Shimmerette: My Happy Place

Happy Places.

I know I have mentioned them often, and it is included on the posts where I interview my friends. I thought I would talk about one of mine in particular in more detail today. Some people have just one “Happy Place”, but I will admit I have several.

Initially, what comes to mind when asked about my “Happy Place” is my yearly trip to see my family. So many places I love, and have grown quite attached to, and they are all in the same place. Recently some friends of mine were discussing where we would go if we ever won the lottery. One at a time, places like Europe, Turks and Caicos, and Australia were named. When it came my turn to say where I would go, imagine the looks on their faces when I announced “Michigan”. (I will say they probably weren’t overly surprised to hear something like that come out of my mouth, this was the girl in fact that said if ever she won a lot of money she would buy a house in….. Beaumont? Dream big, girl.) It is such a beautiful state, filled with so many things I love. Both my son and I are addicted to eating at Panera (The Madison Heights location), and we try to go as many times as humanly possible while we are there. There is a TJ Maxx , Marshalls and a Target very close to there as well, and my mom loves shopping at all three so convincing my parents to head over there after lunch isn’t very hard whatsoever. They also have the BEST liquor section in a grocery store in Madison Heights called Meijer as well. I have found wine there for $4…. And it is GOOD wine. (Who am I kidding all wine is good wine in my books.) Further north of Madison Heights, there is a beautiful mall in Troy called Somerset Mall. I go to two places in this mall, and only two places. MAC to replenish my sister’s makeup supply and Victoria’s Secret to get the NFL collection for PINK. Starting in the late summer, the VS PINK store creates a line of NFL and College apparel designed for girls, specifically for the city the store is located in. So, with the store being in Troy, I can get my hot little hands on every Detroit Lions and University of Michigan or Michigan State University piece of apparel they have . I am obsessed with it, and over the years have gotten some amazing pieces. Last year I got my favourite yoga leggings I have ever worn, with the University of Michigan logo emblazoned on the bottom side. They are very much loved. All above-mentioned things aside though, my one true Happy Place would be the day we venture to the Great Lakes Crossing Outlet mall in Auburn Hills. The drive there is quite scenic, and I get extremely excited as to what is to come during my shopping day. The outlet mall is insanely big, and they have so many stores I love. The Forever 21 is gigantic, I have always found a pair of jeans or two at True Religion that fit me perfectly and the Disney Store outlet is a big hit with my son. BUT, those aren’t my absolute favourite places to be. The Victoria’s Secret Outlet is Heaven on Earth for me. I am absolutely obsessed with this store. Rack upon rack of sale clothing, lingerie, perfume and everything else VS is known for, at a fraction of the regular price. I found my new favourite PINK lounge shirt in a neon yellow that I wear constantly while hanging out at home for $2.99 there last summer. I love nothing more than perusing in the VS outlet store for as long as the patience of my family waiting patiently in Bass Pro Shops will allow, and then continuing on to our favourite restaurant in Clarkston, the Union Woodshop. It was featured on Diners Drive-ins and Dives for a reason. Everything is delicious. They have a state of the art wood fire pizza oven which creates the most delicious margherita pizza I have ever tasted. But the piece de resistance? Their homemade Mac ‘n Cheese with bacon. My mouth is watering right now just thinking of it, and the portions are incredible. I think I likened it to the size of a turkey platter last summer when it arrived. Absolutely delectable. I highly suggest, if you can find it, watching the episode of Triple D where it was featured. They dedicated the entire episode to the Union Woodshop and accompanying brewery in Clarkston. Incredible and delicious. Of course the trip would not be complete unless a Detroit Lions game was attended and/or a Tigers baseball game as well. One of the best things that has ever happened to me in my life was when I got to go to Monday Night Football with my dad last year to see not only the Lions season opener, but MNF’s season opener. I have memories that will last me a lifetime of our amazing seats (row 20!), seeing many celebrities including Ben Affleck and his family in attendance (Stars: They’re just like US), and being with my dad proudly wearing his Barry Sanders throwback jersey while Barry Sanders was there himself, enjoying the game. I had the best trip back to see my family last summer and I absolutely cannot wait to go again. It might not sound like the most glamorous locale, but is my Happy Place for a reason. Yes, the reason is because I get to do my favourite things like shop, eat and drink wine….. however I would say the overall real reason is because I get to do all those things with my family.