Camping Vacation

Last week Matt had some time off of work and I managed to work a long weekend off so we went up to the northern part of Michigan to camp. Matt found an awesome campground right on Lake Michigan that had real bathrooms and showers...this is my kind of camping! (I love camping, but want to feel clean to sleep especially when we are going for 4 nights.) Anyways, we have some great pictures that we managed to get with our disposable camera...yes, another one bites the dust for our long collection of cameras that we have gone through lately. We just need to break down and save up for a nice one.



Behind us in these pictures is the beautiful Lake Michigan. I am still in such awe of the great lakes. It is very deceiving to not see the other side of the lake and remember that it isn't the ocean. I can't get enough of it!



Matt took me on this hike where I swear we got lost, but he told me later that on his bike he figured out that we really were on the right path...sure thing dear:)

Tiger's Game

This week Matt and I got to go to the baseball game. (No, it wasn't the famous game...that was the next night.) The seats were just 23 rows up from the Tiger's dugout, which is in between 3rd base and home. It was so much fun to be that close and much easier to stay focused on the game. They lost, but we had fun just being there and it was a beautiful night! Because our seats were in the lower level the camera caught us and we got to be on the jumbo-tron...a first time experience. Sadly, I didn't check the batteries on the camera before we left and when we pulled it out they were dead, so no pictures!
Also, we noticed that outside of the stadium is quite a carnival. There are people singing, playing the trumpet, playing the drums, making up raps, handing out flags, or just begging for change. There is one famous guy that stands with a huge hand that holds a cup that he shakes and chants, "Eat em up Tigers, eat em up!" Apparently he goes to all of the Detroit sports games and just changes up his chant...Red Wings, Pistons, Lions...I heard on the radio that he even has a facebook page that someone made for him.

New Job

I started a second job this week at an optician's office. It is nice to have full time work and keeps me much busier. Matt is finishing his 2nd year of residency and continues to learn a ton. We love our ward, making new friends, and are extremely happy to be staying put for a couple more years. Mostly I am just ecstatic not to be looking for a new job, apartment, and packing all at once yet again.

Spring

Matt got me this orchid a couple of months ago and it is still doing great!



I love this time of the year and that we can open our windows as you can see here. My family will be so jealous of this...they already have the air conditioning on.



The blooms in the backyard. I know, they are weeds but still blooming.

Matt's beard or lack thereof

Remember Febstashuary? Well, these are the final pictures we took after the month was over. Matt ended up with quite a beard for only a month of growth. We shaved it off in steps and took some pictures. I am posting these pictures mostly for my brothers to see, but also for rememberance sake.



The Wolverine look with no mustache.



Chops.



My favorite look...clean and smooth.

Ice Fishing

Matt went to Utah in March during a break he had from work and went ice fishing for his first time. His buddy Rob loves fishing and jumped at the chance to take Matt along.



Checking out the ice.



Matt caught 2 fish. Not bad for a first timer!



This picture is blurry, but you get to see the hut that they sit in to fish. Living in Michigan we have seen tons of these huts out on the lakes around town and some of them are very fancy. I am not sure you would get me out there on ice in the middle of a lake because I tend to get nervous about the ice breaking, but it is quite the sport.

Surprise Visit

My mom was coming to visit in March and to my surprise, my sister Ginger and her twin girls came with her. It was so much fun to see them and I couldn't believe that everyone kept it a secret!



One day we went to Frankenmuth, as that seems to be one of those places that is pretty unique to Michigan. The girls slept on our drive and then LOVED the Christmas store!



Since we live away from everyone and have only seen the twins a few times, it was great to have them all to ourselves and get to know them better. Matt used food to get in their good graces and it did the trick. He was in the office studying and next thing you know, the girls are missing...they joined him for his snack of chips and guacamole. They do have good taste!



One day they were here we went to Canada where we walked along the Detroit River and had lunch. Plus, we had to stop for Krispy Kremes on the way.






Matt got to join us for dinner at a new place we found in Royal Oak. (I love the fettuccini alfredo and we have been back once since this visit.)



The best find while they were in town was this candy shop where they have every candy imaginable. We were on the hunt for Big Hunks since I have been looking for them ever since moving to Michigan. For some reason not many people here have had the pleasure of this candy. (Maybe it is a western thing, but now that I got my mom and sister hooked on them again they can't find them in Arizona either.) Anyways, the store was fun and we got lots of treats. The girls loved the small shopping carts and kept stopping to put things in that looked good to them, or that were within reach.






The trip was so fun and much needed for me! As I was looking through my pictures I noticed that my mom isn't in any of them, but she was with us the whole time! She got stuck with picture taking duty I guess.