Someone turned 5 and a few other tidbits

All this catching up and I realized I missed Colton's 5th birthday in the mix.  We celebrated with friends a little early since we were traveling so much. 

 I made this fun pirate cake.  Colton loved it.  But gravity took it's tole and about an hour after I put it together, the Jolly Roger sank- or rather split in two.  More like Titanic really.  Surprisingly, Colton didn't let it get him down.  He decided that it just split in two because the sharks bit it.  Works for me.

 Aarghhh Matey.

 Blowing out the candles on the dilapidated cake.

 Blueberries came on in July, so we went to pick.  More for the fun of picking than anything.  Our fun got that much better when we ended up there at the same time as some of our best friends! 

 In the words of Duck Dynasty: Happy

 Happy

 Happy

 Mike also has something to contribute to this post.  He did a spring triathalon in July!  You swim- I don't know how far.  Then bike 10 miles and run three miles.  Here he is coming in from his bike ride

 And here he is running to the finish line very very tired.   The run killed Mike, but he rocked it on the swim. 

Mike trained with our good friend Alex.  Thanks for keeping Mike motivated!  Alex actually took 2nd in his division.  Way to go!  It was really fun watching Mike compete.  Now the kids want to do it too!

And there you have it.  Nothing like speed blogging. 

Michigan

Things I knew about Michigan before I moved there:
1.There are a lot of lakes
2. Ohio State's biggest rival is Michigan
3. If you want to know where someone lives in Michigan, they show you their hand and point to a place somewhere on their palm. 
4. It's cold
5. A lot of people like to camp there
6. Detroit is an industrial, economic mess

There you go.  That is Michigan.  And there are INDEED many many lakes and it IS cold- at least colder than Indiana.  And I like it.  We are in the suburbs of Detroit and it is fine.  I would like to do some more exploring and go to some of those amazing camp sites and trails I have heard about.  This fall weather has me itching to eat glazed donuts and play in some leaves.  But anyway, to continue with my storyline- We moved three days after we got back from the cruise, but we had movers which was oh so nice.  It did feel awkward at first just watching them work and not pitching in though. And there are only a few things I can't find- like my favorite bib I use for Jocelyn and my over the door wreath hanger.  And I have absolutely NO idea where they are, or if they even made it to our new place.  But seeing as I ended up with a rug that isn't mine, I am just going to assume they are gone and if someone else did indeed end up with them, I hope they enjoy them as much as I am enjoying the rug.  Keeps my toes nice and warm when I'm washin' dishes. 

 Our first night in the new place before our things arrived.  Nothing like eating pizza on the floor with paper plates. 

 Our little family in front of the house while the movers were busy at work.

 Jocelyn's favorite thing to do in the front yard.  Pick up the little rocks, drop the rocks.  pick up the rocks, scatter the rocks.  Pick up the rocks, give some to mom.  Pick up more rocks. . . you get the idea.

 Colton playing in the backyard.  We love having a backyard, but Colton has had to adjust because all he has ever known is having a playground a friends right out the door.   Below is the street from in front of our house.  It's a great little neighborhood.

I happened to have my camera a few days ago when I went shopping and I saw this in the parking lot.  Notice anything great about this semi?  It may seem like an ordinary semi to you, but those Idaho plates make it an "Idaho Gem"  When I realized how far away from home that truck was, it made me feel a long way from home too.     But never fear!  I do miss home, but there are great things to see and do here.  Like the following:

 Starting 1st grade

 sliding down turf on a piece of cardboard

 playing in a splash pad

 starting preschool

 going for rides

 coaching football

 Going to the Henry Ford museum and seeing this REALLY big Canadian snowplow.

 Riding on Rosa Park's bus.

 Playing your first football game

 watching your son score a touchdown

and just being at home and reading stories

Life is good.

Let's Cruise Baby

To continue my catch up. . .
After we went to Idaho, we came home for less than 48 hours and then left for Ohio.  We spent about a week in Ohio with the whole Hansen family.  And then we left to go do this . . .

 I've always wanted to go on a cruise and with a month of time from when Mike graduated until work started, we decided to do it.  The Caribbean for 6 days, with 5 islands and all the food you can stuff into yourself.

Our port was in Puerto Rico, so the night before our ship left, we went on a kayaking tour.  You paddle through some mangrove trees and watch the sun set on the lagoon and then when it was dark, the water lights up like a glow stick whenever you disturb the water.  Bio luminescence- it's pretty awesome.  Apparently there plankton/algae/I'm not really sure what small organisms living in the water and when you disturb them, they lite up as a defense.  The marine biologist explained it much more eloquently. 

 We rented a car in Puerto Rico so we could drive to the kayaking.  Our flight into PR was late, so we only made the kayaking tour with 10 minutes to spare!  Mike was a great driver.  I, the navigator, managed to tack an extra hour onto our time back to our hotel.  Oops.  Sorry. 

 The morning before the cruise we got a bite to eat a a place called Pinky's.  If you are ever in San Juan, I highly recommend it.  Try the Mango smoothie!  We also went and saw a couple of forts in Old San Juan.  Pretty cool. 

 The is the Solarium on the boat.  We spent a lot of time just hanging out and reading here. 

 Our first beach in St. Maarten.  We tried snorkeling here, but the waves were quite rough and we were both feeling sick.  Mike threw up.  Awesome.  Once our stomachs settled, it was great. 

Day two was St. Kitts.  These monkeys were everywhere.  We even saw a Bob Marley guy riding a donkey on the highway with one of these monkeys.  It was a memorable sight. 

 Mike reading at the beach.  I got a massage on the beach and Mike saw a sea turtle snorkeling. 

 Day three was Antigua and our favorite island.  Beaches with water this blue do exist!  For real!

 Beautiful!

 We sat right by this tree.

 Day 4- it just keeps going.  We took a tour of St. Lucia.  The island is very volcanic and mountainous.  We drove through the rain forest and saw these mountains- the Pitons.  Remind anyone of the Teton's?  The whole area was a lot like Yellowstone- only tropical.  Sulfur springs, Calderas etc. 

 What is a cruise without a picture of the food?

 Mini golf on the ship.  We won't say who won.  Alright. . . I'll admit- Mike slaughtered me. 

 Waterfall in the rainforest of St. Lucia. 

 Planning the next day adventure in our cabin.

 Dinner.  Fancy.  Great waiters.

 St. Lucia- the photographer in me coming out.

 Our last day we sailed on a Catamaran and went snorkeling.  Then we swam with sea turtles.  They were really cool!

 The ship also had a rock wall.  I loved it.  Mike tried it too and did great. 

 Another waterfall.  This one was in the Junque rainforest in Puerto Rico.  We had some time to kill before our flight back.  But even with all that time- we still missed a flight in Miami and this is how we finished the cruise . . .

Nothing like ending all the glamor by sleeping on the floor at the airport- using our swimsuits as blankies. 
When all was said and done- we had a great time- lots of memories.  I can now say I have been out of the country.  I loved seeing the different cultures and the beautiful beaches- however, I did learn a few things.  You don't have to travel thousands of miles to see beautiful things.  There are beautiful things all around you.  The leaves are starting to turn here in Michigan and that is not a beach, but it has it's own magnificence.  I also learned that you don't have to spend a wad of money to have a great time.  Some of the funnest things on the cruise didn't cost a thing. The enjoyment was just being together with Mike.  It was reinforced that our lives are not about the things we own, but that the people we love are our most valuable possessions.  I became more thankful that I live where I do.  America is a fantastic place.  It has it's problems, but I sure like the land of the free.  And finally, God loves all of us, all over the world and the world is a very big place. 
And now, I need to do laundry, pull out the sweaters because it is starting to get cold, do some grocery shopping and pick up Colton from preschool.  My next post- our move!