New Playset...

Candace's parents visited us a couple of weeks ago and assembled the children's belated Christmas present in our back garden. It was a full day's project putting up this playset, but it was a time punctuated by lots of laughter and stories - and really no stress at all. 

The next day, we drove into Detroit itself and visited the Awake Cafe and the Riverfront, and Candace and her mother drove into Canada for a few hours. What a lovely visit, and one that the children will remember every time they play on their new swing set. :)

Starting to build the kit.

Making progress on the A-frames for the swing.

Testing out the swings.

Dusty was a constant presence throughout the project.

A bonfire in the evening to end the day.

The girls enjoy a book at the Awake Cafe.

Snuggles with Grandpa.

Exploring the Detroit Riverfront.

A yacht heads out onto the Detroit River.

Photo with their grandchildren before they drove back to Indiana.

Pine Cone Kids...

Our three children are such good helpers. They helped gather some pine cones for our bonfires and braais for the next while. Picking up sticks and pine cones is a tradition that has been in our family for decades. :) 

Parasitoid Wasp...

After taking too long to emerge, we discovered that some of our swallowtail chrysalises had been destroyed by a parasite. Some of the remaining chrysalises had a perfect round hole on the side of them. This was where the parasitoid wasp emerged after eating its host from the inside!

The wasp lays its eggs on the caterpillar, and once the caterpillar forms a chrysalis, the eggs hatch and the wasp larvae eats the poor caterpillar inside its chrysalis - before it has a chance to transform into a butterfly. Nature can be quite scary sometimes!

Summer Flowers...

A selection of some of our summer flowers, including two sunflowers merged into one!

Beautiful red poppy.

Hollyhocks.

Beautiful sunflower.

Two sunflowers fused together.

Spot the Dusty...

Our canine family member, Dusty, is certainly well-spoiled. Here she is perched up alongside the girls' stuffed animals, with pride of place on a large cushion. She is certainly well-loved. :)

Latest Plane Spots...

Here are a few of the latest planes that I've spotted on approach into DTW airport. :)

Turkish Airlines Airbus Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner arriving from Istanbul.

Air Canada Express Mitsubishi CRJ-900 from Toronto.

Underbelly of United Airlines Embraer ERJ-175.

FedEx Boeing 767 arrives from Memphis in the evening sunshine.

Air France Boeing 777-228(ER) inbound from Paris.

Two Years...

Saturday, 5th July, marked two years since we moved to Michigan. We are so thankful for all the friendships and memories that we have made during our time in this beautiful state. :)

Indiana Trip... with Dusty!

We took another trip down to Indiana for another family wedding over the last weekend in June. And this time, we brought along Dusty - since our normal dogsitters were unable to look after her this time around. On the whole, she did really well on the long drives! 

It was good to catch up with family and friends in person, and to make time to visit some of our favourite places in Daviess County, Indiana. The wedding itself was lovely, and we left Daviess County feeling refreshed and with hearts full. 

We had a lovely meal with good friends in Washington.

Barrels of fun at Candace's parents' house.

We saw rainbows and sunny skies in Amish country.

Dusty had a couple of walks in Washington.

We browsed at the Farmer's Market.

The wedding was lovely.

Reception in the church hall.

Selfie with the ever-beautiful Candace.

Golf cart rides on quiet country roads.

We visited Summit Lake State Park on the drive home.

Dusty was quite well-camouflaged, blending into the trail!

The calm water of Summit Lake.

Stormy Cycle...

I dodged some thundershowers as I cycled under moody skies towards the end of June. :) The cloud cover created a lovely atmosphere - and it was quite nice since it wasn't too hot.

Heavy rain to the northeast.

Selfie on the road.

State Park Quilt Complete!

I mentioned the Indiana State Park quilt that Candace was working on in a recent post. Well, she has completed it and it looks amazing! I am in awe of how patient and detail-oriented my wife is when it comes to quilting, sewing, and any craft projects. :)

We even visited an Indiana State Park on a recent trip we took down to Indiana, and we captured the photo below at the entrance sign. 

At the entrance to Summit Lake State Park. :)

Cotton Wool Skies...

The clouds above looked like little bits of cotton wool, 

slowly drifting over the bluest of skies.

Storm Damage...

A few weeks ago, a strong thunderstorm rolled through the area and dropped an inch (25 mm) of rain inside of about 20 minutes. It also included some gusty winds and hail. A few trees lost limbs in the storm, but the main damage in our area was to our local petrol/gas station. 

The wind must have caught the canopy and twisted the structure, breaking it at the base of one pillar. It was subsequently out of commission for several days until it was repaired last week.

The canopy sagging at a crazy angle.