Just before the school year ended, Juliet felt something that she thought was a filling come off of her tooth, and could feel a hole. She wasn't in any pain, but I called down to her dentist to get her an appointment. First available wasn't for a few weeks, but I took it.
It must have been a Monday or Tuesday, because William didn't want to come, but Alice did! Billy must have been home^, because I wouldn't have left William alone for the hours we were going to be gone.
We arrived almost an hour early (the roads in and around Ann Arbor are in constant construction this time of year) and I was so glad we did. There was no parking. None. We circled and circled, went down below and had no way to turn around, because the "turn around" spot was just a single spot, and in my big ole car, that's not helpful! Luckily, the person next to the turn around spot was leaving, so we had the tiniest bit of space to work with, and with the help of a stranger helping me get closer to a car than I would alone, got out. (I absolutely was not taking the recently vacated spot, as I'd never get out!) But there was still no parking.
I was really glad we had so much time, because it was stressful, and we had time! Finally, I gave up, and returned to the parking garage that we were diverted to one time when they were resurfacing the dental school parking structure. Our luck continued, in that a construction crew had just finished for the day and were all leaving the spots in their trucks!!! So, we had our choice of spots, and still made it to the appointment with time to spare.
The three girls that didn't have an appointment enjoyed their lunch in the atrium, while Juliet and I went to the appointment.
Her appointment was short, and was good news: there was no lost cavity, possibly just some buildup that came loose! So, now flossing is now a joint Mutti/Juliet responsibility, to prevent future false alarms!
The appointment finished, we took a bit to walk around the UofM campus.
It was really warm (like 90+) so the spray from the fountain felt really good!
Back in the parking garage, Alice and Grace chose to take the stairs instead of the elevator, but this turned out to be a mistake, as they weren't able to come down the way they'd gone up. Emily and Juliet went after them, thinking they were just being slow, and they also disappeared. If I learned anything in girl scouts, it's stay where they last saw you, so there I stood, with four missing children and no cell service. sigh. At least they were in pairs?
Alce and Grace made it down first, and they were then confined to the car (which was in my line of sight, and had the windows down.) Finally, Emily and Juliet reappeared, they had the same issue as Alice and Grace, ended up in the wrong elevator, but finally figured it out. Once everyone was accounted for, we were able to leave!
On our way to adventure we ended up stuck in stop and go traffic on HWY 23, so Billy helped us find a different state park to add to our list. Emily was my navigator, and photographer on this "Natural Beauty Road." It's a dirt road in Washtenaw County, and it is pretty, but I like the area around Gull Lake in Kalamazoo County better.
Under Emily's directions, we made it!!! It was the busiest entrance to a state park I'd experienced!!! Usually when we stop for these pictures, we see a car or two, but not a dozen!
Changed and sprayed! This was the first time this summer the kids were in swimsuits, and three of them requested new ones.
Considering the number of people at the park, there were lots of geese**! They also got really close to me in my chair.
We had a long drive ahead of us, so we only spent an hour or so there, but they had a good time. I was sweaty and sticky in my chair, but the edge of the lake was down from the grassy area, and so it would have been hard to sit on the edge with my feet in the water (and not pitch myself face first into the lake. lol.)
It was a really pretty park, and there were tons of people in large groups! Plenty of parking, which was really nice. They also had a shop, but we brought our own food, so I couldn't tell you what fare they served, but probably beach favorites and ice cream. I know for sure they offered floatation rentals though!
I love exploring our adopted state with my dear ones.
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
*this post marks the start of the project, and as such, has information about what I hope to accomplish!
**there were two small boys who were chasing the ducks, unrelated as far as I could tell, one of whom was shooting water at them. I was not upset with the boys, because they were quite young, but their minders needed to be reprimanding them. I could not believe they were letting them be so cruel to the animals! But then in the water I saw a grown man splash water at the group as they were swimming by, so I guess people are just rude in this area of the state. As pretty as the park was, these happenings left a bad taste in my mouth, and I have no desire to return to this park.
^in a particularly sad twist, Avia was actually in the state, but had her own appointment at close to the same time, so she wasn't able to go with us. We particularly missed her this time!
edit 7-21-24: backdated for continuity.
