Touristing to Cranbrook

Remember when I was posting regularly and I had a series called “Touristing“? If you don’t, I’ll refresh your memory: Basically I found sights around my own town that I had never seen or visited. It was a nice way to see my city (that I didn’t love) with fresh eyes. I was thinking I should pick up this series again now that we live in Michigan and everything is new. 

The weather today was heavenly. Like…magical. Sunny. Bright. Warm. Blue skies. Refreshing. It was definitely an outdoor day. Earlier this week we decided that we would venture outside this weekend. After being indoors for the past few months, it was time to attack the outdoors! 

We decided to check off Cranbrook from our list of things to see since the name has come up on more than one occasion from friends. Currently, the grounds is home to a boarding school, an art museum, Academy of Art, a science center and the founder’s house and gardens. Here are a couple of facts that might help you win the next game of Trivial Pursuit: the Eames brothers are graduates of the Cranbrook Art Institute (oh, how I would love to have a house filled with Eames furniture!) and Leonard Bernstein wrote portions of The West Side Story while staying on the grounds. Given that it’s early spring, the scenery really wasn’t anything too exciting. Trees were still bare, grass was still brown, fountains remained off and even one of the waterfalls was still frozen. But it was glorious to be out and about. I thought ahead and brought my camera but regretfully left my memory card at home. Mind you, this was not the first time I’ve done this. When will I learn? Oh well, that’s why God invented the iPhone. 

Here are a few photos from our day: 

This is a man after my own heart. Not for the car decor, but for the travel. I’m sure whoever owns this car is full of stories. The rare self-portrait. It’s acceptable when a cutie in the photograph draws attention away from me. 

I saw these rocks all lined up and had this video in my head. It didn’t turn out like I hoped it would; I’m thinking a tripod would have come in handy. I’ll have to remember that next time.

I can’t imagine how pretty this is in the summer or at the height of spring:Now that it’s officially spring, what have you been doing? And where are some other places in the Metro Detroit Area that we should put on our Touristing list? 

Visitors!

We had our very first non family visitors come to see us last month. Anthony and Melissa came to see during her spring break. You might remember them: they’re the goofballs that followed us all the way to Georgia last year. Yes, they came to Michigan on spring break. Yes, they live in Florida. Yes, they were warned what Michigan weather is like in February. But they came anyway. Don’t you just love friends like that? Here’s a short video of a few things we did while they were here. Thank you guys for coming to see us. We’ve missed seeing our friends’ faces and it was such a nice way to break up the winter blahs! 

 

 

Sledding

What do a bunch of Florida transplants do when there’s snow on the ground? Go sledding, of course! It was the first time for all of us but I can assure you that it won’t be the last time.

Ice storm, snow day and my love

We had our first ice storm last week. As if that wasn’t “exciting” enough, the boys’ wish came true and they were granted their first snow day. Needless to say they were quite happy. Ultimately though, it wasn’t all that bad and most of the ice had melted before lunchtime. Here are a few shots I got before the sun got to it.

And, nothing to do with the ice storm, snow days or pretty much anything else…Ain’t he cute?

Found ’round

Here are some cool things I’ve found ’round the ol’ internet.

This a great way to do a great thing without changing your life. (And a fascinating presentation, to bat.)

Who doesn’t love a good comedian? And who doesn’t love Jerry Seinfeld? Funny that I came across this just days after I was talking to my boys about his delivery. Two years seems like a long time to work on anything. But then again…he’s pretty successful. Maybe I should put a little more effort into these posts. 

I have to admit that I think I’m pretty brave, especially when it comes to public speaking and just generally being in public. I’d love to try something like this but every time I think about it, my heart skips a beat. Does that mean I should do it?

What neat things have you seen out there in Internet Land?

Happy (snowy) New Year!

Happy New Year! I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and a great New Year’s. We were all recovering from a cold last night so it was an early night for us. Grab a warm drink and let me tell you what’s been happening here the last week.

We’ve gotten snow and lots of it!

It started Christmas Eve. Just like a movie, it started on our way to the Christmas Eve service at church. This is what it looked like when we got back:

We got a break on Christmas day but it started up again the day after Christmas. It was amazing (says the Floridiots)!

There’s a rumor that I may or may not know how to make a snow angel. Ah’em…The following photo is for my Florida friends’ benefit. I’m sure you northerners are all too familiar with images like these:Jackson is still shirtless most days. And if he’s not watching the snow from inside…then he’s outside playing in it.The two of us built our very first snowman of the year. Ethan was under the weather so he decided to skip the very cold activity.

We’ve been pretty busy these days. Here’s what we were up to today:

 

Tree shopping and chopping

These are obviously from a few weeks ago. Our tree is now in our living room complete with all the lights and decorations. This year we decided to cut our own tree and I’d like to make this a tradition. It was pretty chilly that day – perfect for Christmas tree shopping/chopping. 

There was still some snow/ice on the ground from a few days earlier. Jackson liked blowing it off the leaves:Found the perfect one (and in our budget):

My Paul Bunyan:Do you cut your own tree? Or are you a firm believer in the artificial ones? 

Dusting…but not the housecleaning kind

We had a little snow the other day. Not much to stick around; just a dusting. Jackson actually got ready for school early so that he could play outside. Early, folks. That’s something that never happens. Ever. 

There’s a park right down the street from us. I braved the winds to see how this little bit of snow changed the view: We’re hoping to get some more for Christmas but I think that’s just wishful thinking. Who knows, maybe Santa will be nice to us this year. How’s the weather in your backyard? 

Found ’round

I haven’t done one of these in a while. They’re accumulating in my bookmark manager so I thought I’d share them with you. 

Are you a Moleskin lover? If so, this is for you: 

 

Pencil sculptures – How in the world does this guy make these?

So this guy made a cloud. Inside!

The most amazing before and after photos of Superstorm Sandy.

Would you ever live in a town with no roads?

What’s your Home Style? Mine came in at “Urban Funk”.

I might have saved the best for last: Things we Say Wrong. I love this video. (In case you were wondering, “whole nother” is one of my pet peeves.)

“Get your booties on ’cause it’s coooold outside!”

(Can you name that movie quote?)

Hey guys! I’m fresh off a visit with my family and revved up to start blogging again! We had 10 people in our little house and it was…amazing! People everywhere! Food everywhere! Jackets and stuff everywhere! I loved every minute of it. Here are a couple of pictures from their visit. I didn’t lug my camera around so you’ll have to settle for iPhone photos. (I’m on Instagram as #shortlong if you care to follow me there, too.) We took them to Frankenmuth and my boys showed Molly how to roll down a hill. I think she might still need some practice:

It was so cold that Ethan and I shared a scarf for a little bit:(Yes, I’m short. Be nice & tell me you imagined me as someone who was 5′ 5″, m’kay?)

While they were here, we also checked out the cider mill:We took them to the Tiger Stadium:Rode the Detroit People Mover: 

Then the day after they left (of course), we got a little surprise:

It’s been chilly around these parts. Jackson has left his mark:How has the weather been in your neck of the woods? It’s so funny to me that we’re all bundled up with scarves, hats and gloves and it’s still not winter yet! That’s just crazy for this Florida girl!