I feel like we've been gone for an eternity. We left last Tuesday evening around bedtime to head up north and beat the traffic for a week long celebration. With the car jam packed with everything imaginable including two kids, a dog, and a well-stocked cooler, we had smooth sailing all the way to West Branch! I guess I should mention that the days of Sean sleeping in the car are few and far. We spent 40 minutes of the drive alternating between Scott and I telling made up stories about every construction type truck that exists. Good thing exit 202 came. I don't think I had any creativity left...
Wednesday morning we woke up bright eyed and bushy tailed ready for a day full of sun, sand, and boat rides! And we did just that! In fact, that's about all we did for the next five days!
What a difference a year makes! Last year Sean fought us tooth and nail on wearing his life jacket, on swimming in water that went past his knees, and getting on the jet-ski. This year, he wouldn't take the jacket off, jumped off the dock in water over his head, rode on the jet-ski, the tube on the back of the speed boat, and even "swam" without us holding on to him! It was great! The one thing he didn't have any interest in this year was fishing. Strange...
Evan seemed to enjoy being up north as well! He would tolerate being on the sand and in the water for small spurts before he'd require being picked up, but that's progress. He loved the boat rides, except when we forced the life jacked on him. Why do they make those so that it's jammed up against their face? It's ridiculous. I remember we had the same problem with Sean's infant life jacket...
It was a hot week and weekend! I definitely got some color! I no longer look like a dead chicken. Bonus! Sean got a little too much sun on Saturday and after his late nap he woke up a complete hysterical mess. Thankfully, Nana was able to calm him down and get him excited for the fireworks.
We made the most of the holiday with fourth of July handprint t-shirts the boys made before we went up.
We kept Sean up late to watch the firework show the lake puts on and let him do sparklers and eat s'mores for the full experience. He liked sticking his hands in the gooey marshmallows, but in the end preferred to eat only the chocolate. That's my boy! A choco-holic!
We celebrated AJ's second birthday on Saturday when Jackie and Josh stopped by on their way to their cottage on Torch Lake. A couple hours of swimming, lunch on the deck, cupcakes, and presents. It was a fun afternoon!
We ended the festivities by taking Sean into West Branch for a round of miniature golf at the Indian Adventures Golf Course. We had the whole place to ourselves and it's a good thing we did. Sean didn't quite get the idea of only using the club to hit the ball. He thought picking it up and throwing it in the hole or throwing it in the water was more fun! Not to mention he didn't realize the water was not for people. I never imagined we'd be pulling HIM out of the water! Oh well, it was worth it to see how he'd do with it. Maybe next summer he'll be more ready for putt-putt!
All in all, it was a gorgeous week spent with family! We couldn't have asked for more perfect weather. The sunsets were stunning, the food was delicious, and the kids seemed to behave themselves for the most part. Except for Sean throwing Nana's iPhone in the lake...this kid...
Speaking of food, one of the recipes I brought up to try with hamburgers and hot dogs, was a new pasta salad recipe! It's an antipasto pasta salad. Such a great concept when you think about it. Things like salami, pepperoni, olives, asiago cheese, and the typical ingredients like peppers and onions were a great combination!
Cook the noodles. Toss with all the dry ingredients. Mix the balsamic vinegar, olive oil, and salad dressing mix together. Pour over the top, toss well, and refrigerate until cool.
I'm definitely keeping this one in the rotation this summer!
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