I felt weird taking my family on a college campus, but it was worth it. I loved showing the kids around! I spent many hours in some of the buildings and I remember now why I went to school there. The campus is gorgeous!! It was fun being back!
Tuesday, August 29, 2017
Brings Back Memories!
Last week when we were driving home from the eclipse, we made a little detour through Crete, Nebraska. I spent four years attending Doane College there, and Matt and I thought it would be fun to show the kids around.
One of the reasons we stopped was to show the kids where Matt proposed. He asked me to marry him right beside this pond, except there used to be a bench there. The bench and sidewalk are gone now, so we walked on the grass and had the kids take a picture. It was pretty fun!
I felt weird taking my family on a college campus, but it was worth it. I loved showing the kids around! I spent many hours in some of the buildings and I remember now why I went to school there. The campus is gorgeous!! It was fun being back!
I felt weird taking my family on a college campus, but it was worth it. I loved showing the kids around! I spent many hours in some of the buildings and I remember now why I went to school there. The campus is gorgeous!! It was fun being back!
Monday, August 28, 2017
Ottawa, Part 2
Since there are so many fun pictures from Ottawa, I decided to make this into two separate posts. :)
If you did not see my previous post, go check it out before you read this one. I posted pictures from our morning in Ottawa and watching the changing of the guard ceremony.
Part 2:
After we were done watching the ceremony, we headed to Byward Market. We were hoping to find a place to eat there. On the way, we passed the American Embassy!
We also made a stop at the Notre Dame Cathedral. Of course, we had to go inside and check it out.
After we saw the cathedral, we kept going until we found a place to stop for lunch. We discovered that along with pizza, Subway was also a relatively cheap way to feed all of us!
After some exploring and lunch, it was time to go back to the parliament building for our tour.
This is inside the building of Parliament; this room is comparable to our House of Representatives.
The Great Library inside the buildings of Parliament. This is the only building that survived a fire in 1916. The rest of the buildings were burned down.
My baby wearer. :)
This room is equivalent to our Senate Chambers in DC. Those fancy chair on the left is where the queen would sit, if she was ever there while the Senate was in session.
After we saw all the important rooms, we were able to go to the top of the bell tower. What a site!! (The grass below there is where the changing of the guard ceremony took place earlier in the day.)
The boys had fun looking out the windows.
Back on the ground and posing in front of the building. I wanted to take a picture of all the kids, but some little one year old wasn't cooperating! Megan cooperated very well!
After we were done seeing everything, we headed back across the bridge to find the truck. We had a free parking pass across the river, so we had to walk back across at the end of the day. This is a view of the Parliament Building from the bridge! WOW!!!
Walking along the bridge. The people walked on the left side, bikers went on the right.
We got back to our truck and then decided we needed an ice cream snack at McDonalds. :)
We eventually made it back to our campground for the night!
If you did not see my previous post, go check it out before you read this one. I posted pictures from our morning in Ottawa and watching the changing of the guard ceremony.
Part 2:
After we were done watching the ceremony, we headed to Byward Market. We were hoping to find a place to eat there. On the way, we passed the American Embassy!
We also made a stop at the Notre Dame Cathedral. Of course, we had to go inside and check it out.
Across from the cathedral though was the art museum of Ottawa. They had this creepy spider on display outside!
After we saw the cathedral, we kept going until we found a place to stop for lunch. We discovered that along with pizza, Subway was also a relatively cheap way to feed all of us!
After some exploring and lunch, it was time to go back to the parliament building for our tour.
This is inside the building of Parliament; this room is comparable to our House of Representatives.
The Great Library inside the buildings of Parliament. This is the only building that survived a fire in 1916. The rest of the buildings were burned down.
My baby wearer. :)
This room is equivalent to our Senate Chambers in DC. Those fancy chair on the left is where the queen would sit, if she was ever there while the Senate was in session.
After we saw all the important rooms, we were able to go to the top of the bell tower. What a site!! (The grass below there is where the changing of the guard ceremony took place earlier in the day.)
The boys had fun looking out the windows.
Back on the ground and posing in front of the building. I wanted to take a picture of all the kids, but some little one year old wasn't cooperating! Megan cooperated very well!
After we were done seeing everything, we headed back across the bridge to find the truck. We had a free parking pass across the river, so we had to walk back across at the end of the day. This is a view of the Parliament Building from the bridge! WOW!!!
Walking along the bridge. The people walked on the left side, bikers went on the right.
We got back to our truck and then decided we needed an ice cream snack at McDonalds. :)
We eventually made it back to our campground for the night!
Sunday, August 27, 2017
Ottawa, Canada Part 1
During our third week of vacation, we spent some time in Canada. We were in northern Michigan, so we thought it would be fun to pop up into Canada for a little bit. The kids have never been to a different country, so we thought it would be fun for everybody to experience and it was!!!
We went into Ottawa for a day. This is the capital of Canada, which would be equivalent to our Washington, DC. We wanted to go on a tour of the capital and we heard that you had to be there early to stand in line to get tour tickets, so we were there pretty early. Megan, Christian, Micah, and I stood in line while Matt went and parked in a city across the river. It took him 30 minutes to walk to us!
This was our view while we were in line. This is the capital building of Canada!
We stood in line about 45 minutes and we had to go into this building. The tickets were free, but you just had to have one. You got to pick your time that you wanted to go on tour. I believe ours were for 1 pm or so.
We got our tickets about 9:15-9:30 and at 10 am, they had a changing of the guard ceremony. We were able to watch this. This police man was keeping the crowd in order. I told Christian not to mess with him- he had a gun!!
Here comes the parade from one end.
Here comes the marching band from the other end.
They marched right in front of us.
Changing of the guard ceremony on the parade grounds. I never quite knew what was going on!
Matt and the kids back on the sidewalk. They didn't want to get involved in the crowd of people like Megan and I were! We were busy taking pictures of it all.
More marching on the grounds. Notice the Canadian flag in the background!
After the ceremony was over, they marched back out.
They marched back on the street. Christian thought it was pretty neat!
Matt and I watched a changing of the guard ceremony in London when we were there on our honeymoon quite a few years ago. They looked very similar!
We went into Ottawa for a day. This is the capital of Canada, which would be equivalent to our Washington, DC. We wanted to go on a tour of the capital and we heard that you had to be there early to stand in line to get tour tickets, so we were there pretty early. Megan, Christian, Micah, and I stood in line while Matt went and parked in a city across the river. It took him 30 minutes to walk to us!
This was our view while we were in line. This is the capital building of Canada!
We stood in line about 45 minutes and we had to go into this building. The tickets were free, but you just had to have one. You got to pick your time that you wanted to go on tour. I believe ours were for 1 pm or so.
We got our tickets about 9:15-9:30 and at 10 am, they had a changing of the guard ceremony. We were able to watch this. This police man was keeping the crowd in order. I told Christian not to mess with him- he had a gun!!
Here comes the parade from one end.
Here comes the marching band from the other end.
They marched right in front of us.
Changing of the guard ceremony on the parade grounds. I never quite knew what was going on!
Matt and the kids back on the sidewalk. They didn't want to get involved in the crowd of people like Megan and I were! We were busy taking pictures of it all.
More marching on the grounds. Notice the Canadian flag in the background!
After the ceremony was over, they marched back out.
They marched back on the street. Christian thought it was pretty neat!
Friday, August 25, 2017
Fun at Campgrounds
Sometimes it's not always about the fun sites and cities that you get to see, but sometimes the campgrounds are interesting in themselves! We stayed at many private campgrounds along our trip and this one in Kennebunkport, Maine probably made us laugh the most! It wasn't the pool or playground that was fun, but all the props that were near the entrance. They were so much fun that I spent some time taking pictures of them!
I did not have Courtney with me during this time. She was helping Matt tear down the camper and get that ready to go. We were pulling out of this campground at this time and moving onto Rhode Island.
Extra Large Fun Chairs!
Micah looks so small!
These things are always fun to do! My kids were the marshmallows! They thought it was funny that they were getting "roasted!"
This one may or may not show up in the graduation slide show some day!!!!
This wasn't a prop, but a truck the campground used to bring fresh lobster to their campers everyday.
This campground had an interesting office area. Here are some cool yellow wire chairs. Comfortable or not so much??
This guy scared me every time I went into the office!!!
They also had these fun mirrors on their porch. They were pretty fun!
I can say this was the most interesting campground!! (But not our favorite!)
I did not have Courtney with me during this time. She was helping Matt tear down the camper and get that ready to go. We were pulling out of this campground at this time and moving onto Rhode Island.
Extra Large Fun Chairs!
Micah looks so small!
These things are always fun to do! My kids were the marshmallows! They thought it was funny that they were getting "roasted!"
This one may or may not show up in the graduation slide show some day!!!!
This wasn't a prop, but a truck the campground used to bring fresh lobster to their campers everyday.
This campground had an interesting office area. Here are some cool yellow wire chairs. Comfortable or not so much??
This guy scared me every time I went into the office!!!
They also had these fun mirrors on their porch. They were pretty fun!
I can say this was the most interesting campground!! (But not our favorite!)
Thursday, August 24, 2017
A Visit to a Lighthouse
During our second week of vacation, we spent most of it in the great state of Michigan. I have never been there before, let alone known there was an upper peninsula, but it was amazing!!
My friend wanted to go there, so we planned our vacation together there for that week.
We stayed in three various state parks while we were there.
For the last part of the week, we were in the upper peninsula near Lake Superior. While we were there, we visited a lighthouse along the lake. As much as I love the big cities and all they have to offer, this place was kind of amazing! (Let it be known though that Matt and Courtney did NOT like this place. I will explain later.)
Whitefish Point Lake House along the bank of Lake Superior
I was not too excited about going to the beach, so I took Megan, Kaelynn, Erich, and Christian to the Shipwreck Museum. The rest of the crew went swimming in Lake Superior, but that didn't last long. They ended up getting swarmed by what we called "vampire flies" by the end of the day!! They would bite you until you bled!! They were NOT having a great time. (They lasted at the beach about 15 minutes because the flies were so thick, and then didn't do much the rest of the day. They did not pay to go through the shipwreck museum, which meant they couldn't go through any of the other buildings there either.)
Inside the museum. This is a piece of a boat that was shipwrecked and an example of divers.
Erich and Christian. These are the diving suits they wear to go underwater and look at the shipwrecked boats.
There was also a little building there that told how the coast guard would go rescue people off the wrecked ships. This boat is an example of one they would take out to rescue the people.
Another example of rescue equipment. They would roll this out the beach as far as they could and then throw the buoy to the person in need. They would then pull him back to shore.
Megan and I also signed up to climb the lighthouse.
View from top of the lighthouse. The museum is top left.
Megan and I and Lake Superior. From the top of the lighthouse! You can see a barge out on the lake.
Megan, Micah, and Miki. Walking back to our cars. Everyone else was more than ready to go at this point! They were tired of the flies. I had a great time!!
My friend wanted to go there, so we planned our vacation together there for that week.
We stayed in three various state parks while we were there.
For the last part of the week, we were in the upper peninsula near Lake Superior. While we were there, we visited a lighthouse along the lake. As much as I love the big cities and all they have to offer, this place was kind of amazing! (Let it be known though that Matt and Courtney did NOT like this place. I will explain later.)
Whitefish Point Lake House along the bank of Lake Superior
I was not too excited about going to the beach, so I took Megan, Kaelynn, Erich, and Christian to the Shipwreck Museum. The rest of the crew went swimming in Lake Superior, but that didn't last long. They ended up getting swarmed by what we called "vampire flies" by the end of the day!! They would bite you until you bled!! They were NOT having a great time. (They lasted at the beach about 15 minutes because the flies were so thick, and then didn't do much the rest of the day. They did not pay to go through the shipwreck museum, which meant they couldn't go through any of the other buildings there either.)
Inside the museum. This is a piece of a boat that was shipwrecked and an example of divers.
Erich and Christian. These are the diving suits they wear to go underwater and look at the shipwrecked boats.
There was also a little building there that told how the coast guard would go rescue people off the wrecked ships. This boat is an example of one they would take out to rescue the people.
Another example of rescue equipment. They would roll this out the beach as far as they could and then throw the buoy to the person in need. They would then pull him back to shore.
Megan and I also signed up to climb the lighthouse.
View from top of the lighthouse. The museum is top left.
This is where the rest of our crew hung out after they gave up at the beach! They continued to get bit up by the flies, but they let us do our thing! (You can see them in the picture above this. They are on the lower right hand side.)
Megan and I and Lake Superior. From the top of the lighthouse! You can see a barge out on the lake.
Megan, Micah, and Miki. Walking back to our cars. Everyone else was more than ready to go at this point! They were tired of the flies. I had a great time!!
Wednesday, August 23, 2017
I remembered how to drive!
Today was the end of Matt's 7 1/2 week vacation. :( He headed back to work, which meant I was on my own again with the four kiddos. All good things must come to an end, right?
This also meant that we had to get life back to normal. Today I had an appointment for Megan and myself at the orthodontist and at the chiropractor, which meant I actually got to drive! I haven't driven since before we left on our trip! It was kind of weird, but I managed! I didn't hit anybody!! haha!!
Tomorrow Megan has tryouts for a fall play with the homeschool learning center. She doesn't want to be on stage, but she wants to be behind the scenes. The leaders are making those kids come in and interview, so she has that tomorrow afternoon. We have a playdate on Friday and then we are starting school back up next Monday (after our eye appointments of course!) I am hoping to have this house back in order before then!
Slowly but surely, life is getting back to normal!
This also meant that we had to get life back to normal. Today I had an appointment for Megan and myself at the orthodontist and at the chiropractor, which meant I actually got to drive! I haven't driven since before we left on our trip! It was kind of weird, but I managed! I didn't hit anybody!! haha!!
Tomorrow Megan has tryouts for a fall play with the homeschool learning center. She doesn't want to be on stage, but she wants to be behind the scenes. The leaders are making those kids come in and interview, so she has that tomorrow afternoon. We have a playdate on Friday and then we are starting school back up next Monday (after our eye appointments of course!) I am hoping to have this house back in order before then!
Slowly but surely, life is getting back to normal!
Tuesday, August 22, 2017
Six Flags
One of the things we did at the beginning of our trip was go to Six Flags Amusement Park outside of Chicago. We have friends that live near Chicago who wanted to go and we were able to get Courtney and Christian's tickets free, so we went!!
We have not been to an amusement park in a few years, but the kids LOVED the rides. My friend also has older daughters (13 and 15), so we sent the three older girls off by themselves with a cell phone. They got to go ride all the roller coasters they wanted and didn't have to wait for us to take the little kids on the kiddie rides. With that being said, I didn't see Megan much of the day! Let alone get pictures of her on the rides.
Courtney and her friend stuck around with Matt most of the day and my friend and I kept track of whoever was left, such as Micah, Christian, and her son. We caught up with each other throughout the day, but kind of went where the kids wanted to go.
Here are some fun pictures.
We were there when the doors opened at 10 am. Yes, matching shirts were a must! (I had one too, but couldn't find it at the time.) $25 for parking!! Crazy!!
The official picture with our friends in front of the carousel at Six Flags Great America outside of Chicago.
Micah's first ride- He was scared out of his mind and grabbed me right away when the ride started moving. I thought it was hilarious!
Pizza, french friends, and pop were consumed for both meals that day. It was really the cheapest way to feed our family.
This is me standing in line for the raft ride on the ranging river. This was one of two rides that I went on that day! I went on a couple kiddie rides with Micah, but those don't count! :)
Megan kind of giddy! She got stuck at the top of a roller coaster and they gave her a fast pass for her patience. She didn't end up using it and brought it home for a souvenir!
Jennifer, Christian, and Erich on a little roller coaster. I was on the side watching Micah.
A ride that Micah enjoyed!!
Selfie on the train! My ride #2 of the day.
About 9 pm, they had a dance party at the main square of the park. We danced for a long time while waiting for everybody to finish their rides. Micah loved it!!
The park closed at 10 pm, but poor Micah couldn't last that long. He was so hot and sweaty, but needed to go to sleep. I put his pajamas on and put him in the front carrier and out he went!
Our last picture before exiting the park. Megan and the older girls ran off to get one last ride on the carousel (without telling us where they were going), so here we are waiting for them. It was time to go home!!
What a fun day!! Maybe next year I will get to ride a FEW more rides!!
As a side note, that night it rained and rained and rained and we were in a flood warning. They actually closed Six Flags the next day because of all the flooding. I am glad we went when we did!!
We have not been to an amusement park in a few years, but the kids LOVED the rides. My friend also has older daughters (13 and 15), so we sent the three older girls off by themselves with a cell phone. They got to go ride all the roller coasters they wanted and didn't have to wait for us to take the little kids on the kiddie rides. With that being said, I didn't see Megan much of the day! Let alone get pictures of her on the rides.
Courtney and her friend stuck around with Matt most of the day and my friend and I kept track of whoever was left, such as Micah, Christian, and her son. We caught up with each other throughout the day, but kind of went where the kids wanted to go.
Here are some fun pictures.
We were there when the doors opened at 10 am. Yes, matching shirts were a must! (I had one too, but couldn't find it at the time.) $25 for parking!! Crazy!!
The official picture with our friends in front of the carousel at Six Flags Great America outside of Chicago.
Micah's first ride- He was scared out of his mind and grabbed me right away when the ride started moving. I thought it was hilarious!
Pizza, french friends, and pop were consumed for both meals that day. It was really the cheapest way to feed our family.
This is me standing in line for the raft ride on the ranging river. This was one of two rides that I went on that day! I went on a couple kiddie rides with Micah, but those don't count! :)
Megan kind of giddy! She got stuck at the top of a roller coaster and they gave her a fast pass for her patience. She didn't end up using it and brought it home for a souvenir!
Jennifer, Christian, and Erich on a little roller coaster. I was on the side watching Micah.
A ride that Micah enjoyed!!
Selfie on the train! My ride #2 of the day.
About 9 pm, they had a dance party at the main square of the park. We danced for a long time while waiting for everybody to finish their rides. Micah loved it!!
The park closed at 10 pm, but poor Micah couldn't last that long. He was so hot and sweaty, but needed to go to sleep. I put his pajamas on and put him in the front carrier and out he went!
Our last picture before exiting the park. Megan and the older girls ran off to get one last ride on the carousel (without telling us where they were going), so here we are waiting for them. It was time to go home!!
What a fun day!! Maybe next year I will get to ride a FEW more rides!!
As a side note, that night it rained and rained and rained and we were in a flood warning. They actually closed Six Flags the next day because of all the flooding. I am glad we went when we did!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)