Examples of some art in the alleys and side streets in Melbourne - they were all quite different and creative

Walking through one of the many parks down town

One of the more picturesque churches down town.  While we were there a real wedding was taking place and security was forcibly removing a visiting Chinese bride and groom (with their photography entourage) from the premises - they were trying to sneak in some legit Western wedding pictures during the ceremony

Walking through the vibrant and busy Chinatown in Melbourne

New Zealand and Australia fight over who actually discovered the Pavlova dessert.  We found a Pavlova Slurpee at 7-11. Yum!

The beautiful library down town

"Right turn from left only" Duh.  Melbourne has a very crazy system of turning left called "hook turns."  Reason number #36 why I'm glad that we didn't rent a car in Oz.

Burger King = Hungry Jacks here.  Also, McDonalds recently changed its name to "Macca's" because that's what everybody calls it in NZ and Oz anyway.

Newsflash.  The entire country of Oz shuts down for the Melbourne Cup (a horse race).  We happened to be there for the big day which was not planned but turned out to be both good and bad.

Queen Victoria Market was awesome - tons of fresh stuff and lots of interesting and random kitschy junk to sift through

Sanctuary Woods Park

Trying out some "Yak Trax" - the trendy universal West Michigan stocking stuffer

I had some eccentric seatmates on the plane rides home from Florida to Michigan.  One woman from Kansas was totally convinced that we knew each other from somewhere (we didn't) and on my last puddle-jump flight from Chicago to Grand Rapids the elderly gentlemen next to me stared at my hands quietly for several minutes.  Finally he said, "I've been noticing your extremely long fingers - do you happen to play the piano?"  Thankfully, he shifted gears from appendages to the topic of Michigan.  He had never been to West Michigan before and wondered what all the fuss was about "lake effect" snow.  If there's one thing I feel comfortable and confident talking about it's growing up with an intimate knowledge of lake effect snow.

Lake Effect Snow in action - Photo credit - University of Wisconsin-Madison

Photo of the snowfall in West Michigan a few days ago - Photo credit: AndyByTheLake

Lake effect snow is simply the process when cold air moves across a warmer lake and picks up water vapor which in turn freezes and is then deposited on the shores of the lake.  The conditions for Holland, Michigan, on the eastern shores of Lake Michigan are textbook for prime lake effect snow.  Holland saw this type of snow in action the past few days when cold air moved west across the lake and we got dumped on - about 6 inches worth.  Schools were closed, children were happy and parents sweated their way through shoveling driveways.

Our snow-covered house

Giant wild turkeys under our bird feeder

I arrived last night to a true winter wonderland of white and couldn't believe how much my town had changed since I had left; I couldn't wait to get out and play in it.  I attempted to run out to Sanctuary Woods, a nearby park, but I ended up doing more of a shuffle through the heavy snow.  Neighbors on snowmobiles whizzed by me waving happily and creating clouds of white fluff in their wake.  The hike up and into the park was awesome.  Snow covered everything and it was so quiet I could hear the flakes land on my jacket.

Heading up into the woods

Entrance to Sanctuary Woods

Shuffling back home, the snow was falling faster and thicker by the minute and I thought about how I'll be in sunny, tropical Brazil in a few weeks and how I want to enjoy the beauty and the thrill of the snow while I can.  Pure Michigan!

My brother and his family recently moved from North Carolina to Jacksonville, Florida to help with a new church plant there.  For the past few days I have enjoyed spending time with Ben and Ally and my two nieces, Hannah and Sophia.  It has been about a year and a half since I last saw them and I can't believe how much my little nieces have grown.

We went on a bike ride and a hike to see if we could spot some alligators.

Hannah on her new birthday bike in front of their house.

We found one! Can you spot the alligator?

Sophia at gymnastics class.

Having fun on Ben's skateboard.

Hannah at basketball practice.

Playing on the swing that Ben built for them.

Flying kites at the very windy beach at Anastasia State Park.

Picnic lunch at the park.

Walking along the water to visit the old Spanish fort.

Flagler College in the old town of St. Augustine.

Sunset on the drive back.

Dressing up the bears.

I am not often around kids so staying at my brother's house was like stepping into a new world.  We stayed very busy every day and went on lots of fun adventures.  During the mornings the girls were home-schooled by Ally and I even got to give them a few Spanish lessons which was fun.  We went on bike rides, hikes, flew kites at the beach, dressed up bears and spent a day visiting the historic town of St. Augustine.  Today we are going to Hannah's violin lesson and then we might go fishing in the sunny and warm weather.  No snow days here!

Trying some beers at O'Dells

Tour at New Belgium Brewery

After spending a few days in Wyoming getting Sean set up, we drove down to Fort Collins to hang out with friends.  We spent a couple of days with Brandon and Kristin and especially enjoyed our tour of some of the micro-breweries that Colorado is so famous for.  We had lunch at Fort Collins brewery and then headed to O'Dells where we tasted every single beer that they had to offer.  The highlight of the day was a tour at New Belgium brewing company where we tried lots of the old and new specialties.  We ended the night with dinner at The Mayor followed by card games at home.  I loved hanging out with their super cute and sweet dog, Bella.



The next day Sean went for a hike up Horsetooth Resevoir and I hung out with my childhood friend, Linde.  She showed me adorable new rabbit, Victoria and we visited with her boxer dogs (Rowen and Fallon), parrot (Morocco) and her horse, Trooper.  Since Sean is allergic to animals I don't get to be around them that much so being able to visit a barn and hang out with dogs all weekend was pretty cool.








During the weekend, Sean headed to Denver to spend some time with his high school friends and Linde and I went snowshoeing up in Cameron Pass in Poudre Canyon.  I had never been snowshoeing before but had heard it was fun and was very anxious to try it.  After getting the hang of how the shoes affect your distance and stride snowshoeing was a lot of fun.  The weather was perfect and it was awesome being out in the clear air, sunny skies and the incredible mountains.  The altitude and my current lack of fitness put me out of breath pretty quickly and we had to take a lot of breaks but the workout in the snow felt great.  The snowshoes really helped us move efficiently up and down the trail and I was always surprised at the depth of the snow - sometimes we would fall in to our waists!  I couldn't stop looking at the mountains all around us - the scenery was very addicting and I'm envious that adventures like this are only a short drive away for Linde.

Sean and Brandon up the Horsetooth Canyon

On Sunday, Linde drove me to the airport and after a quick and fun visit with my Aunt Rita and cousin April and her daughter, Liliana, I was off to spend a few days in Florida with my brother and his family.  It will be a treat to have some warm weather before flying back up to freezing cold Michigan.