Snowy/Windy Sunday

I'm sad to say that the weather did not cooperate on Sunday. We woke up to a bit more snow. As it was early morning, the roads were pretty icy once again so instead of going up north to the lakeshore, we decided to go to the part of the lakeshore closer to us. A good choice. It was really quite bitterly cold as the winds were blowing wildly. Husband got out of the car at our first stop and turned around as soon as we got down to the beach. It was SO windy.  The town we were in was under a Gale Warning, so that tells you how wild things were. It always amazes me that a lake can have such high waves!

I stayed out on the beach long enough to get some wave shots

From there, we travelled up the lakeshore to South Haven. The waves were hitting the lighthouse quite right but I managed to get one nice one

While I was wandering on the beach there I was really surprised to see two men come running down the beach and go into the lake water. Brrrr..... there was still some ice on the beach - that tells you how cold the water must have been!

Sunday Adventure

We didn't go too far yesterday as we had to use husband's work minivan. We did what we call The Loop. Our house to South Haven, along the lakeshore to St. Joseph and back to our house again. We made a couple of stops along the way and I had a nice but chilly walk along the beach at St. Jospeh. There were a few people about, mostly fishermen and women all bundled up. 

It was nice to get outside and see a bit of sunshine. I do wish it would warm up a little bit! Husband did actually walk with me for a little bit but after a while he went back to 'warm up the van' while I had a little more of a wander about. I like it when the beaches are empty, and they aren't out smoothing out the sand each evening.  As always it amazes me how much the beach can change. A couple of years ago the lake was really high and eroding lots of areas, now it is low again and the beach has expanded. 

Pretty soon this whole beach will be packed with people. 

You might recognise this lighthouse from last week as Michigan City and St Joseph as they are very alike. I can't find information to see whether they were designed by the same people. The one in Michigan City doesn't have the little light at the back (the photo before this one). I find it really interesting. 

My Phone Photo Things That Make Me Happy 84/366

This is my favourite phone photo of the day. 

Look at that wonderful view! If I hadn't told you that it was fairly chilly yesterday you'd think it was a deserted beach somewhere really warm lol. 

Hope everyone is having a good start to the week!

Lakeshore Visit and Getting Rid of Knick-Knacks

On Sunday we also visited Michigan City, Indiana. It's about an hour and a half away from us, but it is in a different time zone too. It makes it quite early in the morning when we usually get there. Nice for a beach walk as there aren't too many people about. On Sunday it was so cold and windy. Husband opted for a really quick walk before he headed back to the car to 'warm it up'. Lol. 

 Such wonderful skies

A video - as much as I could stand before my fingers froze!

The inner lighthouse

I like to go there to see the daffodils. A few years ago the beds were really full. They could do with a makeover lol. 

Today, I went for a walk with my friend though the wind was bitterly cold. I was glad to get done with the walk. I had some errands to run and then was happy to spend the rest of the day inside. 

I've been thinking about knick-knacks. There are too many of them around the house. I'm not quite sure how to get rid of them too. How do you sort through them? I know there are several I want to keep as I enjoy them, but several more I think I should keep because they were given to me. How do you decide how to get rid of these? Sometimes I feel as though there are some I should just box up and put somewhere until I can deal with them, but then isn't that just putting off the problem? Sigh. 

78/366

Clouds like this make me smile. It's my kind of cloud day. 

End of the Week

I didn't get as much done over the past couple of days as I hoped. I did end up going for a walk yesterday and was glad I did as it didn't rain until later in the day. Today I had to stay home as my car brakes had to be fixed. While we were out last week driving on the motorway husband said we should probably get them checked. We did and had them replaced. It was quite a chunk of money! Ouch!

Son has finished out the week at home. He was still testing positive Thursday night (slight line). He said today was the first time he actually felt like eating so I suppose that's a good sign. As with me he said the worst thing was that dizziness and unsteadiness. I'm still experiencing some of it. Just when I think it's getting better, I try to look up to take a photo and feel it all over again. Yikes. I'm just listening to my body and taking it easy. I think that will just continue. 

This week, the 19th of October, marked the two-year anniversary of Jane's death. It doesn't seem that long. She is missed. Whenever I visit a lighthouse I think of her. We had some good conversations about them and it was her love of lighthouses that got me interested in visiting them. I'm not sure I'll catch up with how many she saw though!

I hope everyone has a good weekend. Next week is a fresh week and I shall be home all week so it's time to start a list again. Things need to get done!

In honour of Jane here's a lighthouse from our recent weekend away. It's in Mackinaw City and you can see the Mackinac Bridge in the background. On the left-hand side of the bridge is Lake Michigan, and on the right-hand side is Lake Huron (I hope I've got that right lol).

Tuesday

I'm already forgetting what day it is! I was going to write Monday as the title. Sigh.

Oldest son stayed home from work again today and will stay home tomorrow too. He's still testing positive though he is feeling a bit better (I think). 

I managed to get some food shopping done, meals for the week sort of planned and some tidying up done around the house. It really does look like a bomb hit it. I haven't been home enough or feeling well enough and things have become neglected. I'm planning on doing a little bit each day. Doing something is better than doing nothing. 

A photo from our trip. 

Grand Island East Channel Lighthouse

Camping Weekend

We had a nice weekend away. The cabin was...well, it wasn't as nice as the last one! It was a bit primitive. Comfortable but certainly needs some upgrading. The door was like a garden shed door complete with a padlock! Usually there is a keypad that has a code so it's easy for all occupants to use. This one, well, with only one key it wasn't the greatest. 

That being said, the campground was nice. It was near a lake (not one of the Great Lakes) but pretty. The campground had a shop. There were a few trails. Admittedly, we didn't spend a lot of time at the campground. We were mainly there in the evenings. It was quite busy with children, but it did quieten down at night and there wasn't a lot of noise. 

The weather actually stayed good. It was forecast to rain all day Saturday. We had one shower when we were out just as we were finishing up our walk and one in the evening. We'd already lit the campfire. We ducked inside the cabin to wait it out and the fire stayed lit through the rain. So after the showers we went back out and sat and enjoyed the rest of the night. 

On Saturday we went to check out Fort Gratiot Lighthouse. 

It is Michigan's Oldest Lighthouse, the second oldest on the Great Lakes. Here's a little blurb of history

Fort Gratiot was built in 1814 during the War of 1812 to guard the juncture of the St. Clair River and Lake Huron. Named after the engineer who supervised construction, Charles Gratiot, Fort Gratiot would be occupied on and off  by the United States Army until 1879.  With a surge of vessel traffic on Lake Huron in the early 1800s, the need for a Light Station to guide vessels through the water way became very important. In 1823 Congress approved the funds to build the first lighthouse in Michigan and the second oldest on the Great Lakes.

A view from the beach (below)

Mostly stoney beach. 

Lots of boats in the water - and Canada just across Lake Huron (a phone photo)

On our way back we stopped at Shiawassee National Wildlife Refuge. It's basically a huge area of wild land. There is a drive through some of the waterways.  We saw lots including this Eagle.

Now to get moving on house things!

Saturday

We went to the lakeshore. It was fun. Sun shining. Really quite cold this morning as the wind was blowing too. There was some ice on the lake and some in the channel leading out to the lake. It makes me quite dizzy to look at!

The ice was quite amazing. It is always so different. 

Lots of balls. These are the end result (though not in the same place) of the balls in the video last week. Waves from the lake push these up on top of one another until forming a line of ice balls. It's quite a sight to see. 

It was only half day trip. We usually go out longer tomorrow. 

When I got back this afternoon I sorted out - shock! horror! Gasp! - another 20 books from a bookshelf to donate. Really quite pleased that I'm able to let them go. I think I've almost filled February's box and all with books! I shall have to start another. 

Hope everyone is doing okay. Have a good weekend. 

After Christmas

Well, another one over. It's been tough this year (again) getting into the Christmas mood. I was sad that daughter couldn't make it, but glad she stayed safely home. I would have worried no end as they were driving here. Luckily, husband was able to drive down and get son on Christmas Day. The roads were pretty lousy, but husband is used to driving on bad roads. Son does drive but his car isn't the greatest in snow (long distances) so it was safer for husband to go get him and take him home after. 

It was rather a quiet affair. I got some lovely photos and videos sent to me from Sister's Christmas. Her youngest grandson started walking on Christmas Day! It was lovely to see. 

We exchanged presents, went to MIL's to eat and then came back home. I chatted with daughter a couple of times. I got lots of goodies - enough chocolate to last until Easter ha ha and plenty of alcohol. Not sure what it says about me when I end up with about 6 bottles of things lol. I received some lovely nature books that I hope to share photos from in future posts as well as other goodies. I am feeling very thankful for all that I received. 

Day 359 (Sunday)

One of my gifts. Really makes me smile. 

Yesterday, Boxing Day, the weather had cleared a bit so we decided to take a trip to the lakeshore and check out the ice. Wow. That's all I can. We stopped at South Haven first. The winds had been pretty wild over the weekend and it showed!

These are some photos I took with my camera

From there we drove down to St Joesph lighthouse. Oh my. The roof on the lighthouse is usually red. It was covered in ice. 

Would have loved to stay out there longer taking photos but it was so cold!

Day 360 (Monday)

Of course, it has to be an ice photo. I had to take it with my phone. 

Eye-level icicles. Wow. Just Wow

Today it was back to normal. A walk and a little tidying up. This is always the in-between week. 

Day 361 

It was cold out today on my walk and oh-so-snowy! We stuck to the main paths. Most of the big lake was frozen, but this stream is sort of the run-off and water flows through it so it mostly stays unfrozen all winter. Good for the animals in the woods. It is really beautiful at this time of year, the sun glowing golden first thing in the morning. Made me smile. 

Saturday Adventure

 Phew - it's the weekend again. Can't believe it's the last weekend of the month. 

We took another drive to the lakeshore. I was interested to see how much had changed within a week. It has been quite cold and I wanted to see how much ice build-up there was. We got there quite early so I had the pier to myself. I was able to take quite a few photos with my camera and take my time so I hope they turned out well!

I took a video. It was really quite cold - I think about -11C/12F and the windchill was even lower. 

I like how peaceful it is in the mornings. We were lucky that there was sunshine today. When we first got there it was quite sunny but the clouds started to roll in a little bit. 

After we got home it was a quite relaxing day. I worked on some photos, had a nice relaxing bath and watched some Blacklist on Netflix. 

28/365 Phone Photos - Things That Make Me Smile

Yesterday I did some frozen bubbles in the morning (my favourite I shared on my  Instagram Account ) I'll try to remember to share on here. After that I took a walk by myself. It wasn't a long walk. It was lovely and relaxing. I walked along (there was sunshine again) and took photos as I wanted. I paused and took time to enjoy all the winter beauty around me. This was one of my photos from that walk - this particular section is called The Magnificent Pines. 

29/365 Phone Photo - Things That Make Me Smile. This one is from the lighthouse today. The pier was snow covered more than icy and I was able to walk right behind the lighthouse. This view really made me smile. 

It's not the greatest technical photo, but I like the view. 

Tomorrow we are off on another adventure to two different lighthouses, a little further away. We don't go very often. I am hoping for some icy landscapes to enjoy. 

Weekend - Lighthouse visits

 I actually had a good weekend. I didn't get a lot done. Although I did make a grocery list and remembered to take it with me! The shelves were sadly quite empty at the shop we went to. It was really busy out this weekend and we aren't sure why! It looked like pre-Christmas in some place. Either something is going on that we don't know about or everyone is out buying after the snow storms we've late this week. I have a couple of items that I couldn't get so shall have to go out later in the week on a day I'm not going to Jane's. We shall be back sorting Mon, Wed and Friday - as long as the weather cooperates. I don't like driving in the snow if I can help it. 

Speaking of snow. It was quite snowy on the roads on Saturday morning. I was so glad husband was driving or I would have stayed home! It was lovely and sunny though so we went to the lakeshore as I heard there was some ice on the lighthouse. It was very cold. I bundled up with layers, double socks, double gloves and hand warmers! 

We went to two lighthouses that aren't far from one another. The second one is pretty close to where our middle son lives and we had to drop off something to him so we decided to stop there too. 

These are phone photos from our morning out. 

The above two are from South Haven Lighthouse. We didn't go all the way out to the end as the waves were coming over the end of the pier and it was just a sheet of pure ice. We did have Yaktrax on our boots. They are grippers for shoes. 

The next one is from St Joseph Lighthouse (near where our son lives). This is my photo for Day 8 of my 365 Phone Photo Things That Make Me Smile challenge. 

I really enjoy going to see the ice on the lakes in winter. It makes for brightening up what is usually a really dull, long winter. It especially made me smile on Saturday as the sun was shining so brightly! At least for a time. Not long after I took this photo the clouds rolled in. We did not walk any further down the pier btw. 

Sunday was a windy day here in Michigan so that means another visit to the lakeshore, this time a little further up the lake. We stopped at Grand Haven Lighthouse and Holland Lighthouse. I hope to share my camera photos soon. I do have a bit of video I recorded at Grand Haven. It was so cold and the wind was just howling!  I stayed on the beach and didn't venture onto the pier at all as the waves were crashing over the barriers and the actual walkway was coated with thick ice.  A couple of people looked as though they might go up on it but once they caught sight of the waves thankfully they stayed away!

My Phone Photo Day 9 Things That Make Me Smile is my comfy pair of Penguin PJs. I put them on to warm me up when I got home. They are really thick and fluffy. I can't wear the top to bed as it is too hot. I got a size bigger than I needed (they were the only size close to mine) and I have to put a safety pin on the bottoms so they don't fall down. They make me smile because they are warm and comfy and also because they make me think of daughter as she has the same pair and we wore them together and laughed about it. 

I hope everyone had a good weekend!

Weekend - and Thanks!

Thank you so much for all the encouraging comments on the last post. I'm still feeling a little blah, but I'm trying to just get on with it. Perhaps this is just too much information but I think it's a collections of things that's making me feel this way - the weather, the grey days, after-Christmas slump and the beginnings of menopause. I feel like I'm on a roller coaster of emotions and the way my body feels. Sigh. Yup, that's probably enough.

It's the weekend and, despite the weather, husband and I took a little drive this morning. It was raining and windy, but the ice didn't start until later. As I look outside now it is icing a little. We shall have to see what it is like before we decide on going out tomorrow. Today we took a quick trip to the lakeshore. We didn't get out long as it was raining but it was nice to take a drive and chat.

Here's a shot out of the car windscreen with my phone.

And another of the lighthouse we did get out at. The waves were really wild at this one. Husband was a little behind me and when I walked out I could see the water was coming up quite high so I walked up a slight hill onto some higher sand. He saw me moving up just as a wave was coming and quickly followed. If he had walked along the pier he would have got very wet!

We really are quite careful when the waves are like this. I think people underestimate the power of the lake. There was a story from New Year's Day where a couple was walking along the walk at another lighthouse and were swept off by a wave. They weren't from the area (and I don't think there are any signs at that one) so probably didn't know how high the water is and how slippery the walkway can be. One of them managed to get to safety but they haven't found the other one yet. The lake is so high right now that places that used to be safe to walk no longer are.

When we got back I Skyped Mum which is always uplifting and talked to daughter. I leave to visit her next Saturday (fingers crossed for the weather) and am looking forward to that.

Hope everyone has a good weekend.

Weekend

The weekend brought sun and temperatures that warmed up a little above freezing. That's an improvement. This week they look to climb a little more, so maybe a steady warm-up. I looked for signs of anything growing when I was out walking in the woods this morning, but I think that's just a little too hopeful! I didn't see a thing, but the birds were out in force, singing up a storm despite it being below freezing when I was out.

We went out walking Saturday and Sunday. It was really quite nice - still very icy, but it is slowly melting. On Sunday we went back to the lighthouse we'd gone to last weekend. It was very windy last weekend, but this week Lake Michigan was so very calm. It looked so tranquil. If it had been warmer I would have been tempted just to sit, stare and maybe sigh in wonder.

We managed to climb over the ice mounds out to the furthest lighthouse. There were a couple of dodgy spots where I was telling myself just not to look down. We were out there before things had started to melt, any later and I think it would have been too slippery to go on. There was some crunch to the ice. I'm just not the most balanced person since I messed up my ankle. I think hubby would have moved a lot faster without me. By the time we were back on solid ground my legs were all wobbly. I think it was the adrenaline.

Hubby right by the Fog Signal House. Basically anything in front of him is where the lake is. There was still a lot of ice around. You can see the shore in the background and how far we had to walk!

We managed to climb down the ice onto the side of the concrete structure where some of the ice had melted completely away. There was no way to get a shot around the other side of the building. It was just too icy, hilly and slippery. It was well worth a look.

I talked to my Mum on Saturday. She is actually starting to feel better and sounds a little more like herself. Her voice is still rough, but she isn't coughing like she was.

I start the new week off with good intentions, but I'm not sure where they will get me! Hope everyone had a good weekend and the new week is off to a good start.

Weekend

Thanks for all the lovely comments on the last post. I'm not sure I could stand the isolation either, but it's a nice fantasy lol. I think it's just that I'd love to be able to take photos of such lovely areas rather than where we live. I also think it would be kind of interesting to see how I would do in such a place - not sure I'd do it alone. I'd take husband with me - at least for a while. Maybe we'd just drive each other crazy.

It wasn't a bad day yesterday. We went for a drive in the morning. I Skyped with Mum. Middle son came up to go to the cinema with husband and older son. Mum and I were trying to work out where we're going to go for our holiday, also trying to work out when I'd go over. I am thinking booking plane tickets is in the near future.

Sunday dawned with high winds - we're under a wind warning until tomorrow morning. We took a drive to the lakeshore. It was extremely windy - difficult to be out for even a little while - but we weren't the only ones! It was snowing and blowing on our way back. Worse still, when we got back to town we found out there had been freezing rain and the roads were very icy. Luckily husband is a really good driver in all weathers and confident about doing it. I would have just ditched the car lol.

We hadn't been home for long when I thought I saw something spark outside the window close to my chair. I then thought perhaps it was from the television but sure enough something banged and a wire came down. Husband had to ring the power company to let them know but I am pretty sure there are lots of lines down. I don't know why they don't put them underground. We lost power to part of our downstairs which happens to include heat. It's an older house and apparently there is more than one power line coming into the house. So no heat. Not sure when it will be fixed. We do have an electric heater so it is plugged in the living room and I'm getting the blankets out lol.

Two different lighthouses we visited. Usually we walk along to the right of the rocks, it's a walkway. Not today! The water was coming over really high and fast! It really amazes me every time I visit Lake Michigan when it's like this. I would never have thought that a lake could whip up such fury.

Hope everyone had a good weekend!

Feeling Bit Better

I feel like I've been away forever. I'm finally feeling a bit better but still really stuffed in the head and shaky on my feet. Today was the first time I tried to go out. Only lasted a little while before I got really winded and dizzy. Everything from my head is still draining. It is good to feel a bit clearer though. I actually ate food yesterday!!! All the tasty stuff I was planning to eat in Minnesota and couldn't eat a darn thing. Oh well.

I started to look through some photos. I can do it for a while before feeling really dizzy. Needless to say I haven't done much reading or any crafting at all. I suppose it will come slowly back. This illness really knocked me out. Phew.

I'm hoping at least some of the photos I took turned out nice. I wasn't feeling well when I took them and don't really remember a lot only how stunningly beautiful some of the places were.

This is the lighthouse I really wanted to see. It is Split Rock Lighthouse up near Duluth in Minnesota. Gorgeous from this far away. There was still some snow around and it looked so beautiful. Really well worth a visit.

Hope everyone is enjoying the weekend - especially those in England where it's a Bank Holiday Weekend. I skyped with Mum yesterday and she said the weather has been gorgeous - tomorrow she's hoping to go to the seaside with my sister.

Sunset over Lake Michigan

Ever since we went to visit  middle son one evening and watched the sunset over St. Joseph Lighthouse I've been wanting to go watch a sunset over the lighthouse at South Haven. I don't get to go often especially when the sun sets later at night in the summer as it is a little drive to the lakeshore which makes for a really late night. However, weather hasn't been co-operating. It's either been too snowy or just cloudy.

Earlier in the week when I looked at the forecast it said Friday would be sunny so we thought that would make a good choice. Also it's the beginning of the weekend so hubby doesn't have to worry about work. Friday rolled around and so did the clouds. Late afternoon it was looking pretty dismal. The forecast was still saying partly sunny so we headed towards the lakeshore.

So glad we did! The sun was beating down when we arrived. It's a shame the temperature didn't match lol. We did get to hang around in the cold and watch such a glorious sunset. We weren't the only ones braving the cold.

I still have to sort through a lot of photos I took but here are a couple. I hope you enjoy. It was so very beautiful to watch, so serene and surprisingly calm. There was an awful lot of ice still around but stunning. 

Sunday, Sunday

Sunday is usually our day for going for a walk. We've been doing really well despite all the cold and snow. We had plans to go a little further afield today and walk quite a way, up some sand dunes where there is a fantastic view, and down onto the beach. It was not to be. We woke up to another blanket of snow and the roads looked pretty nasty as it was heavy and wet snow. We did decide to go out but not as far as we wanted to. We thought maybe we'd go visit South Haven where there is a lighthouse and were to be some ice sculptures and then onto Grand Mere Park for a walk.

Once we got to the lighthouse we changed our minds. Oh Wow! It was SO cold! Bitterly cold. The wind was blowing and stirring up the snow. My whole face got numb as did my hands as I was trying to take photos.

Some of the ice had melted and we could see and hear the waves of the open lake crashing against the ice piles. It was really eerie to watch.

I'm going to try attaching a video of the ice in the channel up to the lake. It was taken with my phone so not the greatest.

We decided to forgo the walk. Hubby was still coughing quite a bit and it was just too cold. We did go on to another lighthouse and a walk along a beach. It was almost too cold for that too! I'll do another post tomorrow.

Oh, here's one of the ice statues. I didn't get any really good photos. They were really difficult to take on such a cloudy day with lots of cars and shops in the background.

They were fun to look at! Hope everyone had a great weekend!

Dreary Monday

Well, the sunshine is over and it is dreary again. The temperature is up but it was dreary and wet today. Yesterday was dreary and really foggy here, but we went a couple hours north and it wasn't quite as foggy. Had a lovely walk out on the beach and managed to walk on a lot of ice to the lighthouse. Wow! What a view.

How magnificent is that? We even managed to see some blue ice which was kind of a weird thing to see. 

Today I went to get loo roll and spent the rest of the day inside. It was too wet to walk and my ankle was putting up a fit anyway so a good day to rest up. I actually managed to get some crafting done. Still haven't quite finished the wildlife journal as I'm waiting to find one last blue heron photo. Can't seem to find it anywhere. I'll have to get another printed. 

I started off with three coloured images but only managed to get two cards done. Spent too much time looking for that darned photo.

I also caught up on my travel journal (such as it is lol) and this other little journal which includes a really cute CURRENTLY page.

Before tea I spent a really small amount of time cross stitching. The piece I'm working on it on my to-finish-this-week pile but I don't know. Sigh. The daylight is still too short and the light here in the living room isn't the greatest. I keep meaning to buy a different light bulb but forget. Hubby and I watched the new Vera episode after eating and between talking with daughter who was trying to do her taxes by herself for the first time lol and needed help! The house is quiet again and I'm trying to get rid of a headache. Taxes always seem to give me one!