Home again and Harvey

I've officially been home from Hawaii for a week now and boy were the girls happy to have me home again!  I sure did miss them while I was gone.  Poor Maddie struggled most of all with me being away and I have promised her that I will never leave her for that long again. 

I know that Peaches missed me too, because she was extra clingy this week.  It was certainly nice to get home and feel all of the love from these two. 

All I have been thinking about since I got home is finding a way to get up North before all of the Fall Color is gone!  While Fall is in full swing here in mid-Michigan with cooler temperatures, our first frost of the year, the final tomatoes harvested from my garden, and probably 30-50% of our trees covered in color, there is nothing like the Fall colors in the UP and Northern Michigan.  And while I prefer Spring, I do love the beautiful colors of Fall, and this is the time of year my girls love best.  There is nothing better than a fall day in the woods if you're a bird dog!

This week has been spent catching up on all of the things that fall behind when you are out of town for 11 days.  I've had plenty to do both at work and at home, plus I had a day of work travel this week and will have one day of work travel weekly over the next several weeks.  In addition to my normal routine, I was happy to be able to find time to make it to Chesaning for my niece Sidnee's final home volleyball game and Senior night.  I expect that the activities of my nieces and nephew will fill more of my time over the next few weeks.

As I adjusted to being back in the Eastern time zone and having to get up for work every day, it hasn't been easy and I've come home exhausted at the end of each work day.   So I was extremely thankful for a nice Saturday at home yesterday.  I got a lot done around the house, and we even got out for a nice walk on the North Country Trail near Albion, but I just can't shake that need to head North.

After reading a Fall color report stating it was peak color along the Lake Michigan shoreline north of Petoskey and along M119 and the Tunnel of Trees there, I thought I'd make a day trip of it and head that way for a couple of hikes with the girls, some beautiful Fall color, and some amazing views of Lake Michigan.  Unfortunately, I woke up with a migraine today, and while I'm starting to feel better now, there was no way I was able to make a trip this morning.  In the end, it is probably better that I just stayed home, but I am hopeful that maybe next weekend we'll be able to get on the road for some time in the northern woods and that there will still be some color left to enjoy.

The best part of the week, though, was having a foster puppy for the last few days.  Harvey is an 11 week old GSP who came to Michigan and ISR from a horrible situation in Ohio.  Earlier this year several dogs were pulled from a backyard breeder there and rescue has just been waiting for the court case to end so that they could start moving dogs into rescue.  Harvey is one of several puppies who were moved to Michigan, Illinois, and Wisconsin as fellow rescue groups try to assist the Ohio Shorthair rescue with all of the dogs affected by this situation.  Harvey has a permanent foster home, however, his foster mom needed to leave town for a few days so I was happy to be able to bring him into my home for a few days while she was gone.

Harvey is sweet and adorable and I was excited to have a puppy in the house.  But no one was more excited to have a puppy around than Peaches.  She and Harvey played and played and by the time he left yesterday, he was her constant shadow.  He loved to play with her, chase her, follow her around the yard, and snuggle with her every night.  It was so cute to see them together.

Maddie, on the other hand, wasn't very excited to have a puppy around the house.  She was slowly adjusting to him, but I now know for certain that bringing a puppy home at this point would not be a good idea.  My sweet old girl would prefer the quiet peacefulness of life without a puppy and she deserves to live out her golden years without an annoying puppy driving her crazy!

Harvey went back to his foster home yesterday, and it has been a very quiet Sunday here.  The girls can tell when I'm not feeling well and so they've been quietly napping and allowing me to rest and recover from my migraine.  Thankfully, I'm feeling much better and will hopefully be able to get outside to enjoy some of the beautiful sunny day we're having.

Now that I have officially wrapped up my 50 State travel, I just wanted to share my certificate and official membership to the All 50 States Club.  It's still hard to believe I'm done!

Aloha and farewell to Hawaii

Happy Saturday friends!  I'm sitting on my balcony in Hawaii, just a couple of hours from check out and about 6 hours from my flight departure.   By this time tomorrow,  I'll be home on my couch snuggled up under a cozy warm blanket with the girls!

I had a busy day yesterday doing a lot of sightseeing.  It had stormed pretty badly the night before and was still a bit cloudy and rainy in the morning, so I started the day with visits to the Bishop Museum, the Honolulu Art Museum, and the Queen Emma Summer home.  I learned about Hawaiian culture and history and saw art by some of the greats.

I spent the afternoon exploring Pearl Harbor, the USS Missouri Battleship,  and the USS Bowfin submarine.  The Arizona Memorial at Pearl  Harboe is eerie and moving and I'm so glad I got the chance to visit it while I was here. 

After a long, hot day of exploring,  it was nice to get back to the hotel and head out for a swim.  I had the entire pool to myself and enjoyed it thoroughly!

After a swim, I treated myself to a nice dinner, although Italian in the heat of Hawaii isn't the best mixture, it was a good finally treat for my trip.

Today, I enjoyed an early morning swim and watched some of the Michigan Football game before heading out for a few hours for one last walk around Waikiki.

I stopped at my favorite taco joint here and walked the beach from Kuhio Beach all the way to the Hilton resort.  I brought Imke and Maddie on a stick along for the walk and spread Imke's ashes in several spots along the way.  I didn't want to take home any of the ahes I brought with me and was successful in leaving little pieces of her behind here.

I enjoyed a Shave Ice on the beach and walked along the water as much as I could.  It was a bit cloudy so it was a comfortable walk and I walked about 5 miles total.

I'm now soaking up the sun from my balcony and just trying to relax and enjoy the short time I have left here.  While I am excited to get home, it is hard to believe that my 50 State journey is coming to an end.  

What an amazing journey it has been over the last 10 years.  I have seen so many amazing things, eaten some outstanding food, experienced so much, met some interesting people, and had many adventures.   Not having the girls here has been strange and I'm definitely ready to get back home and take them on some adventures with me close to home.  Hoping for a little Fall color tour in the Mitten over the weekend.  I'm even looking forward to the cooler temperatures,  although the 50 degree temperature change over night might be a little shocking to my system!  I'm ready to head back to Pure Michigan!

Aloha from Hawaii. 

Hawaii

In just 48 hours I'll be on a plane heading home from my 10 days in Hawaii.  This trip, like every other big trip I've made, has taught me a little more about myself.  And I've grown as a person because of it.  I don't know how you can travel and not grow and change.  But more than anything it has reaffirmed to me that my path in life is very clear, I know where I belong and where I want to go, and I know the people I want around me on my journey. 

While Hawaii is beautiful and has a lot to offer, it certainly isn't the place for me.  I am a midwesterner; more specifically, I am a Michgander through and through.  I love where I'm from and I'm missing the beautiful Fall days there.  And while I may freeze when I get home, I am so looking forward to planting my feet firmly on the ground in Michigan...and maybe visiting a Great Lake asap!

I miss my kid and I miss my girls and I can't wait to see them all and give them all a big hug.  I love traveling and seeing new places, but boy is it strange not having the girls with me.  They make my travels so much fun.

I also have realized this week that I know some really amazing people, people who live all over this country that I don't see nearly enough, but I was fortunate to spend some quality time with some of them this week.  And I am blessed to have them in my life. 

Over the past 5 days, I have visited Memorials and parks, the aquarium and the zoo; I've hiked Diamond Head and the Makapu'u Lighthouse trail: I've snorkeled at Hanuama Bay and swam at several beaches; I've spent time at the pool and walked all over Waikiki; I've had the shave ice at Motsumoto's and the malasadas at Leonard's bakery; I've shared great conversation and drank fruity drinks out of pineapples with friends both old and new. 

It has been a good week.  I've tried to slow down and relax as well as take in the sites, sounds, and smells of the Island.  After a relaxing and slow couple of days, tomorrow, on my last full day here, I have a full day of sightseeing planned with some museums, natural areas, and most importantly, Pearl Harbor, on the agenda  It will be a good day I'm sure.  But tonight, I'm just going to sit back and listen to the waves on the ocean and all of the other sounds of Waikiki.  Good night from Hawaii.