4th of July 2025! Boom!

We made it to Michigan for the 4th of July! We were able to go up a day or so earlier than our guests so we could do some laundry from Father's Day and clean out some clothes that the kids' have grown out of and needed to replace. We got that all done and were able to enjoy dinner at Captain Lou's on the river (which we only discovered last year but has become a family favorite) and then a nicer dinner at Clearbrook Golf Course the next night followed by fireworks in downtown South Haven. Lots of fun and celebrating! 

Dinner at Clearbrook

Our guests arrived and we sat down and had a few drinks/appetizers before heading over to our friend's house where the other half of our 4th of July party awaited with some smoked brisket. They had just put in a new pool area which was amazing so we had dinner poolside before heading to their beach for a private fireworks show. After the beach, the boys all cooled off in the pool. 

The next day, we had a big breakfast followed by lots of beach time. We got out the lily pad and Austen and Peyton anchored it in the sandbar so after swimming out there, we all could relax on a floating dock. We played lots of "see how many short passes we could get without letting the ball hit the water." Turns out it's easier to do with a smaller group than a group of 10 but we had lots of fun trying. The weather was perfect and while we had dinner plans, we opted for Plan B - which was to stay at the beach longer and cook in. Our guests ran to the store for burgers and hot dogs. Tom grilled them up. We had lots of chips, some leftover fruit, salad and lots to drink. So it was the perfect way to wind down the evening before our friend, Perry, played his ukulele and we all sang along. There was also bags played, cards dealt, board games played and some bocce ball. Austen left halfway through the evening with a neighbor girl. Hmm...but we still had lots of fun without him! 

On Sunday, we had another big breakfast before we all headed into crazy traffic to get home. Took us only 3 hours and 40 minutes (which was the shortest of all of our friends) so we felt lucky even though it was normally two hours without traffic (which really doesn't exist in the summer months). We did make it back in time for Peyton to work her lifeguarding shift at 4:30pm!

Another great 4th of July in Michigan spent with good friends and accompanied by good food and drink. 

4th of July Fireworks - look at that sunset!

SoHa Fireworks from the bluff

Waiting for the fireworks to begin