Thanksgiving...

We spent Thanksgiving at my parents house this year. Originally it was just going to be with them and my brother Taylor. But things changed, Danielle and Chad were there along with my cousin Dustin, his wife Katie, and their daughter Ashlynn (the three of which are the first extended family that Patrick has met).

Most of the cooking was done the day before which made the day more relaxing.

Taylor with the appetizers that included vegetables, stuffed celery, salomi horns, and pinneapple boats.

Patrick carving the turkey. He was very hygienic as he wore latex gloves.

Everyone all together!

October...

We tried some new recipes this month.

Pork chop with watermelon and cucumber salad

Hummus and naan 

Chicken Fatoush Salad

  Danielle and Chad came over to carve pumpkins and make caramel apples.

August and September...

August:

We went putt putt golfing.

Danielle and Chad came with us.

 

We both just happened to get a hole-in-one on the exact same hole!

 Patrick gave me these shoes for my birthday because he new I wanted to try to mod podge them. They turned from this

 to this!

I made this yarn wreath when I was canceled from work one day.

September: 

Us eating tasty tacos and beans in Mexican town.

Us at the Imagination Station. Patrick has always talked about visiting this place. Some people purchased blighted homes in Detroit and have worked to turn them into art.

 Frakenmuth had been calling our names so we went up for a visit. We went with my side of the family and stopped at Tony's or "bacon heaven" on the way. We have never seen so much bacon before. It was insane. Patrick and I split this breakfast and still had some leftover.

 We walked around the outdoor mall and downtown.

Everyone in front of the Cheese Haus. One of our favorite stops.

July, part two...

We were lucky enough to spend two weeks in California this summer!  We spent our time-

whale watching,

 

 swimming in the pool at Stephanie and Scott's condo,

 finding creatures at the tide pools,

 swimming and sunning at the beach,

going to Hollywood,

 

celebrating birthdays,

 going to Disneyland,

riding bikes on Coronado Island, 

cooking,

 

exploring at the Getty,

eating at Pink's and all of Patrick's favorite restaurants,

visiting the Santa Monica Pier,

and playing in the backyard! 

We had a fantastic trip!

July, part one...

 On my 24th birthday I woke up to this!

Our friend Jennifer returned from her mission. Another friend Carolyn flew in from Utah and organized a get together for her in Grand Haven which is on the west side of the state. 

We spent a Sunday with them and played a ton of games. We discovered our love for Monopoly Deal during the trip.

June continued...

 In Michigan it's common for communities to have their firework display before the 4th of July. 

So after work towards the end of the month we rode our bikes around to find a good spot to watch them. After some searching we found it.

 We sat on a blanket and ate popcorn as we watched.

 Here we are at the Sagebrush Cantina celebrating our upcoming Birthdays with my side of the family. We celebrated  a  little early since Taylor was home from school for the weekend.

 Then we headed to my parents house for cake!