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It was brought to our attention that to comment on our blog could be a bit confusing when it come to which option to select if you don't have a google account.

The easiest option I have come up with is select Name/URL in the drop down box and just leave your name you do not have to put in a URL. Then submit your comment :)

For the love of Ice Cream

One thing we both looked forward to when we decided to head north was the fact that you can always find an ice cream shop where ever you are. Dylan has always loved going to get ice cream as it is a fond memory he has from growing up. When in New York he would always go with his Uncle Rod to get ice cream. It is a memory that he talks about often when remembering his uncle.

So it didn't take us long to find the ice creams shops here in Carson City after we got settled in. The other day, a few days before school started, I entered the grocery store and noticed the small shop inside the store was closed. Reason being it is the end of season. How can it be the end of ice cream season? This was hard to process, coming from the south where it is always ice cream season. We get ice cream on Christmas day, we huddle around heaters with it freezing to eat homemade ice cream, we love our ice cream. So for everyone in the south it is always ice cream season.

All this talk about ice cream has got me wanting some, so here it to hoping Heralds is still open for the season!

A Little Adventure

Lake Michigan Light House
Grand Haven, Mi

Since arriving here in the north, even when we were in Ohio, we decided we wanted to visit at least one of the Great Lakes. After talking with some locals Dylan surprised me with a day trip to Lake Michigan.

Saturday morning we go up and headed out, we even took Mo on this adventure with us. We didn't have an exact address to make it to the lake we just had a town to program into the GPS and figured we could figure it out from there. We made it to Grand Haven, Mi with no problem. The GPS did exactly what we asked it to do, it took us to the middle of town which also happened to be in the middle of a residential area. So we broke out our phones so we could see the lake and figure out how to get there. We were only a few miles from the lake. As we were going down this road we rounded the curve and BAM there was Lake Michigan. Finding the lake this way made it even more amazing because of the view and size. The lake was beautiful but unfortunately the visibility was low Saturday due to the fog. 

At first it looked like it was going to be a short trip, there were signs everywhere saying no dogs but we were going to make the best of the day since we had already drove that far. It took us a little bit but we finally found a place to park. We parked inside the state park, for a non-resident it was $9 for the day but the permit allowed us in any Michigan State Park Saturday. The guy working the gate was very friendly and helpful and pointed us in the right direction to find the dog beach. 

We made it down to the dog beach and made our way to the water. You guessed it, it was COLD. We had considered swimming while we were there but after feeling the temperature of the water it was too cold for either of us but it wasn't stopping the locals. Mo does not like the loose sand, I guess because he gets bogged down with his short legs. Usually I can't keep him out of the water but because the wind was blowing it was causing waves and we think the sound scared him. He made sure he kept me between him and the water.

After our walk along the beach we walked along the bay making our way to the pier with the light house, this apparently is the thing to do while in Grand Haven. Of course we found it comical at the variety of the size of boats coming and and going out through the bay area. We saw sizes from kayaks to small yachts. I have to admit the view from the pier was amazing. I could not imagine being out there when the waves where high. Since being home I have researched the light house and the winter photos are absolutely amazing. 

Overall it was a great day we both had a blast and Mo, as always, got a ton of comments. This was definately a place I wouldn't mind getting the chance to visit again. 

One Month Down...

We have survived our first month and a few days, yay!

Unfortunately everyone is saying winter is on its way, which means we will have to be leaving here sooner than we thought. We are already seeing temperatures that they do not normally see until October. That's not good for these two Louisiana kids. We wanted to try to make it here until mid November but it looks like we will have to catch a job further south since this RV park closes October 1st. That's the only negative about tramping where it gets cold, almost all of your RV parks are seasonal so they are only open during the summer months. Then if you are lucky enough to find an open park more than likely you wont have running water.

Since we know our time is limited here our to do list has been rewritten a bit. We found Crystal Lake last week, I cant get over how crystal clear the water is here. All we have in Louisiana is muddy water. Here you can see 3-5 down easy. We had talked about going swimming there one weekend but with the current temperatures I don't think that it is going to happen, and of course Dad wont bring the ski boat up here. We are also trying to plan a weekend trip to one of the great lakes we just seem to decided on which one, where to go, and what to do.

It is strange that I think it is totally hilarious that the grocery store put the cajun style food on the world food isle :) When I seen it I just had to stop and stare. But the good news is I found all the Tony  Chachere I need and want along with Cafe du Monde coffee and beignet mix. What is even more funny is that Dylan has all the guys on his crew convinced that only the men in Louisiana can cook etouffee, bahaha ask me how many times he has cooked it. That's ok though because he gets to cook the gumbo and if he is nice I will take care of the etouffee.

On a positive note we went fishing last weekend and I actually caught a fish, it has been years. Being totally honest it was more like catching than fishing, which is my kinda fishing. 34 bream later and we were out of worms but it was good relaxing fun.

Just a little update

Well not much has been going on the past few days so not much to share as we close in on our first month on the road.

We missed a pretty good thunderstorm Sunday evening. It resulted in Dylan working about 12 hours of storm work Monday evening. We just got a little rain, it looks like the actual storm went south, south east of us. Detroit had a good bit of outages. Dylan and his crew went to Flint, which is about an hour south east of here but he was home around midnight Monday night. So I am happy to say we are going on 50 days of being together. It's like we are married again :)

We were talking about it last night, it feels like we have been on the road longer than 3 1/2 weeks. We decided because this is where we are supposed to be it make settling in easy. It feels like this is the way things have always been because things are going  so easy for us, settling in, his job going so good, great neighbors. Yet even with all that at the same time it feel like we have been away for ever.

Thanks to the family sending pictures it is like we are watching our children (the dogs) grow up. They have discovered the fig tree and from what I hear they love helping mom pick figs :)

Mo finally got to chase something. Yesterday (7/29) while taking his walk we came up on a rabbit in a open area and after it he went. I don't know what he would have done with it if he would have caught it since he was as big as he is but he gave it his best.

We are just making this little trailer home and patiently waiting for some deliveries from home in the form of Zapp's potato chips. Mo is going through with drawls not having his chip every evening. Thanks dad for spoiling him!

We are making things work in this little 17 foot camper. So far my only complaint is Dylan wants to sleep in the middle of the bed. No biggie except we are trying to adjust to a full from a queen. We have found our dream camper (you can see it here) http://www.forestriverinc.com/FifthWheels/Sandpiper/default.aspx?page=floorplandetails&floorplanid=5281
Dad says he sent us the money to buy it, but it looks like his check got lost in the mail so in the mean time we will just keep drooling and saving.

We Survived Our First 2 Weeks In Michigan

Dylan 7/18/14 Hydaker Wheatlake
Carson City, Michigan

Well we have survived our first two weeks in Michigan. It has been very interesting to say the lease. The culture shock hasn't been as bad as I expected. Everyone can still tell we are not from here based on our accents.

For those who know Moses, you know how much he LOVES camping. He is adjusting well, although I believe he still hopes we are going home every time we get in the car. It is a good thing I did not give him that hair cut I had planned before coming here or he would have froze last week. Last Tuesday he sported his cam sweater all day and was still shivering. We have been told by several people not to expect any 100+ degree days; Dylan is loving that! He did sweat once his first week at work. We can stay we survived the summer polar vortex. Although I have to admit it was odd looking fir a heater to buy in the middle of January. We definitely stuck out during the couple of days it was so cold. I was beginning to wonder if we packed the right clothes. We were expecting cooler temps but not quite this cold as we didn't officially plan to be this far north.

One thing I have noticed is that this area in Michigan has a very LARGE deer population. I almost got my first buck in velvet last Friday while n my way to take Dylan his lunch. It seems like every day you can drive down a road and  see a new dead deer on the side of the road. It is sad actually, all that meat gone to waste. I looked into deer tags up here but unfortunately they are on a lottery system so it doesn't look like this will be my prime hunting location. 

I got to spend some time with my camera last week while waiting on Dylan and the crew to finish clipping in the wire on the pole they were working on. My favorite shot of the day is the one I have included with this post. You can tell by the look on Dylan's face he loves his job. The more I used to canon the more I learn about and love it even more. So expect many pictures of our travels to come. I am working on linking a photo album to our blog. 

This week I can tell we are starting to settle into a routine. Monday we officially got our Dish Satellite set up, this helps the days go by so much faster. Fighting with the antenna all day every day was getting old fast. Dylan is getting used to working again after having his longest vacation ever. He even had to sweat at work this week. Monday and Tuesday we his 90 degrees, last night I was in a sweat shirt and sweat pants and we had a fire.

Today (Friday/July 25) Dylan wanted to grill burgers for the crews lunch today. Well, to help out I decided I would grill the burgers and take everything to them so they didn't have to do anything...I am DONE grilling until we have a Holland Grill that is all I have to say. The one we have now almost went into the trash today and the guys almost got fast food burgers. Everyone said they tasted good so maybe they were being honest and not just trying not to hurt my feelings.

One last note::: I have to say Michigan mosquitoes, while do not compare to Louisiana mosquitoes in size, sure do leave a lasting bite. I have bought just about everything to repel mosquitoes but these things are determined. 

Virtual Move

Just a heads up! We made a virtual move! I am more comfortable with how blogger/google works than wordpress so I have made the switch over to blogger until I get more comfortable with wordpress.