Michigan Family Visit: 7 days, 6 nights, 5 Beds

So if you're wondering where I've been for the past week or so...Hubby & I have been out of town spending most of the last week with his parents in Michigan and enjoying our last extended trip as a family of 2. Hubby took care of most of the planning and we had a great time...even if we did sleep in 5 different beds over the course of 5 nights! ha!

Here's the trip recap...

Bed #1:

We flew out of St. Louis and were also able to work in a St. Louis Cardinals game on Wednesday night before boarding our flight on Thursday. We saw a great game and maybe more importantly we were able to add another very special stuffed animal to Lucy's collection...

Meet Leesy Bird, Elyse's very own Build-a-Bear Fredbird!

Hubby & I with some super fabulous seats!

And the Cards win! Now if we only somehow miraculously pull out a win tonight...we'll be in the Playoffs!

After the game on Wednesday, we got up and caught our flight to Michigan to meet Hubby's parents. We had a quick lunch at their house and then headed out again for our Tour de Michigan, West Coast Style. Hubby had meticulously planned a golfing trip along with West Coast of Michigan aka the East Coast of Lake Michigan... for he & his dad coupled with a shopping trip for me & his mom...with plenty of time in the evenings to have dinner together. He did a pretty incredible job & we had a fabulous trip!

Bed #2:

Our first stop was the Benton Harbor/St. Joseph area of Michigan. Hubby had booked us rooms in an adorable bed & breakfast overlooking Lake Michigan.

Our view from the patio...

Gorgeous sunset! Hubby & I (in what I hate to admit is the only photo I have of us on this entire adventure!)

Our cute bed & breakfast!

Unfortunately, the boys had a tee time that didn't really work out for them to have breakfast but it was so delicious...but that didn't stop my mil & I! We had a delicious homemade breakfast with fresh fruit, eggs verde, and a variety of breakfast coffee cakes! yum! We spent the rest of the day shopping in the area of St. Joseph before heading on to our next destination.

The boys were done golfing fairly early so we met up in Saugatuck for some more shopping in another cute little Michigan lakeside town! I didn't snap any photos...but just imagine streets lined with adorable store fronts and pots overflowing with flowers. I just love Michigan towns!

Bed #3:

After Saugatuck, we drove on into Holland, Michigan for our next overnight stay. This town was my favorite and my mother-in-law had a wonderful shopping day sprinkled with lots of yummy food!

We started out with breakfast at The Biscuit...

I ordered a healthy breakfast of eggs, fruit & a glass of milk fully expecting to share with my MIL...she ordered Pumpkin Mousse French Toast! It was absolutely divine!

The shopping in Holland was wonderful & I managed to find a few things for both myself & Elyse along with the start of my Christmas shopping! After lunch we had to have a little snack...cherry pie ala mode of course @ Crane's in the City! YUM!

Bed #4:

After our shopping time in Holland was done (and the rain began to fall), we headed to Grand Rapids, MI for our last overnight stay. We had a nice dinner with the guys, a nice breakfast the next morning at IHOP, and then my MIL & I headed back to their home in the southeast part of Michigan. We stopped at a few more little towns on the way, but with it being Sunday our shopping options were pretty limited. The boys found their way back late in the afternoon and we spent the rest of the evening relaxing and enjoying some time at my in-laws house.

Bed #5:

We spent the next two nights (Sunday & Monday) at my in-laws house and just enjoyed hanging out with no major plans. Our spending money had pretty much been exhausted, but we did head out for an afternoon movie, Moneyball, and one more nice dinner out as a family @ J. Alexander's. Tuesday morning we got up bright and early & headed back to the airport.

Hopefully this will be our last visit to Michigan while my in-laws still live there! While I would certainly love to visit for vacation in the future I am SO ready for them to be back living in Missouri! Next summer those wishes will hopefully become a reality!

Overall it was a fabulous trip, and Elyse & I seemed to travel quite well together! However, I did mention to Hubby that we WILL NOT be switching locations quite so often once we have a child on our hands!