The 4th of July

Just returned from our annual 4th of July trip to Petoskey to visit Jason's family. The trips to and from Grand Rapids were a little hellish (Jemma really, really prefers to sleep IN HER CRIB and not in a moving car, so some crying was involved) but it's so great to be able to do all the traditional "up north" 4th of July things that Jason's been doing since he was little. I love thinking that Annie and Jemma are going to grow up with some of those same memories! In spite of the kid schedules, we managed to get Tom's Mom's cookies (twice!), see the Harbor Springs parade, go out on Walloon (even though it was too cold to swim), go for some Gator rides, play at the park at the waterfront, have a fire and make s'mores, and spend lots of time just being outside. Annie and Jemma both slept so well up there (due to utter exhaustion, I'm sure) and were very well-behaved. Jason and I were able to have a grown-up date night dinner at Latitudes and see the Bay Harbor fireworks on July 3rd. We loved seeing our niece in action and watching all the kids learn to play together.

Now, time to try to put the house (and the kids) back together. Today is what my sister-in-law likes to call "Black ______ (fill in the day of the week you return from grandma's), in our case, Thursday. There are mountains of laundry, there's no food in the house, and the kids are going through attention and treat withdrawal. Annie spent the morning following me around, whining, as I tried to unpack, clean the bathroom, and figure out what to make for dinner. Jemma is already suspiciously fussier and didn't nap very long this morning even though she should be extra-tired from her late bedtime last night. Off to do another load of laundry and throw together something for dinner!