Meeting Michelle

It is funny in blogland how you "meet" people through different ways and become "friends" through common interests. Or how you can visit a place just once and it grips your heart and never lets go?Michelle from Emerald Cove and I found that we both have a love for Glen Lake (Michigan) and became fast friends. I love her blog and all of her beach~inspired projects. She has always been a kind blogger friend, making sweet comments and sending me emails when we found something interesting between us!

My husband and I made plans to vacation in the Glen Lake area because we were really missing the dunes and the beauty of the area. One day I was reading Michelle's blog and noticed that she was going to be away for awhile and I immediately knew she would be at Glen Lake. I emailed her and I told her when we would be at Glen and asked if she would she also be there. As it turned out our vacations would overlap and then we exchanged cell numbers.

When Michelle called me, I was helping my husband put our boat in the water at Glen Lake. Michelle and I made a plan that I would pull up waterside to their vacation spot. I was a bit nervous. As it turned out, there was nothing at all to be nervous about! Michelle waded out to our boat and even though we were meeting for the first time, it felt like greeting an old friend! We had an awesome afternoon on the water with both of our families. I was glad that we were able to meet each other's families! We found that we also have another thing in common.

We are both slalom skiers. Holy cow look at that gigantic rooster tail!!! Very impressive!

Michelle and her family that we enjoyed so much:

My daughter and Michelle's son:

Michelle's kiddos having a blast on the tube:

My 3 kiddos:

Officially friends, not "just" bloggy friends:

Michelle and I also enjoy the gorgeous sunsets and pinkish skies over Lake Michigan!

On the way home for our trip, my hubby and I were talking about the events of our trip and he asked my what my highlights were and the first one I rattled off was meeting Michelle. It was such a great time meeting her and I see us getting together in the future. And you can bet it will be at our favorite place that brought us together. Love you Glen Lake, for so many reasons!

Hugs,
Cathy

Summer Rules

We have a few summer rules at our house. The first few entail words that are banished in our household.

*Forbidden words:
Bored~if this slips out of your mouth you will earn the privilege of cleaning the toilet!!
Homework~there is no reason to use this word in the summer. Period!
School~not allowed until the first week of August. Why talk about it, if it doesn't happen for 5 more weeks?

*Also you must hang your pool towel and pick up your room.

*Offering help to me is preferred and I may ask you to change a load laundry or to empty the dishwasher. If I do, then you better do it quickly and with a happy heart. If not, then you may incur the wrath of mean momma!

Enough about rules, let's get to the good stuff! We have had an awesome summer! So many new experiences (for all of us) and great memories. We have met new people and played with old friends, as well.

I was able to meet a bloggy friend. I met Michelle from Emerald Cove. She is a doll and it felt like we were instant friends. I don't want to give away all of the details, YET, but we met at a lake! Our favorite lake. We will both be posting about the experience on Thursday, July 28th. So be sure to check back for that post!

Here are a few things that have been keeping me busy:

early morning workouts~tough for me, a true night owl, but I keep going!
slalom skiing~ I am having a ball with it!!!
coffee~drinking way too much of it!
healthy eating~doing pretty well on most days!
celebrating my girls' summer birthdays~they are lucky to have summer to celebrate!!
Bible study @ the pool~amazing women and a great study!
cooking~making lots of healthy and delicious food
photography~taking a gazillion photos and so grateful for an awesome camera and lens to replace the one that was stolen in December
T.O.W=time on the water...watching my kids wakeboard, driving the boat so my hubby can board, using my paddleboard and cooling off in the lake!
driving kids to & fro~their events like swim, dive, tennis, golf, summer gym etc! and friends houses!
weeding~all of the flower beds, pond and anywhere I see a weed..July is a crazy month for weeds.

I am leaving you with a pic from July 4th. I love the fireworks on the 4th and the tasty food and feeling of summer and patriotism. It is my favorite holiday.

On the left is my son Foster, my daughter Ana is in the middle and our friend Pete is on the right. They have been the finale of our lake's ski show for two years in a row. It is a bit tricky to get up 3 boarders who ride different rope lengths and styles, but we did it again this year. I think the photo shows you how much fun they are having.

I hope you are having a fun summer and that you stay within the rules so you don't have to clean too many toilets or do too much weeding!
hugs,
Cathy M.