His Dream Come True

Paul has been putting on the pressure for months (years, really) to get a fishing boat. I was not in favor of this idea. I was raised with the idea that you don't need a boat..you need a friend with a boat. But today, we found a "friend" on Craigslist with a boat. And a trailer. And a cover. All for a really good deal.
Buying the boat this way (used) makes a lot more sense to me. It was an easier "sell", I guess, because we now own the boat, and we took it out for a spin this afternoon.
Paul was the only one to catch anything...but my boys are happy. They finally have their boat!

(lifejackets were onboard and easily accessible, by the way)

Shot number 3? FULL MANUAL MODE on my camera. I get it! The class I'm taking works wonders!

Carnivores

(click photos to enlarge)

There are four types of carnivorous plants found in Michigan. At least two of them are found on the bog near our cabin. I found the one in the photo above the last time I was here (but I took this photo today, for those of you who closely follow that kind of thing).  It looks kind of like a venus flytrap, doesn't it? It's actually called a Drosera Rotundifolia, and you can learn more about it here, thanks to research from my father-in-law!
The other carnivorous plant we have here is the pitcher plant. I love these when they're all filled with water. Sometimes you can see bugs floating inside! In the fall, the main body of the plant turns a beautiful shade of red (much like the veining in the top of the plant). You can learn more about the pitcher plant, the Drosera, and the two other kinds of Michigan carnivorous plants here. 

I'm hoping to do a little hunting to see if I can find those other two plants on the bog, too!

Thanks for checking in on the blog today!

Part of Our Day

We headed south today, to Crandon, Wisconsin. Why? You ask? To pick up a new Jon-Boat. It's a flat-bottom row boat. We'll all use it to go fishing at area lakes up here. The first time we passed this herd of cows, they were all facing the same direction, with their backs to us. On the way back, I made Paul stop for the picture...unfortunately, they had moved around a bit. I love the little cluster of babies on the left.
On our way through Crandon, we stopped for ice cream, and then found this area right near the town hall. Deer came right up to the fence, and of course, there was corn available to feed them. The boys loved that! The baby deer wouldn't eat from our hands, but the big ones did.
And here is Mason. He was able to ride in the back of Grandpa's pickup truck with the dog and the new boat for the last couple of miles back to the cabin. This shot reminds me of that scene in the movie "Titanic".

Intermittent Rain Today

I'm working very hard trying to use the "Manual" mode on my camera. Today will NOT be the day to debut a full manual photo. I'm going back to what I know.

I will try again tomorrow for something more interesting than a plant or a bug.

I spent most of the day inside...baked cookies, made beds. Paul had planned to take Mason out fishing but Mason backed out at the last minute.  Good thing, too. Paul ended up in the water on more than one occasion, he ruined ANOTHER iphone, and lost the pair of boots that were on his feet. (I don't really get that one). Anyway, he made it back alive, only two hours late for our Happy Hour at Chris & Ed's new place. And he's got great stories to tell any sympathetic party. Oh, and he caught a musky.

Quiet Day Today

Michigan Lilies

I'll be blogging from the cabin all week. 

Russian Sage

Loving the new lens!

Thanks for checking the blog today!

New Lens Works Great!

I bought a new lens for my camera for my birthday. It arrived yesterday so today I spent some time taking shots of the boys this morning. I ended up using the shot of Calvin (above) for my weekly assignment in my photography class. It's supposed to look blurry in the background to draw attention to his face. I like the shot because it's rare to capture his "hint of a smile" look.
And I just really like this shot of Mason. I think it shows his personality quite nicely!