Engamorial Day Weekend 2012

Although a bit belated, I felt it necessary to memorialize Engamorial Day Weekend like I have in previous years.

Andy wanted to take the Midas again.

Then I reminded him about how it cost us $500 in gas, hours in additional driving and breakdown time and my mental health last year.

And thankfully this convinced him to take the Jeep.  It was a tight fit, but we use the roof cargo carrier to ensure the dogs had space to stretch out for the ride.  Of course they decided to occupy only a sliver of space by laying on top of each other, even though there was plenty of room for two.

We stopped at the bridge to meet up with the others, have a drink and a bite while taking in the view of Mighty Mac.

Once we arrived, the usual shenanigans and games ensued.

That last photo showcases the brackets for the random team cornhole tournaments that took place.  For one tournament Andy and I randomly drew each others names but our team (Barefoot Wizard Sleeves) lost in the finals.

The main event of the weekend was the engagment of Terpichelle which was celebrated with fireworks and champagne.  Thanks to Kara for the photos below.

At some point Toby wandered over bleeding from his paw.  He managed to secretly tear his paw pad doing dog stuff.  We cleaned the wound and bandaged him up using the top notch medical supplies of duct tape and one of Andy's socks.

Other than that, it was a typical weekend of indulgence and relaxation in da UP.

And we were able to drive there and back without breaking down.  It's amazing what you can do when driving a vehicle made in the past 30 years.

A Perfect Weekend

The week before our anniversary, I emailed Andy and suggested we randomly go up North.

He replied in less than a minute: "YES."

We quickly found a rental that allowed pups and one week later we were off for a weekend away in Sutton's Bay.

source

As soon as we arrived, we headed to the Sleeping Bear Dunes to watch the sunset.

About five years ago, we were in nearly the same spot doing the same thing.  Except at that time Andy pulled a pretty piece of jewelry out of his hiking pants.

The next morning we arose and took off on a 36 mile round trip bike ride to Traverse City.

We made sure to properly refuel once we reached town.

And on the ride back to Sutton's Bay we stopped at a winery to continue to fuel our journey.

The next morning I got up with sun and then we drove along the penninsula, visiting lighthouses and towns that time forgot.

We then began the drive back home but of course made sure to again properly refuel along the way.

We managed to hit up two new breweries on the trip which brought us to 71/108 (and counting) Michigan breweries visited. 

We enjoyed our beers and said our cheers to a perfect weekend getaway.

The Opposite of My Last Post

Well an hour after I hit publish on this post, these were delivered to my desk:

I'm one lucky lady.

A Sh*tty Anniversary

Don't worry,  I mean that literally, not figuratively.

Wait, that might actually sound way worse.

Let me explain.

At 1 A.M. this morning, I was sound asleep.  Suddenly, Toby appeared in my dream.  And in my dream Toby was pooping.  And then I woke up.

And I smelled why my dream had evolved in such a fashion.

Earlier in the day, Toby had gotten into the trash and ate human food.  Toby doesn't eat human food because it gives him the big D.  We were worried this was coming, but thought we were in the clear when we went to bed that night.

So one hour into our anniversary, I went downstairs, made my big, sad, eye-contact avoiding dog come out of the corner and go outside and cleaned up the mess.  Don't be too jealous of my glamorous life.  I sure hope when they cast the Real Housewives of West Michigan they find me so I can share my stunningly opulent lifestyle with the world.

When I came back upstairs, Andy looked at me and said, "Happy Anniversary baby!  Are you showering before you bike to work?"

"It's not time for work.  It's one in the morning."

"Oh, why are you up?" *nose twitches* "OH NO!!!"

Happy Anniversary indeed.

Smiles for Miles

It's nearing the end of the workday on Wednesday, and I find myself dragging.

And then this photo rotates it's way to the background of my computer.

That would be the dogs at the dog park. 

Now, Toby almost always has a smile on his face, because he's oblivious to life.  "Ignorance is bliss" has never more perfectly defined something than it does Toby. 

Gordie on the other hand, is much more serious about life.  He's constantly contemplating life's biggest questions like "Where are my humans?" or "Have I peed on all the things yet?"

So to get a smile out of the more serious dog is a more special occasion.  Fortunately, we have discovered the two places where you will be guaranteed a G smile.  The first location is the inside of any vehicle.

And, yes, as seen earlier, the second location is the dog park.



If dogs could get drunk, that is what they would look like.

And now my Wednesday has been cheered, because dog smiles are contagious.

When Healthy Living Isn't So Healthy

Well, first there was the Schmohz 5K.  Although the running portion of this event is healthy, the part where you drink beer each lap and then celebrate your run by drinking more beers is slightly unhealthy.

I was going for a three-peat win, but I have not been running much these days and knew that would be a lofty goal.  All it takes is one fast lady to show up and dash my dreams.  And show up she did. 

I clocked in with my worst 5K time of the past 3 years.  Somehow this still earned me 2nd place female and a free growler of beer, so it all works out.

The next day brought broomball.  I managed to pull off some magnificent feat of clumsiness that is difficult to describe in a way that makes sense to anyone who wasn't there.  Basically I tripped for what felt like 100 miles, thought I caught myself on the bench ledge only to find the open door, fell through the door and landed on my ass.  Aside from that butt bruise, the real pain came when I stopped a shot with my right quadricep.  It hurt.  A lot.

Lucky for me I had tennis the next night.  A nice, easy non-contact sport.  Unless you get slammed with an overhead smash in the exact spot you got hit with a broomball the day before.

Then I went to Crossfit the next day couple of days.  I just started this class because there was a deal on Living Social and I have zero upper body strength.  I would guess that most kindergarteners could beat me in an arm wrestling match.  So the introduction of strength training to my arms made me almost cry during the second workout.  And then I got in the car to leave class and found myself UNABLE TO TURN MY STEERING WHEEL because I had just murdered my arm muscles.  I managed to figure out a a way to grab the wheel at the bottom without lifting my arms and somehow managed to get home without wrecking my vehicle or further wrecking my body.

So yesterday I did nothing but sit and drink beers. 

My muscles feel great and no part of my body is bruised or in pain.

Which therefore must make drinking the healthiest thing I did last week.

Charlotta Fun

Last weekend I traveled south to the lovely city of Charlotte, North Carolina for some quality time with my friends.  Initially it was just to visit one BFF, but when I mentioned my trip to another friend who lives 5 hours away, she drove the whole family down for the weekend.  Fun times ensued.

The first huge, climactic moment of the trip came when I went to Trader Joe's and found these:

Obviously the world's most healthiest food ever.  Salty, greasy potato chips covered in chocolate.  Amazing.

Then we ventured to the drive-thru zoo.  You pay a fee for buckets of food, roll down the windows and drive through the zoo while animals stick their faces in your vehicle and gulp down the goodies.  We thought Junior would be scared, but he was fascinated.

I, however, was only terrified of one awful bird.  The emu.

If the bird world elected a Satan, the emu would win.  I much prefered the llamas and giraffes.

Ok, I lied. I was also terrified of this guy:

His tongue was as long as his horns and it was disgusting.

The next day we went on a Segway tour of the city.  If you ever have the opportunity to ride a Segway DO IT IMMEDIATELY.  It was the most fun I have ever had on a tour.  And shockingly booze wasn't even involved.

I was fairly certain I would fall at some point, but the Segways were very easy to get a handle on after a few minutes.  So if my clumsy face can handle it, anyone can.

Team Flourescent Helmets for the win.

So, in conclusion:

If you ever find chocolate covered potato chips, BUY THEM.

If you ever find a drive-thru zoo, DRIVE THROUGH IT.

If you ever find a Segway, RIDE IT.