Family Dinner

We left Northport a little bit early on Sunday so that we could make it back to Kalamazoo in time for an early dinner with the fam. Stu and Erin were stopping by on their way from Detroit to Chicago, so Nancy made us all a delicious dinner. It was nice to see everyone; I wish that Chicago was closer to Kalamazoo!

Nathan lounging with Uncle Stuart.


Playing cars with Uncle Jordan.


Smiles for Aunt Erin

Welcome to the Village of Northport

Todd, Nathan and I spent some time on Saturday afternoon wandering around downtown Northport. We had so much fun showing Nathan the Bay and the marina and doing a little shopping. And of course it never gets old to have people stop us on the street and in shops to tell us how cute our little guy is! :)

Daddy showing Nathan the Bay.


My sweet boys.

Family portrait at the marina.

Welcome! I think this should be on the cover of the Northport Visitor's Guide! :)

Mommy and Nathan at the boat launch--can't wait until it's warm enough to take the boat out!

Ruby the Subaru showing off her new M-22 sticker!

Relaxing at the Cottage

Some of the best times we have in Northport is hanging out together on the porch at the cottage. It's a great time to catch up and hang out as a family. This weekend I really enjoyed learning about Grandma and Grandpa's family history. I love thinking about how many people and how much history make up a family.

Todd and Nathan relaxing together.

Exploring Timber Shores

Saturday morning was cool but sunny, and we decided to take a walk over to Timber Shores. Nathan enjoyed the ride, even though he has a hard time fighting off sleep in the stroller, and Deuce was in doggy heaven!

All bundled up and ready to go!






The creek winding through the woods--so beautiful!

Nathan thinks Grandma Florence is pretty funny! :)

Northport Bound

We hit the road at about 3:30 on Friday afternoon, on our way to Northport for the first time this year and the first time ever with Nathan. This was the longest road trip we had ever taken with him, so we weren't totally sure how he would do, even though he is usually a total peach in the car. True to character, Nathan did great! He slept for the first two hours, and then told us a big story when he woke up, practicing all his coos and squeals. We stopped in Traverse City to feed him, and arrived at the cottage around 7:00. He stayed up a little bit past his bedtime to charm Grandma and Grandpa for a little while, and then went to sleep beautifully, only waking up and fussing briefly when Todd and I came up to bed.

Our car is just slightly more full of stuff now that we've added an extra person to the family! Can you see the top of Deuce's head next to the stroller??


Feeding Nathan in the car--it's almost perfect: no bottles, no heating necessary, but you can't do it while the car's in motion.

Recent videos

Here are some videos of our little man from the last two nights:

Trying out the johnny jump-up for the first time.

Happy or sad?

Garden update

On Sunday I actually got in gear and made it out of the house when Nathan went down for his morning nap. I went to a local greenhouse and got some annuals and some vegetables and a whole bunch of potting soil.

I've been wanting to grow veggies for several years now, but have not planned ahead far enough to make a vegetable bed, which requires at least a full day of manual labor, and a full day to dedicate to one task is a luxury I just don't have at the moment!

Last weekend Dad offered up some tomato seedlings from last summer's crop, and it occurred to me that I could try growing veggies in containers! So I got red bell pepper, jalapeno pepper, zucchini, basil, rosemary and cilantro plants to add to the tomato seedlings, and I set up a whole container garden! Once I realized how many pots comprised said garden, I set to work creating a bi-level arrangement so that it looked a little more cohesive and didn't take over the entire deck. I was able to craft something out of pots and lumber that we had around the house--I love it when I can make my vision come to life without spending extra money!

It felt so good to spend some time gardening. It is such a meditative practice for me to have my fingers in the dirt, working on something productive that is outside and creating beauty. Here are some pictures from my busy day:

Veggies!

This is one of the five planters that I have along my deck railing. I'm trying out a fancy-schmancy double petunia this year.

Petunia border in front of the hydrangea bush and the other flowering perennial (can't remember the name) that I received from my mom and Nancy for mother's day.


The clematis (moonflower) vine is in full bloom!