Recent Blog Posts

Petoskey in 30 minutes or less, is that possible? Yesterday, my college friend was passing through Petoskey with his family and they stopped by to say hi on their way back to Texas.  He asked me what they absolutely had to do in the thirty minutes they had in town.  As he was already in Grandpa...
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Bye-Bye Becky you will be missed!! Back in 2006, Becky Christensen was hired to work at Grandpa Shorter’s.  Her responsibilities were no different from any other employee’s – clean, restock, run a register, and, most importantly, help the customers.  Now, eight years later, she...
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Weddings in northern Michigan require a local flare, and what better way than with Petoskey Stone wedding favors? Wedding favors play a very import role in a wedding. They are given to the guests present at your wedding and reception as a keepsake and a "Thank You" for sharing with you your spe...
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Last week, my family had our first bonfire together.  We have a nice above-ground kind of fire pit on our deck, so on nice nights we’ll sometimes bring speakers out and sit around the campfire, listening to music, telling stories, and enjoying s’mores.  We can agree on the songs w...
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During my last week in Kalamazoo this spring, I went in and talked to one of my professors during his office hours.  He had been encouraging us to go in and chat with him about the class, our work, and life in general.  It was very casual and, as I had procrastinated and waited until ...
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Last July, my six-and-seven-year-old cousins came to visit us here in Petoskey.  As a way to keep them busy while most of the adults walked around and shopped downtown, we took them Waldo Hunting.  We spent most of our wait before dinner going from store to store in search of the little Waldo figu...
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The Fourth of July is one of my favorite holidays.  The warm weather, festive atmosphere, and anticipation of fireworks give the whole day a sense of celebration and fun.  After seventeen summers spent in Petoskey, my family has mastered the formula for a perfect holiday.  With these tips and t...
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I grew up in the church parsonage. The man who was Reverend Graybill to everyone else was just Dad to me. Being the daughter of a pastor won me several invitations to weddings at an early age. One of my earliest memories of Dad is him standing in the front of the church as a beautiful bride ...
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Sweet Potato Souffle - made by Gram and loved by generations of the Shorter family. My grandma Ruth made this sweet potato souffle for years, and it was always the hit of the meal. Now, my mom makes it and I make sure I have the dish of it right next to me at the table! This recipe is great ...
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Fun, affordable activities to do with your kids this summer! A guest post written by Michigan blogger, Heather of Mommy's Favorite Things. A busy mother of three kids under the age of 7 who loves to do as many activities as possible in the summer with her children to make the most of the warm weathe...
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