Last night I came across a new recipe on Eating Well's website. It was seriously the best dish that I think Dana and I have ever come across. I knew right away that I had to share it with you. It is the easiest to prepare and tastes better than anything you will find in a restaurant. And, to top it off, its super healthy! For those of you who have children, I would do everything as follows except the hot sauce....Enjoy!

For the second year in a row, we joined our friends Chris and Megan at their house for thanksgiving. Most of the people who join us are all friends I've worked with at Typhoon Saloon. Since most of us are transplants, and can't always make it home to be with our families, we all get together and have our psuedo-family dinner. Dana made the turkey, which was absolutely delicious. I made pasta salad and my infamous pumkin bars with cream cheese frosting, compliments of my mother (who sends me all the ingredients and directions every year--all I do is mix and bake). I tried taking the time to give thanks and give everyone the opportunity to say what they were thankful for, but nobody contributed to the moment. It's all good, because it was evident that we were all thankful to be together and have great food in front of us. As you can see by the pics, Chris made the gravy and Megan was in charge of dishes. The girls hung out together all night and gossiped while the guys watched some Caveman movie. We hope everyone else had a great thanksgiving!

Rocky made a new friend during our Thanksgiving festivities. Your heart will melt as soon as you see how cute this bulldog is. His name is Crash and he is 10 weeks old. Rocky was a little grouchy and timid at first, but finally loosened up and played.

Ok, so as I've explained before, Dana and I go out every Tuesday for our date night. We usually try and check out a new restaurant each week. Most of the time, we will try something that has been recommended by others. This last Tuesday, though, we stumbled upon a great place by our house with really unique decor, not recommended by anyone in particular. We went to Hawthorn's Restaurant Lounge in North Park (www.hawthornssd.com). It use to be a theater and now turned into a restaurant. I included a pic of the place because I thought it was so cool to look at while we were there. Our food was great and, of course, so was our conversation. But, the key to our satisfactory experience is that they hand stuffed Bleau Cheese Olives for Dana's Gin martini. You see, this is his new thing. "Do you hand stuff your olives with bleau cheese?" 1. "Yes we do"..."Then I will take a Saphire Martini dirty with lots of bleau cheese olives" or 2. "No, I'm sorry we don't...but"...."I'll take the darkest beer you have". Ha! Dana has become so picky that he will now only have olives that are hand stuffed with bleu cheese only, none of that jarred stuff and no pimentos. If you are ever trying to impress him, present him with this special martini and watch his heart melt. Men are so easy :) I, on the other hand, like to try some special drinks on the menu. Here, I had some refreshing fruity drink topped with champagne. My favorite, though, was the basil martini....yummy. And, Natalie, yes, our old pics are still in that locket. I think of you every time I wear it.

As we got super excited about the Chargers win today, we realized that Rocky was equally excited, so we wanted to share it with you. Man, I love our little guy. :)

Dana and I spent the week in Las Vegas for the annual Sema Show (an automotive car show). Dana has clients that would be there, so he wanted to meet with them and check out all the cars and their parts (yes, every single car part you could ever imagine all in rows and rows and rows under 3 roofs---not the most exciting thing for a girl who has made a career in fashion. Ha!) But, it was Vegas. I know the policy is, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, but I'm a ruler breaker. We had a great time checking out all the tourist stuff, like the water show at the Bellagio, the M&M Factory, Elvis standing on the corner of the strip, and Bobby Flay's restaurant, Mesa Grille. We met up with Dana's old boss and friend, Jeff, hung out with our san diego friends, Chris and Megan, and gambled, ate, and did a lot of walking. And, Dana's part of the trip, we went to Hofbrauhaus, which is a replica of the German Octoberfest. We ordered sausages and beer, and ended the night with a couple shots of schnapps. We didn't know how potent the schnapps was, for we were a little tipsy when we were leaving the place. In fact, they didn't let us get out of there without a spanking. The first picture below is of Dana getting spanked by the German waitress, the second pic is of decor that Bellogio had for the Fall season, the next is me getting polished in the M&M Factory, and the last pic is of Dana's new dream ride, along with the guy who designed the truck. And just in case you are curious, here is the link to the German restaurant:  http://www.hofbrauhauslasvegas.com

We had yet another sunny Sunday this last weekend. While we hear everyone back home talk about how cold the days are getting, we were at the beach with no jackets, complaining how hot the sun was. Well, maybe just laughing about how perfect the weather is and how we are glad we arne't in Michigan or Wisconsin. We met up with our friends, Emily and Kyle in Solana Beach at a little gathering. They are friends who just moved back to the midwest (Chicago) from San Diego. They were sure to soak up as much of the sun as they could before they headed back to the frigid air. Heehee. It was nice to see them and catch up a little.  We realized that the next time we would see them is our wedding day...can't wait!  Pics below are of Rocky and I, sitting the way we always do when riding in Dana's big truck.  Rocky isn't comfortable unless he is in my arms and as close to me as possible.  The other pic is of the group of us overlooking the beach.

One of my closest friends from college (a bridesmaid in my wedding) and her husband, Wayne, will be expecting their first baby in May. I am so excited for them and can't wait until the baby arrives!! They are going to make great parents, and all of you will see her with her new born at our wedding. Yay!

To keep our relationship fun and exciting, Dana and I go out every Tuesday for "date night". It's fun and enjoyable and I recommend every couple to do the same. We always suggest it to our other friends in relationships and many of them listen and try it out. We look forward to it every week. Lately, we've been picking different neighborhoods in San Diego and trying out a new restaurant. This last week, we chose North Park and went to The Linkery (www.thelinkery.com) .  They were offering a special 5 course dinner.  Each course was paired with a different beer.  Since Dana and I consider ourselves Beer connaisseurs, we thought this was the perfect dinner.  It was a great night.  The dinner could have had a little more substance (I left hungry), and the service could have been better (they always add the gratuity on, so you don't decide your tip), but the beer was good, and the company was good as well.  The more beer we drank, the more I wanted to talk and Dana sat and listened to me tell the same stories I've told him before--like how I use to go visit my cousins in Minnesota every summer, how my cousin Jennifer use to babysit us and one time her boyfriend yelled at my brother, Derek, because I told on him for stealing my nail polish and putting it on himself, and how Derek and I use to spend every New Year's Eve with my cousins, Gwenda and Travis (Happy Hanukah!).  We were having a good time, so we proceeded to an Irish Bar right by our house.  Of course, we had to order Guiness.  They pour it perfectly there and they even make a clover symbol in the head of the beer.  And, we surely didn't leave without an Irish Car Bomb.  Yummy!