Category: Fun & Games

September Happenings & Living Room Update

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Ugh, I have been SO bad at blogging and for that I apologize. So much has been going on which sounds silly considering the only place I go is around the neighborhood to walk Wookie and to the store for groceries and home stuff.

In any case, here are the highlights over the past month. There will likely be separate entries to elaborate on some of these things in the near future:

Joe renovated the workout room. It looks much like the office – same flooring and paint color. Right now it has pantry backstock and the treadmill in it. We sold the elliptical and I couldn’t be happier. That thing was big, bulky, and I was tired of it. I like the treadmill much much better! I’m getting a storage cabinet delivered this weekend so I will post more about the room then.

On the 22nd, Joe tackled a project we’ve been wanting to do pretty much since moving in – replacing the ceiling fan and lighting in the living room and foyer.

The high ceilings had been stopping us. We ended up renting scaffolding, and a pickup truck to transport it, from Menards. The plan was to put up the scaffolding and move it between the foyer and living room area but it was so big Joe had to build it around the stairs in the foyer in order to reach the ceiling to swap out the chandelier. It was kinda nerve-wracking for the both of us, but it did work and he was able to install the new chandelier I got off Facebook Marketplace.

Old Chandelier

Old Chandelier

New Chandelier

New Chandelier

It’s actually the same exact light we have in the dining room and was only $25. It was disgustingly dirty and full of dead bugs before I cleaned it up though. People are so gross! Why would you sell it in that condition? I didn’t see any of that in the pictures. Plus they removed the light bulbs which is kinda false advertising, but whatever.

Joe ran into a snag once he was able to partially deconstruct the scaffolding and move it to the ceiling fan area. He was able to get the old fan down without a problem but the junction box was too small to accommodate the new fan. He didn’t feel comfortable trying to replace the box, so he packed everything up, returned it to Menards, and contacted an electrician we found via Facebook when I previously asked for recommendations for someone who could do the work (before Joe decided to try doing it himself).

The electrician’s inability to give us a time, or at least a window, for when he’d be over that Friday was a bit annoying, but overall we liked him. Not only did he replace the ceiling fan, he swapped the ugly mismatched recessed lights (which I referred to as boobies) over the fireplace with much nicer ones (he told us exactly which kind to buy). I mean just look at those fugly things; they aren’t even the same color. Lazy builders!

Old Recessed Lights

Old Recessed Lights

But oh how nice do the crisp white matching lights look! Too bad the entire ceiling cold use a cleaning/repainting. When Joe was up on the scaffolding he was able to remove some of the cobwebs where the ceiling and walls met at least.

New Recessed Lights

New Recessed Lights

We were originally quoted $450 for a two-hour job but it actually only took 45 minutes, probably because Joe had the ceiling fan already wired and put together. We asked if it would still be the original amount but the guy said no and charged us $300 instead.

How nice does the new fan look? Joe later admitted he wasn’t sure about the color of blades when we originally picked it out but after seeing it up he really likes it. I’m going to pat myself on the back and say I have pretty good taste.

Ceiling Fan - Before

Ceiling Fan – Before

Ceiling Fan - After

Ceiling Fan – After

The only downside, which wasn’t the electrician’s fault, was that the old fan had a built-in remote that was controlled by a switch on the wall and the new one does not (which we didn’t even consider). He had an on/off switch in his van, though, so he swapped that and set the fan on medium speed (which is what we use most of the time anyway) so it can still be turned on and off via the wall switch. We just can’t change the speed unless we get on a ladder to reach the chain.

On the plus side we should no longer run into issues with the fan turning on every time there’s a storm. The electrician explained it was interference triggering the remote in the fan. He said if it does it now he’d be concerned we have ghosts, lol. I guess we’ll find out. He was a very nice guy and I liked how he and his assistant both wore facemasks and booties without being asked. We’d definitely hire him again if we ever need work done. Bonus – he told me he’s friends with Julian Jumpin Perez. If you grew up in Chicago and listened to B96 you’ll know.

Good riddance to the ugly gold fixtures. Whomever decided gold was a good look is insane. One of these days we need to replace the gold handles on all the doors in here too.

Oh, and after all was said and done the entire project cost us just under $600. That includes fixtures, rentals, supplies, and the electrician. Not too shabby!

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Ok, so what else happened this month? We celebrated Wookie’s birthday on the 21st by buying her presents from Petsmart and taking her on a long walk at the park.

We ended up returning to the same park later the same week to try out the drones we had purchased.

Yes, that is plural. Basically we have three, although only two of them work. The first one went haywire when Joe turned it on and it crashed into the living room blinds and stopped working. We contacted the manufacturer who sent us replacement motors but that didn’t fix it, so they sent us a replacement drone. In the meantime they went on sale so we bought another one so we could try it while waiting the month or longer it was going to take to get the new one from the manufacturer. Well, life got in the way and we never got around to flying either of them so they just sat in the closet for almost three months.

Anyway, it was only slightly breezy the morning we took them out but that was enough to prevent us from controlling the drone very well. Honestly, I’m glad they were inexpensive because they aren’t as fun as I thought they would be. I don’t know, maybe a better model would be, or if we could find a calm day with absolutely no wind. I’m just glad we didn’t spend a lot on them.

Roller Skating & St. Patrick’s Day

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We had quite the social weekend and I’m mentally exhausted now.

Saturday (03/16) B & R came over and I made dinner for them – grilled chicken breasts with roasted green beans. We then went to the roller rink for 80’s Night. We arrived a little after opening and the place was packed! We should have just left, but we soldiered on. Unfortunately we didn’t get to skate very much because not only was it crowded, but there were very young kids on the rink, as young as 4, which made it very difficult to skate. There were people going super slow and super fast and it felt inevitable we’d fall. Someone fell and broke their arm shortly after we got our skates, in fact; an ambulance came and took them out by stretcher. I only skated to a handful of songs the entire evening. B probably skated the most of all of us. R didn’t skate at all, and Joe threw in the towel around 9 pm. It definitely was the most disappointing skating session we’ve had; even the music was pretty disappointing. I think we’ll need to go back the weekend before Halloween like last year since it was pretty dead.

Sunday (03/17) our friends K & E came by for dinner. We made corned beef and cabbage in the crockpot. When we had dinner with them last time E had mentioned how much he loved it and was planning on getting some from the restaurant we were at (the one I didn’t like), so I had to step in and invite them over. No way was I going to let him eat their disappointing food. He really enjoyed dinner so I definitely made the right call. We also sent him home with leftovers. K doesn’t care for corned beef and cabbage so she brought her own tortilla-less chicken fajitas. I offered to make her something else but she’s on a limited diet so it was easier for her to bring her own food. They came over around 2 pm and left just after 7. Wookie was a bit annoying, barking at them here and there, but they didn’t seem to mind. I hope so because I want her to be good with visitors. She peed on B’s sock on Saturday because apparently both my brothers get her overly excited. She doesn’t really excitement pee when we come home anymore, but with certain visitors she does. I really wish she’d grow out of it, but it doesn’t seem likely. R told me she has a friend who has a Mastiff who does the same thing so it could be worse; imagine how much pee a Mastiff would leave all over the floor!

Puppies & Video Games

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Saturday my friend K and her dog came to visit. Wookie was very excited to see them and was even kind of playing with T more than she has in the past, chasing him a bit throughout the house. She had a total fit when K had to take him outside to use the bathroom – barking and crying thinking they had left. We hung out all day chatting and playing the Wii and original Nintendo. We ordered pizza from Joseph’s for lunch and had it delivered since it was snowing. They threw in a free liter of Pepsi which was nice since we don’t keep soda in the house anymore but Joe and I were both craving it. We also snacked on brownies I made. K took off around 9 pm and we ended up staying up far too late. I think it was after 1 am before I was able to sleep which sucked because I barely slept the night before thanks to someone in my family doing something to aggravate me. On the plus side I spent two hours reorganizing the hall closet late Friday night since I was too aggravated to even attempt sleeping.

Sunday we didn’t do much at all. I didn’t even shower or change my outfit! Today I was much more productive cleaning and organizing the house. Throughout the weekend, in addition to the hall closet, I reorganized both spare bedroom closets and my jewelry. Before K came over I put together a box of donations that I encouraged her to go through and she took an old bag of mine that I’ve been hanging onto for years but never use. I’m slowly getting better at getting rid of things like that but it’s hard because sometimes I won’t use something for years and come across it and start using it again regularly. But overall I want to make sure that whenever we decide to move we don’t have a ton of stuff we don’t use to pack up.

Now I have two boxes slated to be donated and a bunch of things I want to post for sale on Offer Up. Joe has been selling stuff on there too. It still blows our minds how much stuff we continue to find to purge. It seems never-ending!

Brother J Visits

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Joe was in Denver for work from Tuesday until Saturday night. I took Thursday (11/08) off from work and drove to B’s house to pick up J to come stay with me for a few days. We hung out for a bit at the house before partying ways – B to a doctor’s appointment and us to get lunch at Denny’s. I normally hate that restaurant but the one in question is actually pretty good and the only location at which I’ll eat. In any case, I had the Cali Club which was really good. J got chicken fingers and a bowl of cream of potato soup. I let him have the fries that came with my sandwich since his meal didn’t come with any.

On the way home I misinterpreted the GPS and got off I-88 at what I thought was the exit to 355 but wasn’t. I didn’t want to pay an extra toll so we took the scenic way home. Even though I knew we were heading the correct direction I still felt lost because we ended up on roads I have never driven on. We finally came across familiar territory, however, and made our way back home. Since it was relatively warm (42) we decided to take Wookie to the dog park before it got dark (sunset is now around 4:30 and I hate it so much). She was in rare form – jumping through the agility hoop with minimal prompting, and just running around having a good time. She had the park to herself the entire time and was loving it. She loves playing with her Uncle J so much, it’s cute.

We had tacos for dinner Thursday and watched Incredibles 2. I wasn’t really getting into it until the Jack Jack scenes. I think without him the movie would have been weak.

Friday (11/09) we hooked up J’s Super Nintendo and played some old games including F-Zero which was one of my favorites back in the mid 90’s. We couldn’t play any of the games that required pressing the start button first… that is until I cleaned the dirty controllers and managed to get one start button working again. Interestingly enough, the battle scene wouldn’t render correctly on Bomberman 2 so we couldn’t play that.

That afternoon we went to Target and then to Red Robin in the mall for linner. Our waitress was the woman Joe and I always ask for but never seems to be there – Angela. Love her! Joe teases me that I have a crush on her. He’s not wrong lol. I tried the MadLove Burger – ½-lb. Black Angus patty, a Cheddar-and-Parmesan crisp, Provolone, Swiss, jalapeño relish, candied bacon, avocado, citrus-marinated tomatoes and red onions with shredded romaine on a toasted brioche bun. ($14.49). It was pretty good but not something I’d want too frequently. I also finally got around to buying a bottle of their seasoning salt ($3) like I’ve been wanting for awhile. I used egift certificates from my Discover card to pay which was awesome. Our cash back balance was over $200 so I spent $40 of that for $50. They recently changed it where instead of using $45 to get $50 you use $20 to get $25 which is a better deal so I just got two to cover our bill and have money left over.

After stuffing ourselves silly we went to Bath and Body Works to smell alllll the candles. Lol! I saw a few things I wouldn’t mind getting so I’m going to put together a Christmas list for Joe. J bought four movies from the bargain bin at FYE and we watched two of them that evening – Shoot Em Up and Salt. Both were actually good but for very different reasons. SEP was so ridiculous it was hilarious whereas Salt was more intriguing.

My brother slept in on Saturday (11/10) so we got a late start and didn’t do much except play video games, go to Dollar Tree, and watch YouTube videos. Joe came home from Denver that evening and we all had spaghetti for dinner. For whatever reason Aldi changed the formula of their pasta sauce which we used to love but no longer do, so we tried a Ragu sauce instead. Didn’t really like it so the hunt continues…

Sunday (11/11) we went to Half Price Books and Costco before dropping J back off at B’s house. Joe and I then went to a wake for our good friend’s mother who passed away earlier in the week. Afterwards we went to Target and Menards before heading home.

Today (11/12) we did some early morning shopping at Walmart where we bought a red tree collar to replace the tree skirt that Wookie chewed up when she was a puppy. Since she likes chewing on anything that looks like a blanket getting another tree skirt isn’t a good idea. I think this might end up looking even more polished anyway, plus it was cheaper ($17) than most tree skirts we saw. I’m actually looking forward to putting up the tree this year because we have the 7 ft thin one we bought for only $15 after Christmas last year that shouldn’t take up as much floor space.

We also went to an afternoon showing of Bohemian Rhapsody which was so good. Rami Malek nailed the Freddie Mercury portrayal! I never really considered myself a Queen fan but the more I hear of them the more respect and admiration I have for their creative vision.

Three Weekend Catchup

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Friday (7/27) we saw Shinedown and Godsmack live. I was wise to the venue’s shenanigans so I hid two extra water bottle caps in my bag so when they confiscated the ones on our bottles we were able to reseal them and put them back in our bags so they’d stay colder. We had a quick dinner at home before leaving but stopped at Target by the venue to grab a few snacks which we enjoyed during the show. We had seats but didn’t care for their placement so headed up to the lawn area like last time. The bands were much louder this time around so it was a good call. Shinedown put on a good show even though the actual sound seemed a bit distorted. Godsmack was much better, though! I really enjoyed their energy and wasn’t even mad that (I think) they played Whatever twice since I love that song. I’ve been trying like hell to find either a review or a recording of the full show to validate this, but haven’t had any luck. We did take off during the last song so we could get out of the parking lot with ease. There were definitely twice as many people in attendance than when we saw Poison but luckily even though the far away bathroom had a line it moved swiftly. They have about 40 stalls in there with workers directing you to open ones by calling out the number painted on the outside of the door which is very helpful to keep things moving. Standing on the lawn made my feet sore, though, but the show was too good to sit through.

Saturday (7/28) we relaxed since Sunday (7/29) was Pierogi Fest day! We picked up my brother around 10:30 and made it to the fest right around official opening. We headed straight to Dan’s Pierogis like we always do and spent about 25 minutes in line. We shared some sweet cheese plus Joe got a meat one and I got cherry. He let me have a bite of the meat and I liked it so I’ll be getting some of those too next year and skipping the cherry. I didn’t get as many piergois as I normally can eat because I was saving room for a taco pierogi from the Mendoza truck, only to find out they no longer make them because the owner sold the truck but not the machine that makes the pierogis. That was a pretty huge disappointment. Joe got a polish dog, J got a corndog, and we shared some mini donuts that could have been better (first time even getting mini donuts that were not that good). We ended up at the White Castle just outside the festival grounds to get a couple of sliders before dropping J off and heading home. So I guess this year was a bit of a flop, although the weather wasn’t terribly hot like most years and despite the crowd being bigger (we usually go on a Friday) we were able to find parking nearby and a place to sit as long as we shared a table with others. So all in all not bad, but because of the timing we had to skip the Milwaukee Brew Fest this year. It would have been too hectic plus there wasn’t anyone to watch Wookie. That’s probably the only one thing I don’t like about having a dog – not being able to just do stuff without worrying about who is going to keep an eye on her. We let her roam the downstairs when we’re not home and she pretty much just sleeps the entire time but I would feel awful leaving her home alone any longer than 8 hours at a time.

This weekend was spent with Joe’s dad who is visiting from Arizona. Joe picked him up on Thursday (8/2) after work while I was at home tidying up the house and preparing a surprise dessert – chocolate peanut butter pie – which ended up being a hit with both of them. I also made beef stroganoff for dinner.

Friday (8/3) was their birthdays so we went out for breakfast, drove around the arboretum for a bit (his dad cannot walk long distances), and stopped for gelato on the way home. We originally planned to have Red Robin for dinner but his dad slept so late (he takes daily naps) we decided to order deep dish from Lou Malnatis instead.

Saturday (8/4) we went to IKEA for breakfast and spent a little time in the pool (his dad just sat in the shade). After Joe’s dad’s nap we went to Red Robin for dinner.

Sunday (8/5) we had a light breakfast at home because we had lunch at The Pit Ribhouse in Hickory Hills at 1 pm. The kids both brought their significant others which was fun. They were late to arrive (no surprise there); E and his girlfriend (who we met for the first time) had to leave early as it was so they didn’t get to visit too long.

After lunch we dropped Joe’s dad off at Joe’s aunt’s house. We visited for a bit and fixed her computer’s wifi connection so Joe’s dad could get on Facebook. We also left with two pieces of homemade pineapple upside-down cake which we didn’t get to enjoy right away since Joe wasn’t able to eat on Monday due to a colonoscopy on Tuesday. He ended up doing the same prep I did since it was cheaper than the prescription. The doctor said the prep was good and he didn’t have any polyps. We’re both free from this nonsense for five years which is good since it’s going to cost us about $1200 out of pocket, thank you crappy insurance. It used to be only $250 through Blue Cross Blue Shield but they haven’t been an option with Joe’s recent employers. We have Aetna which I don’t like as much.

Friday (8/10) I did a deep clean downstairs since I hadn’t cleaned in almost two weeks! I also reorganized the laundry room and guest bathroom cabinets. Once Joe got home we headed out to Dollar Tree and Costco. We decided to get a couple of hot dogs before shopping and just as we were finishing up I spotted friends of ours in the checkout line. That’s the second time in about two months that we’ve run into them at Costco. We chatted for a bit and then did our shopping. We also took Wookie to the dog park that evening. I got the pass last month since it’s half price after July 1st.

Saturday (8/11) we had breakfast with Joe’s dad, aunt, and cousin and then visited with his dad and aunt at her house for a bit since his dad was flying home that afternoon.

We decided to visit Lake Katherine and The Little Red Schoolhouse before heading home. I brought my camera and got some nice shots. We didn’t stay long at either location very long since it was around noon and already very warm and humid outside.

That evening we took Wookie to the dog park again where she almost played with this cute white Bischon named Luna. She (Luna) was egging Wookie on but I think she’s still not sure how to dog. That’s totally our fault for not socializing her enough as a puppy. I hope after more trips to the park she’ll figure it out because I think she’d enjoy herself if she realized the other dog isn’t trying to hurt her. I plan on taking her to a local daycare next week after our neighbor sang its praises. It would be good to have a place close by we can take her in a pinch. Their rates are not much different from what my friend charges and Wookie could play with other dogs (assuming she wants to do so).

Sunday (8/12) we ran more errands and I got a bunch of different colored leggings from Walmart as well as two shirts that go well with them (and are long enough to cover my crotch which is perfect for wearing leggings outside the house).

I’m also still dealing with the whole glasses/frames fiasco. I really wish my eyes didn’t get so dry and itchy with contacts so I wouldn’t even need to worry as much about finding a comfortable pair of frames.