Trip Details....

We had a great trip to the UP last week. We just happened to be up there the same time that my dad was so we got to stay with him at the farm. If you don't know he doesn't live up there anymore, he lives in Fli*nt now where he works driving truck. He still owns the farm but only gets up there once every couple of months.

The kids had a blast at the farm. They found out quickly that if they ventured too far off the cut grass into the tall dead grass in the fields than they got a good dose of wood ticks...we hate those little creepy crawly things and I was really hoping we would get there before they arrived for the summer! :P I was sorely disappointed! Luke figured he could outsmart them or something by running fast through it but still failed...he couldn't figure out how he kept getting them because he had to be running at least 50 mph! LOL

My dad has a road that goes out behind the old chicken coop to the woods and the kids loved running back there with Ginger and seeing who could do it the fastest. It was wonderful to spend almost a whole week outdoors without even worrying about the TV and when they were going to watch cartoons! :) I tend to say no to that more often than not at home but they didn't even ask the whole time we were there! Miracles never cease! :)

I think Luke's highlight was getting to shoot Papa's .22 and pellet gun. Both kids got in quite a bit of target practice out behind the woodshed and also some gun safety. Luke mad the mistake of getting too close to the scope and luckily only got a small cut in the middle of his head when he was shooting the pellet gun. It was almost funny if he hadn't actually gotten hurt! He tried to hide the pain at first but then he saw the blood and it was all over. He cried and it was worse because he did it in front of Papa! Jozie didn't really care too much for the target practice but she turned out to be a pretty good shot when she took her time and aimed! I even got in on the fun and the kids were amazed at how good their mother was. I was in the shooting club in 4-H when I was in Junior High and took hunters safety when I was 12. So I have handled a few guns in my day! I think my dad was surprised to see that I still had it in me. :)

We spent a day at my grandparents house and I found them - with a bit of relief - pretty much the same. I was a little bit worried that I would find them old and decrepit and on their death beds for some reason...maybe because I haven't seen them for a couple of years. I pretty much grew up with them only miles away so it was strange to go so long and not see them. It felt good still have grandma still want to baby me after all these years and be able to baby her a little instead! :) I did end up needing her sewing expertise though because I started a project that I couldn't finish myself! I am a little embarrassed but I found what I thought looked to be an easy pattern for an apron for Jozie for her birthday. I cut it out and had my sewing machine out and ready to only take one look at the directions and dew a complete blank. So I luckily was taking this trip up north and decided to take it to Grandma. She did it. It took her most of the afternoon and into the evening but she said that I never would have gotten it on my own and she has never seen a pattern for an apron that hard! So much for my big head when it comes to sewing....I guess I need a little more practice! I will also have to take a picture of Jozie in it so you can see the final product. It is so cute! Grandma even put a little tag on it that says "Made with Love by Grandma". She's the best!

We didn't get to spend enough time with A. Darlene but that was my fault. We weren't sure we were going to end up going because of my other grandmas health so I didn't call her and let her know we were going to be there. She did stop by at my grandparents house on her way home from work but she was sick with a nasty cold and didn't want to stay long and spread it around. She stayed long enough to talk and play checkers with the kids. She beat Jozie (she's not the best checker player around) but I think Luke took her down. :) It was wonderful to see her even for a short time. :)

So that's my trip. It was hard to come back to the business of suburban life but we managed. Even Jozie noticed how quite things were while we were driving through the UP without even being prompted that we don't live in such a nice quite place now. It must be pretty bad if an 8-year-old notices!

I will post pictures tomorrow. Our Internet was down for most of the day here so I didn't have time to upload any pictures. I'm going to bed now! Goodnight! :)

**Thanks for the tip Jodie! I noticed the Edit Html tab and the compose tab before but never looked at them both so I didn't think to check and see if there was a difference...Duh, I feel really cool!!! 8)**