The cherries are in short supply this year. The early warmth and sun in March brought out the blossoms and then more normal temperatures returned and the needle dipped below freezing. You can guess what happened next. Sorry, cherries. We enjoyed a ripe handful yesterday and they were delicious. Summer in northern Michigan is really here!
I’m not really much of a planner and yet I’m not always up for a last minute, spontaneous evening outing with the birdies either. But Chris came home early Friday night and suggested we grab some hot dogs, s’mores fixings, gin & tonics (you know, the basics…) and swim suits and drive out to Good Harbor Bay for the evening. Alright, let’s do it! So we rushed around to pack up beach, dinner, and bedtime stuff, which easily turns into a car full of about half the house. So. We eventually got out to Good Harbor and were immediately attacked by biting flies. Arrghh. On to spontaneous plan two.
At this point Wren is very hungry and annoyed that she has to get back in the car so I throw her an open package of graham crackers and we’re on our way. We head south down M-22 and I remember that there’s a great beach on Sleeping Bear Bay that I know as Thoreson Beach, although I really have no idea if it even has a name. So we got to “Thoreson Beach” and were greeted with wind, dark clouds and a looming storm in the distance, but no biting flies. After some discussion about how much time we had before the storm hit, we hauled the stuff down to the beach. As we were setting up, the storm clouds began to dissipate. And a magical evening was had.
Say yes to last minute ideas, lovelies. But don’t let your cell phone spontaneously swim. That, I learned, is really not a great idea.
Happy (official) summer, lovelies! Although the needle has hovered around summery temps off and on since March (!) this year, the summer solstice is upon us. Truth be told, summer is not my favorite season because I don’t fair very well in the heat, but I am planning on embracing it this year. Yes indeed. I have already run more miles in 90 degrees than I ever have so I feel like I’m ready for the heat. I still haven’t exactly figured out how to beach it with a toddler and sand-eating babe in tow, but I’m getting my head and heart wrapped around it. Our nest is in the market for a beach tent/canopy thingy right now. Taking recommendations! And ideas on how to make it work…
It was fun to revisit last year’s Summer List and think about where we were then and the season of life we’re in now. I had a growing baby bump and was still trying to wean Wren from her bedtime nursing. Wren was just two and so much has happened since then. For one, we’ve got this beautiful almost 8 month old with us now who loves to share her sister’s popsicles. And Wren’s bedtime nursing? She just gradually stopped on her own, maybe 4-5 months ago? Or maybe more. My sleep-deprived Mama brain can’t remember! Anyway, I’m glad there was no trauma involved and she weaned on her own. Phew. Now she’s a “big girl” of three with an insatiable appetite for watermelon.
So this year’s summer-with-two-birdies list? Here goes. Many are repeats because they’re just essential.
How about you, lovelies? What’s on your must-do summer list? Here’s to a wonderful summer filled with sprinklers, bubbles and sandy toes.
Another spring, another trip to see the irises. We love visiting the Black Iris Farm just a bit outside of Traverse City. We’re greeted with countless rows of vibrant colors, which is quite the spectrum spectacle for a color lover. The bearded iris flowers are always in bloom around Wren’s birthday and I hope I’ll always remember going there to get flowers for her first birthday party. And again last year when I remember it perking Wren up after a rough morning when she was entering her charming “tasmanian devil” stage…
We visited this year once during the day and then we begged Chris to take his girls there another evening when the shadows would be long and the sun full of gold. Do you ever go back somewhere with the light in mind? I learned that from my Dad.
Here is a great example of the light difference in these two untouched photos. The one above taken in mid-morning with harsh, almost directly overhead, cool light. And the next one taken in mid-evening, with the sun lower in the sky and full of warmth.
My Dad also taught me to “choose happiness.” I am reminded of this perspective on life every day when I see Wren’s free, creative spirit in action.
I’m not sure how this post turned into things I learned from my parents, but seeing this sign for one of the varieties of iris makes me think of my Mom and our mutual love of words. I’m pretty sure I got this from her.
Although I don’t see my parents very often because we don’t live close to each other, I think of them every day. I wonder what my kids will learn from me? This has been on my mind a lot lately as Wren is now of the age where she can form lifelong memories of events, or so “they” say. Will she remember visiting the iris farm? Or will the photos create the illusion of a “memory” for her? Or will she just remember being nagged to keep her shoes on instead of remembering the pure joy of running through the sandy fields, bare toes and all? Please, dear child, remember the joy.
Happy Father’s Day, Chris! We love you and are so very grateful for everything you do for all of us. Every single day! Thank you. May you have many more hammock-filled days…
Lovelies, we’ve had a tragedy of sorts at 605. The squirrels have destroyed our (insert your chosen expletive here) strawberry patch. Well, not the entire patch. Just the almost perfectly ripe strawberries. Sniff sniff. So what’s a strawberry-loving Mama to do? Pick twenty pounds of strawberries and make some very strong strawberry daiquiris to drown our sorrows in, of course. Plus, it was almost 90 degrees and what else is there to do? Don’t answer that, air conditioning folks. At least there was a breeze… Apparently when it gets really hot, my mind says let’s get out and sweat in a hot, dusty field like when we were in North Carolina. Well, we had a great time again despite the heat. What’s not to love about the reward? Strawberry smoothies, strawberry daiquiris, strawberry shortcakes, strawberry muffins, bowls of strawberries for breakfast, lunch, dinner… Take that, squirrels.
In May we spent a beautiful afternoon flying kites and playing in the sand at the top of a dune near Glen Haven, one of our favorite close-but-feel-like-you’re-far-away kind of places. We drove home and asked each other, “we get to live here?” Grateful to call this “home.” Thank you, Sleeping Bear Dunes.
Big plans for the weekend, lovelies? We hope to be spending a lot of it with dirt under our nails. We need to get the rest of these seeds IN.THE.GROUND!
Happy June!