Having Emily here for 5 days was great -- I haven't eaten out that much since my last business trip! When she first got here, we celebrated with a great sushi lunch. The next day we ate at Hyde Park Grill. Their fries really are all that. Crispy on the outside, and downright creamy on the inside.

Friday evening Anthony was taking the kids to a birthday party, so we girls decided to go out on the town. At first I planned to eat at Sandra Bullock's new restaurant in Austin, Bess. I called ahead, because I knew it was a reservation recommended place and this was last minute Friday night, but I'd also read reviews that said the bar was pretty cool. A hostess assured me that we'd likely get a seat at the bar and we could order dinner there, so I gave Em Em directions, and I valet parked there. However, when I walked into the tiny place, the bar was 2+ bodies thick. The entire restaurant is cozy, and I was getting a bit of a negative vibe for not having a res. I walked a few blocks down to The Roaring Fork. There were still some seats there, so I called Emily and redirected her. We got the last table, and our waittress greeted us at 6:55 and promised to get us happy hour prices (half price food menu - sweet!) if we ordered pronto. Emily let me order, so I got us the green chile pork stew, lamb chops with cheese fondue, and a mixed salad. It was all primo, and the price was right.

Saturday Emily called me on my way home from work to take my lunch order, and she brought me Rudy's Barbecue. Mmmm. Then, since no visit to Austin is complete without a visit to Chuy's she mentioned that's where she'd like to go for dinner. However, I had to go work out before we went there! Chuy's was great as always. Anna and Emily split most of a large bowl of queso between them.

This morning, I made Scones and homegrown eggs and Boka sausage links. Emily got up and said she had a funny dream that Anthony brought her breakfast in bed and said, "This was made from the milk from our miniature cow," and she said, "Where have you guys been keeping your cow? I haven't even seen it!"

Since yesterday it was Chinese New Year's Eve, we decided to have stir-fry for dinner. However, I didn't have any chicken defrosted, and I was craving Tofu. Instead of driving to the grocery store to get it, then fry it myself, I called our local Chinese place and asked if I could just get an order of fried tofu, with no sauce or veggies, to go. After some consultation with the hand over the phone, they decided yes, they could sell me a entree portion of tofu for $6, and it came with a side of rice. I ordered another side of rice, and voila, I didn't have to cook rice either!

Anna and I hopped in the Prius and drove to pick up the tofu. The restaurant owners were very nice but curious about this order. They wanted to show me what they had for me - a large container full of crispy tofu triangles. "Yes, perfect!" I told them. "You don't want any sauce or anything?" they asked, and I told them we were going to cook it ourselves with our homegrown broccoli; I just didn't want the mess of frying it. "Are you vegetarians?" they asked, and I said no, we just really like tofu. Then as I left, I said, "Happy New Year!" and they broke into big smiles and said, "Yes! Tomorrow is the New Year!"

The tofu with broccoli, zucchini, onions, and hoisin sauce was great, and we only had to wash the wok and the cutting board!

In the beginning of our marriage, for Valentine's Day Anth and I made the rounds at several high end restaurants. This was always a disappointment. IF we were able to get reservations, we always paid way too much for a mediocre meal. Instead, I tried cooking at home, but that was no fun - I put way too much pressure on myself to make a fabulous meal, and then there was always the clean-up.

The year I was pregnant with Anna I got the idea to go out to eat Thai food. These restaurants are always a little more casual, and would not be so crowded on the big night. Plus, spicy food always seemed passionate to me. So now that is our V-day tradition.

Tonight we went to a Thai restauarant near us that is a little bit fancy. We went early, with the kids (so they could get in bed at a reasonable time on a school night and so that we wouldn't disturb too many people). They also serve sushi so we had that for an appetizer - the kids even enjoyed the plain tuna roll. We ordered the kids noodles, and after every order Colin asked us to make sure it wasn't spicy (he is still on that blasted "no spice" kick). He protested when he saw his beautiful noodle dish - it looked spicy to him - but at least we were able to get him to try it, so he could see that it was tasty but mild. He did eat a ton of plain brown rice, too. Anna sweetly offered him a carrot, which he usually loves, but he protested, "It's got stuff all over it!" Overall, the meal was a success, and Anth and I left with tingling tongues.

At home, we had dessert - Chocolate Lava Cakes. Anna and I made the batter earlier in the afternoon (since it has to chill), and then I baked them while the kids bathed. If you make them yourself, DO NOT BAKE any longer than 10 minutes. They will look underdone when they come out of the oven, but that is the idea, so that they are still MOLTEN inside.

Anthony managed to avoid ordering pizza for dinner last week. Impressive, since I worked an extra day. Therefore, Saturday night we went out to a new pizzeria in town, Salvation Pizza, one that makes thin crust pizza, Neapolitan style. Mmmmm.... You have to wait a long time for them to bring your pie (like 20+ minutes) but it's worth it! We got a specialty pizza w/ chicken, prosciutto, garlic, onion, and sage. The kids got a half pepperoni, half just cheese. Unfortunately, Colin hung his face in his hands and wept at the cheese pizza, insisting we take the nonexistent pepperoni off of it. Finally, we just took the entire cheese layer off, and he ate the naked crust, then later at the cheese layer. Whatever.

Tonight we had one of my standard summer grilling menus, even though it is so cold. Grilled chicken breasts, grilled sweet potatoes, and hummus. Round that out with some pita bread and a salad of sad-looking arugula (but with great taste) from our garden and butter lettuce from the Farmers' Market. And vino.

I don't cook on Thursdays and Fridays, because I work until 6 and don't get home until close to 7. Anthony cooks those days, usually either pizza, tacos, or something from Costco. He also makes excellent martinis and is handy with the corkscrew.

Last weekend we went to Ft Worth. We grilled at our friends' house - filet mignon for the boys, and salmon for the girls. David did an excellent job on both, but the beef was particularly fine. I encouraged him to make his margaritas with lime juice and simple syrup instead of limeaid, and I think he was impressed with the results. "Smooth!" he said. He doesn't like stuff too sweet.

Last night I made an excellent Enchilada Casserole. "Thank you for making this delicious food!" Anna said. Colin has been on an anti-spicy kick lately and was too suspicious to try it. I had it for lunch today, and it was still yummy. Tonight, we had pasta with pomodoro sauce I'd previously made and frozen, and a salad with arugula from the garden.