May 30, 2016: The Deck with Josh

I thought it would be nice to take Josh out for lunch so he left it up to me where we would go.  I chose "The Deck" which is a seasonal restaurant out at Pere Marquette.  It was a nice, warm, sunny day so I thought it would work.    I don't think he was excited about being outdoors as his job is outdoors, but I tried.   I just enjoy his company.   Then, we went to Barnes and Noble for a bit.   Overall,  I had a great time spending it with him.

May 29, 2016: Grand Haven with Josh

Josh and I decided to go out to breakfast so he let me pick the place.  I chose Morning Star Cafe in Grand Haven.   We went early enough so only had a 10 minute wait.   We got a nice little table by the window.  We each got a meal and split it and then had key lime pie for dessert.  He paid for the meal which was nice.  He said I chose a great place.  Then, we walked out to the pier in Grand Haven which he had never done before which was nice.   It was in the low 70s and perfect for walking.  Saw many cute dogs along the way.  I miss my dog,  Maggie.  I used to bring her here all the time.    Then, we went to Meijer and found some camping supplies.  He's helping me make an ultra lite back pack for hiking.       Had mochas at Barnes.    I always enjoy hanging out with Josh.  He said it was his best Memorial Day as he ate a good breakfast, spent time with good company, and found me great deals on camping things.  

May 26, 2016: Bekky Short and Chance's Graduation

s

I was invited to my friend Beth Alkema Short's daughter's graduation ceremony at Whitehall High School which is on White Lake Rd.    I still can't believe her oldest daughter is old enough to graduate from high school.  She wants to be an ophthalmologist.    She's already working at an eye doctor and taking classes at Muskegon Community College.   She will get her high school diploma paper and associates degree in another year.

Josh's friend, Chance, also graduated in the same class as Bekky.   He is going to Muskegon Community College in the fall. Josh was there for a short time and left as he couldn't get a seat.   I then met him at Barnes after the ceremony.    

April 15-17, 2016: Women Wine Weekend

I was finally able to go on the annual wine woman's weekend.  Usually,  the girls went in February but this time it was later.  I brought my friend, Olivia Buxton,  which I was looking forward to bringing.    We had great conversation on our way up to Traverse City.   Olivia and I had a nice dinner at the Mackinaw Brewery in downtown Traverse City.   

We all stayed at the Comfort Inn.   Went in the hot tub which felt good.  It gave everyone a chance to meet each other.  My cousin Wendy brought her friend,  Heather.

Wendy said Olivia looked like the character, Denise, on the popular show,  "Walking Dead", so that was her new nickname.

On Saturday,  we left the hotel around 10:30 for our first winery which was Chateau Chantel which is my favorite.    Olivia and I rode with Wendy and Heather.   Heather likes the sweet wines like I do.   Kim, Marianne, Jo, and Joy rode together.  The view from Chateau Chantel is always gorgeous no matter what time of the year you go.

We went to the Grand Traverse and Black Star Winery.   In total, we went to 7 wineries.     Had a nice lunch at an Italian restaurant inside the old asylum, Traverse City State Hospital.    

Secrets I thought were secrets came out during our drive which had us roaring with laughter.

On Sunday, Olivia drove my car to the local bakery to get donuts as Wendy mentioned how we love baked goods.   

Olivia and I went to the Chocolate Festival at the Opera House which was fun.  We each got several delicious chocolates.  

We had a delicious lunch at the restaurant "Poppycocks".     

Hoping Olivia and I can do more traveling together in the future.   She's a good traveler.

April 3, 2016: Carmen's and Barnes and Noble

Josh and I went for breakfast at Carmen's in downtown Muskegon.   It is sure the place to go any day of the week.  We each got an omelette and split ours with each other.  One was a greek omelette and one was a mexican fajita.    Both were very good.   Then, we went and hung out at Barnes & Noble for the afternoon.    Overall, it was a very enjoyable weekend.   

April 2, 2016: Ludington with Josh

I have been enjoying hanging out with Josh Buxton these last 4 months.      I am really crazy about him.     I will always remember him for many reasons of which I won't discuss on this blog.  He called me to see if I wanted to take a drive up to Ludington to this music store, as he wanted to get a mount for his I-pad on a microphone and get a cord for his keyboard he found at Goodwill.   They sold quite a few beautiful guitars at the store.     I expected them to cost $1000 but you could get a nice one for $300.     
Then, Josh took me to this cute coffee shop in downtown Ludington and got my a drink and we split a treat.      
Then, we drove to the Ludington State Park as I had never been there before.  We talked about walking from Whitehall to Ludington this summer which I hope we do. He showed me his favorite pizza place there.
Josh was quite impressed that I got us back to Whitehall to pick up his sister, Olivia, with only 4 minutes to spare.   
I wanted to see this concert at Fetch Brewing which is near Olivia's apartment.   Josh didn't really want to go, but we went for maybe 15 minutes. I didn't realize how packed that place got on a Saturday night.      I stayed at their apartment that night.     

March 15, 2016: Olivia's Birthday

Today was my friend Olivia Buxton's 38th birthday.  She went to Salon 297 and had  a spa day and her hair done.   When I met her at Barnes,  she looked gorgeous.   I would love to do something like that for myself sometime.   She wanted me to drive so Josh, Olivia, and Tamar Erickson came along.  We went for sushi at a restaurant in Grand Rapids called Fuji Yama.  This was my first experience with eating sushi.  It was surprisingly very good.  It cost about $26 for dinner.   

Then, we went to downtown Grand Rapids to Museum of Contemporary Art to see the movie Monty Python.