Yay! I'm so thankful we have discovered the fun and magic of Michigan lighthouses. Visiting them gives us a purpose to a road trip and allows us to explore a bunch of fun things along the way.
And Coco. This was her maiden voyage with the family! I mean, this is the entire reason I went back to a larger vehicle. The little babies were in the back and everyone else was up front.
Because we've started our trip multiple times now in St. Joseph, we decided to drive a little further north up the coast and begin at
Little Sable Point Lighthouse
I love this lighthouses for a couple of reasons the main one being that when John and I visited it last October, there wasn't a person there, and we just laid down on the beach in our winter coats and soaked up some fall sunshine. We might have even fallen asleep ;-). I also love it because there is no pier to access it--it just sits right there on the beach. And it's made entirely of brick!
However, before we reached the lighthouse, we happened open a little cherry "stand". It was actually a building with an adjacent farm where various cherry food stuffs were sold along with some really great Michigan merchandise (Hannah needed a hat). On the flip side, the old ladies working there were so CRABBY! I mean, they were getting mad at people (including us) left and right. It's a good thing the place is so picturesque and the food so tasty. We ended up buying a cherry strudel, and since we had packed a lunch, we all got out and relaxed a bit.
There just so happened to be a most excellent tree to climb right next to our picnic table. We were having a great old time climbing and taking pictures before one of the aforementioned crabby ladies came out and started spouting words about insurance and liability....
But really, after an idyllic lunch, it was a short drive to the lighthouse. We have discovered that Brother is really not a fan of sand. In fact, you could say it's our little Superman's Kryptonite ;-)
And Baby didn't have to wait very long. But she did have to walk a ways. Or WE adults walked, and per normal, she jogged the entire two miles to
Big Sable Point Lighthouse
I love Big Sable because it's a walk out to the light itself (two miles one way) which means the beach is pretty deserted once you get there. So for us COVID-fearful people, it's PERFECT! Baby seriously could not wait to get her suit on and jump in the water.
Glo also couldn't wait to get in the water, but she didn't bring a suit. No worries. She stripped off her shorts and her garment bottoms and called it good!
I'll say it again. I love my state, and I love my family. When the two loves collides, it's a little piece of heaven <3
We stayed there several hours and finally made the two mile trek back to the car. I had found a fun restaurant online, House of Flavors, that is supposedly a Michigan institution. Turns out, they cook rotisserie turkeys for most of the meals on the menu. And they serve tater tots. I mean, can it get any better?
Yes.
Yes, it can.
They have an ice cream counter with multiple flavors (always happy to see my favorite Michigan Pot Hole).
We thought we were done for the day, but we just so happened to see a lighthouse as we drove into Ludington.
The Ludington Breakwater Light
What an interesting lighthouse! The base of it is shaped like a ship, and the windows are like portholes! And what a great time to see it--right before sunset. Glad it wasn't sunset though because it was pretty wet getting out to it...and I have probably paid TOO much attention to all of the death notices at the beginning of piers....
Shoot, we were ready to crawl into bed that night. It had been a great but exhausting day!
The next morning, we ran into the Rey in the hotel lobby, had a quick light saber duel, and drove a short 40 minutes to the
Manistee Light
I love this picture. Maybe it's because, for once, neither of the girls is making a crazy face when taking a picture with me....
At this point, we were kinda flying through the lighthouses (park, get out of the car, walk down the pier, take a picture, walk back, get back in the car) because we really wanted to have time to enjoy some moments that were planned for the afternoon. So the poor
Frankfort Light didn't get much love. It's one of my favorite lighthouses, although I think it's better appreciated on a stormy overcast day.
And the Port Betsie lighthouse has one of the best gift shops and visitor centers around, but they were closed due to COVID, so again, it was just a quick picture.
And Hannah threw COVID fears to the wind and kissed Randolph not only herself, but helped the babies do so as well. And glad to know that we don't have to ask the waitress to pull out the ladder--we just get it ourselves....
We then did a little shopping in Traverse. The girls found some beautiful rings at a favorite jewelry store, and I believe everyone bought a little sumpin' sumpin' at M-22 ;-)
Then we decided to drive out to Moomer's for some of their delicious ice cream. Man, it felt meant-to-be when we walked in their very tiny eatery and found the largest table available....
The next morning, Baby wanted to do nothing but get in the lake again. It sure is fun seeing how much she loves water now, and it's even crazier to see that she's not scared at all of natural water with all it's waves and plant material and such. So we headed to Grand Traverse bay. I was surprised to see no one at the beach, but when the torrential rain storm began about 45 minutes later, I understood. Nevertheless, we had such a nice time with the beach all to ourselves ;-)
Brother got IN the water!
With the rain, we hurried away to quite possibly our favorite place on Earth.
Interlochen
We weren't allowed to even step foot on campus (we drove to every gate and found all of them locked with stern warnings about trespassing), but at least we got to see our old haunt. And we grabbed a couple of doughnuts from Bud's ;-)
Finally, we were off to one of my favorite lighthouse towns (the lighthouse isn't my favorite, but I absolutely love where it resides):
Charlevoix South Pier Lighthouse
Baby hadn't had enough time in the water in the morning, so we ended up spending a good hour at the beach there. Too bad we didn't bring her suit because she ended up soaking her dress (she's a determined little thing). There were a bunch of pebbles on the shore, so I told Cheese to start looking for Petoskey stones. I mean, it's just an hour north of Petoskey, and finding a stone is one of Cheese's bucket list items. So everyone started hunting.
Props to Glo and her naturalist, water-nymph self. She had found several Petoskey stones within a half hour, but I was seriously praying that Ethan would find one himself. AND HE DID!
I think everyone took one home--and I just pulled out the Petoskey that I always keep in my purse that the maintenance guy at Interlochen gave me ;-) <3
We then went to one of my favorite shops in all of Michigan--the Taffy Barrel. The entire store is full of barrels of taffy in all different flavors. (Not being a taffy lover, the fact that I can eat a pound of this stuff in one sitting is saying something.) It's seriously amazing. We also grabbed some crepes on the way out (standing under the awning in the rain) and headed back home.
And Coco. This was her maiden voyage with the family! I mean, this is the entire reason I went back to a larger vehicle. The little babies were in the back and everyone else was up front.
Little Sable Point Lighthouse
I love this lighthouses for a couple of reasons the main one being that when John and I visited it last October, there wasn't a person there, and we just laid down on the beach in our winter coats and soaked up some fall sunshine. We might have even fallen asleep ;-). I also love it because there is no pier to access it--it just sits right there on the beach. And it's made entirely of brick!
However, before we reached the lighthouse, we happened open a little cherry "stand". It was actually a building with an adjacent farm where various cherry food stuffs were sold along with some really great Michigan merchandise (Hannah needed a hat). On the flip side, the old ladies working there were so CRABBY! I mean, they were getting mad at people (including us) left and right. It's a good thing the place is so picturesque and the food so tasty. We ended up buying a cherry strudel, and since we had packed a lunch, we all got out and relaxed a bit.
There just so happened to be a most excellent tree to climb right next to our picnic table. We were having a great old time climbing and taking pictures before one of the aforementioned crabby ladies came out and started spouting words about insurance and liability....
But really, after an idyllic lunch, it was a short drive to the lighthouse. We have discovered that Brother is really not a fan of sand. In fact, you could say it's our little Superman's Kryptonite ;-)
We missed Poppie and his throw-caution-to-the-wind attitude in building an illegal fire on the beach, but it was still really great to put our feet in Lake Michigan. Baby was ready to strip down and swim, but we told her to keep her britches on (literally) until we visited a couple more lighthouses.
And Baby didn't have to wait very long. But she did have to walk a ways. Or WE adults walked, and per normal, she jogged the entire two miles to
Big Sable Point Lighthouse
I love Big Sable because it's a walk out to the light itself (two miles one way) which means the beach is pretty deserted once you get there. So for us COVID-fearful people, it's PERFECT! Baby seriously could not wait to get her suit on and jump in the water.
Glo also couldn't wait to get in the water, but she didn't bring a suit. No worries. She stripped off her shorts and her garment bottoms and called it good!
In fact, she and Brother made it their goal to collect all sticks in the area and build a wall. Brother acquiesced to taking off his shoes, but he sure wasn't going in the water, so having Glo all to himself building a wall with his favorite thing (sticks) was an idyllic afternoon for him.
I'll say it again. I love my state, and I love my family. When the two loves collides, it's a little piece of heaven <3
 |
| Look at the HEAP of tater tots on my plate! It was bigger than the sandwich! |
Yes.
Yes, it can.
They have an ice cream counter with multiple flavors (always happy to see my favorite Michigan Pot Hole).
We thought we were done for the day, but we just so happened to see a lighthouse as we drove into Ludington.
The Ludington Breakwater Light
What an interesting lighthouse! The base of it is shaped like a ship, and the windows are like portholes! And what a great time to see it--right before sunset. Glad it wasn't sunset though because it was pretty wet getting out to it...and I have probably paid TOO much attention to all of the death notices at the beginning of piers....
Shoot, we were ready to crawl into bed that night. It had been a great but exhausting day!
The next morning, we ran into the Rey in the hotel lobby, had a quick light saber duel, and drove a short 40 minutes to the
Manistee Light
 |
| I originally took this picture to show Cheese and his inherent inquisitiveness about anything he doesn't understand, but I now post it so that we can all admire his FREAKING LEGS! Shoot Cheese, all those miles of pounding the pavement are really paying off! #anatomylesson |
At this point, we were kinda flying through the lighthouses (park, get out of the car, walk down the pier, take a picture, walk back, get back in the car) because we really wanted to have time to enjoy some moments that were planned for the afternoon. So the poor
Frankfort Light didn't get much love. It's one of my favorite lighthouses, although I think it's better appreciated on a stormy overcast day.
And the Port Betsie lighthouse has one of the best gift shops and visitor centers around, but they were closed due to COVID, so again, it was just a quick picture.
The activities?? Traverse City, BABY! Everyone associates "Traverse" with summers spent at Interlochen so it's nothing but good, better, best.
And the afternoon began with lunch at Sleder's. Buffalo burgers for most of us, and Glo and Ethan held true to ordering a "smelt" basket.
And Hannah threw COVID fears to the wind and kissed Randolph not only herself, but helped the babies do so as well. And glad to know that we don't have to ask the waitress to pull out the ladder--we just get it ourselves....
We then did a little shopping in Traverse. The girls found some beautiful rings at a favorite jewelry store, and I believe everyone bought a little sumpin' sumpin' at M-22 ;-)
Then we decided to drive out to Moomer's for some of their delicious ice cream. Man, it felt meant-to-be when we walked in their very tiny eatery and found the largest table available....
But really, the whole day was about Sleeping Bear Dunes (okay, it was about Sleder's for me, but you know....). Rebecca had never been to the dunes, so we were determined to get there. And we didn't mess around--we drove straight to the big boy so she could "climb the dune!"
Baby and Brother, who hadn't gotten naps all day, were at this point exhausted, so I offered (with a great deal of relief) to stay in the car with them while they slept in their car seats. I've climbed the dune before (although it was a different dune when I climbed it ten years ago--the dunes constantly change because of the wind). It was much taller, and it seriously took my calves to school. So yeah, sitting in the car was just fine.
Little could have imagined that about ten minutes later, Baby woke up. She asked where everyone was, and I told her they were climbing the dune (at this point, they had climbed it and disappeared out of sight). She said that she wanted to get out of her car seat, and I told her she could go play in the sand. No sooner did her feet hit the sand than she took off running up the dune! I tried calling after her, and I don't know if she had selective hearing or actually couldn't hear me, but she just kept climbing. At this point, I panic-called Glo, telling her that Baby was on her way up and somebody needed to meet her--Glo told me she would head back--but it was just seconds later that Baby was almost to the top. I called Glo back and told her to run. Baby seriously reminded me of one of those science-fiction characters who can literally scale buildings in seconds. That's what she looked like!
Well just as she reached the top, I could see the silhouette of Glo running toward her...and they
disappeared.
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| I wondered if this would be the last sighting of her....and I would need to post this on "MISSING" posters. |
 |
| Yep, Glo found her, thank goodness. |
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| Perspective for how far and fast she climbed (I'm not the person in the circle, but the car behind the person). Look at her cheesy grin! |
She made it to the top and got to enjoy the gorgeous views from there.
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| What a view they had from the top! |
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| Look at that little nugget--she just wanted to be one of the big kids.... |
With the rain, we hurried away to quite possibly our favorite place on Earth.
Interlochen
We weren't allowed to even step foot on campus (we drove to every gate and found all of them locked with stern warnings about trespassing), but at least we got to see our old haunt. And we grabbed a couple of doughnuts from Bud's ;-)
 |
| The three in our company who actually worked/attended Interlochen (guess I should have been in the picture too).... |
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| And the future camper.... (*squee!!* we can't wait!) |
Charlevoix South Pier Lighthouse
Baby hadn't had enough time in the water in the morning, so we ended up spending a good hour at the beach there. Too bad we didn't bring her suit because she ended up soaking her dress (she's a determined little thing). There were a bunch of pebbles on the shore, so I told Cheese to start looking for Petoskey stones. I mean, it's just an hour north of Petoskey, and finding a stone is one of Cheese's bucket list items. So everyone started hunting. Props to Glo and her naturalist, water-nymph self. She had found several Petoskey stones within a half hour, but I was seriously praying that Ethan would find one himself. AND HE DID!
 |
| You can really only see Petoskeys when they are wet (or polished) so it's key to looking IN the water for them. |
We then went to one of my favorite shops in all of Michigan--the Taffy Barrel. The entire store is full of barrels of taffy in all different flavors. (Not being a taffy lover, the fact that I can eat a pound of this stuff in one sitting is saying something.) It's seriously amazing. We also grabbed some crepes on the way out (standing under the awning in the rain) and headed back home.
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