Marblehead, OH

Our friends, the Cornells, have introduced us to a number of small town "hot spots" lately. On Memorial Day, we drove to Marblehead (near Sandusky) to experience the wonders of Mystery Hill .

Of course, once we arrived, everyone had to potty and have snacks.

Then we shuffled over to this crazy, mixed up house.

Jacob defies gravity!

That water is running uphill!

Be careful Rick!

Now that's just weird.

How does she do that?

How about we move into this place instead?

We should've had our V8.

Next we took a self-guided tour through The Prehistoric Forest. The kids found a dino dig and managed to excavate so perfectly preserved fossils.

Good work there girls!

Look out for that triceratops!

I thought they only ate plants???

Emma got tangled up with this enormous snake.

Jake's a little worried...

Wanna ride?

As if ALL THAT wasn't enough, we went to see an old lighthouse on Marblehead. It was such a windy day that Lake Erie seemed more like an ocean. Look at those waves!

We had to huddle together for warmth.

We want it to be summer so badly that we wear shorts, but it's cold enough that we have to keep a sweatshirt on.

I don't think you'll find many sea shells here Em.

If you look across Lake Erie, you can see Canada.

It may be a lake, but it still makes you feel small.

This lighthouse still operates today.

It's random stuff like this giant pizza dude that makes the drive so fun. You just never know what you'll see on the side of the road.

How could we NOT stop at Cheesehaven?

For all your cheesy needs, shop http://www.cheesehaven.com/.

We really know how to have a good time here in Ohio. Doesn't it make you wanna visit?

Picnic in the Park

Over Memorial Day weekend, we went to one special engagement after another. Our ward friends met at Side Cut Metropark on Saturday for a spontaneous picnic.

The spot we chose was completely shaded by trees, and right next to the children's playground. We also had a huge field for playing catch and frisbee.

We brought KFC's new grilled chicken (not good) and enjoyed the company of ward family. Emma chased babies and ran around with girlfriends.

Jake loved throwing the ball around with Dad (and Dad loved not being at the hospital). It was totally relaxing and completely perfect.

Woodland Art Show

Woodland Elementary just celebrated its 30th Anniversary with a student art show. Since our kids are new, they didn't get a chance to contribute much to the school's collection. Jake made a whale tail sculpture similar to this piece displayed at Riverside Park:

Emmy made a vase of clay complete with paper flowers:

We hope to see more work from the kids this summer. They've signed up for a few workshops and classes to keep them busy over the next few months. I also hope to continue their piano instruction once the new house is put together.

I'll miss...

We’ve got a week to go before the big move, and I’ve been thinking a lot about what I’ll miss about this place. Here’s my list so far:

The “Park”

One of my daily pleasures is looking out over our backyard as I eat my breakfast.

I never tire of seeing the green grass, huge trees, and variety of critters. That's a cardinal below on the fence.

Doggies
Our backyard neighbors have a sweet old dog that chases squirrels all day. How they torment him! We get a show every night with our dinner. My favorite pup has to be little Maggie across the street. She practically turns herself inside out when she sees us. At only 6 months, she’s learning to walk on a leash and sit when someone pets her. Her owners are lucky to walk her 100 feet before she lies down in the grass. She really makes Shelby look good.

Golf Courses
We might live in a country club neighborhood, but we sure don’t live the lifestyle. Rick’s hasn’t golfed or played tennis since we’ve been here. I’ve not taken the kids out on the lake in a paddle boat either. We do enjoy the landscape that a golf course provides though. I've had some of my best walks ever, right around my house. That is our cardinal again below.

The “Gym”

Our basement has been a great conversation piece this year. For those readers just turning in, the home owner is a body builder and has all kinds of weight lifting equipment downstairs. This is a competition picture of him from a few years back.

I love the Arnold Schwarzenegger posters glued to the wall. Our membership to YMCA is superfluous when you consider the variety of machines we’ve got downstairs.

The “Cave”

Rick and I have enjoyed some killer naps in our bedroom. This room always feels much cooler than the rest of the house (a plus in the summer). It’s also quite dark because of the big shade tree right outside the window.

When you pull the drapes and turn on the fan, it’s snooze-tastic. We even have special clocks with dimmer switches so the pesky light from the clock face won’t penetrate closed eyelids.

Big Bedrooms

Even as I type this, Jake is having a full-out battle with invisible bad guys in his bedroom. He won't have that kind of space in his new room. And, Miss Emma's room is so big and full of light your practically have to wear sunglasses!

*Stay tuned for my post about what I won't miss!

We Love Books!

Meeting Cyd Moore



We got to meet illustrator Cyd Moore the other night. She contributed her artistic talents to I Love You Stinky Face, Alice and Greta, and Willow. These books have long been favorites of ours, so we were excited when the Woodland Elementary invited her out for Literacy Week.

She was super-cute, and spoke with a charming southern accent. She told some childhood stories and talked about working with Raffi and other authors. She encouraged the audience to make reading a bigger part of family life. Many of her books were on sale. We even got her to sign our copy of I Love You Stinky Face!

Book Club

Our latest assignment for the Relief Society Book Club was Tallgrass by Sandra Dallas. It was a quality read that kept my interest, especially since I don't know a lot about the Japanease interment camps from World War 2. The most endearing part of the story for me was the relationship the lead character had with her parents. Last night we met to discuss the book and enjoy some time away from the kids. It was fun to sit around with all ages of women and just talk. I definitely want to continue participating. Maybe I'll even host it sometime. What books do you recommend readers?

Next month's selection: Uglies by Scott Westerfield.

little miracle, BIG LESSON

We got a late night phone call Tuesday. Rick answered, paused for a moment, and handed the phone to me with a confused look on his face. A whispering voice greeted me at the other end of the line. It was Jessi, an instructor from the YMCA. She was sick in bed and needed me to teach her Stay Fit class for seniors. What could I say? She was in a jam and I was available. I reluctantly said yes and asked her for to send me some ideas in an e-mail. In the back of my mind I started worrying about injuring someone inadvertently because of my inexperience. I even had nightmares about it while sleeping.

When I got in my car the next morning, I accidentally set off the car alarm. I could not get the darn thing to turn off! I put the key in the ignition hoping that would end the offending noise. Nothing happened. The alarm eventually stopped and I tried the key again. The lights and GPS turned on, but the car would not turn over. I tried multiple times with no success, the alarm going off a few more times in the process. I started texting and calling like a madwoman. No one was answering at 7:30, so I left desperate messages. I paged Rick at the hospital and had him trouble shoot with me over the phone. We couldn’t figure it out. Finally, I decided to say a quick prayer (duh). Within 3 minutes, I was on my way! I started class a little late, but the ladies were very understanding.

You want to know something funny? I enjoyed teaching the seniors. They were very sweet and appreciative. They said they liked trying something new. It was a fun challenge for them. Go figure! And, no one fell or broke anything. BONUS!

I’m so grateful for my car. I totally take it for granted! It’s so great to get places quickly, without getting rained on. Sure, it’s dirty. Yah, it smells like the Father and Sons campout. But, I love my sweet ride. As I think back, my car and I have had some pretty great times together. Hats off to ya Santa Fe!

Emma's New Look

My girl is growing up! Doesn't she look sophisticated in her new glasses?

Mother's Day

I have the best kids! They worked so hard to pamper me on Mother's Day. They made me this lovely banner:

At Activity Day, Emma created this darling little memory book that we are going to fill with pictures this summer:

They sang beautifully in church with the Primary choir. When we got home later, they made me a peanut butter sandwich for lunch. They spent the afternoon setting up an Italian restaurant in our dining room.

Here is the menu they prepared for dinner:

I ordered the spaghetti and Red Crystal Light, which Jacob made ALL BY HIMSELF.
They also cleaned up the mess!

To end the night, we had Ghiradelli brownies and vanilla ice cream. Delicious!