The nearly-two year old Leah is quite fun. She dresses herself hilariously, and she gets excellent bedhead at nap time. She’s in love with the iPad, and is not afraid to make herself comfortable on the couch. Best of all, she’s enthusiastic when entertaining, as you can see in the highlight reel of her favorite tricks (single take).
Saugatuck State Park in December
I spent the morning of December 6 hiking down the inner South Trail at SSP, on an overcast cool day. I hiked through the clear-cut areas where park officials are trying to remove an invasive pine species that was introduced by a former owner of the property. It’s an interesting hike, as you emerge from thick stands of Pine into the regenerating dunes, dotted with scrubs of dune grass working to replace the pine. The wind was howling overhead for much of the hike, but I was pleasantly surprised by only a small breeze at my back when I reached the beach.
Rosy Mound Natural Area
After snagging a last-minute pre-order Wii U thanks to Slick Deals on the day of release, I had to swing up to Grand Haven on a Sunday morning to claim my console. Since I was up there, I made my first visit to oddly-named Rosy Mound Natural area, which was pretty busy for a chilly early Sunday morning. This is a great place along the lakeshore, with a couple miles of trails that contain many many stairs and raised boardwalk sections. I encountered lots of fitness freaks out for their morning runs, even though the boardwalk boards were slippery with morning frost. The vivid blue sky had some very interesting cloud patterns, capturing my attention for quite some time.
Two more visits to SSP
I’ve spent many days over the last few months exploring the trails at Saugatuck State Park, mostly kicking myself for not discovering the wide-ranging beauty of this lakeshore park earlier. One of my November hikes was on a cold windy day after a couple days of rain, which meant that much of the beach was free of footprints and primed for photography. The strong wind grabbed leaves and dragged them across the sand, leaving some interesting lines and patterns along the shore. I began my trek on the outer portion of North Trail, coming across some vibrant green mosses scattered on a sandy hillside.
Sunset over Lake Michigan
A few weeks back I had a night without kids and trekked out to Saugatuck State Park to take in the sunset. Despite temperatures in the low 40’s, there were at least a dozen groups of people with the same idea. It turned out to be a great idea for all of us, as the clouds and sky were dazzling. A low-flying prop plane crossed just offshore right before the sun disappeared, which made for an unplanned interesting picture.
The moon also joined us, so I got some decent shots with both (and a jet headed towards Detroit). Click on a thumbnail below to open the gallery, then navigate with your arrow keys:
