Tag: Catching Up!

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April is here!

Finally spring seems to be just around the corner.  I heard birds singing over the weekend and we have flowers coming up from the ground in the back yard.  We can’t wait to get out there and enjoy warmer weather.  This time last year we were already riding our bikes trying to get in shape for a big race in May, this year we have been forced to bike indoors at the health spa.

How was your weekend?  We were up to lots of fun and it started on Friday when we met our good friends for dinner at a local restaurant.  We discovered this place a year or so ago and now have been there quite a bit because they were offering up KBS.  If you have been following this blog you should know that we love our KBS.  Aspen was selling a full pour for only $10.00, truthfully, that is a deal.

On Saturday we had a party to attend.  A work party with all of Dave’s workers.  It was a lot of fun and the place was called “We the People”, located in Armada.  Armada 005
This is a pop-up type of gathering place.  The premise is to rent out the facility, bring your own recipes and have the owner cook and serve them.  She also has her own recipes if you need advise on what to serve.  The front can seat up to 40 people comfortably.  It’s such a great idea and I hope it takes off! 

It was a nice gathering of some really nice people, Dave is very lucky to be surrounded by smart, fun people who obviously enjoy working with him.  

On Sunday, Easter, we ran in the morning and then sat in the hot tub.  Gosh we are really enjoying the hot tub:)  We made a quiche and fruit salad for our little brunch that we shared.  

 Picture perfect and tasted just as good!

This will be us soon!  Enjoying a long bike ride 🙂

Overall, a quiet Easter.  Kids were busy and we just enjoyed the peacefulness. 


How was your weekend?

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Happy Monday Friends!

I can’t wait till this weather finally changes and we get some real warmth.  So tired of being cold.  How was your weekend?  

Yesterday, Sunday, we celebrated family birthdays and has a gender reveal party for Lauren and Christopher.  

We played a game of right  left while Lauren read a poem.  Whoever got the big envelope in the end was able to look inside at the ultrasound and reveal the sex of the new baby!  My brother Mike with his son Trevor revealed a little boy is coming in August!!

We had so much fun as Olivia and Zach came home and we were able to hang with them on Saturday afternoon.  Saturday night we had tickets to the play Cabaret and we were pleasantly surprised at how amazing this show was. We went with a few friends and none of us knew the story behind Cabaret- we all loved it.  It’s on my short list of things to watch soon on DVD. 

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Friday night we went to a pretty swanky wedding reception in downtown Birmingham.  It was held at the Townsend and it was beautiful.  The couple works with Dave.  They are older, second marriage for both- you can see how happy they are. 🙂 We danced the entire evening!  

On the way out the bride asked me to take home one of the centerpieces.  

 Beautiful colors.

Friday afternoon Lauren invited me into her school to have lunch with her fellow teachers.  She had a baby reveal cake for them and I bought home a piece for Dave.
Everyone is happy for a new little boy, KJ is thrilled with the prospect of a baby brother. 🙂
We ran outside but it was a struggle.  If it’s not the cold that bothers me, it’s the wind.  Another busy week around here as we figure out what to do on Easter Sunday.  What are your plans? 

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Catching up!

Hi everyone!  Just checking in to keep you updated.  We have been experiencing technical difficulties over here and therefore have not been blogging- but that doesn’t mean we have not been having fun! 

House updates:   Not only was the carpet put in the house, but we also tackled IKEA furniture building.  Have you ever attempted an IKEA build?   There are no words in the instructions only pictures.  Which is weird, but actually much easier.  We put together the furniture without a hitch.  A great test to our relationship.  I’ll put a post together of my finished closet soon.


The new wood floors and carpet are just lovely.  

The floors look great!  We added a chair in the entry way and a new rug from the Home Store.
Fun front: Last weekend we saw Mat Kearney in concert and this past weekend we saw Steel Magnolias on stage at the Baldwin Theater in Royal Oak.  Our entertainment budget has been stretched for the month of March. 

We ended up going Lily’s again and we actually ordered the same exact meal as we did a few weeks back. They have great food and they craft their own beer. 🙂

I have been reading a ton and finished An American Marriage.  I’ll write a review soon, but you should put your name on the wait list at the public library- it’s worth the wait.  You are going to love it and want to reflect upon it for awhile.  

Last night I finished Sweet Girl from Travis Mulhauser- also amazing and definitely a book worth reading.   It’s set in Michigan, in the UP, and has lots of Michigan references. The book was difficult to put down.
 

Health News: We have been working out at the health club and enjoying spinning classes.  Our bikes are tuned up and ready to go, just wish the Michigan weather would cooperate.  I have been using a fitness book titled Fitness Weight Training and it has helped me figure out what machines to use at the health club.  Sometimes I feel like a doofus walking around trying to figure out what machines to use for different muscles, this book explains exactly what to do and how to use the machines. 

 Cover art
Our running outside has continued but to be truthful has slowed a bit due to injury and the weather. 

Still eating before 2:00 and then fasting the rest of the day.  We are doing this a few days a week and then resuming normal eating habits the other days.  I am using my phone to record calories taken in and burned through exercise.  Do you use the technology that your phone has to offer?  I love the ease of these programs.  Dave is still down 10 lbs and I am down 5.  WE hope to keep these ponds off while we continue to monitor our eating habits.

This weekend we are gathering for a baby reveal, family birthdays and celebrating Olivia getting into her Grad program…there is so much to be happy about. 

I hope your week to going well. What are you reading?  How is your exercise going?

Karen

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Monday- Let’s catch up!

Gosh, I wish I wasn’t stuck at a computer all day today.  The sun was shining and the birds were chirping when I left for work today.  I wish I could have gone for a quick run, it was that pretty of a morning.  

How was your weekend?  We had a busy one over here.  We got wood floors!!!  

 I like the wood flooring so much better.


  This is what we lived with for a few days.



We couldn’t wait to start putting the furniture back in place.  The rooms look so much larger now.

The work was completed by Saturday afternoon, just in time for us to shower and drive to Royal Oak for dinner and a play at Stagecrafters.  We ate at Lily’s Seafood Grill and Brewery.  The fish tacos were yummy, Dave enjoyed a beef burger with sweet potato fries.  I had the Harbor Island Honey Ale and Dave had the Dobbelbock.  Lily’s offers a great food menu and they craft their own beer.
 

The play we saw was so good.  It was called Bug.  Have you heard of it?  The setting was a dark and dingy hotel room, the kind you rent for a week at a time.  Agnes is a cocktail waitress who is trying to hide from her abusive ex-husband.  She meets Peter, a Gulf War veteran who is AWOL, and Agnes invites him to stay with her.  The play deals with issues of loneliness, paranoia, conspiracy theories and Agnes’ slow decent into insanity.  It was gripping and the acting was superb.  The cast received a huge round of applause and a standing ovation.  I immediately checked the public library to see if the play had been made into a movie- it was, in 2006, I placed it on hold. 

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That was our weekend.  We ran all weekend, logging in another 9 miles. 
After this week, we should be able to put the entire house back together again.

Be back on Wednesday for the book review The Baker’s Secret. 


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Let’s Catch Up!

Happy Monday!  It’s sunny in Michigan today and the birds are chirping.:)  Spring is in the air!  How was your weekend?  

We had a great weekend with friends.  On Friday we stayed home because Frank, the painter, was over painting the staircase and master bedroom and closets.  The staircase is just beautiful!  

Old staircase was a medium oak color with a little orange tint that would have clashed with the new wood flooring. New staircase is a coffee brown stain that will complement the wood floor and new carpet. 



On Saturday Frank painted the master bedroom.

I’ll post better pictures soon with paint color names.  We chose to have a feature wall painted slightly darker than the other walls. 

Saturday night we were ready to break free from the house so we met friends at the Meeting House in Rochester.  I had that wonderful salad I had last weekend and a New Holland’s Dragon Milk for my beverage of choice.  Dave enjoyed the same with a beef burger. We sat, ate, and talked for four hours.  We had so much to say to each other. We planned a vacation, talked about work, the Olympics, Trump, taxes, gun violence, children, grandchildren, relationships and so many other topics. 

Sunday we drove to Canton to shop at IKEA.  What fun!  I picked-up a new dresser and jewelry holder for my closet makeover.  I also picked up new linens for our bed. I couldn’t believe the prices and the selection!  It was overwhelming, there was so much to see.  I could have stayed there for many hours.
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Image result for ikea Image result for ikea
I will have to post my pictures on IKEA later, as they are not loading on my computer.  These pictures are from the web.  I can’t wait to put together the new bedding and get my closet all set. 
MALM Lipasto, 6 laatikkoa IKEA
MALM Lipasto, 6 laatikkoa IKEA
MALM Lipasto, 6 laatikkoa IKEA

These are the dressers I picked up. They are part of the MALM collection, no hardware and very basic, just perfect for the closet.    Poor Dave will be very busy trying to put these together for me.  He said he’s up to the challenge, let’s hope so. 🙂

We both ran on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Logging another 12 miles each.  My miles last week were a whopping 20 miles!  Woo hoo!

I discovered some new podcasts on book talks, so good!  I listened to Book Cougars on the Stitcher Radio App.  These two gals are older, book sellers, and avid readers.  They are informative and very funny.  Running 3 miles takes no time at all when listening to a good podcast.  

How was your weekend?  Are you working on your goals for the year? 

On Wednesday I’ll post another What’s Up Wednesday with some other bloggers.  And this week I will post a book review on the book I finished last week titled If the Creek don’t Rise, by Leah Weiss.


Another busy week ahead with wood floors going in on Thursday. Can’t believe March is already upon us.  Let’s do this!

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Catching Up!

Lots of schools are closed today and many have the entire week off for midwinter break- I miss that schedule 🙂  Dave is home and probably at the health spa.  I am putting together this blog post and planning our week.  Are you lucky enough to have today off? 


How was your weekend?
I started my weekend with this little guy!  There is nothing better than a grandchild.:)


We had such fun together pretend fixing all of the doors around the house.  He loves his tool belt.


On Saturday we ordered the wood floor and carpet and secured a date for installation. We also had our painter out and talked about the staining of the staircase and painting the master bedroom and closets.  I can’t wait to show you how it all turns out!

Our painter is going to stain the stair a dark coffee color to compliment the new wood floors.

Carpet is being replaced on stairs and master bedroom to a rich beige color with lots of texture.

We are also adding a barn door kit to a new door in the master bedroom that leads into my closet.

 Haven’t decided on which door to get yet.

An update to my closet will follow the other projects. I need a better system to keep clothes organized.  Lowe’s and Home Depot have good ideas. I had a women from California Closets over last week to give me an estimate- $4,000.00 later, she was serious, I politely declined.  We will do the work ourselves and get a kit online or at a local store. 

Home Depot

Lowes

On Saturday night we went out to celebrate Valentine’s Day and ended up at the Meeting House in Rochester.  It was probably one of the best salads I have ever had. 

An update to our eating: We are still on the TRF and do not eat after 2:00 pm.  So far, so good.  We find we sleep better now and the hunger pains are less frequent.  We only use TRF on Sunday through Thursday and on Friday and Saturday we eat normal.  We both like the results and are down 6 lbs. each.  

Running log: 16 miles this week. 
Started a new book If the Creek Don’t Rise by Leah Weiss.  I can’t put it down.  I’ll recap it as soon as I am done. 

Have a great week!

Karen