Uber-Awesome Wife

Finally...... I won the UBER-AWESOME WIFE Award....at least my husband says so.

I always fret about what to do or get my hubby for birthdays and holidays because he is so hard to buy for. Seriously. If there is something that he wants, he just goes and gets it. He doesn't really have many hobbies; for the few hobbies that he does have, he already has all the gear he needs or wants.
So this year I went out on a limb and created a day for him to do something that he had mentioned on occasion that he thought would be fun, but never took the time to do anything about it.

Before we headed out for Bobby's birthday dinner on Friday night, I gave him his gift. He unwrapped the box with intense curiousity. Inside the box was a jersey, goggles, and a pair of gloves.... He looked strangly at the items and said, "this is stuff for a dirt bike right?"
I just smiled.
With a confused expression he asked, "Did you get me a motorcycle?"
I replied, "Now that would be a silly thing for me to do, wouldn't it?"
He quickly agreed.
So as I explained to him that I had rented him a dirt bike at a trail park near Marble Falls, his eyes lit up and he was smiling from ear to ear.
He exclaimed, "So that's what I'm doing all day tomorrow!!!"
I went on to tell him the best part was that a few of his friends would be going with him. Two guys who already have dirt bikes, and two more who had rented as well. He was just like a little boy on Christmas morning who had just got exactly what he wanted. He then opened up the big box that I had hidden. He pulled out the full set of dirt bike gear and could not make himself stop smiling.
That smile lasted through dinner and for the rest of the evening......

For his birthday dinner Bobby chose a French place in downtown Austin that has been around for many years, but neither of us had ever tried. Chez Nous is very cute and cozy (read small) so if you want to try it for dinner, get there by 7:00. We did and got right in, but it is known to have a wait most nights. Oddly enough, it is very popular with the grey-headed crowd. First of all, I can't believe that many older people put up with the ridiculous, non-existent parking in that area. Second, this restaurant is located next door to a sex shop, and across the street from the infamous Coyote Ugly. Just one of those factors alone would be enough to deter any grandparents I know from frequenting that restaurant on Friday and Saturday nights, no matter how magnificent the food.
The food does deserve to be mentioned. For apps we had a salad and some salmon pate, both tasty. I had the delicious salmon special....I gobbled down the large serving with no problem. Bobby had a tenderloin steak, and even though he said it was a bit overcooked for his taste, he cleaned his plate. For dessert we shared a chocolate mouse....YUM!

After dinner, we stopped at the Thirsty Nickel for a drink and reminisced about his big milestone birthday party just one year before.... (good times!)
Then we headed home. Honestly, I think Bobby was just excited to get home and try on all his dirt bike gear. :-)

Saturday morning Bobby bounced out of bed and jumped in the shower. I was nearby brushing my teeth and I heard him giggle. I looked at him and asked, "Did you just giggle?"
He smiled and said, "I'm going dirt bike riding today."
I replied, "So that was a giggle."
He just kept smiling.

One of his friends came to pick him up and drive him out to meet the group. They had venison breakfast tacos and headed out for their day of adventure. About 8 hours later they made it back to our friends house where all the wives had been happily hanging out for the day.
We heard all their stories about the cold, the wrecks, the races...they laughed at each other all night. Bobby's smile had apparently been contagious because they all had grins from ear to ear all evening.
We had a feast of wild game, all kinds of dips, and birthday cake. We got competitive playing couple games and ended the night with missing drunk husband (thankfully not mine). The husband was eventually found and we all headed home to crash after a long day.

Sunday morning Bobby got up at 5:00am and headed out to go hog hunting with another group of friends. For which he caught no crap from me, because I met some friends for brunch to celebrate one of our girls completing her first 1/2 marathon. Then we spent some girl time at the mall, and somehow I managed to leave with just one item: the Twilight soundtrack :-)

When Bobby got home from his Sunday adventure he told me that I win the Uber-Awesome Wife award. I am so happy I was able to both surprise him and make him so utterly happy.

Well Crap.....now how the heck am I ever going to top that?!?!?!
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Santana & Contortionists

Bobby & I had an eventful Tuesday night...
After work, we met up to try out a new restaurant: Maria Maria. It is downtown at 5th and Colorado. Carlos Santana owns it, and you can definitely see his cool rockin' influence everywhere. The place is nice...smaller than I expected. It seemed like there was a lot of wasted space in the bar area...room for several more tables. But I think openness is what they are striving for. I can see it being a hotspot at night, full of people standing in the open areas socializing & drinking.
Even though I know you are all curious, I am not going to do a full review on our dining experience. During dinner last night, Bobby decided he is going to write a full review and post it on yelp and Google. I will link to his full review here….so you’ll have to check back. Safe to say....it won't be "glowing."

After dinner we headed to the Long Center to see Cirque Jungle....apparently along with everyone else in Travis County. It was about 7:00p and traffic in that area was completely outrageous. We eventually parked at Zilker Park and took a nice long stroll to the LC. We made it in time, but they started the show late because of "high traffic due to several events going on in the area."
Cirque Jungle was amazing!!!! I have never been to a Cirque de Soleil show, but Bobby has and said they are pretty much the same. That show really made me want a jump rope, and a trip to Vegas.
The crazy-ass contortionists were by far my favorite part of the show....they were dead on as lizards. It is completely bizarre what those tiny people can do to their bodies. It is as if they don't have bones in their bodies...absolutely crazy! Definitely worth seeing!!
The show lasted about 2 hours with one intermission.
We got home about 10:30p exhausted from our eventful night......and we still had to pack for our road trip across Texas......
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Christmas Affair & Date Night

If you didn't make it to the Jr.League's Christmas Affair, you missed out and now you will have to wait until next year. My sister and I enjoyed the event Friday after work. We parked at the Barton Creek Mall, rode the shuttle to Palmer Event Center, and shopped until it closed at 9pm.
We found some great gifts as well as a few things for ourselves. We did not eat dinner before we went, but we kept our tummies happy by tasting all the samples of dips, soups, crackers, and chocolate. Since that was our 3rd year to attend, we have now officially named it our yearly tradition. :-)

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Upon advice of our interior decorator, we are now looking for an "accent piece" for our living room. On Saturday, we went to a furniture store that neither of us had ever been before....FourHands. We were both expecting a MUCH bigger place, with lots more to look at. Nope, obviously the time to hit up FourHands is when they do their warehouse sale (at a different location). I have been to that sale one time. One of my friends works the warehouse sales, so I am expecting her to let me know when the next one is!
After a quick look around FourHands, we decided to check out The Khanza. That is where we got our dining room furniture, which I LOVE! They were having a warehouse sale at their extra space off S.Lamar and Oltorf. So we made a run down there as well. We didn't find what we were looking for, but it was fun just browsing. Totally fine with me....now I get to keep shopping!!!

After furniture shopping, our date night began....
Earlier in the day Bobby asked me where I wanted to go for dinner, and I told him we should try the new restaurant Maria Maria (owned by Carlos Santana). He wanted to make reservations, but I told him not to since we would be getting there before the dinner crowd and I wanted to just sit in the bar for awhile and chat and drink while we wait for a table.
We walk in the door at Maria Maria about 6:30p, and it looked pretty empty. HA! There was a 2 hour wait due to being booked solid with reservations starting at 7pm. My bad. Sitting at the bar and people watching for about an hour is one thing....2 hours is something entirely different.
So we headed to one of Bobby's standby favorites - Fleming's. He called to see if they had availability. The chick on the phone put his name in the system and confirmed his information and seating preference....all of a sudden he was a VIP at Flemings ;-)
We both had the specials...everything was amazing!

After dinner we walked around the block for dessert at The Melting Pot. We ordered the Original with extra peanut butter. 1 Word: YUM!
I had a fabulous girlie martini there that I intend to try & duplicate for the Girls Christmas Party. ;-)

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ooooooo.......love me some Bobby Flay!

Austin Statesman reported this on Saturday, Nov 22:

Stars come out in Austin

Downtown Austin was the destination for three celebrities this week: chef Bobby Flay, actress Claire Danes and rocker Chris Martin.

The Food Network's Flay dropped by Cuba Libre then dallied at Lamberts. We hear that Flay is opening a restaurant near the Mean-Eyed Cat.

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Perry's & Jack

Last Thursday I had an amazing date night with my man.

Bobby & I started the evening at this brand new downtown restaurant: Perry’s Steak House and Grill.

It is located in a former bank so the outside is beautiful with the huge stone pillars, and the inside is ridiculously exquisite. The building is actually very old. Bobby told me he has seen old pictures of that building with horse drawn carriages going in and out of the building's parking garage. Since the parking was designed for horse carriages, it is very low and narrow...which makes it rather difficult (if not impossible) for some of today's vehicles to park there. The waiter at Perry's told us that there are underground tunnels and secret passageways beneath the building - interesting stuff! There is a private dining room in the back of the restaurant in what used to be the bank's vault...the huge vault door is still there. I (of course) had to check out the restroom....3 TVs in the mirrors! Unbelievable details...even in the restrooms!

We chose to sit in on the bar side out on the patio. There are huge glass doors that open the bar area into the patio area. The pianist was setting the ambiance just right. Everything we ate was delicious....and of course we ordered way too much.

Cherry Pepper Calamari - the best calamari I have ever had.

House Salad - freakishly addicting

Me • Symphony Kabob • A hanging presentation of Filet Mignon, Lobster and Colossal Shrimp •

Bobby • Perry's Famous Pork Chop (Carved Tableside) • Hand selected in the Midwest specifically for Perry's Steakhouse, this prime chop is cured, roasted, slow-smoked and caramelized and served with homemade applesauce •

Incredible tasting food + amazing ambiance = a perfect dining experience.

After dinner we strolled over to the Belmont for a private concert on the upstairs patio with Jack Ingram.

Some friends of Bobby's won a private concert by Jack Ingram through a silent auction for charity. Before the concert we talked to friends and enjoyed the open bar. :-)

Jack started playing about 9:30p and played straight for about an hour and a half. We were about 10 feet away from him and there were only about 50 people there total. The experience was indescribable, and I now have a new favorite country singer! Besides being an amazing singer, he is a really sexy guy!

Check him out! http://www.jackingram.net/default.htm

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my new favorite mexican food place

We tried a new restaurant this past weekend on recommendation from several friends: Verde's on Hamilton Pool Road.
We called early that afternoon to see if they took reservations...no, but they do take "call aheads" to get your name on the waiting list. That evening I called when we left our house, they asked if we preferred indoor or outdoor seating....1.5 hour wait for outdoor seating & 30 minute wait for indoor...I opted for first available. It took us about 25 minutes to get there.
After arriving we had a few more minutes to wait...just long enough to order a couple of drinks at the bar. I had a Mexican Martini....it was a really good one, but I am not sure it was $12 good.
Dinner was excellent! For appetizers we had the stuffed jalapenos, and for dinner I had the chili relleno and Bobby had the chipotle pork chop. Everything was a little spicy and completely delicious....even the sides. Our waiter was the best we have had in awhile. (Bobby is really picky since he grew up in the restaurant industry.)
After dinner we walked to the back outdoor dining area to check it out. It was beautiful....and packed full of parents whose kids were all running around the fenced in metal petting zoo area (large metal animal statues). I could see how this location would be appealing for parents to sit, drink, dine and let their kiddos run loose. But after seeing this, I was glad for our inside dining experience.
Overall we had a wonderful dinner for our date night, and I highly recommend you try this place yourself! If you go, Call Me....we'll be happy to meet you there! :-)

I didn't find a website for this fairly new restaurant, but I did find their menu online...well, most of it. I also found some good online reviews.
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