February 8, 2012
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End of January, we registered Zachary for after school extracurricular activities. He picked Accelerated Reader and Spelling club, and had no interest in the Art class. Parents started waiting in line for the art class an hour before registration, and they were full within minutes. I guess that’s one benefit of having a kid with “different interests.” For James’ 40th birthday, we went to Chez Daniels, a local French restaurant. Best French onion soup I’ve ever had. It was a leisurely meal – took over 2 hours – and the portions were smaller, but definitely good quality and delicious. I highly recommend them for dates … but not big group or family dinners. In fact, I think I annoyed the patrons sitting next to us when I took a flash photo.
Saturday, after my normal routine of jogging, Calista’s ballet class, and Zach’s basketball class, we went to Sam and Melissa’s house for dinner. We enjoyed pork smothered with chimichurri sauce and a really great spinach salad with sautéed onions and mushrooms.
We played Kinect Dance Central, and got to see the all medals Melissa won at her ballroom dance competition. Congratulations to Melissa and Sandy on all your wins! What a great example of how dedication and persistence pays off.
Sunday, after yoga with a coworker, we hosted an all-day playdate with Alex, Nicole, and Alisha. We started with brunch: tatortot casserole with extra bacon, chocolate chip pancakes, and fresh berries. The kids played well and midafternoon, we took a ~ 4 mile walk to Pinkberry for frozen yogurt. By the time the playdate ended, it was close to dinner time. A gorgeous day for hanging out with friends. One of those ‘life is good’ moments. J
Midweek, James and I went on a double date to Bistro 33 with Josh and Marissa. All 4 of our kids stayed at my place, and we hired our operation manager’s daughter Stephanie to babysit. My kids see babysitters as such a treat – I wonder if that means we are boring parents! Friday, I tried Prime Time boxing with Bev and Melissa. Usually, drop-in kick boxing classes are $25 (for 45 minutes) but we purchased a Groupon … 10 classes for $45! Now, I did have to buy gloves, wrist wraps, and a decent jump rope from Amazon … which set me back $35 … and then an additional $17 when they didn’t come in before the first class (I could borrow the other equipment, but had to buy my own wrist wraps.) So um. If anyone is in the market for new wrist wraps, let me know. I have 2 sets.
Right after our intro class, I went to Karen’s for a girl’s night in. We picked up dinner to-go at Selland’s, which just opened that week. My Ahi tuna salad was very fresh and flavorful … inline with what I expected from a Selland restaurant. We sang lots of karaoke. I was the worst by far, but I needed the practice since there might be a public (gasp!) karaoke opportunity in the future. For dessert, Karen bought a cheesecake to celebrate Dana’s birthday – HAPPY BIRTHDAY DANA!
Saturday, after a jog with Sam, and Calista’s ballet class, we had Jake and Tanner over for a short lunch playdate. I took out my 3 crock pot buffet again, and served angel hair with San Marzano tomato sauce, mini pasta with homemade pesto and goat cheese, and a simple salad. Kids played ball outside (which reminds me … need to retrieve a soccer ball from our neighbor’s yard) and made plasticky crafts using fuse beads.
Then the whole family went to Zach’s basketball game, where Calie preferred playing with Lucas over watching the game. At the end she asked Zach “How was soccer?” Clearly not paying attention!
That night was James’ 40th birthday celebration with JP, Ed, Lori, and Sam. They started the night at Pyramid Ale for dinner and then hit 3 bars. Back at home, the kids and I set up a tent and slept out in the family room while watching Adventures of Winnie-the-Pooh and the first part of Willy Wonka.
The following morning was another gorgeous day … too bad James had a miserable hangover. Refusing to let his poor decisions ruin my day, I took both kids to a new (to us) park with a basketball court, where we ran around, had a snack, and then headed to Eco Station. We got a personal tour to meet lizards, snakes, frogs, turtles, fish, and birds.
Then it was Super Bowl party time! Lots of appetizers, savory crock pot barbecue chicken, tiramisu and a chocolate cinnamon bread made by Alex. Bad day to have skipped my morning workout! The ladies spent the whole time chatting, but at least we know who won (Giants, right?) Thanks to Sam and Melissa for hosting - the huge TV makes a big difference!
And I sign off with Calie's 3-years-old school photos:
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