Belly Up to the Bar With Bendy and Her Friendies!!! Button Pics & New Thread Started!

[PNO4TE]

Elin ... congrats to you and your students!

Congrats to the piano students!

Thanks!

And, congrats to WhoGirl!

 

[oybolshoi]

Happy Mother's Day to all you mommies out there! I don't know how you manage to do all the things you do, but I'm in awe and you are all great!

And those of us who aren't moms are great, too!

I think I'm channeling Stuart Smalley ...

 

[TigerKat]

WOW, Elin that is something to be quite proud of!

 

[oybolshoi]

Congrats to Whogirl! Everyone is celebrating something this week, or so it seems.

 

[oybolshoi]

Our staycation is two weeks away ...

I think I've got it all sketched out. Let me know what you guys think.

As a precursor to vacation we're going to use our $50 gift certificate next Saturday (5/16) at Wasabi ... a sushi place here in Stinktown that gets really good reviews.

Then on 5/21 we're attending another guest chef dinner at Oceano Bistro.

We're planning to use a $25 gift certificate at the Scottish Arms on Sunday, May 24.

Tuesday, May 26th is my doped up, wasted day since that's when my endoscopic ultrasound is scheduled.

Wednesday, May 27th we're attending a wine dinner at Soulard's (downtown STL).

Thursday, May 28th we're going to use a $25 gift certificate at Monarch ... a trendy-bendy kind of place.

Friday May 29th is our 10th anniversary. I think I'm going to order something special for breakfast (I don't know just where yet ... still thinking about it) and then we've decided to create our own beer dinner with Unibroue!

We're planning on

Welsh Rarebit
Crab Cakes with Jalapeno Butter
Spinach Salad with Feta Cheese, Strawberries & Granny Smith Apples
??? - The Mysterious and as Yet Unnamed Entree -
Bread Pudding Souffle with Whisky Cream Sauce (no beer with this course ... we're breaking out the fancy desesrt wine).

Saturday May 30th ... restart diet.

 

[ChelleinNC]

Happy Birthday, Jay!

Chelle, congrats to your daughter! I bow to anyone getting an award in Algebra! (only thing that ever kept me off the honor roll in high school, Alg. I and II.)

Congrats to the piano students!

And condolences to Brenda and Jay on the crummy fish and chips.

Yesterday was dd's dance recital, and it was so sweet. She got recognized for five years at the dance studio (they recognize the students by name for five years and up and announce how many years). It is so hard to believe she's 8! and still can't do a dang cartwheel...

Ok, we're off to MIL's now....I will need that beer when we get to my parents... See y'all later!

Thanks! at 15 she still can't do a cartwheel she could probably tell you all the angles involved but she lands on her *&*ahem when tries to do one

what type of dance? ballet or tap & jazz? I'm sure the recital was wonderful

Happy Mother's Day to all you mommies out there! I don't know how you manage to do all the things you do, but I'm in awe and you are all great!

And those of us who aren't moms are great, too!

I think I'm channeling Stuart Smalley ...

Thanks and yes you are

Our staycation is two weeks away ...

I think I've got it all sketched out. Let me know what you guys think.

As a precursor to vacation we're going to use our $50 gift certificate next Saturday (5/16) at Wasabi ... a sushi place here in Stinktown that gets really good reviews.

Then on 5/21 we're attending another guest chef dinner at Oceano Bistro.

We're planning to use a $25 gift certificate at the Scottish Arms on Sunday, May 24.

Tuesday, May 26th is my doped up, wasted day since that's when my endoscopic ultrasound is scheduled.

Wednesday, May 27th we're attending a wine dinner at Soulard's (downtown STL).

Thursday, May 28th we're going to use a $25 gift certificate at Monarch ... a trendy-bendy kind of place.

Friday May 29th is our 10th anniversary. I think I'm going to order something special for breakfast (I don't know just where yet ... still thinking about it) and then we've decided to create our own beer dinner with Unibroue!

We're planning on

Welsh Rarebit
Crab Cakes with Jalapeno Butter
Spinach Salad with Feta Cheese, Strawberries & Granny Smith Apples
??? - The Mysterious and as Yet Unnamed Entree -
Bread Pudding Souffle with Whisky Cream Sauce (no beer with this course ... we're breaking out the fancy desesrt wine).

Saturday May 30th ... restart diet.

Sounds good except for that endoscopic ultrasound part

 

[PNO4TE]

WOW, Elin that is something to be quite proud of!

Thanks, Kathy!

 

[PNO4TE]

Brenda - your STAYcation sounds great. I like the variety (with the exception of the endoscopy! ) and can't wait to hear and see all about it.

 

[oybolshoi]

Thanks for the feedback on the staycation dining plans ... we're pleased because we'll be able to mix things up a bit.

And I could do without that endoscopy too, but as long as the results are benign with an insatiable appetite then I'm willing to give up a day to err on the side of caution.

 

[TigerKat]

I agree, God willing you'll get a clean bill of health to continue on with your gastronomical adventures! Your plans sound awesome.

 

[oybolshoi]

I agree, God willing you'll get a clean bill of health to continue on with your gastronomical adventures! Your plans sound awesome.

Thanks, Kathy. The good thing about this test is that they will know a lot right away, especially because they can measure it against appearance and size from the last test I had in July 2007. The needle biopsy will take a couple of days to get results for but the doctor usually types up a report to give us before we leave. Thank goodness Jay will be with me this time ... my mom took me to the last one and she didn't ask any questions at all.

 

[TigerKat]

Thanks, Kathy. The good thing about this test is that they will know a lot right away, especially because they can measure it against appearance and size from the last test I had in July 2007. The needle biopsy will take a couple of days to get results for but the doctor usually types up a report to give us before we leave. Thank goodness Jay will be with me this time ... my mom took me to the last one and she didn't ask any questions at all.

I'm going to mark the date on my calendar and will be praying for good results.

 

[oybolshoi]

I finally uploaded the pictures from our BBQ last weekend ... I also have a couple of recipes to share later just in case anyone might be interested.

Boursin Cheese with Fresh Italian Bread Slices ...

Jay's Famous Cream Cheese Spinach Dip w/ Scoops

Fresh Fruit and Grand Marnier Cream Sauce ...

I just have to say ... the reception we got with this cream sauce blew me away. I don't know if it's because this is a lighter sauce as opposed to the amaretto dip I've made before, but people were eating this stuff without any fruit at all.

SANGRIA!!

A big ol' pot of bratwurst cooking in beer and onions ...

Tray o' Meats ...

Spinach Salad with Feta & Strawberries ...

Bendy's dinner plate ... oink oink oink!

A 6-pack of Boulevard Brewery's Zon Beer was declared a fine beverage by all ...

Lemon Bars by Jen ....

This next picture requires some explanation ... Dylan likes crust and he asked Jen to make a double thick layer of it. While the lemon bars tasted good - not too lemony and not too sweet - the inch-thick layer of crust on the bottom was a real turnoff. It was almost impossible to cut through the darn things without a knife and fork. So you can imagine how much fun it was for Dylan to try to extract a lemon bar from the baking pan.

Need a visual?

Look no further ...

And here's the infamous Mocha Creme Torte that I made for the hubba's birthday ... the cake that usually leaves me in tears actually turned out really well for the first time ... ever!

And finally, here's a picture of Jay's birthday prezzie from his lovey wife:

 

[oybolshoi]

I'm going to mark the date on my calendar and will be praying for good results.

Thanks, my friend. I'll take as many good thoughts as I can get.

 

[madameleota71]

Tuesday, May 26th is my doped up, wasted day since that's when my endoscopic ultrasound is scheduled.

I hope all goes well with your ultrasound. You will be in my prayers.

 

[2xcited2sleep]

Your staycation plans look terrific! I agree w/ you on erring on the side of caution with the test and will be thinking good thoughts for you for good results!

Your bbq also looked yummy! I am going to have to get one of those mickey mouse head plates next time I go-- love having a little dose of Disney in regular life!

 

[ChelleinNC]

The BBQ looked really good

 

[oybolshoi]

I hope all goes well with your ultrasound. You will be in my prayers.

Thanks very much - I'm sure it will be fine but that doesn't stop me from getting nervous about it. At least this is a test that doesn't require any special "prep" in advance - just no food or drink after midnight (I think I can live with that ... ).

Your staycation plans look terrific! I agree w/ you on erring on the side of caution with the test and will be thinking good thoughts for you for good results!

Your bbq also looked yummy! I am going to have to get one of those mickey mouse head plates next time I go-- love having a little dose of Disney in regular life!

Thank you! We were very happy with the way our BBQ turned out. And that Mickey head plate was a gift last year from Dylan & Jen at Christmas. I'm not sure where they found it ... maybe the disney store? It comes in handy and looks cute too!

The BBQ looked really good

Thanks! We thought everything was quite tasty and we had almost no leftovers which is always a good sign.

 

[whogirl'smom]

Thanks! at 15 she still can't do a cartwheel she could probably tell you all the angles involved but she lands on her *&*ahem when tries to do one

what type of dance? ballet or tap & jazz? I'm sure the recital was wonderful
:

She takes a combo class of ballet/tap/acrobatics but the recital piece this year was ballet. It was so pretty. She will start hip-hop class this summer because she wants to try out for the Jr. jr. dance team (they haven't decided what to call it). The other girls have already had a year or two of hip-hop in addition to the regular classes, so I don't know if she'll make it this first time. She said she'll just keep practicing and try again if she doesn't!

 

[whogirl'smom]

Brenda, the BBQ looked really great! We love us some beer brats on the grill--and that's something I never thought I'd like! Please post the spinach dip recipe and the cake recipe, pretty please.

I make those lemon bars quite a bit and can't imagine a double crust on them. The crust is only to hold the yummy lemon goo! I've also made key lime ones, too; people seem to be afraid to eat these because they're green. That's okay, it leaves more for us to finish later. Whogirl is a key lime freak!

I am a little worried about our BBQ and beer thing next weekend. It seems as though our niece's first dance recital (she's 4 ) is at 7 p.m. instead of early in the day like we thought. Ah, the things you do for family! I'm sure they'd appreciate us showing up smelling all beery after an afternoon of indulging.