By the River

Over Labor Day weekend, we were fortunate to be invited to our friend's cabin near the Au Sable river, in northern Michigan. It was a wonderful, relaxing few days and we had a great time sitting on various decks on the river, watching the water flow by.

The Au Sable River has a natural beauty and the water is crystal clear. You can see the fish beneath the surface and it is known for its trout fishing and canoeing.

When we arrived, we immediately sat on the deck and had a cocktail; all the while discussing whether we would go canoeing that day or go for a late lunch, at a restaurant on the river. As you can see from this photo, lunch won out and we enjoyed burgers and beer in a beautiful setting. That night, we visited with some friends of our hosts and had a lovely evening at their secluded cabin in the woods.

The next morning, after breakfast at the local bar and grill that served delicious Bloody Marys, we set out for a three hour canoe trip. The river is somewhat shallow, so if the canoe tips (as canoes tend to do) it is easy to climb back in. I wish I had photos of all the natural beauty and wildlife we saw, but I couldn't risk my phone getting wet or lost. It was quiet, calm and you could picture Native Americans taking that same trip in canoes, many years before. We managed not to flip and stayed dry throughout the trip - and my husband and I were still speaking and happy at the end :-)

That evening, after a wonderful dinner of beef tenderloin, cooked on the grill, we enjoyed this amazing fire and laughed and talked into the night.

Before leaving the final day, we did something very far out of my comfort zone. I have never held a rifle, let alone shot one, but we went to a safe location in the woods and shot at targets and clay pigeons. It was fun, but scary too.

We had an amazing weekend by the river; filled with new experiences and new memories with friends. It was a wonderful ending to the summer of 2012.



Vicki

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Tailgate in East Lansing

Friday, we hosted a tailgate at the Michigan State - Boise State football game in East Lansing. We had a wonderful time before the game, visiting with friends and family and eating a lot of delicious food.

My daughter Melissa visited before her performance with the MSU pom team. It was so great to see her and I am always proud when she is wearing her Spartan uniform.

We had two tables of food set up under our MSU tent. Our menu included mini ham sandwiches, mini barbecue chicken sandwiches, sausage and cheese bites, coleslaw, fruit salad, a giant chocolate chip cookie, and many dips, along with a layered mexican dip.

This dip is one of our tailgate traditions and everyone calls it the best tailgate dip ever. The recipe is included below.

Best Tailgate Dip Recipe

Layer the following in a round, shallow dish.

2 cans bean dip

2 cups sour cream, mixed well with 1 package taco seasoning

1 cup chopped green onion

2 cups chopped tomatoes

1 can black olives, sliced

1 8 ounce package shredded cheese

Serve with tortilla chips.

On the way to the stadium we went to watch the pom team perform at the campus bookstore. We then headed to the game where we cheered on the Spartans to their first victory :-)

I hope you had a great weekend too and tomorrow I will share more Labor Day weekend fun, including details on our trip to a cabin in northern Michigan.



Vicki





Linking this post with these friends this week :-)

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And more friends I find :-)

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Summer's Last Blooms

Labor day is considered the final day of summer by many, so I am sharing the last blooms in my flower garden today. These multi colored zinnias are bravely blooming on, as we look forward to the changing colors of fall. I hope you spent your holiday weekend outside - maybe by the beach or a pool. Maybe you had a backyard cookout or had a picnic at a park. However you spent these last days of summer vacation, I hope you were with family and friends and made many wonderful memories. Enjoy these pretty blooms :-)

Vicki

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