Happy Anniversary to Us!!!

Well, a little something different for you all today. Today is actually our wedding anniversary, but since it's Monday, we celebrated yesterday. We knew that we were going to be having a luxurious dinner out, so we went easy on our bellies for lunch.

That's right !!! Costco footlongs. $1.50 includes a drink. Can't beat that. Then, later in the day, I got dressed for our night out at The Hobbit.

I wore my trusty silk sheath dress with an elastic waist and a waterfall cardi. This is me, in the foyer of our house, just before driving out to Orange, the city where the Hobbit is located. I don't look too happy here, but I was later.

 

 

 

I wore my pink pumps with this dress, like I always do. For my necklace, I jimmied together a matching Joan Rivers number.

 

 

It was very warm here yesterday - shorts and T shirt weather - so my jewelry had a springtime feel, like my outfit. On my left arm,

My wedding set, a diamond dust bracelet, and a multicolored gemstone bracelet. On my right,

A pale amethyst ring that Doc had made for me, another gold bracelet, and a darker amethyst bracelet.

So now, onto The Hobbit. Here is our menu for the evening.

First, Doc took a picture of me in front of the sign.

 

 

Then we got a picture of the beautiful stained glass window in the patio. All parties are seated and served at the same time. So while you wait for everyone to arrive, you go upstairs to the very top of the house, where the cocktail lounge is located. The house was built in 1930, and you move from room to room during the dinner.

 

So we'll start at the top of the menu. You go down stairs to the wine cellar, where you have champagne and hor d'oeurves. Here are two pictures of the spread that they put out - there was caviar, artichoke dip, shrimp, oysters, many many tiny unknown things on toast, poke, pate, and too much more to mention. We had a lot, because it was all scrumptious. The big flat thing is called a French Sandwich - it's puff pastry with a savory creamy cheesy filling.  This is where you also select the bottle of wine that you want with your dinner. We didn't get wine, since it seemed like champagne was enough and we had to drive 25 minutes home. About half of the tables got wine.

 

 

 

We had our picture taken, but it's very dark down there. I included it anyway.

Those blobs are me and Doc.  After the appetizers, you go back to the lounge to finish your champagne. Then we went back down to the dining room for our first course.

The dining room looks like it used to be the parlor back in the day. Here's a photo. Our table was the right rear one. I am standing just to the left of it. You are both seated so that you face outwards to where the photo is being taken from.

 

 

Here is a picture of our table. There's a little place card done in calligraphy and a GIANT rose made out of butter.

 

 

 

 

Here's a better look at the place card.

The first course was a seared diver scallop on a bed of red quinoa and golden raisins in a seafood broth. We also had popover style rolls throughout the dinner.

 

 

The scallop was big, but the entire dish was about a half cup. It was delicious. Then we had duck confit on a bed of braised leek risotto with parmagiano reggiano sprinkled on the risotto. I didn't know what confit was, but it seemed like shredded duck meat. Doc loves duck.  I forgot to get a picture. This was also about a half cup serving. Then we had our salad .

 

 

It was baby Lolla rosa (a type of lettuce) with Roquefort dressing. The square thing is a very crispy piece of prosciutto. The slices were pears that had been reduced in some kind of syrup. Then the long things are some sort of sprout. The round things are pomegranate seeds. This was likewise very delicious and all the dishes were very rich.

After the salad, you have a choice of going back up to the lounge, out to the patio or into the kitchen to observe the operation. I went to the kitchen.

 

 

The gentleman facing the camera is the executive chef. He and his concierge circulate through the tables all evening long to ask if everything is good. When I got up to use the ladies room, I came back to a new napkin all folded back up like a rose, new silverware, and a full glass of water. All the attention made Doc nervous - he's pretty shy as a rule. Now for the entrée.

Garlic crusted lamb. Yum. The square thing in the upper right is butternut squash that was so sweet and tender that the fork cut it. The lamb is served on a bed of absolutely awesome mashed potatoes. There are also some green beans and some braised miniature apples. The sauce is a demi glace.

So obviously, we were full to the gills after this. We took our dessert home with us. It was a pecan layer crisp and a chocolate mousse cake , both served with strawberries and strawberry sauce. Birthday folks got a whipped thing served in a martini glass with a sparkler, and anniversaries got either a special mix of liquors, or some chocolate truffles. We chose the truffles and took those home too. I am still full this morning. Once a year for this type of food is enough for us. But it sure was elegant and fun, and something nice to do for our anniversary. In a couple of years a big one is coming up, so that will probably be the next time we go all out. I hope you enjoyed seeing this. If you guys have done something similar, I would love to see the pictures and hear about it.

I am still going to participate in Patti's Visible Monday at www.notdeadyetstyle.blogspot.com. I will use my outfit as my entry. I must say that after eating all that rich food, I do feel quite a bit closer to death, but not dead yet!!!! See you all later!!!

Go Red For Women

Today is National Wear Red Day, a day when we wear red to show support for advancements against heart disease in women. We will get to the reveal of my red outfit in a minute. First, a Kenni update.
When I got home, I checked his pedometer. He only had 5024 steps. I had 12000. Lazy Kenni. Then Doc suggested that maybe the pedometer wasn't registering Kenni's steps, either because his stride is too short, or because the pedometer is hanging from his collar. So I did an experiment. We went for a walk, and then I compared the number of steps I got versus the number he got. We both got 3000 steps, so the answer is ......... Kenni is a lazy sack and that's why he looks like a potbellied pig.

Enough about my sweet, pudgy min pin friend. Let's see the red.

Here I am, in all my scarlet glory. This moleskin jacket is made by INC. The best I can describe it is that it's a soft gold mini reptile print. Here's a closeup.

Here's the outfit, minus the jacket.

The pants are sturdy twill, made by Talbot's. These pants are a clear case of vanity sizing. They are size 2 petite, but they are roomy (to say the least). I tried on my other pair of red pants just to compare, and they are a real size 2 (in other words, not baggy at all, even a bit snug). But, since I had already ironed these, I wore them anyway. They are comfy, I will admit. The blouse is made by Bandolino, and the ruffled tank underneath is from Old Navy. I cinched it all closed with a tan belt.

 

You can see all the crazy colors in the blouse here. I would never have thought to combine red, lavender, purple, and khaki, but it works. For my necklace, I chose a statement piece that coordinates, rather than matching exactly like I usually do.

I got this at the gift shop here in the hospital. I have always liked to go into the gift shops at places I have worked. The best one was at the now defunct Irvine Medical Center. They also had the best cafeteria. For a flat $3 per meal, you could have anything they offered, and the food was deelish. Our cafeteria here also has really good food, but a meal costs around $5, depending on what you pick. It's still a bargain, and the food is wholesome and healthy.

I likewise went with coordinating earrings.

I haven't shown my earrings much, but now that my face is nice and unspotty, I don't cringe when I see my cheeks. I do look a little peach fuzzy, but that's nothing new. My rings are nothing spectacular today, just two costume pieces.

 

 

But my shoes are something!!! They are ombre red pumps, made by Unlisted.

They have white topstitching and black heels. I don't wear red shoes often, but today was a good excuse.

Onto the links. First, Lauren at www.stylelixir.com for Fab Favorites. I am not really wearing anything that is a favorite, but I'll play anyway, cuz it's fun. Then, Tara at www.pennilesssocialite.blogspot.com is hosting Favorite Fashion Friday. Next Friday, I definitely need to remember to wear a favorite for these two lovely ladies. Well, have a nice Friday and since it's payday for me, I will most likely stop and get myself a present on the way home. I am not shy about rewarding myself for a job well done!!!

Bikini Season Is Coming

Don't worry - I'm not going to focus on me. We have someone else in the family who needs an intervention even more than I do.

This ball of flab is supposed to be a svelte, muscular miniature pinscher. But our Kenni has become very round. Wanna know why?

He is constantly in this position - head in bowl. I know, I leave the food for him. But Vinni is very thin, and the food is supposed to be his. But Kenni goes all kamikaze and wolfs it down. This week,  we started a new exercise challenge at work, and we all got new pedometers. As you well know, I wear one all the time anyway. So guess what I did with mine?

 

 

That's right!!! We will see if our resident beachball does anything besides eat the live long day. I'll keep you updated.

Onto more crucial issues. What am I wearing?

This jacket is made by Caribbean Joe. It's ivory satin. I have washed and pummeled this thing to death, and it still looks great. I highly recommend this brand. Underneath,

A faux wrap dress made by Alfani. The print is various shades of brown and tan on a black background. There is also a touch of ivory, therefore the jacket choice. I gussied it up with a lot of accessories. First, my Versace belt.

 

 

I continued the black and gold with my necklace, made of black coral.

I didn't want to wash my hair two nights in a row, so I twisted it up in an elastic and it came out all curly. Then I just put it up with a stick barrette.

The black and gold continued with these large hoop earrings. They aren't heavy.

 

After that, the brown took over. I wore my brown suede boots with the gold chains.

They coordinate nicely. On my right arm,

 

 

A ring made of an agate chunk, and a costume bangle with little green stones. On my left,

A stretchy metal cuff by INC, and a ring that I got in Baltimore as a souvenir. Onto the links!!! As always, lovely Alice at www.happinessatmidlife.com for Throwback Thursday. Then, Linda Lou at www.alabouroflife.com for  A Labour of Fashion. Lastly, Tameka at www.pastirespumpsandpi.blogspot.com is hosting Who's Wearing What Wednesday. I know, a day late and a dollar short - what else is new? But hop over and check these dolls out!!! See you all later!!!

Back From The Dead

This is a terrible title for a post, but I am having some small degree of writers block. The reason for the title is because the last time I wore this outfit was to a funeral of a distant relative.

I had hung it up and kinda forgot about it until I was poking through my cavernous closet looking for something or other. The jacket is raw silk, made by Coldwater Creek.

I actually like this jacket, mostly because of the colors. The dress underneath is made by Studio M, and it's all knit, made of layers of ruffles.

You can't see them here, so I took a shot of me pulling one out to illustrate. They start right below the empire seam at the bust and continue down to the hem. This style was popular about 5 years ago. I have a few skirts that are made this way.

For shoes, I had a lot of options, since I have a lot of black shoes. I went with a pair made by Kathy Levine that I like, but don't wear too much because they squeak when I walk. The name is cute - they are called Panda's Delite, because of the bamboo heel.

I made a game day substitution with my necklace. The one I had originally picked didn't really go well with the jacket, so I went with my green and bronze statement necklace from Nordstrom that I have had for a very long time.

 

See, this one goes perfectly. My jewelry is in all kinds of mixed stones. On the left,

I have a green enamel cuff with tiny crystals and my Montana peridot ring. On my right,

one silver bracelet with peridot and rose quartz, and one with smoky topaz. I also have a blue topaz pinky ring, because I feel like a Mafia wife in this getup.

Onto the links. As always on Wednesday, I am joining Lindsey at www.thepleatedpoppy.com for What I Wore. She always gets a huge turnout. And for the second time, Gracey at www.fashionforgiants.BlogSpot.com for Literary Stylings.  The only book I have read that I could even possibly link this outfit to would be Anne of Green Gables. Gracey is really cute, so go check her out.  And that is about if for today, my friends. Have a good one!!!!

A Visit Back To The 60s

Let's start today with a pretty picture.

There's a rose bush in my back yard that produces these GIANT, extremely fragrant roses. The last couple of years have kind of been a drought on big roses, because we have been having a drought here in California. But it has rained a fairly substantial amount in the last few months, and they are starting to reappear.

Also, I took a picture of the workout videos that I did last night, just for something else besides my outfit. It was all Billy Blanks, all the time.

These two workouts are primarily body shaping and strengthening. Not much aerobic activity, but I ran on Sunday and I play tennis tonight, so I wanted to stuff some weight training and fitness band training in between.

What am I wearing that prompted this title?

This. I remind myself of Goldie Hawn from Laugh In. When I was a kid, I thought she was the coolest. For my birthday in 3rd grade, my mom made me a hot pink and lime green minidress, and I got white gogo boots. I was the ultimate. Fast forward 45 years, and here is the grandma version.

This knit dress is by Ali and Ro. The black leather jacket is by Clio. With it, I am wearing black tights and black suede boots.

I love my suede scrunchy pirate boots. Here's a closeup of the wedge heel, which makes them very comfy.

I coordinated this dress with a necklace of many colors.

 

 

For some reason, I always think of this necklace as having yellow in it, but as you can see, it doesn't. It still matches perfectly. On my left hand,

My YSL Arty in lapis, and a plastic bracelet from Macy's. I love this bracelet, even though it's just plastic. On my right,

A diamond dust bracelet and my creepy green ring from Nordstrom.  That just about does it for today, except for the links. First, as always on Tuesday, Amber at www.induffinitely.blogspot.com
for Tremendous Tuesday. Then, Cortney at www.cortinsession.com is co-hosting Trend Spin. The trend today is pink. I am definitely not wearing pink, so I included this picture bursting with love. It will be interesting to see how many of Cort's readers click over when they see this.

Have a great Tuesday, and spread the love!!