Polka Dots

Vegas Baby!

With some big projects at work and a few social things planned I have been sneaking in 3-4 hours of sleep a night and trying not be a total witch to my hubby. I know I have said this before, but he has been very supportive in this time when the tables should be turned. We are trying hard to get it aligned...fewer work hours, getting out of the house, sharing responsibilities, re-wedding planning, saving $$$. Life! With all the chaos around us I am trying to really enjoy those moments of calm and not let everything else going on ruin those moments!

The end of our commitment up here at Ft. Drum will be March 6th (good omen - its my moms birthday!). There is a new path on the horizon for us. We have been trying to enjoy the final days up here with our friends.

We had a great Vegas trip a few weeks back. It was a great distraction. In Vegas you can't really think about anything else. Our travel was not at all smooth. We got to Vegas about 6 hours late and ended up sleeping on the floor of JFK for the night on the way home. JetBlue used to be a favorite of ours but after a few bad experiences in the last few months we have changed out tone :( That didn't hold us back. We made it to Vegas on Thursday night and headed directly to the tables. I have fun playing craps and blackjack. We don't go with much money to spend but we find cheap tables where our money can keep us entertained for a long time. I was just trying to make enough money to pay for a massage at the spa! That didn't work out but I still had the massage anyway. Jenn & Brent mastered the roulette table! Our bachelor friend Lane found the best parts of Vegas. Dave's parents met us there to add to the fun. Great dinner at Benihana, walking the strip and too many martinis! It was a great break and got us sooooo excited for WARMER weather.

Vegas - Jan 2009

DC Getaway

Last weekend Dave and I had a great time in Washington DC.

It started off with an early morning trip to the airport. Oh wait...you mean our tickets were for 7pm not 7am? We went standby on an earlier flight and all was well. So we had some time to kill in the airport. It was actually really funny to be in an airport and just hanging out! Usually I am plugged into an outlet in some corner working away...type type type...as Dave says.

RANDOM DIGRESSION: As we started nosing around we came upon the magazine rack. All of the sudden Dave asked...who buys a dirty magazine in an airport? In the upper right hand corner of the magazine wall there were those 6-8 publications that have the plastic wrapper over them to cover up the naughty images on the front.  I mean really, do you bust that out on the flight home with your seat neighbor right next to you? Or maybe men hit up the bathroom before you get on the flight? Or maybe they buy it here and sneak it home in their briefcase so their wives do see it? Anyway...I am not sure exactly why they sell dirty magazines in airports it can only be bad news as far as I can tell.

Friday night we met up with our friends C&L, who are in DC while C recovers from losing his leg in Iraq. They were in great spirits & we had some great steak in the DuPont Circle area. The evening was full of lots of laughs and traffic!!! It was the G20 summit so many streets were closed as diplomats got around the city. In true army style the cigars came out after dinner.

Saturday we did the DC sights. We avoided the rain and even took off the jackets for most of the afternoon. The Air & Space Smithsonian was the highlight. We found the Stardust capsule here...a NASA project Rick & Lori (Dave's parents) worked on. We headed out out to Adam's Morgan on Saturday Night for lots of fun with J&B, some other friends living in the area. Madam's Organ was quite an interesting & fun spot.

Sunday we had a great breakfast at this spot that is combination bookstore & restaurant. It was delicious! Then we were off to tailgating at the ballpark. The game was great but very cold!

Washinton DC Recommendations

There is so much to do in DC so I was trying to make a plan that would help us out.
So far the list includes...

• The Mall -Lincoln Memorial, Washington Monument, Vietnam Memorial Wall, plus all the other stuff too!

• Natural History Smithsonian

• Air & Space Smithsonian

• Arlington Cemetery

• Old Town Alexandria

• A little shopping in Georgetown (only a little as this is a trip for Dave)

• Evening in Adam's Morgan (Any bar/restaurant recommendations?)

• Cowboys/Redskins Game (Dave wants to rent a car so we can tail gate??? Really???)

Christine's Southern Summer Tour: Part 1

 

Eating with Friends! (Back Blog - Written on May 5th)

I have been eating like crazy for the past week or so. Each of these big eating occasions have provided a great time to spend time with some wonderful people.

Focaccia, Whisky & Walnuts & Some Lentils with The T-Town Ladies:
Last Friday night, Kerri, one of my dear friends from growing up, was back in town for a quick trip. Melin’ had us over to her beautifully spiffed up house for a ladies cooking and wine night. The perk for me was that somehow I didn’t get the string of emails that suggested we should all prepare our favorite dish. SOOO I showed up with no plans to cook anything! Instead I sat and laughed and watched Kerri, Melin & Meg cook away. These were some of the tastiest small plates I have EVER had…They all check in on Polkadots SO maybe if we are lucky they will post their recipes in the comments 

Meg’s Focaccia - Pizza dough for the base, plus yummy caramelized onions & Blue cheese. Then bake it. She was crying for most of her baking ‘cause the onions were potent. I didn’t catch all the ingredients…Anything else Meg?

Melin’s Italian Lentil Soup- This was a delicious lentil soup PLUS some pasta.

Kerri’s Whisky Walnut Brie- So original but so yummy. She mixed brown sugar whisky & chopped walnuts. Then put it over some brie….then baked for about 20 minutes. OMG!!!  I will definitely steal this when I try to Martha at some point when I am back up in Sackets.

Union Hotel Classic:
Everyone knows the Bruschetta is to die for! It is such a great appetizer that the most I do after that is a small bowl of minestrone soup & salad. (Do you say the long E on the end of Minestrone? I do and it drives me crazy when people don't...I feel like I didn't finish saying word!!! Who knows what is actually correct???) This is my aunt & uncle’s restaurant but if you are ever in the Napa/Sonoma Country area a trip out to Occidental will promise a beautiful scent of redwoods, a beautiful drive  and a delicious more than you could ever eat dinner at the Union Hotel.

Authentic Cinco De Mayo with L&P:
I didn’t even realize it was Cinco De Mayo until about 7pm on Monday night. I was going up to dinner with L&P in Inwood at the very top of the island of Manhattan. When I arrived they had margaritas waiting to celebrate my Bday. We went to Mamajuana a Mexican food spot that is delicious. We had an amazing filet & paella. My favorite was a seafood tamale with scaloops, shrimp & lobster.  The margaritas were STRONG & all the dishes were uniquely perfect.

To top it all off I have never had a more authentic Cinco De Mayo…historically mine have been pretty gringo! There was essentially no English spoken in the restaurant with the exception of when the waitress was talking to us. PLUS there was a live mariachi band and some quasi latin karaoke going on. Paul is going to buy the Spanish Rosetta Stone so he can have EVEN more fun next year at Mamajuana when he can actually understand it.

 

Dilemmas

They seem to be all around me these days. I think they are all pretty good dilemmas to have but they are everywhere. They are at work and with my family. They are in my friends lives. I think maybe dilemmas are just part of life...

I have techniques to deal with dilemmas! I think these might be escapes that are only short term but they sure to make it all feel a little better.

• Spa Weekends
• Visiting adorable little cousins
• Bubble baths at night
• Snuggling with my soft Bermuda
• Getting silly with my lil' bro, parents, nana, aunts, uncles, & grown up cousins in a classic bar in my hometown now that everyone is legal!
• Tea & The Today Show at 7am before I head to work

SPRING 2008

Happenings

The past few weeks have probably been the most intense of my career. Hence the rare Polka Dots posts. Not only has the workload spiked but the change and politics are at an all time high. I am much better at navigating a tough reserach quesiton than understanding individual's motivations for taking certian actions. I am being challenged in ways I never have been before. In the past the lines between rigth and wrong have always been so clear.

I realize that the decisions I make everyday are a reflection of who I am. It is easy to try to TRY to be a great manager or a great employee, but in the end the actions I take everyday under pressure and in the heat of the moment that really make me who I am. My decisions should be based on my morals & values, or said more simply the things that are important to me.

Wow!...just writing about it gives me a headache, SOOOO I have been forcing myself to steal some moments where I completely CHECK out and ignore all that stuff. In those moments here are a few things I have done:

Dinner at Aspen with L&P, where we enjoyed a dinner of small plates...Bison Sliders, Mac & Cheese, Polenta Fries, Asparagus, Trout Soft Tacos. I think we might have ordered everything on the menu? Almost? Look below super duper very cozy and mello atmosphere just right for some tired out twenty somthings!

Watched Top Gun...Some of my favorite quotes...Negative Ghost Rider, the pattern is full,---You've lost that lovin' feelin'--YES! I think it is my favorite movie of all time. I know it sounds cheesy but I am such a SAP! I think I might have even had this poster up in my room for a while. (did I really just admit that?!?!?!)

Massage & a little shopping with my mom...In this great little paper store I found a sweet Vday card for my honey and a paisley box of matches.

Wine Connection Dinner & Chat with Lady C...This cool little spot in EDH (just outside of Sacramento) is another spot with small plates. I had a delicious bisque & crab cakes!

Singing In The Theater

I couldn't help myself. I know I am in public but every musical I have ever attended I end up dancing in my seat and singing along. I usually try to restrain myself until the end. There are other people doing it too! I guess I should go to concerts if I want to sing along.

We had a great afternoon in the city. Cocktails at the Westin St Francis, Dinner at Cortez and then
to the Curran for the show. We had lots of Jensen lady laughs. I think we will make it a tradition. A little phone montage of our afternoon & evening...

Reunion with Bermuda

I made it back to CA safe and sound for the holidays. I was very excited to see my family, but I couldn't wait to give Bermuda a big hug and a tummy rub! As a Christmas present my mom took Bermuda to the "doggie spa" yesterday...She came back with a BOW in her hair!!!

 

DAVE, WE MISS YOU!

Can you imagine what this will be like when a have a baby!?!?!?! When I called Dave after sending the pictures he said, "did you take the bow off my dog yet?" We had a good laugh. Yes, now I have taken the bow out, honey. Please notice the Christmas collar from So Fetch by Tara Nicole. Silly as it may sound Bermuda really helps me de-stress. She takes my focus off the crazy work stuff and makes me laugh.

Off to meet the Jensen ladies for Jersey Boys and sending a New Year's package to Dave. I hope everyone is getting into the holiday spirit. I am finally there.

The Holiday Spirit = Being Grateful

I think I am coming around...

L&P, some of my good friends here in NY, just lost their cousin in a terrible car accident in England. She was 19 years old. I met her at their wedding a few weeks ago. It was such a crazy tragedy. As I listened to the story about what happened my downer mood about Dave really disappeared. These types of events are never easy but so young makes you feel like her life was stolen. She was an organ donor so as P put it..."she gave quite a few people a Christmas they didn't think they would have."

After the realization that life is so precious, I can't be dewling over a little distance, after all Dave is pretty safe at the moment. I have an amazing husband and an amazing group of friends and support! I don't mean to use that tradegy as a positive but there is no excuse for me to be down. Christmas will be great. I decided to jump in with both feet and create a few things to look forward to:

1. Sent Christmas cards out to bunches of our friends and family...got the addresses all organized so that when we go to send re-wedding invites I will have them all.
2. Sent one final Christmas package to Dave with lots of baked goodies! He requested zucchini bread...is he random or what?
3. Our friends T&C had a baby last week! Ramsey is precious! There are tons of pics and he is so cute. His daddy is in Iraq with Dave and very proud from everything I hear.
4. Silverado here we come! Heading to a wonderful little spa in Napa with some of the wonderful ladies I went to high school with and our mama's.
5. Taking Nana, Aunt D and my Mom to Jersey Boys at the Curran in San Fran as a Christmas gift. That is the story of the Frankie Vallie & Four Seasons...Cheri Baby...Cheeeerri...Baa-aaa-by. My favorite part about musicals is how you can't get the songs out of your head for the next week.
6. I get to see Bermuda again in 4 days! I miss her sooo much.
7. Finally I will see my mom's tree all decorated and all the gifts wrapped and stuffed underneath.
8. Today, I flirted with my husband over IM :-) xoxo

Christmas is coming and there is so much to be grateful for...

Clockwise from upper left: Dave's goodie package with cookies, cupcakes/frosting, z-bread, coffee, cliff bars, then off Jersey Boys Tix, Ramsey finally joined Miss Tara last week, Silverado relaxing here I come!