Dinner out

Friends, Bunnies and Brunch

Posted by Lisa Eirene

We had a nice weekend! Hope you guys did, too. On Saturday I went to the gym (and did lower body hardcore–ouch) and then Michael and I had a double date with some friends we’ve been trying to go out with for awhile.

One of Logan’s teachers from his old daycare (his favorite teacher) came over to babysit. She’s awesome. And another teacher from his old daycare heard she was babysitting and wanted to come, too. She’d missed Logan and wanted to see him. So we got two babysitters for the price of one!

Our friends came over and brought their almost 2 year old daughter (Logan’s BFF) and Michael made his famous mac n’ cheese for the babysitters and kiddos (and the kids actually ate it and liked it!) and we headed to Allium for dinner.

It was still happy hour when we arrived, so that was nice! We got a nice, quiet table for four in the bar area and ordered happy hour for dinner.

I got the French Onion Soup, which was really delicious and rich in beef flavor. It was really excellent.

I had a glass of the happy hour house white, a Pinot Grigio.

I also had the Brussels sprouts with pancetta and the Mussels in a white sauce. All of the food was really delicious and filling, even though it was happy hour sizes. Our friends had dietary restrictions (one was gluten-free and the other a vegetarian) and it was nice that the restaurant had stuff on the menu to accommodate both.

Michael got the burger and duck fat fries. Then for dessert Michael and I shared the cinnamon sugar donuts (they were SO good)!

We all had a great time out and it was nice to make a “new” couple friend, especially one that has a kiddo close to Logan’s age. We got back to our house and discovered the babysitters had done art projects with the kids! How cute is that??

We have the best babysitters. 😀

On Sunday we all slept in. I was going to get up super early to go swimming before the day got started, but…when Logan sleeps in until almost 8am you have to take advantage of that!! We all had a small snack and then Logan went on an Easter egg hunt in the house. 😀

After that we headed to Michael’s mom’s house for Easter Brunch. She always makes the best food. One Bloody Mary for me! And Logan LOVED Deviled Eggs this year.

Ham, potato and cheese casserole, her famous egg and crab casserole, fruit and a strudel thing (so good). Logan ate a bunch, so that was good. Sometimes he can be super picky.

Grandma hid some easter eggs around the house for Logan to find. Inside the eggs she put $1 bills. I loved that idea! So much better than candy. But don’t worry, there was a basket FULL of chocolate:

Yes that is a chocolate bar shaped like a truck! Logan was OBSESSED with it. 😀

After brunch we went home, Logan took a nap and I headed to the pool for a relaxing swim. It was a really nice swim. The pool and gym were completely empty when I was there! When I got home Logan and I put his dollar bills from the Easter Bunny in his piggy bank. Which he loved, too. I got him a piggy bank for his birthday last year and I’ve been putting coins in there randomly but…I like never have cash on me LOL so I never have anything to put in his bank. But now he’s got some $$$! 😀

No Green Beer

Posted by Lisa Eirene

Did you had a good St. Patty’s Day? We had a pretty good day.

I’d been sick all week off and on, with what I thought was food poisoning (came home sick on Thursday) but it lasted too long to be food poisoning. I called the advice nurse and she said that there was a stomach bug going around. Lucky me! But by Saturday night I was feeling a lot better.

We decided to go out to an early dinner at Tabor Tavern on SE Burnside. I’d never been but Michael found some good reviews online and we were both craving burgers. And they said they were kid friendly!

There were a ton of families with little kids there. That was a good sign!

We arrived at 5:15 (PARTY ANIMALS) and the place was packed! We thought we were being smart by getting there early. Oh well. I guess other people had the same idea–avoid the St. Patty’s Day crowd!

I was happy to see they have my favorite beer on tap! Always a good sign. And NO GREEN BEER!!

We got the Brussels Sprouts appetizer. It had bacon and lemon zest on it. It was delicious!! Logan had a few bites. He does not like Brussels sprouts but he loved the bacon. 😉

We saw a couple at the table next us who had a kid a few years older than Logan. They were SMART–they ordered the kids mac n’ cheese plate first and asked that it come out right away to keep their kid occupied while they waited for their entrees. Pro Move. We took note for next time!

These days Logan lives on mac n’ cheese, grilled cheese and bananas so we ordered him the kids fish n’chips for something different. He had a few bites of the fish but wasn’t a fan. He ate a ton of fries and the peas, so that’s good.

I got the classic burger that had onions, pickles and Russian Dressing and cheese. Michael got the Bleu Cheese burger. I got salad with mine. The burger was tasty but not memorable. Michael agreed. I’d definitely go back, though. It was a cool vibe, the rest of the food was really good (and I had the fish for lunch the next day and it was good!).

On Sunday, I went swimming and did the usual stuff around the house. Then the weather was nice enough after grocery shopping we all went for a walk. Lots of signs of spring! Thank goodness!

For dinner Sunday night, I tried making spaghetti squash in the pressure cooker. I found this recipe and gave it a try.

While the spaghetti squash was cooking, I simmered some sauce with meatballs.

The verdict? Amazing. Game changer. The spaghetti squash was cooked in 8 minutes and it was PERFECT. It shredded into spaghetti noodles like NOTHING. We were both in awe and decided we could have spaghetti squash once a week now because it was SO fast and easy!

Perfect perfect perfect spaghetti squash! Winner!

QUESTION: What did you do for St. Patty’s Day?