Our little graduate!

We had a graduation last week,  Cassie graduated from preschool!  It was an outside event, so we were thankful that although it was cool out, the sun was shining.

Connor and Andrew, patiently waiting for things to start.

The kids sitting in a circle, having one last story read to them.

Singing a song to us

It was very sunny, and the class was facing the sun. The teacher had parents bring up sunglasses and caps if the wanted to.

Cassie getting her diploma.

Andrew, Heather, Cassie and Connor after the program.

Cassie with her friend Otto.

Hooray!

Leaving preschool for the last time.

Congratulations to our sweet girl!

Tulip Time

I live near Holland Michigan, an area that was settled by Dutch immigrants and is full of reminders of the Netherlands. My great-grandparents on both sides came from the Netherlands as well, and so did Bob's so we appreciate that heritage. Holland has an annual Tulip Time Festival, one of the largest festivals in the U.S every year. It's been happening since 1929 and brings in people from all over the world. Last year there were nearly 1 million visitors.  A highlight is the tulips planted all over the city - over 5 million of them! Another highlight is Dutch dancing with over 900 dancers in traditional clothing form the late 1800's, including wooden shoes.
We usually try to go before the festival to avoid the crowds. This year I tried to go with Heather and Laura, but sick kids caused us to cancel. 
Last week, after the festival was done, Heather and I decided to take Cassie and Connor and see if any tulips were still blooming.

We found some, but a lot of them were fading.

Here's Cassie and Connor checking out this statue of the ancestors.

Standing in front of a tulip time mural

We walked to a park where we saw this mama duck with her babies.  Connor was excited to see them.

From this park, we could see the DeZwaan Windmill, an authentic working, windmill from the Netherlands.  It was the last one allowed to leave the Netherlands.

Cassie peaking into this old building at the park.

We then visited another area in Holland and found a few more tulips.

Holland is also home to a tribute to 'The Wizard of Oz'. Frank Baum, the author used to vacation there and his family said that much of the book was written there.  There is a yellow brick road with statues of the book characters. Cassie was particularly fond of the lion.

Our last stop was for lunch. Cassie had fun trying out this cut out of Dutch street cleaners.

We didn't see many tulips, but we still had fun!

Memorial Day

Monday is Memorial Day in the United States. I saw this explanation of holidays that relate to veterans and thought it would be good to share.

*Comments off for today

Friday Funny

 

Cooking Thursday

We have fairly frequent potlucks at our church. Several months ago, following the potluck, there were a bunch of people waiting to see who had brought a particular dish because it was so good.  This included a few guys which is unusual.  We figured out who brought it, and got the recipe!  I made it and it may be the easiest recipe I've made - perfect for a potluck, and as I told you, it's very good!

Raspberry Fluff

16 ounces thawed Cool Whip
32 ounces Vanilla Yogurt
1 large package (6 ounce) Vanilla Pudding (dry mix)
1 bag frozen raspberries (or other fruit of your choice)

Stir together the Cool Whip and Yogurt, then stir in the pudding mix.
Add frozen raspberries and stir.
Refrigerate overnight or for several hours before serving.

Wordless Wednesday

 

A little more fun in Dearborn

We visited Henry Ford's home in Dearborn. Unfortunately, it's being renovated so you can't go inside. But, visitors are free to walk the yard and gardens, which even at this time of year are beautiful. 

Henry and Clara Ford built this home and moved into it in 1915.

This is the front and side of the home with patio you can't see in this photo.

We walked to the side yard where we found this doorway dug into the side of a hill. It turned out to be a boat house. Another opening was dug on the other side which opens to the river.

Look what was above the door...   It was a wood chuck!

There were also several geese in the area.

Looking up at the house from the boat house.

The back of the house and back yard.

The Rogue River runs behind the house

A walled garden on the other side of the house.  There were all kinds of roses growing here, so it will soon be a beautiful spot!

A statue of Henry and Clara Ford.

We really enjoyed wandering around the home and yard and hope to return someday to tour the interior.

I'm back!

Bob and I took a short trip to Dearborn, Michigan to visit the Henry Ford Museum.  Last year we were there to see Greenfield Village with Alaina and Ruby, but didn't have time for the museum, so we decided we needed to go back for some museum time.

Dearborn is about 2 1/2 hours from our house, on the other side of the state. We saw this semi along the way and it was so cute!

We checked into our hotel and decided to walk the 3/4 mile to the restaurant to enjoy the city streets.  It's fun to see the different buildings.

We ate at Ford's Garage, a place we were at last year. It's all decorated with old cars and car things, and the burgers are fantastic!

Here we are the next morning, ready to take on the museum. This is like no other museum I've been to and is an all day adventure.

One of the first things we saw was a bunch of presidential cars. The top one was Franklin Roosevelts, bottom right was Theodore Roosevelts carriage and the bottom left was the car JFK was in when he was assasinated.

Thomas Edison was a good friend of Henry Ford, and signed his name in the cement when the museum was being built.

George Washingtons camp bed and camp box.

Rosa Parks bus

Benedict Arnold letter

We had lunch in an old diner that was moved into the museum from New Jersey.

This is a Stradivarius violin that was owned by Henry Ford. He could play it, but played it in the style of a fiddle.

This is the chair Abraham Lincoln was sitting in when he was assasinated.

This is Edgar Allen Poe's writing table.

One of many beautiful old cars.

A few items I remember that made me feel very old!   :)

Another classic!

These are just a few of so many interesting things that we saw. We greatly enjoyed our visit here.