Summer Vacation Awesomeness

We decided this year to take an official vacation for/from summer vacation.  Anne found a sweet little cottage at Sodus Point a place where she had vacationed as a child with her family.  I had been there recently on bike rides, but this was to be a week-long excursion, exploring the all that Sodus Point had to offer.

So here is our trip:

Day 1 Saturday: arrived at the cottage unpack be impressed by how pretty it was and then walk over to Damien and Annette Weidmann's Cottage for dinner with the Boy Scouts. It rained pretty hard the first night and we didn't do anything else afterwards.


Day 2 Sunday. Fishing in the morning got one perch and then and then we went kayaking with Annette and the kids. William, Ambrose and I had a hard time getting back because of heavy wind.  Everyone was worried about us but we made it back to successfully. At 4:00 Jack and Delia came and went to the beach then came back to the cottage and grilled chicken and had a nice dinner then we made Smores by the campfire we had in the backyard.


Day 3 Monday. We went to chimney bluffs in the morning with the Weidman's and then we went to Burnaps farm market for lunch. Afterward we went to the beach and then we came back to the cottage and had fajitas with leftover chicken. We walked up to the main road and got ice cream for dessert


Day 4 Wednesday. Mama came to visit us from Lyons with her friend Jeannie. We had a snack at the cottage, and then Jeannie left.  We went to the Helluva Good cheese store after that bought a few things.  Next, we went to a local gift shop and bought some fudge and some souvenirs. Then we came back to the cottage and decided to go swimming in the warm rain down at the beach.  For dinner, we took Mamma back home and took the opportunity to do some laundry and Mamma fed us ronies.for dinner!


Day 5 Thursday. It started out with a rainy morning but it cleared up and William and I decided to go to chimney bluffs again we hiked along the beach almost all the way to where we started in previous day then the skies got dark and we heard thunder in the distance we turned around and started walking back.  By the time we got back to the car, it was raining. Mary Grace and Mommy went to this souvenir shops for shopping again and we reconvened back at the cottage for lunch then we decided to rent a canoe and tour Sodus Bay by water. We canoed for about 2 hours.  We stopped at one of the islands and the kids swam in the shallow water.  Then we came back to the cottage and went out to dinner at Abes (a tourist trap restaurant on the main road)


Day 6. Friday. Started the morning with a walk on the beach then dragged William to the pier for some unproductive fishing until lunchtime. Then a quick game of kickball with some of the other kids that were vacationing there, followed by a walk to the lighthouse museum for a tour.  The Lighthouse museum was very interesting, but the kids lost interest quickly.


Day 7. Saturday. This is the only downer. Mary Grace woke up with a headache that got worse and worse while we packed and cleaned the cottage.  Finally, on the way home, she threw up which made her feel better.  Returning home was bittersweet. The vacation was over, but it was nice to be home with the kittens and the dead bat that they apparently killed while we were gone.  :)

In summary, we all really enjoyed our time at "The Point".  There was plenty to do, the lake on one side of our cottage and the bay on the other gave lots of opportunities.  I especially enjoyed canoeing on the bay and hikes at Chimney Bluffs park.  It did seem to rain a lot, but we made the most of it with activities like swimming in the rain.

Next stop, Toronto on Friday!

Daddy, now I KNOW that Santa really exists!

This season, with Mary Grace at 9 and William at 8, we expected the inevitable question:  "Is Santa Claus real?"  I can see the school-bus conversations from the kids with older and much-older siblings telling my children that Santa isn't real, along with all the shaming questions like "do you really think it's not your parents?"

So on Christmas morning at 7:50am, the kids came barreling down the stairs to find a multitude of presents under the tree, cookies and milk left for Santa consumed, and carrots and celery left for reindeer munched.

The day was spent opening gifts, playing with gifts and eating a big Christmas dinner.  (Ham this year)  At the end of the day, finally at bedtime, Mary Grace confided in me...

"Daddy, I wasn't sure if Santa was real or not, but now I know he is, because of the different wrapping paper on presents from Santa. I mean, Mommy wouldn't go off and buy special wrapping paper and hide it from us just for Santa's presents, that would be crazy!"

William said something similar:

"Daddy, now I know that Santa is real because I wanted Tetris Bop-It but it was out 

of stock in every store Mommy went to and even on-line but somehow Santa got it for me!"

So, I just want to let the doubters out there know that Santa is alive and well and continuing to fulfill the wishes of children everywhere.