Michigan: Sleep Happens

Add the tiny town of Vandalia, Michigan to the list of places where magical, mythical things happen.

Number One: Adeline slept. In a new place and in a Pack n Play, a combination that drove her (and us) to hysterics two weeks ago.

The secret? The room Joey and I shared had the world’s smallest twin beds. They were more like cots. Cut in half. The first night, Adeline was scared and tried sleeping with me. Do you know what happens when you stick anything into an itty bitty bed with a huge pregnant lady besides a pillow and a pint of ice cream? It falls out. Addy fell out of the bed not once, but twice. And before sunrise, she was asking to sleep in the Pack n Play. Success!

Number Two: On our last vacation, Adeline not only feared sleep, she also morphed from a water-loving kid into one that found it to be incredibly sketchy. This time, she spent hours in the water and even jumped off the dock into her daddy’s arms several times.

The secret? On the first night there, the other 4 kids we were vacationing with were having a blast in the water. I let Addy sit and watch them from the dock until she started asking to go in. I was so thrilled, I didn’t even change her into her swimming suit. In she went, t-shirt, shorts, regular diaper and all. And then the diaper absorbed every drop of water in the lake. It is truly amazing how much liquid those things can hold.

Number Three: Little girls who don’t eat meat (besides the occasional chicken nugget) scarf down entire pieces of ham.

The secret? Our friends’ super sweet 5-year-old daughter, who helped encourage Adeline to take bite after bite until she had happily devoured one whole slice of lunch meat. It may not sound like much to get excited about, but to a mom painfully accustomed to watching her child refuse most food, seeing this was wonderful.

Number Four: Adeline discovered that heaven consists of miles of train tracks, dozens of Thomas the Train toys and the Disney movie, Cars. Now that I’m pregnant with a son, I’m hoping she doesn’t turn out to be 100 percent tom boy.

The secret? Vacationing with three little boys, ages 3, 4 and 6.

We had a fantastic time on our vacation, largely because of the friends we were with and the kiddos they brought with them.

I know, the photo’s dark and they’re hard to see. That’s okay, they’re kind of a shady bunch anyway.

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Also, we had a large selection of water toys to enjoy on the blue and sandy-bottomed waters of Birch Lake.

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And? One of our friends taught us that if you stick your legs through the arm holes of a life vest, you end up with an awesome floaty chair.

Thanks to our friends for the invitation to tag along and crash at their lake front rental, and for helping my daughter kick a few new fears in the butt. Who would have thought Michigan could deliver so much in 72 hours?

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