The Sun Came Out

What a great week-end, finally. We have all been anxiously awaiting the sun and it finally shone!

Longtime friends, Tony & Sue were up for the week-end and new guests Jim & Linda sat on the deck with the four of us Friday night enjoying the river.

Phil & Sara were also new guests. Small world, Phil works with past staffer Sean. They took advantage of the sunshine and kayaked to Wakeley Bridge.

Phil & Sara

Amber celebrated her birthday kayaking with her mom and her B.F.F.s.

Our rookie staff discovered one of the hidden perks of working at Borchers!









Amber, friends, & rookie staffers.








We also had the pleasure of having
Scout Troop 90 with us on Saturday.
Pack mom, Jessica, was great to work with
and her youngest son left a special mark on Borchers.

Orientation & Launch

Fishermen Favorites

Do you know the song, "There Were Three Jolly Fishermen"? Well, Borchers hosted Nine Jolly Fishermen this past week-end.

David, Scott, Jim, Craig, Larry, Jeff, Chuck, Ryan, Jody, and Nate!

The guys spent some of their time wading, some of their time being guided, and all of their time catching fish! They are some of our favorite fishermen.

Speaking of favorites, I am a new fan of David Roth. David gave a concert in Grayling on 05/15/11. Awesome! We enjoyed having David & Tricia stay with us, too!

April Showers

This has been the worst April, weatherwise, that we can remember. The snow kept coming and now the rain.

The daffodils are getting ready to bloom, but as you can see, they are standing in over an inch of water.















The river is up almost a foot and our back driveway is partially under water with little lakes everywhere in the yard. Our sidewalk has become a tributary to the AuSable.







The fishermen had better wear their "hi-cut" waders this week-end for the opener of trout season!

Here's hoping the rain stops before the water reaches this little duck.

Stepping Up in the World

April is always a maintenance month for us. Due to Mother Nature and all of this snow, we have had to take our projects to off site locations. Mark & I like to give titles to things, so... Here are some highlights of "Habitat for Humanity, Senior Edition - On Tour".

Mark's folks, needed some new porch steps. The old ones had thrown Dad Hunter into the bushes more than once this winter.


Our nephew, James, came to assist.
He was very instrumental in digging
five holes to set posts.
Too many engineers,
we only needed two holes
on the INSIDE of the stringers.
Once the posts were set,
and the auxilliary holes filled in,
he left for an appointment and never came back.

Notice the stringer, Mark and I measured twice, cut once, and all three stringers were perfect!








Mark and his mom checked out the steps; solid, low-rise, and a hand rail to keep Dad Hunter out of the bushes!












While we were in the area, we did some work at my mom's house. Her porch roof has been leaking and we decided to tear it off and replace it with a metal roof. I guess my sister and I watched the barn raising scene in "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" too many times, because we love to get the whole family together for construction projects.

Levi, Jerry, and brother, Mark.

Mark

While this crew was destructing, another crew was priming the plywood underlayment.















Dad Hunter came over to help. Who knew he liked to paint?

Levi's wife, Stephanie, is a delightful addition to the family.

Emily ran errands and helped out where needed.
Mom made an awesome lunch with sloppy joes and chocolate cake.

This is my favorite "footage"
of the destruct phase.

Mother Nature got in our way again.
Rain & wind are not conducive to
metal roof installation.
Our project is to be continued this week-end.


Before we headed back north, Mom & Dad Hunter took us out for dinner.

That's me with the old goat!













Overall it was a successful week-end!
We stepped up in the world and raised the roof!

Time "Marchs" On

The good news is our x-c skiers were able to hit the trails through the end of March, the bad news is our x-c skiers ......

After a few warm days for St. Patrick's Day, Northern Michigan shifted back into winter-mode for the first day of Spring.















We currently have about six inches of snow on one side of the walkway and daffodils peeking through the dirt on the other. The sun has been shining for the last week and it makes the phone ring. I guess everyone is looking ahead to catching some rays and paddling down river!









Mark and I took a little time off and spent it with family.


Speaking of time marching on, Dad Hunter had a birthday.


At a certain age, you only get one big candle.


One more note in the time Marchs on theme...

2011 is Borchers 75th anniversary, our diamond jubilee! Mark & I hope you will be stopping in this summer to take a trip down memory lane. This year will also mark 20 years that our family has owned this little spot on the river, another event for one big candle!

February has been a great month and not just because it holds my birthday and Valentine's Day

We had favorite guests return and we made new friends as well.

Victoria & Sofia came with their dads to dog sled. Victoria wrote in our guest book, "This is a whole lot better than a hotel!" Sofia added, "I agree with Victoria!" Thanks, girls, we enjoyed your visits and appreciate your comments!
















The girls at breakfast

& playing games with our friend (and regular guest), Wesley

Amir & the girls are joined by
Mark, Judy, and A.J.
Mark is a microbrew aficionado and his family really loved Bennethum's and their ale selections.

We enjoy having families stay with us especially when the kids are getting out to enjoy the great outdoors. Of course Wesley was here with parents, John & Marie, (on the all time favorites list) and I am in awe of Maureen who hit the trails with two little girls by herself.






Maureen & Josette













We also had the pleasure of long time guests from Toledo. Lou & Bev and friend, Kathy. You can't see it in this picture, but Bev "slumped" a wine bottle into a cheese plate for us and we love it.

Cheri & Bev

Lou & Kathy
(I don't know if Lou is trying to get out of the picture or surprise Kathy)




Sgt. Maj. Tim & Lisa joined Mark & I and the Toledo gang for a competitive game of Scattergories. Tim & Lisa had come up to dogsled, what a great couple!

The month also brought a blast from the past. Brandi & new husband came for a stay. Brandi used to guide a group of girl scouts on a camping trip down river every summer. It was great to see her and she brought her wedding album at my request for our perusal.

We also hosted one great couple after another and I apologize for not including photos of every guest. I start visiting and enjoying the conversation and forget to get out the camera. Mark & I may not have pictures, but we certainly have great memories from each and every visit!

Happy Birthday Mackenzie

Mackenzie and her sisters, Bailey, Delaney, & Hannah came for their annual x-c ski trip.

Mackenzie celebrated her birthday with a cake from Goodale's Bakery.







Mackenzie's mom & dad, Jennifer & Brad, along with the girls, had a goal of 22 miles for their three day visit. They hit the trails at X-C Ski Headquarters, Hanson Hills, and Forbush Corners.

Hannah told me that she loves this trip and staying at Borchers, "except for the skiing part". She changed her tune after a day of skate skiing. She was a natural and loved going fast.

Brad is a coffee connoisseur and always brings his current favorite to share. This year was a delicious full city roast from Panama. I purchased a Kenya blend to send to Mark's brother in Kuwait and Brad is generously sending the Panama coffee to Matt. Check Brad out at www.siriuscoffeeroasters.com.

Speaking of coffee, have you seen this puzzle?

Doctors have concluded that if you find the man in the coffee beans in 3 seconds, the right half of your brain is better developed than most people. If you find the man between 3 seconds and 1 minute, the right half of the brain is developed normally. If you find the man between 1 minute and 3 minutes, then the right half of your brain is functioning slowly and you need to eat more protein. If you have not found the man after 3 minutes, the advice is to look for more of this type of exercise to make that part of the brain stronger!!!

And, yes, the man is really there!!