Short trip to the west coast (of Michigan, that is)

Last weekend we took a short trip to the west side of the state. We decided to stay at Buttersville. It’s a campground right on Lake Michigan outside of Ludington. Elmer (our beloved pup) loves swimming and all things outdoors in general (what dog doesn’t?). We chose Buttersville because they allow dogs on the beach  (the State campgrounds don’t!) We love our visits to the west side of the state- there is something so captivating about the sand dunes and lake Michigan is breath taking!

raking the sand

Papa and Felix testing the (chilly) water.

Relaxing after some serious stick-fetch-swimming.

bucket head

My beach boys

building sand castles

in the moat

Snoozing in the car ride home.

rainy day packaging

One day last week while we got some much needed rain, Felix and I worked on coloring some paper to wrap a package for our uncle in.

We enjoyed watching the rain fall.

and later after the rain stopped, Felix had his first pretzel (or bits of it.)

while Andrew and I enjoyed sampling some beer for our first visit to Liberty Street Brewing Company.

family ball

This weekend was my annual family reunion. I always look forward to catching up with everyone- and it’s always amazing to see how much the kids grow each year. At last year’s reunion Felix was a newborn in the middle of a growth spurt which meant we spent the entire day in the rocker nursing. It was pretty fun to see him running around and playing this year.

Traditionally, my family plays a game of baseball (and horseshoes) at the reunions. This was Felix’ first baseball encounter, and he seemed to like it.

Summer has finally warmed up.

Summer’s past

My dad was sent these wonderful family photos by his cousin who’s been diligently scanning them in. Some are just too lovely not to share.

My grandparent’s home was riverfront. Hearing stories about summers full of swimming, fishing and playing in the yard is always delightful .

A portrait of my grandfather.

Perfect Party Weekend

We had a wonderful weekend for Felix’ 1st Birthday Party! The weather was perfect, the company was outstanding and love was definitely surrounding us. Thank you so much to everyone who came out to celebrate and all those who sent well wishes our way.

Making an announcement with Papa.

Papa made this puppet theater. We had a few marionettes out for kids to put on their own puppet shows.

Papa also put together this awesome toss game. There were only a few who mastered all levels.

We had the bean bag toss and Papa’s Tic Tac Toe game too.

My sister baked the cakes from scratch, of course! (They were absolutely delicious by the way, and yes, she takes special orders.)

Singing Happy Birthday:

The main event: smashing the cake!

The aftermath:

Kissing a handmade sock frog from Anne, who also made the stellar mix playing during the party.

(We’ve been preparing for a while. click to see more about the invite, party flags, bean bag toss and party hats.)

Roots

Roots detail from Erin Sullivan Fournier's work entitled "Alliance"

Having a child does so many things to a person, one of which is merely thinking back to one’s own childhood. After spending 2.5 years in Delaware we recently moved back to Michigan, where my husband and I both grew up. Being back has been wonderful: I cannot even begin to articulate how much I love that Felix is able to see family frequently, let alone describe the feeling I get when I see him playing and interacting with his grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. But another thing it has done is made me think about all of the people who have influenced me throughout my life.

Recently, I was assisting my childhood art teacher, mentor and dear friend, prepare some images for a show she was applying for. (My favorite) Part of her piece “Alliance” has these wonderfully wild roots. It made me think about how deeply she has impacted me from the very begining of my interest in art. Perhaps I feel such a connection to this root image because it was she that nourished my own “roots”.