Birthday Dinner + Hotel Debates

Hi there!

Last night we celebrated Shaun's birthday. Now that we have a little nugget, Shaun decided that he wanted to just have a nice dinner at home with his ladies. Worked for me!

When Shaun mentioned that he wanted seafood for his birthday dinner, I was on board since it's simple and quick yet feels so special. Since Penelope's bedtime isn't until 8 or so, I put together a little pre-dinner appetizer platter for us to snack on until Pen hit the hay.

I picked up some hard salami, stuffed olives, and shrimp cocktail. To round things out, I added some sharp cheddar and our favorite Dubliner cheese.

After opening gifts and sending Penelope off to dreamland, I got to work on dinner. I don't often cook fish (I'm actually not a huge seafood eater), but when we came across Ina Garten's mustard roasted fish recipe, I knew it would be perfect.

And it was. The whole dish came together in less than 30 minutes and was so flavorful! I used cod fillets and the mustard/creme fraiche/capers combo was fantastic. On the side, I served skillet roasted potato wedges. Delish!

For dessert (my favorite part...Shaun could take it or leave it!), we snacked on Baked by Melissa mini cupcakes (note: their flavor of the month is berry silly cereal...it tastes like Trix in a cupcake!) and compost cookies from Momofuku Milk Bar.

Not too shabby for a birthday dinner at home at 9:30PM! As part of his birthday gift, I'm taking Shaun back to Atlantic City in a few weeks (sans Penelope!) so we can head out for a fancy schmancy dinner then!

Meanwhile, tonight we are heading out to Penn State for my sister Christine's graduation! I'm so excited for our family to be altogether for the weekend and to celebrate Christine and all of her hard work over the last 4 years. It's also Penelope's first road trip! When Shaun and I were talking about the weekend, he mentioned that he couldn't wait to stay over in a hotel because it's so relaxing and fun. I had to agree...it's nice to not have any beds to make or dishes to wash for a couple of nights! I do hate packing and unpacking to go places, but I would take a hotel weekend anytime!

What do you think? Do you like staying in hotels? Do you like packing or hate it?

Comments

[alex]

I need to try these compost cookies! I've heard so much! that looks like a perfect birthday dinner!
I love, love, love hotels!! such a treat! I don't know what it is, but I just love it!