Today was the first day back to work in the new year and it was tough to get and/or stay motivated. So, while perusing the interwebs, I found a list of 30 highly anticipated 2011 movies. (You can check out that list here). Instead of me recounting that list though, here is the current list of 2011 movies I am most excited about and will make my way to the theaters to see. Enjoy!
Today marked the last day of our New Years vacation. We used the day to finish taking down the Christmas tree and cleaning up the mess of needles it left behind once it was dragged outside. Amanda and I then headed to Applebee's for lunch in order to use a gift card we got for Christmas. Once we got back to the house, we loaded Blue and Ana into the Durango so we could take them to Petco to use the $100 gift card they got from their Gramps Miller and Stacy for Christmas! They wondered around the store for a bit and finally decided to get a bag of food, two bags of treats, a mega kong, an awesome turtle toy and log of training treats!
Blue eventually ran off to play with his new turtle while Ana posed for a few more photos will all the loot!
Once Ana finally ran off, Amanda and I went upstairs to put another coat of primer on the tall boy dresser and side table we worked on the other day. Hopefully we will be able to finish all three pieces by next week. Luckily we only have three days of work before the weekend comes around again, so we should have plenty of energy to finish them!
As for now though, it's time for bed. It's going to be a struggle to get up in the morning since I haven't gotten up before 9:00 a.m. in the last four days, but we can't appreciate our vacation time and the weekends if we didn't have to go to work in between.....
Today was another fantastically lazy day around the house! After several hours of intermittent napping, TV watching and World of Warcraft playing, Amanda and I finally made the effort to leave the house in order to run to Crate & Barrel to return a set of white melamine mixing/prep bowls Amanda had been mulling over whether or not to keep since she bought them - them, another set of white melamine mixing/prep bowls from Williams-Sonoma and a set of stainless steel mixing/prep bowls from Crate and Barrel. This return follows a return of a set of Williams-Sonama glass mixing/prep bowls I gave her for Christmas. She did keep a set of white Crate & Barrel serving bowls I also gave her for Christmas which have become part of what I have been referring to as bowl-a-palooza 2010....
Crate & Barrel - Returned
Williams-Sonoma - Returned
Williams-Sonoma - Returned
Crate & Barrel - Kept
Crate & Barrel - Kept
After Crate & Barrel, we grabbed a quick dinner at Potbelly Sandwich Shop - a restaurant we didn't have in Richmond and would be one of those places we would miss if we no longer lived in the area.
Once we got home, we decided it was time to dismantle the Christmas Tree while watching Christmas Vacation. Our tree this year lost a ton of needles and was hit by dog tales more often then we would care to discus. Sadly we did have to put together an ornament graveyard for the first time ever. Upon closer inspection of the tree this evening though, we discovered this.....
One of our favorite ornaments ever had indeed been hit by a tale at some point during the holiday season and went unnoticed until now. After that setback, we powered through and put away the rest of the ornaments.
At Amanda's suggestion, I pulled out the ol' handy label maker in order to help us organize Christmas for next year. We still have to take the lights off the tree and put away the Christmas dishes, but those are tasks for tomorrow. We still have one more day of vacation left and hopefully we can finish all that up, work on the dressers, give the dogs baths, nap, watch movies, play World of Warcraft (Amanda), blog and hit the gym all before it is time for bed so we are refreshed and ready to get back to the grid on Wednesday. We'll see though.....we'll see.....
It was a fantastically lazy day today and Amanda and I didn't do too much at all. I started off the day by getting up later than usual and sluggishly going downstairs to crash on the couch. After several episodes of "American Dad" on Netflix, I decided to watch "Shutter Island" as it was now available streaming on Netflix as well. Overall, the movie was pretty good. I would definitely recommend it, but it's not a movie I feel the need to watch over and over again.
After the movie, it seemed as good a time as any to take a nap while Amanda played World of Warcraft. Once I got up and Amanda felt like she was finished questing for the time being, we decided to work on a dresser project we started months ago after purchasing three mid-century modern dressers from someone in the city. Each dresser was definitely in need of some refinishing and once they are done they are going to look fantastic in our bedroom!
Low Boy - Needs 1 more coat of white paint and a coat of polyurethane
The Tall Boy - Needs 1 more coat of primer, 2 coats of white paint, 1 coat of polyurethane and the drawers need to be lined to match the Long Boy (the wood color is truer to the Low Boy pictured above)
Side Table - needs 1 more coat of primer, 2 coats of white paint, 1 coat of polyurethane, the drawer needs to be lined and Amanda wants to do a fun paint job that is undetermined that this point
After working on the dressers for a bit and with a need to wait for the primer to dry, we met Mel and Andy at Garibaldi's on Randall Road for dinner. We always have so much fun at dinner and I am not sure how we got on the subject of TV shows from the '60s to the early '90s, but at least it was a fun discussion where the phrase "catch phrase" ("Did I do that?", "Lucy, you got some 'splainin' to do!" and "Hi, my name is Darrel and this is my brother Larry and my other brother Larry." to name a few) was uttered repeatedly as memories of tuning into Nick at Nite were sparked!
After dinner, Amanda and I ran to Target and then home to check on the pups - who, incidentally, made a decent sized mess while we were away. After we cleaned up and they ate dinner, Amanda and I decided to hit the gym. We just got back not too long ago and are both exhausted after our workouts. We have been going to the gym fairly regularly for the last few months, so we decided that instead of making going to the gym a New Years resolution this year (a resolution that I have been making for years), our resolution is to go to the gym as consistently as possible and to continue working out with our personal trainer in an effort to get fit!
So now, I am trying to decide if I want to watch TV, put another coat of primer on the Tall Boy and side table or just go to bed. In any case, Amanda and I have still have tomorrow and Tuesday off from work, so I don't feel an overwhelming need to start something else tonight or an overwhelming sense of dread that I have to get up early in the morning and so I need to go to bed now.....even though Annie says otherwise.
Welcome Back! Today marks the first day of 2011 and the first day I get (back) into blogging. I originally set this blog us as a 2010 New Years resolution, but never really followed through with the actual updating of said blog - a blog I was hoping would be a great place to document the fun exploits of me, my wife, my pets, my family and my friends in an attempt to make myself realize just how much I should be thankful about being able to do!
Since today was New Years Day, we were able to sleep in and enjoy a relaxing day shopping, watching movies and just generally hanging around the house . We were fortunate enough to have Mel, Andy and Dolly spend the night at out house after a great New Years Eve dinner at the Bavarian Lodge in Lisle, IL (a tradition Mel and I started last year) and as soon as we were all up and dressed, we headed to Randall's Pancake House & Restaurant in Elgin, IL. for breakfast.
After we ate, Mel and Amanda decided they wanted to make (another) trip to Hobby Lobby looking for crafting supplies. Knowing that their previous trip resulted in an unrealized loss of three hours, Andy and I decided to hit the movies to see "Tron Legacy" in 3D.
I had never seen the original "Tron" before, but it wasn't really a necessity and I enjoyed the movie anyway. The special affects were really well done and the movie overall was exciting and very enjoyable. I'd definitely check it out again once it was available streaming on Netflix.
After the movie, Andy and I regrouped with Mel and Amanda at our house where the crafting fun had already begun. With that, it was time for another movie - this time a rented disc from Netflix of "The Joneses". I am not sure where I first saw a preview for the movie, but it looked intriguing. Amanda and I really enjoyed it, but I don't think Andy was as enthralled with it as we both were and it did spark some "ethicality" debates, but in the end we had to agree to disagree. I'd recommend the movie though if not just for the overall premise.
After that movie, it was time for dinner. Since it's now the start off a new year and we have been in Illinois for almost a year already, we decided it was time to finally start trying to mark off some things on our list of things to do before we (hopefully) head back to Richmond. On that list - a trip to White Castle - a trip we all agreed we would not need to make again. Perhaps if any of us had grown up going to White Castle we would have felt differently, but at least it is something we can say we did.
White Castle Sliders
Amanda and her tiny sliders!
Mel and Andy return from White Castle
After dinner, we watched a few episodes of "Better Off Ted" streaming on Netflix and then it was time for the Sweeneys to go home. All in all, it was a very satisfying day and I do really enjoy days where you don't have to do a lot to feel like you have done a lot. As for tomorrow, we'll have to wait and see what comes our way. For now though, I think I am going to head to bed. The pups are tired and Amanda is playing World of Warcraft....and that is all it really takes to make me ready to sign off for the night!
