October was a doozy! Let’s dive in…
Big news!! Natalie lost her very first tooth and was visited by the Tooth Fairy - who was very worried they would have to go to the ATM because cash is hard to come by these days. Natalie was ecstatic! The Fairy brought her one whole dollar which was added to her piggy bank for safe keeping. I over heard whispers of a Tooth Fairy sighting and was surprised at the description: “Very small with little wings.” For some reason I always thought she was adult sized? Small like Tinker Bell makes more sense I guess. Easier to get the tooth?
And more big news, Jeff recently accepted the role of President and CEO at DJs Landscape Management. You might recognize the DJs branding from one of the many bright red trucks servicing customers in the West Michigan area. And now we’ll have one of those trucks parked in our garage, which is probably the more shocking part of this news… Jeff driving a pickup truck! The kids (and my Dad who’s been joking with us to buy a truck for basically our entire marriage, you know, so we can haul the 4-wheeler we’ll never own) are very excited about the truck and for, “Dad’s new job that’s by the airport.” - a confusing thing for about a week… that his new office is ‘by’ the airport and not ‘at’ the airport. And while this career move was not a premeditated one, it was most certainly a welcomed one. Not long after Jeff and DJ’s first conversation there was an undeniable shift in energy and motivation that I witnessed within Jeff and I gotta say, it was totally contagious. I expect great things ahead for Jeff and for DJs.
Jeff and I celebrated our seven year wedding anniversary on November 2nd. We were able to get away this past weekend for some adults only fun in South Haven while the kids spent the night in Schoolcraft with my parents. We had an incredible steak dinner with friends celebrating a birthday, walked along the pier and soaked up the views of Lake Michigan, tasted wine and checked out one of the local breweries. The AirBnb we stayed in also had a great second floor patio with a fire pit and hot tub which is where we spent most of our time.
The highlight of October hands down was Halloween. First, how about that weather!! We opened up the garage bar and spent the afternoon watching Michigan lose while we carved pumpkins. Later we spent time playing in the leaves with our neighbor friends which transitioned right into the arrival of my parents for chili on the porch and trick-or-treating. This year we dressed as the Wizard of Oz which ended up being a very easy sell to the kids after purchasing the old flick on Xfinity a couple months prior. I dread the day they stop wanting to dress up as a family. Our neighborhood association didn’t promote trick-or-treating this year which made for less of a turnout than usual, but we still enjoyed passing out candy through the ‘candy slide’ my Dad made for us out of PVC pipe. It was trick-or-treating Covid style.
Thomas also celebrated Halloween with his preschool classroom with their usual Halloween party minus the volunteer parents. The teachers were stellar in figuring out a way to still include us parents by parading the kids outside along the sidewalk so they could show off their costumes. Thomas was smiling ear to ear underneath his mask.
Earlier in the month the kids had Fall Break from school and we enjoyed time together as a family as well as some time with friends adventuring. If you’re ever looking for a family day trip you should consider Montague, Michigan for an old fashioned soda and a sandwich at Lipkas and some solid antique shopping. Lipka’s Drugstore is like a time capsule and oh my Lordy is it tasty. The menu is cheap. We’re talking $2.50 for an egg salad sandwich!! And, not to mention, it’s an Instagrammers dream. Don’t forget to tip your server!
My parents hosted their annual Fall Bonfire in Schoolcraft in October as well. It’s not your average bonfire and each year it seems to grow larger with the amount of retired docks/decks/barn lumber, yard brush and even old couches that’s loaded onto the pile. It felt really good to keep this annual tradition going despite Covid because it’s an outdoor event. Our friends Brittany and Charlie and their two girls joined us again this year which makes it 5 years running. DeWitte’s are basically family now.
November is already off to a roaring start and we’re cruising right into holiday season - I’m geeked! Christmas shopping is well underway, cards are ordered and if it weren’t a house rule (Jeff’s rule) that Christmas decor doesn’t go up until after Thanksgiving I’d probably have already decked the halls by now. In the meantime I’ll channel my energy into crockpot meals and raking the one billion leaves that fell over the last two days! Cheers to November my friends.