Last Thursday, I went to Lansing to visit Maria Daniela, her husband, Matt, and her crazy dog, Piper. Piper was a little too excited to see me. She kept jumping on me and had to be restrained. Maria Daniela and Matt’s excitement to see me was at a more appropriate level.

On Friday, I was home with Piper while Maria Daniela and Matt worked. Luckily, Piper was calmer that day and wasn’t jumping on me. In the afternoon, I went for a walk on the River Trail. While I walked, I saw a nice goose couple also taking a walk. When I got back, Piper decided to start jumping on me again, but it was ok since we left to have all-you-can-eat sushi for dinner. After dinner, they took me to Horrocks, a huge market. It’s a grocery store, garden center, beer garden, and bakery, all in one. When it’s not freezing outside, they have live music and food trucks. There’s a separate bar inside the grocery store where you can order a drink to have while you shop. They have an aisle with large containers of olive oil and balsamic vinegar with different flavors that you can sample. It’s definitely an experience. I’d probably be there way too much if I lived in Lansing.

On Saturday, we went to Detroit, since there isn’t much to do in Lansing. We went to Belle Isle, an island park. They have a lot to do there. We went to the conservatory, aquarium, and nature center.

We had a slow morning on Sunday. After I went to Mass, we had brunch. All the brunch spots they had tried weren’t very good, even though they had good reviews. Luckily, the one we went to was good. We had some of the famous MSU Dairy Store ice cream for dessert. MSU is an agricultural school and they have their own cows that they get milk from to make the ice cream in-house. When we got there, I realized that I had already had their ice cream last year, when I was there for Maria Daniela and Matt’s wedding. The ice cream was delicious both times!

That afternoon, I drove back to Chicago. I’ll be here until next Wednesday, when I’m flying to Florida for a wedding.