The Amazing Adventures of Tiny T: Leland Summer 2021

Work is done and time for VACATION! Cullen and KJ arrived Friday night and we were so excited for them to get here. Alidia and Parker also arrived which has been a blast. Week 2 also included a visit from Kirsten, Derek, "baby" Cora and the real baby Ada. Some highlights include:

A beach day with Uncle Cullen and Aunt KJ. Everyone swam and played frisbee in the water (minus G who was a great watcher!). Avery and I took a long beach walk and had good mom/daughter chit-chat and Tay was very busy in the sand! After the beach, we made Rice Krispie Treats in honor of Grammy's 98th Birthday. We had an awesome dinner in the backyard and we all shared some of our favorite Grammy memories and toasted to her. We really miss her and it was so good to be together and remember all the amazing things that were Grammy. We also celebrated G and Cullen's b-days with awesome gifts all around and some great, sweet cards from Avery and Tay.
Day 2 we started off by having a Red, White and Blue breakfast made by KJ and Avery and then went tubing (minus Chuck who had a sore hip). It was a busy day on the Platte river but also really relaxing and fun! Tay was sometimes "scared" which we did not understand but once he realized his life jacket would keep him afloat over the water he was calmer. We loved the slow pace, sunshine, good conversation and lots of 20 questions and I spy. That night we had reservations at Riverside - The lighting was gorgeous and we got some beautiful pictures on the dock before enjoying an amazing dinner!!
The next day, Avery was asked to babysit Jeff Lewis' grand-sons during his daughters wedding shower. She was excited and up to the challenge - It ended up being about 5 hours and she was very tired when she got home!! She packed up toys to bring (like her old nanny Melissa used to) to have activities and said they used them all. She is excited to be a real babysitter in the near future!! The rest of us went to Northport and had lunch, went bowling and explored the town. Tay loved bowling and adding up all the scores and calculating the differences between them. He also had awesome form - Would literally RUN to the line and throw the ball. We were all shocked he didn't go down the lane with it!! He also got a pet-osky rock house that G bought him and he's enjoying his new "friends". That night we had dinner with Alicia and Parker at Fischer's tavern and then the kids braved a night swim. Too cold for the adults but they had a blast!
On Tuesday we went to South Manitou. It was fun and also a bit of a challenge......We hiked a total of 7 miles. The first half was a breeze - easy walking along the trails and lots of good conversations. Once we made it to the shipwreck, there was a log where we were going to eat lunch and then 4 snakes popped out about 4 feet long each and the black flies were biting bad. Tay freaked and said he could only be happy if all the snakes and bugs were gone....So we couldn't accommodate that. We had our sandwiches from Cheese Shanty and Tay just really needed to be done but the only way back was another 3.5 mile walk. Most of the group went to see the Cedars while G, Tay and I started the trip back. Tay pulled himself out of his bad mood and sang songs for us for about 90 minutes straight. Each time there was a new scale for us to grade him on and even some other hikers joined in and gave him grades which he loved. We got a little turned around as we approached the dock and Tay asked if we were lost. I said "We are not lost I just don't know where we are or where we're going". Luckily, we all made it back to the boat in time and had a quiet ride back (minus Tay and G as Tay would NOT settle or stop moving). We ended with dinner at the Cove and Ice Cream before crashing. Tay ordered a Kid Size cone and it was somehow bigger than all of ours. This FASCINATED him and we spent 20 minutes saying over and over "Can you believe mine is a kid's size??" and "Did you know I ordered a Kid Size??". Tay still somehow was up until midnight (maybe from the giant ice cream cone)....The kid is NEVER tired!
Wednesday was rainy but we played board games, watched some movies and relaxed. Kirsten, Derek, Cora and Ada arrived around 3 o'clock. Tay and Cora are both 5 (Tay pointed out he was 5 1/2) and they really hit it off. Played straight through to dinner with all of Tay's toys and then ran upstairs after dinner to play some more. Their game involved Cora being the queen and Tay was her baby. Avery and Parker enjoyed spying on them and giving the adults all the details. It was very cute - I was thinking Cora might be inching ahead of Lena but Tay told me Lena is still 6 percent ahead of Cora :) We had an awesome dinner with amazing grilled meats and fish from Chuck and yummy sides from G. It was a great night all catching up and the kids loved having buddies to play with. Avery had a sleepover with Parker which she was thrilled about!
Thursday was another chilly day but we still managed to make it a good one. Avery and Parker went to breakfast by themselves - We had coached them on how to Tip and they got the 10% part but forgot to double!! We sent them back with an extra tip after we realized :) We shopped around Leland and Sutton's Bay. Tay and Cora had fun doing an I Spy book in the bookstore. Avery and Parker got Henna tattoos (some drama with Avery's getting smudged inadvertently by Tay but Papa came to the rescue and took her back to get it cleaned up!), we spent a lot of $$ at the awesome Sutton's Bay Candy store and ended the afternoon at the Northpoint Lighthouse. Some of us climbed to the top - Tay did it again and was proud of himself for not crying. Came down the stairs and proclaimed "NOT ONE TEAR!". We had pizza for dinner, of course got ice cream, and then the bigger kids played a new Escape Room game while the little's took a chilly night swim. Avery is having another sleepover with Parker and they got some gorgeous sunset shots before bed :)
Friday was an awesome end to the week!! Tay started his day with Breakfast and library with Aunt KJ. The girls did breakfast again on their own and their Henna has set in! We then headed to Cherry Festival in Traverse City. The kids loved the rides and playing games!! Taylor did his first daring, fast rides with Aunt KJ, Parker and Avery - He started out scared but ended up wanting to ride again and again. I am just glad Avery and Parker survived the crazy upside down ones. Cullen and I were mostly in charge of carrying various prize winnings and drinks...After the fair we went to cool down in the lake. It was freezing and was impressed the kids got in. After dinner, Cullen, KJ and I played cards with Tay whil G and Alicia took Parker and Avery to a Beach Poetry Slam. Avery and Parker were super brave and both recited songs - Avery did her Bravery lyrics. They also had lots of laughs. It was the perfect end to the night!

Beach and Grammy's B-Day