She Loves Michigan

I don't know about you, but my 2017 was full of growth, change, heartbreak, joy, anxieties, life lessons, grace, and gratitude. Some of my top moments were: 1.) Quitting my corporate marketing/graphic design job 2.) Becoming an Assistant Manager at Abercrombie and Fitch 3.) Moving back to Grand Rapids with someone I barely knew who is now one of my cherished friends - love you Joy! 4.) Exploring Sleeping Bear Dunes for the first time 5.) Going on my first Mission's Trip to the inner city of Chicago 6.) Doing a Tough Mudder! 7.) Joining a Crossfit gym and doing my first Crossfit competition 8.) Officially becoming independent! Life is expensive - so many bills! 9.) Exploring Taquamenon Falls for the first time 10.) Buying my own Toyota Rav 4! Our Tough Mudder Team! All in all, 2017 was full of incredible moments, but 2018 is just around the corner! What a great time to start over, recharge, refresh, and improve, right? I felt inspired to write this p...

Currently, one of the biggest trends in West Michigan are Escape Rooms. However, that is not exactly what we participated in tonight - it was cooler!  Grand Rapids Public Museum has put its own spin on an Escape Room and has created a Puzzle Room - Quest for Conviction ! Instead of trying to get out of the room we were in, we had to figure out how to convict a real-life murder suspect from the early 1900's in 1 hour by finding 5 pieces of evidence!  Now you're probably wondering how we found this activity... My Wednesday night small group co-leader and I decided we were going to do an "Escape Room" for our get together with the high school students. Except we ran into a little financial issue...  While researching other alternatives in the area, I stumbled upon the Grand Rapids Public Museum's page. Now, to be completely honest, I was not expecting the experience to be spectacular. I truly thought it was going to be lame... but IT WASN'T! ...

If you live in Grand Rapids, you know that Robinette's is thee apple orchard to go to.  Sorry Robinette's, but Crane's in Fennville has you beat by a long shot! Last Saturday, Josh and I traveled to Crane's together for the first time.  Typically, driving from Grand Rapids, it should only have taken about 40 minutes.  Except it took us about 1.5 hours because of my amazing driving direction capabilities. When we finally arrived we went to Crane's restaurant to try and do the U-Pick. Well, that was not the correct place for picking apples... Let's just say if you ever travel with me, it is always an adventure! The U-Pick was right up the road, and marked with a huge U-Pick sign. How we missed this, I have no idea? WE ARE HONESTLY BLIND!  There were so many trees to pick from, except the Galas barely had any fruit.  We ended up finding only two baby Galas, and I was pretty disappointed.  However, my smart, amazing, handso...

I have always wanted to see Sleeping Bear Dunes... ...and I finally made it happen! I had theeee besstttt travel companions, my current and old roomate! The three of us spent Saturday to Sunday camping, hiking, and shopping at one of Michigan's treasures! And my favorite spot was: Pyramid Point! I loved this because the hike wasn't too long, we walked through the woods on steps, and not on sand. I was a much happier camper when it came to this destination due to the fact I did not feel like my lungs were collapsing once we reached the top! What an amazing view! To look around and see what God, our Creator , has made was absolutely breath-taking! The Scenic Drive Sunset Was A Close Second! The air was cool, the colors were vivid, and the water sparkled. Many visitors and locals witnessed a beautiful display of God's artwork on a perfect September night. Until next time Glen Arbor, when I back-pack through t...