Dana Daily

For Christmas Sal had gotten us tickets to Up and Away  at the Cabaret Theater downtown. The show was today, and it was h i l a r i o u s. So funny. We had a first row table and our table mates were two guys who were out celebrating a birthday. They had the same sense of humor we did, and our table was rolling. I suspect we'll be quoting this show for some time. Lunch was also very good, at the Cabaret. Sal and I shared spinach artichoke dip which is probably the best I've ever eaten, we had a "B Keeper" drink which was really strong, and each ordered pizzas. We weren't quite ready to go home yet after the show and decided to check out the Butterwood Consortium in Lawrenceville. While our dessert was very good, I don't think we'll go back. It wasn't what I was expecting, and I wanted more options. We had a great time out today, and definitely got to spend some much needed couple time together. We just click, and sometimes we get all caught up ...

Emmy's first flute concert was tonight. I wish she had played a solo, and later she agreed that she wished she had too. Maybe she'll go for it in the spring. There are 140 kids in 4th grade band so the group was actually split in two. Seventy performed at 6pm, that was the group Emmy was in, and 70 performed at 7:30. They played the usual songs you'd expect first year students to know, Hot Cross Buns , Mary had a Little Lamb , and Jingle Bells , to name a few. Seth was so excited to see her after.

Emmy wanted to cash in her Christmas present today, lunch with me, alone. However, she decided she wanted to bring Seth with us, which didn't win her any points with Sarah. Emmy chose Texas Roadhouse, and I'm not really sure why. She ordered Kraft Mac and Cheese, which I could have made at home. This is not something I decided to ask her. Seth wanted fries and he was a clean plater. He doesn't eat much, but at least he'll eat what he requests.

I was so excited to learn my friend and coworker,  Dana Abbott Celich , is a published author.  Soul of a Stranger  hit book stores in December, and I purchased it this past week. Since I met Dana 10+ years ago, she had been working to this goal, and I always told her I couldn’t wait to read her book. There was no doubt in my mind she’d get there. Well, my copy arrived yesterday, and I squealed when I noticed my name in the acknowledgements. SQUEALED!! I mean how cool. Seriously, how cool  😍 🤗 I was just excited Dana is finally in print, and that I would have a signed copy. That alone was so exciting. This is just.so.cool. This may be one of the most exciting events of my life. Definitely something I'll always remember, and treasure. Soul of a Stranger  has answered one of my life's burning curiosities. Since I personally know the author, I wondered if, as I was reading, it would be as if she was speaking. What I found is that whi...

Ugh, this weather. This week we're experiencing a warm-up. We actually got above freezing today, and are supposed to hit the mid-50s later this week. I've already mentioned to Sal that I'd like to grill out if that happens. What I wouldn't do for a burger. There are 70 days until Spring, but it probably won't get warm until late May. We even had chilly days into June last year, but I would love to see those little crocus pop. In the meantime, I really do need to find a way to just deal with winter.

Sarah loves cooking so for Christmas Sal and I gifted her with a Mommy and Me cooking class. Crate in Greentree offers these classes, and they had one with a Mexican theme scheduled for January 6. Perfect for Sarah. We weren't sure what to expect, but it was fun. There were 17 participants and they divided the menu up between us. Sarah and I were assigned to homemade tortilla chips and sweet mango guacamole with another little girl and her grandmother. Also on the menu was chicken tortilla soup, which I thought was good and Sarah didn't care for (because of the bell peppers), sheet pan beef nachos with lime crema, faux fried ice cream with fresh whipped cream, and a slushy lime punch. I don't love lime, but it wasn't over-powering in any of the recipes. It was pretty tasty with all the other flavors. Crate gave us copies of the recipes we had made and Sarah would like to recreate this meal for her birthday in March. I didn't catch our instructor's name,...

For at least two weeks now, we've barely seen temps that hit the double digits. Today was especially cold, and all the schools canceled by 7:15 last night. Sal was home today with all three kids, while I came into work. We met at Mount Alvernia Daycare at 4 to tour Seth's new room, and we love it. I cannot wait for him to move up on February 20. He's been potty trained at home for months now, and the 3s room will work with him (the 2s did not). He'll take a back pack that will stay at school with all his extra clothes, and a sports bottle will stay as well. All I need to pack him every day is a lunch and two snacks. There are only 11 kids, currently, in the 3s room and I think he'll do well in a small group. Right now there are over 30 in the 2s room and I really do think he's overwhelmed. We also found out earlier this week that Mount Alvernia will not be closing, but they are relocating, perhaps to Jeffrey Primary. This won't happen until June so w...

We spent New Year's Day at my parents in Franklin and my brother and I were both excited to see my mom had made "the good" sauerkraut. I'm not one for sweet potatoes, but my mom combined them and white potatoes in a scalloped potato casserole and it was delicious. She had asked me to pick up dinner rolls and when we got to Giant Eagle, all that was left were the frozen variety that took me forever to find. They actually ended up tasting pretty good, but what an adventure. I made a kahlua trifle for dessert, and wasn't impressed. Everyone seemed to like it, but I need some crunch in my desserts. She had also invited my Aunt Judy and Sal's Uncle Ernie. The girls were with their dad, but we picked them up at 8pm to start their week with us. It was a low-key holiday, but nice.