sprinting across the country from San Diego to Michigan<\/a> in just over a week, we thought, “Ahhhh, we have six weeks to settle in, relax, hang out with family and friends, and enjoy the Michigan summer.” I even considered getting a part-time job – ha! Not a chance. We did, in fact, have six weeks to enjoy the Michigan summer, but we did it at break-neck speed. As usual. Six weeks seems like a mighty long time, but in geologic time, it’s not even a fraction of a second. It went by so fast and we packed in so much fun stuff that this was a challenging post to write. It really should be multiple posts, but we’re already behind on the blog so you get a Michigan mash-up. The post is broken it up into five galleries and the corresponding text for each precedes the photos. So, sit back, grab your beverage of choice, and enjoy the s*#t ton of photos, and one longish quick-moving video at the end.<\/p>\n4th of July Week<\/h5>\n
We arrived at Suttons Bay on June 29, where the Florida Frasers (Jeff, Betsy, and Sophie) had rented the “Kooky” house (affectionately named for the seeming lack of design and organic add ons) for the week. It served as the perfect staging area for the family shenanigans that were about to commence in the lead-up to the 4th of July and Soph’s 18th birthday on the 5th. Betsy’s parents, Bob and Judy, own a home just up the road from the Kooky house, and her sister, Sue, and Sue’s three kids were in town from Park City, UT. And, of course, the Traverse City Frasers (Tobin, Gretchen, Sierra, Wiley, and Payson), and Rand’s parents, Don and Nancy, live nearby on the other side of the bay. So, the gang was all here, and it was just a little bit of mayhem.<\/p>\n
Many people don’t realize that northern Michigan, where Rand grew up, is spectacularly beautiful. Freshwater abounds in big lakes, little lakes, and rivers and streams connecting the lakes, so the vast majority of summer days are spent in and around the water. If the sun is out, or – check that – any time between the last snow melt and the first snow fall, Michiganders are outside. This summer was no exception, especially after the unusually wet June they experienced; by the time we arrived, everyone was jonesing to soak up as much sun as possible.<\/p>\n
It was sunset when we rolled up to the Kooky house, and the mosquitoes were getting their groove on, so Jeff stoked the campfire. We settled in for what would be the first of many nights of bugs, white rabbits, s’mores, and best of all, family. Hanging out with the freshwater Frasers requires a bit of a shift in mindset – as well as pace. They own and adore their power boats, so going from a slow-boat, like Free Luff<\/em> (and I’m not dissing FL<\/em>, dammit), to go-fast boats, like the Swamp Canary<\/em> and Bob<\/em>, was eye- and ear-opening. It’s astonishing how much distance we covered in such a short time – we’re just not used to that. So, there was a lot of zipping around the bay, tubing, and general water play shenanigans. It made for a wonderful week of too much sun and many laughs.<\/p>\n4th of July Week Gallery<\/h5>\n\n\t\t