Do you believe in ghosts? Have any weird encounters?

Do I believe in ghosts? That's the question. While I think a lot of stories are made up for various reasons, I do believe some of the encounters are true. Other than a brief flash a couple times, I've never really seen anything. My sister, Cait, on the other hand, sees all kinds of things.

One of the most memorable was when we were singing at our Grandpa's funeral. I think we were partway into the second verse of Amazing Grace when Cait grabbed my hand and started squeezing. Hard. I swear I had ring marks in my fingers for days. But I managed not to yelp, and we continued singing while her eyes kept darting toward the pews in front of us.

After we sat back down, I asked her what was wrong. She told me that she'd seen our grandparents sitting in one in the fourth pew back - Grandma had died thirteen years earlier. And she was holding a baby. I assumed it must have been either our cousin who'd been stillborn, or our nephew who'd died as an infant seven years earlier.

Cait said that she was sure it wasn't. The baby Grandma had been holding was one she didn't recognize, and she was sure that somehow, this was a baby who hadn't been born yet. A few weeks later, we found out our cousin, Sarah, was pregnant. And in August, she had a little boy that looked exactly like the baby Cait had seen our Grandma holding.

It didn't freak us out at all. Instead, it was a comfort and my cousin said that Grandma was probably holding her son because it was the only way he'd stop crying. That kid was a screamer as a baby. :D

Check out the other Wednesday Bloggers thoughts on ghosts!

Gwen
Jess
Kris

Now this is a family I can get behind!

I'm sure you've all seen those trendy stick people family bumper stickers. The school parking lots are full of them at my kids' schools. They're almost always on minivans and SUVs. As a side note, I swear the bulk of the SUVs and minivans in West Michigan are at these two schools. But I digress.

Anyway, I don't have a problem with these stickers (except when the first and last names of the children are on there - that seems like a terrible idea) but it gets a little old after a while. Plus, I'm always stuck behind them in line, and that just makes me crabby, anyway.

However, last week I saw a family sticker that delighted me to no end. I was at the grocery store and parked right next to me was this SUV...sporting the Star Wars Rebel Alliance symbols. I almost wanted to go back into the store, find them and high five them. But stalking, no matter how well intentioned, is never cool. Also it was real cold and starting to snow. But whoever these people are, I adore them.

Love the Obi Wan bumper sticker, too! These are my people. ;)

Weekend Wrap-Up

Saturday, we went to my dad and stepmom's for a delicious, pre-Easter meal of steaks on the grill. They live on a lake, so even though it rained the whole time we were there, it was still gorgeous.

I got a chance to hang out with my favorite sister-in-law as well as one of my brothers and my niece and nephew. We all had a blast, but omg, my niece can be exhausting sometimes. She's a bit of a tornado...a stubborn princess-y tornado. Everything about Lex is "Go Big or Go Home." I think that will likely serve her well in later life, but sometimes, it just makes me a little tired. But the boys had fun hanging with their cousins and visiting with Nana and Grandpa. We're all looking forward to going up to the UP for a family vacation this summer. My stepbrother and his wife and my niece and nephew on that side will be going, too. It's going to be so much fun!

On Sunday, we went to my aunt's and I brought the only dish my family will let me bring - green bean casserole. They're convinced it's the only thing I can make. It's not a big deal - I hate cooking anyway, and it's not like it needs a ton of prep or cook time. Besides, I've tweaked the recipe over the years - roasted garlic cream of mushroom soup instead of regular, shredded cheddar cheese and bacon pieces...mmmmm...bacon.

But I digress. It was a pretty small crowd - only 39 of us. Usually, we're looking at 60-70ish. But we all had a great time and fantastic food (except for the ham and kielbasa - so not a fan of either of those - blech) There was a giant Easter egg hunt for the kids and visiting with my sibs and cousins. The weather was perfect, except for the part where I forgot my SPF Vampire sunscreen - stupid fair skin - but I didn't get too toasted. My sister, on the other hand, got very pink.

My one aunt (who's a teacher) and I had a lovely discussion about Psychological Munchhausen by Proxy. She's got some horrifying parents in her first grade class this year and is so happy to be retiring at the end of the year. And I did end up with another sewing project before I left from another aunt, but hopefully, I'll be able to squeeze it out before the Memorial Day cookout. All in all, it was a great time.

Yesterday, Brynn and her boys came over to hang out with me and my boys. It was wonderful! I love Spring Break. I particularly enjoy not getting up at the ass crack of dawn. I am a little annoyed though. Two of Killian's teachers gave him major projects to do over break. It's break, people. B-R-E-A-K - as in a break from school and homework. Grrrrrrrrr

I'm hoping to get a ton of writing done this week, but mostly, I'm just enjoying hanging with the boys and sleeping in. Isn't it time for summer break, yet?

What a weekend!

It's amazing how much happiness and sadness you can cram into one weekend. Friday night was spent at the funeral home. A longtime friend of the family passed away. I grew up with his kids and though I rarely agreed with his political/religious views, and we "discussed" them whenever we saw each other, he was a good man and he'll be missed.

Saturday was spent at my baby sister's college graduation. I cannot believe four years have passed so quickly. I swear we just moved her in last month. The graduation itself (aside from being hot and sweaty and getting a severe case of bleacher-butt) was awesome. They had bagpipers (a couple darn cute ones) lead the class in. I love both men in kilts and (well-played) bagpipe music, 'cause I'm kinda nerdy like that, and these people were fabulous. The choir sang the most amazing acapella version of Loch Lomand that gave me goosebumps and actually made me a little teary-eyed. Here's a link to last year's performance, but this years was better. ;) The commencement speaker was actually worth listening to and I was thrilled to see Cait walk across the stage to much hooping and hollering. After the ceremony, there was also the entertainment of meeting one of her friends who wore only her bikini and high heels under her robe. I'm positive she was far more comfortable than the rest of us.

Sunday we had a big family dinner - my mom, my dad and stepmom, my three brothers, my sister, two sister-in-laws, two nieces, two nephews, me, hubby and the boys and it was great. Lots of laughing, food, playing with the kids, dodging nerf darts and snuggling the new baby. It was pretty much a perfect day.

I'm Baaaaaaaaa-aaaaaaaaaaack

I was without internet for an entire week and lived to tell the tale.

I was also without cell phone service for the majority of the time, too. We had to drive 20 miles to use the phone, but it was actually nice to disconnect and just get away.

Last Saturday, hubby, the boys and I drove 7 hours from our house in West Michigan to stay in an itty-bitty cabin in the middle of Michigan's Upper Peninsula. My dad and stepmom rented three cabins at a beautiful, little lake called Boot Lake (about six miles south of Shingleton for those who know the UP) and my brother, stepbrother, sister-in-law, nieces and nephews, uncle and sil's dad were there too. It was a little cramped at times, but a blast nonetheless.

My dad and paternal grandmother used to take me and my brother to this same lake when we were kids and I've always loved it up here, so I was thrilled for my boys to get a chance to spend some time here.

The drive up here was absolutely gorgeous. Highway 2, which follows the Lake Michigan shoreline (on the UP side of the Mackinac Bridge) is, hands down, my favorite place to drive. It's got everything - sandy beaches, rocky shorelines, forests, lighthouses and little resorts, many of which were built in the 1920s and 30s. Of course, there were also the prerequisite tourist traps, pasty shops and dilapidated homes, but I love it.

This is our cabin - little, but clean and plenty of room for the four of us (and assorted nieces and nephews) for a week. The first couple days were spent swimming, fishing, kayaking, paddle boating and exploring the woods.

This is the view from the front door. The weather was perfect (except from Friday - which I'll get to in another post) Mostly sunny and in the high 70s with just a bit of a breeze.

This is a really pretty road that leads to three nearby lakes - Clear Lake, Cowell Lake and Crooked Lake. I brought all the kids to Cowell Lake to try out the water there. Corwin and my nephew Adam built sand castles and Killian dug a trap for Corwin - the old dig-a-hole-and-cover-it-with-brush trick. It didn't work. My niece Allison looked for pretty rocks, shells and boys who weren't related to her.

This is the view of Boot Lake from our dock. The fish weren't biting as well as we (especially my dad and stepbrother) would have liked, but the mosquitoes, black flies and deer flies sure were! My feet and ankles are bit up, but it was worth it. I had so much fun hanging out with my kids and the rest of the family. I'm hoping we'll be able to do it again next year. This is the first non-working vacation we've taken in six years!

Tune in tomorrow for the Glass Bottom Boat Shipwreck Tour.

Surviving the Holidays

On my mom's side, I have a pretty big family - 6 aunts and uncles, 15 cousins (about half with kids) 3 brothers, 1 sister 2 nieces and a nephew. The best thing is that we're all really close - any one of us would drop everything for anyone else. Yes, there's a whole lot of crazy in there, but I consider myself really lucky, some people (like my husband) may beg to differ, but I love getting together with everyone. The holidays are never boring with the Green fam.

So far, we've had five out of six family parties and a good time was had by all. Trying to cram 41 people, 17 of whom are small children, inside a small ranch style house probably wasn't the brightest idea, but it was still fun. It would have been more cramped if the other 15 family members would have be able to come too.

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to give my niece her Cinderelly dresses. Lexi-Lou-Who got the stomach flu so we had to postpone that party until the 29th. If her mom says it's okay, I'll post pictures of the little princess herself. She'll also be getting a handmade Alice in Wonderland costume and Wendy from Peter Pan costume from my mom - it'll be a very diva-centric gathering.

I'm still finishing a few Christmas gifts, but luckily I'm not due to see those people for a while - well, except for one and she's being super patient. And I'm happy to say, her gift is turning out beautifully. All in all, Christmas has been lovely this year. I wouldn't trade any of it...except maybe Lexi's stomach flu.