Weekend Recap: Nephew Edition

It is Monday night. This is very sad for me because it means my 6 day weekend vacation is coming to an end! I am linking up with Bella, Anni & Meg to share my wonderful weekend :)

My vacation started last Wednesday when the boy drove me to the airport. Can I just say that a huge perk of being in a relationship is having someone drive you to the airport and pick you up.

 My weekend really started when I flew to Michigan and got to see my sister, brother-in-law, and nephew. My nephew is only 2 weeks old and SO ADORABLE!

My Dad and I landed in Grand Rapids and made the 3 1/2 hour drive north. We then spent 6 hours at my sister's house just hanging out, fighting over Abel, and catching up. It was awesome.

One of the things I miss most about Michigan is Biggby coffee. It is delicious and they make great, iced coffees. Of course I had to pick up a Purple Haze before going back to spend time with the fam.

The rest of the weekend was spent at my sister's. We ate really good food (my Dad makes the best steak), chatted, bickered like kids, and watched movies. I am now going to overload you with pictures of my adorable nephew. Can you tell I'm a proud Aunt?

On Sunday my Dad and I drove 3 1/2 hours back to the airport. My younger sister was visiting family and met us at the airport. It made the 4 hour trip back to Phoenix so much faster. Plus she loves to take pictures as much as I do :)

After a few delayed flights from Phoenix--> Las Vegas, I finally made it home at 8:30. Just in time to celebrate the boy's dad's birthday. I was an amazing weekend and I love spending time with my family!

Weekend Update Blog Hop

Hi Friends! Guess what! I have some new followers! When I saw my GFC count this was my reaction

And then I did my happy dance

I love gifs. They make my day. 

Now onto my weekend.... I'm linking up with the Weekend Blog Hop to give you a little recap :)

I wish I could say I am the most exciting person you'll ever meet... Sorry I can't. I'm the most boring normal person you'll ever meet, but I did expand my horizon's this weekend!

I have always wanted to go to Trader Joes but there wasn't one anywhere near me in Michigan. Now there is one 7 minutes away from me!

It was magnificent. Plus I left under my budget and only had to carry 3 bags up!

As I was driving back towards the highway I saw a sign. It said Cafe Rio. Now this may not seem like a big deal but when you read Janae's posts about Cafe Rio's amazing salads and lemonades every week, you make a quick u-turn and try not to hyperventilate from excitement. 

I had the grilled chicken salad and strawberry lemonade. Now I know why she goes on and on about it. Amazing :)

I also got to skype with this cutie Thursday AND Sunday since it was her birthday weekend!! I can't believe she's 9 now!! 

Now I realize I didn't blog at all last week.

I'll try to do better this week but this whole teaching 40+ hours a week is really kicking my butt... so there may be a delay till I get used to my new schedule.

Happy Monday :)

Weekend Update: Computer Crashes and Ulta

Hi friends!

I've missed all my bloggy friends dearly but I had to take some time off to oh you know move across the country!! I also had to set up my apartment, get my new car, and work on my master's classes. To say I've been a tad busy is an understatement but I'm LOVING every day of my life.

I'm so excited to link up with these fabulous girls again for the weekend blog update!

 It's amazing how now that I have Christine near by how busy I am! I love being able to go and do things with her or just hang out at one of our apartments and play with Elvis (the dog, not the king).

This past week I got my new computer from Tracky!! Tracky is an awesome online collaboration website and they gave me a new Macbook Pro 17in. Screen for winning their raffle through twitter! I can tell I'm going to use Tracky a lot in my classroom and for my master's classes. The best part? They are locally based in Las Vegas!

Anyways I was in the middle of transferring my computers when my old one died! I didn't freak out I just powered down and tried to start it again... then a blank screen appeared with a flashing ?. Then I began my freakout. Took it to the Apple Store just to hear the bad news... my hard drive is gone and I lost everything! If anyone knows how to recover hard drives please let me know!!!

To cheer me up I did some retail therapy with Christine at Ulta. They had a deal going where if you purchased $30 in fragrance you received this awesome tote on wheels. Perfect for weekend getaways! They also had a sale on my 2 favorite perfumes, Happy by Clinique and Twirl by Kate Spade! I was a happy girl when I left :)

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 It was a good weekend and I'm so happy to be blogging back on a regular basis! I've been trying to keep up with all of your lovely blogs but will be doing a large part of that today :)

Happy Monday Friends!!

Weekend Update Blog Hop

I love weekends, especially when they are spent at my happy place :) To read more about my happy place click here & here.

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I enjoy doing these weekend blog hops because I think it makes Monday's more interesting. Plus everyone always has something fun happen on the weekend and it's great to get ideas for things to do. 

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Friday I went to my parent's house after work. We got on the road right away and made the 3 hour trek to Traverse City. Interesting fact, in Grand Rapids it was 104 degrees, in TC it was 84- I knew it was going to be a great weekend :)

Once we unpacked and kicked on the air in the cabin we went to a local pizza place called Peegeo's. We started off with buffalo chicken dip and a few beers

BEST PIZZA EVER. It had thin crust with a layer of fresh mozzarella, sausage/pepperoni, and another layer of fresh mozzarella topped with fresh oregano and basil. Along with the pizza we got to listen to free entertainment and people watch. I love to people watch.

On Saturday we got up and went running. It felt so nice to run outside. It's been so hot in East Lansing that I haven't been able to! I got 3 miles in and then went for the most amazing muffin ever. It doesn't look pretty but this cherry almond muffin from Hoxie's is heaven on earth.

After savoring devouring our muffins the parents and I cleaned the cabin. Hardcore cleaned, I vacuumed all the window sills, floors, and stairs. Between lifting the vacuum and moving furniture I got a good arm workout in! By the time we were done it was already 2pm and partly cloudy. We decided to go to Elk Rapids and take a walk. 

River where you can swim and body board the rapids

My Mom & I have a special bond

The parents

I love the beach, especially this one because it's never busy.

When we were driving back to TC my Mom took a sharp turn into Lochenheath. It is a beautiful golf course/restaurant/and has a few homes. We were able to enjoy a beer on their beautiful patio and soak up some sunshine

Image taken from website http://www.lochenheath.com

When we got back to our cabin we had an awesome appetizer of shrimp, cheese & crackers. This was eaten while grilling chicken and drinking wine. It was amazing and delicious.

Sunday was spent on the boat. All day. It was warm enough to go swimming, jet ski, and tool around in the boat. Unfortunately I forgot my camera & phone so no pictures :( 

I really enjoyed this weekend. It was filled with amazing food, drinks, and relaxation. It was also nice to spend some quality time with my parents before I leave. 

I hope your weekend was enjoyable and I can't wait to read all your wonderful posts :)

Weekend Update Blog Hop

Why do Mondays come so fast? I mean it seems like it was just Friday!

If you're doing a recap of your weekend you should link-up with these sweet girls for a blog hop & Miscellany Monday! 

My weekend was pretty low key. 

Friday 

I had to work in the am then I ran a few errands, worked out and did homework. I also watched the first night of the Olympic trials for women's gymnastics. Go Jordyn!

Saturday

I tried to sleep in but it just didn't work so I was up and at 'em at 7 am. I got a decent workout in (HIT elliptical and treadmill & weights) but my heart wasn't in it. Maybe because the gym was filled with beefed up guys grunting every 10 seconds...

I was able to cross 2 things off my Pinterest though! I had a coupon for Bed, Bath & Beyond and their mason jars were on sale! I picked up a case and made salads, and flavored water and lemonades. So tasty and easy to do! 

Sunday

I was lucky enough to meet up with the rents for breakfast. I wanted to take them to the best place on earth Golden Harvest but they were closed. We decided on a little place called Theios. It was good, we all got the egg, hashbrown & bacon special. But after I felt really sick. The food just sat in my stomach like a rock so I spent the rest of the day laying in bed trying to feel better.

Later that night I watched the 2nd part of the gymnastic trials and cried my eyes out when Jordyn Wieber was announced! This is going to be a great year for the girls! 

Happy Monday!