Last weekend we celebrated all the wonderful Fathers in our lives: my husband (and baby daddy) Jeff, my Dad Chris and my Father-In-Law Tom. Jeff and his Dad spent the morning on the golf course followed by a steak dinner at the lake with the rest of the family. My Dad spent his day with my brother in Schoolcraft putting together solar panels for the cabin - an installation project that is sure to arise again during our annual U.P. family trip later this summer. Each of them are incredible Dads and our lives would not be the same or near as good without them.
Another cause for celebration this month was my 33rd birthday! My parents took the kids for two nights leaving us kid free for a weekend full of fun stuff. On Friday Jeff and I took to the streets on our bikes for some Eastside patio hoping. We started at Jose Babushkas in Gaslight for chips, salsa and tequila, made a stop at Hancock for a slushy and ended at Winchester for a night cap. All the places around here still close at 10pm so we ended back home for a drink on the porch together. I was pretty spoiled with flowers and a hilarious massive bag of popcorn from one friend who knows my snacking habit all too well.
On Saturday we joined our friends Aaron and Shantel VanderGalien for a round of golf at Blythfield followed by a fantastic dinner at the course. I felt extra special with my birthday-girl-party-hat and sparkly table decorations! The evening was warm and perfect for sitting around the fire pit while we watched the sun go down. On Sunday the kids and the rest of the Smith family joined us for an afternoon of grilling on our side patio and finished with freshly made strawberry shortcake made by yours truly.
This past Friday we went for round two of patio hoping on our bikes but this time with neighbors. The progression included slushies at Hancock (because it’s that good!), dinner at Winchester and ended with drinks at Roses on Reeds Lake - pro tip: Roses is open until 11p versus the 10p close time most other places seem to be following. The evening was super fun and even a bit nostalgic as we rode our bikes in the dark on our way home.
Over the last couple of months we’ve spent as much time as possible at Jeff’s parents at the lake. The weather has been incredible lately and the access to the beach and boats has been clutch. Speaking of beach, my in-laws had 10 yards of sand delivered last weekend and Mari, my mother-in-law shared some fun facts after it’s arrival: 10 yards of sand weighs about 27 thousand pounds; it took them approximately 50 trips with the wheel barrel from the driveway to the lakeside of the house and about 2.5 hours in total. They’ve been busy prepping the house for the biggest Kladder celebration of the year: Fourth of July Weekend! I cannot believe the 4th celebration is already next weekend. Whew… summer is here!
Natalie had her Grand Rapids Christian kindergarten assessment this week and it’s made her entering school full-time (and her becoming quite the little lady) even more of a reality. She’s also signed up for tennis camp next month - something that was part of our 2020 resolutions. I, too, tried to sign up for lessons but the adult classes for the summer were full. I’ve got higher hopes for getting into the next session of adult classes.
Thomas is also gearing up for school that’s (hopefully) starting as planned in August. I made a stop at Grace Church to scoop up Natalie’s end of year packet and warned the teachers they’d have another Kladder coming their way, but one that wasn’t as mild mannered as Miss Natalie. We’re expecting to have a lot less artwork coming home in his backpack as he usually gravitates towards the toys rather than the art center.
I won’t bore you (much) with Jeff and me… both of our jobs are going well. Steelcase is still working at 80% capacity with Fridays off which has been nice with the kids this summer. We’ve had plenty of time on the golf course playing both together and separately. I’m golfing in my first tournament this Thursday and Jeff is playing in the Audi Cup qualifier on Friday, just before heading up with friends for a weekend of camping.
We’re soaking up this beautiful summer sun and looking forward to the extra long holiday weekend in July. Enjoy your weekend!
