Napping Bear Sandbox, Part 2

As we continued our Napping Bear Sandbox staycation, we were happy that the replacements we found for Sleeping Bear Dunes activities were places we already loved, with a few new ones thrown in.

• Hike through the forests at Sleeping Bear Dunes

We already had a beautiful forest right in the middle of the city -- the arboretum! My friend Michelle helped me cross this one off the list, and then a few days later Kevin helped me cross off another section of the arboretum.

It is amazing how much easier it is for a little boy to walk when there is a friend to walk with. We had to resort to some "red light green light" and hopping and other races, but they did such a great job motivating each other!

Joseph's fishing rod. One of many sticks and rocks that must be gathered when one is on a walk.

taking turns doing cute smiles, part 1

taking turns doing cute smiles, part 2

a moose! (or something like unto it. I forget. actually probably a buck.)

• Visit the Maritime Museum. Visit the Cherry Republic in Traverse City

One mild Saturday, we planned to go for a bike ride. But the reason it was mild was because within a few minutes it was cold and rainy, so we scrapped those plans and decided to only get a little wet by walking from the parking structure to the Hands-On Museum.

As usual, it was great! And it was even better than usual because Kevin was there! (I've decided this summer that "fun" things such as museums and swimming pools are only fun if Kevin is there too, otherwise they're just mostly work. First world problems, I know.) Matthew mostly wanted to crawl on the stairs, but that meant we discovered areas of the museum we never had before! All this time we could have been enjoying the optics and sound rooms best of all.

We love the water and balls!

Since we were already downtown, and since the rain had stopped at least once or twice, we braved our way over to the Cherry Republic to pretend we were at the cherry festival in Traverse City. Or something. It was quite the downpour, so we were happy to go inside to try the samples and buy a few treats. On our way back, the rain stopped for good, so all the people who were going the opposite direction as us to watch the soccer game of Madrid vs. Chelsea (NOT Chelsea Michigan, it turns out) stayed dry. And eventually our shoes all dried.

• Float the Platte River

I had always wanted to kayak down the Huron River, so when my friend offered to watch my kids (and was okay with me not spending the time to pack), Kevin and I went on a little date down to Gallup Park.

As it turns out . . . after the first few minutes, it didn't go so great. It was about 90 degrees, sunny, and plenty muggy. Even on the water! It wasn't too hard to maneuver the kayak, but it still took more strength and endurance than I had on that hot of a day. And to top it all off, I got motion sickness. We had been going less than 40 minutes when I finally said we needed to turn around. Kevin wondered why I would be seasick on such a calm river, and I wondered too. I had done plenty of canoeing and white water rafting without this being a problem. I felt almost as lame as the time when Kevin and I had just barely started dating and two bouts of the Samurai at Lagoon knocked me out for the next long while and I just knew all his friends wanted him to break up with someone so wimpy. Except at least this time Kevin couldn't break up with me.

So we headed home and recuperated and then I picked up the boys, grateful for the fun parts and the quiet time alone with Kevin. And grateful that pain is temporary but the story lasts forever! And at least we did it!

(And actually it wasn't motion sickness. It was a mild stomach bug that circulated through all of us the next week and a half and took turns wiping us out. Which is super fun when you need to pack a lot. But we lived. And I felt less wimpy, especially once Kevin caught it too.)

• Bike the Heritage Trail

After a few failed attempts, we finally decided we just needed to go for it, so we headed back down to Gallup Park one morning to bike along the Huron River. The trail we were hoping for was under construction, but we headed through Furstenberg Park, enjoying the wooden pathways, windy trails, and dense woods. (We didn't see the sign that said no bikes until it was too late.) Matthew was . . . sometimes okay with wearing a helmet and being in the bike trailer. Other times he protested a lot.

• Go camping

We seriously considered pitching a tent somewhere and sleeping in someone's backyard, but it never materialized. So we improvised. The last two nights in our apartment, we slept on an air mattress, and the first night it was too inflated so it felt like sleeping on a wobbly rock. And I woke up a little damp because I slept on wet hair. And I woke up way earlier than I wanted. So that was basically camping. All that was missing was mosquito bites and the smell of smoke. I still think it counts.

Overall, we probably had more fun doing all the activities close to home and spread out over two and a half weeks. Perhaps sometime we will do a full-fledged camping in a national park experience, but for now we can find pretty good replacements.