904 numbered edition of Flaubert's Sentimental Education, so we weren't too heartbroken.
By the way, does this remind anyone else of Chevy Chase? I'm thinking Christmas Vacation...
This, on the other hand, reminds me of Norman Rockwell. Or at least it would, if it weren't for all the SUVs, minivans, and crossovers. Still, it's pretty and quaint. That's one of the reasons we love Harbor Springs.
And this concludes the holiday series. We will now return to regular life.
family, holidays, traditions, travel Here is a second installment. We enjoyed so much Chrismtas this year that I'll have to split it into two volumes.
Christmas mornig, Santa gifts, stocking with oranges and change that hints at your age (shhh! don't tell!), and always presents enough to go around.
Everyone had a lot of help opening presents, and it was often hard to tell who was more excited, the receiver or the giver (of help, that is).
Not all wrapping jobs required opening help, or even opening at all.
Nap time. Oh joy.
Squid for snack! An odd tradition, but Curits makes a mean dish of tentacles and it's hard to pass up. This year we didn't even wait to up the presentation, we ate it straight from the stove.
Christmas dinner at the Carman's, where the younger set had us playing with bristle blocks (remember those?), cash registers, and doll houses. Christmas is about the kids, after all, even the bigger ones.
AND...we are fortunate enough to have two whole Christmas Days; Jon's family, two years in a row now, have had a second Christmas on the 26th just so that we can spread our fun out, instead of burning out. Day two of Christmas, for both years now, has been relaxing, quiet, and completely enjoyable.
Upon arrival we were treated to a reprise of Calvin and Opa's juice squeezing. Fun and delicious.
Cameras, cameras everywhere.
Calvin made gifts for everyone this year. Wine charms for the men in his life, and Christmas carolers and hand painted book bags for the women. It was a really fun process, and a huge hit come gift opening time.
Joy on Christmas is being cozy and warm with family.
I think the horse on strings was one of the favorite gifts of the day. Jon's mom found him at the Renaissance Festival in Holly and new he just had to join our family. He doesn't have a name yet, but is certain to be well loved.
In Jon's family shuffleboard is a holiday tradition. I love old traditions, especially ones that are so darn entertaining.
Our New Years trip to Harbor Springs will be next up in the series, and I'll try to get to that later today or tomorrow.
arts & crafts, family, holidays, traditions It seems a very long time since I last entered this site, and in truth it is, though not nearly as long as it feels. The Christmas season is always such a busy one, and for all the right reasons; it feels as though we've lived a lifetime in the past two weeks, and not once did I import pictures from the camera. Thankfully our memory card is good for upwards of 600 shots, but as time passed and pictures amassed, the job just looked more and more daunting until, finally, today I ran out of space on that behemoth and was forced to import so I could erase it.
Going through them, on the other hand, is still a massive job waiting to be tackled and I am doing in stages and uploading in installments. Installment the first, then, is Christmas Eve. I'll be back in a bit with the continuation, after I've sorted through the over 200 pictures that are Christmas alone.
Christmas Eve at Kerrytown. It was chilly, but not down right cold, and unfortunately not even thinking about snowing. Santa hats don't have quite the same affect without snow and cold.
Christmas Eve means waiting in a jovial line at Monahan's to pick up our Christmas Eve oysters and squid. Some people think that's strange. I make no further comment.
Christmas Eve also means lunch at Kosmo Deli with a side of seafood chowder from Monahan's.
Christmas Eve means a romp through the delightful little shops that call Kerrytown home. I think Found is my favorite—a collection of everything yesteryear, and sometimes yesterday.
And I still remember Christmas Eve nights spent with cousins, all of us eager with anticipation of the following days splendor. Half of us now coddle those same expectations in our own youngsters.
family, holidays, traditions