Tag Archives: Food

Going above and beyond

23 Monday May 2011

Posted by in Wedding

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

, , ,

Todd here writing this one. So…Amy is taking a leave of writing on this blog as she has a new one involving more of her personal side. I just wanted to share a pretty fulfilling experience I had tonight at work.
I had a table of 2 this evening on our patio that I had the pleasure of serving. They had never been to Kuma’s before and had been wanting to try it. After talking with them, I found out it was their 30th wedding anniversary. Even before I knew it was their anny, I had already given them the best service I know how and tried guiding them through our menu (which is pretty diverse and extensive). I tried to sell the husband on a spicy fish dish we have (as it’s my fav), and he just wouldn’t bite, pardon the pun. He told me if he could get a sample, that would be the only way he would try it. I seriously contemplated ordering the dish for myself and paying out of pocket just so I could let him try it and prove to him how good this dish is! Thank goodness, my co-worker had an order for this dish getting ready as I was going to drop off the check. I told her, “I’m stealing a small piece of this so I can let my table taste it. I know he’ll love it!”. Keep in mind, This guy was ADAMANT about not liking fish. He ate it and said, “I COULD EAT MORE OF THAT!”. To me, that’s awesome! I then informed the owner that it was their anny and that they took my recommendations and loved everything. Graciously, he bought them another round of drinks. They had such an amazing experience and were so happy. They were dumbfounded that they could receive such great service and hospitality at a restaurant that seemingly no-one knew about.
It’s moments, tables, and people like this that continue to make me love what I do and make me go above and beyond what is required. I treat every table the same and serve the best to my ability, but I can tell when I get that *special* table that deserves that little something extra.
It just makes me happy to make others happy and give them a great experience. The tips are nice and it’s how I earn my money, but events like this don’t hold monetary value. (Btw, they did leave over 30%. ;) ).

Raw Food Smoothie

21 Monday Feb 2011

Posted by in Weight Loss

≈ Leave a Comment

Tags

, , ,

I’ve heard quite a bit about raw food diets. My cousin Sheree swears by it, and has encouraged me to try it out. Friend LJKC enjoys raw food smoothies and wrote a great blog post about it here. So I figured I’d try it out. As always, Todd is 100% behind me, and took me to Whole Foods to get really good fruits and veggies.

I downloaded the Raw Foods app for my iPhone and took it to the grocery store. I stuck with getting ingredients for the Beginner Green Smoothies. Victoria Boutenko is the guru of the green smoothie revolution, and her website is filled with information. I looked her up at my library, and we had a couple of her books. I got some more from area libraries through inter-library loan. I figured I’d check out which ones I like the best then order them on Amazon.

The smoothie was delicious. One things I’ll change in the future will be to add ice. I used cold water, but unless you chug it, it started to get warm a little too fast. I tasted the banana the most with a hint of raspberries and spinach.

Ingredients

Spinach Raspberry Beginner Green Smoothie

One Banana
One Apple (I used my favorite – Braeburn)
1.5 Cups of Water
1 Cup Raspberries
10 oz. Spinach (We bought a bunch of spinach that only came to 8 oz)

Blend Well.

Gorgeous!

It really does taste great!

Nutritional Information

Certavi et Vici

07 Friday Jan 2011

Posted by in Family, Wedding

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , ,

“I have fought and conquered”

was the theme for today, and it just so happens to be the official Byrne family motto.

I drove to Rockford today to do what I affectionately refer to as “wedding crap.”  My first stop was an appointment at a florist shop.  I’m not going to name it, because I’m pretty sure I’m not going to go with them.  I want to get an idea of what it would cost to have a florist do our flowers vs me creating fake flower arrangements vs getting fresh flowers online at Sam’s Club and creating the arrangements.  There are some really gorgeous fake flowers out there, but there is still something about real flowers.  A coworker recently did the Sam’s thing for her daughter’s wedding, and she was very pleased.

Our wedding colors are (pretty much) robin’s egg blue, black, and white.  BUT, I’m not all matchy-matchy, so I don’t really want the flowers to look that way.  My favorite color is green, so I’d like that in there, plus, I like pink, purple, and yellow.  I also don’t want ginormous bouquets.

Act I…

Back to the visit to the florist…she had me look through a book for ideas.  I would have preferred to have looked at the real thing, but this florist isn’t doing so well (another reason I know I won’t be going with them).  I flipped through page after page after page, and, wouldn’t you know it, the bouquet I even remotely liked was the last one in the book!

I kinda sorta liked these for boutteneires and corsages:

The bottom are the corsages and the top are the boutonnieres

Interlude…

After this appointment, I met Logan and my mom at Beef-a-Roo in Roscoe, then we went to my parents’ house where I worked on the guest list.

Act II…

Next came the meeting with the caterer.  Mom and I met Todd’s dad, Gary, and stepmom, Mel, at ABC Catering where we talked with Erin.  Erin was great!  She talked us through everything, and knew to think of things that I hadn’t thought about like table linens, silverware, table skirts, etc.  Todd and I are very lucky to have parents who are so generous and love us so much.  I get all teary eyed thinking about how generous they are!  It was at this meeting that it all became real for me, and I realized…

…we’re getting married!!

Another Interlude…

We all headed over to Big Al’s for drinks and appetizers.  Debbie, my matron of honour, met us there.  We had great conversation, food and drinks, and we all got to know each other better.

Act III

The last of the wedding crap was a bridal show at the Indoor Sportscore.  My friend and fellow bride-to-be Erica met us there, and we walked from booth to booth picking up freebies and signing up for prizes.  It was a great surprise to see our friend and wedding party member JD Mason, of Delta Disc Jockeys, set up at a table!  Quinn, who’s standing on the other side of me is another friend, and employee at Delta, who will be our DJ.

Quinn, Amy, and JD

It was a great day, and a great night, but I’m glad I’m done!  I hope no one asks me to make a decision for a couple of days, at least.  I’m all decisioned out!

The Wedding Warriors

Mel, Amy, Linda, and Debbie

Stay Tuned…

Tomorrow morning I try Curves Circuit Zumba!

Weight a Minute

04 Tuesday Jan 2011

Posted by in Wedding

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , ,

It’s a New Year, and I’m going to make myself into a new me!

I’m sure you’ve heard it from other people, but 2010 really sucked!  For me, I was laid off, finishing my MLIS, struggled with depression, graduated, got my dream job, moved to a city an hour and a half away from everything and everyone I’d known, and I ate my way through it all.  I’m the heaviest and most out of shape that I’ve been in my whole life, and it really sucks.  I’m embarrassed for my old friends to see me like this, and when we were back in Rockford for Xmas Eve, I didn’t go out with Todd and my brother because I was too ashamed for people to see how fat I had gotten (My family told me I was ridiculous, and I my friends wanted to see me no matter what.  They just didn’t understand.)

Chubby Progression

I started looking through photos of myself to see when this had all happened.  Certainly since I was laid off in January 2010, although at my old job we had all been feeling nervous and scared for the 9 months prior.  Being laid off at that time was the best thing that could have happened to me, but it was still an uncertain and difficult time.  I think it was May 2010 when I finally went to my doctor to get an antidepressant, although I should have done it a long time before that.  He prescribed Cymbalta, and that worked for a while, but then stopped.  I didn’t quite figure this out, though until early December, and was then switched to Pristiq.  It seems to be working, and I finally feel more like my old self (except for all the extra weight!!).

Now I need to do something
about the extra weight…

My health insurance, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois, has a program where I pay $29 a month, and I have access to a bunch of health clubs and gyms.  I’d already signed up at Bally through the insurance and went a couple of times before I got really sick.  Over the weekend I discovered that Curves is included, too.  I’d heard a lot of good things about Curves, and it seemed as though it would be less intimidating than Bally. So I went there tonight, and, man, did it kick my butt!  I had no idea I’d sweat or get as tired as I got, but it was one heck of a workout, and I cannot wait to go back!  Plus, on Saturday and Monday mornings they offer Curves Circuit Zumba!

I’ve seen and heard a lot of friends talking about how fun Zumba is, and I want to try it.  The Bally I go to doesn’t offer it, and other places in Naperville charge quite a bit of money.  The soonest I’ll be able to do Zumba at Curves is on January 15th.  I’ll fill you in about it then.  I’m also in the hold queue for a bunch of the official Zumba DVDs at my library.  Maybe that’s something Todd and I can do together :)

I was talking with Logan yesterday, and he said that if you put yourself out there, and you tell everyone what you intend to do, you’re more likely to do it.  So, this is what I’ve done here.

I am ready to hold myself accountable.

True Life

12 Sunday Dec 2010

Posted by in Family

≈ Leave a Comment

Tags

, , , , , ,

My son Logan and his best friend Justin are going to be STARS.  Justin wrote in to MTV’s program True Life with an idea for the show based on his life. I cannot reveal what it’s all about, but I’m very proud of him for doing this.  Justin has been like a member of our family since he and Logan met back in 7th grade.

The first phase of in person interviewing happened yesterday.  Justin was interviewed for several hours at his home.  Then Logan came over, and Justin, Logan, and the two producers hopped in Logan’s car to go to Pearl Bistro in Rockford.  Logan was pretty amazed by their star treatment.  Pearl is packed on Saturdays, but there was a big table all set up and ready for them, and Logan was impressed that they got their food within 10 minutes of ordering it.

Logan and Justin talked about his situation while one camera was trained on Justin the whole time and the other on Logan.  Apparently this had the crowd at Pearl thinking that these must be two big stars in their midst, because all sorts of strangers were snapping pictures of them, and Logan was tickled when “cougars” were coming over to talk with them!

After finishing at Pearl, they drove back to Justin’s house where some more filming was done.  Both boys had a great time and can’t wait for additional filming in January.  They got great tips for their futures from the producers, who sounded pretty cool.

I cannot wait for Justin’s episode to be aired, and I’ll keep you posted as to when it will be showing!

Future Stars: Logan and Justin

P.S. Logan and Justin are the second and third real-life people I know who have a connection with MTV.  The first? Todd, who was a Production Assistant for a day when he was in college at Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP).

 






Spring Is on Our Balcony!

12 Monday Apr 2010

Posted by in Wedding

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , ,

In the Midwest, winter with its cold weather, snow, sleet, ice, crummy driving conditions, and more hours of darkness seems to stretch on forever. The first signs of Spring are met with people going out to enjoy the first 70 degree day in tank tops and shorts. For us, Spring means getting the balcony in order. I miss having a house and a yard where I can dig my fingers in the dirt and sweat, while feeling a profound sense of accomplishment when the flowers and herbs that I’ve grown come to fruition. In an apartment, without the benefit of our own plot of land, containers on our balcony fill that void.

Todd and I like to cook… a lot! We love cooking with fresh herbs like basil, rosemary, thyme, and tarragon. And I love flowers – my favorites are pansies and violas. I fell in love with them the first time I saw Alice in Wonderland, many, many years ago. I also have a passion for lavender. French lavender is my favorite, I’m just not as fond as the English variety. The smell is just lovely. Last year, I think I jammed too many into a pot at once, and they never flowered. This year, I put fewer per pot, so I’m hoping for a nice harvest.

April in the Midwest is tricky…we have days when it’s 78 degrees, but then the next three days it’s 60 and rainy. We’re still getting a frost overnight, so we need to protect our more valuable plants and herbs when they’re outside…you’ll see what I mean below.

Long shot from in the apartment

My pretty, yet fake, Gerbera daisies

Gnome, Pansies, and Arianna

Chives we started from seeds inside

Rosemary

More Rosemary

Basil we started from seeds inside

Pansy

A row of pansies and violas

Lovely Lavender

Everything bagged up for the night

And, yes, we have Xmas lights up on our balcony year round! It’s such a cozy and pretty place to be in the warm weather.

We haven’t started the tarragon or thyme yet, we’ll do those a little later. We may even cheat and buy little plants instead of starting them from seeds. I’ll also add marigolds and petunias. We’ve been throwing around the idea of getting one of those hanging tomato growing bags, but we’re not sure if we have enough space. My mom grows a variety of tomatoes each year, so maybe I’ll continue to steal, I mean, get them from her.

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 531 other followers