Everyone is thrilled it is back-to-school time again…
Businesses have sales – and lots of them! Deals for everyone.
Kids 5 to 18– hey! You get to see your buddies again, and everyone loves homework! For college kids – you’re off on your own, tasting independence (kind of), learning amazing things and nearing the point when you can start the rest of your life! Parents… The kids are at school or college!
OK. I know in reality not everyone is thrilled…not even all parents. In my family we have only one college…no more high school, no more elementary school…. It’s such a strange place to be – though we all seem to be adjusting just fine to the changes. I did find myself wandering the aisles of the school supplies at stores wondering if there might just be something we need this year….
Do you remember the first time you didn’t have to go back to school and September rolled around?
Posted by Carolyn K under Eats & Treats on June 21st, 2012
SUMMERTIME!! DQ®!!! Treats!!!
I love all four seasons and up here in Minnesota, summer always seems to be the briefest… poof! It’s gone.
We have a lovely patio in the front of our house – perfect for entertaining, or impromptu gatherings. Dilly® Bars, Buster Bars®, No Sugar Added Bars…and DQ Cakes and Blizzard® Cakes… any of these treats turn a regular gathering into a party. I love the cakes and the Dilly Bars, personally, and am always surprised at how quickly the Buster Bars go when there is a choice.
When our kids were little and playing on ball teams, the DQ treats we’d bring for end of game or end of season parties were always a huge hit – and less work for me!
For as many quick-service restaurant (QSR) brands customers have to choose from, there are many, many people passionate about which brand is the best. After working in the DQ® system for nearly 19 years, I am passionate about the DQ brand. It “IS” the best.
Last weekend I had the opportunity to go head-to-head against one of my nephews, who works for a DQ competitor. My husband and I were with him because his sister was getting confirmed. Their father is my husband’s brother, and we don’t often get to see them since the parents are separated and they live with their Mom.
Our group of 10 met at a golf course restaurant for a breakfast buffet, and starting learning what everyone had been up to over the last several years. That’s when I learned this nephew worked in the QSR industry. I playfully reminded him that I worked for DQ corporate headquarters and how much better my company is than his. We bantered back and forth throughout breakfast and during the drive to church about why I “know” the DQ system is the best, and why he “thinks” where he works is better.
At the end of the long day, after the church service, reception lines, photos and more, the group of us stood outside the church getting ready to say goodbye. My niece threw out the idea that we should grab a treat at the local DQ store. Everyone in the group agreed within seconds, except my nephew. Our friendly bantering had come to the ultimate pinnacle…we were off to eat DQ treats. Would he join us?
After a very brief hesitation, during which I’m sure he was weighing his options of enjoying a delicious DQ Blizzard® Treat or standing his ground about his place of employment being the better QSR, he smiled and said,” Of course!” I knew it. He couldn’t help but love the DQ brand. And as we all sat around a large table in the DQ dining area, I saw the many reasons why I love this brand. Here we were, all different ages, many years since we had last gotten together, enjoying our treats and talking as if we had just seen each other yesterday.
The DQ system has a way of bringing people together. And while it was fun making and taking friendly jabs from my nephew that day about where we work, it was much more enjoyable eating our Blizzard Treats together at the end of the day.
Posted by Carolyn K under Eats & Treats on October 7th, 2009
Everyone has their favorite DQ® treat – and one of mine happens to be the Pumpkin Pie Blizzard® Treat.
Really.
If you like pumpkin pie at all – this is really delicious. Honest. I enjoy lots of different Blizzard Treat flavors, but always say the Pumpkin Pie Blizzard Treat is my favorite. So, in honor of the Pumpkin Pie Blizzard of the Month, I give you my Ode to the Pumpkin Pie Blizzard Treat.
Ode to the Pumpkin Pie Blizzard Treat
O Pumpkin Pie Blizzard how I wait for thee!
Your appearance each year is altogether too brief.
The air is crisp, the leaves are changing;
I know your time is come!
Delicious pumpkin and pie crust pieces swirl in my cup –
A dance with cold creamy vanilla DQ soft serve.
A white cloud of whipped topping dusted with nutmeg
Completes the perfect confection!
All the flavors all year long pale in comparison
Sweet treats, delight, but only just tease
I long for – hope for – dream of Pumpkin Pie Blizzard perfection –
I know your time is come!
Summertime! Here in Minnesota that means days at the lake — volleyball, picnics, fishing, boating, splashing at the beach. Most folks go up Nort’ don’t you know. We headed south and west to Okoboji Iowa. Iowa? Okoboji? The Iowa Great Lakes region in Northwest Iowa is absolutely beautiful – and a little warmer than northern Minnesota. I’ll bet you didn’t know there were lakes in Iowa, did you?
I’ve been vacationing at Lake Okoboji since I was a small girl – my mother’s family farmed in the region. We recently spent a week there – visiting the family farm, my aunts’ and uncles’ cabins and the lakes. It was a great vacation surrounded by family and memories, and making new memories. My mother, aunt and I took the kids to the Iowa Lakeside Laboratory and artist David Rogers Big Bugs display – giant insects made out of wood. Kinda cool and creepy at the same time. I didn’t even know there was a lakeside laboratory…neither did my mom or my aunt. It’s been there since 1909! I know, not a beach story, but it does segue nicely to our trip to one of the local DQ® restaurants for a cool treat to beat the summer heat. Sullen children who are tired of art, parks and photos perk up nicely when given a DQ treat.
I hope my kids came away from this trip with good memories of the beach and Arnold’s Park, boat rides around the lake, and a fondness for an area of the world I have always loved. I know my youngest’s favorite evening was Saturday night – all the family was together at my aunt and uncle’s cabin, there were fireworks across the lake, we had a bonfire and s’mores….We finished the evening by enjoying a fabulous view of the Milky Way, which is nearly impossible to see near any city.
