Month: October 2018

Halloween Houses & Craft Shows

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Saturday (10/20) we went to Willowbrook High School for their annual craft fair but left empty-handed unlike last year. I did see a few things I liked, including a little fleece jacket for Wookie that fastened with velcro (which she prefers over wearing something that goes over her head) but the only version in her size was cut a little crooked so I opted not to get it. I took the woman’s card and I might purchase a custom made jacket at some point since her prices were reasonable and she’s local.

Joe had to go to court twice that week (10/22 and 10/25) to get his old child support accounts officially terminated so they stop charging us $36 annually to maintain accounts that aren’t even being used. I really hate the state of Illinois and the hoops they make you jump through. He sat in the courtroom all morning and part of the afternoon that Monday just to get a stamped piece of paper that took less than five minutes to receive. Luckily on his return trip he only had to wait around an hour.

In between that was our wedding anniversary (10/23) so we visited the arboretum and had a nice dinner at Jameson’s Steakhouse.

This past Friday (10/26) we drove around Carol Stream to look at the houses decorated for Halloween.

On Saturday (10/27) after Joe donated some blood we stopped at Sonny Acres for apple cider donuts and a walking taco for yours truly. I swear their prices keep going up. A half dozen of donuts was $9 and my walking taco was $4. That will probably be our last visit since it’s not that much fun anymore as it always seems cold and there’s nothing to do if you don’t have kids. Doesn’t really matter anyway since the property is up for sale and likely won’t be around come this time next year anyway. That night we stopped at Just Kabobs for dinner and then went on the Gallery of Ghoulish Homes Tour in St. Charles. It wasn’t judging night (which was the previous weekend when the weather was super windy) and we started a bit early (before 6 pm) than usual so it wasn’t the same. We didn’t get out of the car and I didn’t bother taking any photos. Traditions are nice but sometimes they start to get stale, you know? Perhaps that’s a hint we should move…

Yesterday (10/28) we went to Oak Brook mall because I had an appointment with the Apple store to have my iPhone 6 battery replaced since they are only offering the discounted $29 replacements until the end of the year. They wouldn’t do it, however, since I had already had the battery replaced by Batteries+ last year. Something about liability and for the protection of their staff which I guess I understand but still sucks. I debated just upgrading my phone now but other than the improved camera, I’m not all that thrilled with the changes that have been made to the latest iPhones and I sure as hell don’t like the price points. I can’t stand Android, though, so eventually I will have to upgrade, but I’m hoping my current battery will hold out another year and I’ll get whatever the latest and greatest Apple has to offer in 2019. I want to have a good camera in my phone for when we return to Disney World in spring 2020.

Today I went to Savers and then met my friend for lunch at Pot Belly. I struck out at Savers even though I did find a sweater I liked. It was The Loft too, for only $6, but was made with wool and rabbit fur which was itchy and made me sneeze so I passed.

Birthday Party & Dog Park Visits

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Saturday I took Wookie for two half hour walks and to the dog park by myself since Joe was working. The idea was to tire her out so she wouldn’t be tempted to tear up any more carpet. Even so, we locked her in the kitchen just in case when we left for our friend’s party which was being hosted by his sister who lives in Joliet.

I laughed at Joe when he assumed the party would be held outside but the joke was on me when I saw their garage was set up with tables and chairs. Thank goodness I dressed warm anyway because I’m always cold. Other people didn’t seem quite as prepared and I think people should have been warned. By the end of the evening my toes were frozen, but we still had a nice time. The kids spent their time in the basement so I didn’t have to worry about that after all.

We were there about four hours and we stopped at a taco truck for a small snack with our friends before heading home. Joe went straight to bed since he had to be up early for work but I stayed up watching Netflix and hanging out with Wookie. Brother J has been harassing me about giving Big Mouth another shot so I watched a few episodes and now am hooked. I fell asleep on the couch. Sunday morning I picked up where I left off and basically watched the entire two seasons. I love Jason Mantzoukas – he has the funniest voice – and there’s so many other great actors voicing the characters.

Joe worked all day Sunday so I took Wookie for a long walk and then to the dog park my myself again. We were there an hour and a half when she started shaking from the cold so we took off. I enjoy taking her there because it’s my only socialization during the day.

I locked her in the kitchen last night but when I checked the cameras she was pacing back and forth and panting so I let her out into the living room and laid on the couch until she calmed down and went to sleep. I hate feeling anxious over whether she’s going to try and tear up more carpet by my desk. It’s not like her to be destructive anymore and I’ve been told she should see the vet to rule out any medical reason. She’s acting normal in every other way, though, so I’m going to wait and see if I catch her trying to do it again. If so, then I’ll make an appointment. In the meantime I might bring her crate back downstairs so when she’s in the kitchen she has a better spot to relax. I think she likes the bed by my desk because it’s tucked away underneath somewhat which makes her feel safe.

Ferret Show & Carpet Munching Dog

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Someone needs to slap me next time I start talking about how much I love fall. I mean, I do love the activities the season brings but I could really do without all the cold and rain. It’s not even 40 degrees today! It’s days like these I do wish I didn’t hate how brown Arizona is. I cannot wait until we’re in the position to become snowbirds so I can spend the winter months there instead of this godforsaken state. The worst feeling in the world, for me at least, is having frozen toes and around this time of year that’s all I have.

On top of that, due to the weather we weren’t able to check out the scarecrow fest last weekend. We did attend our friends’ ferret show (they have two which they enter into competitions) for a few hours since that was indoors. I also made two loaves of zucchini bread but even though I checked on them early, I still missed the super moist window so they turned out rather dry. Boo!

Joe is working all this weekend so there won’t be any glass pumpkin patch at the arboretum this year either. We have a birthday party later this afternoon to attend but I’m feeling apprehensive about that because kids will be there and I really don’t like talking to kids LOL.

Oh, and for some reason Wookie has decided to start tearing up and eating the living room carpet. It started approximately two weeks ago when she vomited bile on the carpet under my desk right next to her bed where she typically sleeps. I thought I had cleaned it up good but a few days later there was a quarter size hole where the vomit had been. I rolled my office chair wheel over the spot to prevent her from picking at it and a few days later when Joe was home upstairs working she created a second quarter sized hole! We went out that evening to Menards and bought a plastic runner to place over the holes to prevent any further damage. Now we’re kicking ourselves for throwing out the big roll of extra carpeting we had in the garage for years. Had we known we’d get a dog we’d have kept it. We can cut some carpet from the upstairs closet to patch it, but the problem is I caught her last night trying to rip a new hole somewhere in the vicinity. I was sitting on the couch and heard a strange noise and when I came around to my desk she was standing there with carpet fibers in her mouth. I couldn’t find where she had ripped them from, unfortunately.

Now I’m not sure how to handle this, but I don’t trust her being left alone downstairs anymore so she got locked in the kitchen last night. I could tell she didn’t like it but short of ripping up all the carpet and installing hardwood floors I’m not sure how to curb this behavior. I believe she’s only doing it when we are home which doesn’t point to any separation anxiety. More like boredom or her realizing she really likes it or something.

Family Get Together & Barkapalooza

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Friday (09/28) we went to the nearest Big Lots because I heard they had good fall decor. Well, there was some decent stuff but the prices were not as cheap as I was expecting so we didn’t end up getting anything. We also checked out a different Target to see if their Bullseye Playground had anything different than ours but alas, it did not. A Dollar Tree we don’t normally shop at was a bust too. But all was not lost when we tried a new restaurant my optician recommended called Taco Maya. OMG, the food was SO good. I had a mahi mahi taco and another specialty one and Joe got beef enchiladas. I can’t wait to go back and try some other unique flavors. The tacos are a little pricier than your regular Mexican joint but they are stuffed full of food and very delicious so the extra price is totally worth it.

Saturday (09/29) we donated a huge box full of stuff to Savers and sold some books and games to Half Price Books. We only got $5.25 for our efforts because the stuff was pretty old and outdated. I expected that, however, so it was no big deal. It just felt good to get more unused stuff out of the house.

We took Wookie with us to the Harvest Fest at a local park and bought some homemade treats from the Girl Scouts as well as two hot dogs and hot apple cider. Unfortunately they didn’t have any homemade zucchini bread this year so it looks like I’ll be making some in the near future; I’ve been craving it for weeks and was holding onto hope it would be at the fest again this year.

Saturday evening we went to my parents’ to celebrate my mom’s upcoming birthday. My cousin was there too. We had a good time (other than serving as tech support: helped my mom turn off closed captioning on her Netflix, fixed her computer, and updated my dad’s computer). By the time we had eaten and worked on the computers there was only a little time to play Uno before we had to head home so we wouldn’t be up too late.

Sunday (09/30) morning our friend K came by with her dog and we all went to Barkapalooza in Lisle. We weren’t sure if the weather would hold up since they were calling for rain but we only got a little drizzle just as we were leaving so it worked out perfectly. It was definitely one, if not the, biggest dog related fests we’ve ever attended. They even took complimentary photos for everyone which they posted on Shutterfly. Seeing all the happy people with their dogs was so cute! K came back to the house for a bit afterwards and then Joe and I just relaxed the rest of the day.

This morning (10/01) I decluttered the former rat room and started a new box of items to donate. It feels like it’s never-ending but I’d rather do it slowly now than have to rush through it when we eventually decide to move.