Friday, October 31, 2008

Happy Halloween!

YIP. yipyipyipyip. Yip. Yip. Ohhhh.
Hello. Greetings. Oohhhhhhhh. Yip yip yip yip.












Monday, October 27, 2008

Customer In Training

To kill time the other day, Sophie and I walked through a Petco. We don't have any pets, but Sophie sure enjoys viewing them. As an unexpected bonus, she got to push her own cart around the store - their "Customer in Training" carts were available at the front entrance.

Boy was she proud to walk that thing around.

In other news, Sophie is now putting words together. Her first grouping was "Nana geeez" (Nana cheese). And this weekend, she learned to say "Ah-yee, doe doe doe" (Abby, no no no - while shaking her finger [at the dog, not me. we were housesitting])

Friday, October 24, 2008

Foodie Friday #6 - La Parrilla Suiza

Welcome back to Foodie Friday.
(for an explanation of the ratings, see here)

La Parrilla Suiza

Locations throughout AZ



Price: $$

Taste: * *
S&A: * * * * *
Value: *


La Parrilla Suiza, like Streets of New York, is an Arizona chain restaurant. We had never been before, but had heard good things about it, so we gave it a try. Both of our dishes were $9 & change, but dishes under $10 were a rarity on the menu. So really, expect to pay between $20 & $30 for 2 meals.

I got the fish tacos off of the appetizer menu, and I thought they were awful. Fried fish & cabbage in a tortilla - it just didn't work. Jake got something called a "Flat Taco", which is a Parrilla Suiza specialty. He said it was "good, but not great".

Despite my dislike for my dish, they did a good job with presentation and freshness, and everything seemed really authentic. La Parrilla Suiza is a Mexico City restaurant, so it's not the same type of food you usually get at a Mexican restaurant.

Our main problem with our dining experience was our portions. We both left feeling hungry. And for the prices we paid, we were both very surprised at how small our dishes were when they were brought to us. You probably won't see us in a La Parrilla Suiza again.


Overall Rating: 2½ Stars

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Monday, October 20, 2008

First Comes Love...


Sorry I skipped Foodie Friday last week.
I was busy making sure these 2 got good n' hitched.

Friday, October 17, 2008

The Temperature is Dropping

We're in double digits, people. ALL week. OK, so the high yesterday was like 96. But whatever. I still celebrated with the big trio: pants, socks, and shoes.


And um, maybe it took me three tries to find my sock drawer yesterday morning. Don't judge. Have you looked for your sock drawer recently?

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

One More Gift . . .

Dear Granddad,


We turned this:



Into this:



And she:














couldn't be happier.

Thanks!

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Thanks, Martha

Alright, here's how I think it went down. But honestly, I don't quite remember.

I got an e-mail several weeks ago from Martha Stewart Living (I subscribe to the magazine), asking me to take a survey to win a prize. I was bored, so I took the survey. I found out that the prize was only offered to the first 100 people who took the survey, so after I took it, I just deleted the e-mail and figured it was just an act of service.

Fast forward to last Friday, and look what appeared on my front doorstep:


A "Living" apron, a silicon cupcake baking sheet, and "Martha Stewart's Cookies" cookbook. (No note or letter or anything accompanying it, and no e-mail telling me I had won.)

What a great surprise on a Friday afternoon!

Thanks, Martha!

Monday, October 13, 2008

Sophie Celebrates Her Birthday


For Sophie's birthday, we decided to celebrate at the park. Sophie loves being outside, and she loves a good slide, so we figured that this would be perfect for her. We grilled hot dogs and invited family & friends, and we had a great time.



Sophie was happy almost every minute of it, she loved the food, and she even blew out her candles.






She also got some great presents,
including some Mickey toys,







A doll bed with a new doll






and a car for watching drive-in movies.






What a great time!

Saturday, October 11, 2008

HE DID IT!

Jacob Mont is the brand spankin' newest lawyer
in the great state of Arizona.




Now, to just get this picture onto some business cards . . .



Friday, October 10, 2008

Foodie Friday #5 - El Chavo

Welcome back to Foodie Friday.
(for an explanation of the ratings, see here)

El Chavo

1101 N. Mesa Dr.
MESA


Price: $

Taste: *
S&A: * * * *
Value: * * *


If you live in the greater Phoenix area, you may have noticed a bunch of new restaurants popping up with the word "Torta" on the front. The torta, Jake and I decided, is Mexico's answer to the hamburger. They are usually priced comparably to a 6" sub or a fancy burger from McDonalds. It's comprised of meat (carne asada, ham, chicken, etc) and your choice of veggies - lettuce, tomatoes, avacados, jalapeños, green chilis, etc.

Tortas are an awesome alternative to burgers & tacos for lunch. They can be very spicy if you get the chilis & jalapeños, or they can be nice & mild with just the tomatoes and avacados. I got all the veggies on my sandwich, and found it to be perfectly spiced. But for the Jakes of the world, my lunch also included a container of spicy red sauce.

El Chavo is a tiny strip mall food establishment in north Mesa. The 2 times I went to it, I found it to be basically empty. I've had better tortas, and I've had worse. This place is nice to go to because it's conveniently located to my house, and it's a nice and average place to eat.

However, the torta that I got this time was awful. The asada was fatty and chewy and the bread was soggy. I wasn't able to finish my sandwich. Lucky for them, I've been there before, so I know that they can produce good food, so I will go back.

Overall Rating: 2¼ Stars

Tuesday, October 07, 2008

Happy 2nd Birthday, Little Girl

2006


2007


2008


Happy Birthday, Sophie

You're a treat to be around, and I love you.

  • You make up jokes in the back seat, and then laugh at them.
  • You sometimes mumble your own prayer when someone is blessing the food.
  • You just learned how to say "Mama" 2 weeks ago, but we're OK with that.
  • You love your blanket.
  • You have the best sense of hearing, and can imitate anything that makes a sound outside our house (airplane, helicopter, motorcycle, truck)
  • You love horses, kitties, elephants, and water.
  • You're always in the mood for a banana.
  • You imitate everything we do.

Keep growing up, but please always be my baby.

Love, Mama

Saturday, October 04, 2008

Foodie Friday #4 - Cyclo

Welcome back to Foodie Friday.
(for an explanation of the ratings, see here)

Cyclo

1919 W Chandler Blvd # 2
Chandler, AZ 85224



Price: $$$

Taste: * * * * *
S&A: * * * * *
Value: * * *


Cyclo is a hip Vietnamese restaurant in Chandler. The owner, Justine, knows a lot of her customers by name, or at least, by appearance, and greets everyone personally. Newly remodeled, the restaurant is clean, open, & stylish.

Some notes about my ratings: I put the price of Cyclo in the $$$ category because of the dishes we chose, but there are plenty of choices on the menu under $10. Also, I only gave them 3 stars in value, not because they are expensive, but because it is expensive for Asian food. Cyclo is very competitive in price compared to other restaurants, but compared to other Vietnamese establishments, it's a little pricy.

I got the Seafood Phở (pronounced "fuh"). Phở is a traditional noodle soup that you flavor yourself with plum sauce and Sriracha chili sauce. The good thing about that is that it can be a mild or as spicy as you want. When we go out for Vietnamese food, we usually get a phở and another dish. It's one of my favorite soups. The seafood phở at Cyclo came with shrimp, scallops, and crab legs, all of which were delicious.

Jake ordered the Broken Rice Plate. It came with char-broiled pork, beef, shrimp, and a salad. He said the pork was some of the best pork he's ever had, and highly recommends it.

Others in our party ordered lettuce wraps, beef phở, pineapple curry, and vermicelli, all of which earned rave reviews from their respective orderers.

With its delicious food, fun atmosphere, and good company, I highly recommend Cyclo.


Overall Rating: 4½ Stars

Friday, October 03, 2008

Laying Down on the Job

Sophie's in a "laying down" phase. No matter where she is, she thinks it's a good time to rest her head. She lays down in line at the store, whenever she wants to eat or drink anything, in the shopping cart, in the bathtub, on the toilet (we've been practicing), and to watch TV.

The only kid sized chair we had was an old schoolhouse type chair. She has figured out how to lay on that too. So we decided it was time to get her a soft kid chair, for all her lounging needs.

Here are the chair and Sophie currently:











Apparently comfort is not her top priority.

Thursday, October 02, 2008