Dan A. Penning

Cubby holes filled with trinkets and treasures
While waving hello to neighboring friends you realize every family cottage and summer home is as different as the memories gathered by families every summer. Each cottage has a special cubby hole filled with trinkets and treasures from sandy beaches and hiking adventures through surrounding woods. Weathered hinges guarantee screen doors will squeak open and slam shut right on cue announcing that this is summer. It’s easy to get caught up in the moment of racing down to the lake and assuming every summer will be just like the last.

My son Casey has been crossing out days on the calendar as the school year winds down into his summer up north. He’s been talking non-stop about everything he wants to do this summer, and spending time with those who are a part of his summer. Without fail, his list includes everything he wants to do each summer. I’ve also been thinking about these excursions and of how to keep our lunch dry during our annual trip down the Crystal River (see photo).

As much as family cottages and memories stay constant, change and different circumstances ultimately visit families over time. Your family cottage is often one of your most valuable legacy assets and attention should be directed to new options and enacted tax laws available to you to protect your family cottage now, and for future generations.

Family goals remain the same
It’s no surprise that in spite of our busy lives some things never change. Family goals remain the same of protecting those you love, the place you love, and protecting the experiences and cottage memories you love.

When your family begins to gather this summer consider talking with them about the future of the family cottage. Now might be the time to begin the discussions about developing a cottage succession plan, if you haven’t already, and looking at short- and long-term strategies and legal structures to avoid the uncapping of your property.

At the minimum, a solid cottage succession plan protects your family cottage from passing outside the family, solves future conflicts between family members about how the family cottage is operated, maintained and improved, and probably most important of all, avoids, through the right to partition governed by real estate laws, the forced sale of your family cottage.

Even a simple plan, which you can easily change and update, is better than the consequence of not having a protective cottage succession plan in place.

Protecting a special place
You know deep in your heart this is where your family memories live, and like a protective mother bear you’ll do whatever you need to do to protect this time, this special place for future generations.

If you have questions or need additional information about planning for your cottage, please call and also visit our Cottage Law website about how to protect the family cottage at www.Cottage-Law.com.

Now if I could just figure out a way to protect my brown-bag lunch during my upcoming water adventures with Casey….

Dan

Yes, it’s true when they say, “beauty is in the eye of the beholder,” and it’s especially true when thinking of the family cottage. Whether the family cottage is a family retreat in some stunning mountain region, or a luxurious custom built retirement home on one of the Great Lakes touching Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, New York, Ohio, Indiana or even Canada, or a small rustic cabin on a pristine lake or stream, it’s not “economic value” that is the most important factor to protect the family cottage, it’s the “emotional value.”

People make a place special. This is never more true than when it comes to the family cottage, it can be argued “the place” is special, sometimes almost magical, and can transform those who spend time in that place from being stressed out, overworked adults back to their carefree days as a child; skipping rocks on the water, swimming off the dock, nursing a sunburn and eating s’mores by the campfire. For most, the family cottage creates a place for memories and traditions to be formed and a safe haven to retreat to for rest, reflection and reminiscing later in life. The family cottage is a constant in an ever-changing world. It’s where experiences can be shared and passed on to the next generation in their purest form.

Protecting the family cottage requires careful planning, cooperation among family members and a common purpose. It’s those intense family emotions that fuel the desire to protect the family cottage to keep the family cottage in the family to preserve “the place” for future generations of “people” to experience and enjoy.

There are different types of ownership forms that exist and can facilitate preservation of the family cottage, including the positive and negative aspects of each form of ownership.

Outright / Direct Transfers of Ownership

A direct transfer of ownership interest from one generation of owners, (i.e. parents) to the next (i.e. children) can be in the form of joint tenants with rights of survivorship, tenants in common or a life estate for the older generation with the younger generation receiving a “remainder” ownership interest in the family cottage. In summary, these forms of ownership involve transfers by deed of some or all of the current owners’ outright ownership to other individuals such as children, grandchildren or others.

The benefits of direct transfers of ownership by one generation to the next are as follows:

• The transfer can easily and economically occur by simply drafting and recording a deed reciting the form of ownership interest transferred.
• Fractional interest or “part interest” can be transferred to assist the transferors with estate tax planning objectives. Establishing fractional interests for the family cottage can provide discounts to lower ownership values in the transferors’ estate.
• Transfers whereby the transferors (parents) retain a partial ownership interest can, in most instances, provide a right for the parents’ continued use and enjoyment of the family cottage during their lifetime.
• Direct transfers can, in certain circumstances, be useful as part of a larger overall long-term care or Medicaid planning process to help parents protect the family cottage from having to be sold to raise proceeds to pay for long-term medical or supportive care expenses.

Direct transfers of ownership can also provide negative consequences. They are as follows:

• If the transfers are done without an overall analysis of estate, gift and income and property taxes, the parents can find themselves with unintended tax consequences.
• Direct transfers of ownership interest can create unintended consequences of exposing the family cottage to the claims of their children’s creditors.
• Direct transfers of ownership can expose the family cottage to claims by the spouse of a child in the event of a divorce.
• Direct transfers cannot guarantee that one or more family members will get along in the future. Disputes can arise without accompanying safeguards to transfer ownership that could result in the whole family being in court and a judge ordering the family cottage sold. In addition, an unexpected economic hardship may arise among one or more of the children owning the family cottage and their wanting to sell their interest in the cottage which can also cause complications for the non-selling individual owners and can ultimately lead to an impasse regarding any resolution of the situation ultimately requiring a sale of the family cottage altogether in its entirety to a third party.

Ownership of the Family Cottage in a Trust

Ownership of a family cottage can also be in a lifetime trust. There are two common trusts for this purpose. In both instances, the transfer of ownership is simple in that it is accomplished by the execution and recording of a deed.

The first type of trust is a revocable living trust. The benefits of this type of ownership are as follows:

• Ownership of the family cottage in a revocable trust maintains the parents’ control of the property during their lifetime. The parents can be the current trustees of the trust during their lifetime, thus retaining full authority to make all decisions on the use, management and even disposition of ownership to a third party in the event of an unexpected need or occurrence.
• The revocable trust is a grantor trust for income tax purposes so any transactions for the family cottage such as payment of expenses and property taxes is reported and deductible by the parents/grantors in the same way as if they owned the family cottage in their individual names.
• If a parent/grantor is disabled, usually a successor trustee is appointed in the trust, who then continues to manage the family cottage without interruption or court involvement.
• In the event of either the grantor parents’ disability of death, the family cottage is not subject to probate administration and that the terms of the trust govern the disposition of the family cottage and asset of the trust.

However, placing a family cottage in ownership of a revocable trust can have certain detriments. These are as follows:

• The full fair market value of the family vacation home will be included in the parents/grantors’ taxable estate if the family cottage is titled in the parents’ revocable trust.
• If the transfer of the family cottage was simply made to the trust and there were no provisions for a “succession plan” the family cottage then remains in the grantors’ revocable trust with no specific direction as to its disposition at the parents’ death. Also, any contributions of funds that may be necessary to pay for expenses of the family cottage may prevent gift tax issues if the title of the family cottage remains in the parents’ revocable living trust
• A revocable living trust is generally not a good option in situations where multiple parties are required to make capital contributions for improvements or sharing expenses for maintenance. If a parent/grantor becomes disabled and a successor trustee is appointed, the successor trustee may not have the discretion to keep the family cottage “alive and well”. If the grantor needs funds for other reasons (for example, health, support, medical treatment and so on), the successor trustee may be forced to sell the family cottage to raise funds for those purposes.
• Creditor protection is limited with a revocable living trust based on the fact that it is a “self-settled trust” whereby the grantors/parents simply transfer by deed ownership to the trust and maintains total control during the trust during his/her or their lifetime. In most states, creditors can pierce through the trust ownership of the family cottage and attach it for judgment liens or other liabilities.

A second type of trust that is sometimes used for ownership of family cottages is a qualified personal residence trust (“QPRT”).

The QPRT is a trust where the grantors/parents make a gift of the family cottage to the trust while essentially retaining an interest similar to a life estate for the term of years of the QPRT. As a result, the parents maintain the use and enjoyment of the family cottage during the QPRT’s term of years. A gift of the interest in the family cottage using a QPRT is less than if the gift were made outright by the parents to their children. The QPRT allows for gifts of fractional interest, thereby reducing the gift tax clause. The QPRT is also a grantor trust for income tax purposes so all deductible costs (i.e., real estate taxes) continue to be deductible by the grantor parents for income tax purposes during the term of the trust. The QPRT can also be a useful tool in minimizing the grantors/parents estate tax liability. Basically, a complete gift of the family cottage from the parents to the QPRT, based on the parents’ retaining the use and enjoyment of the family cottage during the term of the QPRT, allows for a reduction of the amount actually counted as a gift for gift tax purposes. As a result, a complete gift of the family cottage can be made for much less than the fair market value of the cottage and all future appreciation of the cottage can be excluded from the parents’ estate.

The detriments of transferring a family cottage to a QPRT is if a grantor/parent dies during the QPRT term, the fair market value of the family cottage is then accountable in the grantor/parent’s estate for estate tax purposes. That could result in a waste of the gift tax credit. In addition, at the end of a QPRT term, if a grantor/parent survives and continues to occupy the family cottage, the grantor/parent must rent the family vacation home from the QPRT continuation trust or the QPRT individual beneficiaries (i.e., children) at fair rental value. This can also be a benefit in that parents seeking to transfer wealth from their estates to their children can do so by the amount of the rental payments over time. If the family cottage is sold during the QPRT term, the net proceeds of the sale must be reinvested in a qualifying replacement home or an arrangement must be converted to a grantor retained annuity trust whereby the income of the principal of the trust would be paid to the grantors/parents. In addition, similar to a grantor trust, there is little, if any, creditor protection in most states with respect to the family cottage being owned by a QPRT.

Ownership of Family Cottage in an “Entity”

The ownership of the family cottage can also be transferred in an entity such as a general partnership, limited partnership or limited liability company. For purposes of ease of explanation, all references to an entity in this writing will be to a Limited Liability Company (“LLC”). Most of the concepts discussed herein are equally applicable to other types of entities, such as Family Limited Partnerships (“FLP”) or General Partnerships. One caveat is there may be some additional requirements in different nuances relating to ownership of the family cottage in a different entity, but for purposes of this article, reference to an entity as an LLC should suffice for the concepts to be explained below.

In transferring a family cottage to an LLC, there are a number of non-tax and tax reasons usually motivating such a transfer. One consideration in placing a family cottage in an entity is whether or not the formation of the entity was limited in its purpose to establish ownership of a single “personal” asset such as the family cottage fulfills the “business purpose” requirements under some states LLC laws. In addition, another consideration is whether because the nature of the LLC is a personal use of a family cottage is a problem with respect to the inclusion of the family cottage in the grantors/parents estate under IRS Code Section 2036. In the event that transfer of a family cottage to an entity is being done for tax planning purposes, individuals should consult with an attorney to draft the LLC operating agreement in such a way to try and maximize the tax benefits of the transfer.

Another issue affecting the transfer of the family cottage to an entity, such as an LLC, is the management or control of the family cottage. Usually, where grantors/parents transfer the family cottage to an LLC during his/her or their lifetime, the parents maintain management positions of the LLC to make decisions regarding the maintenance, use and other matters affecting the family cottage. If gifts of ownership interest in the LLC are made by the parents to children, the appointment of the parents as managers of the LLC usually avoids a problem with respect to the use and maintenance of the LLC while the parents are living.

In addition, a significant benefit of an entity, such as an LLC, owning the family cottage is creditor protection. The only remedy, for instance, in the state of Michigan and many other states, is that outside creditors can only receive a charging order against the LLC owner’s interest in the LLC and, therefore, cannot become a member of the LLC or force any asset within the LLC to be sold to satisfy any liability of an individual member (owner). A charging order on behalf of a creditor of a member/owner does not give the creditor any management rights, voting rights or other participation rights with respect to the asset of the LLC.

Another consideration in owning a family cottage in an entity, such as an LLC, is protection of ownership with respect to divorced spouses. If gifts of ownership interest of the LLC are made by parents to children, a child can usually keep ownership of the LLC interest separate and distinct from commingling any ownership of the asset with his or her spouse. This fact, together with the fact the LLC operating agreement can make special provisions regarding what happens when a divorced spouse, through court order, attains certain rights against, in the form of a lien, a spouse’s family LLC interest. The LLC operating agreement can be helpful in creating an organized formula with respect to how the interest will be paid for to a divorcing spouse and ultimately extinguish the divorced spouse from the entity.

An extremely important non-tax issue surrounding the transfer of the family cottage to an entity and, ultimately, a succession plan for distribution of ownership interest to succeeding generations, is the operation and maintenance of the family cottage, for instance, who pays, who works, and who does what. Although, regardless of the care taken by an individual to draft a carefully thought-out operating agreement to govern these types of issues for future generations, ultimately cooperation between the individuals will either make such an agreement tenable or, in the event of un-cooperating owners, it becomes more difficult to enforce.

The operation and maintenance of the family cottage usually consists of addressing the following areas:

• Duties, responsibilities and payment for routine, regular maintenance.
• Duties, responsibilities and payment for extraordinary maintenance, such as more capital intensive things such as structural, mechanical or other significant expense.
• Responsibility for payment of regular operating expenses.
• Schedule or personal and rental use of the family cottage.
• Sale of the family cottage and division of tangible personal property.

One significant benefit to using an entity to hold ownership of a family cottage is imposing certain “buy sell provisions” in an operating agreement to govern how, and to whom, individuals sell their ownership interest in the family cottage. These types of buy sell agreements are essentially the same types of buy sell agreements governing the buying and selling of ownership interest in corporations that have been employed by applicable owners of closely held businesses for years. The benefit of buy sell provisions is that various provisions can be inserted into the operating agreement to provide a methodical and fair system in which individuals can offer, and ultimately obtain, the sale of their ownership interest to other LLC owners or, in some instances depending on the terms of the operating agreement, to third parties.

Conclusion

Planning for cottage ownership and succession should not be taken lightly. Without adequate planning various taxes and family disagreements can destroy the future enjoyment of the family cottage. Unfortunately, there is no “cookie cutter” to planning. A family’s goals and personal relationship will influence the ultimate decisions to be made; however, consulting with an expert in cottage law and engaging in careful consideration and a planning process will keep generations of family’s memories intact, and protect the family’s most important asset, the family cottage.

I put on my classical music and began clean up time in the kitchen and for all of you sceptical people out there, it does work. After 10 minutes, I felt so calm, it’s amazing! So grab those iPods and download some classics, you will feel so calm that even a big clean up does not upset you. Classical music is suppose to be great for projects and studying, it boosts creativity and learning.

We decided to do the family Christmas photo this year. Tucker, the hockey player, called me one day last week while he was on campus and said, “I have a great idea for our family Christmas card. “Let’s get us- the three teens- and put what we do best in the photo.” So we trampled in the backyard today with Tucker, hockey stick in tow, Conor, lacrosse stick on his shoulder, and Casey with his Santa hat and a Christmas book. I took three photos, that is about all they were good for. Teens don’t want to spend a lot of time taking photos. After we were done, I said “What about the cottage dogs?” Truly a cottage law michigan moment with their resounding “NO,” because putting Jake, one of our cottage dogs, in any family photo is work. Jake does everything with gusto.

Nobody wants to count calories at Thanksgiving, besides it is supposed to be the one day a year that you don’t. For all of you health conscious gurus out there here are a few tips if you want to tweak your Thanksgiving. Steam and mash cauliflower with low-fat milk, butter and salt. It can be a healthy alternative to mashed potatoes. It is yummy, but I am not sure how it would taste with gravy. Buy fresh cranberries and and use fresh orange juice to give them great flavor. You do need to cook the cranberries. Use fat free milk and cut the sugar for your pumpkin pie-nobody will know the difference. Make sure you move about, because the more you move, the more you can eat! Crank up the tunes and get everybody to dance. It will make everybody happy! Jake goes crazy when we dance. He tries to do it too. Take the time to enjoy your Thanksgiving meal and eat slowly. You will get full faster that way, and you may not eat as much. I heard on the radio today that there will approximately be 40 billion green bean casseroles made. I know we will be enjoying that at the family cottage. A moment for you: A wish your home is blessed with laughter, love and joy forever after… bringing you the best of fare- Thanksgiving’s finest everywhere!- Helena Stowe

“Nothing is more honorable than a grateful heart.”-Seneca

Imagine this for an LOL moment. A dog and cat peering into the fridge saying “I saw them put that turkey in here somewhere…” at our house we would have two cats, and yes those cottage dogs. Take three breaths to keep the frazzled stressers away. It will slow your pulse and heart rate, or you can drink a relaxing cup of tea.

Here is something I found which will brighten your heart.

Everything I need to know I learned from Noah’s Ark…
ONE: Don’t miss the boat.
TWO: Remember that we are all in the same boat.
THREE: Plan ahead. It wasn’t raining when Noah built the Ark.
FOUR: Stay fit. When your 60 years old, Someone may ask you to do something really big.
FIVE: Don’t listen to critics; just get on with the job that needs to be done.
SIX: Build your future on high ground.
SEVEN: For safety’s sake, travel in pairs.
EIGHT: Speed isn’t always advantage. The snails were on board with the cheetahs.
NINE: When stressed float awhile.
TEN: Remember, the Ark was built by amateurs: The Titanic by professionals.

Remember you’re in more hearts than you think.

Remember, today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.–Dale Carnegie

I want to wish all of you a Happy Thanksgiving and remember our cottage law Michigan wish is for you to be the best you that you can be.

Dori

Bananas are a serous fat-burner. They have potassium and B vitamins. Enjoy that easy portable fruit. It comes already in its own protective skin. We keep this as a snack to go at the family cottage. Try a Conor favorite- one of our teens; a peanut butter sandwich with banana. It will give you the fuel you need to get all those to-do-list chores done. A great cancer fighting drink for this time of year is hot cocoa. This chocolate drink has more phenols and flavonoids than a glass of red wine and 1 cup of green tea. So say hello to hot coco! Chocolate is rich in antioxidants. Drink up for your health. Just one cup of hot coco has less than 1 gram of saturated fat! Remember to find the positives in life. Don’t feel bad about gossiping. In a British study (you have to love those British studies) gossiping makes you feel supported. They also discovered that whispering good things can boost yourself esteem. For example “she looks fantastic.” Don’t forget everything in moderation- you don’t want to be known as the town gossip. Stay hydrated with plenty of H20- drier air can lead to dehydration so don’t forget to stay sipping. Keep on believing in yourself and stay fantastic at the family cottage.

Dori

“Make one person happy each day, and in forty years you will have made 14,600 human beings happy for a little time, at least.” -Charley Willey

Who can you make smile right now? That is your challenge of the day. We all need laughter in our lives. Giving people a little humor and entertainment leaves them with a good feeling of upbeat enthusiasm. It can be great for businesses, families, and friends.

Whenever you interact with people, even if it’s to say hello, you leave them with a feeling of kindness. If you give out cheerfulness you will get it back. Try smiling for 60 seconds straight. Concentrate on only smiling for a full minute and doing nothing else (if you try this on the cottage porch in a group you’ll all laugh so hard you might roll into the lake!). It’s amazing isn’t it, because know you start to think of all the fun things that make you smile and laugh. Your whole body feels good. It’s hard to feel down and out if you’re smiling. Smiling costs you nothing- remember the best things in life are free.

How does it make you feel to be around complainers? They just bring you down listening to their whining sessions. Now don’t get me wrong people everywhere have real problems and they do need a good friend to listen to them, but be careful that they don’ t do this every time they see you because otherwise all they’ll do is drain you of your energy. You came to the family cottage to relax and sometimes it’s difficult if you run into too many complainers.

Find the upbeat people in your everyday life and think about how they make you feel. I’m sure you’re thinking about all the laughter and stories you share with that person. My friend Cheryl and I like to laugh at all the fun things Casey, our youngest twin, has to say. Casey has the best sense of humor and he gets people in all their situations of life. He got my message about leaving people in life better than you found them. My challenge for him was to try to make at least one person smile per day. It is a great challenge to take on. It’s kind of nice when you know you can do this for people anytime you want to. And it’s free! Just think when you pass on your smile what will those people think of you?

If you are up for the challenge of trying to make one person smile it will not only change you it will change your life. When you smile it will help you forget your problems and give you a better outlook on life. I want to leave you with a funny story from the family cottage. Now Jake, one of our cottage dogs, has a daily grooming session from our grey cat named Shark. Shark sits on top of our bench and Jake just stands right next to him while he grooms his ears and his head and the top of his back. This can go on for about 10 to 15 minutes daily. They have this thing going on, it’s really quite funny to watch. Shark loves Jake, and then pretty soon after this session is over Jake will start to groom Shark. Now this doesn’t last nearly as long because Jake literally gives Shark a bath. I keep telling my teens and Dan we need to grab this on a video and upload it to YouTube. Shark does not think he is a cat, he thinks he is another cottage dog.

So grab the smiles and laughter at the family cottage. Smile every day, many times, it will do you and your family and friends good!

Dori

Cottage-law stands for:

-C- completeness
-O- for openness
-T- for togetherness
-T- for time spent with loved ones,
-A- for awesome
-G- for generosity
-E- for eagerness.

The Law stands for

-L- look ahead not back
-A- for amazing
-W- for the wow factor

Dan Penning is a lawyer with a positive attitude and an incredible knowledge of the best ways to keep your family cottage intact, so the togetherness of family and friends can last. Dan Penning lives a life full of purpose and goodwill toward others, so surround yourself with a positive upbeat attorney who makes a difference working for you. Achieve your dream at Cottage-Law.com. Visit this website so that you can get a positive attitude and the “Power of Know” when dealing with the laws concerning your family cottage! You will like this, Dori Penning

If a child is given love, he becomes loving . . . If he is helped when he needs help, he becomes helpful. And if he has been truly valued at home . . . he grows up secure enough to look beyond himself to the welfare of others.
Dr. Joyce Brothers
1974

This is so profound and so very true. I found with each one of our boys, their gifts shine through with encouragement, wit and humor. It is amazing how three children all from the same family are so different. I have labeled them country 1, country 2 and country 3. Depending on which country you engage with it really makes you stop and think how unique and special each one is.

A fun place to visit
Tucker, now 18, and paving the way as the older brother, provides a country of confidence, leadership, technological savvy skills and hockey. His country shares a group of the 10 most closest friends. He is very enthusiastic and very sports minded. ESP is now unfolding in another room of the house. Do you know any professional hockey teams that need a smart and witty accountant? Tucker’s country of friends are always visiting our Farmington home. This well rounded country is a fun place to visit. There is not a lot of drama. If you visit Tucker’s country, be sure to bring your running shoes and lots of H20. His country is all about keeping in shape.

Never a dull moment
Country number 2 is our middle born, Conor. In Conor’s country you will learn about nature and his gift and love for animals. His country has had a red nosed tortoise, a few frogs, fish, a lizard, 2 cats and our dogs, Jake and Ginger. Conor has a magical way with animals so be sure you bring photos of your pets. Conor also has a group of friends but it amazes me because he can walk in a room no one knows and come out with 2 or 3 new ones. Conor is in constant, and I mean constant, motion. He loves lacrosse – the new sport on the block. Be prepared because as loving as Conor is, there is a lot of drama. I call his friends the groupies. They all sit practically on top of each other. If you visit his country the groupies like to be around girls which escalate the drama. Thank goodness we are not into dating yet (at this time). Conor does everything with gusto – never a dull moment.

Every holiday is loved
The third country and the baby of the family is Casey. His country is fairly peaceful and calm. There is no drama but rather contentment for Casey lives in the moment. In this country you will find historical facts about everything. Casey can tell you how a burger was first made and who invented Wendy’s. His country is very factual. Be prepared because Casey loves all different types of foods – portabella burgers, sloppy joes on hot dog buns (latest invention), lobster and shrimp. These last two entries are the finer things in life. In this country you will find every holiday is not only liked but it is loved. If you are up for celebrations be sure to bring along dessert.

I believe every one of these countries share value so whether I am visiting the healthy country or the full of gusto and drama country or the laid back, live in the moment country, it makes me appreciate how wonderful they really are. Thank the Lord they are not all alike.

Dori Penning

Dogs are our link to paradise. They don’t know evil or jealousy or discontent. To sit with a dog on a hillside on a glorious afternoon is to be back in Eden, where doing nothing was not boring – it was peace.
– Milan Kundera

Jake and Ginger, our chocolate labs, have returned from their adventures at the lake. This is a time to reflect, if only they could describe the wonderments of the water and nature at its best.

The greatest pleasure of a dog is that you make a fool of yourself with him and not only will he not scold you, but he will make a fool of himself too.
– Samuel Butler; Notebooks, 1912

Take time to visit a family cottage or lake this summer. If you don’t own a dog, take pleasure in watching the contentment and happiness of a dog swimming in the lake. It will sooth the soul.

-Dori Penning

Our beautiful chocolate Labradors summer with us at the family cottage. Each year, they become dogs at the beach. They love the water and would jump off the docks in Suttons Bay, Michigan to swim. It’s usually Ginger first, and then Jake.

This year, a family friend offered to give our labs a vacation at a farm in Elhart, Indiana. I hope you enjoy the photos and their adventures on the farm. Ginger is the princess and very mild mannered and then there is Jake – the lab who does everything with robust and character. My husband and I should have known why he was the last puppy left in the litter.

I believe these pictures will capture your heart with joy and laughter. I only hope when we return that they will be happy in their own home. They are having way too much fun!

-Dori Penning