Italio - Orland Park, IL - FREE FOOD DAY Jan 28th!

This is a sponsored post. All opinions are 100% true and my own!

Alright, this almost sounds too good to be true... But, it's not!

Think of if Subway and Chipotle combined to an Italian theme. That's what Italio is like. 

Walk in and down the line to form your own Italian creation.

Begin by choosing a Pasta Bowl, a Piadina (Italian wrap), or a Salad Bowl.

Then add your entree, sauce, toppings, and extras. (Don't forget to try an order of their famous Cannoli chips!)

Here's a sample of their menu - 

They have been very successful at their few locations currently in Florida. But that isn't enough. Chicagoland is getting their share! Italio is opening it's first location outside of Florida, in Orland Park, Illinois. Which just happens to be about 25 minutes from me! I am extremely excited, because I love the concept, and who doesn't like quick Italian food?

They will be giving out FREE FOOD to anyone and everyone on Tuesday January 28th, beginning at 10:45am! One complimentary entree per person will be given free. No gimmicks, just free food. It's their "welcome to the neighborhood". 

15139 S LaGrange Rd. Orland Park, IL is the location, and they will be open every day until 10pm. I hope everyone can make it out to the FREE FOOD day, but if not be sure to stop by any time! The prices are low, and the food is fresh!

Thanks to Italio Kitchen for allowing me to be a part of this special Grand Opening!

Mangiamo!

image via UrbanSpoon.com

Week 21 Day 4

7:13am

There are a few Facebook pages that I follow. They have some good information and entertainment for expecting mothers/fathers. You might want to check them out if you are interested. 

http://www.facebook.com/beingdaddies

http://www.facebook.com/proudparentsyay

And of course my fan page - http://www.facebook.com/pregoformen

I get a few laughs out of watching her try to fit into her old jeans(she doesn't think it's very funny, but she jokes around back with me). She knows she's pregnant, it's going to happen. Luckily for her, she is only getting bigger in her belly, she doesn't seem to be gaining much anywhere else.


We need to figure out what hospital she would like to deliver at. We have two close options. One is a 
"Level 3", meaning that they have a little bit better equipment and staff for if something were to go wrong. 
The other is a little bit closer, and has maternity suites. More comfortable for her and I, and has great reviews, 
however is only considered a "Level 2". Her doctor told her that he recommends that she does
 the maternity suites because it is less like a hospital and more like a home, and because she is healthy 
and has no complications. Now if something were to come up later on, and he thought that she was
 going to be premature or have problems, he would have her go to the "Level 3". Monday nights they
 give tours of the maternity suites in "Level 2" so I think we are going to go check them out soon. 

1:53pm

I have been messing with my blog for the last couple hours. Sometimes I want to change the layout and sometimes I don't. Does anybody have opinions on what they would like to see?

Our daughter has been kicking like crazy the past week or so. And of course my wife always says, "Wow, your daughter is hungry again!" I'm not sure if I buy that statement or not, but she sure eats a lot! Must be our daughter, because my wife still looks great. I am more attracted to her now than I ever was before. Weird... They say that's normal though.

She made me a root-beer float last night, and it was delicious, but this morning I decided, that was enough. I have to start eating healthier, and so should she. For the most part, she eats better than I do. For the second half of last year, I got really into working out and eating healthy. I lost around 20 lbs in just a couple months. I use my FitBit step tracker, combined with the iPhone app MyFitnessPal. Both of those work in harmony with each other and make your goals more achievable.

So this morning I made myself a nice healthy, protein-packed breakfast. Four scrambled eggs, a cup of old-fashioned oatmeal(sweetened with cinnamon and Agave Nectar which is much better for you than regular sugar), Fage 2% Plain Greek Yogurt(LOVE this stuff, 0% is really good too if you want NO fat), and a hefty scoop of plain old peanut butter. I LOVE hot sauce, but I especially love Cholula on eggs(and just about anything else, too). Hot sauce gives you a complex flavor boost to just about anything, without the sugar and fat of other condiments (like ketchup or BBQ sauce! Terrible!). Unless you are worried about your sodium intake, hot sauce is much better for you.

7:05pm

My wife is making me some tuna salad concoction for dinner. I'm not too sure what she is putting in it but it looks good so far. She is eating leftover pasta from yesterday. She is afraid to eat tuna because she was told to limit high-mercury fish to only once a month. I think that's crap, but she follows the rules better than I do. Oh wow, she just put the plate down in front of me. Impressive...

7:50pm

We are both cuddled up on the couch getting ready to watch the Blackhawks game. I have some Tostitos Scoops and Herdez Taquera Salsa for a snack. This salsa is the BEST! It is pretty hot, but man, is it good. It reminds me of the hot salsa from Chipotle. The red one, made with chile de arbol. Yum!

Here is my wife's prego belly pic. As you can see she still isn't very big. For 21 weeks pregnant. 

Week 20 Day 7

11:59am

Happy Cinco De Mayo!

As Ellen Degeneres says "I love Cinco De Mayo! Cinco stands for 5, and De Mayo stands for Shots of Tequila!"

Beautiful day here at work. My first day back after my vacation. Walked in with a coat on, now I'm outside on break, and it looks like I will be leaving it in the car. 76 and sunny.

I want everyone to remember that, whatever I post on my blog is what I am feeling/doing at that very moment. Hence the dates and times when I post. Feeling and emotions change daily. Everything I post I think twice about. If I feel it's going to cause a problem, I have already thought about it. Remember, this is a diary. It's meant to be read from the most recent post, to the oldest. That's all. Just because I feel a certain way one day, doesn't mean that won't change on the next. At the same time, things need to be brought to other's attention. Whether it be straightforward, or generalized. If it gets through then the point was made. And hopefully it helps or makes things better in the long run.

Wife is getting her nails done. Then hopefully she goes through some of her clothes because like every girl, she has way too many! Our closet needs to get bigger or something!


11:02pm


I was able to start cutting a little bit today at work. I did some basic boneless meat, and then they had me cutting bone-in pork on the bandsaw. I was nervous at first, but after a few chops were cut, it was no big deal. Just have to be careful with my hand placement and always respect the saw. The guys that don't, are the ones that cut their fingers off. 

We had some Mexican food for dinner. Tried a new local place that had good reviews on Yelp. I had a torta and my wife had flautas. It was all really good, perfect for Cinco De Mayo. Relatively cheap as well.

The baby was kicking while we were eating. Maybe she doesn't like Mexican food and was ticked off. Or maybe, if she is anything like her parents, she already LOVES it. We are both huge mexican food fans. Actually we like just about any ethnic food. Mexican, Polish, Italian, Indian, German, Thai, Japanese, Chinese, Vietnamese, American, you name it we like it. But, this was the most prominent kicking I have ever felt. The first few times were more like a barely, "I think I felt it" kind of thing. This kicking was FOR SURE. A great experience but almost a little freaky for me. It's just weird to think that there is another human being inside her body. Soo weird!


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