Memorial Day 2007 day 2

Ah, what fun it is to have elsaf and judiang over for Memorial Day weekend. We got to bed late last night (I, for one, was wired on caffeine), but Elsa and I still managed to be up before 9am. Judi, meanwhile, was enjoying the Lake Effect and sleeping soundly.

So Elsa and I nipped off to Wagners for groceries. And an hour later, returned with Judi oblivious to our departure. In fact, I woke her up & she thought I was saying we were *going* to the grocery. I think she was impressed with how quickly we returned. Heh heh.

Elsa made some Hungry Jack pancakes and sugared up some sliced strawberries, so we had a wonderful breakfast. Then Judi snoozed while Elsa & I geeked. And suddenly, it was almost 1pm! I started a fire and then grilled hot dogs for the Judester and me, and grilled a chicken booby for Elsa. Elsa had also brought some potato salad and some bean salad, so we had that with our lunch. Everything was tasty.

I then drove down to pick up Papa so we could go to my cousin’s graduation party. We found the park just fine, but missed the cabin where the party was being held. A second drive through the park and we saw my cousin Deanna’s (very distinctive) car. Chris was there, ready to accept hugs and gifts. (He probably preferred the gifts, heh. Especially the flat ones that were green & papery.) It turns out his first cousin (no relation to me) is also graduating, so they were doing the party for both of them. We had cake & ice cream and chatting with Becky & Deanna. And then we returned home.

Once I’d picked up some things from home which I’d either forgotten or didn’t realize I needed, I returned to the girls at the Lake. After we vegged for a bit, dad showed up (I’d invited him to supper) and shortly after that, I started the fire for supper. First we grilled some veggies and pineapple. Then we grilled the pork tenderloin that Elsa had been marinating for a week. (I’ll let her tell the story if she’s interested in doing so.) She sliced the pork & then added a lime/orange/garlic sauce to the slices. Dinner was very tasty and we supplemented the meal with potato salad and bean salad. Well done Elsa! We topped the meal off with more of her pineapple upside-down cake (with me & Judi augmenting ours with ice cream).

Papa headed home and Judi and I cleaned the kitchen (with Judi doing the brunt of the work – you go gurl!) We then settled down to watch the new Doctor Who episode (Human Nature) and discovered that the sound was funky on the copy we, um, obtained. Still, despite the sound, we watched the ep and all enjoyed it. Here’s hoping the second ep is as good (or even better) than the first.

Once we watch Confidential tonight, we’ll probably head for bed. Poor Elsa has to head home tomorrow. Wah! But at least Judi and I have another full day at the Lake.

Memorial Day Weekend 2007

Well, it wasn’t as planned in advance as some of our other weekends at the Lake, and I completely forgot about setting up a card playing night for judiang (but with Granny passed on & mom off being a Bad Gurl with Amy & Rachel, that only leaves 3 card players), but the Weekend at the Lake is here. Yay!

I didn’t wind up getting on the road to the Lake on time as I’d hoped, and when I was 15 minutes away, I got a call from Judi telling me they were “kicking me off.” (At least, I think that’s what she said.) Apparently, there were bugs eating at them and elsaf had to use the ladies. They headed off to the local Grocery while I finished my trek to the Lake.

Eventually, we were all in the cottage and ready for a nice relaxing evening by the fire. But the rain had another idea. A real frog strangler of a storm came through and we began to discuss the evening plans. Well, Elsa and I discussed the plans while Judi got all confused thinking each idea was the finalized plan.

The finalized plan? Go out to eat at El Sombrero and then go see Pirates of the Caribbean 3. I was going to order online tix when Judi decided maybe she didn’t want to see it tonight. So then I stopped ordering. Then she decided maybe we should see it tonight. So we hopped in the car and then I remembered – oh yeah, pre-ordering tix. The girls sat in the car while I bought the tickets online. (Let’s hear it for online movie tickets!)

As we headed south down I-75, we found out that it hadn’t been raining in Miami County. And when we got to the new El Sombrero location, we found out they didn’t have as much seating as they once had. After waiting 15 minutes with no one looking like they were planning on vacating their tables anytime soon, we decided to hop down the strip mall to W.G. Grinders for sandwiches. (Yes, Amy, there is now a W.G. Grinders in Piqua!) Ah, a good change in plans.

W.G. Grinders, a regional chain, serves hot sandwiches and deli sides. I ordered the “white pizza” which is an open sandwich with artichoke hearts, Italian dressing, and several types of cheese melted on top. I also got the broccoli salad as a side, and it was very nice. Judi got ham&turkey, Elsa got a turkey Reuben (AKA a Rachel). Supper was good, fast, and required no tip. We got to the theater at 8pm, half an hour before the flick.

The movie, as I suspected, was sold out, so pre-ordering = good idea. (Let’s hear it again for online movie tickets!) Judi got in line to order popcorn & pop, and I suggested she up the size on the popcorn. (If someone in my party gets popcorn for a movie, I wind up eating some too.) I ordered a Coke for myself, so I know I won’t be sleeping tonight!

We found seats on the right side of the theater (it was already mostly full) and still had 20 minutes to go before the previews. The commercials they showed were very quiet and the movie wasn’t that much louder IMO. Still I heard most of the dialog. Judi wasn’t so lucky, but in the car afterward, we got her sorted out.

So what did I think? Fun movie! Wonderfully convoluted plot that actually stands up to scrutiny afterward. And stick around for after the credits if you can. 🙂

When we got back to the cabin, we all hopped on our laptops and then Elsa cut slices of her pineapple upside down cake. Yum! I made Judi a margarita (the first I’ve ever made and I guess it wasn’t that good), too. (Blech, margarita AND pineapple upside down cake!) So now we’re vegging out for the remainder of the evening. Yay for vacation!