Fun in the Sun

John had his 12 month shots on Wednesday- poor little guy. We drove into Harbor Springs to the health department and they injected both legs- one of the shots bled a ton and the last shot hurt the most, John was screaming and crying, that is until we got back to the waiting room and he saw all of the toys! To help ease his pain, we went out for a sail on the SWAN in the afternoon. It was a gorgeous day and there were many other boats out sailing, as well as boats heading into Harbor Springs after the Chicago-Mac to get ready for the regatta this weekend. John has become very agile on the boat- he is now able to climb onto the cockpit seats by himself, something he couldn't do just 2 weeks ago! He wears his life jacket in the dingy and then when we get settled on the big boat we put the harness on him so he has a little more mobility, that life jacket is pretty cumbersome!






It was pretty warm in the sun, and John LOVES the water so I decided to sit on the stern with him and we dragged our feet in the water. After about 30 seconds I could see this was going to be a fun game, so i took his diaper off and he got to get his buns wet! We clipped his harness in snug so if he got squirmy and I lost my grip he wouldn't go far.



After all the water fun Captain John decided Daddy wasn't doing a very good job steering, so he took over! Our little sailor :)

John & Sarah

On Friday night our friends Melissa, Craig and Sarah came up from Chicago for the weekend. It was so great to see them, we wished they could have stayed longer. The day they left John was looking for his playmate- poor little guy. It was so interesting to see Sarah and John interact- I'm used to seeing John with Owen but this was so different! Sarah is 11 days older than John and developing so differently, she isn't really walking yet but she speaks real words already!!! During the short visit she got sturdier on her little legs and John got more talkative, aren't kids amazing?!
When they arrived John was already asleep so they didn't see eachother til morning. We sat them among a pile of toys and Sarah gave John a big hug! John always grinned when she hugged and kissed him, like he totally enjoyed it, both of these kids are little flirts!
Here are some of the highlights of the weekend.....

Catch Up- Photos

Here are some of my fav's from Mackinac Island- I have more to post when I get time!

John wearing Pop's Mac Hat




Carriage Day 1:





Carriage Day 2:






Ferry Fun!!!

Catch Up

Whew! Its been a busy few weeks! Now to play a little catch up for my loyal fan(s)!!!

The day Alexis came to visit was the day John got sick... It seems that when Owen was visiting his fever was "hand foot and mouth disease" (HFMD) which is a very common childhood virus, but definitely not a fun one to get (is there a fun one?). It usually runs for about 48-72 hours with a fever and there are also spots like small blisters that form on the hands, feet, and inside the mouth (gee, I wonder how they named this one- I'm really funny tonight huh?) So anyways, I was here alone with John... He was in the highchair (not) eating dinner and I noticed spots like small bug bites all over the bottoms of his feet. I called QT to see what she though, and she said "that's funny, Owen has spots too" I called Jed and we talked about the symptoms for awhile, thinking maybe there was some kind of bug in the carpet in the bedroom where both boys slept on the floor. I continued with John's bedtime routine and Jed called me back with a diagnosis- HFMD, all the symptoms fit perfectly. I called Dr. Megdall (Our pediatrician growing up who is now retired and lives part time in Charlevoix) who confirmed the diagnosis. He offered to come up and check on John if we needed it, and I promised to keep him posted- what a great friend to take such good care of us even in retirement! John's fever spiked to 103.3 at 4:30 the next morning, it was a long few nights for the 2 of us, but we made it through. It took awhile for his personality to get back to normal, but I'm happy to report that he is back to being full of mischief!

The weekend after John was sick Mom, Mandy, Owen and Sybelle (read all about her on Owen's Blog- no need to repeat!) came up. On Sunday morning Mom took Sybelle to Interlochen where she will be attending music camp for 3 weeks- meanwhile Mandy and I packed up the boys and all of our gear and headed to Mackinac Island! It was quite a sight I'm sure, watching Mandy and I pushing the boys in strollers while loaded down with gear. We agreed that everyplace should be as efficient as Mackinac- You pull up to the ferry dock in the car, a young guy unloads everything and tags it while you leisurely make your way to the ferry- oh, and they valet the car. You ride the ferry over to the island and you don't have to worry about the bags at all until you get to the hotel. Once in the hotel you check in at the desk and give them the luggage tags from the ferry and go to your room, meanwhile a bellhop brings the bags straight to the room, its all really quite amazing!
We had an exciting dinner with the 2 boys- overtired and overstimulated (Again, Owen's Blog has some good pictures). John just about begged to go to bed that night, and I was happy to oblige!

The race was a fast one, Cross Check finished before midnight on Sunday- I don't think that has ever happened in the 20 years Dad has raced the Mac! So the Crew lunch was scheduled for Monday instead of the usual Tuesday- it was tons of fun! John and Owen got to have their first carriage ride, John stood facing forward the entire time, watching the horses and bikes all around, with the wind in his hair. At lunch he got to share the head seat at the table with PopPop- what an honor! He especially liked wearing Pop's hat and trying to grab at his beer- crazy little guy.... After another packed day he slept like a rock, the trick is to wear him out! We packed up to leave the next morning just after breakfast. It was the same bag scenario in reverse- wow! This time TQ got to be on the ferry with the boys, she was pretty sad that she had to miss it in the way over, and boy did they make up for it in entertainment! We sat at a 'booth' with a window and both boys had a great time waving and feeling the wind. Back at the dock we loaded up the van and set off for Cross Village, which is only about 20 minutes away- perfect! John fell asleep about 2 minutes before we got home and I managed to get him out of his car seat and in bed for a 2.5 hour nap- He was worn out! Jeff got back from Rhode Island the same day and our family was together again. John was so happy to see his Daddy, he gave Jeff a huge bear hug and followed him around the rest of the afternoon.

I still have more to catch up on, but I'll have to do that tomorrow.

Friend

Alexis was my first friend when we moved to Grosse Pointe when I was in the first grade. We grew up only 1 block apart and pretty much did everything together for years, in fact, all they way through 12th grade we had at least one class together. There were Maire Bears, Brownies, Girl Scouts, summers in Knobinway and Mackinac Island, the drama of middle school, more drama in high school, boys, proms, and finally college- and everything in between! We would fight like cats, but especially when we were younger, we would make up by shaking hands and saying "Friends Forever".... We both ended up in Kalamazoo for college, I was at Western and she was at K-College. We managed to stay in touch for a few years and then we sort of stopped- but never totally. About once a year one of us would call or email with an update, we would connect for a dinner (but no drinks because I was pregnant!).
Well, the other day I got that yearly email from Lex! She graduated with her PhD in English Composition Rhetoric (correct me if I'm wrong!) from Purdue University- way to go Alexis!!! She will be starting a teaching job in the fall at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida. The email said that she was coming to Michigan for about a week, and could we get together? She'd only be in Detroit for 1 day and then she would be in Petoskey helping her parents with an antique show. Did I say Petoskey?! YES! That's near us! Well I wrote her back right away and finally she called me back.
After only getting lost once due to my bad directions, she made it up to the house to meet John. Its too bad she couldn't stay longer, we were just getting to the good stuff when she had to go! Hopefully we will be able to keep in better touch in the future, old friends are special. FRIENDS FOREVER!

Artwork

These are the bag and sarong that I dyed the other day. I LOVE how they both turned out- especially the bag, its so unique!

Yo Baby!!

I think the pictures say it all.....

Parade!!!

The City of Cross Village holds their annual Independence Day Parade on July 5, so as not compete with the big on in Harbor Springs. Since Mom and Dad are friends with some people who are very active in the community, we got to drive the Morgan in the parade this year! PopPop drove it while Jeff sat shotgun and John and I rode in the back to wave.



The parade happened to fall during Owen's nap, so he couldn't make it- maybe next year! The route was really short- about 3 blocks- so we went around twice! John was a little overwhelmed so he didn't do much waving- except for when he saw TQ and Uncle Jed on the side!! How cute :) We think Mom should join the group of ladies who marched and danced in matching outfits and giant hats, what do you think??



After the parade we all went to Three Pines Studio for Gelato from American Spoon Foods (YUMMMM!!) and then to Leggs Inn which is the local (famous) Polish restaurant here. We had to wait for a table because the town was so busy that day, but they have an amazing view over Lake Michigan and a huge yard with tables and a swing. We claimed a picnic table but it was in the sun so Jeff and John stayed in the shade for a little while and played with water in a cup.



The boys were getting hungry so I busted out my stash of Puffins for them to munch on before lunch.



After a wonderful and filling late lunch nobody needed dinner, but we all needed naps! John and I took Jeff to the airport for his flight out to Rhode Island and then collapsed- what a fun filled day!

Backyard Fun!

What started as a simple wagon ride after dinner quickly turned into family fun in the grass!


"On your BUNS John!!"


Owen is such a big boy!


Flying John!


Can you hear TQ saying "Oh NOO!!!" Johns hand is blurry because he was swatting at Owen!


"I Love my PopPop!!!"



Oh No John! Where did your diaper go?!


I love this shot- even if its blurry!


Owen wanted to be naked too!

Abby's 29th

Happy Birthday to Abby!!! Yes, its true. I turned 29 on July 3 and I was so lucky to have so much family around! Those of you who were not here were truly missed, but the party must go on.....



We started the day with a visit to Pond Hill Farm. They have beautiful gardens, and this year we noticed that they have a community garden where as a family or organization you can pay and plant your own garden! All of the plots had hand painted signs to designate who owned it- I really liked this one.



Since our visit this time last year, a brand new barn was built where you can buy little buckets of food to feed the animals. They just had a bunch of piglets born, they were so cute and pink!



There were also dozens of sheep and lambs that you can feed straight from your hand. I found a little lamb outside of the pen and got him to come close so John could touch him- he was a little nervous at first but he was okay as long as Jeff or I was holding him. Owen did a great job also feeding the sheep himself (maybe next year John!).



Somehow a few of the large cows that are also housed in the barn got out of the pen, a few of us left quickly (Jeff, John, Dad & I) Someone went and told a staff member while Dad closed the big barn door so none of the cows could get out, but there were a lot of people still inside! The staff member ran to the barn and told all of the people to leave while he shut the door and worked to get the cows back in their pen. It was an interesting few minutes with the cows making all kinds of noise! We didn't go back into the barn, but walked on the road for a little while, John saw a big tractor and walked right up to the wheel- didn't I tell you that this child is obsessed with wheels!




After Pond Hill we went home for lunch and then while Owen napped Mom, Mandy, John and I went up to Three Pines Studio where there was a workshop on Indigo Tie Dye. They were doing beach bags and sarongs- both things that I use all the time! I did both- Mandy and Mom only did the bags (actually Mandy even did Mom's bag because Mom had John!) After you do the 'relief' which was done by using rubberbands and marbles, you soaked the cloth in water and then Joann dipped it into the dye. Because the bags were made of canvas you had to soak it for 15 minutes, John LOVED helping- well, actually just playing in the water!


I absolutely LOVE how my bag and sarong turned out. Joann said that people kept trying to claim it as their own while they were drying at the gallery, but she knew who's it was and wouldn't let it go! I'll post pictures soon.

You'd think that after such a busy day we would just relax and have an early night, but nope... We went out to the Douglas Lake Bar and Steakhouse for dinner. We sat outside and looked out at the lake while we ate. This came in handy because the boys were restless sitting in highchairs for an extended period, so we took them for walks out on the dock and threw pebbles into the water. Dinner was good, but the company was better (the White Haven was pretty good too!!) Again, D, K, K, A & P, you were truly missed.


You can't even tell that Owen still wasn't 100%! CHEESE!!


Walking the dock with our Daddy's







(I know he looks like a geek in his blue socks, but he really doesn't like grass!)