Friday and Saturday (part one)

Friday morning we had family pictures. I'm not sure if I can post those...hmmm. Anyway, it took awhile, but I thought it went really well. The girls cooperated and smiled and looked so stinkin' cute. :) What took so long was selecting the pictures we wanted. We then went and had a family meal at Q'Doba. Yummy to our tummy. We took the girls home, tucked Sadie in for her nap, and Brandon and I loaded up the van for our little four day escape. Yes, we got away just the two of us.

We had wanted to do something for our 10th anniversary - last August. We just seemed to be lacking on the time, money or both. I had dreamed of going to San Diego since I've never been there but always thought it would be fun. And we talked about going this time. However, the air miles were double what we wanted to use; Brandon travels enough that flying to our destination didn't excite him; and I knew that there would be so much to do in such little (four days) time. All that to say - I didn't have a peace about going, though it made me sad not to. I knew I wanted a location where we could slow down, relax and really connect. I felt like if we went to SD, then we would have been going non stop. So we decided to pick another location. That took awhile...Brandon mentioned Mackinac Island, but I said, "been there, done that."  Over time I began to change my mind, and a decision was made.  We stayed at a HI Express for free ( a perk to all of Brandon's work travels) in St. Ignace, in the UP of Michigan. The timing was right for us to go. I knew my parents would enjoy every minute with the girls; the girls would love staying with them, and I didn't have to feel bad about leaving them. My mom would say, "It's a win-win."

Here is the Mighty Mac we went over.

A view from our hotel room. I was determined to have a beach. Like it? :)

There's Mackinac Island

Saturday morning we headed north 45 minutes to Sault St. Marie to go on a tour of the Soo Locks. I knew this was something Brandon would enjoy, and I was right. I selected a handful of the 100+ pictures he took. If you ever want a picture tour, he can give you one. :)

The world's longest hydro electric plant  - 1/4 mile long. (I just had to ask him this; I don't remember those kind of things.)

And there I sit. It was one of the tours where the women sat on the boat, and the men lined the deck with the cameras.

Here we are in the first lock waiting for the water to raise. It takes us from Lake Huron to Lake Superior.

A huge steel mill. I believe this was on Canada's side.

After the two hour tour, we found a quaint cafe to each lunch. It was probably one of our favorite meals on the entire trip. From there we took a scenic drive to a state park. Along the way we stopped at an old light house. We climbed up and then walked the beach.

Part Two to come...