Part 2 – Grand Haven, Michigan

Did you catch my blog post about my girl’s trip to Palm Springs, California (Part 1 of 2)? To read that post, click HERE. To recap the research on why it’s a great idea and the benefits:

long term happiness

improved mental health

critically important as we age

increased longevity

and I’d add just plain FUN, JOY and LAUGHTER!

This particular trip was with my closest college friends! We met our freshman year in Stevenson North (dorm) at Northern Illinois University August 1979. We became roommates our junior and senior year! I’m blessed to call them my forever friends. Similar to my grade school/high school friends, we’ve been by each other’s sides for all the good times and all the challenging times – when necessary, we send up smoke signals and circle up with support! With the exception of Annie, who lives in California, I see Lynn and Lori regularly as we live in relative close proximity. Our get togethers are usually marathons spanning an entire day of eating, drinking, laughing, shopping, etc. So getting to spend uninterrupted quality time all together on our trip was such a wonderful gift. Many zoom meetings and researching destinations went into planning our final destination.

Celebrating Our 50th Birthday Ten Years Ago

We took our first celebratory trip ten years ago to celebrate turning 50! First, we flew into the Hamptons and spent several days there. Then we went on to New York City for the remainder of our trip. In preparation for this post, I took a trip down memory lane and pulled out my photo albums. I don’t recall if I took the pictures with a camera (which I think I did) or used my phone and sent them to be printed. My how the times have changed but our friendship hasn’t and has stood the test of time! We are FOREVER FRIENDS!

Here’s a couple of pictures from that trip, which we still reminisce about and laugh about today! There were quit a few “moments” that have become classics in our memories! We did all the touristy type things!

Celebrating Our 60th Birthdays

Road Trip to Grand Haven

We left from Lori’s house on a Friday. Most of that day was spent driving as there was quit a bit of traffic and construction on the way up. Despite the longer ride, we had lots of fun singing to our old disco tunes, laughing and getting caught up! We are never at a shortage for conversations! There might have been quit a few bathroom pit stops along the way! LOL Once we got checked into our hotel we headed out to find a spot to eat. We totally lucked out with Snug Harbor. We got right in and had a beautiful view!

There is great walking along the river and a large band shell. We were thrilled to find live music that night! The locals were super friendly and offered us suggestions on what to do, where to eat and what to see.

The band was good and the people watching was great! It totally felt like a slice of Americana and summer! Kids and parents alike were dancing and enjoying themselves. We even saw kids flipping into the lake! Boats sailed by and the sunset was beautiful! The end to a fabulous day one together!

Day Two

Right outside of our hotel was a walking, running, biking path. So we headed out in the morning to get our walk in before we went out for the day. We tried to identify activities that we all enjoy and the days that the weather was suppose to cooperate with said plans. We decided the second day would be our day of shopping and our official birthday dinner out in our 60th finery! Downtown Grand Haven had many shops and eateries.

Morning Walks

The path lead along the river, which provided beautiful scenery including the gorgeous homes, boats and landscaping! The hydrangeas were so vibrant and colorful!

Shopping

Celebrating

We wanted to find a restaurant that was high energy and a lot of fun the night we went out in our 60th birthday tiaras, sashes and glasses. We did some pre-celebrating, dancing, laughing and drinking in our rooms prior to heading out as well as a photo shoot before the storm blew in and almost blew us away!

Everyone we encountered was super friendly and always wished us a happy birthday! We received so many compliments and well wishes! The girl in this picture was vacationing from Texas. She was loving on us big time!

The Grand Haven Musical Fountain is a synchronized display of water and lights in Grand Haven, Michigan located on Dewey Hill on the north shore of the Grand River, not far from the Grand’s mouth at Lake Michigan and Grand Haven State Park. Shows run nightly from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Each night is a different theme. It was the perfect way to end our evening!

Day Three

Rosy Mound Natural Area

This was definitely Annie’s happy place! Rosy Mound is a classic Great Lakes dune area including high wooded dunes, wooden walkways, and beach access. A .7 mile (one way) hiking trail from the parking area to the Lake Michigan shoreline includes 1,000 feet of stairs up and down the dunes, scenic views of the woods, and Lake Michigan. Believe me when I tell you it was A LOT of stairs! This was truly a beautiful park and a perfect weather day for a hike!

It was easier for me to take two stairs at a time and run/jog when going up!

On our hike back, we were stopped by the nicest man. He directed us to take a different return route in order to see the redwood pines and the sun shining through! It was spectacular! Grateful he told us about it or we probably would have missed it! The pictures don’t do it justice! It was so peaceful and serene! For some reason, it reminded me of the bamboo forests in Maui – same feeling of serenity and peace!

Grand Haven State Park and Beach

After our hike, we put on our swimsuits, packed up some drinks and snacks, and headed to the beach for some sun and fun! Grand Haven State Park has a beautiful sandy shore on Lake Michigan along the west side of the park and the Grand River along the north side of the park. The park consists entirely of beach sand and provides scenic views of Lake Michigan and the Grand Haven pier and lighthouse.

Lori gave me this book as part of my birthday present. We had fun reading some of the affirmations and facts while sunning on the beach!

Doesn’t everyone wear their rhinestone encrusted 60 glasses on the beach? Why not? We do!

We tried to eat dinner at Noto’s at the Bil-Mar. Both the inside and the outside dining looked really great. Due to Covid, most places were short workers. As a result, their waiting list was full until they closed that evening plus they had an event going on inside. We ended up driving around trying to find someplace to eat. We landed at Porto Bello. It didn’t really matter where we ended up as we still had a good time! We went for a few drinks at Tip a Few before heading back to our hotel where we hung out together and continued our conversations…we’re never at a loss for things to chat about!

Last Day ~ Heading Home

We slept in a little before we grabbed breakfast, packed up the car and headed out. We had decided that we were going to stop downtown Grand Haven for one super quick shopping stop and some smoothies at Jumpin Java Coffee House. Their Very Berry smoothie is absolutely DELICIOUS!!! The four of us highly recommend it!

Lynn’s shirt sums up our trip and our friendship: “The Best is Yet to Come”! We may all be 60 but we still have lots of living, lots of fun and lots of adventures in our future! Always remember: You’re never too old! It’s never too late! So grateful for these wonderful women and can’t imagine my life without them in it! Looking forward to our 70th Birthday Celebration Trip! Where should we go? Maybe we should start going away together more often … like our 65th might be fun!

Let’s Chat

Now that you’ve read Part 1 Palm Springs, California and Part 2 Grand Haven, Michigan have I convinced you that you should celebrate your birthday by taking a girl’s vacation? Have you gone on a girl’s get away? If so, where did you go and what was the best part? Leave us a comment! We love to hear from you!

Let’s Get Social

Follow us on Instagram (HERE) and Facebook (HERE) 

Subscribe to YouTube (HERE)

This post contains affiliate links, meaning when you click on an item or purchase an item, I may receive a very small commission for the click or purchase. These picks are NOT sponsored, are selected solely by me, and opinions are entirely my own.