TGIF CHECK-IN: July 1st

dubcompanion

Hey all! What's happening this weekend? For those in the U.S., what are your plans for the 4th?

dubcompanion

Tonight, DH and I are having a game night with another couple. We're going to play the board game Dominion. Anyone ever heard of it? We played it with them and another couple friend of ours once. The husband of that couple was not at all fond of the game, so now we're going to play it with a lot less complaining.

Fourth of July we are going to be part of a parade! It's for our friend's company, and we're going to toss carrots into the crowd while we walk. He works for a produce company. Then afterwards, we're going to their house for an all-day party. They're in the process of moving, so instead of grilling, we're going to bring our desired deli meats and make sandwiches! Then afterwards, we'll likely head to fireworks if there are enough DD's. I *should* know by then if I'm KU or not (AF is due on the 5th). Unless the witch decides to be cruel this cycle and show really early, I'm going to be a DD this year - which is just fine with me!

mylittleversailles

@dubcompanion Yes, I've heard of that game! It's also a major holiday in Canada today, so I had no idea it was Friday. This is how I got DH's birthday so messed up. 

Canada Day means exactly nothing to me, so it's just a nice day off with my sweetie pie! His bff is coming over, we're making Mario cupcakes together and having a taco bbq for the second day in a row. Would love a beer, but I don't want to wake the gastritis beast so I'll make some agua de Jamaica (again made it last night).

TW baby mentioned

I think we're going to the hospital to meet my friend's baby this weekend. He's in the NICU for at least another month, so they're obviously stressed.Then we're going to go to their house and do garden work for them, so they don't feel obligated to entertain us, we can help out in a tangible way and we can still see how they're doing and we can chat if they're up for it.

TW over

That's about it. DH went axe throwing for a work excursion yesterday, so he's all complaints and aches. Enjoy the fireworks, BBQs and alcohol, all!

AliciaGoose

@dubcompanion I LOVE DOMINION! DH and I play it all the time. Also enjoy the parade. 

@reneeannemm Enjoy your day off and meeting he new LO. Mario cupcakes sound fun and also that BBQ sounds delicious!

Super busy long weekend planned here. DH is working until 8 tonight and until 6 tomorrow. I'm going to hang out and eat pizza and drink wine with my mom and my two aunts tonight which I'm really looking forward to. 

Tomorrow when DH gets off from work we're going to a picnic at his aunts house back close to home (about an hour and 15 minutes from where we currently live). We're staying at his parents that night because the next day is a picnic at my dads house. I'm bringing a couple things so Sunday morning there will be a lot of cooking. 

Sunday night we'll head back home with or pup who has actually been staying with DHs parents for almost a week now. Monday we're going to relax by the pool. And then Tuesday is cleaning day in the am, and then an Andrew McMahon / Panic at the Disco / Weezer concert at night!

SoonToBeMommaHowe

Happy long weekend everyone (that it applies to)!! Very low key one for us, DH is on call and with his job he can't be far from home. We are going to a late night cookout on Saturday after he's done and that's about it! Relaxing, house projects, reading and BDing...sounds lovely actually 

dubcompanion

@AliciaGoose WEEZER?! You are officially a Bump BFF of mine!! DH and I are going to see them in September! We've enjoyed listening to them together for 15 years now. In fact - in HS orchestra, I played violin, and he played cello, and he sat directly across the room from me. We used to make the "W" signs to each other whenever we were bored. I can't believe it took us this long to go see them, since we see at least one concert a year (this year it's 3) but we're stoked, as you can tell. 

@reneeannemm If they aren't eaten too quickly, can you share a pic of the Mario cupcakes??

@SoonToBeMommaHowe BD is a great weekend activity! Must be your FW? 

amberruka

@reneeaneemm that is a lovely thing for you guys to help them out (working on their garden). 
@dubcompanion throwing carrots at people sounds like a blast!!

I'm on call Friday day and Monday 24H, but have Sat and Sun off. An anesthesiologist I worked with might be coming to town for the weekend, and wants to take me and DH "to any trendy restaurant in Portland" (he's goes back and forth between small towns in NM and CA so misses big cities). I fully intend to take him up on that, ha ha. He can also count cards--one time he got back to Atlanta and we met up at a sushi place, he said, "I just won ten thousand dollars over the weekend at the poker table so everything is on me." I knew that was gonna be a good weekend....;-)

AliciaGoose

@dubcompanion Ahh! We seriously are Bump BFFs. We share an eery amount of interests. This will be our first time seeing weezer. I'm super excited to see them all. I've seen Andrew McMahon before but never Weezer or Panic. DH and I go to probably at least 5 concerts a year. But a lot of the ones we go to are smaller cheaper concerts. 

dubcompanion

@amberruka Dang, you know how to make connections with the right people! Hopefully he comes and takes you up on the offer! I'll live vicariously through you for your a) residence in/around Portland and b) eating for free at a trendy restaurant!

@AliciaGoose If I lived in Chicago or L.A., I'm pretty sure I'd go broke over the sheer number of concerts I'd have to go to! The artists we listen to tend to play in smaller venues as well. Des Moines does have a civic center and an arena, but we don't care to see Beyonce or The Biebs. As it is, the concerts we are going to are in three different states.
To be frank, my DH has been withholding from me for YEARS that there is an app called BandsInTown. Now that I know it exists and I have it, I'm never missing out on concerts. This is likely the reason why we are going to 3 instead of 1 this year!

TScalei

@dubcompanion - I have never heard of Dominion what is it?
@reneeannemm _ I second the request for pictures of the cupcakes if you still have them. Have fun celebrating DH's birthday!
@AliciaGoose - have fun at the Weezer concert. I love them too but have never seen them in concert.
@soontobemommahowe - that sounds like the perfect weekend!

We have a fairly low key weekend too! Have a cookout on the 4th and friends of ours are having an all weekend camp out/ party at their house (they own a ton of land) and we might stop by there on Sunday. Other than I want to go shopping and get some new clothes for our trip to Nashville next week, relax, read, maybe a movie.

dubcompanion

@TScalei I have only played Dominion once so far, and it was several months ago. I just know I really liked it! @reneeannemm @AliciaGoose Do you want to supply deets?
Also, how fun to shop for a trip to Nashville! What brings you there?

Spartanrd4

**Dirty lurker**

Hope you all have a wonderful long weekend- 4th of July for us Americans, Canada Day for the Canadians! Hope to see some good news in the next couple days/weeks!  

mylittleversailles

@dubcompanion @TScalei Will do! There's always lots left, plus I may end up blogging them and will need the pictures (if they're not a disaster)! Also, everything always ends up on my instagram.

No deets on the game from me. I'm terrible with long board games, I can't retain the rules and so I have a hard rule against playing them now after a disastrous attempt at Twilight Imperium. I'm a much better solo player than social, anyway.

lilylover27

@dubcompanion sounds fun to be part of that parade!
@reneeannemm I hope everything goes well with you friends baby. That is a really nice gesture of you to do their gardening.
@aliciagoose that is a busy weekend!
@soontobemommahowe reading is a big part of my weekend too! I am almost finished with After You!

Our weekend is pretty low key too. I get to leave work early today since it is dead enough that I have checked TB about 30 times today! So leaving early today and then DH and I are just going to relax tonight and watch a movie. Tomorrow I have boot camp class in the morning and then we may go to the beach with another couple, that is still undecided. Then Sunday (the 3rd) my parents are having their "4th of July" party so we will be going to that. Like I said is previous posts their friends mean well but constantly as me about when we are having babies, so I think a glass or two of wine may be necessary. The on the 4th we actually have no plans and DH took off all next week (gets more vacation time then me).

dubcompanion

@reneeannemm Yeah, some board games come with BOOKS for instructions these days. It can get ridiculous, and I have a short attention span. I'm more of a solo player too, but I'm thankful board games have come back in fashion all the same. Gives us childless 20-30-somethings a fun activity to do with friends that doesn't have to revolve around sports, drinking, or video games all the time.

@lilylover27 Nice that you get to leave early from work today and get a start on the long weekend!

AliciaGoose

@dubcompanion DH and I are lucky enough to live right in between NYC and Philly, so there are an abundance of concerts that we can go to at anytime! 

@TScalei Enjoy your low key weekend! And especially the shopping part. If I have time I might make that part of the day on Monday. 

@lilylover27 I really hope the pesky friends / relatives leave you alone. I had a similar issue last weekend.

As for Dominiom, the short explanation is that it's a card deck building game where you're ultimate goal is to own the most provinces by the time it ends. You get provinces by purchasing them, and you get the money to purchase them by picking and playing your cards wisely as you go along. It's a mix of strategy (in terms of cards you pick and play and what you do with your turns) and luck (you shuffle your deck and randomly draw cards as you go along). It's fun!

Wishilivedinflorida

@reneeannemm I hope DH enjoys his taco party and cupcakes! 

@dubcompanion I've never heard of that game, but I'm going to head off to google to learn more!

@lilylover27 Yay for leaving work early!

@TScalei I hope you enjoy your low-key weekend. DH and I are likely going to road trip to Nashville in August! I may need to hit you up for some pointers. 

@amberruka I hope you pick an awesome restaurant! I love food. 

@AliciaGoose Enjoy your concert! I would love to see Weezer sometime. I think they are just a universally enjoyable band. 

@SoonToBeMommaHowe Your low-key weekend sounds amazing! 

Im unfortunately working the weekend but have off Monday! We are having back-to-back bonfires tonight and tomorrow with different friends. On Sunday DH are heading out to a nearby big city to spend the night and go shopping and hang out on Monday. We will be back home in time for our neighborhood fireworks show. We will probably BBQ something good. I'm still kind of avoiding DH's family since his cousin is KU and painful to be around, and MIL has breached my trust by telling random people about our losses. I feel like more and more, our friends are our true family, and it makes me sad. So we will lay low on the holiday when we return. 

Today I'm cleaning and running errands to prep for the weekend ahead. Woo!

mylittleversailles

@Wishilivedinflorida Our friends are definitely our family. No doubts. I'm sorry it makes you sad, it can be a hard thing to come to terms with. 

TScalei

@lilylover27- what did you think of After You? I just finished that a couple of weeks ago.
@soontobemommahow - what are you reading this wknd?
I just got First Comes Love by Emily Giffin from the my hold on the library's ebook site so Im hoping to get out of work early today and read. She is one of my favorite authors!

@AliciaGoode- my DH's parents just moved to TN so we are roadtripping down there to visit them and are going to go to Nashville for a couple of days. We both love country music so we are going to go to the Grand Ole Opry and walk around and see a bunch of live music- I can't wait! And thanks for the info on the game it sounds fun!

dubcompanion

@Wishilivedinflorida My friends definitely make me feel more like family than some actual members of our extended family. There's no bad blood,  but I find it weird how just because you're with family, you're supposed to automatically click and love each other. It feels so forced. With friends, you chose to love them and they to you as well. It feel so much more natural and is a much more comfortable environment. 

AliciaGoose

@TScalei That sounds amazing! I actually LOVE country music, which is something most people don't know about me (especially because it doesn't fit in with the other music I enjoy). I grew up listening to it and have continued to on my own. DH on the other hand hates it. His parents and my SIL and her fiancé actually took a trip to Nashville once. We couldn't go because they went during the school year and I'm a teacher. DH was like "thank god they didn't do this in the summer or I know you would have made me go". Jokes on you DH cause I'm still going to make you go one day! Enjoy your trip!

Wishilivedinflorida

I think you said it perfectly, @dubcompanion. I feel so forced when I'm around DH's family and really my mother is the only sane person on my side of things. I think even DH is growing weary of his family. I'm so grateful for good friends who make us feel less isolated. 

shae86

@AliciaGoose Weezer is awesome live. I saw them in 2014 and they killed it. 

@TScalei I am so jealous of your Nashville trip. I really think it might be my favorite city in the entire US. Have a blast! 

@dubcompanion I'm super into games and I get really competitive. I'll have to check out Dominion!

Tonight DH and I are going to an adults-only dinner for a good friend's birthday at one of our favorite restaurants. Since many of our friends are parents now, we rarely get to hang out without their kiddos in tow, so I'm looking forward to it. Tomorrow we're driving down to San Diego (about an hour and a half south of us) to see Flight of the Conchords in concert. So excited! We'll stay the night and have brunch out there before heading home Sunday. And on the 4th, we'll head over to my mom's house for a pool party and fireworks. Outside of Christmas season, this is my favorite time of the year. Happy Friday, indeed!

SoonToBeMommaHowe

@TScalei I LOVE Nashville! Depending on how long you're in the city try to squeeze in Legends Corner and Honky Tonk Central for live music and drinks! DH highly recommends the guac burger at Tequila Cowboy

I just finished up Killing Lincoln and now moving on to Killing Kennedy. But after that I think I might re read the Harry Potter series  

dubcompanion

@SoonToBeMommaHowe What is these Killing series you're watching? Is it on TV/online streaming? 

TScalei

@SoonToBeMommaHowe- thanks for the tips - I will add them to my list! I like the Killing books - they are quick & interesting reads and HP is always a fave, of course!

dubcompanion

Oh, the Killing series is book-based. I totally knew that.
::darts eyes nervously around the room::

lilylover27

@TScalei I haven't finished it yet, but I like it. I don't like it as much as Me Before You but I like it. I am probably 100ish pages from finishing as of right now and I am not sure how it will end.

MooFish2364

I want to participate but feel like I've missed so much already. I'm too late to the game! I've had a super crazy week at work and I'm also teaching this week so I've had little time for anything else. 

DH works late tonight but has tomorrow off so we are going to look at houses then we might head over to my mom's house to swim in the pool. We will be at my mom's again for the 4th of July and will probably head over to my in-laws too. I took the rest of next week off and I'm so looking forward to it! It's the longest stretch I've had off work since my honeymoon two years ago! 

mylittleversailles

Cupcakes done! They're kinda cute. 

dubcompanion

@MooFish2364 Thanks for stopping in! Enjoy your break!!

@reneeannemm Marvelous! Is it your own recipe? Btw I peeked at your Instagram and it is the epitome of food porn. You make veganism look sexy.

MooFish2364

@reneeannemm those cupcakes are super cute! I am making lemon cupcakes with strawberry frosting for our 4th of July celebration. They are going to have Popsicle decorations on the top. I hope mine turn out as cute as yours!

@dubcompanion thanks!! I feel like a bad bump friend for not keeping up with all of this earlier!

mylittleversailles

@dubcompanion aww, shucks. It's kind of my life's passion - changing the food from the crap it usually is to something extraordinary. Yes, my own recipe (because the usual techniques make for terrible cakes)!

@MooFish2364 Yesssss, love lemon and I bet they'll be perfect!

SoonToBeMommaHowe

Ha @dubcompanion..of course you knew they were books  

DH is a frickin genius and without trying makes me feel like a super dumbass so I've been trying to read some nonfiction books and educate myself. Probably for 5 minutes before I forget what I read but ehh I tried!

mmmmmmm cupcakes! I'm drooling!! 

SnobunnieMel

@reneeannemm I continue to be impressed by your decorative cook powers. 

Canada in our house isnusyally celebrated with a drink or two since DH is Canadian but my grandmother and her husband are staying with us tonight so we will forgo. He's also going be working late. 

We we are both on call for the rest of the weekend and it's going to be a busy one. Holiday weekends ensure lots of business in the Ortho world so should go by pretty quick 

rainbowturtles

I'm just popping in to say I have been keeping up with all the posts but have been struggling with putting thoughts into words and I'm just having a really hard time right now I will try to find time to elaborate soon but then the depressed part of me is saying it doesn't matter and it's self-centred of me to think anyone would really care. But I care about all of you and how you all are doing so I'm trying to bring myself compassion, too. Just having a hard mental health week, I guess.
I am following all the threads, tho! Words are just hard, aside from the few posts I've made

Wishilivedinflorida

Oh @rainbowturtles, sending you hugs now. I hope you feel better soon. 

SoonToBeMommaHowe

Aw @rainbowturtles. Sorry to see you so down. Please know that what your feeling/going through does matter and we're all here to listen.

mylittleversailles

@rainbowturtles Definitely miss you when you're not around, but you take extra good care, whatever that means for you. 

MooFish2364

I'm sorry to see that you are so down @rainbowturtles. You are always entitled to your feelings and emotions, even if you look back and think it was selfish...it was still something that was a very real struggle at the time. I don't think there's anyone here that would think your selfish because of something that your struggling with. We are all here to build each other up! 

AliciaGoose

@rainbowturtles I am so sorry to hear you are going through a tough time right now emotionally. As PPs have said, your feelings are real, and they do matter to us. We'll be ready if/when you want to share. Until then take care of yourself.