Day 4

Cora turned one today.  We didn't have anything extravagant or exciting planned for her birthday.  Instead we spent it the way she would like.  Cora for most of her life has preferred to nurse and sleep in bed than anywhere else.  For her birthday we set aside the day for her to do that instead of being on the run.  We didn't go anywhere in the morning.  While Cora had a nap, Nyla played in the hotel room with George who made a toilet paper mess.  Buddy and Bohdin went to a bodyworks exhibit at a nearby museum. 

Cora had a really long nap so we didn't do anything until mid afternoon.  We picked some awful raspberries and then headed to one of the beaches in Traverse City.  It was a sandy beach instead of rocky so Cora didn't like it as much.  Bohdin liked it and Buddy and I took turns going out to the buoy with Bohdin.  Nyla mostly stayed near shore and worked on a sand structure and used her hat as a bucket for water.  Once again the water was super clear.  Even when the water was chest high, I could still see my feet clearly.  The entire region was still under a heat advisory but it didn't feel hot to us.  The temperature was one degree away from tying a record high and sixteen degrees above normal.  I wonder if it would have been too cool for us to enjoy the water if the temperature hadn't been so unusually high. 

After the beach we stopped for ice cream and dinner.  Cora didn't magically become a good restaurant baby overnight so it was a trying experience again. 

When I took this picture I noticed the pine trees in the background.  They seemed out of place.