Happy Birthday, Dad!

Tonight we got together at Mom and Dad's to celebrate Dad's birthday! We started things off with Dennis's famous chipotle dip. MMM, SPICY!



And then we had Casa takeout. Look at that beautiful burrito!



Birthday blowers!



Kate was playing a game where she would try to knock over that tiny plastic horse using her blower.









Got him!



After dinner, things started to get nerdy in the dining room. Dad and Dennis were Face Timing from opposite ends of the table!



Of course Ben got in on it, too!



Mom joined the nerd party from all the way in the kitchen!



Then Kate reminded us that there were very important things to focus on, like party hats.



And CAAAAAAAAAAAAKE!



Putting the candles on the cake is very serious business, and Kate was in charge.



She picked out some super cool star candles and chose where they should go! She did a great job.



Lighting the candles is also VERY serious business. Kate supervised.



So did Petey!



Yay! Cake time!



Kate helped Grandpa blow out his candles.



They nailed it!



Mmm, chocolate with peanut buttercream frosting. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DAD!!

Marketing

Tonight I'm making a chocolate cake for Dad's birthday. As I was melting some chocolate, I happened to notice this ridiculous marketing ploy on the box. "Our product has two times more than half as much!!" What the?

One-Year-Until-The-Wedding Countdown Kickoff Celebration Dinner

Our wedding is officially exactly one year away! To celebrate our -1 Year Anniversary, Ben and I went to Purple Chopstix tonight for a one-year countdown kickoff celebration dinner. We started with our favorite, Tom Yum Soup!



And we toasted to the upcoming year.



Cheers!



I got the sweet potato peanut pasta YUM.



Ben had the red and green curries mixed, and it was HOT!! He was sweatin'!!



We decided that we should have cake, since we're going to ALSO be having cake in exactly one year!!



YAY, CAKE!!!



After dinner, it was time for some reading in bed. We have a lot of learning to do!

Grilled Cooking Club

Cooking Club was at my house this month. The theme for the night was "Grilled!" I fired up my gas grill, and Valarie brought her little charcoal grill. We had a special guest! Nancy's sister Valaree was in town and joined us for the event. She brought this delightful chilled grilled fish platter of tilapia and cod with a dill sauce.



Ladies out back grilling and chatting!



Yumi made these Indian Shrimp Skewers with Cantaloupe and Red Onion.



Ta da!



Valerie made Grilled Halloumi with Watermelon and Basil Mint Oil.



Emily showing off her manicure!



Valerie's cheese. YUM!!! This was SO fresh and delicious. The cheese was incredible. Warm and yummy.



Shrimp skewers! The marinade on the shrimp was divine!! It was spicy and went so well with the cantaloupe.



Valaree and Summer ready to chow down!



Yay! Time to eat!



Meanwhile, Summer's chicken had been grilling away, getting ready for the next course. She made Mario Batali's Spicy Black Pepper-Coated Drumsticks.



LOOK AT THAT DELECTABLE CHICKEN!



Emily made panzanella! There she is, grilling up the bread.



Putting it all together.



Yum! The bread was SO chewy and delicious. I definitely munched on a leftover slice later in the night as I was doing the dishes.



Paired with the juicy drumsticks.



Yay! More eating!!



Time for some more food!! Here are my pizzas, all lined up and ready for the grill.



Grilling pizza! My favorite thing to do!






Valarie brought a delicious chilled red wine. She originally met this wine in France!! Ooh la la!



I made three types of pizza. Pesto with grilled shrimp, heirloom tomatoes & feta, Pear with blue cheese, and a Caramelized onion, sauteed mushroom, goat cheese and basil with red sauce.



Summer declared it orgasmic!



"Then we played Apples to Apples!"



As a judge, this was my toughest decision of the night. Well played, ladies! I ultimately went with Beer. I would have to say going to the gym is more "invigorating," which was one of the descriptors on the Refreshing card. Had it been the ACTUAL word on the card, it would have totally won!



Nancy made a grilled nectarine tart with Italian pastry cream.



It was so, so, so, so, SO, SO GOOD.



And that concludes another DELICIOUS cooking club!