Morning in Louisville

It was a gorgeous crisp morning in the Highlands. Though it should have felt like the dog days of summer, it was a cool 65 degrees on this August Monday. A sleepy, coffee-abstaining nanny decided to take her charge, a charming and lovable 11 month old redhead boy on an early morning walk, partially for exercise, partially to put him into a peaceful and hopefully hour-long slumber, and partially to wake herself up. The sounds of lawn mowers, weed wackers and hammers filled the air, and as she walked past the open screen doors of the old and well-kept homes, NPR and women's voices drifted out. She saw mothers pushing babies in strollers with dogs on leashes, people leaving for work or dropping children off at school, painters painting already white houses, an old man taking a slow walk by himself. She saw a curious orange cat, a message board and a bucket of chalk in someone's garden for messages, and birds convening on a rooftop for a morning chat. She saw light, sunshine, flowers, possibility. As the baby prince slept in his yellow carriage she saw so many things. She saw Morning in Louisville.

They grow up so fast!!

Sundried Tomato & Artichoke Pasta

I made up this yummy recipe tonight!
I made whole wheat spaghetti as I normally would,
and in a skillet sauteed olive oil, sundried tomatoes, and artichoke hearts with sprinkles of garlic powder, italian seasoning, minced onion flakes, crushed red pepper, and oregano.
When both were done, I mixed them all in the pasta pan and melted mozzarella on top.

It was delish!

Michigan Trip Pictures.

Our route Brady so helpfully highlighted IN MY ATLAS.


The awesome lake house we were privileged to stay in. The family I work for were up there staying in another house down the road and this "guest house" was empty so they offered it to us!


Cool diner table in kitchen.


The house was designed by an architect and you could tell! Lots of storage, outlets, and neat ideas in all the room...


Our bedroom on the back of house with doors out to the dock and lake Burt.


Willow and John Henry came to visit... JH by land, Willow by sea!







We spent a lot of time out on the dock... it was very secluded and peaceful.




We took a trip up to the north for a day to go to Mackinac Island.

Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse.


Bridge to the Upper Peninsula... We went across to St. Ignace to take the ferry to Mackinac Island.





waiting for the ferry...




Approaching Mackinac Island...


The Island was so neat, with no cars...only horses, bikes, and feet to take you where you're going!




There were gorgeous houses and flowers in the village of resident's homes...






The spot where Richard and Elise meet in Somewhere in Time! I pretended to be her and asked Brady, "Is it you?"...because I'm a dork!






My favorite flowers in the world, alliums! These were on the grounds of the Grand Hotel. It looks exactly like it was in the movie, they've changed nothing!






Our tandem bike we rented to ride around the island...




On the way back from Mackinac we stopped at Wilderness State Park to see the beach at Lake Michigan...






Brady kayaked and really liked it!







This is us on the Brown's boat! We went up Indian River to Mullet Lake and swam in the chilly water... Willow was not a fan!


Willow helped her grandpa steer...
A loon... gorgeous colors and red ruby eyes...




Charlevoix Beach on Lake Michigan. We went here for the day and it was a lovely beachside town! We swam again in the chilly water and collected multi-colored smooth stones, polished by the waves.


Charlevoix Lighthouse.