We had a great time camping at Pinery Provincial Park this last week. Andy and I had driven past it many times but had never stopped. We'd heard so many good things that we decided to try it out. It is a very nice park. Our site was quite isolated with lots of trees and we were about 100 yards from the Lake Huron beach which stretches as far as the eye can see. We did lots of swimming and collected cool rocks. Frankie found 3 Petoskey stones which I didn't know you could find on Lake Huron. There were many interesting fossils in the rocks. We took everyone’s bikes this year. The girls didn’t go far but their one mile road trips gave them a good feeling of accomplishment. Frankie got in one long ride with mom and one with dad. We hiked a couple of short trails, went canoeing, played putt-putt and took it easy. We started reading The Phantom Tollbooth and both parents and kids are enjoying it. Everyone managed sleeping in the tent quite well but the girls were getting pretty worn out by Saturday so we came home a day early and spent today vacationing around Ann Arbor. Happily, we managed to avoid poison ivy which was all over the park. For the most part, the kids were very mindful of staying on the trails and learned to recognize the plant. On Friday, however, Frankie wiped out his bike and landed in a big roadside patch. Andy immediately took him to the shower and scrubbed. That's one way to get a 6 year old boy to hurry for a clean up but I wouldn't recommend it. Each year the trips get a little easier. My wish for next year is that the girls will be able to reach the sink faucets without being lifted up. I think I washed my hands about 20 times a day or more (if I count the help that I gave the girls). While driving home we tried to remember what we had done on each day and were unable to piece together the exact sequence of activities and meals. Years from now, we're sure to remember swimming and lots of ice cream. | 
