Home & location

We have a beautiful wooded 3 acre property, a mile from Lake Michigan. We are surrounded by forest, natural area parks and farms, but we are a 10-15 minute drive from all amenities and shops. It's the best of both worlds. Our modest older home is full of charming character, private and quiet. There's a cozy kitchen with gas stove and bottom freezer fridge (and a larger deep freeze in our garage) a brand new dishwasher, and a newly installed water treatment/softener system. We have a high end natural gas automatic back-up generator on the property so one never needs to worry about power outages. We have excellent fibre optic high speed WiFi - if you are working from home/digital nomads we just have the kitchen table as an 'office' but could possibly set something up downstairs if needed, this can be discussed! There is a small media room with a 55 inch TV, a PS4 and a large DVD film library, along with various streaming platforms. The living room is open plan, there is a sizeable book library to choose from, and we also have a beautiful Buddhist Altar in the living room. The master bedroom is large with a super comfortable California King Size bed, and a good size closet, along with more books! The sitter(s) will use this room, and we will make lots of space for your things. There is one bathroom with full tub and shower, and high efficiency washer and dryer in the 2nd bedroom. Along with hubby's ham radio 'shack', the partially finished basement includes an elliptical (known lovingly in our house as "THE RACK") and weights, and yoga accessories are also available for use. We have a large and wild property - full of birds and wildlife, even in the winter. Deer, raccoon, opossums, chipmunks and many birds. We have binoculars and lots of birding books, and would ask you keep a couple of bird feeders full along with a couple of heated birdbaths. You will have access to our 2017 Nissan Rogue Sport (also known as a Qashkai) for exploring our beautiful area and running errands. (to be discussed with the sitter(s) The closest grocery store/gas station is about 7 minutes south and there is a good sized convenience store/gas station about a mile north of us for emergency groceries. Sitter(s) will have full access to all our food/pantry items, and we are also happy to bring in specific things you might need! :) (maybe just keep a wee list of what gets used up so we can replenish once home....) Our home is less than 15 minutes drive to historic and charming Holland, Michigan, full of lovely shops, a great library, museum and excellent aquatic center. Holland State Park offers the famous "Big Red" lighthouse. There are many parks and walking trails all around this general area and I will provide info. Further south about 25 minutes is the funky and beautiful beach town of Saugatuck, full of artisans and lovely homes and restaurants. 20 minutes north is the excellent lakeside village of Grand Haven, with some wonderful shops and restaurants and a lovely lighthouse to walk to. And if you need an urban/Trader Joe's/Whole Foods fix, Grand Rapids is only about 40 minutes east! We have wonderful neighbours across the street and next door who are happy to assist with any questions while we are away. There are no properties under 2 acres around us so it's a very private, peaceful and quiet area, and there are 2 large natural areas with lovely trails within easy walking distance from the house. The weather can be unpredictable, especially with the climate changing, so it can be a snowstorm one day, next day beautiful blue skies, then rain, a real mixed bag! Our main roads are well plowed and sanded and we have a private contractor who plows our long driveway if there is a big snowfall. There can sometimes be below freezing temperatures, though they don't last long as we are so near the big lake. If you like snowshoeing or cross country skiing there are many places nearby for those activities. OUR BOYS AKA THE OVERLORDS: Sir Murry Tipton of the Alcoves and his brother, Koko the Magnificent aka Detective Nick Koko, came to us as rescues from (since moved away) neighbours who were most definitely not cat people. (a story for when we meet!) They are lovely big cats, with distinctive purrsonalities! Koko is 16lbs and a big love bug once he settles with you. He loves to cuddle up on you when you are watching TV or sitting on the couch reading! Murry aka Furry Murry (and a zillion other pet names we have for him) is more nervous of new people but will settle in after a few days. They definitely are used to having their people around, but are ok being left for a few hours each day (preferably not more than 6) During the winter, they are feisty toddlers with lots of pent up energy, so there's a big box of toys in the living room to help them burn some of it off! They are easy to care for, but do like to be let outside early in the mornings for their toilet - we can explain the routine they will train you to! There is a litter box downstairs that they will use if they absolutely have to, although Koko does this more than Murry. The joys of indoor/outdoor kitties!