A Much Needed Adventure

For the first time since Oona's surgery, we all got out of the house for an outdoor family adventure. It was such a wonderful Saturday that I had to share about it!

We made the very short drive over to the Outdoor Discovery Center right here in town, which we had never been to as a family before. What an amazing place! There is so much to see and do. There are several elk on the property, as well as a birds of prey area where you can see everything from a peregrine falcon and bald eagle to owls and kestrels. (All the birds on site were injured and are unable to survive in the wild anymore.) There are two awesome playgrounds and endless trails through beautiful ponds and wildlife. There's also an educational Native American site where you can explore life size teepees and wigwams! And the best part - it's free admission!

Tulip Time Is Here Again

What a busy week it's been. Art festivals, three parades, carnival fun, Dutch dancing, so much walking, too much junk food and not enough quiet time. We are exhausted. Olive and Silas have worn their Dutch costumes that Grandma Frey made them proudly all week long. It's an exciting time of year up here in Holland. And did I mention the tulips?

Tulips, tulips, tulips as far as you can see. They're everywhere. They're gorgeous. They smell good. And I swear, I almost hit a tourist every single morning while taking Olive to school, because they slam their brakes on Tulip Lane to take pictures from the middle of the road. But, you can hardly blame them, right? 

This is our third Tulip Time, and if the first time was magical, the second time was charming, and this third time is a bit of an affectionate eye-roll. Oh the kitsch! If there's a purgatory, I bet you everything I have that our Dutch dancers' soundtrack is playing on a never ending loop! And it really does get to seem funny how the tourists go absolutely crazy at Tulip Time. (We get around 500,000 people from all over the world come for Tulip Time, to give you an idea of the madness. Holland's population is only around 33,000.) 

It doesn't take long to start taking for granted what a special town this is. It's beautiful and quaint, and pristinely clean, and I've honestly never been anywhere with the overwhelming amount of community pride that little Holland has. That community pride is what really makes Holland the jewel that it is. Yes it's kitschy, and sometimes crazy, but we're really really lucky to call this place home.

Ice Ice Baby

Living on the west shoreline of Lake Michigan unfortunately means brutal winters. A typical snowstorm up here (when combined with our plentiful lake effect snow) can easily last days. Last week we had a very big storm roll in, and got loads of snow, wind and freezing temps. Just in time for Holland's annual ice carving competition!

It's so cool (har har) to see these guys work their magic on these huge blocks of ice. I have no idea how they manage to put so much intricate detail into their sculptures using saws and torches. The finished products are always amazing!

The ice carving competition is just one of the creative ways Hollanders have made these hard winters actually fun. Not an easy job, but they do it well!

Makers Market (Part One)

I am lucky to have two very creative, talented sisters. I'm super lucky that one of them lives just a couple of blocks from me! Grace is a potter and ceramic artist. She's a fine arts graduate from WVU and even had the opportunity to study ceramics in China for a semester. I know I'm biased, but I think no one can deny after seeing her work that this girl has a huge talent. I love that Grace channels her sweet, feminine personality into the clay and turns out the sweetest, prettiest pottery. She was invited to participate in a Makers Market a couple of weeks ago, and I imposed myself on her to "help" (really, I just wanted to be part of the excitement and check out all the hipster artists *wink.*) It was so much fun! And I could not have been more proud of Grace. She works so hard and pours all of herself into her art. 

^ Grace and her close friend / housemate, Alyssa. ^

^ The market took place at Coppercraft Distillery - the towering barrels were quite a sight! ^

^ Another perk of "helping" - I got a free fancy, holiday cocktail. My first buttered rum - it sounds way more delicious than it actually is, unfortunately. That was a little disappointing. ^ 

Back To Windmill Island

Sick of tulip pictures yet? Hope not...

We went to Windmill Island this morning, because they have such a beautiful field of tulips. We want to enjoy them as much as possible before they're gone - they probably only have a week or so left. It was the first time we've been to the island this year, and it was nice to be back. 

We thought Silas was smelling the tulips, but he was actually kissing them haha.

Last year at the island, HERE.