Sam's Club, Smokey Bones and a Mess

Yesterday, John and I had an amazing time together! Although we promised ourselves that we'd set an alarm and get an early start, the Buick didn't even hit the road until 10:30. Everything worked out great, though (and who needs to set the alarm on a day off, anyway?).

Once at Sam's, we both took our own cart and headed off into different directions. An hour and a half later, we met back up, carts filled with things we will need to restock the pantry....and even some things we truly don't need, but such is the danger of shopping at a warehouse club. John's sister works at Sam's, so we looked for her to chat with, but found out she had the weekend off, so we'll see you next time, Trudy!

We were given a gift card to Smokey Bones restaurant that we've been wanting to use, so that is where we headed next. Let me just say that I could never be a vegetarian. The barbecue was so good there! We stuffed ourselves with baby back ribs, pulled pork, brisket and loaded mashed potatoes...YUM! The entire atmosphere was wonderful; we had a friendly waitress, plus we arrived before the dinner rush, so the place wasn't crowded and noisy. Definitely deserves a return trip, especially since the menu was filled with items we'd like to try.

Before heading back home, we made a pit stop at Petsmart. Big Yellow Dog loves the molasses and peanut butter cookies from Blue Dog Bakery, so I thought as long as we're stocking up, might as well include Ben; 20 lb of treats should last him a while, you think? (smile). John bought him a new toy-it's a tire. A mini tire, but a tire none-the-less. That dog is so tough on toys, it takes maybe 10-15 minutes before he has everything we give him into shreds. So far, so good on the tire. If he's able to chew that up, new rule: Ben is not allowed anywhere near our car.

The ride home was filled with the beginnings of autumn color, and we drove in comfortable silence, enjoying the view and each other's company. We had a carload to unpack and put away, so John went inside first to let Ben out. That is when we discovered that the poor dog had some stomach trouble while we were gone and had diarrhea all over the dining room carpet. There was no way we could be mad at him, though. First off, it wasn't his fault that he got sick. Plus, he was so ashamed, it was pitiful. Head down, ears back and a tucked tail. We loved the heck out of him and then I lit every single scented candle I own and pulled out the steam cleaner.

Ben's feeling a lot better today. He had eaten a lot of grass yesterday morning, so we think that may have been his problem. The Bissell sure did get a workout...but the carpet needed freshening up anyway! Everything works itself out.