need camera!

I am without a camera. I haven't been without a camera for a long, long time. I am wondering what unexpected moments that I will miss capturing because my old camera died. Moments like this:

Baby toad catching.

cooking

cuteness

and tragedy.

What about Sydney's first day of school in a little over a week?

What about my growing belly?

What about those first day pictures of my 3rd graders?

What about...

I need help. I need advice. I need a new camera. Where in the world do I start? What brand, type, model, etc. Help!

Mackinac Island, Day 2

We woke up on Tuesday, and decided that we'd rent a couple of bikes. I wasn't sure if I could do it, but they have cruisers there which are quite comfy. We rented ours from our hotel, which meant a little bit of a discount. What I wasn't prepared for were the hills! Usually, when we have the kids, we just bike the 8 miles around the island. This time we decided to bike some of the interior island trails, which we have never done before. The views were amazing at the top of the first hill that we walked our bikes up. You can see us at the top in the pictures below. If you click on the collage, you will see the bridge in the background of the picture in the bottom right.

We then continued on our journey to arch rock. I have always, always, always wanted to go to the rock and look down at the people on the road below. I love sight seeing. :) There were hills upon hills of trail, but we finally arrived. The view is amazing up there:

I just love the color of the water on the island. If you click on the picture collage again, you can see the rocks that form the word LOVE in the water. You'll also see how small everyone looks from up there in the bottom left picture.

Here is the view from the rock as well. It was such a beautiful morning!

We found this cute little trail.

And then we continued on our way. We biked and biked up and down hills. It was exhausting!!! And then, we missed our turn and went WAY out of our way. So, then we decided to take the downhill trail to British Landing. It was about a mile and a half away, and all we had to do was this...

coast! The whole way! I think I pedaled once! Barry was quite relieved since this whole biking thing was my idea, and he was just honoring me. We rode into British Landing and treated ourselves to some waters. I would have taken pictures, but i was having camera problems. We cooled off and then set off again. From there, we biked the rest of the way around the island which was probably 4 miles further! It was exceptionally breezy, since there were storms to be rolling in later in the day. We returned our bikes exactly 2 hours after renting them, which was good since we were charged by the hour. I was worn out! After a rest we headed out for lunch at the Seabiscuit Cafe. We continued to walk around until the rains were starting to come. We headed back our room to relax and read. We'd had a great morning and early afternoon. Later that night we went back out for dinner and it was quite chilly and windy. We ended up at the Yankee Tavern for dinner. Barry chose ribs and I had the pot roast. Both seemed yummy after the cold rainy evening. We then got some ice cream from Sanders, then walked the piers since it had warmed up. The skies were beautiful and the water was too.

We had a very nice time and it was so relaxing. Just what we needed before the fall schedules and baby S arrives!

Oh, and by the way, my camera never recovered from the problems. In fact, it died. Totally and completely. DEAD. It doesn't turn on. I was so bummed to not be able to take pictures during the last half of our trip.

Mackinac Island

Barry and I got away for a few days this week to Mackinac Island. Our 10 year anniversary was at the end of May and we didn' t have the chance to get away then. We decided to plan the trip for August which has been a calmer time for us. We were slow at making our reservations, which meant that we didn' t find a room at one of the bed and breakfasts that we really wanted to stay at. We ended up deciding on the Harbour View. It was not a b&b, more like a small hotel.



On the first day, we arrived on the Island around 2. We checked into our room and sat out on the porch and just relaxed. After a little while, we ventured out toward town and went walking around checking out the stores, shops, and views. We've been to Mackinac Island on numerous occasions, so we pretty much know our way around. We bought some fudge (YUM) and I had my camera with me, but I didn't take a single picture! I would later regret this! After that we went back to the room and took a little nap before heading back out for dinner. We ended up eating at the Pink Pony, which was yummy and relaxing. We greatly enjoyed their brushetta. This was our view from the Pink Pony:

On our way back to the hotel, we stopped for Starbucks. How did Starbucks end up on Mackinac Island? No other store or restaurant is a chain! So, we each bought a coffee and then headed back to the room to have fudge for dessert. While on the way, Barry stopped us at the marina (shown above) and we sat down. He then pulled this box out of his pocket! I was so suprised! I didn' t expect a gift at all! I love small boxes, don't you? I couldn't wait to see what was inside. He bought me a beaded bracelet by Chamilia. I love it. The beads he chose for me have our kids birthstones on it (one for all 3 of them), family and mother beads, a beach umbrella/chair bead, and then a fish bead.

That was the end of our first day. It was so nice to just be by ourselves, relaxing, and enjoying one another's company on Mackinac Island.

one good compliment

I can live for two months on one good compliment. Mark Twain

So, tonight I was at Meijer, minding my own business when a lady began talking about me. I looked up and she said, "I was just telling them how cute you look! No one should look that cute and be pregnant!"

Don't you just love out of the blue compliments from a stranger? It made my day. And actually, I think I can live for the next two months on that compliment! :) Especially now, in the last 7 weeks of my pregnancy when you start feeling anything but cute. For the next 7 weeks I will remind myself of this night. :)

Then, after I give birth, I will need someone to say something like, "I can't believe you just had a baby! You look incredible." And even though that person will be lying, I know I could live for the 7 weeks post c-section on another good compliment!

Isn't it amazing what encouraging words and compliments can do? I need to spread a little more of them around myself.