Family – Page 20 – Not Content to Crawl

Mom’s Birthday & Shopping

Posted onOctober 6, 2014October 24, 2014

Saturday we went over to my parents’ to celebrate my mom’s birthday (which was on Sunday). E was with us and because my mom broke her foot I agreed that we’d bring food, so we stopped at Palermo’s 95th to grab two pizzas and Harold’s chicken shack for some fried chicken. Upon arriving and opening up the chicken we found they had poured “hot sauce” (which was very mild) all over the chicken and some french fries they included. Joe didn’t realize they’d do that when he agreed to the hot sauce but luckily it tasted ok. I prefer KFC myself. We ended up playing Taboo and then Aggravation and just bullshitting until we left around 10:30 pm.

Sunday we went to Walmart and I finally found some new matching rugs for the dining room, kitchen, and laundry room. Four rugs (2 large, 2 small) only cost us $66 so who knows how long they will last. They don’t have rubber backing, though, so that could be good (no breaking apart) or bad (they will likely be more slippery).

I also got a new wireless mouse at Target because mine has been acting funky lately.

I got a Dirt Devil corded stick vac for the kitchen/dining room since our Dirt Devil dustbuster sucks. The battery literally lasts 10 seconds on a full charge which is useless. I plan on throwing it away since replacing the battery would cost more than getting a new unit.

Bats & Clues

Posted onSeptember 22, 2014

I have a cold. I’ve actually had a sore throat since last Wednesday but no other cold symptoms until yesterday when my nose and eyes started running and I started sneezing often. Last night I went to bed at 9:30 pm and slept until 8 am, yet I’m still tired!

Despite not feeling well the weekend was pretty good. Friday night after dinner I ran to the AT&T store to get a case for my new phone. They didn’t have much of a selection but the guy showed us what he called the overstock drawer and I spotted the purple case I showed off in the last entry. Now I just need to get my hands on a spare lightning cable for use in my car and/or at the office and a 30-pin to lightning adapter so I can still use my spare portable battery when needed. I’m not a big hurry since I don’t anticipate having to charge my phone multiple times a day until it’s at least a year old.

Saturday afternoon E’s mom dropped him off and we played Angry Bird Star Wars II on the Wii until Joe got home from work. Then I made spaghetti and meatballs and my SIL joined us for dinner. She brought my favorite dog, Bella, along to visit. They are both moving back to Arizona in two weeks which sucks.

After dinner we played Catchphrase which I had borrowed from the library. It’s very similar to Taboo except for the annoying beeping when you’re trying to think of a clue. Plus after several rounds we were getting all the same clues already. After we grew tired of the game we switched to Uno Attack.

After my SIL left we watched the Christmas Vacation movie since E had never seen it.

Sunday morning Joe and I went to Target while E stayed home to play video games. I came across these self-adhesive bats in the Halloween section and bought all three boxes they had left. I had seen them last year and by the time I decided to get them they were completely sold out. With my 20% Cartwheel discount they were only $4 each. I love bats and can’t wait to put these up! I also got some Martha Stewart ones from Michael’s for around $6 so we’ll see how they compare.

I also couldn’t resist this cute owl insulated cup. I have a few I bought years ago and the seal on them is now broken so I plan to use this one for work.

After our lengthy Target trip we played CLUE – Big Bang Theory with E and had pizzas (Target’s Market Pantry brand aren’t bad for $2.50 each; we tried them on recommendation of a coworker of mine) before dropping E off at home.

Today I ran to the library to drop off some stuff that was due and picked up a couple of books to read. I also stopped at Target to grab some cold medicine since I finished what we had last night. I love drinking that stuff; you go off to la-la land quickly. I hope to get some extra rest tonight since it’s back to work tomorrow.

I Wiied Like You Wouldn’t Believe

Posted onSeptember 7, 2014

This past week was rather weird because Joe was in Texas for work from Tuesday morning through Friday night. I got a taste of what it would be like to be single and I gotta say, no thanks. I mean, I can handle taking care of myself and all that, but I missed Joe. And texting just doesn’t cut it. We talked a bit on the phone but the reception in his hotel room sucked. I could never do a long-distance relationship.

Friday I had a friend over for lunch. I made my awesome baked mac and cheese earlier that morning for the occasion. Then we went upstairs so she could see the rats. After that we played on the Wii until she had to leave just before 3 pm. Brother #2 was working in the area so he came over shortly after and we went out for tacos and then played on the Wii.

Joe’s plane was delayed two hours so he didn’t end up getting home until 11 pm. E’s band played at the high school football game that night and his mom was supposed to drop him off after, but she called me just after Joe’s flight home took off to say she’d be dropping him off in the morning instead. I texted her shortly after to get a time and she replied 10 am. Surprisingly, he walked through the door at 10:01 am. To say I was surprised is an understatement!

We went to the library Saturday afternoon and got Angry Birds Star Wars for the Wii which was a lot more fun than I anticipated. I think we played it for close to two hours. I played on the Wii more this weekend than I’ve played all year, hence the title of this entry.

After dinner Saturday we made a special trip out to Sonic only to learn their half price shakes promotion had ended. Joe and E still got shakes, and I got a lemonberry slush since I’m lactose intolerant, but none of the drinks were as good as the last time we went. The flavor was fine but the consistency was off. I guess they did us a favor as we won’t be as likely to visit again anytime soon ($9 for three drinks is rather high anyway).

Sunday morning we all stopped for breakfast at a place called Stacked (they have amazing banana bread french toast) before dropping E off at home. Joe and I hate going out for breakfast because the food is a ridiculous markup compared to lunch and dinner (when you think about how cheap eggs and bread are), but agreed that we shouldn’t get up in arms about it since we rarely go out for breakfast (McDonald’s being an exception). It was funny because E usually orders orange juice at breakfast but only wanted water. I have to wonder whether he did that because he knows Joe’s thoughts about orange juice prices (when they go to McDonald’s they will bring orange juice from home for E). The best part, however, is that as I opened my wallet to get out my credit card I spotted a gift card for $100 I had forgotten we had, so breakfast was actually free!

Labor Day Weekend

Posted onSeptember 7, 2014

Last Sunday we got up early and grabbed breakfast at McDonald’s and then went to Jamba Juice to take advantage of their BOGO coupon offer. $5 for a small drink is excessive in my eyes but I’ll splurge occasionally and get two drinks for that price! The five fruit frenzy is just too good! After snagging our drinks we drove to the arboretum to get our free gift for renewing our membership. I renewed online for two years this time which, while a bit steep at $170, is cheaper per year than doing one year at a time, plus includes bonus tickets to their Acorn Express Tram Tour which is fun.

The mosquitos were out in full force, however, and Joe is a mosquito magnet, so we didn’t hang out as long as we originally planned. I did grab this awesome panorama, though.

I don’t really think my phone takes great shots (probably because I’m spoiled from my SLR) but the panoramas almost always impress me. I love the clouds in this shot!

On the way home we stopped at Willowbrook Wildlife Center where I was surprised to see they had lots of baby rats. They house snakes so I have a bad feeling they are raised as food. In any case, don’t they look like little hippos? So cute!

We puttered around the house for a couple of hours and then headed to my parents to hang out. We set up the bad minton net and played with my dad, brothers, and Brother #2’s girlfriend for a couple of hours until dinner was ready. My cousin, who I haven’t seen in forever (but have been chatting with pretty regularly the past couple of months thanks to Facebook messenger), even showed up! She ended up having to leave to pick up her son from work before we played any board games, however. I brought two games but we only ended up playing Smartass. It was a fun time, as usual. The only thing that sucks is the hour ride home.

Staycation Day 9 – Saturday

Posted onJuly 26, 2014

All we did today is attend a BBQ thrown by my SIL at the place she moved to a few months ago down in boo-foo Illinois which is over an hour drive from our place. The guy she’s living with is the father of her Arizona next door neighbor and is a very good cook. He smoked a handful of meats – bologna, brisket, ribs, and hot dogs, which all came out great.

His neighbor, who has a huge stable on his property with horses, has a dog named Ghost. The dog spends all his time over on this guy’s property, however, than at his own home, and he was at the party being his adorable sweet self.

That’s all she wrote. I’m too tired to get into specifics of the day other than to say it was nice to see family even though my stomach hurt which sucked. Also, I’m so tired of going places and having to be social. My introverted self has hit capacity. Tomorrow we’re going to Target for food and I’m not speaking to anyone but Joe.