Tucker

Just a quick post that will probably leave you feeling very dissatisfied with a lot of questions.  Believe me, we are in the same boat.

Tucker is staying at the vet today getting IV fluids.  We aren’t sure what’s wrong with him.  The possible diagnoses range from pancreatitis to lymphosarcoma.  At least, those are the two things that the vet keeps mentioning.

We’re trying to stay positive and not think the worst, but it’s tough.  I’m not one to ask for prayers, especially not for a dog and especially not when there are actual people needing them much more, but if you’re prone to sending positive vibes out into the universe, could you send a few Tucker’s way?

I promise to update as I can, hopefully with not-terrible news.

Friday Fave

The McHusband and I LOVE these chips.

I get them at Walmart.  They aren’t terrible for you: you get to eat, like, 20 of them for about 130 calories. 

If you get a chip with enough of the flavor dust on it, it can pack a punch in the spicy department.

So decent serving size, not too bad for me, and tastes really good?  That’s my kind of snack!

TGIF!!!

Owen’s Birthday at the Zoo: Part II

After we opened presents in the parking lot, it was time to head inside and check out some animals.

Now, the good thing about the Asheboro Zoo is it provides seemingly ample space for its animals.  That’s awesome if you’re an ostrich or a giraffe.

Not as awesome if you paid for a ticket to SEE the animals.

Actually, we had better luck in the afternoon with the giraffes and zebras.

In between, we saw a red river hog.  He was quite active and close enough that we could see he had one of those faces only his mother could love.

Next up were the lions.  We heard the male roar as we walked up and thought we were going to get lucky and see the lions actually doing something, but they’d settled back down by the time we could see them.  Someone else said that the female was trying to get the male to play and he wasn’t interested.  Yeah, we heard his message loud and clear!

We knew the gorillas were going to be fed at 1:30 so our plan was to be at their enclosure around that time.  We got lucky and one of the new moms was hanging out with her baby right at the glass.

She hears the zookeepers and knows what time it is.

No coddling of the baby.  She swings him around to her back and expects him to hang on.

And now for a few familiar and less hairy faces from the other side of the glass.

Guess that mama gorilla isn’t the only one with a monkey on her back.

Maxie wanted to walk, but she needed to have her enthusiasm tempered.  Enter the kiddie leash that Shannon brought.  Maxie wasn’t loving it, but she put up with it for a while since it meant she was free to roam (if being 4 feet away can be considered roaming).

Stay tuned for the elephants, helicopter, and carousel.

What-am-I-gonna-watch Wednesday

Just kidding.  I think I’m at capacity.

Or there are simply no more new shows to watch.

I’m leaning toward the latter.

Happy Hump Day!

{Recipe Recap} Caramel Apple Bars

I like fruit.  I like – okay, love – dessert.  But I’m not too big on them meeting up and joining forces.

However, these bars just might change my mind.  You know I have a soft spot for streusel, and the caramel offers that traditional dessert flavor that I’m looking for.

These would be REALLY good warmed up and topped with some vanilla ice cream.  If you’re into that kind of thing.

With the apples and the oats, these were practically more of a breakfast bar.  Hey, whatever rationale works so I can eat them morning, noon, or night.

If you like apples, cinnamon, and caramel, you will like these bars.  They aren’t difficult to make, but they were a little time consuming with the peeling and chopping of the apples and melting the caramel.

But they are oh so worth it.

 

{Recipe here}

Wonderful weekend

I had the BEST run on Saturday.  The last time I ran at the American Tobacco Trail, I covered 20 miles and it was awful.  Then I arrived home to find the McHusband laid up on the couch with his sprained ankle and broken foot.  Instead of boot camp, the McHusband went skeet shooting so you can understand why I was happy to get home from my run to find him finishing lunch and not sporting any bandages.

So my run.  I ran the entire 20 miles.  And I mean RAN.  I didn’t end up shuffling the last 5 miles just to finish.  In fact, I had a burst of energy thanks, I suppose, to those lovely endorphins supplied by the runner’s high, around the 15-mile mark and I bet I ran two miles or so at a pace not slower than 8 minutes 30 seconds and possibly faster.  I felt so good that I actually got a little emotional and teared up – it was just so nice to be enjoying my run and not hurting (much), knowing I was going to finish strong. 

And finish strong, I did.  I mean, I’m not going to win any awards for my pace or anything, but I finished in 2 hours and 58 minutes, which means I averaged just under 9 minutes per mile.  The fact that I was able to maintain that pace is awesome.  Bring on the marathon!

I spent Saturday afternoon in the kitchen assembling oatmeal cream pies and making no-bake s’mores bars, then we went to the Chicken Stew that night.  That gets its own post later this week.

Then yesterday was our anniversary.  The McHusband power-washed most of the house.

 

Then we bathed the dogs.

Dinner was BBQ chicken in the crockpot before we headed out to officially celebrate our anniversary with a bowling date.

The McHusband won both games, but he was worried for a bit during the first one when things were tied up in the 7th and 8th frames.

We both did well in the last two frames, but the McHusband performed a touch better.

My skills took a nosedive in our second game – I started out with a gutterball!  How embarrassing.  The McHusband had a great game though.

From bowling we hit up Sweet Creations in Fuquay for dessert.  Love those DIY fro-yo places!

Happy Anniversary, McHusband!  I love you and can’t wait to see what the next year brings!  Nothing but wedded bliss, I’m sure.

Friday

Hey guys, happy Friday!  I am ready for the weekend!  We have Chelle and Jeremy’s annual Chicken Stew on Saturday so we’re looking forward to that.  I’m making two treats: one I’ve made before and one new one.  You know I’ll give a full report next week.

Before the fun starts, though, I’ve got to get in my last long run before the marathon.  I don’t know exactly how far I’m going, but my range is 15 to 20 miles.  I’m just going to see how I’m feeling at the 7.5-mile mark and go, quite literally, from there.

Anyone know what Sunday is?  It’s my and the McHusband’s seventh anniversary.  Hard to believe it’s been that long since the wedding and SIXTEEN years that we’ve been together.  That’s basically half as long as we’ve been alive.  Crazy!

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

{Recipe Recap} Ooey Gooey Caramel Pretzel Bars

I made these for us grown-up girls Owen’s second birthday treat.  His main treat was a batch of Oreo Marshmallow Treats because Shannon said Owen and Olivia both liked Oreos and I know Lyla’s not big on chocolate.  Plus Olivia has an egg allergy and since these were egg-free (on my part at least), I knew they were something she could safely eat.

(Photo courtesy of Bakergirl)

For the most part, I can bake something, give most of it away, and be happy with just a serving or two.  These ooey gooey bars, though, were another story.

Chocolate cake on the bottom.  Then pretzels.  Rolos were next.  (I at least doubled the number used, by the way.)  The last layer was basically your standard ooey gooey mixture: cream cheese – chocolate! – eggs, powdered sugar, melted butter, and vanilla.

I gave two-thirds of the bars to Bri, Shannon, and my mom.  That was on Friday.  By Sunday afternoon, the rest were gone.  And no, I didn’t share them with anyone.

So enjoy the pictures.  As I can’t be trusted around these bars, I won’t be making them again.

{Ooey Gooey Caramel Pretzel Bars}

{Oreo Marshmallow Bars}

What-am-I-gonna-watch Wednesday

You’re probably thinking, “Seriously, how many shows can one person watch?!”  What can I say, it’s a gift.

Thanks to my DVR and TWC’s On Demand channel, I’m able to squeeze in pretty much everything that I want to watch.  I will say, though, there are times, like around the holidays when most shows are on hiatus, when I’m glad to not have my second job as a couch potato.

Mamie Gummer, who plays the title character, is Meryl Streep’s daughter.  She’s had a recurring role on The Good Wife, and she was on the short-lived Off the Map.

Emily Owens, M.D. trailer

I think she’s adorable so I hope this show is successful.  Plus I like when there’s a narrative voiceover.  Probably the bookworm in me, I like to know what people are thinking.

Owen’s Birthday at the Zoo: Part I

I took Friday the 12th off and met up with my mom, Bri, Shannon, and the kids at the Asheboro Zoo for Owen’s birthday.  Well, we actually met at Jimmy John’s first for lunch and birthday treats.

When we got to the zoo, Owen opened his gifts in the parking lot.  Of course, you can’t open presents with another four-year-old and a do-everything-big-sister’s-doing 17-month-old there and not expect them to help.

Olivia was already in the stroller or else I’m sure she would’ve been tearing at the paper, too.

Shannon suggested this Fisher-Price castle for Owen and she found it on sale and had some coupons so she did all the hard work, I just financed the shopping.

Aunt Bri and cousins Lyla and Maxie did their own shopping and Owen was pretty excited about his Spider-Man pajamas and crime-cruising car and other goodies.

Once the birthday business was out of the way, we headed into the zoo to check out some animals, including two gorilla babies.  More on that soon!

Winner Winner Chili Dinner

We had our neighborhood Fall Festival this weekend.  The kids dress in their Halloween costumes, and we have a chili cookoff.  This is our fourth year attending and participating in the event. I’ve made chili every year.  Twice I made my standard Taco Chili, which won second place one year, and last year I made a white chicken chili, which people said they liked but it lost points for being untraditional.

It was close, but my chili took first place.

I used a recipe from Tasty Kitchen, which was very simple and didn’t really use anything special. I mean, it’s not like I had a green bell pepper or two pounds of ground beef on hand, but I actually did have one can of those Ranch-style beans, a couple cans of Rotel, and the Creole seasoning.

I used four cans of Rotel total. As the recipe suggests, I pureed some of the Rotel: two cans of the regular stuff and one can of the hot, which made the chili quite spicy. I’d recommend using the hot only if you like your chili to pack some heat.

Now the search is on for the next delicious recipe that I can use as defending champion next year.