Tuesday, July 28, 2009

A Day At The Lake

The only weekend that we spent in Michigan was spent at my in-laws house on the lake. They bought this house a few summers ago, but this is the first time that we have stayed here and let me tell you that they boys loved it! They would've stayed here the whole week if I would've let them! It was so beautiful and so relaxing....aaaahhhhh! We went up Saturday afternoon and stayed until Monday morning. It was so perfect! I loved watching the sunset the 2 nights that we were there. Nothing better than a sunset over water!
Here are the boys looking out when we first arrived. Their house is up on a cliff, so you look out and down and to actually get to the water you have to walk down lots and lots of stairs!

After we got there, Papa took them fishing on the dock. Mind you, my hubby and I are not outdoorsy type people, except when it involves sports, so this is the first exposure that the boys have had with fishing. To say that they loved it, is an understatement!!! Brendan has already asked for a fishing pole from Santa!!

And guess what...Brendan actually caught a FISH!!! He was beyond excited! Papa thinks it was a Pike, but we threw him back in, so no fish dinner for us that weekend!
This is my FAVORITE picture!

Gramma and the boys on the boat the next morning (Sunday).
We had lots of fun tooling around the lake on the boat.

Throughout the day, we took 3 boat rides and on one of them, Papa let the grandkids (pretend) to drive! They thought it was so cool to drive a boat.
After our morning boat ride, we went back to the house to wait for all of the cousins to arrive. Ryan's mom made arrangements to have everyone over for lunch so we could see everyone in a one stop visit! In total, 3 of Ryan's 5 siblings came with their families. It was fun to see everyone since we had not seen them since Christmas of 2007. There are a total of 11 grandkids.

Swimming in the lake
All the cousins...hard to get 11 wiggly kids to look and smile at the same time with the sun in their eyes, posing for a picture! We bribed them with ice cream and that really didn't even work! It was worth a try though! Ages of the cousins range from 2 to 11 years old.

Here we are posing with Gramma & Papa


After ice cream and a little whiffle ball, some of the cousins had to leave. We were sad to say good bye.
Ryan's oldest brother, Brett, and his family decided to stay and play for awhile longer! We ordered pizza and while waiting, the kids decided to take another dip in the lake! I had so much fun trying to play photographer with the sun set.


When everyone finally left and the sun went down, we headed inside to chill out. The boys had fun just laying around with Papa talking and laughing...telling jokes and stories!

The boys with Gramma & Papa just before calling it a night!

Thanks Gramma & Papa for getting us all together to have a super fun day at your lake house! We had so much fun swimming & taking boat rides & fishing & playing whiffle ball & eating ice cream at the lake house.
We can't wait to go back!

21 comments:

He & Me + 3 said...

what a fun fun time you had and that silhouette picture of them fishing on the dock. Fantastic! HOpe that you can do that again next summer and then come see me again.
Miss you all.

Carrie said...

I LOVE the sunset pics,too! So beautiful! That looks so fun! I see many more trips here! What a wonderful place! Love the picture of all the kids! Those are always the best!

Stacy said...

Yes,The picture of them fishing is beautiful!! Wow, the grandparents house looks really nice and fun sitting on that lake:)

Everyday Mom Designs said...

Great pictures! Looks like fun!!

Sneaky Momma said...

Awesome! Looks like you guys had an amazing time! If I had access to a lake house like that, I'd be there every weekend!
Way to go, Brendan! That was some catch!
I must confess that when I see Brendan's name, I think of Brendan Morrow, instead of Shanahan. Have I ever told you I'm a big hockey fan, too? :)

christy rose said...

What a great opportunity to go to a lake house with Gramma and Papa. I love the cousins picture. There is just something about that extension of the family that makes you feel even more special. My kids love hanging out with their cousins.
The silhouette picture of them fishing is awesome too! It looks like you all had a great time and made a lot of memories.

Darcie said...

It honestly looked like the most perfect day. There is something to just spending time with the grandparents that does the heart good!

I loved the sunset pictures too.

More Than Words said...

Oh my gosh, their house is beautiful!!! I would not want to leave!!!!!

It sounds like you all had a wonderful time w/ the extended family!!!

E @ Scottsville said...

Okay, first of all their grandma SURE LOOKS YOUNG!!! Wow!

And secondly, I'm so jealous. I love the lake and the water and the fun! I wanna go!!!!!

Thirdly, love that beautiful suset picture with the boys' silhouettes in front of it. Great job, Mom!

Jane Anne said...

That's my dream house. Seriously, I dream of retiring and living in a house on the lake like that. How wonderful!! We had 11 cousins together in August. It was crazy trying to get pictures- but so very worth it!

Debra Kaye said...

Oh Stacey,

This is just beautiful. The home overlooking the water...well, you know how much I love that!

And what an adventure for all of the grandkids to get to fish with grandpa...something every grandson should get to do!

I enjoyed this so much! Thanks for sharing sweet friend.

Five Moms & A Blog said...

I'm with Erica, their grandma looks really young! Wow.

Looks like a wonderful place to visit. How much fun! My kids loved visiting their grandparents but no lake, lol.

However, we did go camping with my parents alot when they were little.

Five Moms & A Blog said...

Ooops, that was me, Nan!

~ Nan

Mocha Momma said...

I love lakes and staying in cabins and houses on lakes.

As a kid some friends of my folks' would let us stay at their lake place at least once every summer. I loved it.

What beautiful sunsets and fun times you enjoyed.

Tim said...

What fun that was. We just love going to the lake.

Thanks so much for the kind comments. We are so blessed to have such a sweet friend like you Stacey.

Love and Prayers,

Tim and Carey

Rune said...

Looks like you have a great time.

Great pictures:)

W

Five Moms & A Blog said...

Now that is a silhouette!!! Looks like a total blast and a beautiful place!!! ;)

Five Moms & A Blog said...

Oops...that was me...TARAH

-stephanie- said...

What a beautiful place. Looks like a grand time.

Rachel said...

What a beautiful lake house! I love those sunset shots - and the kids look like they are having a blast! It's so much fun getting the whole big family together, isn't it?!

Woolverton Girl said...

Looks like you guys had a great time. I love the sunset pictures on the lake. Silhouette pictures are great by the lake, I love them. You did a great job.