Week in Review - Oct. 17-23, 2010; Halloween Party

Well, we had another fun and exciting weekend, and now it's a rainy Monday. What a bummer! Anyways, last week was so busy, and I was lazy and forgot to (more like neglected to) document each day. So, I am trying to recall it all at one time! What a joy.

Sunday - It was the day after alumni band, and since we went to Mass as a part of those festivities, we didn't have to go to Mass that day. However, I did have to get up and do a Weight Watchers meeting in excruciating pain. Remember my foot saga? Oh, it was bad. I pretty much laid around and elevated my foot for the rest of the day. I even watched some of that show "Sister Wives." I totally and completely disagree with their entire lifestyle, but I couldn't look away. It was like a car accident. Later, we headed down to my parents' house for pizza and then headed home. It was relaxing, and it was nice for a change.

Monday - Monday, my foot was swollen bad, and I had trouble putting a shoe on. I hobbled into work, and my co-worker Janice encouraged me to call my doctor. So, I took the afternoon off and went to the doctor who was convinced I had gout. That whole story is here. After stopping by the doctor's office, I went to the store for my weekly groceries and dropped off my prescription. Then, I headed home and put rustic chicken in the crock pot. It was so yummy. I then ate lunch and relaxed for the afternoon and evening.

Tuesday - I woke up, and the steroids and pain killers were magical; I finally had some relief. I did some light working out that day, just to see how it went. I went to work. After work, I made beef and noodles and worked on cleaning out the office a bit in the evening. "Glee" was a re-run, so I had to make other plans. I had some stuff to put in storage, and my brother and Joe took the stuff downstairs.

Wednesday - I woke up and did Tae Bo before work. I then headed home for lunch. After work, I dropped off some stuff to Goodwill, and then I headed to Weight Watchers to do my meeting. We had leftovers for dinner, and for Wednesday date night, we watched "Hocus Pocus." We love that movie. Then we relaxed for the rest of the meeting before heading to bed.

Thursday - I got up and worked out (I believe). I went to work and went home at lunch to put chili in the crock pot for dinner. I can't remember what I did right after work. But, I remember we had chili for dinner, and then my brother came up to watch "Community," "The Office" and "Outsourced." We had hot chocolate and had a great evening, and Joe finished putting together my Halloween costume (pictures coming).

Friday - We had a busy weekend coming up. I went grocery shopping for all the events. When I came home, we had leftover chili for dinner. Joe had cleaned the house, and we had a great evening making a spider cake. We made a chocolate cake in the shape of a spider's body. We used chocolate frosting and chocolate sprinkles (to make it look hairy). Then we made chocolate-covered marshmallows and attached them going out from the body, to make the legs. We used pretzel M&Ms for eyes. It was huge and was a hit. We delivered it to my parents' house. That night, I could not sleep. I think I was up until 5 a.m., absolutely wide awake. It was terrible. I have gone through bouts of terrible sleep for years, and this weekend was bad. I was so exhausted. I only slept for three hours. I then got up and made a lot of food for Sunday. We were planning on heading to the pumpkin patch, and I was having my family over afterwards for food and "Sweeney Todd." On Saturday, I made pumpkin trifle, sweet potato salad, pumpkin dip and a cheeseball. Then I showered, ate and laid down for a bit before the Halloween party at my parents'. However, I only slept maybe a half an hour. I got up, got my stuff together, got ready, and then we headed to the party. We stayed there until 2:30 a.m. Then we headed home, and I got approximately five hours of sleep before my Sunday Weight Watchers meeting. It made for a long and tiresome Sunday.

Making the spider cake. My husband is the artist, and this was his baby.



I am working on the frosting and sprinkles.



Our finished project. I have quite a creative husband!

Yesterday, I got up, did my meeting, went to choir and church, headed to the pumpkin patch for a fabulous but hot few hours. We went to the shop, ate fudge and kettlecorn, shopped and had a wonderful day. Joe, my mom, dad, sister and I went, and it was so much fun. We headed to Kroger before heading back to the house for food. I served a pepperoni cheeseball (with crackers); pumpkin dip (with gingersnaps, Nilla wafers, graham crackers and cinnamon pretzels); pumpkin soup and bread; barbecue beef for sandwiches; a walnut, feta cheese and cranberry salad; homemade macaroni and cheese; Doritos; pretzels; some leftover desserts from Saturday that my mom brought up and an awesome pumpkin trifle. It was tasty. My mom, dad, sister, brother, Maria (brother's girlfriend), Joe, Father Bill (family friend who's a priest), friend Shaun and I had a great evening and watched the gruesome "Sweeney Todd," which was a hit. Joe and I love that movie.

What a week. I need a nap after my long weekend!

Here are a few more pictures from the Halloween party. Pumpkin patch pictures will come next week.

My awesome parents dressed up as Carnival  Cruise Line employees. We love cruising, and I love them! Hilarious.

And the big reveal of our costumes. I was Flo, the Progressive Insurance girl, and Joe was the Nationwide guy. This was Joe's idea. He made my apron and buttons.

My brother was the three hole punch version of Derek (as opposed to Jim). If you watch "The Office," you understand.

Week in Review Oct. 10-16

This was a fun but busy week. I was on deadline for work, we had alumni band, my brother-in-law came in for a visit with his kids and my parents went to Baltimore on a trip with the church. So,here goes nothing!

Sunday- I had to go lead my Weight Watcher meeting in the morning. We then headed to church for choir and had Mass. Then we headed back to our house, and my brother-in-law Jim stopped by for a quick visit with his two kids, Hannah and Ethan, before heading back to his house two hours away. Jim was visiting my in-laws all weekend (who live 15 minutes away). His wife couldn't come because she had to work all weekend. We had a nice visit. Earlier in the morning Jim called me and asked me to be baby Ethan's godmother.Of course I said yes, and I looked forward to Jim coming over so I could snuggle with the little guy. It took him a few minutes to warm up to me, but he did. After Jim left, I went to the mall to get my uncle a Steelers' shirt for his birthday, and then I went home and woke Joe up, so he could come to my grandma's house with me for my uncle's party. We then headed up to my grandma's for dinner.We had my grandma's amazing meatballs, pasta salad, my mom's wedding soup and pumpkin pie for birthday cake. After a long day,we came home and relaxed before bed.





It's Aunt Renee and her newest godson!



He is wondering about me!

 


Happy birthday, Uncle Joe!



Go Steelers!





Monday - I woke up bright and early to walk Maddy,and then headed to work. It was a deadline week at the paper, so it was a busy day.I went grocery shopping during lunch. I then packed up a lunch and headed back to work. After work, I had to go to the doctor's office to pick up a physical paper for my brother, since my parents were out of town, and Derek had to go straight from class to work. Afterwards, I went home, made chicken with tomatoes, baked potatoes and corn for dinner. After dinner, Joe did dishes, and I cleaned out the hall closet, while watching the season opener of "Giuliana and Bill." Yes, I am a reality show junkie. Then, I went to bed absolutely exhausted, but I couldn't sleep until 2 a.m. It made for a long Tuesday!

  

Tuesday - Even though I had a long night, I got up early and did a workout from digital cable. I then headed to work for actual deadline day. I went home at lunch to put a ham in the crock pot, and I headed back to work. Joe finished dinner. He made mashed potatoes and green beans. I got home at around 7 p.m. and ate. Then we relaxed and watched T.V. Kayla came up and we watcher "Glee." It was  great episode about duets. Loved it. Then I blogged a bit and headed to bed. What a long day!

Wednesday - Wednesday I woke up and went to work. I know I worked out at some point, but I can't remember if it was in the morning or during lunch. I went to work, and after work headed to Walmart to pick up supplies to make the Oreo cupcakes I was making for the weekend. Then I had my Weight Watchers meeting, headed home to my house that my husband cleaned (we're talking bathrooms and all) and ate ham leftovers. Then I had a Weight Watchers conference call at 8 p.m. Afterwards, Joe and I watched "Sweeney Todd," and relaxed. My sister, brother, and brother's friend Ben stopped by for a few minutes. We had a a nice evening.

Thursday - Thursday I was planning to have my parents up for dinner because they got back very late Wednesday night from a three-day trip to Baltimore, Gettysburg and Washington, D.C., and I wanted to hear about the trip. Well, Joe had cleaned the whole house the night before, so I didn't have to worry too much about that. I think I did Tae Bo in the morning before heading to work. At lunch, I came home and made an apple spice bundt cake; it was yummy! After work, I headed home and made taco salad, corn bread, cinnamon applesauce and macaroni and cheese. Then my parents came up for dinner. It was yummy, and we had a chance to visit, look at pictures and relax. It was really awesome. After they left, my brother and sister and my brother's friend came up to watch "The Office." It was a great night.

Friday - I woke up early and did ab exercises. My left foot was killing me (and still is), and I couldn't do much exercise. It is a pain that radiates from the inside ball of my left foot into the toe. It even looks slightly swollen today (Sunday). Joy! I then went to work, came home and baked pumpkin chocolate chip cookies and Oreo cupcakes that were divine. (I even chopped up Oreos for the cake batter and for the frosting.) Then, Joe and I relaxed and watched "Groundhog Day" before heading to bed.

Saturday - It was the big alumni day I have been talking about. We had practice at 11 a.m. at  the high school. I got up early, went to practice, and we all headed to get Chinese after practice. Then we headed to Mass at the high school and played after Mass. Then, we rode in the band bus to the stadium (five minute drive away). The game was fun, and we ate a lot of Swedish fish, which is an odd tradition for alumni band. After the game, we drove cars (that we dropped off at the stadium earlier in the day) back to the school and played at the fish fry. Then we hung out in the band room and Chris (alumni band member) played "American Pie," "Piano Man" and "Sweet Caroline," while we sang along. Chris is, by far, the most talented musician I know. He can hear a song and just play it right now - no music needed. Amazing! Afterwards, my cousins Megan and Ryan rode with us back to my parents' house. My mom had awesome roast beef sandwiches, chips, Doritos, potato salad and macaroni and cheese. We also had my cookies and cupcakes for dessert. We ended the party way into the night (after 2 a.m.), and I had to be up for my Weight Watchers meeting at 7 a.m. That was a blast (notice the sarcasm).

Today, I am relaxing and taking it easy. I hope that by relaxing, I will give my foot some time to heal. Go Steelers. Ben is back!

Week in Review - Oct. 3-9

Well, I think I will follow trend and start documenting my week, so that I can look back and see what I have been doing. Sounds fun!

Sunday - I woke up bright and early for work (Weight Watchers). I went to work and lead the meeting. Joe got up early, too, because he went to the Steelers' game (mean husband didn't take me). When I was done with the meeting, I went to choir practice and Mass, and I then headed up to my parents' house for Sunday lunch (a tradition my mom started soon after we got married). It's normally a bigger crowd, but everyone was busy this week; so it was just Mom, Dad, Grandma and me! We had chili and salad, and then I had a nice afternoon talking to my mom and grandma, while my dad watched the game in the other room. I decided I wanted to go to Old Navy for some unnecessary fall clothes shopping, and my mom said she would come too! Yea! I love hanging out with my mom. We are a lot alike, which sometimes leads to some heated discussions, but we get along 99 percent of the time now (as opposed to my teenage years). After we both spent entirely too much money, we headed to Starbuck's and got lattes on our way back home. Joe met us down at my parents' and we ate more chili before heading home and getting ready for the big work week.

Monday - I woke up, and I think I went on a long walk. (I am doing this post on Friday, and I am going to try to start doing it each day to make it easier.) I had taken the day off, so afterwards, I showered and headed to the store for groceries. I came home, put the groceries away, put a pot roast, sweet potatoes and carrots in the crock pot and made a homemade banana bread, since the bananas were going bad. Afterwards, I wiped down the counters, did the floors, dusted and ran the vacuum in the living room, tidied up the bathroom. I was quite productive and really enjoyed my day. Joe came home and we lit some candles and enjoyed a really nice dinner. Then we relaxed for a bit before bed.

Tuesday - I woke up and had to go to work. Yuck! I know that I work out at some point (think I did Tae Bo in the morning). After work, I had to stop at the mall to pick up makeup that I had preordered. I also stopped at the craft store and picked up a few fall lawn decorations. I love fall! I came home and made turkey breast cutlets with a cranberry and maple glaze, stuffing and corn. It was like Thanksgiving. Yum! Then, it was "Glee" night, and you know how we love us some "Glee." We found a new love for Grilled Cheesus. (If you watch you'll understand; if not, you probably think I am crazy.) That evening I started getting fall clothes out, and let's just say, that is still a process.

Wednesday - Wednesdays are busy days for me. I headed to work in the morning after getting up late. I was only a few minutes late though. During lunch, I did Tae Bo. Um, that was not a good idea. I got a little too sweaty for it only being lunch. I had to rinse off quickly, pack a lunch and head back to work. After work, I went shopping to waste 45 minutes between work and the time I had to be at Weight Watchers for my evening meeting. I went to the store and picked up birthday presents fro my niece, whose birthday is in November, and my godson/nephew, whose birthday is in October. After that, I headed to my meeting, and then went home. Joe ate leftover turkey for dinner and I had a grilled chicken veggie burger and brown rice. Then we got ready for our weekly movie night. Joe picked the movie choices (explanation on how we pick movies deserves it's own post). We ended up watching "Coraline." We had seen it before. It's a cute and creepy movie, if that makes any sense. It's along the lines of "The Nightmare Before Christmas," but a little creepier to me.

Thursday - I woke up and walked Maddy before work. I then went work and came home for lunch. I stopped at my parents' during lunch because my mom babysits, and I really want to see the kids! I then went back to work. After work, I went home and diced prepped dinner. I made some tasty white chicken chili. I make a lighter version using fat free milk and fat free sour cream. It was so good. Then my brother and sister came up for "Community" and "The Office." We ate some banana bread and heard about Kayla's trip to Boston. "The Office" was hilarious ("Sweeney Todd" episode). After Kayla and Derek went home, we headed to bed.

Friday - Friday, I got up and walked the doggie! It was the anniversary of the day we brought Maddy home from the shelter. I can't believe it's been four years since we rescued our pups, and I can't remember life without her. Happy Homeday, Maddy! I went to work and had a long Friday. After work, I came home. Since Joe had to go to work at 1 a.m., I decided to go with Derek, Kayla, Maria (my brother's girlfriend, and my brother's friend, Ben, to Kennywood's Fright Night. I was so excited to ride some roller coasters and have a ball. The park was open until 1 a.m., and there were haunted houses, and all the rides were open. It was so awesome. I got home at 2 a.m., and I got to bed at 4 a.m. Hello, too late for this old hag! I was so exhausted Saturday. Yuck!





Saturday - I woke up late Saturday, after my excursion to Kennywood. After I got my rear out of bed, I tidied up the house to get ready for a painter who was coming to our house to give us a quote on what it would cost to paint our living room and dining room. After he came and left, I ate lunch. Then Joe went to dinner and the Central football game with my family, while I dug out my fall/winter clothes. That is such an insane job, and I have way too many clothes. I took a break to eat a veggie chicken burger and brown rice with tomatoes for dinner. After getting the room clean, Joe came home and we relaxed on the couch before bed.

Today, I got up; went and did a Weight Watcher meeting; came home and visited with my brother-in-law, who asked Joe and me to be our nephew, Ethan's, godparents; went and picked up a birthday gift for my uncle and went to dinner at my grandma's. It was a great Sunday and weekend. But now, I need a weekend!