Halloween 2014

Love. Love. Love our Halloween parties every year! The costumes are always amazing;) 

New Buffalo

This past summer, Darin surprised me with a weekend get-a-way to New Buffalo, Michigan. It was a perfect break from our fast paced summer, and this small quaint town was exactly what we both needed! We saw God's beauty from yet another place on the map!  If your looking for a weekend destination with beaches, bed and breakfasts, boats, gorgeous sunsets, antique shops, and more - this is your place! 

On a side note, many who read this blog know that I collect Marshall Studio pottery. (If you don't know, it's pottery that used to be made in my hometown and is now getting harder and harder to find.) Well, we walked into an antique shop in New Buffalo and I spotted a Marshall lamp from across the room! I was even able to give the owners history about the pottery! It's such a big world yet so small at times!! 

 

New Addition!

We are expecting our first baby in March! 

1 Fish, 2 Fish

I have never really been fishing before. Yes, we went deep sea fishing in Myrtle Beach, but catching sharks in the ocean with a matte helping to bait and reel is a little different than fishing at a pond with night crawlers.  I also remember my grandpa taking me ice fishing when I was younger. Again, standing on a frozen pond, hands freezing, and drilling holes in the ice is a little different than sitting in the warm sun casting poles and enjoying the relaxing scenery!  So....... This summer, we went fishing, and I loved it!!

My company.......... They kept me laughing a little more than the normal "old men" fishing trip I'm sure!! Please note our anchor for our floating dock!!!!

Our awesome scenery for the day..... Relaxing and beautiful! 

We had a great day with lots of fish, a friendly competition of who could catch the most (of course, I won!), and maybe lots of line caught in the trees!!!  We took the fish back, learned to clean them, and I fried fresh Blue Gill and Bass for the first time! DeLicIOus!!!! 

I can't wait to go again!!! 

Happy 30th!

Goodbye 20's..........Hello 30's!

This summer, we both celebrated our 30th birthdays. For Darin's bday, we took a road-trip with friends to Myrtle Beach.  This was our first trip to Myrtle Beach, and we absolutely loved it! The weather was perfect, the beach was relaxing, and we had a great experience deep sea fishing! We finished our week celebration with country music and bootscootin' in Nashville Tn on our road-trip home. 

Darin surprised me on my birthday weekend with a canoeing trip and cookout with friends and family. After being surprised with friends randomly showing up at the house ready to head to Turkey Run, I was shocked to find nearly 50 people at our house when we returned! 

Random updates

Spring seemed to come and go faster than I had hoped for. No complaints though, I love the warm weather and sunshine. With that being said, lots have changed at the Bowling household.  

   Sadly we had to say goodbye to Clark, our skunk. This is the first time in nine years that we have been "skunkless."  It's definitely a little different not having a furry black and white critter running around, cleaning the floor, and scavenging all night long for a dropped crumb. He definitely lived a long happy skunk life!!! 

Here's to Clark - who loved being inside his pillowcase and on his pillow.....

We also "housed" a goat for a while. His name: goat!   We were really original with picking this name out!!! Walter loved chasing him, and Belinda couldn't quite figure out what he was!  We found him a permanent home in the pasture at Darin's parents! 

He is the friendliest goat, but him and Walter combined did not work out well for mushroom hunting!!!! 

 

Speaking of mushroom hunting......if you were not able to go this year, here is your chance to find some: 

If you don't know what a motel looks like, here you go: 

Delicious as usual!!!!!

Coming soon: our summer adventures!!! 

Mother's Day Present

Im a little late in posting this, but I could not ruin a Mother's Day surprise! I recently watched a neighbor friend for the day, and we decided to make his mom a gift. With a little ink and some construction paper, we crafted this: 

Who could resist spending the day with this guy!?!?!

Dear Spring, Please Stay.

Winter kept us rather busy this season with snow plowing, keeping the wood burner going, walking up our hill to the house because the car wouldn't make it, making sure the animals were not frozen to the ground, and leaving early for everything because the road conditions were not ideal. Despite the cold weather and snow, there were some beautiful mornings, great snow for building snowmen, and amazing ice displays from Mother Nature! 

HOWEVER: WE ARE READY FOR SPRING!!! 

There is hope! My daffodils are blooming which is exciting! 

I found this little raccoon the other day peeping out of his tree hole. I only see him when the sun is hitting his hole, and I can only imagine that he is feeling the same way we are! Where are you spring!?!? 

Hopefully, you are starting to see the start of spring in your neck of the woods! 

Pro Bowl 2014

We happen to be in Oahu at the same time as the Pro Bowl, so we took advantage and headed to Aloha stadium for team practices. With our sharpie and a little "Luck", we were able to meet some players and coaches. Later that evening, the Pro Bowl block party was held on the street in front of our hotel, so we also enjoyed seven stages of entertainment, food, music, and the crazy atmosphere! 

From Snow Boots to Swimsuits

Snow, snow and more snow. Indiana has definitely had its fair share of winter weather this year. Fortunately for us, we had a vacation planned in the middle of all the shoveling, plowing, and scraping. Destination: Hawaii

We spent a week on Oahu and a week on the Big Island. Both were wonderful places to soak up some sun and enjoy warmer weather!!