4TH of JULY VACATION

I've had my mom in town from Iowa since the end of May. I've enjoyed having her her and her filling in as a babysitter. I've also had several occassions to be kid free, YEAH!! So, we all had one last trip up North to Torch Lake for the 4th of July Family reunion. Everyone who came included my mom and dad, her sister and mother, my brother, his wife and 3 sons, myself and my 2 kids. Matt had to work all weekend and didn't get to come. We also had a visit from my great-aunt Bonnie but was disappointed that my cousins with their spouses and kids couldn't make it. My cousins son, Joshua is only 4 day older than Nate and I really wanted to get them together. Maybe next year.

We left Thursday morning for a 5 hour drive in hopes of making only one stop. However, my dad had to stop to see a car for sale and my mom stopped to pick up some fruit and veggies. I did get to see one of our friends that works across the road from the fruit market. That was nice. So, the kids were ready to run around and Audrey just wanted to see her cousins. It has been 3 years since our last get-together. My brother lives in Arizona. We had some dinner and then headed into Alden, the town where our house is at for their evening stroll. It was nice but nothing like it was 13 years ago when I was up there last. The economy has had a tremendous effect on the tourism. But we will always be there since it was where my grandmother was born and raised.

Friday, we had a slow start but got out around noon for some fishing. The weather was cold and windy and we didn't catch anything. After and hour we gave up, headed to the car to warm up and took a drive. We went to Brownwood. A small set of shops that have honey, jams, old-fashioned candy and a gift shop. They also have a toy store for the kids that was always over-flowing with toys and kids. Neither was happening this time and the small selection of toys made me cry for what the place use to be. We headed back to the house so we could get ready and go to Aunt Kathy's for dinner. She has a house 15 minutes from my parents on Grand Traverse Bay.

Saturday, the 4th of July, Audrey went with her cousins and grandpa to Charlevoix. She enjoyed the tall ships and eating whitefish (her choice). I stayed back with Nate for some peace and quiet. Later we had a BBQ and the kids went swimming in Torch Lake. The kids enjoyed snaps and sparklers and the big fireworks down at the lake.

Sunday, we traveled into Traverse City for their Cherry Festival. We watched the air show down at the bay and then wandered through the vendors. I found a lady who makes peanut-butter in different flavors and can't wait to go online to see all she offers. Too many people at the booth to see all they had. The rest of Sunday was relaxing and I started to pack everything up so we could leave Monday. Which happened to be the most excitement. The washer broke on the last load with water still in it. We had to ring everything out and then my dad and brother moved the washer outside. There they dumped the water that then flooded back into the house. Oops, maybe they forgot about the small grade that went into the house. Geez, I just want to get home!! But we finally made it on the road by noon. There's no place like home!! :)