myJaxonIf we don’t go crazy once in a while, we’ll all go crazy. - Hawkeye

Many many moons ago, I had an ICQ account. Awhile ago, I started a yahoo account for the game section. I had a hotmail account awhile ago and set another one up. What does all this mean….I have the instant messengers going again. Now that I have a laptop, I’m going to have it around, so why not.

So, if you have an ICQ, MSN, or yahoo account….look me up. I may not answer right away, but I’ll be nearby.

ICQ - 23399371
MSN - myjaxon@hotmail.com
Yahoo - myjaxons

I’m trying to decide if I should host a Pampered Chef party.  I’ve heard they are a lot of fun and I’ve never been able to get to one.  So my chief concern is that no one would show up.  It’s a legitimate concern.  Most everyone I would invite doesn’t live near me, so I don’t know if they would make the 2 hour drive or not.   So I thought I would ask….I’m thinking of having a party sometime in January or February….would you be interested in coming?

A lot of you know my friend Joslyn. Well, she just moved to Colorado over the summer and she is doing her first 5k run in Denver for the Susan G Komen - Race for the Cure. She used to run all sorts of 5k’s while in Grand Rapids and it’s exciting to know she can continue to run them in Colorado. The Susan G Komen Race for the Cure is a great organization that wants “to eradicate breast cancer as a life-threatening disease through advancing research, education, screening and treatment.” If you want to help Joslyn support this great cause, just follow this link. Support her in any way you can - whether you can donate any money or by praying that she doesn’t break an ankle.

I love donating to and supporting great causes. Especially the ones most people don’t think about.

We did it again. Last year we went camping at Orchard Beach State Park in Manistee and this year we went back for another round. Brad and Erin were unable to join us this year, however, Tim and Kathie came up instead. The weekend wasn’t quite like last year, but when you mix up the crowd, that tends to happen. The weather was really great all weekend. Much better than last year. It rained on the four hour car ride to the west side of the state, but it didn’t rain again until we were taking the tents down this morning. And even then, it really didn’t rain, just hiccuped a little.

Saturday night we went to Little River Casino and I actually made money. Well, sorta. Jesse and I each took in $10 and that is what we used to gamble with. I ended up leaving with $32. That’s not bad. Jesse didn’t do so hot, but he made up for it Sunday when we went back and I ended up losing all $10 I went in with and he came out with $14. Yeah Jesse!

We didn’t check it out last year, but we did get down to the Port City Street Fair that goes on during this same weekend. There was a bunch of arts and craft tables, some live music, and a bunch of food. At one end of the street, there was a car show going on, but I think we got to it towards the end. Most of the cars were gone when we went to check them out.

We definitely learned from our mistakes last year. We didn’t do community snack foods and I don’t think we spent that much on food. Beth and Jordan brought a lot of food with them, so there really wasn’t much for us to go shopping for. We didn’t go through anywhere near the amount of wood we did last year. Granted, it was warmer this year (by a lot), so there really wasn’t the need for a continuous fire. Don’t get me wrong, we had one, it just wasn’t roaring.

We ended up getting a new tent this year. After last year’s fiasco with the rain and the leaky tent, Jesse and I ended up with a six-person Coleman tent. It was a really nice tent, but there was one thing we were sorely lacking….an air mattress. That’s next year’s purchase. We have a decent tent now, we just need to fix the sleeping arrangements.

I think that’s about it. Jesse and I have already decided that we need to take Ian camping next spring (no he didn’t go with us this weekend, he spent it with grandma). I’m trying to convince Jesse that we should go for the Lilac Festival in Mackinaw Island in June. We’ll see if I can. Oh yeah, the pictures for this weekend are here. So enjoy.

Three more days until we go camping and I’m already trying to think about what needs to be done. If I don’t start thinking about it now, I’ll end up forgetting something and that never ends well. I can’t wait for this weekend, though. That means this week will be over and I should be relaxing. The whole thing that is going to stress me out is having to deal with my pump….and that thing better be working. With all the driving that I’ll be doing over the next couple of days, it’s going to be nice to sit around a campfire and do nothing. There’s going to be good friends, good food, lots of fire, and the beach at sunset. And that is all that is planned at this moment.

However, before I can enjoy the weekend, I need to get there first. That means having to think about the packing and the organizing and the general headache of going away for a weekend. I’m taking Ian down to my mother’s on Thursday, so I have to have him all packed up Wednesday night. Then I need to pack for Jesse and I (yes, I do pack for both of us), plus get all the gear around and I just know I’m going to forget something. Plus we have to remember to leave food and water out for Toby. Why do I see the trunk packed and I can’t think of enough stuff to put in there?