After driving for 6.5 hrs today, we pulled into our driveway. The week long vacation that we had is unfortunately over, as the start of a regular week inches closer and closer. But what a week we had!!! It was a week of sightseeing, exploring, resting and having fun! Nathan loved every second of it, and especially playing with his "cousins": Karl, Claudia and Gabi!
We left here last Sunday and took a leisurely drive to Detroit and spent the night with Liesel's uncle and aunt. The next morning we packed the vehicles, strapped the children in, loaded the mountain bikes and headed due north! When we got there - there was still time for us to do some sightseeing - so before checking in at the hotel, we headed for the quaint town of Charlevoix. Charlevoix is located between Lake Charlevoix and Lake Michigan. The highlight of this town for Nathan, was not the playground on the beach, nor the beautiful scenery. It was the "up and down" bridge - a draw bridge that would open every 30 minutes to allow boats to pass from Lake Charlevoix to Lake Michigan and vice versa. He has been asking to see it every day, and fortunately I took video of it - and that satisfies Nathan's longing to see the bridge in action!
The next day we relaxed at Deer Lake, where they have kayaks and canoes available, a putt putt course and a beautiful little beach with the crystal clear waters of the lake lapping it gently. The lake is also wonderful for the children to swim in as the gradient is very slight and even a few hundred yards from the shore line, you are no more than waist deep! I took Nathan out on a canoe a couple of times, and another time we played a round of putt putt together!
One of the days we drove an hour north to where Lake Heron and Lake Michigan intersect at a city called Mackinaw City. This is where the world's longest suspension bridge between anchors resides. But also, about a 20 minute boat ride away, is a very unique island called Mackinac Island. This island does not allow any form of powered transportation. Only bicycles (which you can hire) or horses are available to take residents and visitors around the island! We had never before seen anything like this, and it seemed quite funny as the city streets were experiencing rush hour - with no cars in sight! This island is beautiful and has an old fort from the British Colonial days. It also has the Grand Hotel - which is exactly that. It has the world's largest covered porch which is 660 feet long! Men are required to wear jacket and tie and ladies may not wear slacks after 6pm !!! It was a thoroughly enjoyable outing for the McCarthy's.
Andreas and I tried mountain biking and we hit one of the trails in the natural forests in the area. This was a lot more challenging than first anticipated. After pushing the bike up a grueling incline - we made it to the top of Boyne Mountain, and then it was a pleasure to free wheel down to meet up with our family at the heated swimming pool. The Lipperts also treated us to a Ski-lift ride to the top of the mountain which offered us amazing views of the entire resort and area! Liesel loved the view - but didn't particularly enjoy the mode of transport. Not even Nathan's reassurance of how he is not scared helped her overcome her fear of heights....
On the one drizzly day - the Lipperts treated us to an incredibly delicious pancake breakfast in Bay Harbor. Their chocolate chip pancakes were worthy of the calories they contained!
Finally the fourth of July arrived, and we took Nathan to the Boyne City Parade! He is now a huge fan of parades, especially if fire engines are part of the festivities! We had a great time watching everyone march, walk, ride, and dance past us! That evening it was time for the fireworks. The city has such a beautiful setting where they shot the fireworks from. It was right over Lake Charlevoix, so as the sun set around 10pm, and more and more boats made their way into the bay - thousands of spectators (us included) made ourselves comfortable on the shore and waited with anticipation. My word, we were not disappointed - the adjectives: 'stunning' and 'awesome' do not do the show justice!
Sunday, July 06, 2008
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Friends, furniture and lots of fun!
What an awesome weekend! It seemed fitting that as the sun set this evening - a beautiful rainbow appeared across the pink sky.
The good times started on Friday, while I was at work. Liesel and Nathan went for a regular pre-natal checkup, and Nathan had the opportunity to hear the baby's heartbeat for the first time! To him, this was so exciting that he had to phone me at work to tell me what he had heard! Then later that afternoon, Liesel took Nathan to the lake - where he had an absolute ball! He played in the sand for a while, and then asked if he could have a swim. He proceeded about ankle deep into the lake - lay on his stomach and pulled himself around the fresh water. This was the highlight of his day and as Liesel and Nathan left the lake - he turned to her and said. "That was fun! Thank you mama!"
After I got home, our friends, Ron and Tammy, came over for dinner and some quality time with us and the Wii. The Bosley's brought some delicious Tilapia and chicken breast which we grilled to perfection! The rest of the evening was spent in front of the TV, as Nathan taught Ron and Tammy the finer techniques in playing golf! A great time was had by all!
On Saturday, Liesel hit the garage sale circuit again, looking for some baby bargains! She got some good stuff, and a toy saxophone for Nathan! This quickly became one of his favorite play things, as now we listen to the soulful sounds of saxophone in the house! After the compulsory naps - we took up the challenge to wash my car before the heavens opened up! The good news was that we finished in time. The bad news is we had to go out and drive through a thunderstorm - hail and all - about 10 minutes later!
On Sunday - we went to church at our normal time. After Church, I met up with Ron, who had a beautiful wooden rocking chair that they had not been using, for us. They felt that it would be a useful piece of furniture in our nursery. Thanks Ron and Tammy for thinking of us! Now if anyone has a ride-on mower that is looking for a new home..........
After church, Nathan and I washed Liesel's car and this time got it safely parked in the garage before the rains arrived! In the evening, Corb, Carol and their son Ari came over for dinner! It was a great time of fellowship and we found that we had many things in common with them. Carol is pregnant with their second child as well. After a good dinner, Nathan and Ari headed down to the basement - and the adults again huddled around the TV with the Wii. Corb and I played some tennis, then the ladies joined us for a game of golf, followed by 10 frames of bowling! As novices, Corb and Carol performed well above par!
Next week, the McCarthy's will be leaving for their annual Summer vacation - so there may not be a blog :( But rest assured, the follwoing week will contain everything about the vacation with plenty of photos accompanying it!
The good times started on Friday, while I was at work. Liesel and Nathan went for a regular pre-natal checkup, and Nathan had the opportunity to hear the baby's heartbeat for the first time! To him, this was so exciting that he had to phone me at work to tell me what he had heard! Then later that afternoon, Liesel took Nathan to the lake - where he had an absolute ball! He played in the sand for a while, and then asked if he could have a swim. He proceeded about ankle deep into the lake - lay on his stomach and pulled himself around the fresh water. This was the highlight of his day and as Liesel and Nathan left the lake - he turned to her and said. "That was fun! Thank you mama!"
After I got home, our friends, Ron and Tammy, came over for dinner and some quality time with us and the Wii. The Bosley's brought some delicious Tilapia and chicken breast which we grilled to perfection! The rest of the evening was spent in front of the TV, as Nathan taught Ron and Tammy the finer techniques in playing golf! A great time was had by all!
On Saturday, Liesel hit the garage sale circuit again, looking for some baby bargains! She got some good stuff, and a toy saxophone for Nathan! This quickly became one of his favorite play things, as now we listen to the soulful sounds of saxophone in the house! After the compulsory naps - we took up the challenge to wash my car before the heavens opened up! The good news was that we finished in time. The bad news is we had to go out and drive through a thunderstorm - hail and all - about 10 minutes later!
On Sunday - we went to church at our normal time. After Church, I met up with Ron, who had a beautiful wooden rocking chair that they had not been using, for us. They felt that it would be a useful piece of furniture in our nursery. Thanks Ron and Tammy for thinking of us! Now if anyone has a ride-on mower that is looking for a new home..........
After church, Nathan and I washed Liesel's car and this time got it safely parked in the garage before the rains arrived! In the evening, Corb, Carol and their son Ari came over for dinner! It was a great time of fellowship and we found that we had many things in common with them. Carol is pregnant with their second child as well. After a good dinner, Nathan and Ari headed down to the basement - and the adults again huddled around the TV with the Wii. Corb and I played some tennis, then the ladies joined us for a game of golf, followed by 10 frames of bowling! As novices, Corb and Carol performed well above par!
Next week, the McCarthy's will be leaving for their annual Summer vacation - so there may not be a blog :( But rest assured, the follwoing week will contain everything about the vacation with plenty of photos accompanying it!
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Happy Father's Day x2!!
Firstly, I want to wish all the father's who read this, a happy (but belated) Father's Day! Today in our prayer meeting before church, Mike, our drummer, reminded us what a privilege it is to be a father! I have been so blessed to have the support of Liesel, while being a father, to an amazing little guy, Nathan! Between the two of them - my role as father has been very easy and I thank God for the two of them in my life!
This Father's day weekend, which started on Thursday for me was an extra special one! Thursday was the day that Liesel and I got to see and hear our 13 week old creation at the Ultrasound appointment! We had an appointment with an ex-South African doctor - who spent an hour with us and showing us some great shots of the first McCarthy who will become a US Citizen! We had good conversation with the ex-pat Dr and we were even reminiscing about the foods in SA that we miss. He told us that he still has ProNutro, Tiger Oats, and South African chocolate which he orders over the Internet . But most importantly he told us that everything about the baby looked normal! Praise God! So without further ado, I present Junior to you!
As you may tell we are very excited about this new life that has been given to us, so please pray for us as we prepare our lives for the new addition!
On Saturday, Avon held it's annual Duct Tape Festival Parade. Yes, you don't need to re-read the last sentence - I did say Duct Tape Festival! This is the only place in the world where a weekend is set aside to celebrate the silver, multi-surface attaching, strong and versatile tape! So at 9:30 we went to get a good vantage point to watch the parade come by. Nathan absolutely loved the police cars, ambulances, and fire trucks that went past us with sirens wailing and lights flashing! The other floats were also quite impressive bearing in mind that they were made out of Duct tape! Our church also had a float of a pirate ship in the parade - advertising the children's Vacation bible school them of the VeggieTales: The Pirates who didn't do anything!
Nathan was a little disappointed once everything had past us. He wanted to go back to the parade that evening or the next day! With that, we headed back home for lunch and some family golf on the Wii! Nathan's skills are becoming fine tuned now and he is regularly beating us at golf - and even scored a 195 in the (ten-pin) bowling game!!
The rest of the day was spent in the garden with Liesel and myself doing some gardening and tag teaming to push Nathan on his swing!
On Sunday - Nathan and Liesel gave me some very thoughtful Father's Day gifts, which I really appreciated! I got a Fender Guitar Cleaning kit as well as a DVD of one of the funniest men I have heard, Brian Regan - who I believe is a Christian! Right after opening my gifts - I had to pack my guitar into my car and head for Church for Worship practice! Today I would also be making my vocal debut at Providence, as I was singing lead for Blessed be your Name. A number of people enjoyed hearing the accent :-)
For lunch, Liesel made a roast chicken for me - and then later we all went out to have some Ice Cream and a local Ice Cream shop called Whistler's! It was decadent and Nathan kept on repeating how much he loved ice cream!
To finish the day it off - we drove down to Lake Erie where the life guards were on duty as people were swimming in the 33C (91F) heat. We, unfortunately, weren't in our bathing suits - so we just had a walk on the beach and soaked up a few rays! And that was my Father's Day weekend - 2008!
This Father's day weekend, which started on Thursday for me was an extra special one! Thursday was the day that Liesel and I got to see and hear our 13 week old creation at the Ultrasound appointment! We had an appointment with an ex-South African doctor - who spent an hour with us and showing us some great shots of the first McCarthy who will become a US Citizen! We had good conversation with the ex-pat Dr and we were even reminiscing about the foods in SA that we miss. He told us that he still has ProNutro, Tiger Oats, and South African chocolate which he orders over the Internet . But most importantly he told us that everything about the baby looked normal! Praise God! So without further ado, I present Junior to you!
As you may tell we are very excited about this new life that has been given to us, so please pray for us as we prepare our lives for the new addition!
On Saturday, Avon held it's annual Duct Tape Festival Parade. Yes, you don't need to re-read the last sentence - I did say Duct Tape Festival! This is the only place in the world where a weekend is set aside to celebrate the silver, multi-surface attaching, strong and versatile tape! So at 9:30 we went to get a good vantage point to watch the parade come by. Nathan absolutely loved the police cars, ambulances, and fire trucks that went past us with sirens wailing and lights flashing! The other floats were also quite impressive bearing in mind that they were made out of Duct tape! Our church also had a float of a pirate ship in the parade - advertising the children's Vacation bible school them of the VeggieTales: The Pirates who didn't do anything!
Nathan was a little disappointed once everything had past us. He wanted to go back to the parade that evening or the next day! With that, we headed back home for lunch and some family golf on the Wii! Nathan's skills are becoming fine tuned now and he is regularly beating us at golf - and even scored a 195 in the (ten-pin) bowling game!!
The rest of the day was spent in the garden with Liesel and myself doing some gardening and tag teaming to push Nathan on his swing!
On Sunday - Nathan and Liesel gave me some very thoughtful Father's Day gifts, which I really appreciated! I got a Fender Guitar Cleaning kit as well as a DVD of one of the funniest men I have heard, Brian Regan - who I believe is a Christian! Right after opening my gifts - I had to pack my guitar into my car and head for Church for Worship practice! Today I would also be making my vocal debut at Providence, as I was singing lead for Blessed be your Name. A number of people enjoyed hearing the accent :-)
For lunch, Liesel made a roast chicken for me - and then later we all went out to have some Ice Cream and a local Ice Cream shop called Whistler's! It was decadent and Nathan kept on repeating how much he loved ice cream!
To finish the day it off - we drove down to Lake Erie where the life guards were on duty as people were swimming in the 33C (91F) heat. We, unfortunately, weren't in our bathing suits - so we just had a walk on the beach and soaked up a few rays! And that was my Father's Day weekend - 2008!
Sunday, June 08, 2008
Buiding, blowing up, burning, blocked nose and a baebecue!
As Cleveland melted in the heat from the hottest day of the year thus far (95F/36C), myself, my good friend/colleague, Brian and our manager, Nick worked together to fulfill a promise to Nathan. A while ago, Liesel and I promised Nathan his own Jungle Gym - complete with swings and a slide if he started wearing underpants! So, of course, my colleagues and I arranged to take a day off work on the first day of an extended heatwave to assemble the play set. Before we started on the assembly, I inflated a alligator-themed paddling pool for Nath, that he absolutely loves! This kept him entertained while we were hammered and drilled the hundreds of pieces of lumber that the set consisted of. Slowly and surely - the lumber began taking the form of a fort! 7 hours later, we had done it! One brand new play set assembled complete with swings, a slide and roof to provide much needed shelter from the summer sun. Unfortunately, during those 7 hours, the spf of my sunscreen ran out and left my shoulders a shade that is comparable to that of a ripe tomato. Even my legs fell victim to the solar rays! Tonight as I type this (2 days later), the sting of sunburn has not yet dissipated :(
But seeing the joy on Nathan's face as he swings on his gym, makes the discomfort worth it! Thanks Brian and Nick!! Without your help this project would probably have taken me 7 weeks, let alone 7 hours!
Later on Friday evening - we were invited to our friends Brian and Robin for a barbecue! We had a great time with them, and Nathan just loves playing with their sons, Ethan and Isaac. A good time was had by all, not to mention the great meal!
Saturday and Sunday were just as hot as Friday, so time was spent indoors in the air-conditioned house and playing in the pool and on the swings. I had some gardening tasks that needed to be completed - and Liesel hit a few garage sales! On Sunday, I was part of the worship team again and really enjoyed today's services!
Currently in North-East Ohio, the cottonwood trees are causing my allergies to act up. Around this time of year, these trees release millions of dandelion-like pollen that floats wherever the winds sends them! At volleyball on Monday night, it was as if it were snowing as the white pollen fell from the trees around us! And it is this pollen that causes my nose to become congested and my eyes to itch! So right now I am in the process of trying to pinpoint the allergy medication that will work for me, by trial and error. So far after 2 weeks and 4 brands I am still unsuccessful :(
Sunday, June 01, 2008
Freedom!
The title does not reflect the fact that a week ago, America celebrated Memorial Day. It does however refer to a significant milestone in a McCarthy family member's life. Yes, Nathan has undergone intensive training, and is now potty-trained! Freedom from diapers! Hallelujah!!!!!!!
Liesel undertook a mission to introduce Nathan to the wonderful world of cotton underwear. Needless to say, she was not looking forward to the task. However, Nathan was up for the challenge, and after only 1 accident a day for the first two days, he has been accident-free ever since!!! What a trooper!!
This past Monday was Memorial Day for us in the USA, and it was the perfect morning for us to visit a garden nursery, to buy some flowers that will add color to our front yard! That was the easy part!! The hard work was preparing the beds, digging the holes, planting the flowers, moving mulch around to the other beds, spreading the mulch and so on! It was also a quick way to get a suntan!
As part of Nathan's incentive to wear underpants, we promised we would buy him a wooden jungle gym (swing set). I found a good deal at a local Walmart and loaded it into my CR-V (barely) and unpacked it in our garage! Instructions indicate that it would take between 8 and 12 hours to assemble with 2 adults. Luckily, my manager volunteered to help me with it, as well as my good friend/colleague Brian! We haven't set the date to assemble it yet, as I still need to seal the wood to protect it it from the elements! So watch this space for the construction!
Another incentive for Nathan was to allow him to play with the Wii! He has taken to the Wii, like a fish to water, and is loving the golf, bowling - and now even the tennis. He has a very unorthodox way of swinging the Wiimote around in order to hit the ball, yet it seems to work for him! He has beaten me in golf, and Liesel in tennis and bowling! This is only after having access to the Wii for 5 days........
This weekend, we had the pleasure of having Craig, Liesel's brother come and stay with us. He was on a business trip up in Toronto, Canada, and he hired a car and drove the 5 hours to visit us! Nathan loved having his big (6' 7") uncle around! On Saturday, Craig bought Nathan his own 3 man tent, as an early birthday gift! As soon as we got home, Nathan wanted us to put the tent up. So now our 3rd bedroom has the dome tent set up and waiting for Nathan to come sleep :-) Nathan also taught Craig how to play golf and bowling on the Wii, and there were a few family tournaments this weekend, with all 4 of us participating!
On Saturday night, we went out to eat, and afterwards stopped at Dick's Sporting Goods. Craig told me that he was now in his happy place when he walked into the golf department. The prices here are about 50% cheaper than they are in the UK, so Craig to full advantage of his visit to the USA! 2 hours and about 60 swings of the golf clubs on a virtual driving range later, we came home and sat back and enjoyed a movie on TV.
On Sunday, we went to Church after Craig had completed a 3km run around our neighborhood. After Church, Craig, myself and Nathan dropped Liesel off at home, and we headed for the beach! The sky was cloudless, but there was a nippy breeze, but the beach was still fantastic! Nathan just loves the sand! After about 30 minutes we headed home, where a delicious roast lamb awaited us for lunch! It was then time for the siesta, after which Craig packed his car - and headed back to Toronto! It was wonderful having family spend time with us.
Liesel undertook a mission to introduce Nathan to the wonderful world of cotton underwear. Needless to say, she was not looking forward to the task. However, Nathan was up for the challenge, and after only 1 accident a day for the first two days, he has been accident-free ever since!!! What a trooper!!
This past Monday was Memorial Day for us in the USA, and it was the perfect morning for us to visit a garden nursery, to buy some flowers that will add color to our front yard! That was the easy part!! The hard work was preparing the beds, digging the holes, planting the flowers, moving mulch around to the other beds, spreading the mulch and so on! It was also a quick way to get a suntan!
As part of Nathan's incentive to wear underpants, we promised we would buy him a wooden jungle gym (swing set). I found a good deal at a local Walmart and loaded it into my CR-V (barely) and unpacked it in our garage! Instructions indicate that it would take between 8 and 12 hours to assemble with 2 adults. Luckily, my manager volunteered to help me with it, as well as my good friend/colleague Brian! We haven't set the date to assemble it yet, as I still need to seal the wood to protect it it from the elements! So watch this space for the construction!
Another incentive for Nathan was to allow him to play with the Wii! He has taken to the Wii, like a fish to water, and is loving the golf, bowling - and now even the tennis. He has a very unorthodox way of swinging the Wiimote around in order to hit the ball, yet it seems to work for him! He has beaten me in golf, and Liesel in tennis and bowling! This is only after having access to the Wii for 5 days........
This weekend, we had the pleasure of having Craig, Liesel's brother come and stay with us. He was on a business trip up in Toronto, Canada, and he hired a car and drove the 5 hours to visit us! Nathan loved having his big (6' 7") uncle around! On Saturday, Craig bought Nathan his own 3 man tent, as an early birthday gift! As soon as we got home, Nathan wanted us to put the tent up. So now our 3rd bedroom has the dome tent set up and waiting for Nathan to come sleep :-) Nathan also taught Craig how to play golf and bowling on the Wii, and there were a few family tournaments this weekend, with all 4 of us participating!
On Saturday night, we went out to eat, and afterwards stopped at Dick's Sporting Goods. Craig told me that he was now in his happy place when he walked into the golf department. The prices here are about 50% cheaper than they are in the UK, so Craig to full advantage of his visit to the USA! 2 hours and about 60 swings of the golf clubs on a virtual driving range later, we came home and sat back and enjoyed a movie on TV.
On Sunday, we went to Church after Craig had completed a 3km run around our neighborhood. After Church, Craig, myself and Nathan dropped Liesel off at home, and we headed for the beach! The sky was cloudless, but there was a nippy breeze, but the beach was still fantastic! Nathan just loves the sand! After about 30 minutes we headed home, where a delicious roast lamb awaited us for lunch! It was then time for the siesta, after which Craig packed his car - and headed back to Toronto! It was wonderful having family spend time with us.
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