In defense of the early celebration.
No. 80 Happy Birthday to Seth!
While it is a bright blue sky, full sunshine, it is also currently twenty-eight degrees with wind. Too cold! It’s March 23. Bring back yesterday’s sixty-two and sunny. No one has the patience anymore for coats. I really would prefer to move the winter gear upstairs for a while. Soon, I hope. Everyone is ready for spring.
After another whirlwind work week, packed with, well, work, we made it to the weekend and it was time to celebrate. Not only was it Friday (hooray!), it was also Seth’s birthday on Saturday (yippee!) so this weekend has been filled with delicious meals and celebrations. As it should be. And if you are someone that only celebrates the “big ones,” then I’m sorry you feel that way.
Birthdays are such a gift and one of the best excuses for celebrations of truly any kind. You can celebrate in any way you please! Isn’t that the beauty of it being your day? It’s all about you. And this weekend has been all about Seth. :) 41 only comes around once (of course) and it should be fun!
On Friday, Seth drove to meet me downtown post-work and, after I escaped the intense magnetic pull of everything beautiful in Bottega Veneta (a story for another day), we walked over to one of our favorite spots, The Street Bar, inside The Newbury Hotel. Maybe it was our lucky day or maybe it was because it was just a tad early, but we got the best corner table with a great view and I’m deeming it a sign of a joyful year to come. Yes, it was barely 6pm. No I did not care. Weekdays have us up and out of the house by 7am so, uh, dinner around 6pm sounds superb.
How about a poll?!
We toasted Seth’s last dinner of 40 (what a year it has been) with the classics. Starting with the bar snacks, shrimp cocktail and deviled eggs, we then ordered our favorites for dinner: turkey club for me and a Street Bar Burger for him. Fries for each of us. Yes, it was a lot of food and we definitely skipped dessert. It was all satisfying and scrumptious!
As a seasoned “going out for dinner person,” I find it’s best to lean in to my favorite dishes rather than ‘try something new’ especially at restaurants where I know the “must order” items. And since I need to order gluten free regardless, it’s best (in my opinion) to order what I know. The Street Bar has excellent food that is spot-on delicious every time and they have safe (read: no cross-contamination) fries. A must-visit, if you ask me. And a wonderful spot to kickoff Seth’s birthday weekend. :)
Our early Friday evening was a good idea as Pepper was up and ready for the day at 6:30am on Saturday. Wow! In order to quell her energy (or at least try), we took her for a light hike, under one hour total, to get some of her energy out. We had another early dinner plan that evening and wanted to make sure she was as tired as possible. It worked!
Pepper lives for the outdoors and the hike did just the trick. She loved smelling every inch of the trail, meeting a handful of other dogs, and being in the ‘wilderness,’ which is conveniently five minutes from our house. She definitely would be outside all day if we let her and I love knowing that the hiking plan does exactly what we need: tires. her. out. We are also fans of getting outside and yesterday was so gorgeous how could we not? Plus, we had another early celebration ahead of us.
Friends, at our dinner last night, I did not take a single photo. It felt so freeing! To celebrate Seth’s actual birthday, officially ringing in 41, I made a reservation for 6:30pm at another favorite, Adelita in West Concord. Thankful for friends who also enjoy an early evening, we had a great night hanging out with nachos, tacos, margaritas, and a very relaxed time. Perfect birthday vibes. We even got a flan for dessert. :)
Since we have been to Adelita several times, I admit that the photos above are from other instances of going there for the exact same meal. Apparently I really do order the same dishes every time. Ha! It’s so good, so why not? I am nothing if not extremely consistent.
If you find yourself outside the city and seeking scrumptious, share-able nachos, or a superior jalapeno margarita, I highly recommend this spot. Seth had a great birthday (most important) and I’m sure we will return again soon.
So, we had two nights in a row of ‘early’ celebrations and I continue to believe that an early dinner is a great dinner. Sure, there are instances that require sitting down after seven, or omg after eight, but overall, I think 6:30 is an ideal time. This isn’t earth-shattering news. It’s just the facts. And the troublesome reality that as one ages, one prefers earlier evenings. Shh! No one around here is old. Just old-er.
In other news, I tried the special (limited edition) ‘Aww Shucks’ ice cream at JP Licks this week and it was awesome. Yes, it’s a corn-flavored ice cream dotted with pieces of corn and I loved it. My usual is chocolate chip but sometimes I crave something different. I loved this one and appreciated the unique, sweet/salty flavor. If you are also someone that dares to try the different when ordering ice cream, I highly recommend this one! It’s gluten free as well - of course. :)
Now that I’ve talked about food for too many paragraphs, and repeatedly told you it was Seth’s birthday, it’s time to move along with the day! I’m about to have a mini gluten free + vegan coffee cake muffin from Abe’s to go with my coffee.
I hope you have a wonderful Sunday filled with something scrumptious. You deserve it!
Have a sweet one!
Cheers and joy,
Mollie