The Friday Five, 8/8/25: 5 things I've been up to this week

Well well, if it isn't one week into August and my hospital bag is STILL not packed yet—my due date is August 26, but next week will be 38 weeks for me and one of my friends had her baby recently at 38 weeks. Need to work on that this weekend, plus putting together our bassinet and figuring out the car seat. 

Maternity photo by NeriPhoto
Maternity photo by NeriPhoto

What I've been up to this week:
  1. Getting our maternity photos back. A few weeks ago we met our wedding photographer, NeriPhoto, at the Healing Garden in Clarkston, which is next to a hospital, to do some maternity photos. We already knew Neri did great work, as we had done an engagement session with her last year plus our wedding photos, and we were lucky that she happened to be in Metro Detroit that day for another shoot, because she's normally based in Holland, MI (where we got married). One of my favorite pics is above ... fun fact, the necklace I'm wearing in the picture is my great-grandmother's, and our daughter's name will be related to that :) not her name, but something related. 
  2. Dining out/getting takeout and delivery. On Saturday, we headed to Ritter's Frozen Custard in Livonia—I was invited to do a sponsored IG post (which you can see here), and I was excited because I hadn't been to a Ritter's since I visited Portage, MI, where a friend used to live. Everything was pretty tasty, and I'd recommend it. On Sunday, we were doing some furniture shopping, and had dinner at Texas Roadhouse, in Novi, which is one of my faves; even though it's a chain, their Caesar salad is one of the best around (and is served properly, too, in a cold dish, usually!) and I get the Dallas filet or the NY Strip steak to go with it. On Monday, I went to visit a friend, and brought us some La Marsa takeout, from WB, which is always tasty, as well—I get the chicken kabob sandwich, usually, although I think I got the shish tawook that day, plus a side of garlic and bread.
  3. Watching movies. I watched 2003's Freaky Friday on Disney+ this week, which was one of my FAVORITE movies in high school; the soundtrack is awesome, too, and I was instantly transported back to my HS days when watching it. Yesterday, I went to the theater to see Freakier Friday, the sequel (and I did NOT fall asleep this week at the movies, although I'm pretty sure my nap earlier in the day helped), and I was surprised by how many times I laughed out loud during it. You can see my IG review here, and I'd give it 4/5 stars—if you're a fan of the first one, I'd definitely recommend it. I would also say although you COULD watch it as a standalone movie, it has a lot of Easter eggs for fans of the first movie, so I'd watch the first movie before seeing this one.
  4. Seeing Beetlejuice at the Fisher. This was a bit of a bucket list show for me, because the last time Beetlejuice was in town was January/February 2023 at the Opera House, and I had COVID and was unable to attend. This time, no one had COVID, and I had a lot of fun. I *like* the movie version but don't love it—I'm actually a bigger fan of the sequel, which I got some hate for saying on Facebook, when it came out—but I actually really loved this, and would recommend seeing it if you have time this weekend, as it's playing at the Fisher until Sunday.
  5. Visiting a friend and her new baby. Not sure when a baby is considered "new" anymore, but one of my friends had a baby in late May and I finally got to visit her and see him, on Monday night. We've been friends since the fourth grade, when I moved to Michigan, and it was nice to meet her new little one (her first baby, same as us, too).
Sundaes at Ritter's Frozen Custard, Livonia
Sundaes at Ritter's Frozen Custard, Livonia

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