Conor & I started off the new year by driving to Spirit Lake to meet up with my parents. It was a long drive since the roads were still icy. When we were less than an hour away from our destination we got stuck behind some young girl who was driving intolerably s...l...o...w. Our road rage was beginning to get the best of us... Due to quick thinking, Conor was able to distance us from the said road hazard we were back in action. Alas, we arrived at my parent's cozy cabin in one piece!
We had a fun night full of catch prase, which the boys won, while enjoying my mom's famous margaritas. Conor brought some ground venison with us from his dad and brothers hunting freezer. I was quite nervous about it...but finally agreed to try. He made some venison sliders which were actually quite tasty. Maybe next time I'll be ready to try a venison steak, we'll see. It was a very relaxing evening which was nice to have before Conor had to leave for AZ the next day. Sunday was spent packing up all Conor's things and Christmas gifts, figuring out how to get everything on the plane in a minimal number of bags. Conor is a master packer, so miraculously we made all of his things, some of my things, a considerable amount of remaining wedding gifts all fit: two checked bags and two carry-ons.
His flight wasn't til later that night, and it was delayed (surprise surprise), so we got to attend the Tonicx employee Christmas party. It was held out at Quest Casino, where we had a private back room to watch the Seahawks game on a ginormous TV! What a game! Everyone was pretty excited and ready to celebrate. We didn't stay too late since we had to get Conor to the airport. On our way out, Conor put $20 on red (as he frequently does when we're in a casino) and won! Cash for cocktails on the way home I suppose.
While Conor was back in AZ for a few days, I had a chance to catch up with friends and spend more time with family. Ryan & Chelsea had my parents and I over for dinner on Monday. This was the first time I got to see their new place up on five mile. Dinner was swedish meatballs (my dad's favorite) which we enjoyed with a couple different bottles of red wine. Throughout the evening Linnea entertained us with many beautiful drawings of everyone around the table having "cheese and wine", as well as a fashion show of many princess dresses. She is just adorable! I have so much fun with her, and am always sad to leave since she grows up so much in between my visits.
On Tuesday night, I went to my Grandpa's house with my mom. He is 91 years old and one of the happiest people I know. He knows how much I enjoy champagne so he always has a bottle chilling for us when I come over. I also have a sweet tooth like him, so he shares his treats with me. Two favorites: chocolate covered cherries & turkey joints (the absolute best candy ever and you can only find them in Rome, NY)! We went to Geno's for dinner so I could get my fix of the great italian food that I grew up dining on with my grandparents. I had such a wonderful time and can't wait to do it again. My grandpa has such a positive outlook on things;I always feel so happy after spending time with him!
Later that week, my mom and I got together with some family friends, The Fraziers, for a couple glasses of wine. Sarah & Anne Frazier used to babysit me when I was little. Obviously a lot has changed since those days...it's much more fun getting together now that I'm not just the little one in the room. I hadn't seen them, or their mom Marty, is such a long time. We had a lovely time catching up, and perhaps a few more glasses of wine than expected. When girls and wine are together.....it's hard to end the evening!
Continuing our busy social schedule that week, my mom and I got together with another family friend, Susan Crumb, for lunch. We went to Clinkerdaggers again since we were all craving their french onion soup. When I discover I like something, it is the only thing on my mind for at least a month or two. Right now if french onion soup is on the menu, I'm ordering it for sure! That same day I got together with my friend Kyra for dinner. We had lots to catch up on. Her husband is in real estate and they flip houses together, so quickly our conversation turned to that. Conor & I hope to look into buying a house when we move to Seattle, so Kyra gave me lots of advice on what we should start doing now to plan for that. It got me so excited to start the process, but unfortunately we are still 13 months away from our move. Although there is plenty of research to do in the mean time.
After spending the week without Conor, I was anxious for him to be back in Spokane. I picked him up at the airport late Thursday night, where we quickly began the festivities for our friends' Curt & Michelle's wedding weekend! A post on that to come!
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