Yes/No Detroit

I am pretty sure Baby K is in a 9-month sleep regression, so this week has been pretty rough ... either that or her teething has kept her awake. We have been lucky to get 5-6 hours of sleep each night, and it has not been consecutive, LOL ...  Ice cream from Treat Dreams, Ferndale What I've been up to this week: Colonoscopy prep . Always the most FUN weekend of the year (right ....) and the fact that it happened to coincide with my first Mother's Day was the cherry on top—to be fair, I did schedule it myself, but I think I scheduled it in May or summer 2025 when I was pregnant, as I usually book it about a year beforehand. On Saturday, I had only liquids; on Sunday, I had liquids plus four liters of prep drinks total, at 8am and 5pm; and on Monday, I had 8am prep drinks. Did learn something this time though: you can have liquids (just not soup or Jello) up to two hours before you leave for the procedure ... in the past I always thought you couldn't even have water, etc. on ...

January went by super fast and super slow, all at once, somehow, and we are finally near the end. My husband and I took today off work to go to Frankenmuth for Snowfest, but between the cold weather and other things, it didn't happen ... instead we will do some local errands since we have the time.  Monty Python's Spamalot at the Fisher What I've been up to this week: Taking care of a sick child (still).  Last Wednesday, Baby K got sent home from daycare with a fever . We kept her out Thursday and Friday, and by Monday, she was a lot better—however, because of the weather and the snow, daycare decide to close, which left us in a bind since we both work. We ended up both working a half day and switching off childcare. She's a lot better now, though, which is good. Seeing Spamalot at the Fisher Theatre . Last night, a friend and I went to the Fisher to see Monty Python's Spamalot , which will be there for another few days. I am not a huge Monty Python fan but overall...

This has been a busy week, and it has gone by fast. Yesterday we actually had some decent weather, too (like 77 and not ~90~ like it's been every day) and I think today will be the same.  Achatz pies at the Yelp Waitress event What I've been up to this week: Game night with friends . Last Friday, a friend and I drove to Ann Arbor to see another friend, and we had a game night, which was a lot of fun—we played Machi Koro 2, which I like but I think I like the original game better, and also UNO Show 'Em No Mercy. We also got takeout from Bigalora, in A2—they're running a takeout deal right now, I believe at all of their locations, where it's $60 for five pizzas, which may SOUND like a lot, but considering *one* pizza from them is $15-20, it's more like "buy three pizzas, get two free." For three people we did a pretty good job on the pizza, too, although we definitely had leftovers.  Waitress musical/Yelp event . Last night, a friend and I went to Seahol...

Somehow it's already April 18th, and today my Alexa said the high is going to be 78 degrees, which is kinda nuts because this week it's been like 35-40 degrees at most ...  What I've been up to this week: Some big news. I had been holding onto this secret for a while, though we started telling family and close friends at the end of December. I'm currently 21 weeks pregnant, due with a baby girl at the end of August! My husband and I found out in early December (and it definitely happened AFTER our Louisville trip, which was a lot of drinking, haha) but I wanted to wait until baby's 20-week anatomy scan, which was Friday, before telling my Facebook and Instagram friends. We are both very excited to meet her, and I feel like there's still a lot of things to do before August, but we have the whole summer to get things done. Pictured above is the announcement I posted on FB/IG (Momo can be cooperative for photos, Gregory the tabby cat usually is not, so she got to b...

It's been a busy week: I was in Mexico Thursday through Tuesday for a wedding, hence why there was no Friday Five last week. Came back to 4 degrees for a temperature, which I was expecting but which was not fun, and now it's up to a balmy 25-30 degrees today. Me with my Yelpies award What I've been up to this week: Mexico trip . This was not my first time in the Cancun area—my parents and I used to go when I was little - but the last time I had been to Mexico was in 2016, for a one-day winery tour trip during Yelp Spring Break in San Diego (way on the other side of the country from Cancun!). My husband's friend was getting married in Playa del Carmen, about a 50-min. drive from the Cancun airport, and it was my first time at an all-inclusive resort, which ended up being awesome (most everything is included, including drinks and food; only bottles of wine were extra). It was an all-weekend extravaganza type of thing too, and we had a good group of people—more on that bel...

I spent the beginning of this week in Indiana for the eclipse, and then we drove back Tuesday, so it's been a shortened but very long week, since I've spent most of it playing catchup. Ice cream flight at Browndog Barlor, Northville What I've been up to this week: Traveling to Indiana . We were there Saturday through Tuesday, and the eclipse was Monday. Indiana got 100% totality and it was pretty cool to see; I snuck a half-second look without glasses when it was at totality, too, and it was a neat sight. I also met more of my fiance's extended family —his aunt and uncle came in from Minnesota, and another uncle from Florida—and we broke out some new games, too, such as UNO Show 'Em No Mercy (see pic below), which was fun. Eating out . In Indiana, we mostly ate homecooked meals, but on the last day, we made it to their new Raising Cane's. I LOVE Cane's and the only one in Michigan right now is in East Lansing, although I heard they are opening one in Canton ...

Welcome to the last Friday Five of March—it felt like this month passed by very quickly. April will be fairly calm, although I technically have two trips (going to Indiana with my fiance to see the eclipse + his family, and Dallas for work) but May is going to be insane (three weddings + a work trip), so I'll enjoy the relative calmness while I can. Doordash from Namaste Flavours, Farmington What I've been up to this week: Getting takeout . Last Friday or Saturday, I believe it was, my fiance and I got Doordash from Namaste Flavours, in Farmington, which we hadn't tried before (see pic above) and it was very good. Gobi 65, a cauliflower dish, is one of his favorites, and this place had it. In the picture above we also got chicken tikka masala, butter chicken, a spicy paneer dish (for him, not me), and garlic naan. We also ordered lassi's (yogurt drink), but unfortunately I much prefer a mango lassi; these were sweet, but not really flavored.  On Sunday, I saw my parents...

Another long week—not super busy, and we actually have a weekend at home for once (we were supposed to go to Cincinnati, long story there), which should be nice. Free cheese bread from Green Lantern What I've been up to this week: Hanging with my fiance's family . My fiance's parents were in town from Indiana last weekend, so we had a lot of good meals with them, and also they came over to my condo on Sunday, and he and his dad helped move one of my bookcases out. His parents also got to FINALLY meet my parents—this was the third attempt, because on attempts 1 and 2, someone had COVID each time! We got some pizza from Domino's and also free cheesy bread from Green Lantern, the new Southfield location, since I had a coupon.  Dining out/doing takeout/cooking . On Friday night, the first night his parents were in town, we got takeout from Sidecar Slider Bar, in Farmington, which is always tasty. On Saturday, we went to On the Border, in Northville, which unfortunately wasn...

This week has been busy: we were in Houston from Saturday to Tuesday, which was a lot of fun except for a bit of rain, and I've had events and other things all week as well. Tonight I think we are just going to take it easy, since yesterday we went to Detroit for an event. Christmas tree at the Fisher Theatre What I've been up to this week: Houston . We were there Saturday to Tuesday but managed to squeeze in a good amount of sightseeing. On Saturday, we had dinner with a friend of my fiance, and then on Sunday the three of us went to the Texas Renaissance Festival together—check back next week for a dedicated blog post on that. On Monday, it was raining so we ended up at the Houston Museum of Natural Science, and had dinner at Taste of Texas, a fabulous steak place, and then on Tuesday, I got to check out a Buc-ee's for the first time, and then we headed back to Michigan.  Seeing Mrs. Doubtfire at the Fisher . I had high expectations for this, because Mrs. Doubtfire is one...

This has been a mix of a busy week and a laidback one, but tomorrow we are going to Houston for a few days—we booked this back in May, I think, and we will be going to the Renfest, which is what we did last year too, and exploring the area; my fiance lived there for a few years, too, a while back. My two free Yelp drinks at Tiger Sugar, West Bloomfield What I've been up to this week: Watching movies . Last Friday, I saw The Marsh King's Daughter  at the theater—John R didn't have it, so I shlepped to Livonia instead (closer to my fiance's house though, for when I left the theater). Very glad I did; I'd give it 5/5 stars, and it was very, very good—click here to see my IG reel review . Yesterday I also saw Quiz Lady , on Hulu, which I had been wanting to see, with Awkwafina and Sandra Oh, and I thought it was cute and funny; I'd give it 3.5/5 stars, maybe 3.75. Will Ferrell is in it as well. Today I am going to go see The Marvels , although Priscilla looks really...

This will mostly be a Vegas post, as I was there Saturday through Wednesday. I'm unfortunately still on West Coast time today/last night, and I'm definitely dragging today, as I stayed up way too late last night. At the Venetian What I've been up to this week: Eating a lot of tasty foods . Best meals of the trip included Giordano's—yes, Chicago-style deep-dish pizza in Vegas is maybe cliche, but we don't have it and I always look forward to it—Bugsy & Meyer's Steakhouse at the Flamingo, all-you-can-eat Korean BBQ at Captain 6, and dinner at OTORO (Japanese food) at Mirage/Hard Rock Hotel/whatever they are calling themselves these days. We also ate at Pizza Rock downtown—my second time there, and the pizza is always good, plus they have some $7 pizzas during their weekday happy hour—plus got some Krispy Kreme takeout from Excalibur for breakfasts. (Krispy Kreme is my ALL-TIME favorite doughnut place, and I live 10 minutes away from the Troy one and never allo...

This week has again felt long but there were a lot of fun elements too. I'm looking forward to my week off work—I'm taking a half-day next Friday so that we can celebrate Christmas with my parents/have lunch with them at their place, and then the next Monday through Friday I am off work, for the most part. UNO deep dish pizza, from its Farmington Hills, MI restaurant What I've been up to this week: Dining out . My boyfriend's mom was visiting us from Indiana this weekend so we did a lot of dining out, which was fun. In addition, on Sat. for lunch I met a friend at Browndog Northville, which is always tasty (I love their ice cream flights). For Saturday dinner, my boyfriend, his mom, and I went to Detroit and had Detroit Shipping Co. for dinner—it's kind of like a food court/dining hall, and I mostly go to Bangkok 96 there for its Chicken Pad Thai roll (think sushi but with tortilla instead of rice as the holder) and mango sticky rice. We also had dumplings from Momo...

Although you may be reading this on a Friday, I am actually writing it on a Wednesday, because my East Coast trip (MA/RI) is this week and I will not be bringing my laptop with me. I've been awaiting this trip for a while—95% of my extended family lives on the East Coast so I try to visit at least once a year, and this is the first time to MA/RI for my boyfriend, so it should be a fun trip ... I booked a Freedom Trail tour (Boston) this week as well as a Newport trolley tour + Breakers (mansion) tour. Yelp perk: sweet bun at The Custard Co., Dearborn What I've been up to this week: Dining out . Last Friday, a friend and I tried Pastaio, a new pasta place in the old HopCat space in Royal Oak. It was definitely a bit pricey—my cocktail was $15 and the pastas were like $17-22—but everything was delicious, especially the complimentary bread, which was soaked in olive oil and cheese. I had a cannoli cream martini, and my friend and I split the pappardelle with pesto and a lasagna. S...

This has been a busy week, with a lot of good food and events going on. Next week promises to be more of the same and I'm also looking forward to the 4th of July holiday and the extra day off of work.  Pork Tomahawk at BARDA Detroit - delicious What I've been up to this week: Seeing movies in the theater . Lots of them. On Friday I saw Elvis , which I would give like maybe 4.25/5—it's worth seeing in a theater just for Austin Butler's performance, which was FANTASTIC, but the narrator, Colonel Parker, played by Tom Hanks, was kinda weird. I read later that Butler sings the earlier songs as himself but later they mixed his voice with Elvis's—pretty cool. On Saturday, I saw Lightyear  in 3D, which, as a Toy Story  fan, I unfortunately found to be just okay ... it's worth seeing still but I'd give it 3/5 and wait for it to come to Disney+. Then last night I saw a press screening of Where the Crawdads Sing , which I was SUPER excited about, because I love the bo...

I have not been getting enough sleep this week—hoping to get more sleep this weekend, but I'm staying over at a friend's house tonight, and tomorrow I'm hoping to see a movie, too. Cocktail at Vinology, Ann Arbor What I've been up to this week: Going to Ann Arbor with friends . On Saturday, my boyfriend and I went to Ann Arbor with some of his friends, and had a pretty fun day—we went to Pinball Pete's, then Quickly for bubble tea (RIP Bubble Island ... it's in the old Bubble space), then Shalimar for dinner. We capped off the night with drinks at Vinology; we stopped by the Black Pearl first but they quoted us an hour wait. Ironically, once we got to Vinology, about 15 minutes later, they texted us and said a table had just opened ... oh well. Vinology has a very nice basement space—in college, a friend of mine had her 21st birthday there, and I used to go for happy hour too, but I had not been for a while. Eating out . Besides Ann Arbor—on Friday, I went to se...