Willson's Weekly

Cape Canaveral, Florida 2021

2021-12-31T14:18:00.004-05:00

Saturday, December 25

We checked out of El Galleon By the Sea (Unit 510) at 10:00 am on Christmas Morning. We then drove to Cape Canaveral Beach Resort.

Sunday, December 26

Monday, December 27

Tuesday, December 28

Manasota Key, Florida 2021

2021-12-26T12:33:00.015-05:00

Saturday, December 18

(We flew in Friday evening, but I did not get any pictures.)

Sunday, December 19

Monday, December 20

Tuesday, December 21

Wednesday, December 22

Thursday, December 23

Friday, December 24

Saturday, December 25

June 2021

2021-08-25T13:06:00.005-04:00

Trying to catch up with summer pictures. Here are pictures from June. The pictures are in descending order.

Dane and Liam made perch from the fish they caught. They did everything themselves!

Alek and I took the cousins (Luke, Lex, Libby, Liam) fishing and tubing. They caught a lot of perch and brought them home to filet and cook em up!

Amy, Adam, Ayson, and Addie were able to visit this summer. It was such a good time! I hope they can come more often! Maybe every summer????? (Hint, Hint)

Pictures from Alek's birthday.

Right after school got out, the kids and I went up North to spend a week at the Brennan's cabin.

Their friends, Jane and Luke Brennan, also have a cabin there across the lake. Below, Jane and Ryleigh are working on some summer homework projects.

Dane's 12th Birthday

2021-08-24T21:04:00.007-04:00

Dane saved up money all summer to buy a phone. I also told him for his birthday present from me, I would match whatever money he had saved. He was able to save $264! I was quite surprised but happy for him! We went to the Verizon store and Dane picked out the phone he wanted - an iPhone XR. He was so excited and could not believe he finally had a phone! See pictures below. =)

For his cake, he wanted either carrot cake or lemon meringue pie without the meringue. Ha! I couldn't do the "without meringue" part, so I just got both.

For his birthday dinner, he wanted to go to Red Lobster so he could try lobster for the first time. He tried every part of it and liked the tail the best. He also said, he would probably not order it again, but it was "quite the experience." I ordered crab legs, so he could try those as well. We both thought they were too salty, so Alek ate most of them. =)

Some presents he received: a few clothes, a pocket knife, a $25 play station gift card, and fishing lures. Also, before we went up to the cabin last month, Alek gave him an early birthday present of $100 to spend at Cabela's for fishing gear! I'd say this kid got pretty spoiled this year!!!!

Ash helped decide what present Dane should unwrap next.

Ash was super excited with all of the boxes and wrapping paper. He even jumped into the plant to hide and then pounce on the papers.

Cabin August 1-7, 2021

2021-08-16T16:09:00.000-04:00

Clear Lake in Johannesburg, MI and Mackinac Island

Florida Vacation 2020 -- Day 13

2020-12-31T12:01:00.014-05:00

Wednesday, December 30, 2020

Today we were all ready to go home! We had such a great adventure, were definitely tuckered out, and missed our doggies and home.

While at the airport, Alek's ticket got upgraded to First Class, so he gave it to me since it was our 12th Anniversary. I tried to get pictures for the kids, but it was hard in the small (yet large cubby I was in). I could not believe how nice it was! I could lay completely down. In one picture, I am laying on my stomach and the TV screen is behind me. I was also offered alcohol, extra food, and special headphones. I definitely want all of the Willsons to experience First Class in the future!

When we got home, the dogs were SOOOOO excited to see us, and we were excited to see them! Ryleigh and Dane then began tearing into their presents. Then everyone relaxed and went to bed. It was definitely a LONG day! =)

Florida Vacation 2020 -- Day 12

2020-12-31T11:49:00.005-05:00

Tuesday, December 29, 2020

This morning we woke up early to pack up and go to Busch Gardens in Tampa, Florida. We got there right when it opened, so we were able to go on quite a few rides with no lines. However, after we ate lunch and went on a train ride, the lines were up to over 2 hour waits. Crazy! We refused to wait that long for a ride to last a minute long. Instead, we walked around a bit more and looked at the animals. Around 3:30, we were all super tired and decided to leave.

We then drove to Fort Meyer and checked in at a hotel near the airport. For dinner, went to another Twin Peaks because we liked the food so much at the last one. This one was even better. It had fast friendly service and the food was amazing! Afterward, we went swimming at the hotel and then watched some T.V. and went to bed.

Florida Vacaton 2020 -- Day 11

2020-12-31T11:17:00.004-05:00

Monday, December 28, 2020

Today we spent the day at Top Golf and an arcade called Andretti Indoor Karting and Games. We had never been to Top Golf before, and we all loved it!!!! We played Angry Birds by using golf balls to knock over virtual towers. At the very end, we tried playing normal Top Golf, but we could not get the ball very far. Some people there could get the ball all the way to the very back. It was quite impressive! Then while Alek and the kids played in the arcade next door, I rested in the car. The kids came back with more plastic junk they had won from points they earned in the arcade. Ha! =)

In the evening, we ate at Twin Peaks and then went on the huge swing and Ferris wheel nearby.

Florida Vacation 2020 -- Day 10

2020-12-31T11:01:00.003-05:00

Sunday, December 27, 2020

Today we spent the first part of the day at Fun Spot in Orlando which is a roller coaster park. We got there early and never had to stand in line. We also did some rides multiple times. It was a lot of fun. The park also did a great job of spraying and wiping each ride down with disinfectant in between riders. There were also hand sanitizer stations all throughout the park.

Along with rides, they also had games for the kids to play. Dane did an amazing job at popping balloons by throwing a ball, and he won a big stuffed doggy. Ryleigh was a bit disappointed though because she only won a small doggy. Then the kids and Alek moved on to a small arcade place, while I rested outside on a bench. The kids had fun playing the games and then buying junk with their points afterward.

In the evening, we went to a pirate dinner show. Everyone really liked it!

Florida Vacation 2020 -- Day 9

2020-12-31T10:42:00.005-05:00

Saturday, December 26, 2020

This morning we had to pack up to leave the condo. We cleaned first and then while doing the laundry, we watched a Disney movie called Soul. I was sad to leave, so I got some last-minute pictures of the condo for more memories.

We then drove to Orlando. Our hotel room was very small compared to the spacious condo we had been in, but we loved the heated pool and jacuzzi. For dinner, Alek took us to a place called B.J.'s. We all loved it!

Florida Vacation 2020 -- Day 8

2020-12-31T10:39:00.002-05:00

Friday, December 25, 2020

This Christmas morning, we woke up to a beautiful site of enormous waves hitting the beach. Alek and I were very curious to see what washed ashore, so we went for a walk. To our surprise, almost all of the shells on the beach were gone. The waves had taken everything. We did, however, find a washed-up coconut, so we brought it home to the kids. Dane was determined to open it up. It took almost an hour, but he finally got to the coconut meat. Both kids tried it, and Ryleigh even tried the coconut water. It wasn't as tasty as they thought it would be though. =)

Since it was Christmas day and it was cool and windy, we stayed at the condo all day. For dinner, we drove all over, but nothing was opened. We finally ended up going to the Circle K (a mini-mart) and got some subs and frozen food.

I also took a picture of the shells I had collected over our stay. I then wrapped them up to take them home. Not sure what I will do with them all, but I could not throw them back. =)

We absolutely loved this condo and did not want to leave! We made many great memories, and we hope to be able to come again. We give 5 stars to Villa 510 at El Galleon By the Sea in Manasota Key!

Florida Vacation 2020 -- Day 7

2020-12-25T17:25:00.001-05:00

Thursday, December 24, 2020

Today was another gorgeous day! The kids were beached out, so they stayed in the condo most of the day and watched YouTube. Alek and I were not going to waste the day though, so we hung out at the beach and searched for shells.

Around 3:00 pm, we started walking up to the condo and stopped to talk to a couple from Alan Park, MI. The woman, Julie, told me that she had been collecting shark teeth. So, I ran upstairs and got the kids, and Julie showed us tons and tons of teeth. Of course, we then began to look for them. Surprisingly, there are many of them on the beach; you just have to look for them. We found about 10-15 teeth.

It was Ryleigh's turn for dinner, and she chose McDonald's, but she just wanted Alek to bring it back to the condo. Ha! I instead walked down to the Sandbar Tiki and Grill and got a grilled chicken salad for takeout.

Here's how we rated it:

Dane = Cheese burger, nuggets, fries = 4 Stars

Alek = Chesse burger and fries =

Ryleigh = Chicken nuggets and fries = 5 Stars

Holly = (Chicken Salad from The Sandbar) = 3 1/2 Stars

We then hung out in the condo, watched A Bugs Life, and went to bed.

Florida Vacation 2020 -- Day 6

2020-12-24T09:03:00.007-05:00

Wednesday, December 23, 2020

Today was spent fishing, swimming, playing in the sand, and collecting seashells. It was such a gorgeous day! It got to around 75 degrees.

Alek caught a shark today. As soon as he switched to shrimp (frozen), he got a bite. He walked out into the water a bit, cast the line, and wasn't even all the way back to the shore when the shark took it. It was pretty exciting!

For dinner, it was Alek's turn to pick where to go and he chose Ken and Barb's Grove City Kitchen. Here is how we rated it.

Ryleigh = French Fries 3 Stars

Dane = BBQ Wings 4 1/2 Stars

Alek = Seafood Fra Diavlo 4 Stars

Holly = Pan Roasted Swordfish 3 Stars (The swordfish was good, but the atmosphere was very blah and it was very busy.)

After dinner, the boys went across the street to the docks, but again, they had no luck.

Florida Vacation 2020 -- Day 5

2020-12-24T08:58:00.010-05:00

Tuesday, December 22, 2020

Again, today was spent at the condo. We have everything we want here, so there is no need for us to spend more money to go somewhere else. This morning was rather chilly, but it didn't stop Dane and Ryleigh from going swimming in the pool. We all then waited for the weather to warm up and stayed inside and watched a few episodes of Deal or No Deal. After lunch, we went down to the beach. Ryleigh and I hunted for seashells and the boys fished. Afterward, we all went swimming in the pool.

For dinner, it was my turn to pick where to go and I chose The Sandbar Tiki and Grill. Here is how we rated it.

Ryleigh = Chicken Fingers 5 Stars

Dane = BBQ Burger 5 Stars

Alek = Bar B Cuban 4 Stars

Holly = Grilled Chicken Salad 5 Stars

The kids and I really liked this place because of the great food and amazing atmosphere. There was live entertainment, we were by the water, and we got to sit by a fire. The service was great too. (Alek is not rating based on atmosphere - only food and service.)

After dinner, Dane and Alek tried fishing across the street on the docks, but they had very little luck. It was pretty though because of the lights in the water.

Florida Vacation 2020 -- Day 4

2020-12-22T09:41:00.008-05:00

Monday, December 21, 2020

We spent the day at the condo again fishing, playing on the beach, and swimming. It was very wavey, so in the afternoon the kids rode the waves on some tubes we bought. They had so much fun! For dinner, Dane picked The White Elephant. We sat out on the patio listened to live music. There were also a lot of fish swimming around the dock. Here is how we rated it:

Ryleigh = Chicken Fingers 4 1/2 stars

Dane = Ribs 4 Stars

Alek = Grouper Reuben 2 Stars

Holly = Grilled Salmon 4 Stars

(Alek gave it 2 stars because the service took a long time, his sandwich was not so good, and it was very expensive.)

Florida Vacation 2020 -- Day 3

2020-12-21T09:09:00.003-05:00

Sunday, December 20, 2020

This morning, Dane saw David (the man from Monroe, Michigan) fishing down at the beach, so he quickly brushed his teeth, got dressed, and ran down to watch him fish. The rest of us watched from the condo. When a big bite hit one of the lines, David gave the pole to Dane and let him reel it in. It was quite the struggle, and David had to help support the pole, but Dane was able to do it. They discovered it was a baby shark (about 3 years old), and a crowd of people quickly gathered around. David helped Dane and got a picture with Dane holding it and messaged it to me. Us up in the condo started singing the Baby Shark song. =) Dane was so excited! All he wanted to do was catch a salt water fish, and his dream came true.

After all of the shark excitement, we went parasailing at 10:30. Dane went with Alek, and Ryleigh went with me. It was very fun and we often saw dolphins following our boat and jumping in its waves. We spent the rest of the day at the condo: fishing, swimming in the pool, walking the beach, building a sand castle, and relaxing in the condo.

For dinner, Ryleigh got to pick where we would eat; she chose The Waverly. We sat outside next to a fire pit under an umbrella as it was slightly raining. Everyone tried seafood because our waiter was super friendly and told us we had to try fresh seafood from Florida.

Ryleigh = Fish n Chips

Dane = Sea Bass

Alek = Crab Roll

Holly = Boiled Shrimp

We were all very proud of Ryleigh for trying something new; however, she did not like it so the waiter brought her chicken fingers instead. She was very thankful! Dane loved the sea bass and said it was way better than the perch he has had in the past.

We decided to start rating the restaurants we visit for dinner:

Ryleigh = 5 Stars

Dane = 3 ½ Stars

Alek = 3 ½ Stars

Holly = 4 ½ Stars

We then went back to the condo and watched a movie and a thunder/lightning storm over the Gulf. Then it was time for bed.

Florida Vacation 2020 -- Day 1 & 2

2020-12-19T17:09:00.004-05:00

Friday, December 18, 2020 Today we had a half day of school, so we were able to leave in the afternoon for our trip to Florida. (Aunt Abby stayed at our house to watch Rusty and Gunner - Gunner became blind about a month earlier from a rare tick bite.) We flew from Detroit Airport to Atlanta, Georgia and had a quick layover for about 30 minutes. Then we flew to Fort Myers, Florida. When we got there, Alek got us a rental car, but it smelled like fish; so he had to get us a new car which smelled much better. Then we drove for a little over an hour to get to our condo in Manasota Key called El Galeon By the Sea. The condo was on the beach and had a heated pool. It was midnight by the time we got there, so we were eager to get to bed. Saturday, December 19, 2020 This morning we woke to a beautiful view of watching dolphins and pelicans diving in the Gulf of Mexico. We went down to the beach and right when we approached the shoreline, a man caught a baby leopard shark. I got a picture of it. The man was from Monroe, Michigan and was very friendly. Dane enjoyed talking to him about fishing and hunting. Since we had very little food, the morning was spent getting groceries and fishing gear. We then spent the day between fishing on the beach and playing in the pool. Alek caught a lady fish and Dane had a few nibbles. For dinner, we went to The End Zone Sports Grill so Dane and Alek could watch a football game. While they were watching football, Ryleigh and I had fun playing pool. After dinner, we walked the beach and then went to bed.

We Are Back

2020-11-29T14:58:00.000-05:00

Today all of my photos were deleted from my computer and external hard drive as well. I am so sick to my stomach! Luckily, I have found old websites, such as this one, where I have shared my photos. I will try to start posting again. =)

Christmas 2013

2013-12-27T19:35:00.002-05:00

We have had a very busy Christmas week with the Willson families. In the first pictures, you will see Dane as a cow in our church Christmas pageant. He didn't have any lines, but it was a good experience for him. Then you will see Alek showing the kids MREs - Meals Ready to Eat. They all thought it was super cool to see what army guys eat and to taste it all. Next, we had an extremely filling and delicious Christmas dinner at Mary's house and opened presents. There, you will see pictures of the children lighting the advent wreath and placing baby Jesus in his bed. The last pictures are of the cousins spending the night at our house on the 26th. We had pizza, went bowling, and watched The Goonies. Dane said he wanted his cousins to spend the night every night. It sure was a lot of fun for all!

Here is the link to the pictures. Enjoy!

https://willsonsweekly.shutterfly.com/pictures/950

Soccer and Ryleigh's Party

2013-09-16T20:01:00.000-04:00

Ryleigh's 2 year picture

Dane is playing soccer in the Grosse Pointe Soccer Association. He is on the Cowboys' team. His coach did not show up for the first (or second game), so Alek volunteered. "Coach Alek" was a pro at coaching, and he was excellent with the kids!

Group cheer, "Go Cowboys!"

Ryleigh's birthday party.

She got a lot of girly things like fake food, cooking and cleaning items and dress-up clothes. She and Mary should have lots of fun!

Mary made her a tutu and bought her butterfly wings. Very cute!

She loved it when we sang to her!

Yummy!

Showing off her purple tongue from the cake.

Even Dane liked her presents =)

Test

2013-09-09T21:17:00.000-04:00

This is a test. I am working on making my blog private to only certain people. Hope you can read this. If you can, please let me know of facebook or by email.

2013-09-09T21:10:00.001-04:00

As we were getting ready for school, Dane said to me, "Mom, I am ready for my first day of school, but are you really going to wear that rose bush outfit?"

My first thought was, "Oh my gosh, I am already starting to embarrass him. This is too soon! Take a deep breath Holly and stay calm!"

I replied, "Um, well, is this ok? Should I change? "

He said, "I guess it is fine..."

Phewwww, thank goodness!!!!!

Ha ha ha ha ha. All I can do is laugh about it, right!!!!!

After we got to school, I realized he was supposed to be in his formal dress uniform for Mondays, so I had to run upstairs to the clothing room and get him a white shirt and vest. I couldn't be the staff member who doesn't follow dress code!!!!!

Dane and Ben (Mr. Clor's son) leaving our 5th grade rooms and walking to the Early School Building.

Best buds!

Dane didn't even say goodbye to me. He told me he knew where he had to go since he had been there before, and he ran right into the classroom and plopped down. (sniffle, sniffle) I snuck in and gave him a kiss goodbye anyway.

Their pet fish is in the middle. I still don't know what the name is. Dane told me they got to choose it, but he told me Goldilocks, Mary, Karen, and Goldie. Must be one of the four names.

One Second Everyday

2013-09-06T22:45:00.000-04:00

Instead of blogging, I have been working on a new project. Here is a sneak peek.

Happy 4th Birthday Dane!

2013-08-19T20:27:00.000-04:00

For Dane's 4th birthday we celebrated with a small party at our house and then with a Detroit Tiger's game in the evening with fireworks to top it all off. Wow! What a day!

Ryleigh and Libby

Dane had so much fun!

Slip N Slide from Grandma Pat and Grandpa Roger

Dirt cake with Dinosaurs and worms. So yummy!

My big swimmer boy =) Happy Birthday Dane! We love you so much!

Early August

2013-08-07T22:54:00.000-04:00

This is how Dane currently practices T-ball at home. Ha, ha, ha. Yes, he desperately needs a T-ball set!!!! And yes, that is a headless, naked statue with a vacuum cleaner pipe attached to it =)

Ryleigh is still obsessed with shoes!

She was so proud she put my socks and shoes on all by herself!

Dane is only allowed to play on my iPad if he first traces his name four times. Thus, he is asking to play on it less, and he is preparing for preschool =)

Grandma Mary made yummy cake on Sunday. Dane LOVES sweets!!!!

Family photo in front of the gate Bob built us.

Dane at the YMCA playing T-ball.

He has his eye on the ball and is very focused. Way to go Dane!

And he is off!!!

Yay! He made it to first base!

Woo hoo, he made it home!

Running fast!

This week we are feeding the fish and frogs for our neighbors. Dane and Ryleigh are having so much fun and would love to stay there all day!

A worm is sitting on the rock, while we wait patiently for the frog to jump and eat it. The hardest part is being patient, especially for an almost 4 and 2 year old!