We spent a long weekend on Lake Michigan with my parents and had a great time! Though we were only there for a few days, we packed in a lot of fun. The weather was cool and really windy... not ideal beach weather but the kids didn't seem to mind. Thank goodness Brian was willing to get in the water with them, because I wasn't about to brave the cold! There were lots of waves because of the high winds, and the kids loved jumping in them and over them near the shore.
On Saturday morning we took Jacob and Mary to the Little Point Sable lighthouse, just a couple miles South of the cabin. We climbed 130 spiral stairs to the top. Here are Jacob and Mary on the rocks in front of the lighthouse.
After the lighthouse, we decided to go on the Mac Woods dune ride... a well established family business in Silver Lake State Park. Last time we went on this ride Jacob was just 2 years old, and I was pregnant with Mary! They LOVED it, especially riding fast up and down the dune hills and around sharp turns. We had a good driver (who happened to be a woman)... she really made it thrilling. Part of the ride takes you down by the edge of the water at Lake Michigan, and usually you get a little "misted" from the water. But, she accidentally hit a big wave at the wrong time, and we all got SOAKED! Jacob was less than thrilled about this, and we all had to put on a happy face to get him through it.
Back to the beach for the afternoon:
Sunday morning was quite cool, so before the beach Brian, Jacob, Mary and I went for a hike up the dunes behind the cabin. Perfect dune-hiking weather! They especially loved running down the dunes on the way back.
That little triangle in the middle is the cabin:
What a view!
Family picture before hitting the road Sunday afternoon:
On the way home we hit some bad traffic up around Chicago, so we decided to detour South on 421. In the town on Monon we drove past this cute train museum. It was closed for the day, but the parking lot was full of cool train stuff, so we just had to stop for Jacob. When we got back in the car, he said enthusiastically, "this is AWESOME." We'll go back sometime to visit the museum when it's open.
Here are the kids on a couple of the cars on display outside the museum. Does Jacob look thrilled or what?
Home at 9:45, kids in bed at 10 p.m., WAY past their bedtimes (especially Hannah). We'll pay for it today, I'm sure, but it was definitely a good trip! Jacob starts school on Wednesday, so we'll be resting up until then.
Hannah can't crawl away yet, but she sure had a hard time sitting still...
Check out Jacob and Mary with their arms around each other... awww!
What a handsome first-grader! Jacob got on the bus with a big smile yesterday morning, and had a great first day of school. He was SO excited when he got up, and he and Mary were both jumping up and down when the bus came down the street. The smile was still on his face when he got off the bus, so I think things went well.
To celebrate, we went to the State Fair for a few hours when Jacob got home (it was only a half-day of school). Here are the kids enjoying ice cream...
And Hannah enjoying the Fair in her own way:
On Saturday morning we took Jacob and Mary to the Little Point Sable lighthouse, just a couple miles South of the cabin. We climbed 130 spiral stairs to the top. Here are Jacob and Mary on the rocks in front of the lighthouse.
After the lighthouse, we decided to go on the Mac Woods dune ride... a well established family business in Silver Lake State Park. Last time we went on this ride Jacob was just 2 years old, and I was pregnant with Mary! They LOVED it, especially riding fast up and down the dune hills and around sharp turns. We had a good driver (who happened to be a woman)... she really made it thrilling. Part of the ride takes you down by the edge of the water at Lake Michigan, and usually you get a little "misted" from the water. But, she accidentally hit a big wave at the wrong time, and we all got SOAKED! Jacob was less than thrilled about this, and we all had to put on a happy face to get him through it.
Back to the beach for the afternoon:
Sunday morning was quite cool, so before the beach Brian, Jacob, Mary and I went for a hike up the dunes behind the cabin. Perfect dune-hiking weather! They especially loved running down the dunes on the way back.
That little triangle in the middle is the cabin:
What a view!
Family picture before hitting the road Sunday afternoon:
On the way home we hit some bad traffic up around Chicago, so we decided to detour South on 421. In the town on Monon we drove past this cute train museum. It was closed for the day, but the parking lot was full of cool train stuff, so we just had to stop for Jacob. When we got back in the car, he said enthusiastically, "this is AWESOME." We'll go back sometime to visit the museum when it's open.
Home at 9:45, kids in bed at 10 p.m., WAY past their bedtimes (especially Hannah). We'll pay for it today, I'm sure, but it was definitely a good trip! Jacob starts school on Wednesday, so we'll be resting up until then.
Mary and Ella:
Mary and Sarah at Holliday Park:
Ben, Mary and Jacob:
And a photo of Hannah in the bathtub just for fun!
Tomorrow we are heading to Michigan for the weekend, so Jacob and Mary (and maybe even Hannah) can get some fun time on the beach!
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