My Birthday Boy

Happy Birthday to you...

Happy Birthday to you...

Happy Birthday dear Mark....

Happy Birthday to you!

Saturday was Mark's birthday! To celebrate, my parents came into town and we went out to dinner at Dr. Granville Moore's--a Belgian restaurant known for its mussels and beer.

The restaurant is one of our favorites but not one we get to often, so it was a real treat.

We started off with two appetizers: escargot in a puff pastry (because Mark hadn't had escargot before and Mom and Dad insisted that he give it a try on his birthday--not that it took much convincing)....

and a lettuce wedge with roasted tomatoes, minus the bacon (because there's a vegetarian in the group).

Neither lasted very long....


We had the added bonus of a kitchen/server error. They brought out Mom's mussels with the appetizers so they were credited to us as an extra appetizer....poof! Gone!

Then....dinner was served....


Mark and Dad ordered Moroccan mussels with lamb and fennel in a spicy sauce...

Mom ordered mussels with a butter herb sauce...

and I had a home made veggie burger made with black beans.


My favorite part though was the large bowls of french fries with dipping sauces....


Those sauces include: ketchup (a standard), truffle aioli, chipotle mayo, chipotle bbq, horseradish sauce, and a curry dipping sauce.

We literally rolled ourselves out of there....

Right on home to GIFTS!



We all had fun watching Mark open his gifts and took pictures as we watched...






After gifts, some of our food began to digest and we thought maybe, just maybe, there was room for cake...


Mom also bakes us wonderful birthday cakes--a la our request. Mark requested a yellow cake with chocolate frosting and Mom took it a step further adding a ring of hazlenuts and a center of mini chocolate chips.

We sang...

and Mark blew out all of his candles...



Happy Birthday Sweetpea! Here's to another great year together!

Congressional Mock Trials

Just a little "woohoo" out to my 8th graders who competed in the DC We the People Congressional Mock Trials on Thursday. The kids did a lot of independent and small group work in researching their question. This was our first year competing in it and so there were a lot of unknowns. But I can say that the kids do know their Constitution. There were six units students competed in as teams of three to five students each. Stuart-Hobson won units 4, 5, and 6 and also was the overall winner of the competition.
While the kids are really excited about their win, I'm most excited about their research, their responses, and their maturity. I'm really proud of them!

It's a New Door Kind of Day

Wow, time flies! It's been almost two year since our bedroom door slammed shut from a good strong breeze....and locked. Mark had to cut a circular hole through the door to unlock it since we didn't have the key to the door (it wasn't transferred when we took ownership of the house). The hole in the door has been a sore point in our marriage...but today..it's remedied!

Over winter break Mark ordered a new door from Home Depot and today we hung it! Shazam!

Sent!

It's mailed!

Locks of Love

Surprise!


In a fit of spontaneity I cut off my hair today!


I stopped in on Thursday night to get my hair cut but Tanya was busy. So I thought about it a little more and came back today, making my appointment at 10:30 this morning for a 3:30 cut.

One of my impetuses for this was to donate my hair to Locks of Love...and I had more than enough to do so!

Ten inches of hair is needed.





Tanya was speedier than I thought she would be! Off it went!


So, here's to a new year, a new decade and a new 'do!

Birthday Celebration!

Sue, Alex and I have a tradition of getting together to celebrate each other's birthdays! December is Alex's birthday month but with the holidays we didn't get to celebrate until a little more than two weeks after her birthday---but we made up for it! :)

Alex met Sue and I at the Science Club in DC after work for dinner. We chose the Science Club because it has an all vegetarian menu...and it was different. We got a great table in the back and had the area to ourselves for a good while which is great since we were kinda loud. :)

Alex loves chickens and often talks about getting some for their backyard so part of my gift to Alex involved the chicken hat that I got at Oktoberfest in Boston this past October. Doesn't it look like it was meant to be on her head??? :)

She was such a good sport about our silliness! :)

Sue, loved the chicken hat too....

and she looked quite regal sitting by the candlelight on our table...

We also did a bit of holiday exchange. Alex gave Sue a magnetic Jesus with various clothes---including a JC hat, a bling bling necklace that says WWID (What would I do?), a hoodie, a hammer, a saw...you get the point---just hilarious! And perfect for Sue! She dove into it right away! I can't wait to see it on her refrigerator at home! :)

After dinner it was time for a group shot and then.....CUPCAKES for dessert! We have a few places to choose from in DC but we opted to go to Georgetown Cupcake.


What a perfect place to take our birthday girl Alex for a little taste of birthday bliss!!!



We each got two--I mean, who could resist?? As you can see--the choices were tough to make...

but sooooooo delish!





We had an awesome time!!! Here's to another great year Alex! Happy Birthday!