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Ocean Romance
I’ve always found the ocean completely mesmerizing. There’s something about its vastness that makes you feel small in the best possible way. My first glimpse of the sea was in 1970, shortly after we moved to Napa Valley. San Francisco was just a short drive away, and the moment I saw the Bay, I thought: This might be the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. -
Just Give Me Waves
I just love, love, love the ocean. My last memory of being on the ocean was off the coast of Virginia. We had gone to my son-in-law’s sister’s wedding. We went as a family. When we arrived, I was invited to sit with the ladies and talk. When I walked into the room, before me was this great expanse of windows, and through those windows was a full panoramic view of the ocean. I couldn’t sit still for a minute, excused myself, grabbed my granddaughter, Aubrey, who was about four years old, and headed straight for the ocean. We lay on the bare, warm, wonderful sand, enjoying all the little sand crabs scooting around and diving into their little holes. Then she took a lazy afternoon nap. Aah, the memories of that wonderful ocean lapping up waves and lulling us to sleep. -
Ocean Shm-ocean
People talk about their first ocean experience like it’s some sort of spiritual rebirth.They say things like, “The vastness made me weep,” or “I finally understood my place in the universe.”
I looked at the ocean and thought, “Cool. But… where’s the pit toilet?”
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Photo Recreations
It was during my 2-week summer vacation last year when all my kids came up to stay for the weekend. We wanted to get as many adventures in as we could. On the night they all arrived, we discussed the possibilities. Horseback riding, winery tours, mini-golf, beach time, and the list goes on. Everyone decided that instead of doing our traditional activities, we would try something different. -
Jellystone Memories
Jellystone park in Sturgeon Bay Wisconosin was hearven.
It was my favorite camping place as a child. We would go with another family every year for a week every summer. One year we traveled to Arkansas and through the Ozark Mountains. We tried a few other campgrounds in Wisconsin, but my favorite was Jellystone in Sturgeon Bay.When we went to this campground, we kids would pack our swimsuits on the top of our suitcases and when we arrived, we would immediately head to the pools. It was amazing that when we arrived back at our campsite, the tents were up, lights were strung, picnic tables were placed, and the fire was built.
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The Labor Day Hunt
Some of my more memorable vacations were those spent on Labor Day Weekends. It was always a huge project for me since I was the one who seemed to instigate this event. During the earlier weeks of summer, my family would go camping. I could have stayed in my tent for the duration of the summer. I just loved our camping experiences. I loved having people around me to enjoy, and I loved being outdoors no matter the weather. To me this was summer. -
Coming Home to Camp
Our family has a wonderful tradition of taking a 2-week family vacation every summer. It first started when we would go camping at Spikehorn Campgrounds near Bailey’s Harbor in Door County. We would arrange for campsites that were next to each other. Each year on New Year’s Eve, I would call the fellow who made the arrangements. We spoke so often, that he would send me an annual Christmas card. -
Camping On My Own
When our family went camping, it always turned into a massive production. We had a 22-foot screened tent that served as our family meal area, and each family member had their own tent or camper setup. It was reminiscent of a family commune. I didn’t truly appreciate the contributions that each family member made to our camping adventures until I found myself setting up a campsite entirely on my own. -
Changing Lanes
I’m not sure why my son Kadon got his first car soon after he got his driver’s license…but he did. It was an almost 20-year-old, hand-me-down, 2002 Supercharge Pontiac Bonneville from his cousin Jessica. She got it from her brother Brad and his mom Michelle bought it from some mechanic for $3000 (a good deal I guess). It was named Jemall–it means “handsome” in Arabic (in case you were wondering, which I’m pretty sure you weren’t).
But anyway, to operate Jemall, you needed a screwdriver to stop the windshield cleaning system from spraying and wiping your windows if you dared to brush the button. When it rained, water puddled on the floor of the backseat. Pins held up the headliner. Ice and fog regularly formed on the inside of the windows. You had to manually lock all the doors because the automatic locks clicked, but nothing happened. And only the driver’s window went up and down. Whew, I think that’s it. -
Keeping Things Equal
In my lifetime I have owned quite a few cars: mostly older models and a couple of really nice vehicles.When it came time to share the driving experience with the two daughters we had it was decided, as did everything else, to be on an equal basis.
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Matt’s Puma Mobile
My mom got her first driver’s license when she was 55 years old. My dad had passed away and she often found herself stranded with errands to do and places to go. She bought her first new car in 1984. It was a celery green Chevy Celebrity. She literally was the little old lady who drove to the grocery store and to church on Sunday. -
Inheriting the Red Hornet
Picture this – faded fluorescent orange with yellow front quarter panels In our family, the general consensus is that teenagers don’t need a brand-new car for their first car. Mom and Dad held to this philosophy and therefore, I did too when my kids were of the right age. My dad must have been obsessed with the year 1972 because Lisa’s first car was a ‘72, my first car was a ‘72 and my second car was also a ‘72.
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A Blue Door in France
Traveling abroad was never on my bucket list. There are so many places in the U.S. that I have not seen. Then several years later I was asked to go to France with my oldest daughter’s mother-in-law. The timing was right, and it felt good to have something exciting to plan and look forward to. We took a Viking River Cruise in France.
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The Joy in the Journey
Some of my favorite trip memories all begin with the car ride there. When I was little, we didn’t have car seats or required seat belts or anything like that. -
Road Trip to Graceland
It was the spring of 1996. Tom and I took a creativity class together based on Julia Cameron’s book, “The Artist’s Way”. Not only did we develop a writing habit, but we also made our first dream boards, learned a basic sun salutation practice, and played around with dying fabric.Not only did we expand our repertoire of self-discovery tools, but we also met some creative and adventurous people. Dave and Paul were two young men in our class. They had wanderlust and brought up the idea of a road trip to Graceland.
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The Search for Goodson Mountain
One of my favorite trips with my husband Michael was our trip to Galax, Virginia for his brother Rodger’s funeral. I had heard so many stories about Galax, Virginia, Michael and Rodger’s dad Price Goodson and about the land they call Goodson’s Mountain. I always thought it was an exaggeration, but it turned out to be as true as the stories. -
Hiding in the Car Wash
Every summer, our whole family gets together for two weeks at the family cottage in Door County. When Michael, Matt, and I lived in Colorado, this trip home was a hike.We had spent a very enjoyable time with my sister, her husband, and our two nieces and their families.
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Climbing to Kjeragbolten
It was the end of our Norway excursion. The one place my sister-in-law wanted to see was Kjeragbolten –but we were tired. Did I really want to go or should we pass?According to VisitNorway.com “The hike to Kjerag is around 11 kilometers (almost 7 miles) long and the round trip takes 6 to 10 hours. You need to be in good physical shape before heading out on this mountain hike which has an elevation gain of 800 meters. In some places, you have to pull yourself up and slide down with the help of wires, so it is a demanding hike even for experienced hikers.”
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Irish Driving Drama
I don’t tend to do many dangerous things, but when prompted to write about a dangerous situation that I survived, what came to mind was driving in Ireland. -
Girl Scout Adventure
Summer of 1978 at William’s Woods When I was in elementary school, I learned that the local Girl Sout troup went camping in the summer.
Sign me up!
I belonged to our local troop which met at a building near where I lived. It was called “The Girl Scout House”. The building consisted of one large open room upstairs and another twin room downstairs. Our group me upstairs. There was a big fireplace along one wall that was never used. Several long garage sale tables and metal folding chairs were the only furnishings.
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Nicolet Forest After Dark
Some of my greatest adventures in life have been traveling with my sister, Sandy. She hates to be bothered by maps, instructions, or directions.We had rented a cabin in Eagle River, Wi. The “girls” were taking too long to get ready, so Art and Michael said they would go on ahead and open up the cabin. They said they might do a little fly fishing to get warmed up. We promised we would be close behind them.
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It’s a Cluster
For some reason, I seem to be at the basis for all the Sidetracked Sisters’ memories of getting lost. Imagine that? One of my many experiences of getting lost was a complete cluster. -
Driving Adventures
I pride myself on being great with directions. I can’t recall a single time I’ve been lost when I’m driving. (Now if Mom is driving – that’s an entirely different story). Even as a kid, I’ve always paid attention to things as we were traveling from one place to another. -
The Kindness of Strangers
This is a random friendly Irish cow that said “Hello” and made us feel welcome while traveling the beautiful country roads. What is a common fear when traveling?
Getting lost. Yup. Been there done that…
But it wasn’t as big of a problem as I had feared.
It was on our trip to Ireland. Mom and Melanie flew in first and rented a car. They got to our rental house first. Michelle and I rented our own car. We were told to rent a larger car with automatic transmission. The thinking was, if you have to think about driving on the left side of the road, shifting gears would be one more thing to think about.
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A Crash Far From Home
So, here she is at the beginning of the summer. It was the summer of 1986. I drove my brown 1972 Mercury Comet to Washington DC for a Church Leadership training conference.
Having my own car gave me an awesome feeling of independence and freedom!
I drove daily to work and felt familiar with the traffic near the University of Maryland, College Park, campus where I was staying.
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On My Way Home
As the rain came pelting down, the car windows kept steaming up. The rhythm of the windshield wipers acted like a hypnotic metronome keeping time to the raindrops and the fog. -
Careful Driver?
Fortunately, I have been in only one really nasty car crash. I was seventeen, in the car with my boyfriend, now husband, and another couple that was in the backseat. We were at the outdoor theatre on a rather chilly summer night. My date and I were having a dispute so I was sitting where I was supposed to be, by the window on the passenger’s side of the car. -
Death of the Red Hornet
When someone says “Have you ever been in a car crash?”, immediately I have 2 memories that come to mind. The first involves Grandma Is and the brown Mercury Comet. -
I Need a New Bucket
It is now called a bucket list, I called it dreams, goals, and accomplishments.I have lots of dreams, never really considered them on a bucket list, but I guess they really were.
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A Full Bucket List
My Dream Board I never used to have a bucket list of items I wanted to accomplish, but as I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized there are things I want to accomplish before I die. I’ve included a few items that I’ve already done just because I like to have at least something checked off my list! (Like putting “Make my bed” on a daily to-do list AFTER I’ve already made it!)
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A Vacation Story
Lik-M-Aid ……..checkDots on a page ……check
Bag of Brach’s Candy …….check
Why am I writing a vacation story about candy? Because, when we went on vacation, it was to see Grandma in Black Earth and the only time we were given permission to eat candy.
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Vacation Thoughts Down on Paper
It’s been months plus since I’ve written for our blog. Life has been hectic and time scarce and the writer lazy. It’s time to reconnect and get back to putting thoughts down on paper.The last 10 days have been spent in Door County with the other Sidetracked Sisters and our families. It reinforces for me that family time is a heavenly time and being at the cottage in Door County makes it even better. Some went horseback riding; there was girls’ day spent shopping, lunching, and enjoying each other; some of us played mini-golf; there were daily swims and time at the beaches; dog walks, and much-needed downtime to read, rest and relax.
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Playing with Others
My family tells me I don’t play well with others. Well – here is an example of why. -
Lifetime Vacationing
In “My day” I never thought of going to Europe, Mexico, Alaska, or wherever for a vacation in the summer, not to mention in the winter months.
My family only took a “vacation” to either paint the house, do the lawn work, or go to the big metropolis of Black Earth, WI, to see my father’s parents. My father was a salesman and when he was home you couldn’t get him out of his recliner to save your soul, much less leave in a car for a family vacation.
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Onion Sandwiches
When I was a child, we went camping every summer. Camping as in TENT camping… The dads were responsible for breakfast…bacon, eggs, hash browns on a little propane camp stove for about 10 people. The smell…aaaahhhh. (Close your eyes and smile. Pause.) The best alarm clock ever. The kids would then take off for a day of bicycle adventures, tanning at the pool, mini-golf, and gift shop exploring. The dads hung out at the camp site. The moms went shopping…antiquing, I think. Around 2ish, we kids would start to get hungry. VERY. HUNGRY. Going back to the camp site, we pillaged the Twinkies, chips, and (if we were lucky) onion sandwiches. -
Childhood Camping Memories
When I think of my childhood vacations, I always come back to the visual of camping with our family and another family. When we would arrive at the campsite, the parents would throw the kids their swimsuits and then we would disappear while they set everything up. When we came back a few hours later – nirvana in the form of a campsite was arranged.We had a huge 14-man canvas tent with an orange and green striped top. The other family we were with had a camper. Everything had a particular place and was always organized the same from year to year.
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Camping with OCD
As a kid, we always camped in a huge 12 person tent and it felt like the lap of luxury. -
Smokey Smelling Sleeping Bags and Campfire Songs
Camping…growing up, I lived for tent camping every summer. I like the smell of a smoky sleeping bag, the feel of a squishy air mattress protecting me from the bumpy ground, and the sound of a zipper closing for the night. -
Raccoons Don’t Eat Dill Pickles
Whenever I tell people that I love to camp they look at me strangely and say “you don’t look like the camping type”. Then they ask “Do you have an RV?” to which I reply “No, we sleep in a tent!” At that point my credibility is suspect. No matter. My happy memories are amazing. -
Camping Memories
I absolutely love camping.
