up north weekend

We went up north to my parents house in Houghton Lake for a long weekend. We were just up there for Fourth of July and the kids loved it, so we thought we could come back again. We rented a boat one day on Houghton Lake. My mom stayed at the house with Ben since I didn't think he would have much fun on the boat. So Ben and Grandma got to spend some time together. Jacob, Sam, Andy and I had a nice time on the boat. Although it took a long time to dock anywhere, including a sandbar, which took us almost an hour to get the boat up to so that the kids could get off and play at the beach. Friday we went up to Mackinac Island. We have not been there for several years and this was Sam and Ben's first time there. Jacob loves Mackinac Island, as do Andy and I. It's just such a pretty place and so relaxed. We had a nice time there. The kids loved throwing rocks in the water and playing around. We had a nice time just walking around and taking in the sights. Jacob loved the little shops and checking everything out inside them. Sam loved all the horses and had to point out every single one. Ben just hung out in the stroller and loved the breeze! And of course I took a ton of pictures (and had the kids wear matching outfits!). Saturday we went over the Higgins Beach South State Park and had a great time just hanging out on the beach. The kids just played in the sand and water. Even Ben played with the sand a little bit this time. We was really nice to get away and we really had a great weekend!


Pictures...
Boatin'
Mackinac Island
Higgins Beach