Ahoy, Maties!

We got to take our sailing cruise today. We are so happy that we stayed late and did this. The weather was beautiful and it was a great experience. Most of the crew was dressed as they would have when this ship was sailing. They encourage those on board to take part and become part of the "crew". Bob, Andy and Heather did this. I did very little because I was taking pictures but we all had fun. We learned how much work it was to sail a large ship like this, especially back in the 1800's without the equipment that is available today. Hope you enjoy the pictures!

Sailing Pictures

Here are a few more sailing pictures. The third picture shows Bob and Heather. Andy was also there, but you can't see him in the picture. They helped steer the ship for about 1/2 hour. They tell me that it is hard work to turn the rudder. The bottom picture is the captain. He had a little hand organ and he performed a little sailing music for us. We felt like we had stepped back in time.

God's Paintbrush

Here are some pictures of Thursday night. We watched the sun go down over the lake and it was beautiful. The waves were really high and the tips were pink tinged from the setting sun. I'm thankful we have a God who lets us enjoy a multi-colored world!

Awards

Thanks, Angie
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Thanks Mariel
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Thanks Bonnie
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Thanks Linda
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Thanks Mary
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Thanks Mary ~~~

Thanks Kat ~~~

Thanks Shelly ~~~

Thanks Sharon ~~~

Thanks Karen, Heather, Tammy, Diane, Julie, Melissa and Brenda

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Thanks Renee

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Thanks Karen

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Thanks Renee

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Thanks Rebekah and Jennifer
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Thanks Renee
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Thanks Karen
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Thanks Nice'
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Thanks Karen

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Thanks Karen
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Thanks Karen and Sharon
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Thanks Karen
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Thanks Karen
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Thanks Megan
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Thanks Karen and Bonnie
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Thanks Karen
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Thanks Karen

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Thanks Mary
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Thanks Rebekah
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Scenes from South Haven

We've had a nice day, but it wasn't the day we thought we would have. The weather was cooler this morning but the sun was shining. We walked through town and went through a lot of the little shops here. We enjoyed this - probably Heather and I enjoyed it more than Bob and Andy but they were good sports. We then went back to the hotel and got ready for our sailing excursion. We were supposed to be there and ready to board 30 minutes before sail time. We got there at 2 pm so we had about 1/2 hour to go through the Maritime Museum first. However, when we arrived the lady at the museum informed us that the cruise was cancelled due to the wind. She said the ship was returning early from the cruise that was happening at the time because several people were sick. We saw the ship return and observed that 1 man especially looked quite ill. It took him about 1/2 hour to recover enough to get into his car. We were disappointed but decided to leave a little later tomorrow and try then. We are supposed to go out at 1:15 tomorrow so hopefully the wind will die down by then. We then went and walked to the beach and the lighthouse. The waves were really high, and we saw a power boat that was literally airborne because of the huge waves. After seeing this we were quite happy that we weren't bouncing around out there! Hopefully I will have pictures of a tall ship tomorrow!

Raindrops are falling on our heads but the sun will come out tomorrow!

Here are a few pictures of our first day away. We are having a good time, although we were rained on a few times. The bottom picture was taken on our walk to the water front. We would walk a little bit, then duck under a store canopy while it rained, then start up again. The top picture is the restaurant where we ate supper. It is called Clementines and the building was originally a bank. The building is really neat, with the original tin ceiling and brick walls. We had a great supper and had more than enough to eat. I thought I would throw a few quotes from the evening to give you all a feel for what a day is like with the men in the group.

Andy, (who happened to be making fun of my meal when this was said) "It's like a party in my mouth, but everyone is throwing up!"

Bob - when I asked how his perch was replied "I don't know, something tastes a little fishy"

Andy - (there is no context for this) "Oh Baxter, you're so wise, like a miniature Budha covered in hair"

There you have an example of our supper conversation. Regardless, we are having fun and are looking forward to tomorrow!

We're off!

We are taking a mini vacation for the rest of this week. We wanted to have a little family time before Andy ships out in July, but we are saving our vacation time for his basic training graduation in September, so we are only going away for a short time. I'll post a few pictures later this week. An update on the earwigs - they are dying fast. I came home from work today and vacuumed a bunch of dead ones from the downstairs laundry area and haven't seen anymore since. It must be working! I know I am feeling better without worrying about one crawling out at me. I guess that's it - we're off to enjoy God's creation and each other!

I hate bugs!

Warning - this post may disgust you!

Unlike my friend Nancy, I do not like bugs. I cannot remember a time when I did like bugs. I don't think I even tolerate them. I know that God created them and they must have a purpose, but I don't think their purpose has anything to do with being in my house. You can then imagine my distress over the past week when I began to notice earwigs in the house. Now, every year we see a few in the summer, but this year I think they are out to get me. I usually find a few downstairs or in the bathroom, but this year there are more and I have even found them in the kitchen. I think this disdain of earwigs must go back in time because when I looked up earwig in wikipedia, I found that the reason they have the name they do is because people used to believe they would burrow in their ears and lay eggs in their brains!!! Now that is a disgusting thought. It also said that they usually stay outside, but when it is quite hot and the weather has been dry, they are likely to come in. Well, they may be surprised by my lack of hospitality, but I am not inviting them in. After hearing me comment about these disgusting bugs over the weekend, Bob and Andy went to work. Andy put something around the outside of the house to kill them and when Bob came home from work, he had something to put in the doorways and basement windows that is supposed to put down a barrier they don't like to cross, I sure hope it works!