I woke a handful of times after 530a, but not for good until 730a. I felt well rested, and certainly better than I did Saturday. Before I could slip quietly out of the room, Mindy asked for a hug, and then asked that I return soon just to snuggle. Sure, dear.
I headed downstairs where I started a pot of Starbucks then headed to the PC. Because it was Sunday, I didn’t plan to complete calisthenics – just run baby! I got caught up on all the late college football scores, and then read some Vikings headlines hoping to get a sense of whether Favre would be playing or not. No word.
I enjoyed a cup of coffee ahead of freeing Frankie. Like a lot of weekend days, she wasn’t real motivated to exit her pen, but she eventually did. I took her outside where she did nothing but play. I finally gave up and headed back inside. Not about to let the morning get away from me, I slipped into my running clothes shortly after 9a. I left my running ballcap upstairs. I opted to run without it so not to wake Mindy.
I ran inside the subdivision but still kept the run to only three miles, my typical Sunday distance. It was sunny but chilly – maybe a hint of frost. Good run. I freed Frankie and took her out again after my run. Still didn’t go. I decided to attach her to the dog run and left out. It was a nice, crisp autumn morning, why not?
I guess you could say that I started the painstaking yard winterization process next. I carried the twisted Hibiscus pot that rests on Mindy’s pondside patio up to the deck with plans to trim it up and take it inside for the winter. Last year we wintered over one of the large deck Hibiscus plants, but they’re both getting too large for the house. I topped off the hot tub too. It was down about 4 or 5 inches. Mindy was awake when I headed back inside to fetch some scissors.
She came out on the deck while I trimmed the plant and took down the faux spider webbing that’s been up on the pergola since Bella’s early October birthday celebration. I didn’t plan to do too much more today, though. I’ll do most of the yard winterization in the next couple of weeks. But with the first hard freeze nearing, anything I plan to winter over needs to be addressed soon.
Mindy helped me decide where to place her hibiscus. We opted to rid ourselves of two houseplants that were no longer adding beauty to our home décor (half dead). I was done after about 30 minutes outside. Back inside we enjoyed more coffee. We discussed the day’s plan, too. Thought we’d go to ABSCO to pick-up the kids’ snow skis and then stop at the new Giant Eagle Market District in Arlington (their answer to Whole Foods). It’s said to be unbelievable.
Before any of that, though, we took a short nap then showered. We left the house some time around 1230p. Bella called at some point to ask if we were gonna fetch her skis. She’s very excited about getting them, which also makes me very happy. Mindy shared our plan.
The ABSCO lot was packed, but most of the cars were patronizing the Asian restaurant or market right next door. It didn’t take long for them to retrieve the two sets of skis. I had them make sure that the bindings were setup properly for the boots. They were. Mindy sprung for those pricey Oakley goggles I tried on and liked last Wednesday. I doubt I would have bought them for myself. Said they would serve as my Xmas present. I picked up some fancy ski keeps for the kids too.
The new Giant Eagle Market District is located in the Kingsdale mall. Talk about a renaissance, this is it. Two years ago, I would’ve thought it a goner. But now it’s been totally redone with lots of upscale tenants and a full parking lot. The Giant Eagle parking lot was packed too. And inside, it might’ve been the busiest I have ever seen a grocery store. Initially, Mindy talked about doing all of our grocery shopping there, but given the large crowd we thought not. Instead, we’d pick out some specialty items then head to the Grandview/Arlington Kroger on Chambers.
Bob I. was correct. This store is absolutely fascinating. Perhaps three or four times bigger than the Arlington Whole Foods, and every bit as chic. We wandered all the fresh food aisles, including the salad bar, the deli, the butcher shop, as well as all the specialty foods. All very, very nice! The crowd was crazy though. It’s only been opened for about 3 weeks. It’ll die down soon, I’m sure.
We ended up filling half a cart with stuff. We bought a number or specialty cheeses, some beer, and wine. Among the beers, we bought our first six-pack of holiday ale – Rogue’s Santa’s Private Reserve. Between wine, beer, and cheese I‘ll bet we spent $100, or darn near. Money doesn’t go as far at these specialty stores, that’s for sure.
We left the Market District and headed further south to the Chambers Rd Kroger where we did the rest of our grocery shopping. By then, it was almost 3pm. I hadn’t been grocery shopping for quite some time. I wasn’t enjoying it too much either. Between the two stops, I’m sure Mindy dropped plenty of cash. She used her Kroger points to get a $.30 per gallon savings on gas. Paid $2.50 vs. $2.80.
She called Jimaken on our way home. We were expecting him to bring the kids home anytime. They were already on their way. We wound our way through Arlington towards home. Jimaken and kids were there a few minutes ahead of us. Bella was excited to have her new snow skis. I think it’s fair to say that Jacob was too, although he kept his emotions in check.
It was about 350p, or 25 minutes north of the Vikings kick-off. Our dinner plans called for a cookout with the neighbors at our place. We’d be having brats and dogs, nothing fancy. Mindy planned to whip up a tomato, onion and mozzarella salad, baked beans, as well as some coleslaw that we bought at Kroger. I forgot to mention that we bought a freshly baked apple pie at the Market District, too That would be dessert.
The Viking game kicked off on time – 415p, and just as we expected, Favre was indeed starting despite the two broken bones in his ankle. What a tough son-of-a-gun. He played and managed the game well, I thought. We took a 7-0 lead but then allowed the Pats to tie it. Then, we had the ball on the one foot line with 4th and goal. We went for it and missed. Damn!
The neighbors came down around halftime. I was tense over the game, and wasn’t that hungry after snacking on cheese, pita chips and hummus earlier. I eventually made myself a brat and sides and ate while watching the game. Like they have in almost every game this year, the Vikings allowed the Pats to come back and take the lead then had to fight their way back only to come up a day late and dollar short. Damn! I wanted to win. To add insult to injury, Favre took a brutal hit to the chin and had to leave the game in the final minutes. We later learned that they had to stitch him up.
The neighbors left immediately after the game ended. Mindy was kind enough to handle kitchen clean-up, a duty usually reserved for me. I was appreciative of the reprieve. The day went incredibly fast, and for that matter, so had the entire weekend. Hard to fathom returning to work already. I tried one of Rogue’s Santa’s Private Reserve earlier. It was OK, but by no means my favorite winter warmer. I drank ice water for the remainder of the evening.
Come 8p, we tuned into Sunday night football. It was Pittsburg vs. New Orleans. Mindy stayed up until her normal bedtime of 930p. Ahead of that she tucked the kids into bed. I stayed up until just after 10p, although like most night’s started dosing from the sofa even before Mindy headed to bed. All in all, a very lazy weekend.
I woke a handful of times after 530a, but not for good until 730a. I felt well rested, and certainly better than I did Saturday. Before I could slip quietly out of the room, Mindy asked for a hug, and then asked that I return soon just to snuggle. Sure, dear.
I headed downstairs where I started a pot of Starbucks then headed to the PC. Because it was Sunday, I didn’t plan to complete calisthenics – just run baby! I got caught up on all the late college football scores, and then read some Vikings headlines hoping to get a sense of whether Favre would be playing or not. No word.
I enjoyed a cup of coffee ahead of freeing Frankie. Like a lot of weekend days, she wasn’t real motivated to exit her pen, but she eventually did. I took her outside where she did nothing but play. I finally gave up and headed back inside. Not about to let the morning get away from me, I slipped into my running clothes shortly after 9a. I left my running ballcap upstairs. I opted to run without it so not to wake Mindy.
I ran inside the subdivision but still kept the run to only three miles, my typical Sunday distance. It was sunny but chilly – maybe a hint of frost. Good run. I freed Frankie and took her out again after my run. Still didn’t go. I decided to attach her to the dog run and left out. It was a nice, crisp autumn morning, why not?
I guess you could say that I started the painstaking yard winterization process next. I carried the twisted Hibiscus pot that rests on Mindy’s pondside patio up to the deck with plans to trim it up and take it inside for the winter. Last year we wintered over one of the large deck Hibiscus plants, but they’re both getting too large for the house. I topped off the hot tub too. It was down about 4 or 5 inches. Mindy was awake when I headed back inside to fetch some scissors.
She came out on the deck while I trimmed the plant and took down the faux spider webbing that’s been up on the pergola since Bella’s early October birthday celebration. I didn’t plan to do too much more today, though. I’ll do most of the yard winterization in the next couple of weeks. But with the first hard freeze nearing, anything I plan to winter over needs to be addressed soon.
Mindy helped me decide where to place her hibiscus. We opted to rid ourselves of two houseplants that were no longer adding beauty to our home décor (half dead). I was done after about 30 minutes outside. Back inside we enjoyed more coffee. We discussed the day’s plan, too. Thought we’d go to ABSCO to pick-up the kids’ snow skis and then stop at the new Giant Eagle Market District in Arlington (their answer to Whole Foods). It’s said to be unbelievable.
Before any of that, though, we took a short nap then showered. We left the house some time around 1230p. Bella called at some point to ask if we were gonna fetch her skis. She’s very excited about getting them, which also makes me very happy. Mindy shared our plan.
The ABSCO lot was packed, but most of the cars were patronizing the Asian restaurant or market right next door. It didn’t take long for them to retrieve the two sets of skis. I had them make sure that the bindings were setup properly for the boots. They were. Mindy sprung for those pricey Oakley goggles I tried on and liked last Wednesday. I doubt I would have bought them for myself. Said they would serve as my Xmas present. I picked up some fancy ski keeps for the kids too.
The new Giant Eagle Market District is located in the Kingsdale mall. Talk about a renaissance, this is it. Two years ago, I would’ve thought it a goner. But now it’s been totally redone with lots of upscale tenants and a full parking lot. The Giant Eagle parking lot was packed too. And inside, it might’ve been the busiest I have ever seen a grocery store. Initially, Mindy talked about doing all of our grocery shopping there, but given the large crowd we thought not. Instead, we’d pick out some specialty items then head to the Grandview/Arlington Kroger on Chambers.
Bob I. was correct. This store is absolutely fascinating. Perhaps three or four times bigger than the Arlington Whole Foods, and every bit as chic. We wandered all the fresh food aisles, including the salad bar, the deli, the butcher shop, as well as all the specialty foods. All very, very nice! The crowd was crazy though. It’s only been opened for about 3 weeks. It’ll die down soon, I’m sure.
We ended up filling half a cart with stuff. We bought a number or specialty cheeses, some beer, and wine. Among the beers, we bought our first six-pack of holiday ale – Rogue’s Santa’s Private Reserve. Between wine, beer, and cheese I‘ll bet we spent $100, or darn near. Money doesn’t go as far at these specialty stores, that’s for sure.
We left the Market District and headed further south to the Chambers Rd Kroger where we did the rest of our grocery shopping. By then, it was almost 3pm. I hadn’t been grocery shopping for quite some time. I wasn’t enjoying it too much either. Between the two stops, I’m sure Mindy dropped plenty of cash. She used her Kroger points to get a $.30 per gallon savings on gas. Paid $2.50 vs. $2.80.
She called Jimaken on our way home. We were expecting him to bring the kids home anytime. They were already on their way. We wound our way through Arlington towards home. Jimaken and kids were there a few minutes ahead of us. Bella was excited to have her new snow skis. I think it’s fair to say that Jacob was too, although he kept his emotions in check.
It was about 350p, or 25 minutes north of the Vikings kick-off. Our dinner plans called for a cookout with the neighbors at our place. We’d be having brats and dogs, nothing fancy. Mindy planned to whip up a tomato, onion and mozzarella salad, baked beans, as well as some coleslaw that we bought at Kroger. I forgot to mention that we bought a freshly baked apple pie at the Market District, too That would be dessert.
The Viking game kicked off on time – 415p, and just as we expected, Favre was indeed starting despite the two broken bones in his ankle. What a tough son-of-a-gun. He played and managed the game well, I thought. We took a 7-0 lead but then allowed the Pats to tie it. Then, we had the ball on the one foot line with 4th and goal. We went for it and missed. Damn!
The neighbors came down around halftime. I was tense over the game, and wasn’t that hungry after snacking on cheese, pita chips and hummus earlier. I eventually made myself a brat and sides and ate while watching the game. Like they have in almost every game this year, the Vikings allowed the Pats to come back and take the lead then had to fight their way back only to come up a day late and dollar short. Damn! I wanted to win. To add insult to injury, Favre took a brutal hit to the chin and had to leave the game in the final minutes. We later learned that they had to stitch him up.
The neighbors left immediately after the game ended. Mindy was kind enough to handle kitchen clean-up, a duty usually reserved for me. I was appreciative of the reprieve. The day went incredibly fast, and for that matter, so had the entire weekend. Hard to fathom returning to work already. I tried one of Rogue’s Santa’s Private Reserve earlier. It was OK, but by no means my favorite winter warmer. I drank ice water for the remainder of the evening.
Come 8p, we tuned into Sunday night football. It was Pittsburg vs. New Orleans. Mindy stayed up until her normal bedtime of 930p. Ahead of that she tucked the kids into bed. I stayed up until just after 10p, although like most night’s started dosing from the sofa even before Mindy headed to bed. All in all, a very lazy weekend.
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