Catching Up

Kristie is feeling so good! Thank the good Lord! She's excited to go on vacation this week...she leaves for Sacramento on Wednesday to stay with KT and Nich for a week. They're driving down the coast to have a little getaway.

Meanwhile, Nigel and I leave for Vegas on Thursday. I'm attending my Park Lane Conference and he's golfing! We're also having lunch at Emeril's Steakhouse (YUM!) on Sunday with my Sue & Stephen, and seeing a show with September & Phillip on Monday...Wayne Brady, here we come! We come home on Tuesday.

Last Wednesday we went to see Kristie's regular Nephrologist (aka kidney doctor) and he was happy to have her back on his roster. I was fairly frank with him about my questions/concerns with the transplant team and he confirmed my hunches. Hopefully, we'll be done with the team for a while. Dr. O'Neill is so much more laid back and straight forward. He wants to see Kristie once a month...yay!

Okay, onto Cooking Class! Again, so much fun! The dishes are getting a bit more complicated and a bit more time consuming. And since Chef Tom likes to talk, I didn't get home until 11:15 on Wednesday night! Our emphasis was on braising and stewing.

So here was the menu:

Gregorio's Arroz con Pollo (chicken with chirozo and rice)
Basic Pot Roast
Corn and Leek Medley with Cream
Mixed Greens with Bacon Vinaigrette
Black Beans with Sherry
Braised Fennel with Mushrooms
Lemon Curd

I made the Fennel and learned that I really don't like fennel...oh well. I also made the salad and helped with the Lemon Curd. The Lemon Curd is to die for! I mixed some of it with my plain yogurt this morning for breakfast...nice.

Concasse means taking the skin off the tomatoes in boiling water.

We had so many leftovers that I took home dinner for Thursday! Yummy.

We have two classes left. The next class to take is the Techniques Class which, again, is a six class series. Then the Essentials Class and then the Masters Class.

But, I'm excited because after you take 5 classes with this school, you can be put on the Student Assistant list and then sign up to help with classes for free! SWEET. Michele is our SA and she said it's totally worth it.

It was Nigel's birthday yesterday so I surprised him with attending a Magic Show that was a fundraiser for Special Olympics and then dinner on the water at Saltys in West Seattle. The Magician, went into the audience and chose Nigel to come on stage for the classic stint of musical hands. It was hilarious. Kristie had a good time too. It was a fun day.

Then we came home and watched Righteous Kill...only watch it if you love Al Pacino and Robert Deniro...which we do. Good acting.