This year we decided to spend some of our time here in Michigan up north on the coast of Lake Michigan. We wanted the girls to have a beach experience, so we got a hotel room for a few nights and drove four hours north from Sue and Larry's to the beautiful little town of Traverse City.
Road Trip!
1st Stop: Good Harbor Beach
Swimsuit? check, Floaties? check, American flag? check!!
A giant sandbox, here's Addie laying in the sand after belly flopping into the waves while yelling "Catch a wave!"
Emily got right to work collecting rocks
Let's get as sandy as possible!
Plant the American flag and get snacking
Chris loved the cold water
A nice lady offered to take a family picture
Sand Castles
Yay!
That first evening, we stopped at a beach playground at Suttons Bay before heading out to dinner.
Swinging in the sunset
The girls found daisies
Warm sand
Elizabeth wanted to go wherever the seagulls went. She was on the hunt.
Wearing dresses CeeCee made
The next day, we went to North Bar Lake, a tiny little lake that is just a short dune climb away from the huge Lake Michigan.
The girls had a great time in North Bar lake. It was small and unintimidating, and it was a wonderful spot for splashing.
Then we took the little hike over a dune to see the big lake, where the shoreline was thick with rocks.
Emily was in rock collecting heaven
After swimming, we stopped at the Sleeping Bear Dunes, where Addie was psyched to race to the top.
Hiking.
We could not catch up with the girl!
The other two needed a little help
Very warm sand
After getting to the top of the first little summit (we did not make it all the way to the top, but we'll be back again another day!) Addie decided to log roll down the entire dune. She'd stop every now an then, when she started going sideways, to reorient herself, but she really did roll the whole way down. After running up and rolling down the whole thing, she was wiped out and snoozed hard in the car on the way to dinner.
Dinner was at Boone Dock's in Glen Arbor, a restaurant Eric and Cathy had introduced us to when we went two years ago with Elizabeth. It's has a wonderful covered outdoor seating area, and the burgers are delicious.
After dinner, we couldn't resist the ice cream shop next door!
Hotel Shenanigans....this was our family's first experience in a hotel room, and even though we played a lot of musical beds during the three nights we were there, we figured it out and made it work.
Our last day up north was a little cloudy and chilly, so we shopped in town and then ate lunch and played a little at the Suttons Bay playground.
Aunt Ellen gave each of the girls a five dollar bill to spend on whatever they wanted on our trip. Addie chose a music box and a bottle of juice for Addie Bo, her baby. Emily chose a music box and a coloring book, and Elizabeth finally chose a crawling caterpillar after picking up and dropping just about everything in the store. :)
Cutie!
Good climbing, Em!
Addie Bo, Addie's baby, went everywhere with us on this trip
Sweet smile from a sweet girl
After lunch, we took a car ride to Esch beach, where it was so drizzly and windy, Chris was the only one to walk into the water. We ate dinner at a little fish n chips joint and then headed back to our Motel 6, where we slept one more night before heading back south to Sue and Larry's.
It was a wonderful little trip, and I hope to do it again next year. There are so many beaches to explore, and it was so fun to play, relax, and unwind together.
