June 2011 Blog Posts (30)

1. Padded Headboard

A padded headboard adds additional fabric to your bed, allowing you to tie in more texture and color with your surrounding fabrics for cohesive  harmony. A wooden headboard tells a story of  heirloom quality, whereas a padded…

The fresh breath of summer. Crisp, cool mornings erupt into sun-drenched afternoons then dissolve into picture perfect sunsets. The lakes warm to a balmy 62 degrees and fill with hardy wake boarders, skiers, surfers and Frisbee flingers.

And like the annual onslaught of swarming black flies come the color-coordinated, spandex-assed bikers riding three abreast on the winding lakeshore roads.

 …

Good Harbor Bay at County Road 669 is one of the most beautiful spots in Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. This time of year, you can have the beach to yourself. When I was there, the fog was drifting off the lake and the sand cherries were in full bloom.

There are several hiking trails in…

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            To those who relate Up North living to 10 acres, a wood-heated cabin, OTV, and a snow blower attachment for the tractor you might want to skip what follows.  Don’t get me wrong, frontier living is alive and well in…

While I am prone to both the hair brush throwing hissy fit and the occasional boogered up bang job, rarely do I break anything or…

By the pricking of my thumbs (on stinging nettle and raspberry bushes), something wicked this way comes. This week we saw hordes of garlic mustard marching towards our preserves via deer trails, two tracks and old logging roads with no regard for the unsuspecting native plants which are disappearing one by one, nowhere to be found.…

The Homestead Staff at Sleeping Bear Dunes Overlook #9

Homestead management and associates took a field trip to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore as part of an ongoing plan to provide orientation and training for key staff. Our group took a caravan…

Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive in May

The Dunes are awash in delightful shades of green and white that is only visible in the spring. The leaves on the trees create a canopy of pale green over Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive in Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. The…

     First rule of grocery shopping – the deals are on the lower shelves. The overpriced are eye level or just below where a toddler can place vice grips upon the pretty packaging while leaning perilously from the kiddie seat.  Take the Cocoa Cuckoos away at your own peril.  And maybe that’s OK. Why hazard a meltdown in the cereal aisle or throw a…

I knew summer was here when my friend, Ivana Shiraz, laughed so hard she snorted out a booger.

That’s good stuff, my friend. This is not a woman who one would think could even cultivate a booger; much less bring one forth the size of a cheese curd.

Of course, we were all very gracious and civilized about the whole thing. Are you kidding me? NOT! Much ado was made and we’ve changed her name to Ivana Kleenex for at least thirty…