Morning Kayak Ride

It was 58 degrees this morning at the log cabin. The lake is calm. The sky is partly sunny. It's 7:30 a.m. - time to wake Greg up to go kayaking. Why don't you join us too....


We're in the kayak paddling thru water that's like glass. Can you see Greg up ahead in the distance?




Let's catch up with him. He is motioning that he sees something in the water.




Why hello Mr. Bufflehead duck. Nice of you to join us this morning. You sure are handsome!





Let's keep paddling across the lake. Look at the shorline, the trees are starting to get back their leaves. Chickadees and Red Winged Blackbirds can be heard serenading us as we pass thru.



The wind is starting to pick up on the lake so let's head back to the cabin. I'll make some hazelnut coffee, we'll grab a couple chairs and sit out on the deck. And we'll talk about what a wonderful kayak trip we had...

Things I like about Northern Michigan...

Every time we make the 3 hour trek up to our log cabin in Northern Michigan, I dream about the time that Greg and I can stay up there forever. It's difficult to describe the beauty of Northern Michigan and do it justice, but I thought I'd share a few images of why I love it so much.


Monarch Butterfly





Boats docked in Northport...




Lake Michigan









The fresh smell of pine trees...




Juvenile Common Loon

Weather

It's wet and rainy over here! How about you?



Psst....I'm sneaking away to the cabin this afternoon. I'm on a Loon mission. Also, I'll try to find some other wildlife to photograph so you don't get sick of my birds all the time. Lol! An elk or coyote would be nice....

Loon Ranger Rides Again!

I believe it was Carolyn at Mountain Musings who joked to me that the "Loon Ranger rides again" in reference to my loons returning to the lake at our log cabin. That made me laugh! But it is true - I am a Michigan Loon Ranger. I will be monitoring the Loons on our lake and recording data as well as making sure they stay safe.

I found a wonderful poem that I recently posted on one of my 20 million blogs (Ha! Poor Leedra & Betsy who are so kind to read all my blogs!) that I would like to share with you.

Lakehood - a poem by Loons Forever

a lake
needs a loon
to laugh with the moon
to be a lake



By the way, I'm getting tired of shooting these far away shots of my Loons so I am headed out on my kayak this week to get some better photographs. I don't care how cold it is. Hopefully I don't tip. Because then I would wreck my camera before succumbing to hypothermia.....



Also, if you've thought about getting a kayak - now is the time to do it! There are great sales at Dick's Sporting Goods and REI.










And now a GRATUITOUS plug of Shelley's Nature Store.
A sale for Mother's Day!
When you check out, put in the code 10MOMDAYSALE for 10% off!
It's only good through April 30th.
I have many matching gift items, things for a godmother, new mother and more!

Updates at the Log Cabin & a WINNER!

Now that spring is here, it's time to tackle some projects at the log cabin. We want to put in a dock this year and have been checking Craig's List to see if we can find some good deals! Next on our list is landscaping. We are going to do a small portion of it. Greg is building two long flower boxes which I'll show once they are completed. Here are some other happenings...


Here's a Robin who promised me that Spring is now here to stay....




Marvin wants to know when we are going to stain the deck. It's already been a year!



Umm Greg...this isn't WHERE your fishing boat goes!


Now the last order of business! Greg drew April's name ("Straight from the Heart" ) for my final log cabin follower winner!Congratulations to April! Be sure to pay her a visit! She has a wonderful blog filled with beautiful photos, funny stories about being a mom and much more! (April, please email your address to shelleyupnorth at gmail dot com.)

Colorful pairs at the log cabin

I am heading downstate from the log cabin shortly and looking forward to checking up on all of your blogs! I've missed you my friends! It was great weather up until yesterday afternoon and then it started raining. Here's a couple photos I'd like you to take a look at. Which pair do you think is more colorful........

A pair of Wood Ducks.....



Or my mom and her sister? (Notice their matching red hair and pink outfits! HA! HA!)

*My mom is wearing the baseball cap.

P.S. I need to draw my log cabin follower winner tonight since I was out of town this past Thursday! Be sure to check back on Monday! Thank you!!

P.P.S. I've been making mother's day gifts from my nature photographs! Be sure to check them out at my online store. When you click on the link, on the right side bar there is another link that says "Mother's Day". I'll be adding more in the next couple days! :-)

Cottage memories...

When I was a young girl, my great Uncle Sam had a cottage on William's Lake in Michigan. In the summer, we would head over there almost every weekend for a day of fun in the sun. My great aunts and uncles, cousins and my grandpa would be there. We'd go on boat rides, barbecue and then fish in the evening. My most memorable experiences there:

• The time I stuck a rock in my nose and they had to take me to the hospital to get it out! (No, I don't know why I stuck a rock in my nose. My family still laughs about it till this day!)
• When I got a leech stuck between my toes and I was running around like a maniac crying. My mom finally pinned me down and got it off.
• Building sand castles with my cousins.
• Fishing with my grandfather. He would always put the worm on for me.

I loved going there and spending time with my family. It was what I envisioned my log cabin would become - a place for family and friends to gather.

*Here's a photo from my Uncle Sam's cottage. My sister is in the driver seat. My brother and I are sitting in the shovel.

Look at all these hens clucking! Ha! Ha! Probably still discussing the time I stuck that rock up my nose!

P.S. My mom and I are headed up to the log cabin tomorrow to celebrate her birthday. Might be difficult for me to post but I will be back soon! Don't forget me!