15aug2011 - awesome vacation in michigan
first, wahoo!!! for adina, markus and yana who welcomed little bobo on 3 aug. beautiful family photo and one of bobo on his own. very happy for you!
mackenzie playing intently with her shaky eggs while i pack for the trip
mackenzie was a seasoned traveler on the airplane...very busy checking everything out and greeting people as they boarded. a business man stopped me outsed the jetway after the trip with a look of sheer relief on his face and told me she was wonderful!
one day in detroit spent meeting friends and family and playing (and almost sleeping) in the pool - mackenzie has learned to jump (ok, lean) into my hands from the edge on 3.
just a few hours at mom and dad's cabin but what a nice few hours - they have done such a nice job with it! here is mackenzie playing one of her new favorite games - sitting in boxes, laundry baskets and now a cooler. looking a little sleepy just in time for a refreshing nap and some floor time before we have dinner and head for torch lake!
sunday was a hang out day of visiting and playing
adam and i learning a new game called hillbilly horse shoes - not surprising brian rocks!
sean, jill and noah exploring at the lake bright and early on monday
the first of mackenzie's many ad hoc naps - she didn't sleep well at all during the week (with some trouble getting back on track at home) - with aunt jt the baby whisperer
after the morning nap, we were off with aunt denny to mission point - a lovely drive, a yummy lunch and a beautiful michigan day
tuesday morning we started with a nice long walk along torch lake - we even had to put long sleeves and pants on (mackenzie doesn't even remember having to be bundled up to walk), followed by some breakfast. mackenzie loved the high chair!
yet another impromptu nap on the porch chatting with mike
up from her nap and enjoying a little snuggle time with grandma and natalie (getting ready to take a babysitting class, by the way) on tuesday...sorry i don't have a photo with grandma, i couldn't decide which of the many cute natatlie/mackenzie photos to post...so here are a couple of grandma's oldest and youngest grandaughters. then some fun with bubbles on the porch.
for the afternoon, we headed off to alden around the lake with mike and sheila and found swings! mackenzie loves sitting on couches, benches and chairs like a big girl now.
the punchline? that's not a cow, that's my saint bernard...you figure out the joke!
i think papa is looking forward to the big kid playground as much as mackenzie.
wednesday was another big day...a brisk morning walk with some sprinkles followed by some quiet time upstairs with the non-toy toys that are becoming popular and then another impromptu nap on a little stroll with aunt denny to the lake and so exciting to meet the european cousins after their lengthy travels!
hmmm...don't usually post the naked photos but she was having so much fun showing off her new 'pull up and stand' move!
so nice to be with the brothers numspa for the week!
thursday was a day of outings to traverse city. here are the baby girls getting ready to go.
mackenzie helped eema play miniature golf...we didn't have what it took to overcome bubie's prowess on the green, but it was fun anyway! another new trick this week...the ever present bonnet string in the mouth, even while napping!
we then headed to the beach for a picnic and swim in that cold, cold michigan water. mackenzie had her first swim in a lake and play in the sand and loved them both! she was way tougher than papa and eema in the cold water!
back home and ready to play some more after dinner...pulling herself up and standing with NO help on the super squishy sofa!
friday was another busy day as we showed off our camp projects of t-shirts in a mega photo shoot and brian, jt, tyler, caitlyn, ethan, mike and sheila head out...can you believe 7 left and we still had 14! the afternoon was spent at the beach down the road...again so much fun followed by cleaning and packing for everyone!
mackenzie fell asleep just before the photos, so it's amazing that she woke up and worked it for the camera!
i'm missing a photo including denny, caitlyn, mike and sheila but will add when sean gets home from his trip. here are a bunch of the group photos.
a last walk to the lake with bubie and shatzie...until the next visit
a final afternoon at the lake by the house...again mackenzie braved the cold water with joy! she then enjoyed watching all of the bigger kids (including grandpa and uncles and aunts) building a monster sand volcano!
mackenzie was such an incredible traveler, getting up and dressed and eating at 4am...thank you for driving us to the airport grandma in all that rain (mackenzie's only travel complaints lasted about 15 minutes before she realized it would be more fun to go back to sleep)! she played at the airport (see the video of her at 6:15am!), enjoyed both flights and experimented with some raw broccoli which she seemed to be pretty into! she made it all the way out to pick up brody and back and was so excited to see him! they have quickly settled into their friendship with brody lying butted right up to her while she plays on her floor...now if we could just get back to those lovely 9-10 hours of continuous sleep nights!
mackenzie spent some time on her back (highly unusual since she has been able to get up on her own), helping papa learn some music on sunday! she had a rough drop off at day care on monday but was happily playing on the floor when i picked her up last night...slowly but surely we'll get back in to the swing of things!
thanks everyone for a fantastic vacation!
