A First Birthday Visit

 

We arrived in Michigan reeling from a quick evacuation due to Hurricane Milton, but ready to enjoy time with friends and family and worry about clean up we return.  Of course the main event and the reason for the trip, was our Granddaughter’s first birthday party.  We were feeling fortunate to be there for the party and to spend time with her.  She is so much fun and a happy girl.  The party was filled with “One-toberfest” details including giant pretzels with beer cheese dip, bratwurst, cider and german beer.  Audrey loved her smash cake, made with love by our daughter and she thoroughly enjoyed all the attention.

After the excitement of the party, we relaxed and played with Audrey, but also did all the fall things.  We walked amongst the pretty fall trees and went to an apple orchard for hot cider and doughnuts.  On her actual birthday, Audrey had her first taste of ice cream and that was a big hit.

To round out the visit, we spent some time on Michigan State’s pretty fall campus, attended a wine tasting dinner and our former dinner club with good friends and golfed and had a wonderful dinner at the newlywed’s country club.

We made it home to a devastated city with trees down, fences down, roofs damaged, beaches closed and so many plants and trees completely brown from salt spray and windburn. A lot of work is ahead, but I am trimming, planting and cleaning with so much motivation to get back to normal - and thankful in the midst of so much uncertainty and stress, we can also count our blessings. 

Milton Evacuation from Venice

 

Now that Milton has left the state of Florida and unfortunately left so much damage, I am focused enough to give a recap of the week.  Also, I want to thank all the readers who were kind enough to leave comments on Instagram as I updated that I was safe.

As the forecast and track became more and more dire, we had to make a decision on Sunday whether to stay and miss a planned trip, or evacuate early to get out in time and safely.  It is not an easy decision to evacuate and face the traffic on the highways, gas shortages and just leaving your house not knowing what you will come back to.  Luckily I live in a newly constructed cinder block house that is built for a category 5 hurricane and it already withstood Ian fine.  Right when we left, an evacuation order was issued for our zone due to flooding concerns too.

We packed the car, grabbed the dog because you can’t leave a dog in a kennel that will lose power and drove 13 hours in the middle of the night on Monday.  We made it to Atlanta (usually a 6 hour drive), found gas at one lone pump and went to bed early after a long day at the hotel I had reserved in advance.  Watching the hurricane hit from afar is not a great feeling and seeing the eye pass over Venice is surreal.  

We did not lose power, completely (just flickers off and on), so by watching our cameras, we could see that screens and a support from our pool cage are down and there was definitely a power surge because the dining room light somehow turned on.  We feel lucky about this for sure, because for many in Venice it was much worse, especially the beach areas that were already damaged from the Helene storm surge.

We now spend time with family and friends in Michigan before we head back to clean up our place and also help our community with ongoing cleanup.  

Please pray for recovery for all our favorite spots in Venice, Sarasota and Siesta Key.  Floridians have got this, but will need help, even if it is good thoughts across the miles.  

Post Helene Clean Up

 

Florida just keeps taking the hits this hurricane season and Helene left so much damage in my little corner of the gulf coast.  When locals say run from the water, hide from the wind, this storm was a perfect example. The power of the surge was not something you would want to be caught up in.  Many rescues were needed, beachfront homes flooded and belongings were tossed around.  Sand was deposited like snow drifts.  For my city it was primarily a beach event that will take some time to recover. Both the Venice Jetty and the Venice Pier are closed awaiting repair.  The beaches have been cleaned, but are still closed to facilitate clean up efforts.

And, that is what I helped with this week.  My volunteer group spent Thursday morning cleaning the beach pavilion area by picking up debris and palm fronds.  Also, while the deep sand has been removed from sidewalks and parking areas, there remains a layer of mud/sand that needed to be scraped off.  

You want to help where you can, and we are lucky to have first responders and emergency crews to make things safe for the willing hands to start the clean up.  Florida knows how to do this well and after one week, it shows.  But, as we learned with Hurricane Ian two years ago it, takes time. 

Finally, the damage in North Carolina is on another level.  It will require so many resources coming together to build back infrastructure, homes and put back together people’s whole lives.  So many lost and so much suffering.  But, Americans are strong and we help each other.  All will be well. 

Riding Out Hurricane Helene

 

 

We did all the hurricane prep yesterday and now we wait.  Because we added permanent storm screens, the process is much less stressful and much easier to do.  Anything that might fly, goes on the covered part of the lanai and down comes the screen with the press of a button.  We most likely won’t get hurricane force winds in the outer bands, but it’s always better to be over prepared.

Having ridden out Hurricane Ian, we know our house can take sustained category 4 winds, so we feel like old hands at this now.  We have become Florida people with hurricane supplies, a generator and a more laid back attitude to the whole thing.  The worst thing is being stuck in the house while the storm rages, but this one is a fast mover and the sun will be out by Friday.  

Hopefully people in the landfall area (most likely the panhandle) where storm surge will be high, evacuated as they were advised.  It is not fun to leave and wonder what is happening, but it is the price you pay for beachfront living.  It is times like this that I don’t regret our location close to the beach, but not right on the beach. So many pretty spots are in the path, but Florida knows how to do this, will be ok  and recover as necessary.

Today may get wild at times, the phones may keep sending emergency alerts about flooding and storm surge, but my little part of Florida on the beautiful Gulf Coast will be ride out this hurricane just as it has for hundreds of years.

Starting September

 

The funny thing about living in Florida, especially being from the midwest is that September does not mean anything changes weather wise.  In fact it can be even hotter and hurricanes are more likely.  So for us, seeing the fall season through the experiences of those up north are as close as we get.  I did buy some cider at Publix though - and will drink it poolside.

September is the start of football season and it is always a good fall Saturday when Michigan State wins. Also, anyone who is a Detroit Lions fan is extremely excited for this season, which starts Sunday.  This is their year for a super bowl win and we will be cheering them on from Florida.  And then, to everyone’s surprise the Detroit Tigers are in contention for a wild card playoff spot.  I will be watching and hoping all of September.

I found a delicious recipe for peach cobbler and will share here.  There is something with the start of fall that makes me want to bake something.

Finally, we have received the official wedding photographs from the photographer and all I can say is wow.  I will write a final wedding post soon, but wanted to share a few of my favorites.  I can’t get over the church, the venue and the beautiful couple.

Full Moon Yoga

 

Some of you might remember that on January 1st, I started the new year with morning yoga on the beach and was determined that 2024 would be a year of consistent movement for me.  I am happy to say that I have done really well towards that goal.  Most weeks I am doing some form of a yoga practice three times over the week, other weeks it is twice or sometimes once along with other exercise like golf, walking and gardening.  

Beach yoga is wonderful and I look forward to cooler weather again and the end of rainy season to be able take advantage of it a bit more.  Last week’s full moon, which was called a super moon, brought over 100 people to the beach for a yoga under night skies. It is a different sensation to do yoga in the dark, but moonlight and glow sticks are really all you need.  You rely on the instructors voice and it gives you a totally different focus.  

When I am able to do things like this on a regular basis; things others can only dream of experiencing on vacation, I am always grateful and appreciative.  Life is good at the beach.

A Beautiful Michigan Wedding Day

 

Elegant, simple, whimsical.  Maybe contradictory descriptions, but my daughter designed a beautiful wedding with all these elements.  She let the setting be the star at both the church and the venue and the whole day was nothing short of amazing.

Sweetest Heart of Mary church in Detroit is historical, Polish and quite ornate.  We knew her dress needed to make a statement as she walked down the very long aisle.  So, we found the perfect elegant statement dress and purchased extra length on her cathedral length veil.  Her vision came together beautifully.  

The reception venue was at a lovely old mansion on Lake St. Clair in Grosse Pointe and we were able to utilize the terrace overlooking the water for cocktail hour since it was a spectacular Michigan summer night of 78 degrees and perfectly blue skies.  The guests raved about the whole experience and we were thrilled too.

Once the doors opened for dinner seating, the whole evening; from food to speeches to dancing, was filled with love for the couple and a lot of fun too.  The photos I have collected from others tell the story and once we receive more from the photographer, more details will be shared, but I think the beauty and fun of the wedding day shine through.

The bride is an event planner and designs weddings for others. She outdid herself on making her wedding reflect both her and the groom in such a perfect way.  The MOB and FOB were very happy.

 

Pre Wedding Fun in Detroit

 

Tomorrow it will have been one week since our daughter’s wedding and it has been a week of much fun, much excitement and much love.  Also a little travel turmoil, but we are back in Florida and Melissa and Kevin are finally on their honeymoon in Maui after a three day delay (Delta outage mess). So, all is now good.

I am going to break up the wedding recap posts into two posts with this one consisting of all the pre wedding events and the next one in a few days with the wedding details.  Everything could not have been more beautiful and I can’t wait to show you.

We arrived in Detroit and immediately worked on the hotel welcome bags, so they could be dropped off at the hotel our guests were staying at in downtown Detroit.  Then, the next day was a whirlwind of manicures with the bride, brunch and later dinner at The Detroit Athletic Club with the two families.  It was a perfect Michigan summer night on the rooftop overlooking Comerica Park and Ford Field.  The DAC is a historic private club and we were feeling lucky to be there all together and start the celebration.

The rehearsal day went by fast and after checking into our hotel downtown, we headed to the church for the rehearsal.  That is when things began to feel real.  The rehearsal dinner was held at a Detroit polish institution; The Polish Village Cafe.  We wanted to keep things fun and casual and it was perfect.  The meal of pierogis, kielbasa, stuffed cabbage pickle soup and much more was served family style with strolling guitar players. There were many kind and funny words shared about the bride and groom from the wedding party and a good time was had by all.

We ended the night at a welcome party back at the pretty hotel bar and the excitement was high for the wedding the next day.