Perfect Day

As Saturdays go, today was as close to perfect as they come. We spent the day right here in Grosse Pointe at Lakefront Park, which is free to residents. So nice! Gramma & Grampa Bear (My mom & Eric) stayed with us Friday night and then joined us for a picnic at the park today. We got there just in time to secure a primo spot. The weather was perfect, if a touch cool in the shade. We got burgers and enjoyed our food while chatting, laughing, and watching Samantha take in the scenery. She loves watching the trees, and "tasting" the air. Cute. My mom and I started planning her next ten Birthday parties, which will take place at Lakefront Park. There's an awesome pool with a HUGE twisty slide and a kids area, gazebos, grills, a nice playground, and a walking path that goes around the whole park... perfect for summer birthday parties!

Eric lent his headphones to Sam so she could enjoy some opera while taking in the perfect day. It was so cute. And speaking of cute... how about the little girl who came running up to us at our gazebo to show off the "treasure map" she found in a bottle in the lake, along with a treasure chest filled with goodies! It was even buried over in the trail in the woods. Had to follow the map to find it. Good thing the "pirates" left their shovel behind so she could dig it up. For real! I gotta hand it to her parents. Very cool!

I was happy to find out that there's a recreation building on the park grounds that's open year-round. It has a little gym, racquetball courts, pool tables, and some other stuff. And it is also free. YAY I was excited about the treadmills for this winter when I won't be walking outside anymore (can you say "pre-pregnancy jeans")! We all did some exploring at the park when we took our walk on the path that encircles it. We found the dog park, the concession stand (*cough*), some really cool boats, the tennis courts, the Purple Martin feeders, and (again) my mom and I tried to stake out the perfect spot for Sam's 1st birthday party next July. We narrowed it down to two or three different locations. It was fun planning and talking about her future birthdays. I love being a mom. I love being her mom. And I love sharing all this stuff with MY mom! This is the real stuff of life.

Perfect days like this do, however, make me miss our family in Iowa, Florida, Missouri, New York, Tennessee, California, Texas, and those who are waiting for us in paradise. I wish that we could share these special days with all of our treasured ones.
We love you. We miss you. And we think of you all often.