A Proper Raincoat

I recently bought myself a proper raincoat to take with us on our trip.  We were filling in some time between DH's post-op doctor appointments at an R.E.I. store - which has so much stuff that it makes me feel like I can do anything outdoors!  I wasn't shopping for anything in particular, but they had their last-season rain gear on clearance.

I didn't have a raincoat that was both waterproof and lightweight.  When it rains, I've used ponchos at theme parks and umbrellas to and from the office, or just changed my plans for the day.  But for this trip, there may be days when the weather is rainy and we're just going to go out in it anyway.  

So this raincoat seemed like a good addition to my outerwear.  (The link takes you to this season's version which looks about the same as what I got on clearance. And mine is a light beige rather than this green.)  What I like about it, besides being lightweight and a bit breathable, is that it is long, so it will keep more of me dry.  It has good, deep pockets, too.

We have had some rainy weather locally this week, so I have had a few days to test-drive it on our neighborhood walks, and so far I am satisfied that it will serve its purpose while we are on the road.  We hope we won't have too much cold or rainy weather, but if we do, we're prepared!

Note that any products or places we post about or recommend are not affiliated links or sponsored posts.  This is just good ole word-of-mouth sharing things we like.

Stay dry, folks!  Stay dry!

~ Cindy D.

 

Spring flowers, or #flowersmakemehappy

I am so excited because we begin our journey next month! Can you believe it?  Soon it will be time to get the suitcases out, to start putting things to take with us in the spare bedroom, to make the list of things to take care of before we head out.

But I don't want to zoom through these last days of March without enjoying the beautiful spring weather we've been having.  And taking advantage of some personal days off work to explore in our own hometown.  We have some beautiful gardens in our area that have exploded with fragrant flowers that are just popping with color.

We got our American Horticultural Society memberships in the mail this week, so we used them to visit one of the gardens near us.  We paid $50 for the annual 2-person membership.  Entrance to the gardens would have been $22 without the membership.  So we just need to get $28 more value to come out even on our purchase!

Enjoy these flowers as we celebrate the beginning of spring this week!

   

  

    

Aren't these just beautiful?  Most of my Instagram posts are #flowersmakemehappy!  And I expect I'll have several #flowersmakemehappy posts during our trip through the Middle States. 

Happy Spring!

~ Cindy D.



  

Aren't these bins so cute?

It has been crazy-busy these last few weeks as I'm heading into retirement by the end of the month, so I'm trying to get things transitioned on the work front but still make judicious use of my paid time off!  This week I made a good start in gathering odds and ends that I think we need to take with us as well as thinking how we can strategically pack them for easy access in the car. 

  I had a bonus $10 Kohls cash this week, so I ordered these cute storage bins that I picked up and put together today.  They are collapsible so they don't take up much space when not in use, but they'll be great for organizing smaller loose items such as snacks and hand wipes, pens and paper, and collecting things for my Smash Book.

  I didn't get the bins just for the trip, though.  They are going to be put right to work in my home office when we return.  I have several retirement projects that I've been working on for a while and am excited to have more time to dedicate to them, but needed something to help contain them when I'm not actively working on them.

I also ordered our American Horticultural Society membership this month so it will be valid through March 2025.  This way we can use it on our Middle States trip and on our Edges of Florida trip in early 2025.  If the weather is nice this week, we can even use it for a visit to a local garden.  I love springtime, and #flowersmakemehappy!

~ Cindy D.

Back up plan and Wisconsin sausage & cheese

Back in August, I posted about how the historic car ferry S.S. Badger had to abruptly end their 2023 season of crossing Lake Michigan.  This week they announced their season will open June 14th which is about four weeks too late for us.  They have hopes that they may be able to open earlier, so we won't cancel our hotel reservation in Ludington quite yet, but we have decided to look into other options for getting back to the Wisconsin side of Lake Michigan without having to go through Chicago.

We are interested in the S.S. Badger because of the historical factor, but we aren't interested in back-tracking 8 hours around Lake Michigan.  There is another car ferry service about an hour south of where the S.S. Badger crosses.  It is a faster crossing (2:30 rather than 4:00) and it lands in Milwaukee, about 45 minutes south of where we planned to spend that evening.  It also costs about $100 more.

I did our due diligence in looking at what there might be to see and do if we back-tracked and just drove, but lodging was slim pickings and there are things I wanted to see and do on our original route.  The faster car ferry service leaves from Muskegon, Michigan, so I checked hotels in the area and found a comparable one to where we were planning to stay in Ludington for a little less money which would help offset the extra expense.  And we would still get to see and do things on our original route because we would still be able to go through Ludington area.  The cancellation policy is two days prior while the hotel cancellation in Ludington is one day prior; but y'all know me well enough by now that I will have made a decision before we leave home.

A bonus for taking the faster car ferry.  By landing in Milwaukee, we might be able to take a short detour to Usinger's for some delicious sausage  and pop in next door to the Wisconsin Cheese Mart.  

In 2011, DH and I spent several days in Milwaukee while he attended a work conference.  During his free time, we got to see and do a lot of things in Milwaukee as we were staying downtown. One of our favorite memories was walking down to Usinger's and the Wisconsin Cheese Mart to pick up a variety of meats and cheeses.  We brought several home for gifts; DH wasn't happy with having to carry it through the airport, haha! 

But if we end up being able to take the S.S. Badger, we won't make a stop in Milwaukee.  And while I will miss the nostalgia of going to Usinger's, DH reminded me that they do sell their sausages in stores.  And while getting the link for Wisconsin Cheese Mart today (and checking that they would be open on the day of the week we would be going through), I found that there is a WCM in Madison, Wisconsin, and it's open on the day we'll be there!  So one way or the other, I expect to get some cheese!

~ Cindy D.