Celebratory Beachyness

So the whole reason my family took a trip down to Michigan was to visit my grandparents, who live in Holland. Holland, Michigan that is. It is a town where while there may be lots of Dutch people/descendants living there, aside from the odd windmill it's nothing like the real deal. But that's not really the point. We always go once a year, usually in the summer to visit, as my grandparents have gotten to the point where long travel really isn't much of an option any more. However, this year was super special, as it will be their 60th wedding anniversary at the end of the month. They got married when they were 22, in New York and went on to have 5 children, one of which is my mom.

There are seven grandkids, of which I am the oldest. I had a lot of fun taking pictures with the little boys on my Nikon. They were quite entertained for a bit at dinner, which can sometimes be difficult when you are 7 or 8 years old!

The girls, that would me and my cousins Sara and Kate, had fun dressing up for the dinner we had in celebration. I got to bust out the dress my mom made for me in the spring. Isn't it pretty? And it fits perfectly too. That's the result of some excellent tailoring on my mom's part. I've learned from her that it's always important to try thing on lots of times along the way!

Of course, we were there for a full week, and the dinner was only part of it. There was lots of time to sit on the deck and play cards. I was fully beaten at Hearts every time we played, but it was fun! I also figured out that if I let someone else deal I could get a round in on the hat I was knitting.
Aren't those colours gorgeous. My friend Victoria is moving to England permanently so I did the one thing I can do. I knit her something. She asked for a beret and picked out this gorgeous skein of Casbah. The pattern is of my own devising, but very simple, so I think I may write it up.

Of course, we also spent lots of time on the beach! Campfires were a must... with s'mores of course.

Goofing off...
There's nothing like a sunset over the water. I'll miss it, but it's nice to know that its still there. See you next year!