I have good news and bad news. The bad news is that U of M lost to MSU twice in the last month. The good news is that Jeff survived. Last weekend we joined some friends down at Peppinos to watch the basketball game and the atmosphere was out of control with noise and excitement! And, assuming Jeff used curse words throughout, lucky for him, no one could hear him. Next week begins the MADNESS and we’re looking forward to some fun events with friends to kick off the bracket betting.
Speaking of March Madness, The Dailey Method is running a studio challenge right now that’s got me all jazzed up. Each day participants have the opportunity to ‘shoot’ one time and gain 1, 2, or 3 points towards winning prizes. I love a good challenge so this sort of thing motivates me, but I was laughing with a friend this morning at class about how a pair of socks and a coffee cup can get me out of bed at 5:30am. And just in case you missed it, I recently published a new post on TDM about ‘what to expect’ on your first visit to the studio. Also worth mentioning, TDM is currently offering a St. Patty’s day special for a 10 class pack for $170. Guys, I love this place.
Lent is upon us and last Sunday we pulled double duty for church and also attended a special Lenten Service coordinated by Mars Hill at the East Congregational Church Chapel in Ottawa Hills. The gathering was very intimate, seated only 65 people and focused on prayer. This wasn’t our first time attending a Vesper service organized by Mars, they did something similar the last two years at St. Cecilia Music Center, but this service was dramatically different than the others. The space was intimate. it was lead exclusively by our lead pastor AJ and worship leader Troy. We sat next to both friends and strangers alike. Sang songs without instruments and had long moments of pause to reflect and pray. The combination was pretty incredible. The service is free and open to the public and if you’re interested in realigning this season or looking for something new, we recommend you try it out. You can register here. Bonus, childcare is provided.
Something a little less holy and but still very magical was getting to see Disney’s Frozen on Ice at Van Andel Arena with Natalie and our gal pals two weeks ago. The show was fantastic! Natalie was completely captivated and is still blabbering on about the show to anyone who will listen. She’s certainly my daughter because she kept pointing out all the things they missed in the live show compared to the movie that she’s used to. She dressed as the character Anna which was adorable and after the show we grabbed lunch with our friends at Brick n’ Porter. More and more I’m in love with having a daughter who, as she grows, becomes more of a friend. Spending ‘girl time’ together is kinda awesome.
The kids will wrap up winter swim lessons at Wealthy Pool later this month which has been great for them both. Just last week Natalie made huge progress with actually dipping her head under the water - she hasn’t been a huge fan of getting her hair wet in the past. And Thomas, while the whole climb out of the pool and jumping back in again has never been an issue (that kid is fearless), he’s a pretty lazy swimmer so when he began kicking his own feet last week I was elated! Especially because I’ve been the one mock kicking his legs for him. The early exposure to the water this year will hopefully prove it’s benefits come lake time this summer, which can’t come soon enough!
Jeff is also nearing the end of bowling league which almost perfectly lines up with the beginning of golf league - assuming the weather cooperates. We’ve both got our golf league spring mixers on the calendar in a few weeks and watching golf on TV has become nothing short of torture. And while Jeff bowls on Thursday nights, I’ve been keeping pace on my reading. Right now book club is tacking The Marsh Kings Daughter and I’m particularly interested in it because it takes place in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The descriptions of the places in the book are extremely detailed and it’s been fun following the story being able to personally picture the settings.
Thomas had his 2-year check up last week and no surprises there… he’s a big kid with his head size, weight and height all in the 99th percentile. It’s very likely Thomas will never be challenged at reaching the items on the top shelf and in the meantime, if he’s lucky, on our next trip to Disney he’ll be able to get on all the rides earlier than usual. His birthday is at the end of the month and we’ll celebrate with a small party and cake. Fingers crossed we skip the whole ‘terrible’ part of the twos.
And before the weather gets nice on us again (we aren’t holding our breath because, well, we live in Michigan) we’ve been making good use of the fireplace, maximizing our indoor play spaces, watching True Detective (Season 3) and catching up with friends over cheese trays. But man! We are SO ready for the unofficial switch over to chilled white wine (mostly me on that one) and for the sidewalks to be clear again. The driveway gate my Dad built for us last Fall is going to be put to good use soon enough!
POSTSCRIPT (Things we’re into lately and other stuff)
Fruition in Eastown - The best (and likely only) açaí bowls in the city. They are tasty, fresh and healthy. Great place for a quick lunch with a friend or two, or for grabbing smoothies with the kiddos.
GR Massage Life - Jeff got me a gift certificate for Valentines Day this year for a 55 min massage to this place and while it’s not the spa-like atmosphere one might aim for, the massage itself was stellar. Great gift.
Fyre Festival Documentary on Netflix - I was totally late to the party on this one but some girlfriends recommended I watch this and it was fascinating. That’s all I’ll divulge about it!
