Tulip Time 2010

I've been talking about our unseasonably warm weather for some time now—I cannot remember a year when things have been so green so early, or when I have already had to mow the lawn a handful of times even before the arrival of May. We have really delighted in the early spring, but there are pros and cons to any deviation from the norm and Tulip Time had not the visual delights it usually holds for us each May because most of the tulips had already absconded with their aesthetic charms by the time we arrived on the first of the month. Thankfully Holland has many other charms to offer, most notably the beautiful lake, but the dining and shopping in their quaint downtown are enjoyable as well. We took in some Klompen Dancing around Centennial Park, enjoyed two meals at New Holland Brewing Company (I'd say these were enhanced by the new smoking ban, but I don't remember the place being smoke-filled in previous visits), walked the beach, played frisbee, played tennis, cooked a great Cinco de Mayo meal with family, and had an all around relaxing and enjoyable time.

Shopping found us a literal rainbow of KitchenAid stand mixers. Ahhhhh.

Lake Michigan sunsets are a real Michigander's greatest joy. Well, that and the sandy beaches and dunes.

New Holland beer samplers—with three people ordering one each you can just about cover every beer, or at least every beer we deemed worth trying.

Who knew Cookie Monster was a fan of Tulip Time?

The pictures are up in the May 2010 photo folder.

Project 365, days 120-126

Rainy days were made for rain boots; TV time—since we don't have cable we rigged up a connection through Jon's computer to watch the online stream of President Obama's commencement speech at UofM's ceremony; Dinner with friends Noah and Isaac; and the remainder of our week was dedicated to Tulip Time, which was somewhat short on tulips this year, since spring had arrived early, but was not short on sun, beach time, good company, or good beer (at New Holland Brewing Company, of course).

Project 365, days 113-119

Fridays are now piano class days and we always get to see Sarah and Marissa, so on day 113 we followed piano class with a trip to Gallop Park; We had a surprise party for Jon on Saturday and Calvin helped Opa make dessert; On Sunday we visited a swan in the nearby river; During the warmer spring days we always eat dinner outside in the driveway because that's where the sun is (as opposed to on our deck), and we are often treated to sidewalk art while we are there; Lastly, we enjoyed some afternoon fun at the big park near Gram and Grandpa's house.

Project 365, days 106-112

On day 106 Calvin enjoyed searching for hidden pictures in his Highlights magazine after lunch. On day 107 we put our hummingbird feeders back outside—probably a little early, but we want to be here when they arrive! This week we also spent time at the park and in the field near our house, found a way to keep our lawn looking pretty while still staying true to our environmental views, celebrated Jon's new promotion with dinner out, and shocked as much traffic as possible by waiting for a friend to meet us for lunch...dressed as a panda.

Project 365, days 99-105

Calvin's first preschool piano lesson, and he loved it; our muskrat, who is usually there every afternoon when I go running, and often earlier in the morning if we go for a walk; costumes—they aren't just for Halloween anymore; beautiful weather, conducive to flowers, and weeds, blooming and growing, to playing outside, and to biking for a Dairy Queen;