Almost Autumn

        The months sure do fly by these days. I can remember when I was in high school wondering if the school year would ever come to a close. These days I can not believe how quickly time fly's, how is it possible that Allison and I have a 10 month old. It seems like just yesterday we were taking her home from the hospital. How quickly Norah Mae learns stuff is amazing to me, not in a child prodigy kind of way but its cool to see her sitting one day then crawling the next. We had a little scare the other night where Norah started choking on some food, Allison and I handled it well and she was fine but it was a very long ten seconds.
         We have been having an awful lot of fun lately. We went to the Grand Rapids Public Museum the other day. It was a lot of fun, they had a Titanic exhibit with a bunch of artifacts recovered from the depths of the ocean. Last week we did homemade pickles, they turned out really well and we can't wait to try some new variations next year! On Saturday we went to the Smiths Bayou annual chili cookoff. It was a really fun time, for $5 I was able to sample 15 types of chili. There was a bluegrass band for entertainment and a raffle, Allison and I didn't win anything. The best part is that all the proceeds go to a local charity that they choose. I think we will go again next year. Today we went to a cookout with some good friends. The food was great and so was the company. I'm glad Allison got out there and made friends, now we have people to hang out with! It is almost September and Michigan is going through a hot snap. This upcoming week it is supposed to stay in the high 80's and low 90's. We are looking forward to our visitors who are coming very soon. Norah can't wait to see both sets of grandparents.

Chili cookoff



Calvin Klein Ad????

Daddy got Norah a new teething necklace

She's not as high as she looks.

Helping daddy pickle

Mamas spaghetti is the best!!!!

Allison's Duck Dynasty beard. I love her even more with each passing day haha.

Coast Guard Festival & Norah's 1st Tooth

This past week was the annual Coast Guard Festival. The weather felt more like Fall than it did Summer. I worked the damage control wet trainer for kids day and they seemed to have a blast. I froze to death, it was 65 degrees out and the water was ice cold. I grilled food for the USCG retirement dinner and had a good time. It was good to rub elbows with some old Master Chiefs. Norah Mae has finally pushed out her first tooth. Teething so far has been a breeze. Norah is also rolling all over the place and is now pulling herself up on all sorts of things. Our sweet girl has also figured out what we don't want her to get into and has set her mind to get into that stuff. We have already had to move some of our stuff around. We are hoping for a warm day so we can finally get to the beach, it has been a cool summer so far. I hope that isn't a sign of the winter to come. Allison has been scouring every yard sale this side of the Mississippi for toys and clothes for Norah, That girl sure can find a bargain. The next few weeks should be fairly slow for the Croteau family. Norah sure is looking forward to our visit from the Croteau and White grand parents in a few weeks. Hope you all are well see you soon.

Point Betsie and Beyond

Allison and I have been quite busy lately. July 4th was spent at the Whitehall parade and then a BBQ at our friends place. A pretty good celebration of Independence was had. I volunteered with Habitat For Humanity for a couple of days, it was good to help out and to get out of the office. This past Thursday I volunteered to help out at a local veterans golf tournament. I got to play a free 18 holes out of the deal so I can't complain at all. Last weekend we went to the Point Betsie Cottage in Frankfort MI. It was a great time. We searched and searched for a Petoskey Stones but we didn't find any, maybe next time. We walked the beach and watched the sunset each night. Allison and I found an awesome little place that makes homemade ice cream in downtown Frankfort. It was some of the best ice cream I've had.  Summer is in full swing and will soon be over, we are trying to take advantage of it as much as we can.

Norahs first slide

Painting @ Habitat For Humanity

First Watermelon

Norah Swimming with Maggie

Golf Tourney

A big thanks to Eric Dumais for sending me some special beer from Vermont

Beautiful morning for fishing on Duck Lake.

Doing some work @ Station Grand Havens Pier

The Girls Are Back In Town

Allison and Norah Mae made it home to Michigan safely and I couldn't be happier! I know I have to share my girls but I do not have to like it. Norah flew on her first airplane and couldn't have been better. After boarding both planes she fell asleep which leads me to believe she takes after her mother and will be able to sleep any where. I took the day off from work and drove to Grand Rapids to pick them up, I was excited to see Norah still remembered me. The smile on her face melted my heart and was a strong reminder of how much I love her, not that I could forget.Last weekend was a good one, on Saturday we went to the local farmers market to get some fresh fruits and veggies. Norah started eating her first people food, she seems to like it. I hope she takes after her father and will enjoy a multitude of foods. Later in the day I got bored and suggested that we take a hike and try out our new backpack carrier. We didn't have to venture far to find some hiking trails. One of the good things about Michigan is there is no lack of state parks. We chose a nice little hike along duck lake, Norah was beside herself with all of the new stuff to look at. I can't wait to get her back out there. Saturday night I volunteered at a local salute to the military. It was a very cool thing, I was in the presence of a WWII purple heart recipient and the family of a local guy that lost his life in Afghanistan. I am proud to have taken part in this. On Monday I was looking out our back window and I saw a turtle, I thought it was strange and then I realized what it was doing, laying its eggs. Allison and I looked it up and found out we should expect to see baby turtles crawl out of our lawn sometime in August. I am looking forward to a nice 3 day weekend this week and I'm sure the family and I will get into something good.

Great Lakes To New Hampshire & Back

              What a trip, the Croteau family left Michigan on May 13th. May 13th was not only just my birthday but also game 7 of the Bruins vs. Toronto series. What a nerve wracking game that was. This trip we decided to go through Canada, it was pretty neat going through the border. I pulled into a gas station to fuel up, $1.24 I thought wow Canada is great, gas is so cheap. Then I realized it was in liters not gallons, oopps. Norah did extremely well during the ride, her mother and I were happy about that.
               It is always so nice to be home and able to see family. I was able to go out with my sister and her husband to be as well as my cousin Eric. We did a makeshift brewery tour of Portsmouth NH. We were even able to find Earth Eagle Brewing's, New England Gangsta IPA and Portsmouth Brewery's Kate The Great Imperial Stout. It was a great night out and about.
              Courtney's wedding went off without a hitch. It was a great time and it was fun to see old friends and to make new ones. Unfortunately Allison had to leave early and tend to our little girl at home, because of this I may have imbibed a bit more than normal hence why I could be seen on the dance floor cutting a rug. It was awesome to see how happy my little sister is.
               While in NH we were able to enjoy many things. Allison's cousin and my friend, Nate invited us over for a back yard Turkey fry which was a great time. We went to Strawberry Banke with my parents and enjoyed a day of walking around looking at the old neighborhood. As always we enjoyed plenty of good food at the White families homestead. Every trip we make home some friends we are able to see and some we are not. I wish there was enough time to see everyone, maybe next time.
              Allison, the lucky duck, was able to stay back in NH a couple of extra weeks. This means I was set to drive out west on my own. The drive actually wasn't that back I had a mix of Phish and books on CD to keep my mind busy during the 8 hour drive to Niagara, Ontario. I had never been to the Falls so it was a pretty amazing experience! Stella was with me to enjoy the view. I spent the night in Canada and explored a little bit. I wish Allison and Norah had been with me but what can you do, maybe next time. They next day I finished my drive through Canada and headed home to Michigan. On June 2nd I awoke to find the temp at 37 degrees, it leveled out to a balmy 48 degrees that day. Why did we decide to move North again? I have been missing Allison and Norah dearly and have decided being a bachelor is no longer as much fun as I remember. I hope she knows she is stuck with me for life. The girls being back in New Hampshire has afforded me the opportunity to do plenty of fishing, both spin cast and fly. I was also able to head up north to Traverse City Michigan this past Saturday. I fly fished my way up the coast about 2.5 hours hitting a few of Michigan's blue ribbon trout streams. After all my effort I caught one trout, I guess better luck next time. My real reason for the trip up north was to visit with a friend of mine from Charleston. He and his wife graciously made me ribs and cupcakes. The meal and the company was fantastic. Today I started out writing this blog laying in my hammock, I may have dozed off for a few minutes only to be awoken by the rain. I was able to get inside before getting to wet.
                 I am taking off this upcoming Tuesday in order to pick up my two beautiful girls in Grand Rapids. I can't wait to be a family again. I am already planning our next trip east although it may not be for a while. We welcome all visitors so don't be strangers. Until next time....

Canada here we come.

Beautiful girl enjoying Prescot Park, Portsmouth NH.

Stella and Chloe on a sunny Middleton morning.

Nanny White and two of the wee ones.

Can't wait to get outdoors when my girls are home.

Family, I wouldn't trade it for the world.

Oh Canada, You live up to the stereotypes!

Mi Madre w/ Norah in the ergo.

Wading in shorts and catching Smallmouth Bass, is summer here?