When we were kids, we experienced all the good things about a Michigan summer. We loved running through the sprinklers, taking a dip in the neighbor’s pool, riding our bikes from sun up until sun down, and of course—going up-north. And now that we’re parents, we’re privileged enough to live this all again through the actions of our children. Yes, as Michiganders, we suffer enough during those long winter months, that by the time summer finally comes along, we don’t take a single second for granted. And now that we’re parents, we value that summer sun even more because it means that our children finally get to go outside an experience our great state—the best state. Only, it’s even better this time around because we get to see the joy of summer through our children’s eyes.
The first few summers with children of your own is almost as magical as Santa Claus. Something as simple as a water table for the toddlers or the slip and slide for the preschoolers makes the edges of everyone’s mouth shoot upward. Before having children of our own, we wouldn’t have thought much about those two simple objects. But after kids, sparklers aren’t only ignited on the Fourth of July, but every day the sun beams down at us and the kids are out of school.
What about that first official up-north trip you take your children on? I’ll never forget the happiness bouncing around in my stomach as we drove the kids to see one of our beautiful “big” lakes. Squeals could be heard all around the beach once we finally got there. It was like they were stepping their feet into the sand of the ocean for the first time. The kids built sand castles, splashed in the water, and took long naps during that first up-north vacation. My husband and I, we got to sit back in the Adirondack chairs sipping on some beers watching our children breathe in their first Michigan summer memories. Those evenings, the air cooled off to the perfect temperature and the humidity faded into the starry sky. I could put a sweatshirt on the kids and start the bonfire. We hunted for the long sticks, poked marshmallows on the tops, and roasted them slowly. Watching my son take his first bite out of that s’more, stretching the goo from his fingertips may have been the single greatest food experience of my life.
Nope, there’s absolutely nothing like a Michigan summer. I never knew just how much I could enjoy reliving my childhood again. Every first summer memory with my own children takes my breath away. Even the simple enjoyment of their first popsicle or stroll to the local ice cream shop feels nostalgic. I’m captivated by the joy my children live during the summer days and hate that at some time it has to stop. Yes, one day they’ll be teenagers and even adults, and that joy from the simple things in life will fade. But until that day comes, I will enjoy watching their eyes grow wide with every summer “first” they have.
