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Roxie Had A Photo Shoot!

May 6, 2020 B 4 Comments

Back when we were allowed to leave our houses, I signed Roxie up for a school photo themed shoot with Pro Petshots. He’s a local photographer who does pet photography. I came across him while scrolling through Instagram one day and thought it sounded like a great time. He would offer 15 minute themed shoots that were only $40! I mean, that’s a steal! I filled out his form and back in March Roxie stepped in front of the camera!

Kris was great to work with! He knows how to get a pup to show their best side. It was a very laid back atmosphere and he had plenty of props to pick from. I’m still shocked that Roxie had no issues wearing the glasses. She didn’t scratch at them or anything! The Captain Marvel shirt is her own. That background though. It’s the entire reason I did this. It’s hilarious and perfect. Roxie was a real trooper during the shoot. She was still new to the family then and was easily excitable. But Kris was able to get a fair amount of great photos. I’m really proud of how well she did. The turn around on the pictures was lightning quick! I’m pretty sure I had them later that day. I’m not kidding when I tell you I squealed when I saw them. I couldn’t stop laughing at over how perfect they came out. He offered a few free downloads, then you could pay a few bucks to download more. I obviously bought all of them. Yesterday I finally got around to ordering an 8×10 to hang in the house. Like I said in a previous post, I’m That dog mom.

I can’t wait to book another photo session once things get back to “normal.” If you want to learn more about Kris and his business, you can find his website here or give him a follow on Instagram!

TMP Television Edition: Game Shows

April 30, 2020 B 13 Comments

I love when the Television Edition of Thursday Movie Picks rolls around. I watch a lot more TV than movies if I’m being honest. This week it’s all about game shows. Who doesn’t love a good classic TV game show. If you want to take part, the rules are simple; base on the theme of the week pick three to five movies (or shows) and tell us why you picked them.

1. Guys Grocery Games

I was late to the party on Guys Grocery Games but man, it’s one of my favorites these days. I can’t cook worth crap, which means I get a real thrill out of watching people rush around with weird ingredients trying to follow the rules and come up with something tasty. They do a lot of charity related episodes which is really nice to see too. I even have my favorite judges! And of course the judges that I could live without. If you’re looking for something fun, check it out!

2. Price Is Right

I mean, it’s a classic. I remember watching anytime I would stay home sick from school. My favorite game is PLINKO and the one I hate more than anything is the Mountain Climber. I hate the yodeling that goes along with it. The one game I think that’s most unfair is the 3 Strikes Game. I mean, it’s all chance there and no skill. You have no idea which chip you’re going to pull out! I do wonder if they’re “coded” some how.

3. Wheel Of Fortune

I’d kill this game if I ever appeared. That, or I’d freeze up and blow it. I love word puzzles and this is another classic game that I watch on a regular basis. I get way too fired up when I watch too. When someone gets greedy instead of just solving the puzzle and then lands on a bankrupt?! Oh man, my soul lights up.

4. Supermarket Sweep

I loved watching this back in the day and I think it’s making a come back soon! Of course it won’t be the same without the 80’s/90’s hair. I always loved when they had to rush around and hopefully come across one of the giant bonus items.

A pretty simple list this week. This was another week where I could have easily listed a few more but wanted to try and keep it short. I’m curious to see if I learn about any new game shows this week, and how many repeats happen!

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Answering Some “When It’s All Over” Questions

April 23, 2020 B 3 Comments

The other day while catching up on reading other blogs, I came across an interesting post on Adventures of a London Kiwi. She answered 13 “When It’s Over” questions and I thought it was a really fun and interesting idea. I believe she found the questions on Life as Louise and she found the questions originally on KezzieAG. I think I have all the linking right but if not, let me know and I’ll fix/edit any mistakes! It’s been a bit of a struggle to come up with writing ideas and I’m sure other Bloggers are in the same boat. Maybe this will be a fun writing exercise and it never hurts to day dream about when we’re able to go out and about in the world again.

1. Restaurant you would go out to:

I’ve been trying to do my part by shopping local and supporting some of my favorite restaurants. But there’s still something nice about sitting down at your favorite place for a proper meal. I think the one thing I miss the most right now is Brunch! I’d probably either go to Iron Rooster, Miss Shirley’s, or Jimmy’s Famous Seafood. They all offer something different but all of it is A+.

2. Friend you would meet up with first:

This is a hard one, I have a lot of friends that live out of town or in another country. I’d probably try and get together with my local squad for a Happy Hour. We’ve been doing some over Zoom but it’s just not the same! I have friends I do regular lunches with too that I miss. Honestly it’s hard to pick just one friend!

3. Place you would go:

THE BEACH. I’ll hop in my car and make that 3 hour drive. I had plans to go to the beach this summer and obviously they’ve been cancelled. I miss the sun, sand, and drinks.

4. Shop you would go to:

Target. Sure, I can still go there with my mask but there’s no need to do and that just adds to an already crappy situation.

5. Food item you would buy/eat:

There really isn’t too much I haven’t been able to eat during all this. If I had to pick something though it would be wings. I’ve been craving wings and it’s just not the same eating them at home instead of at the bar.

6. Cake you would eat:

I’d go to St. Louis and get an Ooey Gooey butter cake. It’s amazing and if you’ve never tried it you’re really missing out.

7. Show you would/will go to see:

I don’t really go to any shows or theater but I’d probably just go see anything that was playing at the movies. I’m sure I could find something even if it meant going to one of the theaters that shows classic films around here.

8. Concert you will go to watch:

I have tickets to see The Foo Fighters in July. I doubt that’s going to happen so I’d try and find a way to see them or The Struts.

9. Relative you will hug first:

My nephews! They’re 9 and 5. I just miss hanging out with them and goofing around.

10. Holiday you would go on:

I’d probably just wait until next year! I have a wedding in the UK to attend in April. I’d probably just make that my trip unless I can find a really good deal before then. I might do a small day trip or something but we’ll see. I have friends in Chicago and Rochester I could easily go visit.

11. Other activity you would take part in:

I’d go see a sporting event! I miss sports. My favorite part about Summer is sitting outside in the sunshine and watching a baseball game. A nice cold beer and a perfect stadium hot dog. I’d try and get out into nature more too and visit some local parks.

12. Thing you would do at work:

My work life hasn’t changed. I still go into the office every day except there’s only 4-10 of us here (between two floors) instead of 200-250. It’s very quiet and a little odd but I’m use to it now. It’s going to be weird once everyone starts coming back to work. I’m not sure I’m going to like all the noise!

13. Item you would buy:

Hmm, maybe just some new clothes. I don’t like buying clothes online because of fit issues. I’ve tried ordering a dress for the wedding I mentioned before and I’ve had to send them all back. So I’d probably head out for a dress!

. . . .

If you end up writing your own post, let me know! I’d love to read some more answers.

Well, Guess I Won’t Be Going To San Diego Comic-Con After All

April 20, 2020 B 2 Comments

If you missed the news, CCI announced on Friday that for the first time in 50 years, San Diego Comic-Con is cancelled.

For the first time in its 50-year history San Diego Comic Convention (SDCC), the organizers behind the annual pop culture celebration, announced today with deep regret that there will be no Comic-Con in 2020. The event will instead return to the San Diego Convention Center from July 22-25, 2021.

Recognizing that countless attendees save and plan for its conventions each year, and how many exhibitors and stakeholders rely upon its events for a major portion of their livelihood, they had hoped to delay this decision in anticipation that COVID-19 concerns might lessen by summer. Continuous monitoring of health advisories and recent statements by the Governor of California have made it clear that it would not be safe to move forward with plans for this year.

I’m not surprised at all. I think all of us who had plans to attend knew this was coming, it was just a matter of time. They had yet to put hotels on sale (minus Early Bird), guest announcements stalled, and I imagine that they started to receive requests for refunds. Those of us who had badges were worried about how everything would be handled though. Thankfully, we have the option of rolling over our badges to next year. I think that’s the road I’m going to take. Maybe if I had a day or two it would be different but I’m not going to give up Preview Night and 4 Day badges. I’d much rather hold onto them and try and make next year work than be 100% out. I have a lot going on next year but if I try hard enough I can make SDCC happen. As far as our condo goes, we were able to get a full refund which was really great. The owner we were working with was just really fantastic through this entire thing. She reached out a few times to see how we were doing and issued our refund the same day. If my group knew all of us were going to be able to attend next year, we might have tried to keep the place but at least two of us are out and there’s no way we could swing the extra money per person. That means back to the drawing board!

I’m not going to lie, it still stings to have to cancel reservations and flights. Again, I 100% understand and agree but to have something you’ve been planning for a year just taken away still hurts. No Disney. No Queen Mary. No hanging out with my friends. But I’m glad the cloud that was SDCC is now cleared away. The waiting was the hardest part, especially seeing how CCI isn’t always the best with communication.

Here’s to hopefully seeing everyone next year! Please stay safe out there and wash your hands!

Thursday Movie Picks #301: Numbers in Title (Not part of a franchise)

April 16, 2020 B 7 Comments

Here we go! It’s Thursday which means it’s time for another round of Thursday Movie Picks! I thought the topic this week was a little tricky which made it much more fun. I love the weeks where I have to really sit and think about it. Then I always end up surprised that it turned out to be much easier to choose movies than expected.

1. Seven (1995)

I mean, this is probably the easiest pick out there but oh well. Seven is just one of those movies I consider a classic. The entire plot and cast were fantastic, and it was beyond disturbing. Here we are years later and people are still shouting “What’s in the box?!” to each other.

2. Thir13en Ghosts (2001)

I actually really enjoyed this movie. I remember watching it at a friends place and now anytime it’s on TV I get stuck watching it. It was a bit of a wild ride but oddly enough had a heartwarming ending. Plus I love Tony Shalhoub, and for awhile there Matthew Lillard was all over the horror genre. Is it the best movie out there? Nah, but I was entertained and found the SFX used to be pretty good at the time! I haven’t seen the original but maybe I’ll try and do that this year.

3. Fantastic Four (2005)

I feel like the odd man out when I say I actually really enjoyed the OG Fantastic Four movies. I thought the casting was great and I loved Julian McMahon as Victor Von Doom. Plus I love that Chris Evans went on to become Captain America. The movies were really fun and ya know, not every movie needs to be super serious or award level. Sometimes you just need a good laugh or to escape the world. Especially now.

4. 21 Jump Street (2012)

I found this movie to be hilarious. Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill were comedy gold in this thing. Don’t sleep on Ice Cube though! He was the perfect choice to balance out the foolishness and try to be the stern and hard ass boss. I even forgot that the future Captain Marvel, Brie Larson, was in this! If you’re looking for something to make you forget the world and have a good laugh, put this on your list!

. . . . .

There ya go! Once again, as soon as I started thinking about it, the movies just started flowing. I’m glad I was able to mix it up a bit. A few scares with a few laughs. I’m curious to see what everyone else picks, and how many repeats happen!

Some Bake Bread, I Bake Pupcakes!

April 13, 2020 B 1 Comment

With all of us stuck in the house, some of us have upped our baking or cooking skills. I’ve seen a ton of people baking bread these days but I went a different direction. I decided to try my hand at baking something for Roxie! I’ve seen ton of recipes floating around for pet friendly treats but I went with one that I found courtesy of Dogs of Charm City, Carrot Cake Pupcakes! I already knew Roxie liked carrots, I figured this was a safe bet for the first time around. Plus it was pretty simple on my end. If you don’t want to click through, here’s the recipe:

Ingredients

· 1 cup flour

· 1 tsp. baking powder

· 1/2 cup pumpkin puree

· 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce

· 1/2 cup vegetable oil

· 1 egg

· ¼ cup shredded carrot

· Dash of cinnamon (optional)

For the Frosting

· ½ cup cream cheese or plain greek yogurt

· ¼ cup peanut butter

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a muffin tin with paper liners OR spray with nonstick cooking spray if you don’t have paper liners.

2. Combine flour, baking powder, and cinnamon in a bowl. In a second bowl, mix pumpkin, applesauce, oil, egg and shredded carrots. Combine all ingredients until mixed.

3. Spoon the batter into the muffin tins until they are about 2/3 filled. Pop em’ in the oven for 15-20 minutes, or until firm. Remove from oven and cool completely before frosting (this is important!!)

4. Mix frosting ingredients using a hand-mixer.

. . . .

I used a mini-cupcake pan for most of the pupcakes, but made a few larger one’s for some of the larger dogs in the family. The small size is perfect for Roxie at the moment. They turned out pretty good! The only thing I’d do different next time is fill the pans a little more. They don’t rise like typical cake mix and there’s really no concern for any overflow. You could even get away with filling them completely probably! I used a ziplock bag with a hole in the corner to put the icing on, just to make it look cute. Oh and if you’re wondering…yes I did try one. No, I do not recommend for people. Since there’s pretty much zero sugar in these things it tastes very bland and not that great. But the dogs loved them and that’s all that matters!

I think I’m going to try and find a few different recipes to try. I want to order some cute cookie cutters and pans to try and spice things up a bit. If I try my hand at anything else I’ll be sure to share! And don’t forget you can follow Roxie on Instagram!