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I'm going to be deleting the other page (www.facebook.com/midwestmayhem) as it's not a fan page (my mistake when I made it) and it has caused some confusion with people as to which one is for my blog and which one is personal. Hopefully this clears things up!

Thanks!


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Lost Lake: Day 2 Paddle Boat

Jon and I slept in on day 2 up at Lost Lake so we missed swimming with the family. After lunch however we made a solo walk down to the beach. We wanted to rent a paddle boat and go for a swim. We decided it would make most sense to rent the paddle boat first, work up a sweat in the hot sun, and then go swimming to cool off. Jon let me pick which paddle boat I wanted, so I picked the purple one!

We paddled around the whole lake, which took about an hour. We had a lot of fun though talking about family vacations, traveling, mermen, and the legendary "seaweed fish." Apparently seaweed fish are in abundance at Lost Lake. Haha.













Of course once we were done and pulled the paddle boat in it started sprinkling. Everyone was running away from the beach at top speed. Jon and I were thrilled at the idea of having the beach all to ourselves...it was just a little rain and we were going to be getting wet anyway! Well, that's when the little bit of sprinkling turned into full on cats and dogs pouring rain. Since we walked to the beach we had make the 20 minute walk back to the cottage in the storm. Although our plans to swim were foiled by mother nature Jon and I both admitted that it was actually kind of nice walking the trails in the pouring rain! If it hadn't been for the danger of our books getting ruined we probably would have stayed out longer.









I used the room we were sleeping in at the cottage for a quick outfit picture that day. I loved the wood paneling and the large chest on the floor.





Later that night we played Cranium (a personal favorite of mine) and Apples to Apples debate version. Apples to Apples is much more fun when you play it as a debate game. Those familiar with the game already know that the judge just randomly picks which card he or she likes best. For a debate game the judge picks the two cards that he or she wants the players to debate and those two players have 30 seconds to give their argument and then they each have a 30 second rebuttal. The judge then picks the winner based on the best debate. It works best with 4-6 players. Try it out! I promise you won't be disappointed!

After the board games everyone went to bed and Jon and I stayed up and watched The Baxter on netflix. It stars Michael Showalter from The State who plays the guy in romantic movies that always gets left behind for the better man. It was a funny, original, and cute movie. Jon and I both really liked it.

After the movie we headed to bed and dreamed about all of the exciting adventures that laid ahead of us for the next day...




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Vintage Wednesday #38

This week for Vintage Wednesday I wanted to share something I've been wanting for forever - a Vespa! I've been dreaming of getting a Vespa (or similar scooter...Lambretta, Stella...) for nearly 10 years now! Jon doesn't want me to get one though, as he thinks they are too dangerous. Currently I'm trying my hardest to get him to change his mind! So far I've gotten him to agree that I can get one on my 150th birthday, but just in case I don't live that long I need to convince him to let me get one in the near future. I'm thinking either a mint green one or a baby blue.





So far here are my main arguments:

1) Cheaper than a car
2) Good for the environment
3) Fuel Efficient
4) Perfect for city life
5) Faster than a bike
6) Really f***ing awesome
7) Vintage appeal

Comment below if you have any more pros to add!

When I was in Rome I had the chance to rent a Vespa, but my roommate backed out on me!

















Since its inception in the 40s to the modern day Vespas have become synonymous with Italian manufacturing. The Vespa ("wasp" in Italian) was first manufactured in 1946 by Piaggio & Co. S.p.A. of Pontedera, Italy. When the Vespa first came out there was some skepticism about wether or not it would be successful. By 1947 all doubts of failure were extinguished as the Vespa became a huge seller. By 1953 there were over 50,000 Vespa club members! In the 60s the Vespa found a new market in England when the Vespa became the vehicle of choice for the mods who would hold Vespa rallies. Today Italy remains the Vespas largest market, however there has been a huge rise in US and Canadian sales over the past few years.



Although Vespas have appeared in hundreds of movies over the years the most classic is probably Roman Holiday (1953) starring Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck. If you haven't seen this movie I'd highly recommend it - it's one of my favorites! This film made me fall on love with Rome even more - if that's possible! The Vespa scene is so much fun!

Here's the trailer for Roman Holiday!













Fun Scooter videos that I found on youtube:










I hope you've enjoyed this week's edition of Vintage Wednesday! There won't be an update next week as I'll be on vacation in the Upper Peninsula!


*All images were found using a google search.

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Lost Lake: Day 1

Oh goodness, I am so tired I could pass out for a week! Jon and I had a great time up north. I probably took about 500 pictures of my adorable niece over the weekend, haha. We got back around noon, but once we stepped in the door I had to get right to work running errands. Now I'm ready for a long nap, but first here's a breakdown of our first day at Lost Lake...

Day 1, Friday



We had spent Thursday night at Jon's parents so that we would be ready to leave early Friday morning. We hit the road at about 10:30AM. I napped a little in the car, but I wasn't quite able to get a full sleep in. His family always stops for lunch at Wheeler's in Standish, which is about half way to Lost Lake. It's a very unique little diner in a small town. The restrooms are probably the strangest part about the place. The ladies is decorated with little knickknacks on shelves above the mirror and there is a chalk board in one of the stalls. The men's room takes the cake though. According the Jon there is a trough instead of a urinal! How incredibly bizarre! Hahaha, you have to love the small town atmosphere.







This is what I get when I ask Jon to make a nice face:



Pretty window in the restaurant:



Chalkboard in the ladies room:



And the trough in the men's room! (Photo snapped by Jon.)



After Standish we continued on to Lost Lake and up to the cottage that we rented. It's a really quaint little house with some really amazing vintage furniture! There were definitely a few chairs that I wanted to take home with me...





and a bear!



Friday was a pretty relaxing day. After we unloaded everyone just sort of lounged around for awhile, which was the perfect opportunity to take outfit pictures.

My husband the swamp thing!





























We saw so many graceful (and scrawny) deer while we were there...



This one was right up on our porch! (She backed up a little bit before I could snap a good picture.)



Jon and I got to play with our niece, Stella a little bit.











Then later on Jon and I went down to the lake for a short walk (and I changed into jeans so I wouldn't get eaten alive by mosquitos). It was right as the sun was starting to set so the lake looked really quite beautiful.











Jon being serious...



Me being a serious bird...



When we got back to the cottage we played a game of outburst with the family. The game was made in the 80s and some of the questions were out-of-date so it was fun to play. I'm not the best asset to a team when it comes to trivia games. I sort of feel bad because everyone always thinks I'll be good but the truth is I'm absolutely awful at thinking of things on the spot! I specifically remember being in 5th grade and doing a trivia game exercise in class. When it came time for my turn everyone "ooohhhed" and told the girl that I was up against that she didn't have a chance of beating me. Then we were asked the question and my mind just went blank! The girl beat me! I was so embarrassed and upset with myself for not being more quick. So for your sake - please don't ask me to be on your trivia game side. It won't do you any favors.

Well, that's it for now. I'll have pictures from day 2 up sometime later this week!

*All photos of me were taken by the charming Jonathan Knitter. All other photographs were taken by yours truly.



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