way home

Coming home we stayed at a different hotel in Rockford.. Same exit, just other side of the road. IT had a mini water park in the pool. Very fun, buy also a very popular spot for other travelers as well. I fell asleep at 8pm that night.. I think just a little before Odin did.

3 years old!

We were still in Michigan for Odin's third birthday and it just so happens that my sister loves to do theme birthdays.. and does a fantastic job. So Odin's birthday had a construction theme. Complete with a "dirt" and "rock" cake. (we had a few conversations about when it is ok to eat dirt and rocks.) Of course it was a huge hit. Odin loved it and enjoyed telling anyone who would listen about his dirt cake.

Sudden Change

The weather went from just above zero to 50 degrees three days after Christmas. Our snow was just a memory. We made a snowman on my parents deck that I thought would be a nice reminder for them about how much fun we had at Christmas, but it too is gone. We actually sat outside around the fire for a bit, and my dad was not even wearing a jacket.. Now this is the Michigan that I remember.

The day after we arrived:
The day before we left:

Festivities

Michigan had way more snow than I ever remembered when we arrived, it was also much much colder. There was plenty of snow for sledding and also plenty to shovel. Odin still is not too into sledding, but took a few runs then was content to play in the yard.
All of my moms siblings were at my parents house for Christmas and Christmas eve. Including my cousin and her family. It was great to see everyone again. We always used to get together for Christmas when I was growing up so it was really neat to continue it now.

Travels

Traveling with a toddler (when does "toddler" just become "kid" by the way?) has never really scared me. Although I am pretty lucky to have a kid that likes to check out new things and is willing to put up with two (6 hour) days in the car to go to Michigan for Christmas.
We drove to Rockford, Il the first day and stayed at a hotel overnight. They have a pool and it is a nice way to gear up for another long day (plus Johno has a TON of Hilton points so it's free!). Odin and I usually go this route. Sometimes if we are all tree driving to MI we push on through.. I must say I do prefer to stop. I am starting to feel a little too old to sit/drive for 12 hours in one day.
We saw some friends in Chicago the next morning then were off to points east. Around Gary Indiana we hit blowing and drifting snow.. It kept on getting worse until Benton Harbor, Michigan.. Total white out. Very slow, but we made it out.

Of all the storms in the country that week, I think we made it through pretty easy. And we didn't have to worry about driving for a few more days at least!

More sled fun

Today, Dec 3 2008

I figure it must take a certain mental ineptitude to live in Northern climates. And to have children living in such a climate, well, those people must really be nuts. I often think about cabin fever in the run up to winter, long lazy fall afternoons playing outside for hours on end. Thinking of ways to stay entertained, without spending a fortune, and without going off the deep end and finding when Spring finally arrives that I have accumulated like 30 cats.
This year I had a brilliant idea. One that John failed to see the merits of. Or perhaps he was scared off by the inherent danger... A few years ago we got a skijoring harness for the dog as a way to keep both John and Sampson sane after Odin arrive... Never did catch on.
So this winter, I decided to try having Sampson pull the sled with Odin hanging on. The original plan calls for me to XC ski, I think we may get there, baby steps.
Today was the test run, with me running. To lead up to this a few weeks ago I went for a run with Sampson in the harness hooked up to me. He got a vague idea what the harness was for. Today he got a better idea.
He did not like starting out having to pull the sled from a stop. But did great when I helped him. Odin loved it, and did a great job of holding on.

I will say we are very lucky that Sampson is a pretty smart dog and listens and is failry well trained. There were no near misses with trees, no squirrel chasing, all in all a full success.
Once he really got going I couldn't get ahead of him to take any good action pictures.... Maybe I can get some help next time.