Friday Favorites #96: Week of 7/3

 

 

 

• summer coffee

If anyone knows how much I love and miss my coffee from The Fresh Market, it’s my mom. I was so excited to see she brought a fresh batch of (limited edition) Summer Vanilla Coffee with her on her trip up to see me!

The Pumpkin Spice bags will always be my favorite, but I truly miss trying out their seasonal specialty coffees while frequenting the store. C’mon and get up to my neck of the woods already, Fresh Market!

 

• a day in Detroit with Mom

My mom was only with me a couple of days, but we did our best to fit in as much as we could while she was staying with me. She’s been up to visit a few times before, but for whatever reason, we have never really taken any significant amount of time to walk around the Downtown Detroit area.

It was freezing the last time we were there! She was a trooper and ran the Turkey Trot Drumstick Double with me last Thanksgiving Day. This time, it was warm enough for a stop into the beach!

Campus Martius Park is an inviting little secret hang out spot smack dab in the middle of downtown. I blogged about it over a year ago, and since my first visit, Scott and I have walked through it several times.

The park covers two square blocks (and is expanding) with green grass, gorgeous fountains, outdoor sitting areas, and a small beach complete with sand and lawn chairs.

We took our time roaming the streets and started walking towards the Fox Theatre. We found several places to take photos and stopped into Comerica Park to say hello to the giant tiger statue that greets the entrance.

(Eh, close enough)

Unfortunately, the theatre was closed for a reconstruction on the main sign out front, so we weren’t able to pop inside to see the incredible details of the lobby. I was surprised to hear they were redoing it. That sign is practically famous!

We took that as a sign to head back to the car and drove over to Gold Cash Gold for an early dinner.

Scott and I first discovered this restaurant thanks to some friends of ours back in January. It’s a unique place to take out-of-town guests and has a limited, but awesome menu filled with specialty dishes.

We ordered the Farmer’s Bread to start while we looked over the menu, and it was ridiculously delicious. I could have eaten ten more slices for my dinner and would have been totally content.

My mom ordered the Lox plate for dinner, and she somehow convinced me to eat salmon and try it. It was great!

I ordered the house-made pappardelle pasta with spring greens, lemon zest, and cured egg yolk.

Everything tasted wonderful. She had a great time, and my love for the restaurant just continues to grow!

 

• running the trails

My mom is an avid runner, so we made a point to get out on the trails at least once while she was staying with me.

We took a familiar and comfortably paced four mile loop through the trails, and I was happy to see they paved some of it!

Coming from Florida, I knew she appreciated the “cooler running weather” in the mid-60s Wednesday. It was a great start to the morning!

 

• lunch in Birmingham

After our run, we cleaned up and got ready for another day of exploring. I wanted to show her one of our best areas to dine and walk around called Birmingham.

The weather couldn’t have been better for it. We parked a couple of blocks away from one of my personal favorites, Social, and enjoyed being outside on the walk over.

Wanting to take advantage of the beautiful weather, we asked to sit on the rooftop and both ordered Social Salad Bowls.

You can pick and choose pretty much anything you want to put on your salad. It’s genius!

 

• Frankenmuth

Rounding out her short, yet eventful stay with me, I drove her a little over an hour north to meet my dad and grandma in Frankenmuth!

Scott and I visited this charming German town a couple of years ago, and it was a great excuse and halfway meeting point for us to get to yesterday. Since we had all previously eaten at Zehnder’s, we decided to try out the famous chicken dinners at Bavarian Inn.

Both restaurants are casual, but one hundred percent decked out in German flare. It’s pretty neat to see!

I knew I probably should have tried the traditional fried chicken, but something told me to order the barbecue chicken wrap instead. It came with a side of their soup of the day that happened to be cream of celery. And delicious.

My dad and grandma went more traditional and ordered Bratwurst plates. I got to steal a small sample of everything, and it was all very good!

Even though our day was limited, I really enjoyed our time together. After lunch, we walked over to the fountain nearby and chatted until I needed to head back to the Rochester Hills area to teach at gym!

I’ve mentioned this on the blog before, but my grandma actually lives Up North in Michigan. Small world, right? She spends most of her year staying at my parents’ house in Florida, however, and just got back to enjoy a Michigan summer at home three weeks ago. I’m looking forward to getting up there and seeing her more in (hopefully) just a few weeks!

 

• favorite LIL posts

» Summer 2015 Workout Playlist

 

» Silver Dollar City & Branson, Missouri

 

» Why You Should Never Forget Your Sunglasses

 

• Friday funnies

Perfectly and patriotically themed for Independence Day…

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And one that has absolutely nothing to do with the 4th…

source

 

 

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Have a great holiday weekend!

 

Disclaimer: Friday Favorites is a series of posts that features items I genuinely want to share with you. While #FFavorites isn’t sponsored, affiliate links may appear from time to time. As always, any support is much appreciated! <3