Guess who’s back, back again?

Oh hey, interwebz!

A lot has been happening the last six (eight?) months. Wedding plans are in full swing with a five month countdown beginning tomorrow (EEE!). We have decided to host our reception at The Roostertail. Zuul and I hemmed and hawed for a while, kept deciding on venues that were perfect, but in the end we needed something that we didn’t have to worry too much about. The short of it came down to the amazing view and impeccable service received upon meeting with the staff.  We also recently had our engagement photos taken by our AMAZING photographer, Mishelle Lamarand Photography. I am so happy we chose her to document our special day. If these photos and our experience this one cold Sunday morning are any indication of Mishelle’s work ethic and enthusiasm, I can’t wait for our wedding to get here just to work with her again.

I was also lucky enough to participate in the Motor City Mapping (MCM) project through work. I was originally pulled into help prep any operational tasks that someone would need to be trained on, but eventually began participating in the check-in process every day. I met some amazing people from Detroit and Quicken Loans. It was a huge roller coaster of 10+ hour days for three months, but I wouldn’t trade the experience and connections I made for all of the lost sleep.

Hmm…what else is going on? Oh yeah, we bought a house! We are officially home owners in Detroit! We have been interested in a few different neighborhoods for a while, but it was some of the relationships and connections I made through the MCM project that really solidified our decision to choose East English Village. The house is in great condition, it’s previous owner did some fantastic updates and we are ecstatic to move in and make it our own.

 

Once we are all moved in and set up, I will be sure to update everyone on the house’s progress. Until then…<3

Summer summer summertime…

Hello my lovely readers!

I’m sorry I have been away for so long. As I’m sure you know, summer gets hectic for everyone, including me! After getting engaged, life really picked up, but I’d be lying if I said I was sad to see it start to dwindle down. I love fall! I can’t wait!

I’d also like to send a big thank you to Stephanie at LoveintheD for featuring my engagement story!

I hope to have a more concrete post coming soon. Until then, I hope these visual anecdotes of my summer in Detroit will suffice.

City till I die!

Front window at Simmons & Clark

Guardian Building on a d:Hive Tour

d:Hive

Celebrating our engagement at The Corner

Oh, Ryan…

Early morning treat

Tigers game with my family

Detroit Party Marching Band at the Alger Theater 

Reception site shopping on Belle Isle

Graffiti in Eastern Market

Look what else I found at Eastern Market!

Hubbard Farms last regular season game before COPA

COPA

View from Guns & Butter

Transformers 4 props

Engaged on the Dequindre Cut

I am so excited to share with my amazing readers (which I’m sure you all know by now…) but my man-friend and I became engaged over the weekend!!!!

He had been planning it but deceptively telling me it wouldn’t happen for quite some time. On Saturday, he became very insistent that we take a walk on the Dequindre Cut. Once we got to a mural that was void of other walkers/bikers, he asked if he could take a picture of me in front of it. And when I turned around, he was recording me on his phone and got down on one knee. It was so unexpected! Of course, I said yes!

I love that my life in the city has become so life changing. I cannot wait to plan MY Detroit wedding! If you are recently engaged and interested in getting married in the city, I suggest checking out the blog, Love in the D. Detroit lacks serious reviews and resources to plan a real Detroit wedding, and this blog is definitely the go-to. I can’t wait to begin referencing other weddings to create my dream day!

Also, a GIGANTIC thank you to all of my friends and family that helped keep this a secret for so long. I love you all!

Whole Foods Detroit-It’s finally here!

Whole Foods Detroit is FINALLY open!

There are not enough words to describe how I excited I am about this magnificent beast of a wholesome grocery store! I cannot wait to really practice my big city-“walk everywhere!”-“viva mass transit!”-preach.

I was very excited to see swarms of residents, employees of local businesses and students walking around this crowd. It was borderline overwhelming, but everyone was extremely friendly and eager to get into the store. I could not believe the line waiting to get in! There were also plenty of food vendors offering samples and representatives of products that Whole Foods stocks in its store nationally.

Shortly after breaking ground, Whole Foods received some backlash regarding their proximity to Eastern Market. And I won’t lie, I had some concerns myself, but it was great to hear that they would be working with local vendors to supply their produce and products in the Detroit store. While perusing the store, I bumped into a friend of mine that mentioned a conversation he had with one of his colleagues that Whole Foods is still looking to carry additional products in the Detroit location from local business owners. I think it is awesome that they have not maxed out their capacities to carry more local products.

The two signs on the beer cases give some direction to local breweries. Oh, and then there’s John Sally in the corner signing autographs.

The interior of the store is much more vibrant than the pictures I have been seeing on their Facebook page leading up to this opening. The Detroit-centric themes really take the cake!

Whole Foods also gave away some pretty nifty, reusable tote bags!

All in all, I’m quite pleased with its opening! I visited the store last night, a mere 24 hours after its full day open, and the parking lot was PACKED! Congratulations, Whole Foods and welcome to the amazing Detroit!

Food Truck Takeover

If there is one thing I wish I saw more of in Detroit, it’s food truck rally’s. They happen. They exist. But I work in New Center, which could be the most neglected business district in the city. Ok, I’m being a little dramatic, maybe not the most (I can think of a few others) but cm’on food trucks! People work here too, and we are limited in our restaurant options outside of New Center One. And even those aren’t THAT great. BUT! On Monday, the gods of Detroit Food Trucks got together and decided to host a rally. I could not contain my excitement!

I saw my usual faves (El Guapo and Mac Shack, yum!) and a few that don’t peak my interest. I was so excited to see Grindhouse, the newest food truck from Corridor Sausage, and Green Zebra, a food truck I’d never encountered before. It was hard to pick one, so I went with both.

I ordered the “Tempeh” from Grindhouse, which consisted of a thick bun, kimchi and fried tempeh, topped with bibimbap sauce. It SMELLED delicious. I also ordered the Spinach Artichoke Grilled Cheese from Green Zebra, which is exactly what it sounds like. Both came with sides of pickles, another perk for me.

I sat down to nom into the “Tempeh” first, and found myself pretty disappointed. I feel I need to preface this; I LOVE Corridor Sausage. When I ate meat, I loved getting Corridor from Eastern Market. But, then again, they are a sausage company, so perhaps the next time I’m on a meat-cation, I will have to hunt them down and give it another go. I tried reallllly hard to like this, but it was too salty for my palate. The bibimbap sauce was awesomely spicy, the kimchi was right on par, and the bread and butter pickles that came with were surprisingly tasty, but the tempeh left little to be desired. I was bummed!

The Green Zebra, however, was awesome! The flavors were what I expected, and it was overall a very pleasing experience. The new pickle that came with was yummy, too. I don’t have much to say, other than this sandwich saved the day!

It makes my heart so happy to see more food trucks and restaurants taking the big leap in Detroit.

Oops! I did it again…

Oh hey, I didn’t notice you there.

You’re probably here because I’ve begged or pleaded with you to visit orrrr you’re a creep (kidding! maybe?).

I love Detroit, plain and simple. But, I’d be lying if I said I loved it all day, everyday. I’m a human, it’s human nature to be frustrated or annoyed with things in your life. You push the people who love you the most around everyday, so you probably push the city you love the most around, too. I digress; this is my city, I make it what I want it to be and I wouldn’t trade living here for the world.

I make this vow to you! I am committing to write in here on a fairly regular basis. It won’t be every day or every week, but I. Will. Write.

I love Detroit SO much that I want to tell you about living/eating/sleeping/breathing here. The ups and the downs. Sometimes there will be posts about other passions in my life; makeup, fashion, my family, my boyfriend, my friends…you get the picture. And speaking of which, I lovelovelove taking pictures with my iPhone, so you’ll likely have some eye candy to detract my poor grammar.

If I can convince one more person in this world through this blog to fall in love with Detroit the way I have, I will know I’ve succeeded in at least one personal challenge I have agreed to.