Toddler Busy Bags

Back in April I made the coolest discovery!  As I poked through Facebook I stumbled upon someone hosting a busy bag swap.  I had never heard of such a thing, so I inquired further.  This particular swap was hosted out of state and by someone I had never met.  My intention was to just learn about what these Toddler Busy Bags are, and consider hosting one in the future.

Well, I was invited to participate in their out of state swap, and I am so happy I did!  (I just participated via the USPS.)  The way it works is this:

1.)  Someone agrees to host the party.

2.)  People that wish to participate sign up with the host.

3.)  There is a deadline a couple weeks before the actual party so as to have a head count.

4.)  Each participant creates enough of the same busy bags for everyone to have one.

5.)  Participants meet up at the hosts home and exchange bags.

Example:  There are 20 participants.  Each participant brings 20 of the same busy bag that they create themselves.  Each participant leaves the exchange with 20 different busy bags.

Minimal investment.  Large return.  Works for me!

So, what exactly is a busy bag anyhow?  Well, a busy bag is something put together inside a plastic, zipper seal bag.  It usually consists of the right amount of materials for one child to do an activity independently.  What goes in the bag is really limited to your imagination.

I made busy bags that consisted of small, laminated cards with pictures on them and a hole or two punched on the bottom to connect the appropriate links which I included in the quart size baggie.  (They really would have fit in sandwich size bags.)  I found a free download for the cards, covered one side in clear contact paper, cut out the cards, and punched holes in the appropriate spots.  I included several multi-colored connecting links which I purchased in bulk from Oriental Trading.

In return, I received all of this:

I cannot tell you what the kids think of them.  They don't even know they exist.  This momma is saving them for an upcoming road trip.  I am praying they make 14 hours on the road less excruciating for all of us.  I will be putting together travel bags for each kid, and these will be incorporated into the mix in one way or another.

This swap was such a joy to participate in that I may just host my own one day.  

Road Trip Therapy

There is nothing, I mean NOTHING, like a road trip with a good friend.  I am feeling blessed in so many ways.  The Lord has been teaching me abundantly lately, and for the most part I have been receiving the lessons with open and willing arms.  It is so freeing when we just go with the flow and do not force life into our own skewed idea of the way things are supposed to be.

That being said, I am learning to let go.  Let go of my ideals.  Let go of my agenda.  Let go of my expectations.  Let go, and be free.  What is more fitting than a road trip with no real agenda?  Part of it is planned, loosely.  As a Seventh Day Adventist woman that resides in Michigan I am richly blessed to have an amazing church camp.  This weekend marks the first of three weekends this month that Camp Au Sable will host Women's Ministries.  It is an amazing opportunity to feed your soul.  Women, Adventist and not, gather from all over Michigan and beyond to fellowship together.  We eat, we laugh, we cry, we worship, we learn, we connect, and we grow.  There is so much beauty at Camp Au Sable, in the natural surroundings as well as the people.

So, the Women's Ministries Weekend is the planned part.  Well, loosely.  Normally I am packed and ready to go by now, but alas that is not the case for me with this journey.  I just determined when check-in is last night, and I've no real clue what the real topic of the weekend is, or what the seminars are, or what the schedule is, or what the special plans are, or what I want to do in my spare time.  I mean nothing.  I just made my packing list last night.  Last night!  Our washing machine is broken and will not be fixed until next week, so I still have to go out and do laundry.  This is SO not me!  But, I am okay with it and just going with the flow.  It is almost surreal.  It's like I'm looking in from the outside wondering who it is that I am.  In years past I would be so stressed in this circumstance.  Not now.  It is what it is, right?  It will all work out.  It always does.  No biggie!

So, the super unplanned part begins when we leave Camp Au Sable for our return journey home.  Guess what?  Not going home!  WOO-HOO!!!  This mamma needs a break, and my best gal pal and I are taking one.  You have no clue, or maybe you do, just how much I am looking forward to a full 24 hours to do just as I please.  See, we extended our weekend through Monday evening.  Yippee!  What do we plan to do?  I am really not sure, and that is uber cool!  Will we leisurely browse through a used book store?  Will we eat lunch while gazing out at Lake Huron, will we lounge around at a hotel as long as possible, will we find a cool cottage somewhere, will we, will we, will we?  I have no clue, and it is SO beautiful.

My time has been consumed with illness, school lessons, house cleaning, errand running, bill paying, cooking, and the slew of other things that have landed in my lap.  Responsibility has reigned, so I have spent ZERO time planning for my much anticipated extended weekend of freedom.  How refreshing!

A quote worth pondering:

God is looking for imperfect men and women 

who have learned to walk in moment-by-moment dependence on the Holy Spirit. 

Christians who have come to terms with their inadequacies, fears, and failures. 

Believers who have become discontent with ‘surviving’ 

and have taken the time to investigate everything God has to offer in this life.

- Charles Stanley

May your weekend be richly blessed, 
your soul wonderfully fed, 
and your spirit lifted high.

Road Trip Photo Journal

We're back from our road trip, and did we ever have a wonderful time! Here is a small taste of what we did and where we went:

This is just one of the outdoor displays at Bronner's in Frankenmuth. Bronner's is a wonderful place that houses more Christmas decorations that one could ever imagine under one roof. It was founded in 1945 by Wally Bronner. Above you see the Bronner's motto.


Bronner's is a year round attraction with many special events scheduled throughout the year. The Oberndorf/Salzburg, Austria, Silent Night Memorial Chapel was built in 1992 as a tribute to God and the world's favorite Christmas hymn. This truly is a magical place.

We traveled through the historic covered bridge to access parking for the little village of shops they have there. One of our favorites is the popcorn store. This time we tried blueberry, banana split, sour cream and cheddar and garlic parmesan. YUM!

This is just a lovely shot of rural Michigan. Such a place is my idea of heaven on earth. I am a city girl with a heart that lives in the country.

Our next stop was Bay City.

If I could choose the type of abandoned buildings that I saw on my travels, this would be it. You may not know the reason behind leaving dilapidated buildings like this. There is a zoning law that you only have a certain amount of time to erect another structure on the property after tearing down a structure, or you lose your right to build. Silly, isn't it?

Downtown Bay City is a lot of fun! There is a lot to do there, especially if you like antiquing. You would not believe the size of the antique stores here. Not to mention the food. There is an amazing restaurant, Morning at Maggies Omelette, on Saginaw Street. I do not even like eggs, and I absolutely loved this restaurant. If you're even in town, you have to check it out!

You don't see these signs in the city!

This is my idea of traffic problems!

This park is a nice place to stop. There is a picnic area and a playground which comes in handy if you are traveling with children. Waterfowl is abundant, and the scenery is beautiful.

This little duck was one of many that were just hanging out on the water's edge. She's getting ready to shake a leg! It was pure pleasure watching them all hang out together.

How often do you see something like this? For me, it was a first. There were two complete families of geese traveling together in Lake Huron off the coast at the park. What a sight!

Anyone up for a sail?

This pretty little flower grew all along the water's edge. It also came in white. I am not sure what they are, but they remind me of buttercups.

This flower was also growing there. Isn't it gorgeous? I really think this is a beautiful flower. Once again, I have no idea what it is. It's not something I've seen before.

This is the main intersection in Tawas. There is a nice row of little stores and restaurants to stop in. We had breakfast in town the next morning on our way out.

Another totally cool naure moment. When I shot this picture I didn't even notice the little chicks following their momma. I had to pull back and look after my husband said something. This is a mother turkey and her babes. Awww...

This is the codo we rented on Lake Huron at Mai Tiki Resort in Oscoda, just north of Tawas. It had two bedrooms, so we invited a couple up that we are friends with. It was a great day and evening. Too bad check out time is 10AM!

These are the cute little cabins that caught our attention from the road. The cool thing about this setup is that they all face Lake Huron. Most cabins that you rent on the lake face eachother with the lake at the end. No matter where you stay at Mai Tiki Resort you have a lake view all for the same price as a night in a hotel. What would you prefer?

This is the beach at Mai Tiki Resort, another nice amenity. If you go further south down Lake Huron the beaches tend to be real rocky. Not here, and the water wasn't even that cold!

Some people find seagulls annoying, but I just love them. I think they are a beautiful bird. I still remember my little buddy in Maine. He sure liked his oysters!

The surf hitting the turf!

Just one of the totem poles at Mai Tiki Resort.

My pyromaniac husband starting the fire. It was a little cool, but we really enjoyed hanging out there and chatting with the other people that were staying by for the night.

This is another way you know you are further north in Michigan. You do not see The Jerky Outlet stores anywhere in the city. Period. You see them everywhere when you head north.

Look at this barn. It's so happy to be in the country that it is smiling. I would be too!

We stopped at a lovely boat launch area in Port Austin, and this family of swans was out for a swim. Can you just believe all the little waterfowl families that we saw? Aren't they precious?

The view from the inlet at Port Austin.

Kayaks on the beach in Port Austin. We've never actually gone out before, but we did get to give it a try once at a demonstration in a state park we stayed at once.

Look at this clear Michigan water! Isn't it beautiful? This is why it is so much fun to swim in Michigan. It is just gorgeous!

Quality Time

Well, hubby and I are going to hit the road for an extended weekend away in a couple days. We've not decided if we'll leave Thursday evening or Friday morning, but either way we are off on our own for three days. We've been doing this every-so-often over the past 12+ years, and I highly recommend it. It's like a booster shot for your marriage!

"What is it that you do?", you ask. We pack our bags, put some cash in our pocket, and head out with no destination in mind. Honestly, those getaways are the best memories I have of our time together.

We have had adventure, like the time we traveled the entire west coast of Michigan. That was our first road trip together as a couple. It was a blast! Going off the road backward down a hill at warp speed on the highway in Petoskey was the part that really classified it as an adventure. We've told the story a hundred times, and we still laugh. God really had his hand on our shoulder that day. We couldn't find an open tire shop, so we drove all the way back home with hay-like matter poking out between the rubber of the tires and the rims. What an experience!

Then there was the more recent time that we traveled the back roads of northern Ohio. It wasn't the most scenic, but we found a lot of cool antique shops to visit and ended up in the city of Marion where we met some nice people and visited the Popcorn Museum and saw the birth place of Warren Harding, our twenty-ninth president.

"Do you know what direction you're headed this time?", you wonder. Well, I cannot really say. We've talked about going back up to the cabins we stayed at for our anniversary last September because it's such a great bang for your buck, but we've been there, done that, right? Then there was the awesome time we spent in Marshall. We did so much there. We visited the SDA Historic Village in Battle Creek, had a five star meal at Schuler's, and attended the Renaissance Festival.

What needs to be determined is whether or not we want to stomp on familiar ground or seek out the unfamiliar. It's the unfamiliar we're interested in, I may encourage hubby to head toward Pennsylvania. I wanted to take our family vacation there this year, but with the new business on the horizon time is of the essence. It just won't fit in. We're finding it challenging enough to make our trip to Big Rapids to visit a friend's farm happen. I cannot seem to secure a campsite.

Anyway, I'll report back next week on our adventures. The important part is that we spend time together just being together no matter the location. Who knows, we may stay close to home. We've done that before, too. You'll just have to wait and see.