Interlochen....Priceless!

Cost of diesel fuel: $$$$$.$$
Trailer for car: $$$$$.$$
State Park Fees: $$$$$.$$
Being in Interlochen with kids and grands: PRICELESS!!!!

We are now well into our second day with the boys here, and all is going quite well, even as we hoped and expected it would! Kimberly has set out a routine, plus there are activities for the families of the staff here, so we are staying quite busy.

Their cabin is about 1 1/2 miles from where we stay at the state park, right across the road from the Interlochen Campus itself, so we are actually closer to the site for activities. We have decided the easiest way to get here will be on our bikes, so we can all ride bikes up for the various groups and swimming lessons. We get here around 8:40 to get any instructions from the mom, then we begin our day with Jonny and Christian. It is much more fun and productive to begin the morning with games... yesterday a geography card game, today dominoes. Then we all work on school readiness workbooks or flashcards for about an hour, until it is time to up for the singing and fun class. On Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, the boys have swimming lessons at 12:30 and 1, so we can feed them brown bag lunches after the morning activities. Then back at the cabin, we have stories for a while to get settled down. It seems to be a good idea for ALL of us to have some quiet time (naps?) after we get back and have stories! After "quiet time," it's time for snacks and the playground, a great fun time for boys and dogs! If it is a later day for Kim (like Tuesdays - 6), then we get dinner ready for the boys, and sometimes for us, as well. And occasionally, if we get finished early, the special treat they love is to play card games on our computer! One wonderful thing for them are the other families up here... a bunch of kids in their age range, so they are having a great time playing together. That should be giving them so many wonderful memories about being a kid in the summer at Interlochen!

As for us, we are enjoying it, too! Walking to and from the activities this morning, we passed so many practice "cabins" with baby grand pianos being played by terrifically talented kids! Other cabins had sounds of flutes, clarinets, trumpets, and French horns, all practicing diligently, and all talented! What a joy to hear the lovely music and the accomplished musicians! We can only hope and wish that some of our grands will one day be occupyig one of those practice cabins, making such beautiful music!

This area is so lovely, so peaceful, and so delightful! We had so enjoyed it four years ago when Jonny was only two, and now here we are, enjoying it once again, only Jonny is now 6, and Christian is 4! The birds sing, the flowers bloom, the lake glistens, and all seems well with the world here! We could only wish for that feeling everywhere! Peace to all of you!