“Happiness is having a large, loving,
caring, close-knit family
in another city.”
- George Burns

 

It was a weekend of bookends.

The weekend started off with a bang: the Very Coven Christmas Dinner, 2006.  It was SOOOOO much fun.  I wish I had been able to fully enjoy it, but still having the stomach bug from hell, I only got two bites of my brie macaroni & cheese, a bite of pan-seared scallops with mango glaze, and a smidgeon of goat cheese before my stomach said, “I KNOW YOU DIDN’T TRY AND PUT ALL THIS SHIT DOWN HERE.”  So I had to stop.

And believe it or not, I have DREAMT about that mac & cheese ever since.  Those two bites were heavenly, and I may have to revisit within the week, if only for that one dish.  Oh. my. god.

Anyway, the company was fabulous, as Coven dinners always are.  Such a large cross-section of smart, successful, gorgeous women, and I’m not sure about anyone else, but I always sit there and wonder how I’ve fooled them all into thinking I belong there.  I guess I proved my worth when I was one of the few people at the table who knew what it meant to “toss a salad”, and I say that with air quotes and a wink-wink-nudge-nudge kind of enthusiasm.  So that’s why they invite me.  I say it every time we meet, and I still mean it: we have GOT to do that more often.  Ra, you outdid yourself on planning.. I thank you endlessly.

(On a completely random note, I did so well this year with shopping early.  I have all but two gifts purchased.  Now, none of them have physically arrived yet, but they’re all bought.  This makes me mightily happy.)

I was going to meet Kevin for lunch today, but I’ve been called to support a four-hour meeting.  My life is nothing if not glamorous.  Try not to be bitter you can’t be as cool as I am.

So, anyway, back to the bookended weekend.  After the joy that was the Coven dinner, I went home and begged my husband to go to bed with me.  I know; you just started playing porn music in your head, didn’t you?  Nay, nay, Nadine.. Sarah and Bryan have slept so poorly the last week that we really did just go and pass out.  It was lovely.

I had in-law family in town this weekend, which, even under the best of circumstances, is a bit grating.  Mainly because it puts Bryan MAJORLY on-edge.  I don’t know how to tell him more plainly than, “You HAVE to calm down.. they’re YOUR family.”  So there was a lot of that.  A LOT of that.  A lot of sideways glances, a lot of grimacing, a lot of tight hand-squeezing.  It helped that it was a gorgeously mild weekend; we could stay outdoors a lot.

Can I just throw out that it is inconceivable in my mind that you would stay at someone’s house who A) does not own the house, B) does not smoke themselves, and C) has a child with breathing problems, and then smoke in the bedroom?  And then when asked to not continue, to huff and say, “What, does the landlord LIVE around here?  It’s not like he’ll know.”

ANYWAY, Sunday night brought at fantastic time at the TLS Christmas party.  We had waaaay too much fun, and I finally got to put faces to so many names.  We hung out with the gorgeous Nina and Santa Timmy, and had a great time.  I was really impressed by the personal touches put on the party, and I knew WAAAY more people than I thought I would.  Three glasses of wine later, Bryan and I wandered home.  We took a long walk downtown, stopped at places we THOUGHT would have chocolate (they either didn’t or they were closed entirely), so then we walked back home and made some ourselves.  We snuggled on the couch, then went to bed and rejoiced that our stomachs had finally calmed down enough to allow us to snuggle and lay on our sides.  It was wonderful.

Now he is off to Atlanta for a few days, wrapping up some business ends before the holidays.  It feels like we haven’t really SEEN eachother in a week or two (we’ve both been ungodly ill, had children/family over, or been away doing stuff.  I can’t wait for him to get back home.  Of course, by then, we’ll be in full holiday swing..

I hope everyone had an equally wonderful weekend.