Somewhere to RE-start...

Today (so far) has been one of those days where I woke up and hit the ground running.  (Although I did not hit the ground early enough to take the recycling out - sorry honey!!)


The dishes were done first thing.
The laundry is in progress.
The baby is napping.

And I'm writing a blog post!!

Yesterday was not so productive for me.  However I did make a list (as I am often wont to do).  I made a list of all of the little house projects that I want to complete before the fall arrives.  You see, fall - here in South Bend - is a busy, football-and-family-filled, 3-month-long celebration.  This year we are blessed to have lots of relatives and good friends coming to visit and the only way I could be more excited is if these house projects were already done!

So for the next few weeks, I am hoping to use this space to chronicle my progress on said projects.  Wish me luck.

And to start us off... a little re-cap of what I have already accomplished this year, starting with...

The Dining Room:

Next up... Family room updates! 

And a month later...

Sheesh.  It has been a whole entire month since my last post.   I think I need to work on my dedication to this here weblog.

I have new stories and lots of new pictures to post.  But right now, Mt. Laundry-manjaro is blocking the stairs to my basement.  There are unpacked suitcases in the family room.  There are tall-ish stacks of dishes in my sink.  My carpet hasn't been vacuumed in at lease a week.

And I haven't showered in 2 days (tmi?).

But most importantly, the baby is asleep.  And as any mother to a young one can tell you, that is the BEST time to get things done.

So, I'm off to conquer my womanly duties.

Then I'm going to eat a bowl of ice cream.

And maybe shower.

In that order.

:)

MACATAWA

That photo you see above - the one in my header - is a place called Macatawa.  It is on the West Coast... of Michigan.  I have witnessed some of the most beautiful sunsets I've ever seen in that place.  It is a small community of family cottages - some of them around 100 years old - that are nestled snugly in among the dunes and hills.  When you arrive, you park your car and often don't visit it again until you head back home.  It's where I spent Memorial Day this year, with my dear little family.    

Here are some other photos of this peaceful little community.

A row of Old Glory

through the dune grass

Local choice for cruising

Boats made ready to sail

The aqua-colored cottage in the center is my husband's family cottage.

It is called Sorrento, after his grandmother's favorite place in Italy.

My husband's Great-Grandfather built it in 1929.

It's full of history and creaky floors, old books and fresh lake air.

My blogging will probably be spotty during the summer, as there is no internet access at the cottage.

Can you blame me?  (It's nice to be "unplugged" from time to time)

You'll probably be seeing many more photos of this beautiful place, so please bear with me.  

My camera just loves it.

Happy Summer to you all!

Clare's first visit to the lake - June 2009.