June 13 & 14,
2015 - Days 11& 12
Commerce Township, MI
– St. Joseph, MI – Commerce Township, MI
378 miles round trip/
6 hours
Holiday Inn Express
St. Joseph
We woke to – wait for it – rain! It was hard to get excited
about going “to the beach,” but we rallied. Although there was some momentary
confusion about exactly where we were
going. Kelly booked a hotel in St. Joseph and said it was where we went last
year for lunch, when we were staying in Grand Rapids. I told her I thought we’d
gone to Grand Haven, but she didn’t think so- she thought we’d gone St Joseph,
but was picturing South Haven. Are you following me? Yeah, I was confused too.
Long story short, she booked the hotel in the wrong city. The good news is that
we figured it out before we got there.
We ended up going to St Joe’s (Grand Haven was booked), and
I was skeptical when we got off the interstate, but fortunately it was for
naught. St. Joseph is a very cute little town, with a HUGE beach. I was
shocked. And the surprises didn’t end there – suddenly, the sun came out and it
got really hot. 86 degrees hot! Everyone, except me, changed into their swim
suits. I didn’t have one, because the rain had beaten me down and I couldn’t
imagine the sun coming out. Therefore, I sweated it out on the shore while
everyone waded in Lake Michigan.
After the beach, we strolled the streets and did some window
shopping. It was a beautiful evening, so we decided to have dinner at a restaurant
with al fresco dining. It was very relaxing. After dinner Aunt Kelly treated
the kids to ice-cream and then we headed our hotel. We did our usual deal,
where my kids took over the pool and made the other quests uncomfortable. Never
a dull moment with my crew.
The next day we headed back home – to Commerce Township. It
was a tough drive. The rain was unbelievable. Fierce. Kelly’s niece, Jesse,
came over with her family and we had a great night. I love Jesse and her family.
My kids love hanging out with her three little ones. We had a nice family
dinner and chatted until (too) late in the night. After laundry and packing, my
head hit the pillow at midnight!
Tomorrow – Chicago.
Quote of the Day:
When we got to the beach, the kids had to change into their
swimsuits, because we weren’t prepared for good weather. We changed on the down-low
in the beach parking lot. Cammy usually has no problem we being indiscreet – so
I was surprised when he provided the following tidbit:
“Um, mom, this is going to be very awkward when everyone sees
me naked on the news tomorrow!”
