What A Weekend

This weekend was a bit of a blur. Saturday and Sunday could not have been more different. Really I don't have a whole lot to say. There's much more to show you. 

Saturday started out with sandwiches from The Cheese Shanty in Leland. If you're ever in Northern Michigan it's a must visit (you have to come during the warmer months though because this places closes right down when temperatures start to drop).

Wednesday was my brother's birthday but we were all busy with work so we spent Saturday celebrating together.

My brother requested a beach day so we drove out to the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore to lay in the sun and play in the waves. It was the perfect day. Enough breeze to keep you from burning up in the sun, but hot enough to be comfortable in bathing suits. The water was even warm!

Not a bad view.

We parked by a really beautiful forest. I was mesmerized by the trees' perfect alignment and relatively clear forest floor.

Then Sunday came and so did one of the biggest storms I can ever remember having in this area.

The picture above was the only photo I took on Sunday while we were driving around after the majority of the storm hit checking on places around town. We turned down this road and discovered that tree blocking our path. The roots were so deep it brought up the entire sidewalk. Huge trees came down all around the city causing lots of damage. Most of the area lost power and some houses were severely damaged. Luckily I don't believe anyone was seriously injured due to the storm.

The rest of these photos were taken during a walk around my neighborhood Monday morning. All you could hear around town Monday were chainsaws and beeping trucks. I'm incredibly thankful that the least we had to worry about was the power outage at my house. Our power was back on early Monday morning, but in some parts of the city they don't think the power will be back on until Thursday.

This house looked like it suffered the most damage in my neighborhood. The entire garage was crushed under that tree but the little bird house next to it was completely unscathed. Conditions are even worse in Glen Arbor, Empire, and the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore area. It's sad to think of all the beautiful old trees that were lost on Sunday and of all the people who no longer have homes to go to now. I'm sure it will be a long time before everything is back in order.

Like I said, Saturday and Sunday could not have been more different. It's a little ironic that I spent so much of Saturday admiring the trees and finding myself amazed at how many are in the area. I was just sitting down Sunday to write a whole post about our beach day and the beauty of nature in Northern Michigan (trees being the main focus) when the storm rolled in. Just a reminder to take the time to admire what nature has to offer you before it's gone. You never know what's around the corner.

-S

P. S. Here's a picture I saw on the M22 Facebook Page of the storm coming in.

Winter Sunday Adventure

On Sunday my family drove out to Empire and the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore area because we had heard the ice caves from last year were back. Unfortunately once we got out there we learned there were no ice caves yet this year (major bummer). The temperatures were below zero, the wind was blowing hard and snow was coming down, but we decided to drive around and explore a little anyways. Might as well enjoy the area while we were there.

My dad, brother, and I all went out on the ice at Empire. The snow was deep but climbing down onto the ice was a slipper task. Surprisingly none of us ended up on our butts during the process. After a few minutes I was getting cold and worried that my pant legs were getting wet, so I headed back to the car. My dad and brother both had snow pants on so they explored a few minutes longer.

Even though it was cold and windy we still had a lot of fun exploring. I don't think I've ever been out to the National Park in the winter (or if I have it's been a long time).

I love this picture of my parents. We were walking back and they reached out to grab each other's mittens. I'd image holding hands with mittens on isn't the easiest, but they're pretty dedicated hand holders. Aren't they adorable?

-S

Birthday Photodump

Here I am another year older and still equally as bad as I was last year at scheduled blogging (whoops). My birthday was on Thursday and it was a gorgeous summer day in Northern Michigan. I couldn't have asked for a better day to celebrate with family. We went wine tasting, which I've pretty much done every weekend in July so far (I'm definitely not complaining!), and ate dinner at North Peak. 

The wine tasting started off at Brengman Brother (I don't have any pictures from there), then moved on to Shady Lane Cellars, and lastly Tandem Ciders. Since we started later in the day and my brother and Katy had a concert to get to we didn't go to that many wineries, but we made them count. Despite the gorgeous tasting room, I wasn't that impressed by Brengman Borthers wines. I'm pretty sure the only wine I did like was from their sister winery in Italy. On the other hand, Shady Lane Cellars was gorgeous and the wine was tasty. I'd definitely go back there again, especially after realizing it's right off of the bike trail. 

Overall it was another wonderful birthday. I'm so thankful for my family and friends.

-S