I Turned 39...Which Is One Year Away From 40...

I'm not quite sure how it happened, but I turned 39 last month. Because my birthday is two days before Christmas, I've never had a big birthday bash.  I told The Dad that I BETTER be getting a party next year.  A surprise party.  That I'm expecting.  With friends from my past.  And current friends.  And cheese.  And Champagne.  And glitter.  Okay, maybe not glitter, but some sort of extraordinary acknowledgement.  Is that too much to ask?

Anyway, 39 isn't a big milestone, but it still deserves a dinner out without kids and that's exactly what I got.  My parent's watched the kids (actually my mom slept on my nephew's bed because she was sicker than a dog, because apparently I shared my disease with her, and my step-dad watched the kids) so my sister and brother-in-law could join us like they do every year.

We started out at a little place by their house where we did a wine tasting and had a couple snacks.  The avocado toast things at this place are out of this world.  It's the second time I've had them there, and it's a good reminder that simplicity rules when it comes to food.

They sell meat, cheese, and wine to-go, as well.

Mmmmm.

The obligatory Mom and Dad photos.

We were literally talking about ham, hence my happy face.

I'm assuming the first one was my brother-in-law's practice shot.

Mmmm, ham.

You know by now how much I HATE taking photos, so you're welcome.

Once we were done there, we headed to a new restaurant that none of us had ever been to, and it was delicious.  I was feeling a wee bit feverish and nauseous from lingering flu symptoms, so I quit drinking at this point, but I was still able to appreciate the food.  I am not a seafood fan even a little bit, but the warm octopus salad was out of this world amazing.  Worth a trip back just for that, the foccacia, and a bottle of wine.

This was the octopus salad.  There were potatoes and olives in it and it had a lemony dressing.

So good.

We also got roasted beets and mussels as an appetizer.

I did not partake in the mussels, but the beets were yummy.

My brother-in-law got rabbit.  I had never had it before, but it was wrapped in bacon, so I tried a bite.

It was super yummy, but I don't know if I could ever order it, just based on Leo The Lop visuals.

I got ravioli, which is generally my go-to if it's on a menu.

My sister ordered a side of chard with her pasta and it was beyond delicious.

The Dad's dinner was really yummy too, but the pictures didn't turn out.

From there, we went to Pix, which was right across the street.

We've been to their other location a number of times, so knew what to expect.

You get to pick goodies out of case, but they're known for their macarons.

They were pretty cleaned out, but we got some of every flavor.

The kalamansi and salted caramel were the best.

I did not partake in the foie gras.

And that's it.

Because I still wasn't 100% in the health department, we headed back to my sister's to get the kids and go home.

My bed was calling me.

NEXT year will be a big deal.

If The Dad knows what's good for him.  

Buwahahahahahahahaha.