getting it right(er)

so, after having fumbled my way through a couple of car purchases in the 6 years we've been married, jenny and i walked through this one as a unit:-) this time, things ended up with her being happy and us driving a vehicle that pleases *both* of us!

it's funny how we often fake everything being OK and "all good" when really we're in constant need of change and improvement... this year, i'm so very thankful for jenny and her love and understanding in moving along in our marriage together. things haven't been cake-walk-city but, with God's help, they're getting better. let's eat some turkey.

saturday lull

first things first.. my b-i-l showed me this cool site called animoto.com where it's quick and easy to upload your photos and music and create a mini-film of your pics. here's a little one i made yesterday of jenny & me:

http://animoto.com/play/c25c03ff2d7cb1b7d0d0793a0b79391b

yesterday was a big day of laundry, college football, and getting my tattoo!

i've been wanting and considering for a while now getting a lower-case "j" on my forearm (j for jenny) and finally just decided to put it in motion. it's typewriter font - thus explaining the little specks and whatnot around it:)

i went to a parlor called 7deuce here locally and i think they did a great job! they were especially patient with me through all my questions before, leading up to, and during.

i also got to chill with the strands for a couple hours and we took bella down to lake meridian -i had no idea there was this cool park there- and they fed the ducks some bread while i walked bella around a lil bit. i don't care that she pisses when i get to their house- i'm still her uncle. plus, until i have a dog of my own, i live that part of me out vicariously through them:)

last night was birthday burger night for the jennstress so we met up at the des moines red robin (or the "communist bird" as jep refers to them) after her shift at the hospital and enjoyed some yumyum. i often wonder what people think when i meet jenny somewhere and she's still in her scrubs... i guess probably the same thing i'd think if i saw someone in scrubs: 'hey, there's a nurse'.

REVIEW time for that Red Robin!!

FOOD: Jenny had the California Chicken she's so fond of and, if I'm not mistaken, ate the whole thing. Normally I'd say that means it was good but anyone of Haidle lineage eats everything in front of them... almost without exception. I had the Whiskey River BBQ Burger and it was on point! Quite good. Downside to the Des Moines shop though is that they went cheapskate on their side salads (yeah yeah, I realize salad for fries isn't gonna save anyone if they're poundin' burgers;) Thing is, you used to be able to sub out a side salad (full one) which was really tasty for their fries and now they bring you this little soup cup with a few iceberg leaves in it. C'mon people.

SERVICE: Julie was our waitress and she was efficient. Not "replace your Diet Coke before you ask" efficient but close. She did have kind of an overwhelmed look on her face but she looked young, had an 8top and a couple other noisy tables in her section so I think she did a fine job. 3.5 stars:)

The thing about Red Robin is you know what you're going to get. They're a safety net when we want to eat out but aren't sure where to go. Kind of like The Ram but less noise.