New Jersey

Monday, already? First I have to ask you, did you enter The Olive Press giveaway yet? Because it’s a good one and because a great response to this giveaway means I will schedule lots more giveaways in the future. I am hard at work trying to find great prizes from great companies for you all, so make sure to enter! 😉

How was the weekend? Mine was excellent. It started with a half day Friday and a more than annoying train ride to NJ.  The Amtrak conductor on train 137 DEMANDED that I move seats at Providence to accommodate 3 people traveling together. Me, with my laptop and paperwork and books and all out, me working away on the left side of the train so I could see the ocean in Old Saybrook and Mystic, my plan since I bought the tickets. Now, I am a nice person and would have willingly gotten up, had there been no other seats together for these people, but well, there were seats a few rows down, and how rude to just tell me to MOVE like that? Manners, Amtrak employees, manners. On the way back I saw the same conductor yelling at a family for taking too long to get off the train. Cranky pants.

After that snafoo, the weekend got better. I had very limited internet access other than my Blackberry so I went with the flow and enjoyed something that I am never am, UNPLUGGED. My back thanks me for not being hunched over a computer for a few days, my mind thanks me for not obsessing over work and blogging, and my heart thanks me for filling it with the warmth and love that only going home can do.

I got to see my almost 96 year old nana who is mentally sharp as a whip and in pretty excellent physical shape too. I spent lots of time hanging with mom, playing with my niece, and catching up with my sister and brother in law. It was perfectly restful and restorative. I have a CRAZY busy week ahead, with 2 dinners out, a wine tasting Tuesday, and Vino Voyage on Thursday (and possibly Taste of the North End Friday!), not to mention the launch of a bunch of work projects, so it was nice to just be.

There was some great food, including a visit to Vincenzo’s, a homey Italian ristorante with delicious food.

Complimentary bruschetta got us started. 

And we shared a Shrimp Milano with shitake mushrooms for the table.

Along with an antipasto, soft mozzarella drizzled with fine olive oil

And a house salad, dressed with olive oil and vinegar

My entree was a big splurge, spinach ravioli with creamy spinach sauce. It was rich and buttery with wilted spinach. The sauce tasted like it had a bit of liqueur in it,and it reminded me I need to make one of my favorite dishes that my mom makes, a delicious creamy shrimp dish with Ouzo and dill. Amazingness. 

After dinner my niece, Isabella, hosted an ice cream party for the family. She is almost 3, so she made her own sundae for the first time. Sprinkles were the main concern, although there were strawberries, bananas, caramel, chocolate, and whipped cream as well.

Isabella agreed to have a sleepover with my mom and me, so she packed her overnight bag, and we spent the rest of the evening “cooking” with dried beans and pasta, playing veterinarian with band-aids and stuffed animals, and finally reading stories in bed with teeny tiny armed hugs. Is there anything better?

I don’t think so.