Life Along Lake Michigan 

I'll have to check out her blog, sounds interesting.
Beautiful shot of the butterfly in the daylilly!

Thanks for the blog link! I read through it and it is wonderfully done! I think your daughter gets her talent and insight from Mom! Yes, I enjoy travel, although I have not been beyond the US and western Canada, which we have covered rather well. But most others in the family have had a much wider range. I found some more great commonalities however - our Scottish roots, including that we are likely attending some Highland Games this weekend, and my youngest daughter is learning to play bagpipes, which I dabbled in very long ago (she has outpaced me by a very wide margin now! Funny how kids do that...) so the Nova Scotia pics fit very well with us. Thanks for sharing and I will continue to check in on it! Oh, a very lovely sunny morning here and it should be a great weather day! 37 days to go!

Hi Jane,
Oh, I will pop over and read her blog on WP in a little while, but wanted to say "Hi" first.
We finally got summer this week! I have enjoyed the beautiful weather, but I had to begin watering my pots. I suppose I shouldn't complain, I had three months were I didn't have to, thanks to the rain!

Have a good week :)

I am spoiled, spoiled, spoiled, to have my family so close. I know this. I'm not so sure I could live so far away from my children (and grand children)...yet I would also be so proud of them and what they have accomplished.

I have a friend at work whose daughter lives in Dubai. She went to visit her this summer. She posted some pictures on FB. Amazing.

When is your first day of school?

The one thing 'we' have that our mothers didn't have is the Internet. When I was first married, my husband and I lived in Germany. No email, and phone service was quite expensive. I never talked to my mom while we were there, although we did come home for a short vacation about half way through. The only contact we had was through mail....the old kind! LOL

Today, I would have a computer and Skype and probably talk to her a minimum of once a week!

Jane - my husband is the one that introduced me to camping. Both our girls grew up camping and they both still camp today. Our oldest just does it in a camper now, mainly because they do like to go out to the desert and ride their motorcycles and quads. So they have a toy hauler trailer. The whole back end opens up. It's pretty cool! They can pack in all their 'rides' and take them with them when they go to the desert. We put our kayak in their trailer when we drove up. Nice!

It's funny, I was thinking the other day that we took my mom for a 5 day camping trip 25 years ago - right after she turned 60....and now I'll be that in a few more weeks. I remember she said that that was probably going to be her last camping trip, that sleeping on the ground (even with a mat), was getting too hard for her. I don't think I can say that yet. I still love it!

We start (with kids) August 29th, but I'll head back the 23rd.

Our June/July has been cooler than normal. I think we are the only part of the country that is experiencing cooler than normal temps. They aren't cold, by any stretch of the imagination, they are perfect for me (mid 70s), but when I hear about the rest of the country, I am perfectly content to live here! Warts and all!!!

Wishing you a very happy and weather safe, month!

Both you and Karen begin school in the week I have to attend Crown Court to be in the Jury.... not something I am looking forward too - just hope I get a fraud case and not a murder!

Jane - I'll forward you the email my daughter sent to me with a link to the typing program. I downloaded it without having to give them my email, but my aide couldn't download it at all. Not sure why. My daughter said it is similar to PAWS, but the characters are more updated. It will probably appeal to the kids more.

I worked 5 ~ 1/2 days a week for a few years. Then I got smart and decided to work two full days and one half day (that's how my hours worked). It makes a lot more sense for me and gives me a four day weekend every week.

The only down side is I never get a paid holiday, as all holidays fall on either Monday or Friday (my days off). But I prefer my 4 day weekends. I think you split your time between a couple of schools, so probably harder for you, but this was the best thing I ever did for me.

I approached my principal with the idea and she said if I could service the school within those hours it would be fine with her. It's how my daughter's schedule has always been, which is what gave me the idea in the first place.

Look for an email!

Hi! It is finally hot here! Our high today was 91 and tomorrow could be a tad hotter! This is the first brush with 90 since last August. It won't last long, as usual. By Monday we will be considerably cooler. I spent most of the day inside working on pictures for a slide show, but I am enjoying sitting on the deck this evening and it is still plenty warm. And my son is bbq-ing some veggies for us tonight! Nice!

I have been reading about you being a student and the assignments you have to do, but to be honest, I have no idea what you are doing?

Please tell!

Happy quiet Sunday to you:)

Your BBQ sounds delicious! Ours was hot dogs last night! Turned out fine, given our need for speed.

Yes, it was HOT yesterday! Some of your heat must have seeped west, for a change. At home we hit 95! But, cooler today (although still quite warm and pleasant this morning) and a chance of thunderstorms, which actually do seem to be brewing to our east right now. Our house was very miserably hot by later yesterday, but eating outside on the deck was wonderful.

I have not heard of your slideshow program, but we use Pinnacle and get good results. My husband is good with it, but so is my youngest daughter. She is helping me with the show - all I am doing is collecting photos and some general "direction" ideas, helped with music, but she will make it all go together and work. It is going to be hard for me/us to cut down the photos to a short enough length of time, I am afraid. I love them all! We didn't get as far on it as I hoped this weekend (needing some groom inputs, plus my daughter was working long pool hours lifeguarding this weekend and today with the hot weather) but we did make headway on another picture project (handing out wallet size bride and groom photos as part of the wedding favors) that I got my husband launched into, and he LOVES that type of project. So, we are moving forward.

And, Happy Anniversary to your daughter and son-in-law! I imagine those two years seem to have flown by sooo quickly! We look forward to the wedding with such anticipation, and in the blink of an eye, it will be two years ago.

A very busy week ahead - wedding meetings and more errands, later this week moving my mom out of the nursing home and back to her assisted living place (needing to take a lot of time to settle her back in), and a bridal shower at our house the very next day! My youngest daughter is organizing that with a couple of other bridesmaids, (she is getting put into high gear these days!) but I get to clean the house! My mom's move isn't at a great time, but any later this month gets worse. Thankfully she is doing much better and hopefully will be able to make it to the wedding - her main goal in therapy these weeks. Enjoy your "student" days of studying ahead!

Hope the week is going OK - Thanks for the explanation.

Soon be the start of school for you as well.... you are doing the final bit in September, whilst in school? that might be tough:(

Have a good week !