Harrington House

Ahh...Home, Sweet Home!

Pheww!  Amelia and I just made it home from a three-week trip to Momma & Daddy's.  Mike had had some out-of-town business, so we decided to pack up and visit with all my family in Kentucky.  We had a WONDERFUL time.  It's always so hard to leave, but it's always nice to be back home, too, you know?  We flew up there and back.  How many of you are jealous that I flew solo with an 18-month-old??  Haha!  Let's just say that this mama packed a WIDE variety of toys and snacks.  It truly wasn't that bad!  ;o)

Waiting on the plane to come in...

 

Look at my big girl sitting on the plane!

   

Amelia had a ball getting into the leaves...

 

   

 

   

and getting into the Halloween candy...thanks to Grandaddy!

 

We, of course, got into some good antiquing!  I got lots of goodies, but some of them, I had to leave at Momma's since I couldn't fit them in my suitcase.  :o(  

   

 

  

Amelia has always taken up good with Momma, but this time she really got attached.  She constantly wanted to be wherever she was and be on her lap!  And she would run around the house and hollar for her.  hehe!  It was so sweet!  It's always been hard for me to live so far from my family, but now that I am having children, it is even harder.  

    

And just about every night, she would sit up in the chair with Grandaddy and eat ice cream.  Oh mercy!

 Oh, me...so now we are back home and trying to get back into our routine.  Like I said, I'm always glad to get home because I do love being at home.  Whenever I am away, it seems like I get a renewed sense of motivation to do my work at home, whether it be projects I have been postponing or even simple things like getting back into my routine of housework and cooking.  I'm always so ready to return to that.  Are y'all like that, too?  And since I have been gone for three weeks, and prior to that I was suffering from the all-day morning sickness for about 8 weeks, my house is in MAJOR need of attention, let alone the projects I have going!  So, I have my big list posted up and happy to be crossing things off of it.

OH!  It's good to be home! 

My Mackinac

One of my favorite places in the world is Mackinac Island.  It's beautiful!  The style of the homes, inns, hotels, bed & breakfasts, shops, flowers, gardens, and tall, old trees are so inspiring to me.  And, being that it is an island, views of the water are everywhere.  It's perfect, I'm telling y'all! 

   

This is the phone booth where I called my family to let them know Mike had proposed.  Wow!  That was about 7 years ago!

In June, the island celebrates their lilacs with a festival.  We were there on the heels of lilac blooming season, but I still got to see some late-blooming varieties.

One of my favorite things about the island is that you walk, ride a bicycle, or ride in a horse-drawn carriage.  That's because no motor vehicles are allowed on the island (save for the fire and medical emergency personnel).  It makes everything so peaceful. 

And the only way to get to the island is via ferry.  (We always ride Shepler's because Mike went to school with them.)

Some views of Mackinac Bridge from the ferry...

Coming up to the island, there is a string of incredible, historic summer cottages lining the bluff.

I would give my "I" teeth to live in one of these.  Can you imagine?

And then...Oh My!  It's the glorious Grand Hotel!

 

I think one of my favorite things about the hotel is the color palette.  I adore those rich reds and greens with yellows and blues, all next to that crisp white.

 

And, of course, I'm all about the wicker... (Those floors were so shiny, I just know I could have put my makeup on in the reflection.)

Out in the gardens, little Miss Amelia was happy as a lark to be running free in the soft grass.  And chasing the seagulls...

Bye bye, Birdie!

We went up to the Cupola Room to enjoy a drink and the view from the highest point in the hotel.   

 

 

One of my favorite movies Somewhere in Time, starring the late Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour, was filmed here at the hotel.  I'm not sure which came first...my love of the movie or my love of the Grand Hotel...

Bye for now, my Mackinac!  See you next time!

Vacation or Bust

Phewww!!!

We just got back a few days ago from spending several weeks on vacation.  It's so nice to get away, but...OH!  It's so nice to be back home!  We drove from Georgia to northern Michigan.  Yes, we DROVE...across the United States...with a baby...and lots and lots of STUFF!  We always joke that we look like the Clampetts (you know, the Beverly Hillbillies) when we travel, and this time was no exception.  We had everything but the kitchen sink, including Granny in her rocker (okay, so it was Amelia in her carseat...).

We stopped in and saw almost all of Mike's family on our way up north.  Mike grew up in a small town right on Lake Michigan called Harbor Springs.  It's such a beautiful little town.  It's on the bay (Little Traverse Bay) across from Petoskey.  This is a view of downtown Harbor Springs...

This is part of Petoskey's downtown overlooking the bay...

Don't they look like postcard towns?  Well, the downtown shops of both really look like postcards, but I was too busy shopping and chasing Amelia around to take any pictures.  (Okay, really...I just didn't want to look too fudgie-y.....all of the folks who live in these areas call the out-of-towners who come up in the summers "fudgies" because they usually buy lots of fudge from the many, many fudge shops). 

We stayed in a great cabin right on the lake just outside of Harbor in a little village called Good Hart.  There is a general store in Good Hart that sells the most delicious pot pies and fresh baked goods! 

We had the perfect place for some dining al fresco!  ;o)   

This is the road you drive to our cabin...it's a highway called M-119.  This part is known as the Tunnel of Trees.  It's such a beautiful drive, and it's always on those scenic highway lists of must-drives.

Here are some more views from our cabin...

Can you see the pair of swans below?

Even though we packed a lot into this vacation, it was completely relaxing.  Another wonderful family vacation with lots of wonderful memories...

Sweet Charlotte (& Pinehurst)

We just got back from being in Charlotte this week.  We had so much fun!  Mike lived in Charlotte while we were dating and engaged, and we thought we were going to live there after we were married.  A few months before the wedding, he took a job in Atlanta.  But we lovvved Charlotte...such a nice, pretty city.  (I love all the crowns on the street signs!) 

This is Amelia's new favorite pastime...

(If you notice in the background that we are outside the Kids' ER...it's just because I had to stop by work before we left!)

The next day, Amelia drove some more...

We also spent a couple of nights in Pinehurst here...

We stayed in 1 of the 11 guest rooms, called the Upjohn Room...

Amelia doing the Happy Dance to be out of the car!

No ma'am, Amelia, get down...

 

Here are a few other shots of the inn...

There were 3 dining rooms.

The pub had a very vintage-y collegiate feel.

Mike & Amelia on the front porch, squintin' in the sun... 

Mike played golf here at Pinehurst No. 2...

The Village Chapel in Pinehurst was so beautiful.

And, of course, Co-Captain Amelia drove some on the way home, too...

(Pssst, a major blow-out is what led to this temporary strip-down.)

No roadtrip is complete without hitting a few junk stores either...

(I got lotsa goodies...I'll show pictures of them later!)

Back in the carseat and back to home sweet home...