Kentucky 2015

 The main reason we made a visit to Kentucky was for baseball and a concert. 
The game featured a minor league team from Lexington and the band was Royal Tailor. 

Jane chose this song to do her dance solo at Kids Fine Arts this past year. 

 It is rare when all four of us agree on music and in the case of Royal Tailor, even Elliot will sing along.

 Lexington is horse country. I had heard it was beautiful and that is an easy description. Rolling hills, impressive estates, the green, lush, manicured horse farms comprise a striking landscape. 

An early morning bike ride on Legacy Trail. 

Danville

The City of Firsts On December 4, 1787, the Virginia Legislature established Danville  as a Town in Virginia. Danville became a part of the Commonwealth when Kentucky became a  state in 1792. Danville, “The City of Firsts," was the location of the first Courthouse  in Kentucky First U.S. Post Office west of the Alleghenies (1792),  the first Capital of Kentucky (1785),  In 1809, Danville's own Dr. Ephraim McDowell  became the first physician in the world to successfully remove an ovarian tumor. His patient was Mrs. Jane Todd Crawford. We found this "city of firsts" to be home to Boyle County Library.  The children's area had a play on castle, a real bunny and comfy red chair.  It made me want to have a six year-old again and live down the street, just so I could come for story-time.    In the back of the library there was a beautiful reading room. It reminded me of the libraries they show in movies.  Oak bookshelves lining the walls. Long tables with little lamps. I could have spent time there reading a book.  Possibly the best library logo ever.  FORT HARROD  A reconstruction of the First Permanent American Settlement in Kentucky.  The reconstructed fort contains several log structures representing various aspects of military frontier life, including a militia blockhouse, a family blockhouse, several cabins demonstrating pioneer life, a blab school, the minister's cabin, and the leader's cabin. The Mansion Museum is a Greek Revival home that contains American Civil War artifacts, a McIntosh gun collection, paintings, documents, music collections, Abraham Lincoln memorabilia and Native American artifacts. The park also features the cabin where Abraham Lincoln's parents, Thomas Lincoln and Nancy Hanks, were married. The Osage orange tree located in the fort would be the National Champion but a split at the base of the tree disqualifies it.  No one knows how it came to be in the Fort. A blacksmith was on hand and some men were preparing for a battle reenactment the next day.  This man made brooms from hand. They had various functions. One of the Restaurants we ate at was  Ramseys Diner Jane had a banana "dog" Banana, peanut butter.      We took some time on Saturday to stop at a few garage sales. I joked about buying the head and placing it in the kids bed at night.  Stocking up on ski.  Enter your own caption here. So many great finds in KY! We didn't bring this gem home with us.  The Game: Lexington Legends VS Hickory Crawdads  We loved the name of the teams in this league. Especially the Asheville Tourists.  The night was sponsored by Asbury University.  Not surprising they have impressive equestrian programs. The concert One day I was talking about Royal Tailor and instead I said Taylor Swift.  I think it started out half joking or just my brain not functioning. Anyway it launched  a running gag leading up to the concert, where we would sometimes refer to them as Royal Tailor Swift.  So it was very amusing to us when Royal Tailor released a single that partially covered Taylor Swift's- Shake it off. It made me wonder if they made a similar joke as a band.  Jane posted this picture to instagram. She was ecstatic when Tauren Wells (singer) liked it. It was very hot and the stage was small. Jane and I were to forgo the fireworks show and got right up front.  I realized after about 20 minutes in, that maybe I was too old for front row. I did jump when prompted (well I hopped) I also danced a little, but it was quite loud. Unfortunately the overall sound quality was not that great, ear plugs would have been welcomed.    The band did their best with choreography and singing. Tauren moon-walked that was fun to watch.   A  band picture from instagram . On the far left you can see Jane up front.

South Manitou Anniversary Trip

Our  15 year Anniversary was celebrated in June on a small island in Northern Michigan. South Manitou Island is part of the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.  The Ferry,
 Mishe-Mokwa takes about an hour to reach the island.

We shared the boat ride with about 20 boy scouts. We were hoping their campsite wasn't right next to ours.
Later we were very thankful for the boyscouts. 
Their motto "always be prepared" helped me to know who to ask once we realized we had left our rope.  Pesky chipmunks meant food items would not be safe if they were left on the ground. 

It was rustic camping. This meant no showers and vault toilets. 

Instead of each site having its own fire pit, a larger one is placed between campsites for sharing. It was around the shared fire pit we met up with some hikers.  Two of them had hiked the Appalachian trail.  The trail is a path of about 2,000 miles on the eastern side of the US. 
 Nathan and I had been discussing earlier that day if it would be all that great to hike the trail. I thought if the scenery doesn't change much and you aren't getting great views, it might be a lot of work without reward.  Talking to the seasoned hikers we met, you get the impression it has some great pay offs and it is indeed worth the venture. 
Apparently when you hike the trail you are given a special name, Nathan knew this and asked them what they were called. 
New Hampshire Mary- she had lived in New Hampshire at the time but currently resides in Whitehall and Billy Pilgrim a reference to Slaughter House Five - I have not read that book- his real name Steve.
 They also had a friend with them Larry. Larry  smoked a pipe and the day before he had put his pipe in his sweatshirt by mistake and a burned a whole in it. His friend gave him the name Pyro Larry. 

On our second day we had a few hours before the return boat ride. About 15 minutes in I realized we hadn't reapplied our bug spray. We decided it wasn't worth hiking back and continued on. At first we didn't notice it too much, but once our path headed into the woods I lamented not returning back for the spray.  Nathan captured a photo of my remedy. My cardigan is almost a mesh material which allowed me to see and protected the remaining bits of flesh from the merciless mosquitoes. I could still hear them buzzing in my ear which I felt was equally atrocious to my senses. 

South Manitou once supported a village and remnants of that community remain there today.  I was a little disturbed by the number of snakes that we would scare off the path as we walked. In Michigan encountering a poisonous snake is rare, having a fear of them on the island wasn't rational, but it still made my trekking through the woods a little less enjoyable. 


Our campsite didn't have access to potable water.  We actually were led to believe it would. Sleeping Bear is a National park and it seems logical that tidbit of information wouldn't take much effort to put on the website.  I  actually had called a couple of days beforehand to figure it out and I was told the website should be updated.  We found out later that the boy scout leaders also believed that there would be water. I felt empathy for them since they had to walk out to get enough water for twenty-two people.  The nearest location to get water from our site  was the ranger station. The station is where the boat drops you off when you first arrive.  It was a two mile hike- one way- just to get water.   A highlight of our trip occurred on one of our treks to retrieve water.  We both were tired and it wasn't as if the two mile walk back to our site was going to offer any new scenery to rally our spirits after a long day.  As we were filling up our water bottles we spotted the ranger hanging out near his ATV.  Reading our minds would have not been difficult, how nice it would be to get a ride back.  Nathan said he almost talked himself into asking, but we didn't.   It was at that moment the ranger approached us and offered us a ride back since he would be heading out near our site. 
  In my head I could compare it to a   1980's sitcom, the classic scene  would show a person illuminated and playing the hallelujah chorus in the background.   He joked that if anyone saw us we had to act injured or sick.  Ranger Micah was our hero for the moment. 

View from the lighthouse.  117 steps to the top. 

The remains of a shipwreck. 

Michigan has many lighthouses, I think more than other State.  Many are restored and maintained for tourism. They give us a window into the Great Lakes maritime history.  This visit to Manitou was only my second time touring the inside of one. I hope to get the opportunity to visit more. 

A great way to celebrate 15 years.  It helps to have the best travel partner along for the ride. Love my husband. 

Extra- Curriculars- why I don't blog more.

The kids and grandparents. Spring piano recital. 

Elliot's first year playing.  He wants to play drums. I am not opposed to drum playing, but the kids have to take piano until the 8th grade.  They are welcome to do two instruments at a time. 

Jane had to organize an event to help her earn  The
"Lewis and Clark" award with American Heritage Girls.  Cupcakes decorating was part of the festivities.  Her and Hannah were the only Explorers earning it this year. 

6th grade class chickens. Look who brought them home for the weekend?
 Ostrich, Chick Fil- A and Hero.

101 Dalmatians.  Jane was Nanny. Elliot was part of the choir. 

First Parade of the year. Our friends help run the local public access TV cameras. The kids lining up ready to get candy. 

First beach day of the year. 

Every winter I want to move away from Michigan. Every summer I am reminded why it isn't all that bad. 

Elliot's 4th grade class went to Henry Ford Museum. 

Instaselfie #kidsthesedays

Nice duck face- Jane. 

 My almost 12 year-old daughter- likes to hold her hand up in front of her face when I take a picture.

 This same girl has managed to take A LOT of pictures of herself with my phone. 

 I want to protect my kids and I want to  encourage them to interact with  peers using face to face conversations, not through electronics.  It is easy for me to become frustrated with her keen interest in social media.

Then I remember what it was like to be an 11 year-old. 

From 3rd to 10th grade I lived in a town different from my school. This town was not only 20 minutes away from my school,  it was also a long-distance phone call.  Meaning if a majority of my classmates wanted to talk to me on the phone, it would cost extra money. Money that a majority of our parents were not willing to pay. 
It was my "first-world" problem of the late 80's and 90's that I resented.  

In 2015 in the world of my daughter, the kids don't call each other up that much. Her classmates in particular use Instagram.  When she approached me about getting account, I was quick to say no.  There are several books in print dedicated to the subject of the evils of the internet and its affect on children. I haven't read a single one because I use the internet daily, I don't have to be told it is not a safe place for  kids and sometimes, adults. 

The reality is, it is no longer 1990. Soon enough my kids will have complete autonomy, they will go into the world and make their own choices.  One of my jobs as a parent is to guide my 21st century children through their culture, without it consuming them.  

Jane began taking pictures of her self with our ipod way before she had much access to the internet. The "selfie" craze might just be a human nature thing. 

Elliot having a go. 

I agreed to an Instagram account that is accessed on my phone. At this point Jane does not have her own phone, so it was the only way it was going to happen.   
A kid will post and say things on the internet that they might not necessarily do in front of their parents. Which of course can often be disturbing, but what I am finding these days is  amusing. If parents tune into their kids social media, they no longer have to "snoop" in bedrooms or read diaries, they tell the world these days.
 The girls that are in her circle are mostly about having fun with their friends and post pictures of their families, pets, hobbies.  Their views on boys? Well to some they might no longer be gross, but a lot of the girls still see them as pesky.
The girls care about modesty, encouraging one another, and take care on how they treat each other.  I know that can't be found everywhere, even at her young age and I am really thankful that is her world for the time being. 

upside to the new account, she doesn't fight taking photos as often as she did.
This was at the 6th grade send off at TCS. A special time at school to say good-bye and pray for the 6th graders as they head off to middle school. 

 Only thing that makes it better is Elliot doing a photo bomb at the Whitecaps baseball game. Both my kids- bonus!
  I think I have found his motivation for taking pictures.  

Although 21st century issues can be frightening to me, they really aren't all that different from when I was a kid.  It comes down to the heart of the matter and I will continue to reach out and connect with my kids in the physical and virtual world.