78 Michigan Parks: Lake Port State Park #57

Juliet complained of some pain in her tooth, so I set up an emergency appointment for her, unfortunately it was a few weeks out.  Not too long after, Grace was complaining of pain, but Juliet said her pain had resolved, so I simply switched the appointment over to Grace.  A few days before the appointment, Grace said her pain had resolved, but William had a tooth that was bothering him.  So, I called one more time to change the appointment over to William.  Since it was due to be a short visit, Emily, Grace, Juliet, and Avia all came along so that we could go on an adventure afterward!

We made the quick walk over to Palmer Commons to drop off batteries, writing utensils, and printer ink cartridges in the recycling receptacle.  We also learned that they would recycle dead cell phones!  So those can now be added to our stash.

Ultimately, the dentist didn't see much, but indicated that his tooth enamel is quite thin, which we already knew, and that he would probably have these aches until he had crowns covering the teeth or implants replacing the teeth.  = (

Once the appointment was over, we joined back together to head out on our adventure.  After looking at the map, Avia said she was game for a six-hour thumb tour, so that we could hit four state parks!

The first stop was Lakeport State Park, which Emily had visited earlier in the summer with Abby's family.

The parking lot was a bit of a walk from the beach, and it was an overcast day, but we enjoyed walking along the beach, even if the wind was a bit chilly.

We saw a couple of groups collecting rocks from the beach, and found a few pretty ones ourselves!

Emily said that she thought the water was lower, because when they were there, the rocks were covered at the top edge of the water, but for our trip the waterline was below the rock barrier.

I found a pretty waterfall to send to Billy.

And then all the kids wanted in the picture too!

The twins found a surfboard shaped rock!

Facing south, as we were on the American side of Lake Huron.

On our way north, to the next State Park, I found my first ever fully touch screen gas pump.  I didn't like it.  This was on the backside, I took it while mine was pumping, so that I could show off the octane rating selection, which disappears once you start pumping.

Avia searched the map for a quaint ice cream shop, and found one in Port Austin.  The downtown area was super cute and very pedestrian friendly!

Everyone got something tasty, and it was a short trip to our next state park!

later days

edit 8-17-25: backdated for continuity.

If you want to see all the ones we've visited so far, here are the links to the posts:

Tahquamenon Falls #15
Keith J Charters #33
Silver Lake State Park #49
Muskegon State Park #50*
Newaygo State Park #51
PJ Hoffmaster State Park #52
Grand Haven State Park #53
Ionia State Park #54
Sleepy Hollow State Park #55
Metamora-Hadley Recreation Area #56
Seven Lakes State Park #58
Holly Recreation Area #59
Algonac #60
Holland State Park #61
Island Park State Recreation Area #63b
Highland Recreation Area #64b
Pontiac Lake Recreation Area #65
Dodge #4 State Park #66a
Bald Moutain State Recreation Area #66b
Fort Custer Recreation Area #69
Waterloo Recreation Area #70a
Pickney State Recreation Area #70b
WJ Hays State Park #71
Belle Isle Park #72
Van Buren State Park #73

Lake Hudson Recreation Area #77

Sterling State Park #78

78 Michigan Parks: Lake Hudson Recreation Area #77

After a pleasant first park visit, Lake Hudson was a little underwhelming. It was surrounded by farmland, instead of forest, and the signage left something to be desired.

The twins checking out other dark sky preserves in our adopted state.

The third side of this informational sign had a map of the park, so we were able to locate the picnic and beach area. The park redeemed itself a bit when the twins found the sandy beach!

Felt nerdy and took a picture of the "blood leaf**" looking plants.

Since we brought no tools or toys, the girls got creative when it came to building their sandcastle.  This green leafy seaweed made a decent sponge, and allowed them to bring water to their structure.

It was an absolutely beautiful day to visit the beach, and since we were there so early, only one other family was visiting during our time there!

The finished product!

Zoom in to the stick and rock adornments.

At around noon we started our trip to the dentist.  The girls took turns on this trip being the navigator with my phone, and both did an excellent job!

We were quite early, but they had Zootopia playing in the waiting area, so it made the wait go faster, and Juliet's appointment was also surprisingly quick, considering they did a couple of fillings and reattached her crown!!!

As always, it's really nice to have goals when it comes to exploring this 'new' state, and the parks today were a pleasant adventure to help offset the drive to the dentist.

later days

**A fallout 76 reference.

If you want to see all the ones we've visited so far, here are the links to the posts:

Tahquamenon Falls #15
Keith J Charters #33
Silver Lake State Park #49
Muskegon State Park #50*
Newaygo State Park #51
PJ Hoffmaster State Park #52
Grand Haven State Park #53
Ionia State Park #54
Sleepy Hollow State Park #55
Metamora-Hadley Recreation Area #56
Seven Lakes State Park #58
Holly Recreation Area #59
Algonac #60
Holland State Park #61
Island Park State Recreation Area #63b
Highland Recreation Area #64b
Pontiac Lake Recreation Area #65
Dodge #4 State Park #66a
Bald Moutain State Recreation Area #66b
Fort Custer Recreation Area #69
Waterloo Recreation Area #70a
Pickney State Recreation Area #70b
WJ Hays State Park #71

Belle Isle Park #72
Van Buren State Park #73
Sterling State Park #78

edit 6-8-25: backdated for continuity.

U of M, Before Tooth Extraction

William was having some teeth removed, so that his orthodontic treatment could begin.  Sadly, this should have been a sedation visit, and the poor guy was wildly uncomfortable, so they only removed half of what they were planning.  He has to wait until he's 13 (so November) before they will perform surgery on him, which gives us time to get all of our paperwork in order!

We arrived quite early, and so we spent some time walking around the campus.

Why are there doors here?

It was sunny, but still chilly, but that didn't stop the college kids from going outside to catch some sun!

We saw this cool building, but ended up taking the long way around to get to the front.

They weren't open for tours yet, and really, we wouldn't have had that much time, but it is a cool historical site!

A warning seal we spotted on our walk back to the dental clinic.

I'm glad we did the fun things before, because he was very unhappy when we left.  And, as if that weren't bad enough, he wasn't able to play his instrument or participate in track for two weeks, because his roots were so close to his sinuses. = (

Next time should be a less traumatic experience for my poor little boy, and hopefully he won't miss out on any concerts or track meets!

later days

edit5-13-25: backdated for continuity.

Snowy Dentist Trip

Billy started his new job on December 2nd, and our insurance also started December 2nd, however, we weren't in the system yet, so I had rescheduled all of our early December appointments, but only rescheduled to late December for this one.  And, of course, this would be a snowy, gross day to drive half-way across the state!

I picked William up an entire hour earlier than usual, which is hilarious, because he had an early release at 11, which is the normal time I collect him for a 1pm appointment in Ann Arbor.  I don't have any regrets though, I would rather be terribly early, than running late.

We had enough time to walk over to the building with the recycling containers, (we bring writing utensils, batteries, and ink containers there to recycle,) and eat a leisurely lunch in the atrium! They've updated the museum since the last time we ate in there!  And they are working on the other side.

And, sadly, they did away with the medieval tooth worm display, and now have up retro dental info. = (

I was planning to make a crock pot meal for dinner (because after a long drive, I really don't feel like cooking,) but Billy vetoed that, and was going to order a pizza.  Well, since the roads were only okay, and the snow was falling again* we left Ann Arbor, with only a quick stop at the thrift store.**

Once we got close to Lansing, I had William message Billy to order the pizza.  Because we were so close, we needed to use up some time.  We did so by going through the car wash and stopping at Carl's to buy some root beer!  = )

The carwash has some colorful soap, to be sure!

We had no issues, and the only issue we saw was a car fire near Jackson, and it was on the opposite side of the interstate, so it didn't much affect us at all.

I told the dentist that we almost didn't come, but she was glad we did, and William got his appliance put on, and we have our next appointment scheduled!  No state park adventure this time.

later days

 *at one point in my drive, my hand started having the pins and needles, because I was holding the steering wheel so tightly.  Definitely a white knuckle drive!

**which I couldn't even enjoy, because the snow was coming down too hard, and I was concerned about our drive home.

12-22-24 backdated for continuity.

78 Michigan Parks: Seven Lakes State Park #58

The day after William's birthday, he had a double dental appointment in Ann Arbor.  First up was a 3D scan for his orthodontist to get the full picture for his long-term treatment.  It was a short procedure, so I was really glad that we had a second appointment to make the drive worth it.

Our next stop was his regular dental clinic to get some fillings in.  That procedure was a little longer, but the day was fair and it was still early, so we went on an adventure!

We were navigating to a different state park, but I saw the state park sign on the interstate, so we followed the signs to Seven Lakes State Park, excited to see a lake or two, presumably.  We snuck in a sign picture, while I parked in a no parking zone (shhhhh!)

Sadly, when we rushed back to the car (not that anyone was going in or out) we saw the closed sign. = (  Sure enough, on google it advises that they are indeed closed at the moment.

If we are given the chance, I'd like to go back, but I'm marking it off the list for now.

later days

If you want to see all the ones we've visited so far, here are the links to the posts:

Tahquamenon Falls #15
Keith J Charters #33
Silver Lake State Park #49
Muskegon State Park #50*
Newaygo State Park #51
PJ Hoffmaster State Park #52
Grand Haven State Park #53
Ionia State Park #54
Sleepy Hollow State Park #55
Holland State Park #61
Island Park State Recreation Area #63b
Dodge #4 State Park #66a
Bald Moutain State Recreation Area #66b
Fort Custer Recreation Area #69
Waterloo Recreation Area #70a
Pickney State Recreation Area #70b
Belle Isle Park #72
Van Buren State Park #73

Sterling State Park #78

backdated for continuity: 11-12-24