Leighann's Trip to Michigan!

Hello Family!! Sorry I haven’t really been on the blog much—pregnancy is really not agreeing with me at all, and while it is definitely getting better, I still have horrible days sprinkled in with my more capable days.

So, I had a fun adventure thanks to Mark and Vân and family—my friend, Paige, and I were able to go visit them in Michigan. Yes! That means we did get to see their beautiful new home before anyone else in the family :D

My friend, Paige, who I met through Church here in Springfield had never been outside of the Springfield, MO area. When Mark invited me to come stay with them in Michigan and we knew Peter wouldn’t be able to join me due to his busy schedule, I thought to invite Paige and Mark was okay with it. It was a lot of fun to travel with her! So we left Springfield Tuesday, October 20^th. My GPS sent us through Columbia, MO on our way to Mom and Dad’s and since I had some things for Aaron and Shannon, we stopped at their place and said hi.

We got to Mom and Dad’s around 11 pm, and so I slept in the next day. Mom took Paige on a tour of Hannibal, then when I got up, the three of us went on a tour of the Rockcliffe Mansion. It was so cool, and the new owners have it staged so beautifully! Here are some pictures from that. We had a lot of fun.

The next day, Paige and I left early for Nauvoo. We did a session in the temple, then stopped at the fudge store because I knew with Mark’s famous sweet tooth it would be the perfect way to say “thank you”. 

Then we drove to Michigan! We got there around 11 pm again, and ended up keeping Mark awake talking until 1 am! He had work the next morning, so we met him and Vân for lunch in Ann Arbor where they both work. After lunch, we got to tour Mark’s work and see the 3-D printer he set up for his company, and see the projects he is working on. He designed a beautiful mansion, and the owner picked his design over the design the partners of the firm had chosen! I was pretty proud of my brother :D And the mansion is gorgeous—it maximizes all the views of the property around the mansion, and the lake. And it is a really cool design, with a lot of angles and unique features.

Afterwards, we wandered around Ann Arbor and enjoyed the scene. It made me homesick for Santa Cruz! Ann Arbor is a total college town, and the downtown area had a great mix of college students, young families, and working professionals. And EVERYONE was so nice!! We stopped by Vân’s work to use the restroom, and the owner made us some bahn mi sandwiches and ginger tea—which is basically just ginger in hot water. It’s great for pregnant women, and helped warm us up some. The owner of the shop is super nice, and he really thinks very highly of Vân (of course).

It was so much fun, even though we were both pretty cold by the end of the night. When we got home, Kelsey, Khai and Emily were home and they made me feel so loved as they jumped up and yelled, “Aunt Leighann!!” I gave them the treat I had picked up for them in Nauvoo at the fudge store, and then we did karaoke (a favorite past-time of Khai’s) until Mark and Vân got home from the awards dinner they had been at—Mark’s firm won an award for the design of a Korean BBQ place they designed in Ann Arbor. Then we stayed up talking again, and Vân showed me a fun Korean show called “My Love from Another Star” about an alien who is on Earth for 500 years. It is a really cute, very family-friendly show (you just have to read subtitles). Paige fell asleep, so of course I had to take a picture of her.

Took this picture for Peter-- it's a luthier shop in Ann Arbor! My phone was dying, so Paige took most the pictures on her camera so I'll have to get those later.

Saturday, we all walked around Chelsea—the town where Mark and Vân live—with Lady, their sweet dog. We found the Chelsea Historical Society and found out a lot about the history of this adorable town. They had a cement plant at one point, so I took a picture of that display for Dad :D

Afterwards, as we walked home and checked out a few of the really cute shops, Mark bought everyone ice cream and sodas. The ice cream in Chelsea and Ann Arbor are amazing!! Mark explained there are a lot of local dairies, so a lot of the businesses make their own home-made ice cream. It was so awesome!

And this one is for you, Shannon-- a store called Moran's! Think they'd give you a discount? :D

That night was the Trunk-or-Treat for their ward, so when we got back the kids dressed and we zombiefied the kids. Mark had made chili for the contest, and Vân made this delicious salad that was one of only two salads at the event, so it was a good thing she made it! As we drove home that night all the kids were happy to share their candy.

Khai found a giant oyster cracker!

Sunday we had fun at their ward. Everyone is so nice and friendly! After, Paige and I drove around Chelsea a little longer because all the trees were so beautiful and the historic houses are so unique. Mark made amazing beef stew that tasted so good!! Vân and Kelsey had Young Women in Excellence, but when they got home, Vân made balut for me to try—the duck embryo thing. I ate some of the yolk, and the leg of Vân’s embryo. Still, I was glad that I tried it at least once! Up until this trip, it was the only thing I can remember ever being offered that I had refused. Since then, I have determined to try everything at least once, so I was determined to do it! I am not a fan of the texture, but the flavor is like chicken stock, and I really like chicken stock.

Monday, Paige and I left. I had locked up the whole house before realizing my phone was still in it L So we texted Mark, but he couldn’t answer us right away so we went into town to distract ourselves. Then Mark texted Paige and told her where the extra key was hidden, so we were able to get in. Sure enough, my phone was right where I thought it would be L So I took Lady out one last time, and we were back on the road! Our plan originally was to stop and Mom and Dad’s one more time on the way home, but then decided we missed our husband’s too much so we just drove straight home. We left Chelsea, MI at 12:30 their time (an hour ahead of our time), and made it home at 10:30 pm our time. It was so good to see Peter, and he was amazed how my baby bump had grown in the week I was gone. He couldn’t stop hugging me. It made me feel very loved.

Paige and I had so much fun!! And it was great to spend time with the family and see everything that is going on in their lives. Their home is absolutely beautiful, and Vân kept us well stocked with bahn mi :D And their town is gorgeous, as you can see from the pictures (which don’t do it justice, of course). It was a great distraction, and I only threw up three times the whole week (which I really, really loved!!). Thank you, Mark, Vân, and family for hosting us!! Michigan was absolutely beautiful and wonderful!! Now I can't wait to visit again, and bring Peter with me this time :D