Michigan x's 2

The kids and I were back in MI for 10 days, soaking up the sun and family time while Brian was 1/2 the world away in Slovakia. He was there on a mission trip with his Dad and a few others. He's planning a post about his trip, so I'll save the rest for him to share. I will say, he had a wonderful experience! Stay tuned...

Some of you may wonder, what in the world do you do in MI for 10 whole days?? Well, let me fill you in a bit! :O)

We...

1. play on the beach...as much as humanly possible and the weather permits

2. play on grandma and papa's driveway, when the beach isn't a possibility

3. visit great-grandma smith...she just cracked up at Sam's energy and talkativeness. It's always so great to see her smile and hear her laugh! (I'm bummed that we didn't get a picture of her with the kids this time...)

4. visit Uncle Matt, Aunt Stacey, Luke and Taylor up at the campground they were camping at (1 1/2 hours from Grandma and Papa's)...I took the girls up to Brower Park for the visit. They had a great time playing w/ their cousins, swimming in the Muskegon River, going for a boat ride w/ Uncle Matt and topping the evening off w/ some yummy Hudsonville Ice Cream before heading home. We also got to see the Bosch family, which is always a great treat! Sam was lucky to have Grandma all to himself for the day, back in West Olive and I heard they enjoyed some beach time and another visit with Great-Grandma!

5. go to a couple of kid's plays at Hope College...before M, S and kids left to go camping, we took the kids (minus Sam) to see Click, Clack, Moo and then later in the week, I took Hannah to Charlotte's Web...both super cute plays and highly recommended!

6. go visit great friends The Grahams and let the kiddos run around through sprinklers! So fun! Jane got some pics...I'll have to ask her for them. :O)

7. eat lunch on the deck and make silly faces for mommy.

8. go to church at Camp Geneva and come home to take cute pictures on the deck.

Okay, this one isn't on the deck, but it's still cute!

9. go blueberry picking in Holland! Took pics on my phone, I'll try to add them here...

10. last, but not least, get lovin' from Grandma and Papa 24 hours a day (sometimes literally, like when a certain little girl climbed in bed w/ them b/c of a thunder storm!). Thank you so much again, mom and dad for a wonderful time! Your hospitality and generosity are appreciated! We love you!