In Color...

Nelis Dutch Village, Holland Michigan

So I have discovered an online photo editor that I kinda like.  And I was playing around there for the last week or so, and have discovered that I really like pictures that are in both black and white and color.  This is what I have spent the last week doing, now that my semester is over.  Bringing the Pleasentville treatment to my photos.  Most are flowers, I found they were the easiest to work with, but I have some animals, and some landscapes.  Those with vibrant colors were the most fun.

Unforgettable--Niagara!

The great differences between voyages rests not with the ships, but with the people you meet on them.

~Amelia E. Barr

Honestly, in my opinion, truer words have never been spoken.  And it is not just the people you meet, but the people you go with.  That can make or break a trip.  When I started this particular post I figured by default it would be a Yellowstone post.  And I could probably wax poetic about my Yellowstoners for days on end.  They are some od hte most amazing people in the world.  Kind, generous, loving, accepting, fearless, everlasting, you name it.  They embody it.  And I love them all for it so very much.

But this post is leading me in a different path.  As mentioned I took a trip this summer with my mom, her two sisters (The three of them being "The Aunties") and two of my cousins.  I had the time of my life honestly, it was one of the best trips I had ever taken.  Barring a few minor conflicts... (two of the aunties were a bit anal about the packing of the van and the phrase give me the f*cking bag comes to mind.)  It was an unforgettable trip of a life time.  So I am sure I mentioned it, but we did Niagara Falls in class and stlye!  Oh yeah, we were kinda awesome.

Top of the Dunes

Our rendition of the Sweet Sisters

With the obvious exception of the aunties (even that to a point) we the younger three are all different( is the only word) from each other.  Susie is in her early 30's, I am late 20's and Erika is the baby in her very early teens.  Yet, I think there is a bond, that somehow we forged.  Maybe not as a trio, but each with the others.  Ericka and I perhaps a bit more than we needed to.  Lets just say that we have a silly (some call it annoying) side a mile wide...  So for some reason in Michigan we decided we wanted to learn how to dance.  I am fairly certain it started as a polka and ended in a waltz, much like each time we tried to dance.  We made a pact that we would waltz in front of Niagara falls (we did!).  And sometimes when we get together we do still.

 

AWESOME!!!!!

Sand dunes are all shades of awesome, even if I almost lost forever my most prescous possession, a perl from my beloved gramma.  The dune ride was just a crazy, crazy time!  And then there was the cheese and the super awesome wooden show fuzzy slippers.  The cheese, oh gods, the cheese.  Garlic basil Gouda... like manna from the heavens... good gods that was good.  Wooden shoes were awesome, expensive so we settled for awesome slippers.  Around this point, Ericka and I were "banned" from sitting together in the car... it seemed we grated on the Aunties nerves a bit... 

Did I mention the matching clothes?

Windmills are just cool!

 

So on to Canada!!!! I love Canada by the way.  I think we were on Wayne Gretzky Parkway (or something) all the time.  And then we got to a swanky hotel in Niagara.  Over looking the falls!  And the bellhops were adorable!  There was this really cool quasi interactive video thing called Niagara's Fury and it had a super cute animated video.  Me and Ericka have really curly hair and it was a constant battle not to poof. Especally on the Maid of the Mist!

 

 I am sure I could go on and on, and maybe no matter who I saw Niagara with it would have been memorable and a good time.  But I think that there was some magic about this trip.  Maybe it is the 6 of us, the lack of anything set in stone, but something made it a great and wonderful time and fun was had by all. 

Petals: Holland MI

This is going to be the start of an ongoing series of posts about gasp flowers.  As I might have mentioned in the Monterrey Gardens post I love flowers.  And I love taking pictures of them even more.  I was planning on starting this with a closer to home post, but I can't seem to find those pictures.  These is going to be a weekly series for the foreseeable future.  It should be out on Monday or Tuesday of each week (but don't quote me on this).