go blue.

This was a big weekend for Ben and me. We have passed through a lot of the relationship-dating milestones but one has been lingering and the point of this weekend was to get beyond it...I was finally going to see my first game in the Big House, and against Michigan State no less!

We set the weekend up perfectly. I got in late Friday night after work and started our Saturday morning early. First, we swung by Washtenaw Dairy for donuts (see here for a previous post to understand the glory of these donuts). Yes, they had game day sprinkles and if I had the time, I would just sit in there for hours. The Washtenaw Dairy is a moment in time and it might be my favorite place in Ann Arbor. 

We went and got coffee to eat with our donuts and then we wandered over to Chase Bank to open a joint savings account. One would think this would have been the relationship milestone in our weekend, but this was a sideshow to the big game!

We made a pit-stop in the M-Den to gear up and then got ourselves over to tailgate at Aaron and Brittany's place with Emmy, Charlie and a bunch of others. It was a gorgeous day...the perfect fall wet-nose cold!

And, there were fantastic Coney Island dogs for the taking...

Ben wanted to show me the Golf Course where thousands of people tailgate every game. So, we walked over there with Emmy in a rush before kick-off. I also took a lot of pictures of the leaves...

 

 

Pictures of my first Big House experience with Ben stop at this point. In a long story made short with some details left out, all you need to know is that the Michigan State Troopers are very serious about the spelling of your middle name on your student ID at Gate 2. We do not recommend trying to enter the Big House on that side of the stadium. Yes, I was escorted out of the stadium. On the upside, putting my driver's license down my pants when he wasn't looking turned out to be a good call since he couldn't give me a ticket. Didn't win the war but won that battle, eh?!

We sulked a little as any close couple would. We eventually regrouped and headed for the only possible comfort we could think of at Mani. We ate some of our depression away with pizza and beer. It did not help when Michigan won with a field goal at the end of the 4th...but we won't talk of that any longer. 

The weekend, despite this major (and I do mean major) disappointment, turned out to be great. Sunday morning we grabbed donuts again and then walked over to this beautiful spot that Ben had picked out and drank our coffee, listened to the water, ate our donuts, and sat in the morning sun. 

 

I had to catch a plane back to DC in the afternoon, so the weekend was short but very sweet.