Every year Ford, in Dearborn, shuts down the week of July 4th. John is forced to take a week of his vacation time. This January John and I started planning a fun Michigan vacation for that week. We have never really vacationed in this beautiful state and he wanted to make the most of his week off. We invited John's sister Shauntel and her family (they live in Iowa) and John's brother Paul and his family (they live in Midland, MI). Everything is better with cousins! They both seemed up to the idea so the planning began. We knew it would be hard for Paul and Jenny because their fifth baby was due close to that time.
Around Easter we were in over our heads with our move to China and I was tempted to cancel the trip. Thankfully we didn't. We had a great week!
The house we rented was perfect. We were in a small town called Shelby, on the western side of the state on Lake Michigan. It was set in the woods and stayed cooler than I thought it would, not having AC. We were walking distance from a private beach with waves and soft sand. We drove there with Grandma Larsen Saturday afternoon (a 3 1/2 hour drive) and she stayed until Monday night. Paul and Jenny stayed until Tuesday evening. My parents came up Thursday and Friday. Shauntel's family and our family stayed the entire week. What fun! We swam in the lake, played in the sand, roasted marshmallows, set off fireworks, toured a dairy farm, went to a petting farm, celebrated James' 10th b-day at Michigan's Adventure amusement park, rode on the Sand Dunes, ate ice cream, shopped on a boardwalk, saw two lighthouses, went to a concert in the park, played games, and the kids did fun crafts that Shauntel organized and brought from home.
I'm thankful for good family. We made some fun memories! Michigan is beautiful!
Around Easter we were in over our heads with our move to China and I was tempted to cancel the trip. Thankfully we didn't. We had a great week!
The house we rented was perfect. We were in a small town called Shelby, on the western side of the state on Lake Michigan. It was set in the woods and stayed cooler than I thought it would, not having AC. We were walking distance from a private beach with waves and soft sand. We drove there with Grandma Larsen Saturday afternoon (a 3 1/2 hour drive) and she stayed until Monday night. Paul and Jenny stayed until Tuesday evening. My parents came up Thursday and Friday. Shauntel's family and our family stayed the entire week. What fun! We swam in the lake, played in the sand, roasted marshmallows, set off fireworks, toured a dairy farm, went to a petting farm, celebrated James' 10th b-day at Michigan's Adventure amusement park, rode on the Sand Dunes, ate ice cream, shopped on a boardwalk, saw two lighthouses, went to a concert in the park, played games, and the kids did fun crafts that Shauntel organized and brought from home.
I'm thankful for good family. We made some fun memories! Michigan is beautiful!
Our family with Shauntel and Randy Anderson and their four kids: Camille, Arch, Drake and Kinzie
The house we rented
(Drake, Beth, Eliza, Tessa, James and Arch)
4th of July
John took some of the kids to see "real" fireworks that night after it got dark. James said, "They weren't as cool as our smoke bombs."
