From a parents point of view, one highlight was taking a little "test drive" of leaving our kids at the grandparents while Wayne and I went to Genesee Creek to visit Michelle, Steve and family. The girls enjoyed the time with just their grandparents, and we enjoyed a night out of just the adults. It was great to finally see Michelle and Steve's house -- we'd heard so much about it, an original farmhouse with lots of charm and lots of places to spend money if you so chose. It was great to finally see their place in person -- what a great place for kids to grow up, with lots of nooks and hidden crannies to play in. Kristi drove up from Indiana to join us for dinner, and her arrival at the grandparents' the following day was a great surprise for our girls.
For the family, another highlight of the trip was a visit to the newly opened Storybook Gardens in Sheboygan. It's a great outdoor space with landscaping and buildings inspired by children's stories. My mom checked it out ahead of our trip and was somewhat disappointed by it, since much of it is still under construction, and it seemed like a quick tour from an adult's perspective. But through a child's eyes, the place was full of wonder and thrills. After all, what could be more exciting than opening and closing the crazy door and windows of the Dr. Seuss house?
If you asked our kids, the other highlight of the trip was seeing friends from the Twin Cities. I know, we see them often (Lindsey sees her friend Ava 5 days a week at school), but still, it was something special to see them out of the normal environment, especially when the *new* environment was the lakeshore of Lake Michigan.
We visited them at their rented condo in Sheboygan -- when you opened the door of their rental, you walked over a small sand dune and then could sink your feet up to your ankles in the softest sand as you overlooked the lake. Wow. We brought a take-out dinner with us, ate, and then walked along the lakeshore. The resort had a bonfire at 7:30 and we stayed to roast marshmallows and the kids rolled down a grassy knoll in the dark, laughing all the way.
While we enjoyed this visit as well, the other highlight of this for us was the view and the sound. I love the sound of waves crashing on a shore. The moon was unbelievable as it rose in the distance, shedding its light on the water. It was so peaceful.
When we returned to our home on Thursday, I felt like we'd been away for several weeks, not just four days. What...school? Work? What's that?
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