Fall in Northern Michigan

Fall in Northern Michigan

Last week we took a family trip up to our cabin just outside of Traverse City in northern Michigan. It’s the most perfect place to be in the fall, and despite the less-than-perfect weather (50s! Rain! We had to go out and buy jackets!), we had so much fun … We even managed to finish some big projects, too! Here are a few snaps from our trip.

The whole family went on the trip!

It really is a magical place. I snapped this photo of the swan from the upstairs bedroom window on our first morning there. And yes, that’s how close the water is!

We all enjoyed some apple “juice” at Tandem Ciders in Suttons Bay.

We took the kids to Gallagher’s Farm Market in Traverse City to pick out a pumpkin for the cabin. They were so excited to choose just the right one — not too big, not too small — and us city parents were so excited by the prices, just $3.60 for this 9 pounder! I love that our cabin has a pumpkin out front, even when we’re not there. I’m sure by now the animals have taken it for themselves, and that’s totally fine too. But it goes a long way to making the cabin feel more like our home away from home.

We were also able to finish a bunch of big projects, including getting the oven and dishwasher working, hanging art (well, one thing!), unpacking boxes, starting to organize the kitchen, and of course painting the fireplace. We chose a deep navy called Naval by Sherwin Williams, which they just announced is their color of the year for 2020! We had already chosen it for being a near exact match to our Semihandmade Night Sky kitchen cabinet doors. We still have a few more updates to make before the fireplace is finished — replacing the screen, mounting the TV — but of course the very best part is our new friend Jean Claude, the disco moose! I love him.

On our last night in town the most amazing thing happened. We decided to treat ourselves to a nice dinner out for our last day, so we went to the lovely Martha’s Leelanau Table in nearby Sutton’s Bay, where we enjoyed a delicious meal, all around. Seriously, it’s so good. When it was time to pay our bill, though, the server came over and told us it had been taken care of already.

WHAT??!!

We were so confused!! He said that a couple who wanted to remain anonymous had been so impressed with our children’s behavior and that “in an age of electronic overstimulation” they didn’t have iPads or video games to distract them.

It immediately brings tears to my eyes that someone could be so generous, so unselfish, so truly kind with no need of praise or personal gain. We will never know who it was, never be able to thank them, but we’ll also NEVER forget their kindness. One of the first things Andy said was that we need to make it our life goal to pay that forward someday, maybe when our own kids are all grown up and we see another young family just trying to get through dinner doing the best they can.

This truly is one of the reasons we love the Traverse City area so much — we are constantly amazed by the kindness and friendliness of strangers. Like I said, it’s just a magical place!

Stay tuned for more cabin updates!!