So, picking back up from September’s post, I was in Kingsport for almost a week (September 30 โ October 8th). This post has lots and lots of delicious food and coffee photos.
Life Update
October 5: My dad went for his first chemo treatment. He did great and felt really good for the next couple of days! He was in a lighthearted mood. He’d name his daily prednisone pills.
October 26: Dad completed his second round and his health is improving! According to my family, he’s been eating more and has gained back some pounds that he originally lost. We read the Gospel John together and now we’re reading Proverbs.
Outings/Food/Fun
October 1: Stephen drove to Kingsport separately so I could stay in town for my dad’s first chemo treatment. Stephen left Saturday morning and had like 2 hours to spare before we left for his friend’s wedding.
I didn’t even take a photo of us dressed up, but I bought a cute emerald green dress off of Amazon. It was a little loose around my waist, but I really liked it!
Early Bird’s Coffee Company catered the wedding, and I shamelessly had three cups of their Cold Brew Macchiato. It was fantastic! In my defense, they had a huge amount of ice, so I’d say it was barely over 1 cup of coffee that I actually had. It’s currently a food truck setup that goes around the city, so I’ll have to try to find it one day.
The food was hosted by Braeden’s Barbecue, and I loved the burnt ends! Stephen didn’t care for them so I got to eat his. I took some leftovers because I couldn’t bear letting them go to waste. I was mourning the shredded pork in the bowl that Stephen discouraged me from taking. We were the last to leave from our table, so I thought it would’ve been okay to take what was left.
October 2: Stephen and I had Darby meet Stephen’s friend Alan’s corgi, Edith (Edie for short). They had so much fun together! They played for probably two hours. I was embarrassed that Darby marked a few times in their home, but Alan and his girlfriend (now fiancรจe!) were nice about it. They had hardwood floors, so that makes it a little less bad. He peed like 3 times inside, and I feel like Darby should buy them new floors now. ๐ซ
They became fast friends! Darby looks huge next to Edie, though she is small in general and may be the runt.
Stephen and I drove separately to their house so he could visit his parents in Virginia and leave Monday morning. Darby and I then visited my friend, Kelli, and her husband, Troy. Darby met his sister finally, and Skyler was not a fan. I didn’t get any photos because I was trying to make sure Darby would be chill. Skyler just avoided Darby and barked most of the time. It was kind of funny. What a bummer, but Skyler’s not a fan of other dogs as much, partly because of COVID and being isolated from other dogs.
On the way to visit Kelli, I stopped by Starbucks to get coffee. Darby got a pup cup also.
Overall, he was a good boy and played so well with Edie!
For dinner, I ordered Thai Cuisine because I’d been craving it. I wasn’t able to order it the last couple of visits, but I made sure to order it at least once this time! This was a first, but I ordered pork instead of tofu. It was good, but I’d rather have tofu just because I really like it and prefer it.
I cannot find Spicy Glass Noodles like this anywhere else. They’re amazing! I could eat them every day.
October 3: Mom, Haley, and I went to Stir Fry Cafe for dinner.
I was bummed that my noodles weren’t spicy, even though they’re supposed to be in general. I always order extra spice, but this time it was a big miss and I didn’t get a hint of spiciness.
Mom tried something new. At first, she and Haley thought that the Pepper Steak was like peppered steak (lots of seasoning pepper), but this dish had bell peppers. She really liked it! I think she’d get it again.
October 4: Mom, my older sister Callie, and I took Mason and Pepper to get groomed at 7:45 AM. Mason doesn’t do well in the car, so I was in the backseat comforting him.
Mom and dad went to a chemo education class around lunchtime. It was informative and helpful, but afterwards Mom, Haley, and I ran around town looking for items that my dad needed for his treatment the next day. If only it were scheduled like two days or so in advance.
After parents got back, we picked up the dogs!
He turned 12(!!) on September 22nd. He’s so handsome. Since he doesn’t get along with dogs, I had to keep Darby away from him. Mason would start growling, and we couldn’t have that. It doesn’t help that Darby resources guards me. We’re working on that.
Here are the highlights of Darby’s week in Kingsport:
Kroger mailed a Private Selection pamphlet and I made a recipe, for once! They’re called Dark Chocolate Cardamom Baked Oats. I always say I’m going to make a recipe and never do. I tripled the recipe since I bought these cute ramekin bowls from Bed, Bath, & Beyond. Not pictured is another bread loaf pan of the stuff.
These were pretty good and better than I expected! They weren’t too sweet and the flavor really pops. I could taste the banana and cardamom the most.
I need to figure out what else to use cardamom in because this spice was expensive and I need to get my money’s worth.
Before getting Darby, every time I’d come to visit, Mason would sleep in our old room with me. I’m so sad that I have to kick him out, but he got to sleep in the room for a bit one evening when Darby was in the house or running around outside.
October 5: Dad’s first round of chemo lasted 6 hours instead of the estimated 8 hours! He felt great, and he barely had night sweats the next two nights. It was a huge blessing.
For dinner, Haley and I met up with our cousin, Katelyn. We had Stir Fry Cafe again, and this time my noodles were excellent. It was half off sushi night, so we all ordered some sushi.
I like the Bakersfield roll, but it’s not worth $14 to me to order on a regular night.
After dinner, we walked down the street to order coffee from Hibbert-Davis. I ordered an Iced Caramel Macchiato with an extra shot of espresso.
October 7: The previous day I hung out with dad. Darby had been waking up super early and I was so tired and wanted to nap, but we talked for several hours. Actually, he did the talking and I got to listen to him. I was caught up with what I’d been missing the past few months.
For this actual date, I went to Panera Bread and picked up breakfast for my parents. They used to go to Panera (or somewhere else to get breakfast) every Saturday together. Dad mentioned how he’d love some of their oatmeal, so I got them both Steel Cut Oatmeal with Strawberries and Pecans. Since he can’t have fresh fruit (unless it’s been peeled) I made sure to have them have the strawberries on the side. Mom ate his berries.
I ordered the Chipotle Chicken, Scrambled Egg & Avocado on Ciabatta, and it was pretty good!
Not pictured, but I also ordered an Iced Cinnamon Crunch Latte. They gave me a hot one instead, so I split it with Dad. It was pretty good, and Dad really liked it too! It wasn’t too cinnamony or sweet.
For lunch, my sisters and I ate at Moto Japanese Restaurant.
After lunch, we hit up T.J. Maxx and I bought some new clothes and a few dog treats.
October 8: Darby and I left Kingsport around 9:00 AM. Thankfully, the drive went by smoothly! Being coffee deprived, I stopped by the Well Coffeehouse after I unpacked the car.
I ordered an Appley Ever After and it was fantastic! I drank it super fast and wanted another one. It was much better than the first one I ordered, so that one may have been a fluke.
Darby also got to play with his friend Spud for a couple of hours in the dog park! Darby had a maniac moment and did not like it when Spud got near me. This is the day we discovered that Darby resource guards me. It’s my fault for enabling it because he does this with Stephen, especially when he tells me bye in the mornings. Kylie wasn’t worried, thankfully. We use each other to teach our dogs, so all is good!
When they were done playing, us humans went to HoneyFire Barbecue for dinner.
I ordered the Beef Brisket Tray, which includes a sandwich (or just the meat) and two sides (the honey flat fries and bourbon baked beans!! Love the beans). Since Stephen isn’t the biggest fan of this place, I try to go whenever I can with someone.
October 9: Dad wants me to read the book of John with him for the next few weeks, so we read that Gospel together. He wants me to pay attention the contrasts of light and darkness. It’s one of the many things he talked about with me the days before.
Stephen came back from Indianapolis around 12:30 AM. I was so tired that I didn’t really acknowledge him coming in. For lunch, we had Panda Express. I wanted to try the Beyond the Original Orange Chicken because there was a deal of buy something, get this bowl for free.
Here’s a poorly taken, non-aesthetically pleasing photo of our meal:
I love getting the Beijing Beef, and Stephen ordered the Teriyaki Chicken.
October 10: I’ve only been to Boots and Good Co. once, but I wanted to get out of the apartment for a little bit. I ended up staying for about 2 hours. I love going to the Well, but there tends to be a ton of people there and it’s too overwhelming and makes me anxious.
I loved the atmosphere of this place, so I’ll probably come here more often. I ordered an iced Vermont, and it was really good! I also ordered their avocado toast. It’s a bit pricey, but it was worth the splurge. I felt bad because they had run out of avocado after my order and I was just sitting there, chowing down on mine. The girl told someone she was out and another person showed up with some, I think, so all was good.
October 14: Today is my parents’ 40th wedding anniversary!
I couldn’t resist getting coffee again, but I went to the Well this time and took my coffee togo. I ordered the iced Appley Ever After again, and it tastes even better!
October 15: I dragged Stephen to Boots & Good Co. Coffee. He ordered a Chai Tea Latte and I ordered an iced Snickerdoodle.
Not included in the Instagram post, we ordered waffles. We’re pretty sure they’re Eggo. Kind of funny.
Also, here’s the current menu:
October 18: I tried an iced Peanut Butter Cup Macchiato from Dunkin’ and it was interesting. It didn’t exactly taste like the name, but it wasn’t bad! It was a pretty color. Probably won’t order again, but it wasn’t horrible. Dunkin’ has been a huge hit or miss for me lately. I’ve been trying to go to local coffee shops.
October 20: I went to Boots & Good Co. Coffee to do some work and get out of the apartment. I ordered another iced Snickerdoodle and also tried the egg bites. They were really good! I’ll definitely be getting them again.
Once Stephen got off work, we headed to the library so I could return and pick up some books that I placed on hold.
I bought the cute sweater overalls-looking thing from T.J. Maxx and I wore it with a black long sleeve bodysuit and leggings. I don’t know why I didn’t fix it before taking the photos since it’s bunched up, but it’s still cute.
Stephen was really wanting to go to the farmers’ market to get bread and there was supposed to be a food truck that served burgers and sweet potato fries. Well, the food truck wasn’t there, but Riptide Acai was. I ordered the Crazy Bowl #2. It was really good!
I was bummed that the burger food truck wasn’t there because I was really excited about the fries. Hopefully we’ll get to try the place one day!
October 21: Taylor Swift’s album, Midnights, came out! I was good and waited until I did my normal morning routine before giving this a listen.
I watched the “Anti-Hero” music video first on YouTube. This album definitely has a different sound. Admittedly, I didn’t like it as much as I thought I would on my first listen. I think it was because of the style and how the songs were produced. I waited until the next day to listen to it again and I enjoyed the album more! This album is one that grew on me. I didn’t instantly love it like previous albums.
As of now, since I can’t pick just one, the top songs that I’m really loving are “Maroon”, “Midnight Rain”, “Question…?”, “Vigilante Sh*t”, “Sweet Nothing” (this one has the typical production and sound, which was why I instantly liked it), “The Great War”, “High Infidelity”, “Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve,” and “Dear Reader”. The songs are listed by album order.
If I have to pick, “Midnight Rain” and “Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve” are definitely non-skips.
October 22: We were craving some Asian food, and Stephen was disappointed by some noodles he tried making the previous night, so we went to Asihi for the buffet!
I pigged out and had two plates. Plate #1 is always filled with random things to try.
October 23: Alexis and her dog Nalah came down to go to the Halloween Pooch Party at Cheekwood. Kylie and Spud met us there as well.
Our little Darby shark got so much love, and I’m so surprised that he let little kids pet him! Whenever he sees them around the apartment complex, he’ll growl and bark at little at them, sometimes try to get away. He let the kids give him treats, so I’m sure he was loving it!
Unfortunately, due to his size and shape, the shark costume’s understrap covers his man part so he can’t pee properly. We tried doing our best to strap it across him, but he still peed on it.
October 28: Yep, you guessed it, I’m back at the coffee shop. This time I ordered the iced Vanilla Rose latte and egg bites. I wasn’t crazy about this drinkโthe rose flavor, reallyโbut it wasn’t bad and I drank it all while I was there. The egg bites are always a good idea. I did some work here for a couple of hours, then I headed back home to Darby.
Before I left, I ordered another drink, and my iced Snickerdoodle hit the spot! Every time I order it, it gets better and better. Also, the cold foam is perfect and tastes exactly like a snickerdoodle cookie!
For dinner, we tried BoomBozz.
I ordered the 10 boneless Green Chili Jam wings so I wouldn’t be making a mess. Stephen ordered his regular Pepperoni pizza.
We ordered some cookies from Crumbl Cookies because Stephen wanted to try the Strawberry Limeade, Featuring Nerds. He was unfortunately not a fan.
They were out of the M&M’s cookie, so he asked for another Strawberry Limeade, which was not really wise. The Classic Rice Krispies was my choice and it’s good! He liked the Chocolate Malt.
October 29: I got Darby to partially cooperate and stand in front of the cute little hay bales in front of our leasing office. Kylie was bribing him with treats.
October 31: I paraded Darby around in his costume to get our money’s worth of the outfit, haha. He received extra treats from Belinda, the maintenance supervisor, and he said hello to the women in the office! He was also shared on my apartment’s social media accounts.
I went to the dentist and no cavities for me, hooray! I’m safe until next May. We didn’t get any trick-or-treaters, but I still bought candy just in case. We gave the one strawberry limeade cookie and almost half the candy to Kylie and Zach.
Books
This month’s batch of books were kind of disappointing to read. I didn’t outright despise them, but I didn’t get that satisfied feeling I get once I finish a book.
- Every Single Secret by Emily Carpenter
- themes: mystery thriller, psychological thriller, crime, mental health
- rating: 2 (was a 3-star rating)
- I was interested in it, but then I saw where the plot was headed and I trudged through it. I just wanted to finish it. Didn’t really care for the characters. Daphne seemed selfish and not a good partner. She wanted Heath to conceal and keep his past hidden from her so she didn’t have to reveal her own.
- Not a horrible story, but rating reflects my personal interest.
- One True Loves by Taylor Jenkins Reid
- themes: romance, chick lit, women’s fiction
- rating: 3.5
- Loved the plot, but this lacked depth. I guessed correctly which man she was going to choose. I’m happy with her decision, though I think the other guy’s character was a disservice and that’s why she ended up with who she did.
- The sections with each man were like the highlights of the relationship. Would’ve liked more depth.
- We’re to believe that it took Emma basically 3 days to figure out which man she wanted to ultimately be with? Also, so wrong of her to sleep with one of them “as a goodbye” if she had already made up her mind. Incredibly selfish.
- Your Were There Too by Colleen Oakley
- themes: magical realism, romance, chick lit, adult fiction
- trigger warnings: miscarriages
- rating: 3
- The plot had me intrigued, but this took days to finish because I didn’t have an urge to read it. Also, the ending? I was not a fan and it seemed like a cop-out. I liked both men, but I feel like I liked Oliver just a smidge more.
- Don’t Wake Up by Liz Lawler
- themes: myster, thriller, psychological
- trigger warning: sexual assault, attempted rape
- rating: 3
- Wow oh wow, so much gaslighting in this book. Everyone around Alex tried telling her that what she experienced wasn’t real, that it might have been in her head due to being sexually assaulted the previous year.
- I don’t know why, but this book felt like it took forever to read. I hate how no one believed Alex, despite how odd the situation was, and that no one took her seriously. She was an intelligent and incredibly smart person. I figured out who her abductor was early on. It seems incredibly unlikely for someone to be able to pull all the killings and setups up without being spotted by anyone.
- The Wish by Nicholas Sparks
- themes: romance, teen pregnancy, first love
- trigger warning: cancer, depression
- rating: 3.5
- Well, this book wasn’t bad, but it’s a gross situation. Set in 1996, a Catholic teen becomes pregnant and is sent off to live with her aunt in Ocracoke, NC, to have the baby and give the child up for adoption. Also, I got the ick because this is a grown man writing from the perspective of a pregnant 16-year-old girl.
- I just know when I’m reading a Nicholas Sparks book based on his writing style. The characters are incredibly mature, and all the children are 15/16, 17/18, and 12. The 12-year-olds are like literally geniuses. Mark is 22, and he seemed nice, but the character was a little cringey.
- I like the maturity level, but none of these kids got to act like kids. They seemed like adultsโaside from the schoolwork and tutoring sessions.
- Gross statement: Maggie, the main character, “jokes” that a positive to having postpartum depression is losing the baby weight.
- The Bachelor by Andrew Palmer
- themes: romance, fiction, chick lit, contemporary
- rating: 1 (DNF at page 22.)
- I did not have high hopes for this novel. It reads like a memoir, which was pretty cool, but I didn’t like the tone I was hearing when reading it. (Anyone else have a certain “voice” or “tone” they read books in? This book had a pretentious tone for me.)
- Right off, I couldn’t care less about the football facts and stats that I’m immediately hit with. Also, I wasn’t interested in John Berryman. I’ve read a lot of Goodreads reviews and can see how the MC applied certain anecdotes and reflected on his life as he’s picking up the pieces, but I did not feel attached.
- Always the First to Die by R.J. Jacobs
- themes: horror, mystery, thriller, suspense
- rating: 3.5
- I wanted more spooky elements, but I didn’t quite live up to it. Although, this book was good with the suspense! I feel like the place and movie was meant to appear haunted, but I don’t think it was, though there was a lot of creepy stuff going on at times. That wasn’t really explained, whether it was actually a ghost or person.
- Lots of scary/horror movie references. Since I hadn’t watched many of them, the references were lost to me.
- The Leavers by Lisa Ko
- themes: adoption, life as an immigrant, identity struggle, family, belonging
- rating: 3.5
- Might have been in a reading slump, but this book felt like it took long to read. Loved reading about Deming’s struggle with identity, wanting to please and not disappoint his parents, gambling addiction, and his dynamic with his mother.
- The story lacked emotion in some parts. I could empathize with Deming’s identity struggle and as he tried figuring out what he wanted to do versus what his parents or friends think he should do with his life. Wanted more emotion with Peilan (Deming’s mom) and her time in the immigration detention center. Her experience sounds heartbreaking and inhumane to treat people with so little regard, but not a lot of focus was on it to give me that emotional pull.
- I like how it ends. It was satisfying happy ending.
First book I’ll be reading for November is The Ex Talk by Rachel Lynn Solomon. Let’s see if it’s worth the hype.
Orders
Etsy
October 5: My Echeveria Hos(h)ikage arrived! I don’t know if the “h” is in there or not. I’ve seen lots of people type it with and without. I got a bit hasty with this purchase. There was a succulent seller that I follow who was selling one of these and I was next in line to get it. She told me that the person may not cancel her claim to it, so I jumped on Etsy and bought it.
Then, the lady said the person backed out and wanted to know if I was still interested. I planned on buying an Echeveria Red Velvet from her, so I claimed them both.
I had this Etsy order arrive at parents’ house, but the two from the Instagram lady to arrive when I got back to Nashville.
These have been so difficult to find! It was the only one I could find on Etsy, which is why I jumped the gun. This one has a little baby, so I’m excited. Plus, this will give me a chance to experiment.
October 6: My Echeveria Red Velvet and Echeveria Hos(h)ikage arrived in Nashville. Stephen opened them for me to check them. I originally had planned to return to Nashville on this day, but unaware of how long chemo would take on Wednesday and wanting to stay longer, I didn’t get back until the 8th.
I’m so glad that Stephen didn’t throw the packaging away because the lady from Instagram gifted me a leaf prop! I’m not sure if it’ll make it, but I’m hoping it pulls through. As of today, the little baby is still growing on the parent leaf!
October 20: My Chinook Seedery sunflower seeds finally arrived! I bought a sampler pack for my brother to try. The Cinnamon Toast flavor is back, so I made sure to add a couple of bags to my pick 12.
Darby was super excited for me. My 12 that I chose:
- Original โ 1
- Jalapeรฑo Ranch โ 1
- Hatch Chile โ 1
- Dill Pickle โ 2
- Parmesan & Pepper โ 2
- Cinnamon Toast โ 2
- Smokehouse BBQ โ 3
They just released a Lemon Pepper flavor, so I’m going to try that the next time my subscription renews.
October 27: I bought more dog food for Darby. I think this is a pretty good brand. One lady complimented the shininess and healthiness of his fur! There was a special going on, and I had 25% off my order, so I added some freeze-dried treats to my order.
He’s so stinking cute. I say that he should be good on treats until next year, but I know I can’t help myself sometimes and will buy him more.
That’s All for October!
I can’t wait to visit family for Thanksgiving. These next two months always fly by. I’m really hoping to have my Christmas shopping almost finished by the end of November.
Now that I’m caught up, it’s time to take Darby outside so we can go for a walk. He’s getting restless and needs to get some of his energy out!
How was your October?
i had written out this long long comment but i don’t think it went through!! ๐
ahh sucks, to summarize, love all the food, and those curry basil noodles look bomb!!
glad to hear your dad is doing great during this chemo treatments and that you guys are bonding ๐
i love those overalls on you and wish i could have seen your emerald dress for the wedding!! i bet you looked stunning!
also, if you have a goodreads account i’d love to follow you over there to see your bookshelves. i need more book recs so i can make a long list for the year and be set up with books to read back to back lol
Oh no, I’m so sorry!! ๐
The curry basil noodles will forever be a favorite of mine! I got them this last time that I visited my family and they were fantastic!!
Thank you! He’s only had some back pain, and had inflammation in his fat due to chemo, but it’s manageable for him.
I’ll have to find another reason to wear the dress because it was super cute!
My Goodreads is goodreads.com/stephanieying if you want to add me! I’m not the greatest with adding reviews, but I’m trying.
I hope you’ve been doing well, Rossy! So nice to hear from you! ๐