Double Date

It's been way too long since I saw good ol' Aaron. I figured, with a new Marvel movie coming out, it was time to correct that. He's come over to Allegan and we've gone to see movies at the Regent many times over the years, but this was the first time that he's brought a date!

I convinced Diana to come along, so we planned it as a double date. I can't remember the last time we've gone on a double date with my friends, so we were quite excited. They stopped by so we could hang out for a bit and chat. Eventually we headed downtown to see the movie. It was hilarious- we were laughing the whole time! I was surprised how much Diana liked it considering she hadn't seen many of the movies being referenced. Aaron and Lara loved it as well!

After the movie we wandered around downtown Allegan for a while, looking for a bar to hang out at. We found one that was open, unfortunately they only had their own brand beer- and it was pretty gross! Oh well. We called it a night and parted ways. Truly a fun night together!

Zoo: Festival of Lights

It's been a really long time since I've been to the Grand Rapids John Ball Park Zoo, probably since elementary school, to be honest. A couple weeks ago Lissa and her family made plans to come into town to go to the Zoo's festival of lights. They invited us to join them, and figured 'might as well!'. I'm glad we did, because it was really cool!

The Zoo had set up thousands of light displays all through out the park and they were amazing! We got there in the early evening and met up with them at the entrance. It was great to see them and their families again. It had been since our visit to Frankenmuth since we saw most of Lissa's family.

The Zoo itself is set up in one long path through the entire place. You can just start at the front gate and walk the circle and see all the animals and attractions. We started our trek in the final hour of daylight, so the transition of lights in daylight into night was really cool! By the time we were done, it was pitch black out and the decorations were amazing!

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Horse Play

One of the ladies that Diana works with also has horses and barrel races them. What? That's awesome! So, of course, she asked if she could come and watch some time! It just so happened that she was going to be having a competition coming up. Well, we made plans to attend. Diana was talking to Miranda about it and she was interested in going too! Lissa was visiting this weekend and was pumped to check it out too. The four of us, Diana, Lissa, Ledger, and I, met up with Miranda and Frank at the stables it was taking place at, and had a grand old time watching the competition.

All of us loved to see the different participants try to do the different horse events. Ledger, of course, was much more interested in the potluck table in the stables... He found another kid there and made a friend. We cheered along for an hour our two, but then it was time to go out for dinner. We filled up at the Mexican restaurant in Gobles, which is always delicious. Ledger and I headed home while everyone else wanted to go to the apple orchard to pick some apples. Overall, we had a lot of fun!

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Greg's 70th Birthday

My best friend Greg turns 70 this year! His son Adam invited me and Aaron to a special birthday celebration to honor the milestone. Aaron and I were the first ones there and got to help Adam set everything up in preparation for all the guests. A few years ago we had a special celebration at Greg's for his retirement. He spent his career as a philosophy professor at Calvin College and has really been enjoying his retirement. Adam invited a bunch of Greg's friends over to celebrate. After chatting and laughing together, we filled up plates from the delicious spread, and gathered in the living room. Adam suggested that we should go around the room and each share a special memory of Greg to celebrate him. I spoke of the time he brought Adam and I to a Star Trek convention back in middle school and how much fun we had while he just hung back and listened to a football game on his headphones. It was really fun to hear all the loving stories from everyone else who was there as well. I'm certain Greg felt the love and appreciation we all have for him on his special day!

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Miranda's Open House

A few months ago Miranda bought a house. She had been looking for a while and finally found one she liked that was in her price range and an area she wanted to live. We've been over there once or twice, but she decided that she wanted to have an official 'open house' and invite everyone over to show off the new place. She's been working hard over the last couple months repairing and updating it to get ready.

David and Mom were invited to see her place as well, so we met up with them for lunch together and then went to see Miranda. Her family was there and we got to celebrate her beautiful house together!

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Frankenmuth

Lissa and her family wanted to celebrate Andrew's birthday by going to Frankenmuth, and they invited Diana, Ledger, and I to join them. Sounds like fun! Diana and I had never been to Frankenmuth, but I've always heard that its pretty cool, so we took them up on the offer. I got the time off of work. We packed up and headed up to meet them there. They had booked rooms for us at the Bavarian Inn hotel. We got up there a little bit before Lissa's family, so we checked in and unloaded the car. When they got into town they let us know and we met up with them at a great restaurant. It was really nice to see everyone- it had been years since I've seen some of them. Diana sees them all the time, but I usually can't go because of work, so it's really cool that I can tag along this time. When we walked in and sat down at their table, Diana had to introduce me: 'See, he does exist!'

After filling our tummies with a great meal, we went back to the hotel. Everyone else checked in and we eventually met up together in our room and went down to see all that the hotel had to offer- and it was a lot!

Games With Guests

It's been forever since Josh and his family came over to hang out, so we had to correct that oversight. Josh, Amber, and Skyler arrived in the afternoon bearing gifts: a cute sciencey toy for Ledger's birthday, and a fun game for the adults to play! Oh, and they brought food- some delicious homemade pizza for us all to enjoy.

The boys spent the day running around from Ledger's room to the basement and back again playing with toys and their imaginations. Us adults also got a chance to play with our imaginations- the game they brought was Betrayal at House on the Hill. One we have all played before and really enjoy! We actually got two games in, one before dinner and one after. Everyone had such a great time, and we even gave them a gift to go home with- a really cool plant for Amber!

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A-Maze-ing Corn!

There's this place that we drive by on our way to visit Diana's parents that always catches our eye called Harvest Moon Acres. In the fall they have all kinds of fun stuff including a corn maze! Neither Diana, Ledger, or I, have ever been to a corn maze, so we figured it was time to check it out. Diana invited a whole crew to come and check it out with us: Lissa, Miranda, and Barbara!

Having no idea what to expect, I was pretty impressed with the whole place! It's a lot more than just a corn maze, we got there and wandered around. Once we went in we saw that they have a whole field of fun stuff to do: they had burlap sack slides, water games, a petting zoo, a zipline, a shooting gallery, and a bunch more.

We started the corn maze, but some of the ladies called it quits pretty quickly, so Ledger, Barbara, and I journeyed on just the three of us. We walked the whole path (about a half hour), and found all the hidden treasures.

What a fun time- we will definitely be back next year!

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Josh and Amber

Now that I'm at my new job, I never get to see Josh anymore. We decided to fix that and invited his family over to hang out for the day. Ledger and Skyler got to run around the house having fun while us adults had the chance to chat and have real conversations. Josh's family loves table top gaming, so they brought over a game for us to try. I forget what one they brought, but it was some version of Munchkin. All six of us gathered around and gave it a try. Diana, Ledger, and were at a disadvantage in that we had no idea how to play, so thankfully they were gentle with us and showed started off slowly, explaining the whole time. It was a lot of fun and Ledger did really well!

Visiting Josh

 I work with a guy named Josh. He and I get along smashingly- we both find each other hysterical and seeing each other makes our work day go so much faster. We had always been meaning to hang out outside of work but couldn't find the right time. With Diana out of town for a few days, I decided to give him a call and head over to his place. He and his wife have a boy who's only a year older than Ledger and also loves Among Us, so Ledge was just as excited to visit them and meet their son. We got there and the boys instantly hit it off and started playing Among Us right away!

Josh showed off his cooking skills by making us all some home made pizza, and it was delicious! After we ate the boys kept playing their game. Figuring we aught to do the same, Josh and Amber pulled out one of their games: a role playing card game based on the Alien film series. Having no idea how to play, they started off gently, explaining everything as we went along. It still made no sense by the end, but apparently I won, so that wasn't too bad! As the evening was getting late, we packed up and headed home. It was really fun time and we will have to do it again when Diana is actually able to join us! 

goodbye, mikey

One of my buddies, and a guy I work with, made the big decision to move.  He is taking his family all the way to Tennessee.  We are certainly going to miss him, he's got a little boy only a couple years younger than Ledger, so the two of them have played together a few times.  One of the other guys at work offered to have everyone over so we could all hang out for the afternoon and say our goodbyes.  it's sad to see him go, but we all wish him luck down south.

k-ville gathering

for the past four years a few of us from kelloggsville middle school have been getting together for a sort of unofficial class reunion.  adam and some of the girls spearhead the effort, planning the date and location, making sure to invite as many people from our class as they can track down.  this year, a few days before the event, I got a text from adam saying that he had tracked down a special guest.  I was excited to hear that!  I asked him 'is it mrs. jager?  if not, could we invite mrs. jager?!?'  well, I must have some sort of sixth sense or something because it was mrs. jager!  she was our English teacher in middle school and she was a favorite among students- we all loved her soo much!  she had such a positive impact on my friends and I that we still reference her regularly as one of the best parts of our childhood!  and now, here she is, visiting us as we gather together, her 8th grade students 25 years later!  we were all so delighted that she came and showered her with questions and memories about those wonderful years!  she is still sharp as a tack, though now in her 70's.  she remembered each one of us and was asking questions about our parents and siblings that she also remembered.  wow!  its always good to catch up with my former classmates, but the chance to spend an evening with mrs. jager?  now that's priceless!

breakfast with penny

its been a really long time since we got to see penny.  when we first moved to michigan jon enlisted our help babysitting his little penny.  while we lived with my parents we would go over there a few times a week and watch her.  it worked really well because he only lived about a mile and a half away from my parents.  when we moved to allegan we still watched her for a while, but weren't able to continue.  we hadn't been able to see her much after that.  

we decided to fix that- jon and i made plans to get together for breakfast on a day we both had off of work.  we had a great time and the kids were so excited to see each other and play around with the jellies and cream cups!  when we first saw them ledger was so shocked by how much bigger penny had gotten, the last time he saw her she was barely even walking!  even though she didnt really remember ledger, they were fast friends!  it was great to see the kids together and its always nice to see jon and allison.  we will have to do it again sometime!

movie with mikey

every once in a while we get the chance to hang out with mike and his family.  he told me at work that he and the mrs. were taking their boys to see the new 'how to train your dragon' movie and wondered if we wanted to go too.  I talked to diana and ledge and they were all up for it!  mike's little boy is only a year younger than ledger, so they have a ton of fun together.
we met up with them at the theater and got snacks.  when we got in the screening we realized that we were going to be the only ones in that showing!  well, that meant that the boys were unleashed!  we found our seats, but the boys wanted to sit by themselves so they could be a little louder and silly during the movie.  no problem since no one else was there!  by the end of the movie they had spent most of their sugar rush and made a huge popcorn mess.  fortunately we didn't have to clean it up.  sorry theater workers...

greg's retirement

adam's dad is finally retiring.  he's been a professor at calvin college for over 40 years and he's finally throwing in the towel and going to try the retired life!  adam and his sister have been planning a special retirement party for him and adam invited aaron and i to stop in as well.  we've known adam's dad since we were young kids in grade school and would come over to the house and make silly home movies with their camcorder- so we go way back!  he has since insisted that we actually call him greg, so we oblige, though it still feels weird to not call him 'adams dad'...
well, one of the things that adam wanted to do was to make the event an extra special one.  the best way to do that, of course, is to order a singing telegram!  back when we were little there were always these terrible local commercials for singing telegrams.  adam was always obsessed with them, so when he found out that they were still in business all these years later, he knew he had to order one for his dad!
it turned out to be hilarious!  a guy showed up in a monkey outfit and sang a special song just for greg- he seemed to make it up as he went along, pulling from what he saw around the room and peppered in some info that adam had given him ahead of time.  overall, it was hilarious and well worth it- i would totally recommend it!
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a jerry afternoon

one of the guys at who i work with, jerry, has been telling us about how he's been making a treehouse for his son.  he's been busy at it all summer, so we had been joking with him about inviting everyone over to check it out when he's done.  well, he got done and did just that!  all the work friends were invited to his place for a cookout.  jerry has a little boy who's about the same age as ledger, so i took him with and mikey took his son too.
it was really fun to see jerry's handy work- which is really quite impressive!  and have some time for ledger to play with a few other kids outside for the afternoon.  the food was great and there was a pool and waterslide for the kids- a good time all around!
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k-ville reunion again

adam and the girls were at it again- it's time for another kelloggsville reunion!  it still seems strange, but my 8th grade class has a reunion every year.  we may have been an unusual class back in the day, but most of us really loved junior high!  as most of us went to south christian for high school, some people went elsewhere.  thus the reason to get together with the 8th grade class!  usually it's just an excuse to see adam, but aaron and i have been to every get together so far.  it always seems to be the same people, with a new guest or two, but that doesn't matter because it's still so much fun!  usually someone brings something from the old days for us to page through to get those old memories flowing.  this year i brought my yearbooks for us to page through.  we spend the night reliving old stories and laughing like old friends! 
as long as they keep getting together, i am totally there!

bed tent

one of the best parts of having a birthday, according to ledger, is all the gifts!  well, he already got a bunch from diana and i, and a bunch from grandpa and grandma, but there were still more!  in the mail he got a package from his auntie lissa.  he eagerly tore into it and opened up a very special gift.  he got a bed tent!  he was really excited to put it on his bed and try it out.  we set it up and he loved it so much- he said that it felt like he was looking at the stars in the sky.  i have a feeling he's going to be using this thing for years to come...

date night

a work, a bunch of us get together from time to time to go and see a movie.  well, this latest time we made plans to see 'black panther' and diana said she wanted to come as well.  that can be a bit of an issue when we have a 5 year old at home...  so we did something we so rarely do: we got a babysitter so we could both go out!  since we don't really know anyone in allegan who is babysitter age, we made plans with my dear sweet niece jaidey! 
i went to go pick her up and give her the rundown on ledger's schedule and all the details for the night.  when she felt comfortable, diana and i headed out.  it was really strange leaving our boy behind as we went to enjoy a date night!  we went and grabbed a quick meal at jimmy johns, we were careful not to eat too much- we had to save room for all that popcorn!
we got to the theater and i had the opportunity to introduce diana to all the guys from work, so finally she could put a face to the names i always talk about...  the movie was really great, but the best part was just getting the chance to have a night out with my better half!
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jedi pier

last time there was a new star wars movie (the skywalker ones) we went with miranda and levi to navy pier in chicago to see it.  figuring we would make it a tradition, we made plans with the two of them to do it again when last jedi came out.
well, there was a little big of a change in miranda and levi's life, so it ended up being miranda and her friend leanne instead...  we went anyway and had a nice time.  the visit to navy pier was unfortunately a bit underwhelming.  the place itself is really cool, but it seems like we picked the exact wrong time to go there- about 3/4ths of the place was under construction, so there was hardly anything to do there!  about the only places that were open on the pier were a book store and mcdonalds...  fortunately the movie theater was up and running, so we at least got to do the thing we drove two hours to see!
the movie itself was a ton of fun, and really cool in the huge 3-D imax screen, so that helped alleviate some of the disappointment...
(good grief, just take a moment and appreciate how beautiful diana is.  sometimes it takes seeing her in photos like this for me to remember, but i always do remember!)