Back to the Blog Roots

Hey!

I feel like we've got some cool things happening here.

I might be jumping the gun (because some mornings I drink too much coffee and get excited like a puppy about new ideas and life in general), but I'm going say it anyway.  Then you can hold me to it.

Or I'll just blame the coffee.

As you well know, this blog contains a smorgasbord of ideas, experiences, events and whatnot.  Well, I'm going to try to streamline things a bit.

I'm going to reel this river back in to the "Downs by the Bay" roots.  Remember what that topic is?  

A little boy with Down syndrome grows up on the shores of Lake Superior: throwing rocks, sniffing flowers and following his curiosity.

Well, now.  We have not stuck to that theme.  It still gets a little bit "A Little Slice of da Harbor" and a little bit Copper Harbor Vitality and a little bit of my own obsessions.

So I am making a new place for all those wandering streams.  It can be found here at Copper Harbor Vitality central!

Yup!  Back to adventures and Copper Harbor, baby!  Those stories will be mostly "A Little Slice of da Harbor" with a Copper Harbor Vitality twist.  If you have been reading my words since my first blog, then, here is some tissue paper.  You might have just peed your pants!  I get it.  I might pee mine too!

If you have joined "Downs by the Bay," you are also in luck!  Because, oh man.  Guess what...

Brady P. is going to write some of these blogs!

Whaaaaat???

Brady P. can't type!

But, you know what?  He can't hide his emotions either, and I can read him like a book, so I may as well write it down.  I mean, that's what I'm here for!

Okay, Brady P. lover, now here is some tissue for you.  Cuz, well, you know.  I can tell you're excited, too!

 

Chucking rocks toward the lighthouse 

To prove that our habits have not changed during this blog, here is a recent shot from our favorite place to chuck rocks.  

Note the fisherman to the left standing on the rock.  They are out there everyday!  Catching mostly too small of fish, from what I've noticed, but there have been a few keepers!

Just like Brady P.  He's a keeper.  Wink!

Decisions, Decisions

Brady P. is really something.

I phrase that vaguely because I honestly don't know how to describe him sometimes.  But I can describe what he does.  Here's one of his latest.

When he knows what he wants, he will tell me in a word or two.  Sometimes those words are accompanied by a sign.  "Eat."  "Music."  "Computer."  "Rocks."  "Help, please."  Etc.

But sometimes I ask him a question and give him options.  All children should be able to make decisions about daily events and choices.  So we've been doing it more.  However, I have never seen a person react to a choice quite like Brady P.

"Braeden," I'll say as he zips up his jacket.  "Would you like to wear the football hat or the rainbow hat?" I ask, holding them in front of him.

He looks up at me like I just told him the juiciest secret in the world.  His eyes get big and his lips mash together like they are sealed.  I think he even blushes.

Then he starts to rock from side to side lifting each foot off the ground as he sways.  His eyes shift from the football hat to the rainbow hat and back again.  Then they shift up to me, beaming, as if to say, "Are you ready for my answer, Mama?  It's going to be the best answer ever!!!"

But he doesn't say a word.  He just rocks back and forth with that tight-lipped grin and wide eyes.  

"Which hat would you like to wear?" I ask again, hoping it will prompt a response.  But instead it shifts him into another fit of facials.

He will scrunch up his nose, open his mouth and stick out his front teeth while squinting his eyes.  Then he will lift his eyebrows while he rocks side to side thinking about which hat he wants to wear.

But he already knows.

He is being dramatic about it.  He is keeping me in suspense.

However, I am not suspended.  I already know, too.

After a couple minutes, if I still have the patience, he will look at me like he is about to burst with the most exciting news in the world.

Then he points to the football hat.

"Okay!" I shout.  "The football hat it is!"  And I put it on his head.

Whew.  Another two-minute decision initiated for Brady P.

Watching him go through this process is really interesting to me.  I can just see his wheels turning like they did when he was learning to kick a ball.

It's like I can watch the path of neurons firing in his body, through his brain and out his pointed finger.

Quite amazing.

And when I ask if he wants milk, juice or water with his oatmeal, he'll do the scrunchy face.  But, like with the hat, I already know the answer because his lips form an "m."

"Mmmik!" he shouts as if he just gave the world's greatest speech.

You know what?  For a little boy who is proud of his decisions and can actually verbalize them in a way someone can understand, I'd say it's a pretty great speech, too.

Guess what.

You didn't miss out!  The Vitality buy two get one free sale is still on until St. Patrick's Day!  Woohoo!  Shop now and get one item absolutely free with coupon code 3COLORS.  I've even added free shipping for these last few days.  I mean, what more could you really want shopping online?

Thanks for your support.  See you next week!

Keeping Winter Bright

Hello from the ridiculously white great north!

Yes, we got a lot of snow.  The report was 20-something inches, but the wind gusts dispersed that into drifts, so it wasn't an even layer of snow... in most places.

It was blown clean over here and over your head over there with an extended peak at the top making it clear which direction the wind came from... for hours.

I'm not going to bore you with my sob story of how long it took me to dig myself out (or the fact that I haven't even finished yet!) because Yoopers everywhere have their own story.  And many had it worse.

I want to talk about the snow being FUN!

Because, before the storm, I was dedicated to making the Copper Harbor tunnel luge right off my front porch.  Yup, that's right.  A tunnel luge.

It took a few random hours of digging when I could get outside according to Wee-man's schedule.  But the day before the storm was predicted to come, one friend watched Brady P while two of my girlfriends came by to help me dig until the bottom tunnel met the top tunnel.

Oh, glory and joy in my heart!!!  We did it!!!

Then we quickly tried to shape the rest of it to get a smooth ride from the top to the bottom -- a length of approximately 30 feet.

Haha.  The smooth ride never happened.

But we rode anyway with our limbs whipping around and voices squealing.  Here's a video of one of the pioneer rides!

Oh, man.  It was so fun.  We had about a dozen people try it out the first day.  And the next day, some of the town's school girls came and sledded for three hours!

I was elated.  That was exactly what I wanted to do -- create something fun to bring the community together over outdoor activities.  I mean, that's the mission of Copper Harbor Vitality!

We sledded for those couple days, but then it snowed and snowed and snowed as I mentioned above.

I did a few runs today to see how much work the luge needs.  The tunnel needs to be dug out a bit.  I'm not normally claustrophobic, but I started to feel that way as I wriggled myself out backwards at the bottom.

The only problem is that I can't find my scoop shovel!  I honestly think it's buried in the snow. 

How ironic.

Well, I'll get that baby up and running again, don't you worry.  If you want to come and check it out, please do!  Just bring a shovel.  Wink.

And now for a special offer!

All this snow is very, well, white.  And I'm a woman who loves bright colors.  Do you know what is full of bright colors?  My wildflower pictures!

 

A teaser of color!

Right now, I'm offering a great sale on all items on the Copper Harbor Vitality website of buy 2, get 1 free!  Woohoo!  Put a little color in your life, save some cash and support one of your favorite artists!

Sounds like a triple win to me!  

Just use the coupon code 3COLORS at the checkout.  And start shopping here!  The offer expires on St. Patrick's Day.

Thanks again for reading.  You are a rare breed -- a person who reads!