Trip to the UP!

Wow! What a crazy week! Pete, Charlie and I headed to the UP to find a house to move in to at the end of the month. We were thinking it would be a little vacation, but it definitely didn't turn out that way. We had a great Labor Day weekend with the family. Pete's parents came up to Marquette Saturday through Tuesday, and Mark, Kelly and Drew were in Manistique (about 1.5 hours from Marquette) staying at Mark's parent's place until Monday. On Saturday, we all met up in Marquette to celebrate Mom's birthday. We had some lunch, celebrated with cake and presents, let the boys swim in the hotel pool, went to a really cool playground right on Lake Superior while listening to the Blues Fest, then had some dinner before Mark, Kelly and Drew headed out. On Sunday we went to Manistique to see the DeLonge's place. It was a gorgeous cottage right on Lake Michigan. We all took a walk down the beach, had a wonderful barbecue for lunch, and just relaxed in the sunshine. The craziest part was that we ran into my friend Patty, whom I taught with at Free Soil 5 years ago, in the grocery store! It was so great to see her!

The rest of the week was spent looking for houses. It was very stressful, but, in our true Hrodey fashion, we signed a lease at 5pm the night before our flight was out at 7am. In the end, we were very happy, but it was definitely hectic and stressful. We did get to do some other great things during the week in Marquette though. Charlie spent some good quality time with Grandpa and Grandma. We were able to reconnect with Pete's college roommate and friend from high school, Brian. He, his wife, and their son, Mateo, live in the Marquette area, so it's nice to know we already have some friends up there! One night we had dinner with Dave & Linda, who are our friend, Dan's, parents. Dan is a good friend we met in Indiana and have stayed in touch with ever since. His parents live outside of Marquette, so it's nice to know we have them close by. Our last night we went over to the house of a co-worker of Pete for dinner. It was so great to get to know Lisa because I have heard about her for years! Pete's new boss also joined us, so it was great to get to know them and their families, and we look forward to seeing them more when we head back in October!!

Overall, it was a whirlwind of a weekend, but we made it through. Marquette is a beautiful place (even though it was a little chilly). It was so nice to be back where everything was green and to see the lake every day. Pete and I are truly water people, so being back there definitely made me feel at home!

Uncle Mark, Drew and Charlie reading with Pete.

Aunt Kelly playing motorboat with Charlie in the pool.

The boys loved the car arcade game. Drew shifted, Pete worked the pedals, and Charlie drove!

Drew and Charlie playing in the sand on Lake Michigan.

My boys.

Had to get a shot with Mommy too!

Charlie throwing rocks into the lake where Grandpa and Grandma have property 30 miles outside of Marquette.

At the rock beach where people cliff jump on Presque Isle.

Again... Charlie throwing rocks into the water.

It was so beautiful there!

Pete's buddy, Brian, and his son, Mateo. The boys really had fun together!

At the lighthouse in Big Bay.

Charlie's new home in Marquette!!!