Life Update

Hello there! How are you? I hope you’re having an awesome summer! I know it has been a minute since my last post. This summer has been busy with the transition moving out of our cottage and visiting Ohio for a week. My last post was a stroll down memory lane celebrating 12 years of marriage so today I thought I would catch you up on more recent McCarthy events.

End of June

Drew had a speech clinic camp the last week of June, so I enjoyed some quality time with Lucas and Owen. Some highlights included hiking the Boardman River and visiting the beach. We also ventured into a touristy souvenir shop for the first time that we pass every day on the way to school. It has a giant grizzly bear in front, and every morning Owen says, “Good morning bear!” It’s pretty darn cute.

We had to be out of our cottage by July 1st, so life was busy packing and getting things ready for tenant season. Next year, however, we plan to enjoy the 4th at the lake and give ourselves a little more time. The 4th should be spent in the north! Especially at the lake;)

Here’s a few more pictures from that last week of June. We met daddy one day for lunch at The Original Flapjack Shack, which I mentioned in my last Friday favorites post. It’s also been a minute since I have done one of those too, so hopefully I’ll get back to it this Friday!

Ryan picked up our new camper July 1st and we spent one night there before heading home to Ohio for a week. We’re staying at Turtle Lake Campground and really enjoying it so far. It’s very family friendly, has a pretty lake with a beach, and that northern Michigan vibe. We already booked for next year!

Unfortunately, the day we got our new camper, I came down with a TERRIBLE case of poison ivy so didn’t enjoy the camper as much as I would have liked. However, Ryan walked the boys down to the lake to watch the firework show. A very generous woman also bought them each an ice cream from the campground store. So, it’s safe to say the boys had a much better first night at the campground than I did!

July 2-8

It would take multiple blog posts to cover our whole week in Ohio, but I will share some highlights with you!

The biggest was our day trip to Cedar Point on July 4th! My parents came along too, but unfortunately my mom wasn’t feeling well so they had leave early.

It was exciting for Drew and Lucas to ride some of the bigger rides like the Corkscrew and Gemini. Owen wanted too as well! We’ll see if that changes when he is actually tall enough. The boys lasted all day, and we stuck around for the fireworks. It was a great show, but not so fun in the parking lot after. It made for a long day, but very memorable.

The next day, the boys got to have a cousin sleepover at grandma’s and grandpa’s house! Of course, they had a blast. That also meant Ryan got poker night with the guys and I got a girl’s night out. I always make sure to see my girlfriends when I’m home!

On Thursday of that week, we experienced both the Glass City Metropark and a Mud Hens game, both Toledo favorites of ours. The Glass City Metropark has a special place in our hearts, especially Ryan’s, since he led Phase 1 a few years ago. It has turned out absolutely amazing! The boys love the little splash rivers the best. My close friend Haley also joined us with her son Connor.

Even though we lost the Mud Hens game it was still lots of fun! The boys got autographs from Muddy and Madonna which they were pretty stoked about.

We spent lots of quality time with both sides of the family having dinner together and hanging out. The boys enjoy their cousins so much and it is hard that we don’t get more time with them now. We truly make it count when we do!

Camper Life!

The last few weeks have been getting settled into our camper and making it home. It still has a way to go but we’re getting there! The boys LOVE the campground. They have made lots of friends already and fortunately love to spend time here. Whenever I suggest going somewhere, they always want to stay!

I plan to write a whole post in the near future about living in a camper. For now, I will say it is going a lot better than I thought and we’re really loving it. Last Friday night, we had our first campfire with smores and fun family conversation. The boys stayed up way too late but that’s what summer is all about, right?

We are also living in a different area now from the cottage which has also been pretty cool to explore. We’re close to Frankfort and the Platte River so we definitely have some new up north adventures in our future. Last Sunday, we spent the afternoon at Beulah Beach which was a lot of fun. We also checked out Five Shores Brewing and the Michigan Mule was delicious!

A few more photos from our Beulah Beach day…

Having a family is just so special and to live this life of adventure together is everything. As always, thanks for reading and stopping by!