Our Last Day in Michigan

Thursday was to be our last day in Charlevoix. We went to lunch at a place overlooking the drawbridge.

Afterward we went to the beach to look for Petoskey stones one last time. On our way back to the cabin, there was something in the road. From a distance we couldn't tell what it was. I stopped my car and got out to get a better look.

I'd say it's a turtle, but you could probably talk me out of that. If you'd asked me a day ago if turtles ever have tails that long with big spikes on them, I'd have said NO.

Here's a photo with my kids, showing the scale of this turtle-like thing.  They're keeping their distance.

Relaxing on the Island

After biking all over the island we were ready for a change of pace. We walked through some of the parts of the town that we hadn't seen yet.

It really is a very beautiful place and the absence of cars means that it is quite peaceful.

The kids really wanted to take a ride on one of the horse-drawn buses, but we didn't need to go anywhere.  In fact, at that hour, we needed to stay roughly where we were so that we could meet up with everyone else in our group.

Aunt Terra was the first person we found. My oldest was delighted to wear her hat - the biggest hat I have ever seen ever.

We found a bit of shade and settled in to wait for the group to come together. The kids gathered around the mini-DVD player that I brought along. Terra read a book, and I stared at a crescent moon, watching as it progressed across the late afternoon sky.

Biking on Mackinac Island

Early on Wednesday, we set our sights even further north and left Charlevoix for Mackinaw City. There, we caught a ferry to Mackinac Island. Don't let the spelling confuse you. They're both pronounced with the "w" ending.

Here we all are at the dock.

There aren't any cars on the island, which is accessible by private boat or chartered plane, ferries, or you can wait for winter temperatures to freeze the lake and then you can drive over on a snowmobile. We opted for the ferry.

The ride took about 20 minutes. The boats move pretty fast, creating that jet of water off the back as they go.

Once on land, we rented some bikes and took off on a tour of the island. The two older girls had two wheelers, and my youngest rode on a trail-behind attached to my bike.

I was unprepared for the difficulty of this arrangement. I could barely keep balanced in the beginning and thankfully other riders chose to cut a wide berth around us. After the first mile (it was 8 miles to go all the way around) it got easier, and I decided to try taking a photo of the older girls while I rode behind them . . .

That wasn't the smartest thing I've ever done, and though I didn't crash while trying I decided it was best not to try it again.

Shortly after taking the picture of the kids we had a few really near misses, brief moments of terror followed by frank amazement that nobody broke and arm or got mangled by oncoming bikers. Every few minutes I'd shout ahead to remind the girls to slow down, stay to the right, get away from the center, use their brakes (rather than their feet on the pavement).  Nerve wracking.

We biked around the eastern side of the island and returned down the center, a path the British took during the war of 1812.

This route took us past the airport, a golf course, a battled field and two cemeteries, and the old fort. The whole trip took us three hours.  In the end, I was proud of how well the kids did and delighted to have avoided serious injury.

We celebrated with ice cream. I decided to have some too, settling on the cherry moose tracks which did not disappoint.

Travers City National Cherry Festival

Festivals. They're mixed bag aren't they? They're crowded and hot and everything costs more than it should. And yet it's an experience and it's fun and it's about being there at a limited-time-only event.

The Travers City Cherry Festival had two sections; a cherry half and a carnival half. The kids couldn't resist the carnival.

Here's my youngest, just before her first ever attempt to pop a balloon with a dart. She got three tries and popped a balloon on her last try. She won a small stuffed whale and could not have been happier about it.

Her sister and cousin had a blast on the rides:

But they decided against the Starship 3000 once they saw how fast it went and how long it would keep them spinning.

Our endurance and our money seemed to run out at about the same time, so we returned to the cherry part of the festival where the kids each chose a cherry treat.

We tried the chocolate covered cherries, cherry jelly beans, and here, the kids are sharing a cherry slushy.  There was so much there--cherry flavored beef jerky, salsas and BBQ sauces, pastries, pies, tarts, licorice ropes and cotton candy.  Cherry everything.

Petoskey Stones

One of the things to do in Charlevoix that you can't do anywhere else is hunt along the beach for Petoskey stones. Apparently, you can't find them anywhere but northern Michigan.

Most of the waterfront near Charlevoix is rocky, so that's a good place to start. Here you can see that there's a really wide variety of rocks along the coast of Lake Michigan. I didn't expect that.

We spent the early evening down by the water.

I even found a couple Petoskey stones. They're small, only a few centimeters wide.  It was fun finding them.

The Kids

I must have taken a few dozen pictures of the girls all together, but this is the best one.

We had time to kill and nowhere to go so the kids were playing in the leftover spot between a McDonald's parking lot and the loading zone of a grocery store. And you can tell, you can see it on their faces, they were having a wonderful time because they were together.

Charlevoix on the Forth of July

Charlevoix is a sleepy summertime town. We were there in the early afternoon looking around the old downtown. What did we find there? Mostly shops catering to tourists.

And in Charlevoix, what the tourists want is chocolate and ice cream. We did not resist.

The flavor the girls chose is called 'superman', I think. But what I know is that they liked it.

First and Second

I neglected to bring my camera to the actual wedding and I regret it. I've grown accustomed to the camera. If it's in my hands I always have something to do, and if I see something I like I can share the memory of it with others.

Katie and Brian's wedding was lovely. There were a handful of children at the reception and they immediately gravitated toward an enormous chess board at the site. I spent a few happy minutes helping some of them play the game. I had to ask a few other adults about some of the rules of chess that I'd forgotten.

Here's my daughter (in the back) with her first cousin on the left and her second cousin on the right.

Thanks to my sister-in-law Terra for taking pictures. I swiped this one from her facebook page.

Happy Birthday

On the left is my mother-in-law, who just had a birthday right before the family got together in Michigan.

Next to her is her sister, who (in addition to seeing to all the food and lodging for me and everyone else) made that enormous cake to celebrate.

Behind them is John Wayne, I think.  That was part of the eclectic decor at the cabin where we stayed. 

An Evening at the Botanical Garden

The Missouri Botanical Garden has a summer concert series. After 5 pm admission is free and folks begin to arrive with picnic dinners. A few hours later the music starts.

We spent the evening checking out a new exhibit of "tree houses".  There were quite a few neat designs, and all included lots of wood scraps, bark, etc.

The kids liked this one. Here they are on the inside:

Here's another one, a freestanding play house with tree-bark siding.

Soon, we were off to the Children's Garden.

It's one of the kids' favorite parts of the Botanical Garden; full of hands-on, climb-upon exhibits for kids.

This little watercourse illustrates how locks and dams work. In the past, there were boats there too. The boats were gone this time, though.

Then we were off to explore the caves.

Last stop of the day? Snowcones.

Ah, summer.

Best DIY Ever

The morning after the weddings, we were so happy that Matthew's Aunt invited us to breakfast. I'm always amazed by hospitality like that. Even when I try really hard, I can't quite see myself getting up early to make pancakes for family and friends the morning after my daughter's wedding--but that's exactly what Aunt Beth did.

Chocolate Chip banana pancakes. They were delicious.

And she had a craft project for the girls to do. Here they are painting, painting away.

They were working on ceramic figurines with a magnet on the back--a really strong magnet.

In the background, you can see a home-made scateboard thing. I don't know its real name. But my husband's uncle and cousin built it. They BUILT it. And the cousin, Austin, is completely at ease out there. He's very good at turns and other stuff that, again, I don't know the name for.

Austin is a great kid. He was unfailingly patient with my girls pretending his ramp was a slide.

So, what with Austin's forbearance and Aunt Beth's thoughfulness, we passed a lovely morning at their home, talking and playing before we left town.

Candles & Gnomes

We were so glad to be in town to celebrate my Mom's birthday. We went out for dinner, but Mom didn't want to do cake and ice cream in a restaurant. I can't blame here--I'm not much for the spectacle of it. And she didn't want cake--the candles are stuck in a brownie that she made with Stella and Danielle. Here they are, just before Mom blew out the candles.

And guess what popped out of one of the presents in the pile?

The Gnome on the left is the new one--a present from my brother. The one on the right has been in our house forever. I was actually afraid of it when I was a kid. Dad brought it back from Europe, but I don't really know exactly when that was.  Long ago enough that Mr. Blue Pants is an antique. 

I like the comparison.

When Mom has decided where to put him, I'll make another post.