July 19-30, 2017
The girls-Sophie, Daisy, Gracie and the skillful
back-in!
Perry and I enjoyed
everything about Michigan, especially the Upper Peninsula. I can't say I could see myself here during
the winter months, but the summers are beautiful . We were looking forward to seeing Perry's
family in Duluth, Minnesota and the six hour drive was uneventful but beautiful
as we drove through the tall trees along Lake Superior.
Navigating our way
through Duluth towards Perry's sister house was easy and with her house sitting
at the top of a cul-de-sac, Perry had to skillfully back the fifth-wheel onto a
concrete pad adjacent to the house, avoiding
backing into the house, trees and/or the mailbox.
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| Impressively parked for the next 2 weeks! |
Patty (Perry's
sister) lives in Duluth part-time and Houston in the winter months and Sophie
(her large but sweet Rottweiler) was there to greet us as well as Patty. We enjoyed staying at Patty's house for the
next ten days with so much to catch up on.
Gracie (our
Australian Shepherd) didn't care for Sophie in Houston and didn't care for her
in Duluth. Her rather toothy growl daily
let Sophie know she was NOT interested in playing. Daisy on the other hand,
more than made herself at home sunning herself in the front window or trying to
find a comfortable spot on a couch. We
made it clear, Aunt Patty's couch was out of the question but she was allowed
on the bench in the front window or floor.
Daisy let the rather energetic Sophie know she was not interested in
playing as well. That night Patty, Perry and I reminisced looking at old family
photos.
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| Daisy snuggling with Maxx on the dog forbidden couch. |
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| Aunt Patty said the settee was "ok"-such a Princess! |
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| A daily visit on Patty's front lawn |
Duluth
Duluth is one of the
major cities in Minnesota that transports lumber, taconite (iron ore) and grain
from Lake Superior. It has a beautiful
lift bridge enabling the large ships to pass through the canal. The city is also supported by tourism with
its' cute downtown area. Patty's home
in Duluth is close to Lake Superior as well as numerous parks, hiking trails
and lakes. Her family lives in the area
and we spent time with them as well.
Daily, we enjoyed the doe and fawns that showed up on Patty's front
lawn. We also enjoyed spending a lot of
time with Perry's nieces and their families which included barbecues, baseball
games, Liquid Larry's (Patty's daughter and son in-law's restaurant/bar) and
eating at various spots. We had Bloody
Mary's in one restaurant and in Minnesota, Bloody Mary's are made to be a full
meal. Most of the drinks are decorated
with celery, sausage, olives and depending where you go, a burger or pizza. Most are served with a "snit" of
beer.
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| Practically a meal in itself! |
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| Sandy and Larry's Place |
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| Family Time |
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| On Lake Superior (Downtown Duluth) with Patty and Melissa |
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| Melissa's son Maxx at the winning playoff game |
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| The Blueberry Festival with Patty and her daughters |
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| A fun girls day out! |
We visited the
Hull-Rust Mahoning Mine which has been nicknamed the "Grand Canyon of the
North" because it's the world's largest open pit iron mine. With miles of red clay covering the iron-ore,
this area makes Minnesota the leading producer of iron-ore in the country. The working mine is operated around the clock
with the largest dump trucks I've ever seen!
In addition, we
visited Duluth's Glensheen Mansion, had girl shopping time with Patty and her
daughter Melissa (yes a mall-I haven't seen one in months!) , learned about ice
fishing from Patty's granddaughter and her husband, went to a blueberry
festival in the small town of Ely and enjoyed a surprise birthday party for my
young looking sister-in-law's milestone birthday.
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| The "surprise" party |
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| Touring Duluth's Glensheen Mansion |
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| Tractors used in the Hull-Rust-Mahoning Mine |
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| Having a little fun! |
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The three girls finally getting along as we near the end of our Duluth trip.
Everyday in Duluth was filled with family, food and fun and it was time to give our hugs good-bye to venture on to Pipestone, MN! |
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