Michigan!

My mom and I left town the day after Memorial Day and were in Chicago and Michigan for a little over a week with the boys.  Our first stop was Chicago, where we visited with my great aunt, who is a nun and lives in Lincoln Park, just a few blocks from Lake Shore Drive.  The roof of her building has some spectacular views.

Some of the Sisters have a little garden on the roof!

Here is my Mom with her Aunt Rose Mary.  We had a very enjoyable visit.

Our next stop was Grand Haven, MI.  My mom's family goes every year and we stay in these two cottages on Lake Michigan.

Jack was excited that Caeleigh was there with us this year.  Colleen made all the kids these cute hats that say "Grand Haven" on them.

Jack and Caeleigh played on the sand dune behind the cottages a lot.

We also spent quite a bit of time on the beach.  The water was pretty cold, but that didn't stop the kids from going in it.  On this particular day, Jack was playing on the beach and went in the water with his clothes on.  So, we took the wet clothes off and let him play in his underwear for a while.  He loved it!

He got a little sandy!

Patrick and I are decked out in our swimsuits (with hat and sunglasses for Patrick) for a morning at the beach.

Like I said, the water was cold but that didn't stop Jack.

We lined the second cousins up on a log for a picture.  In order from oldest to youngest is: Jack, Caeleigh, Sean, Patrick, Quint.  This picture was takend half a second before Quint face-planted in the sand.  Check out my reaction.

While Quint was getting the sand washed off, we got a picture with the rest of the kiddos.

Jack loved the beach and would spend all day on it if I let him.

Patrick had fun, too.

We definitely missed Jim.  He had to work. 

We went into town one morning to go on a trolley ride.  Our group had the whole trolley to ourselves.

After the trolley, Mom took the boys and I out to lunch.

Jack stacked jams while we waited for our food.

Next we went to a couple shops.  Jack's favorite store was the one with the train table.

Big brother helped push his little brother.

We stopped for ice cream on the way back to the cottages.  Yummy!

There is a big deck in between the cottages.  The adults spent a lot of time relaxing on the deck, looking out at the lake.

Jack used the "outdoor restroom" a lot.

Colleen made the kids these cute "Grand Haven" shirts to go with their hats.

Someone is not so happy.

There were lots of people willing to help with the bedtime routine.  Patrick enjoyed a story with my mom.

Aunt Sue read some books to Jack.

We had one rainy day.  The rain didn't stop my cousins Rachel and Mark from going on a bike ride.

Colleen and I took our Godson Mark out for lunch one day.  I can't believe how tall he is!

I went on a little hike with Uncle Matt, cousin Aimee, cousin Jack (Big Jack as we called him so we wouldn't confuse him with our Little Jack), and Aunt Sue.

We discovered this lake.  When we approached the sign that read "DANGER: Mining Area, Stay Back, Bank May Cave" we decided to turn around and head back.

Jack loved every minute we were up there. If he wasn't playing on the beach, he was playing on the sand dune. Here he is carrying sand from the sand dune to the deck. When we were getting ready to leave on our last day, I told Jack to get in the car. Without complaining, he took off toward the car. Everyone was impressed at how well he followed directions. Instead of going to the car, though, he made a mad dash for the sand dune.

We hope Daddy can come with us next year!