Postcard from Midland

Jay has known Cilla from his childhood.  His Mum and her became good friends after giving birth to their children on the same day.  This friendship has also lasted, despite becoming a long distance one when Cilla and her family moved to Midland, Michigan around thirty years ago.  Jay visited here when he was fifteen and always promised that he would one day return.
And here we were, fulfilling that promise!
Four things really stood out here:
- The Farmer's Market: Our first day here saw us mingle with the locals at the market place.  Everything looked so fresh and colourful.  Nobody seemed to mind us wandering and taking pictures.
- The 'Tridge':  A three way bridge that met over the middle of a river and another opportunity to take some more pictures!
- Dow Gardens:  Some of the prettiest gardens I ever saw!  And that was after visiting the gardens in Windsor just a few days before.  Here, we were able to take our time peacefully, watching Alfie run around freely and just soaking up time spent together as a family.
- Hot Air Balloons: Sadly, we were not in it!  On our last evening at Cilla's though, whilst sitting together eating dinner, we could sense some commotion outside against the backdrop of a noise that was unfamiliar.  As we approached the driveway and looked up we were completely taken aback to find a hot air balloon travelling very low, above the house.  Close enough to make eye contact with the couple inside the basket, we waved enthusiastically to them and watched in awe as Alfie looked up to this unfamiliar sight.  As we looked around, we could see that it was not the only one in the sky.  It was a spectacular sight to see.  What a way to finish up our time in Midland.
We loved it here and we loved spending time with Cilla who had so kindly opened up her home to us.

Thank you Midland!  We are SO glad we came!

Kate x

#PhotoOfTheWeek

Waiting for Jess to arrive......

Postcard from Windsor, Canada

Tyler and Jessica live in one of the most beautiful places that we saw during our entire road trip.  Due to Tyler's busy work schedule it was up to Jessica to show us around and we must have gasped our loud when she took the three of us to Windsor Gardens.  The word 'Windsor' always makes me think of the royal family - and posh old ladies! - but when we saw how beautiful it was here, I couldn't help but think that even the queen would be jealous of this lovely place.  She may have a castle in Windsor back home, but this place was stunning!

The great thing about this place was that Alfie could run around to his heart's content.  It was so enclosed and quiet here for him and you could see the delight of freedom written all over his face.
We are also pretty sure that he fell in love with Jessica too.  He adored her company and constantly wandered around, checking that she wasn't too far away.  We were so grateful that she patiently watched him, taking a heartfelt interest in every flower, blade of grass or tiny stone that he found.  He wanted to show her everything.  She was so kind and gentle with him, you could practically see the shape of his eyes change into love-hearts........

So it came as no real surprise to me that he was unimpressed when I whisked him away briefly to have a photograph taken with him against a backdrop of beautiful flowers.

 Yep.  He was pretty much unimpressed.......

 Like - really unimpressed.

So much so, that my little buddy had quite the meltdown.......

Somebody could have warned me that true love waits for no-one.

Especially toddlers!

~~~

Alfie in Wonderland...

 ...or 'Alfie Through the Looking Glass'.....
Whichever version of the story you prefer to read!

(Memories from Detroit)

Tyler's Mom!

xxx

Postcard from Detroit

 

Detroit was an exciting visit for us.  Regardless of what we were to do here or the memories that were waiting to be made, we knew we'd love it here - mainly because we were meeting a good friend of ours who had stayed with us back home a number of years ago.  Tyler had been to the same college as Debra and due to the fact that he had stayed with us, we feel like we got to know him a lot more than we would have otherwise.

Detroit is having it's fair share of trials lately.  The economy is slow and people are leaving in droves.  It was sad seeing such beautiful houses and expensive streets, completely deserted as owners have left to start new lives elsewhere.  Many of these areas must have been stunning in their time.  Sadly though, it's not the case these days and if it ever returns to it's former glory, it will take many years to get there.

It wasn't all bad though!  There were still many beautiful places to explore here, in particular the Ford Family Estate, which housed a beautiful little 'playhouse' (pictures to follow) that was the perfect size for Alfie.  He had a wonderful time, opening Alfie-sized doors and sitting in Alfie-sized chairs.  You could see him marvelling at all the things that are usually completely out of reach.  It was one of those moments where you stop thinking about everything except what might be going through the mind of an inquisitive toddler.

It was great seeing Tyler again.  His family (including his new wife, Jessica) were so hospitable and generous with their time whilst we were with them.  We were so fortunate to have met them.  Alfie loved them so much and just like he'd found a friend in Debra's Dad the previous week before - he's found another friend in Tyler's Dad.

Happy, happy memories........