May 28, 2021

Friday Night Photos

What a week! We went from leaving the windows open to let the warm breeze freshen up the house, to shutting the windows and turning on the air conditioning when it got too hot, to going back to open windows, and today we turned on the furnace.

Pure Michigan.

Eli finished baseball on Wednesday, got his first COVID-19 vaccine on Thursday (yay!), and finished school today. I had two doctor's appointments this week--my psychiatrist on Wednesday (just a regular check-in), and the rheumatologist today.

I didn't get answers from the rheumatologist today, but I didn't expect to just yet. She went over all my symptoms and ordered a ton of blood work, along with x-rays of my hands and pelvis. She prescribed a pain reliever (not a narcotic--it's something I've never heard of, used just for arthritis). Tomorrow, I'm going to go get the x-rays, lab work, and pick up the prescription. I'm am REALLY hoping that the tests will give me some answers. And maybe the medication will give me some relief--I can't even remember what it feels like to be pain-free!

Anyways, I don't have very many photos from this week, but here goes...

Jerry and I watched the Friends Reunion show yesterday, and we were totally excited (that's what we were trying to show in the photo, anyway.)



I was actually disappointed in the reunion, though. I felt like their continued "friendship" seemed forced--like they were trying too hard to sound nostalgic. Matt LeBlanc (Joey) was the only one that seemed (to me) very genuine during the reunion. I felt so old while watching it--I can't believe it was 17 years ago that the show ended! I really liked Joey in the "fashion show" at the end; I loved the episode where he put on all of Chandler's clothes!



I made Chicken Broccoli Lo Mein  earlier this week and it was SO GOOD--I used rice noodles instead of spaghetti noodles like I used to, and it was delicious.



Remember when I had a problem getting the dough to rise when I made sweet buns? Well, the recipe called for yeast cakes; after a quick Google search, I read that a cake was equivalent to a packet of dry yeast. Well, the dough didn't rise at ALL, so I assumed I'd done something wrong. This week, I chose another recipe that calls for two yeast cakes, so I looked at Kroger to see if they actually sold fresh yeast cakes. And they did! (I was surprised.)

I was excited to make the recipe--until I got home and opened them up. They smelled TERRIBLE. I wasn't sure if that was normal for fresh yeast, but then I checked the expiration date--they were over a month expired! So I'm going to see if I can find some to make the recipe tomorrow; Kroger didn't have any that weren't expired.

(When I returned the yeast cakes to the store--they were expensive, so I wanted a refund--I bought a box of CLIF bars. When I got home, I opened the box to eat one when I realized that they, too, were expired!)



I discovered a folder of photos in an app on my phone and I had no idea they were there (they were pictures that I'd collaged together for one reason or another, most from 2017). I found this one of Jerry and it cracked me up. I always tell him that when his hair gets too long, it reminds me of that feathered look from the 80's. He didn't know what I was talking about, so I pulled up this photo of Scott Baio to show him, haha.



I posted this picture of Joey on Instagram and it somehow accidentally posted to my Runs for Cookies Facebook page, too--I didn't even realize it until the next day! So you may have already seen it. But Joey sheds twice a year, and this is what happens each time. Crazy, right?! (Several people asked about the brush--it's called a Furminator. It's kind of expensive, but it clearly works well. Here is an affiliate link to it on Amazon.)



Below is another photo that I found in the collages album. It was my first time playing seven numbers in Keno--and I matched SIX of them! (In Keno, you pick up to 10 numbers between 1 and 80; 20 numbers are drawn, and you win prizes based on your bet. I usually choose 4 numbers because it has the best odds of winning, but I played 7 that day.) I paid $10 to play and was thisclose to winning $2,000 (I still got $100 for matching 6 numbers.) I don't play Keno very often--it's actually been a couple of years!--but it's fun.



I wanted to print out a little fill-in-the-blank chart (I made a spreadsheet) to use as a habit tracker since I've been doing this DietBet, but my printer will not connect to my computer for some reason. It was driving me crazy! So I got out all my old bullet journal stuff and made one with colored pencils and markers. It was actually kind of fun to work on! (And of course, I forgot to take a picture of the finished tracker.)


And I saved the best for last... these two. How stinkin' cute are they?! Can you believe it's been over FOUR YEARS since I became an aunt? Luke turned four in March and Riley will be three in August.


Funny story... you know how I mention sometimes that we have a party store in walking distance? I always try to remember to call it a "convenience store" or "corner store" or something like that because I know that Michigan (or maybe the whole midwest?) is the only place that really calls it a "party store". To a Michigander, a party store is usually a little store that sells overpriced candy, snacks, pop, beer, cigarettes, newspapers, and a few token convenience items like milk and bread. From what I understand, the rest of the country thinks of a party store as a place that sells balloons and streamers and things like that for a party.

Anyway, my mom decided to go on a walk with Luke and Riley (they were staying the night at her house) to the party store. They'd never been to one before (or at least not that they remembered). She let them pick out a snack and they walked home. Later, Luke was trying to remember what the store was called, and he called it a "birthday store". Haha! Becky (his mom) is from Minnesota, where a party store probably IS more like a "birthday store" ;)  But I just thought that was cute!

Okay, I'm going to try to read some of my book tonight--I only have three days left to finish it, and I'm struggling. I'll write about it when I'm done. Have a great weekend!

3 comments:

  1. I’ve lived in Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, and Ohio. I’ve heard of convenience store and corner store, but most often hear the specific brand, like Casey’s or 7-11. But I agree with Alison145: I like “party store”!

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  2. We used to call them package stores in Georgia. In South Carolina they're called red dot stores and they have red dots on the outside.

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  3. I live in Wisconsin and it's usually a convenience store. Unless they sell alcohol, then we call it a beer depot! I enjoyed the Friends reunion for the most part but you're right, I was disappointed with the way some of them came across. Matt LeBlanc and Lisa Kudrow seemed the most genuine to me. And aged the most gracefully! Another great week of photos and your niece and nephew are too cute!

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