Food – Page 19 – Not Content to Crawl

Food & Stuff

Posted onJune 5, 2017June 5, 2017

Nothing too exciting happened this weekend. I took Wookie to the vet on Friday just to go over some concerns I had. She’s fine, but I ended up getting her the canine flu vaccine since I’d like to take her to some puppy play places or dog parks soon. She has no dogs to play with and I can tell she would enjoy that (with the right dog, of course).

We also got some more food for her, and with coupons paid less than $7 out of pocket and that included two toys. Pretty nice deal!

Sunday Joe worked on changing the front brakes on his car while I did my normal Monday cleaning a day early. I had skipped it last week so it was due. Prior to that we went to check out the Taste of Wheaton and had a couple of tacos from a booth called Taco SomethingorOther (shoot, can’t remember) which we’ve never heard of before. They were ok but nothing special for $3 each. We ended up picking up McDonald’s on the way home for lunch, LOL. I don’t think we’ll bother with that fest in the future – the “craft” booths are boring, they no longer allow dogs, the music is usually country, and the food booths are pretty standard fried food fare and not a representation of what he city has to offer. I can only imagine the cost must be too high that no local restaurants ever seem to participate. It was hot and humid too so we didn’t stick around for long.

Dinner each night over the weekend consisted of Lou Malnati’s deep dish which we ordered Friday night since we had a $25 certificate that expired at the end of the month. I’m sure that’s not doing my weight any favors but damn is their pizza good! I like how we can get 3-4 meals out of one large pizza if we can stop ourselves from having more than one slice each meal. We actually had two each on Friday which is why there’s none left for tonight.

I’m getting ready to go have lunch with a friend shortly so that’s it for this boring weekend update.

Red Lobster & Homemade Dog Biscuits

Posted onMarch 13, 2017March 13, 2017

Friday (3/10) evening we decided to finally use the gift cards my mom had given to us (one almost a year ago and the other last month) and went to Red Lobster for dinner for a nice date night. It’s a good thing we got there just after 5 pm because we had totally forgotten it’s Lent so the restaurant got packed quickly; there was a line out the door when we left.

We used to love Red Lobster but not so much anymore. I feel like the best items on the menu were removed and most of food is bland/mediocre with the exception of the sweet chili shrimp appetizer which we love. Compared to the wood grilled shrimp tacos I ordered which were meh (although they did taste better cold the following day). Although I will say the strawberry lemonade is pretty awesome. Joe accidentally ordered it thinking it was what he usually gets (nope, it’s the raspberry lemonade) but it turns out the strawberry lemonade is considered a premium drink so they charge $3 for it and there’s no free refills. I had a couple of sips and could see seeds in it so it’s probably not a powdered mix like the bottomless lemonades. Our bill after tip was around $56 – thank goodness we had $75 in gift cards. Overall I think I’d rather go there for lunch and just share two appetizers and some drinks. With what was left over from our cards and the balance from a different Darden card we’d probably have enough to do that one lazy afternoon.

Saturday (3/11) was Wookie’s 3rd puppy training class. Two of the people in our first class have seemed to permanently drop out since neither were there again (the golden retriever and shi tzu mix). Bums me out there aren’t more dogs for Wookie to socialize with, although we also had a 3 pm puppy orientation so she got to meet a small shi-poo named Abby whose poor owner really needed that class. She was letting the 10 week old dog just run around the house freely. Between myself and the trainer I think she walked away with some good information. The dog was just adorable but Wookie seemed scared of her which is hilarious since she’s a third of Wookie’s size. Wookie did have fun being chased by the lady’s two year old daughter, however. When we got home she passed out in her crate for over an hour due to all the excitement.

Sunday (3/12) we visited a new to us grocery store called Butera. It’s a little drive but not bad considering it was close to Meijer which we planned on visiting anyway. I had seen Butera’s sales ad on an app called Flipp and they had corned beef and cabbage on sale for a great price – $1.99 lb for the beef and $0.14 lb for the cabbage. We had to get some for St. Patrick’s day since I love making it in the crockpot. They had a bunch of produce on sale as well as beer so we got a lot of stuff there and then went to Meijer for the rest of stuff we needed. I bought supplies to make Wookie some homemade dog biscuits. I even got a $0.79 cookie cutter in the shape of a bone. Isn’t that adorable?

The rest of the day we lounged around watching tv and reading. Wookie took turns running around the living room and playing with her toys and napping in the crate we have in there for her. Also, Joe installed the new gate I ordered from Woot! for the kitchen. It was $36 with shipping.

We had been standing up part of the second playpen we had purchased and separated into two fences. The problem with that is we had to push stuff against either side to prevent her from getting out of the kitchen. Plus we tripped trying to get over it, so this is a much safer option for everyone.

Today (3/13) I slept in until 7 am and then made Wookie’s treats. Here’s a photo of them before going into the oven.

I think I cut most of them too thick but it’s kind of a pain in the ass rolling out dough! I don’t really do it often and believe it or not my arms are sore! That being said, they are a hit. Wookie liked the sample I gave her and started whining for more.

While the biscuits were cooling I emailed the vet to ask if I can take Wookie there for pre-surgery bloodwork before her spay in two weeks. After doing further research I decided it would be prudent to have it done even though the guy at the animal welfare league said it wasn’t necessary. Better to be safe than sorry! I’m already nervous about having to leave Wookie there all day. The vet understood my reasoning for going elsewhere for the spay and is fine doing the bloodwork portion. I am so relieved! I really like her but couldn’t justify spending $500 on Wookie’s surgery when it would be $140 at the welfare league.

I also called the insurance to find out why Quest Diagnostics billed me $100 for the blood work I had done a few weeks ago. Turns out they submitted it with the wrong coding so I should be getting a refund after the insurance re-processes the claim. I really hate Quest. I wonder if the insurance can tell me what it would have cost to go elsewhere. If it’s negligible I’d rather not go to Quest again.

Now I need to motivate myself to clean the upstairs and submit some rebates for the alcohol we bought over the weekend. It snowed overnight and there’s more snow on the way. I am not happy about that at all.

Social Saturday

Posted onFebruary 27, 2017

Saturday was quite the busy day for us. After getting some groceries we stopped at 7-Eleven to take advantage of free small slurpee Saturday. I got the black cherry Pepsi and Joe got grape. He wanted the Skittles sour apple but it was liquefied in the machine. Ew! I’m glad they were free (much to the irritation of the clerk working there it seemed) because neither were all that great. We then went to the library and grabbed a handful of movies. Our library is strange in that they don’t care about people bringing in food and drinks. In fact they have vending machines that sell both!

After a lunch of chicken salad sandwiches we took Wookie to Petsmart for her second puppy training class. Two of the five dogs didn’t show up – Rizzo and Pumpkin. I didn’t care for how the trainer was telling us the details of her conversation with Pumpkin’s owner because it’s none of our business. In any case, we learned that the trainer will be on vacation next Saturday so there is no class. It was encouraging to see Wookie trying to greet Thor (the white German Shepard) instead of hanging out by us all scared. I don’t think she was shaking at all! As far as the training goes, we went over not jumping on people and how to walk on a leash without pulling. Wookie has problems with that which is why I’m ordering her a new harness that has a clasp at the front since I read that can help. Her issue at Petsmart was that she wanted to stop and smell EVERYTHING so she wasn’t paying attention to me or treats (a first) at all. It was a bit frustrating but I tried to remain patient. Patience and repetition are the two biggest things needed when training a dog.

After feeding Wookie at home we left and headed down to Oak Lawn where we had a late pizza lunch at Palermo’s with Joe’s kids and ES (K’s boyfriend). At first I was worried a large pizza wouldn’t feed all five of us but there was a little left over, thank goodness. I didn’t say anything at lunch, but I don’t think I care for Palermo’s anymore. I don’t know if we just found better pizza elsewhere or theirs has gone downhill, but I won’t be in a hurry to have it again. It was interesting to see their dining room, however, since we’ve always gotten takeout. I always enjoy conversations with everyone, particularly ES because he and I have the same taste in comedies. Plus he’s a good conversationalist and actually listens instead of just waiting for his turn to talk. I’ve probably mentioned that before but it’s something I really appreciate since most people just like to talk.

After we ate E took off to rest at home before his evening plans and K invited us over to see their two guinea pigs which they just got a week before. They are so cute! Just little babies right now and very soft too. I was never too interested in owning guinea pigs but after seeing those two I would consider it. I particularly like the one who looks like he has permanent bedhead. Plus he has one front paw that is completely black (nails included) whereas the other one is pink with white nails. It looks like he’s wearing a glove, LOL!

Our next stop was Dunkin Donuts before going to my parents’ house to celebrate Brother B’s birthday which was earlier this month. My mom said to be there between 5 and 6 but since whenever we get there at the earlier time no one is ready, we ended up getting there a couple of minutes after 6. And arrived to a dark house. We were both annoyed and confused. I was happy I remembered to bring my keys so I could open the door. And that’s when B jumped out and scared me, that SOB! LOL. They decided to scare us (although they didn’t get Joe since he had already headed back to the car to get more stuff) for being late. Can’t win with those people! Everyone had already eaten too which is funny because whenever it’s the other way around they wait til B gets there (since we’re usually there first).

I set up my mom’s new computer and showed her how to use it (since it has Windows 10 which is all new to her). I’m making her use Chrome now since it’s faster than Firefox. After the computer stuff I finally got around to eating a bit before B opened his presents. I got him a $25 gift card to Groupon since he loves that site and a $15 Dunkin Donuts card. We played a new game he brought over called Joking Hazard which is made by the guys who do the Cyanide and Happiness comics. It was fun, but just like Cards Against Humanity, it gets stale pretty fast. I took my winning cards and made one big epic comic with them:

We didn’t get home until after midnight and I felt guilty about Wookie being cooped up while we were gone so I played with her for about an hour before going upstairs. Despite taking a Midnite, I didn’t fall asleep until sometime between 2:30 and 3 am.

Weekend Recap

Posted onFebruary 20, 2017February 20, 2017

Friday 2/17

While Wookie was at the groomer I stopped by Dollar Tree to find a container to keep her toys in. They had had their Easter stuff out which included containers of all shapes and sizes in my favorite color – purple! Needless to say I picked up more than a few, but here’s the one I got for her toys:

Then I went to Bath & Body Works to use my coupon for a free small lotion. I’m glad they had Warm Vanilla Sugar in stock because I’m not a fan of most of the scents.

Later that evening we stopped by Panda Express for dinner since we had coupons for free Fire Cracker Chicken breast and a drink.

Saturday 2/18

My Jetta had what should be its last oil change at the dealership because I plan on getting a new car soon. I know I keep saying that but now that Joe is working again it’s time.

The dealer moved to a new location on the same street just further away and it’s really nice. What’s not nice is the price of an oil change – $70!!! We paid a little less than that thanks to a coupon but seriously? Joe will be changing the oil himself on my next car. It just wasn’t very cost-saving on the Jetta because the oil filter price is ridiculous.

That’s just one of the reasons Volkswagen wasn’t in the running when I was thinking about which car I might want. The other reason is they are way behind in technology. I’m more than likely going to be getting a Subaru which has a huge LCD screen and syncs with my phone. Plus it comes standard with a backup camera and I can add on heated seats which is a must have for me. Once it gets warmer out I’ll be doing a second test drive of the Impreza as well as the Crosstrek. I might even check out the Ford Focus five door once more although for the price, safety, and resale value, I’m definitely leaning toward Subaru.

As noted in my other entry we spent the afternoon at Petsmart with Wookie and then came home and opened up all the windows because it was uncharacteristically warm outside. It’s been in the 60’s now for a few days which is just wild in February. Wookie was acting a bit odd later in the evening and I don’t know if it’s because she smelled something outside like a coyote, but she was shivering (it wasn’t cold inside) and walking around with her tail between her legs. It could be that she’s teething too, so we’ve just been keeping a close watch over her.

We were supposed to go to my parents’ for Brother B’s birthday party, but Brother J is sick so that was cancelled.

Sunday 2/19

Savers was having a pre-Presidents Day sale so everything was 50% off. Of course despite taking 7 tops into the dressing room none of them fit well but Joe found three t-shirts he didn’t need. LOL We did get a game called Logo Board Game for only $4. Technically it should have been $2 but for some reason it didn’t ring up as 50% off. I emailed Savers this morning to ask why.

Still not a bad price for a game that sells for nearly $30 on Amazon and was in great condition. We plan on taking it to my parents’ house the next time we visit.

After lunch we decided to take Wookie on a walk at Northside Park in Wheaton. She really sucks on a leash right now so that is the next major thing I need to tackle. She just pulls and weaves back and forth and you practically trip over her. But we wanted to give her the exposure to all the people and dogs that we knew would be there due to the nice weather. It was very crowded and we spent about an hour there.

That afternoon Joe also installed a child lock on cabinet under sink so now I don’t need to move the garbage can in front of it when I let Wookie run around the kitchen. I can rest easy knowing she can’t get into any cleaning products. I’m going to have him put the lock on the cabinet where we store the saran wrap and baggies too.

Monday 2/20

Right now I have stuffed cabbage cooking in the crockpot. I really hate the prep because even with Joe coring the cabbage last night it was still a bitch to tear off the leaves without ripping them which makes rolling up the meat mixture inside a bit difficult. I might make this cabbage casserole I found online next time instead. It’s basically the same thing without worrying about the size of the cabbage pieces.

Speaking of a the crockpot, I had a total fail a couple of weeks ago. I tried making the stoup in it vs on the stove and I will never do that again because the taste was completely different and not good at all. Lesson learned.

This day has flown by because I slept in until 7 am, had to deal with the cabbage, which included a trip to Walmart to buy lemon juice since ours was expired (but I was smart – I froze the new stuff using the ice cube tray my brother got me for my birthday), clean the house, and run to my doctor’s office to pick up my blood work order they had forgotten to give me before.

Weekly Recap – Internet Outage & Left Eye Issues

Posted onJanuary 13, 2017

My weekly recaps only cover three days because those are the days I work whereas my weekend recaps will be four days.

Tuesday 1/10 – Went to Buona Beef to pick up dinner since I had a birthday coupon for a free sandwich. Didn’t work, however, because I think the emails I get and my app are two different accounts on their site. But the manager gave me the free sandwich anyway and I will need to figure out how to tie the two accounts together. I got the chicken artichoke panini since I wasn’t in the mood for a burger. I didn’t care for it as much as I had hoped. It was way better cold the next day (I only ate half for dinner), though. So if I get it again I’ll have to get it a day before I actually want to eat it. LOL Joe got the avocado jack burger which I tasted and it was really good.

Wednesday 1/11 – My left eye was bugging the crap out of me all morning (dry and blurry even though I had put in a fresh pair of contacts that morning) so when I went home for lunch I switched to my glasses for some relief. Back at work around 2 pm I went to check on Wookie via the webcam we have set up in the kitchen and it was offline. Came home to learn the internet was down and it was a known area outage Comcast was working to resolve. Estimated time to restore service was 8:30 pm and since all our entertainment is internet-based, we watched Lilo & Stitch on DVD. When we went to bed the internet was still down.

Thursday 1/12 – Internet still wasn’t working when we got up so I called Comcast while I got ready for work. They “sent a signal” to the modem and if we hooked it up directly to the computer we’d get service but our router wasn’t giving us any WiFi. The rep gave us a $10 credit for the outage. Tried some more stuff that evening but nothing was working. What was weird was we couldn’t access the router page from the computer, but Joe could get it on his iPad. Eventually he just reset it to the factory default settings but that seemed to do nothing. Then about 15-20 minutes later it spontaneously started working again. I’m relieved the router wasn’t fried but perplexed what was wrong to begin with. I hope it doesn’t happen again! It’s just weird the outage triggered it to stop working. Also, I ended up wearing my glasses all day to give my eye a rest and we went to Qdoba to pick up dinner since I had a BOGO coupon for my birthday.