Camping in the Upper Peninsula

This last week Dave and I took the kids camping in the Upper Peninsula. Yes, I said camping! I am sure in the back of your mind you are probably thinking, are those two crazy? We may just be...just a little bit. As you can see by the picture (which I think says it all) Dave and I had our hands full. Forget even trying to get a family photo...not gonna happen! The first night was pretty rough. Neither child wanted to go to sleep. Having a four year old that is extremely curious and a 16 month old that is now walking, and does not want to be restrained, makes for an interesting vacation. Dave and I decided to roll with it. I am happy to say that after a few days things were somewhat better. On our trip we visited the Upper and Lower Tahquamenon Falls as well as Whitefish Point to learn about some famous shipwrecks. All of us enjoyed making s'mores and roasting hot dogs over the fire...yummy! We dipped our toes in the cold Great Lake Superior water and played in the sand. On the way home we visited the Mackinac Lighthouse and admired the Mackinac Bridge from a far. The Upper Peninsula is absolutely beautiful and the Falls are breathtaking. I loved being outdoors and spending time with my adorable little family.

Seeing Red.

I am so excited about my garden this year. Dave built me a new garden box and I planted several herbs and vegetables. Hayden was also excited to help me plant everything. At preschool they were learning about growing food to eat. I couldn't think of a better hands on way of teaching Hayden. I am planning on doing some canning towards the end of summer. Although it will be a lot of work, it will be rewarding to have fresh produce and healthy canned food for storage. In Michigan it is easy to get excited at the slightest sign of Spring. I was so excited that I failed to realize that the area of my garden was just a wee bit shady. We have a ton of mature trees that pretty much shade most of the yard. Feeling a little concerned I decided to do some research. Several people have had success with their gardens that get about 4-6 hours of filtered light. Ok.... so maybe my vegetables will grow. Hayden and I have diligently been watching, pruning, and pampering our garden. It is like watching water boil when you are waiting for the first tomatoes to turn red. Well we are happy to announce that we are seeing red! Let the harvesting begin! Lesson learned: don't give up on something until you try it first. :O)

Bummed Knee in Training

Well it is official I will be having my ACL reconstruction on Aug 11th. I am not sure why I feel stressed about it. I have had this surgery before, two times in fact. Maybe it is because I remember how painful it is or that I am going to have another scar to add to the many I already own. I keep thinking that the surgeon will get inside my knee and find something that is worse or that will be difficult to fix. I also have two little people to take care of. Hayden is already asking me questions about my "boo-bah" ( the name for boo boo' s at our house). He told me that it will make him sad to see me sick. This is sweet yet a little heartbreaking. I don't like worrying my kids or anybody for that matter. Today I decided that I am going to do everything in my power to make my recovery as quick as possible. My previous surgeon in Utah always told me that the best thing that I can do for my knees is to always keep the surrounding supportive muscles strong. I am making a pact with myself to go to the gym often to work on strengthening my leg muscles. My goal: focus on things that I can do to make the situation better, try not to worry about the things I cannot control, be as healthy as possible before my knee surgery, and be grateful that there is a solution to my problem.

Starting Fresh.

Well I am sure that some of you (especially our family) will be very glad that I decided to update my blog again. I am starting fresh and deleted my old blog that I started in 2007. I will do my best to "keep it simple" and update often so that so many of you that are far away will have a little glimpse into the happenings of the Stites Family in Michigan. If you know me well you know that I am a huge scrapbooking and crafting addict so I will be sharing some of my creations as well. Stay tuned! :O)