Meet Up with the Girls

I was late, but that didn't bother me. 

I enjoy putting my kid to bed.  It's a ritual he and I love.  So I'm sure they'd understand.  It's not like they'd question me.  In fact, I wasn't the only one who was tardy.

It had been a wicked hot day and as the sun was setting it didn't seem to let up.  The air changed when I drove over the bridge to downtown.  The night air was cool.  Colder than I had anticipated.  The drastic change in weather put me in a good mood.  It was going to be a good night.

{pic}



Out of one hundred members, there were five of us meeting up.  I am starting to foresee some good friendships coming from this, and our bond is reassuring.  I'm surprised at how comfortable I am around them, even before having my glass of wine. 

We share stories.  We ask for advice.  We laugh.  And we even have tears in our eyes.  It was a night full of hidden treasures.

Playdate with Hubby

This past Saturday my husband and I took advantage of a gift card (thanks to his boss) and we went out to dinner with some friends.  We scheduled dinner for 7:30 and tried to see a movie before hand.  Unfortunately the movie we wanted to see was sold out so my husband and I decided to do some shopping.  It has been a while since the two of us could saunter through the stores together and not feel rushed or restricted with a kid in the stroller.  J was spending the night with Nana so I'm sure he was equally happy. 

{pic}

If you have a weakness for a good martini, Radici is the place to be.  I don't drink that often, but when in Rome, I did what the Romans were doing.  I ordered the Venetician with appetizers: Kettle One Vodka, Lemoncello, squeezed fresh lime with a splash of cranberry juice.  YUM.  And a glass of Melbac with dinner.  Dinner: Chicken Saltimbocca=Layered with proscuitto, fontina & sage.  Paired with grilled polenta & house vegetable.  Double YUM!  I honestly licked my plate clean!

(I'm drooling thinking about how delicious that night was and felt it was necessary to document my meal from that night here.)

Local Working Mums meet-up

It was $2 taco night at Agave, a new Mexican restaurant in town.  I was excited but nervous to meet new friends, I always feel a lump in the pit of my belly when I'm driving to these meet-ups, but the second I sat down with the group I knew the night would go well.

There were eight of us, five went to the previous meet-up but we didn't have the chance to mingle because there were sixteen at the table and it was hard to meet everyone.  So last night was more intimate and the restaurant wasn't crowded.  In fact, we were the only table sitting upstairs at the bar. 

Drinks were ordered and the chatter was light.  There were the usual rounds of introductions and a chance to let everyone know some information about ourselves.  The group was small enough that we went around the table to talk.  It was interesting to see how other mothers viewed their job.  Was it just a job or was it a career?  How did they balance daycare and work, or did they have a nanny?  Did they work from home or go to the office part time? 

Our connection was simple.  We were all Mums that were employed.  Our children may be of different ages, but we all faced the same dilemmas every day.  Morning routines, dinner, bath time, bed time, and how to make it work so everyone is happy.  Even more importantly, struggling to keep our jobs during this difficult recession.  It was nice to be able to share our concerns with each other because we quickly realized we all thought we were in this boat alone.  It's refreshing actually because nobody really tells you what life will be like once you become a parent.  Or tell you how to juggle a career and motherhood.  Multitasking is underrated, in my opinion.

My son is 17 months old and I thought I would have it together by now.  But what I thought I would have control over, that memory of what I thought my life should look like, just isn't the reality.  The memory I had was one that I envisioned prior to becoming a parent, and how it would be once I became a parent.  My vision has changed, a lot.  For the better.  But now I need to re prioritize my life.

Sometimes I forget the things I wanted to accomplish for myself.  I had this expectation of what I wanted to do, where I wanted to be at a certain point in my life.  I've learned that things happen for a reason.  Actually, I've always known this, but it's the unexpected things that leave you hanging.  It makes me sit back and say: really? 

Last night was refreshing, encouraging, and yet I felt envious of these other Mums.  I think about these other individuals today while I'm tucked inside my cubicle and feel confident we'll be able to soothe our daily concerns just by knowing we have a support system in each other.

A fat and happy weekend

I couldn't have asked for a better weekend.  My husband and I went away for a night and had a blast.  Freeport Maine has an overwhelming amount of shops.  From boutiques, chain stores, and the LL Bean Flagship Store, we had plenty to do.  But we were really looking forward to the dinner we had planned at the Inn.

The Harraseeket Inn served tea at 4:00 along with some afternoon snacks.  We tried to make it back in time but instead was able to grab a cup of tea before they cleared the table and prepare for the dinner rush.  I use 'rush' lightly because at the Inn it feels like you're stepping back in time.  Customer service is to the extreme, the front door is opened for you, the front desk spends well over 10 minutes with you explaining what to expect while you're staying there, where you can find all you amenities, and oh yeah--did we have any questions?  It was all a bit much for us, but I guess we weren't used to the hospitality they offered.

Champagne, fruit, with cheese and crackers were waiting for us in our room.  There were also flowers in a vase for me to take home, which I just remembered we forgot them.  The hotel is part of the Green Hotel Association and they take it very seriously.  From electricity to soaps to the food, everything was taken into consideration when going green.  I found it odd their bar of soap had the center removed because most bars of soap are not completely used and are thrown out.  So the soap company had eliminated that from their soaps which turned the bar into a ring. 

We had a four course dinner.  (The restaurant purchases their food from all local farmers and is organic)  Let me just say, I was fat and happy that night.  I started out with the Roasted Tomato and Vegetable soup with chive mascarpone.  YUM!  My husband got the Harraseeket Inn Lobster Stew, double YUM!  Next, I had Mirabel Farm's Butter Leaf salad with crumbled Maytag bleu cheese, crispy bacon and champagne vinaigrette.  My husband ate the Mussels and Cockles, sauteed Bang Island mussels and littlenecks, white wine shallot butter finished with houes smoked bacon.  He ate that so fast I don't remember him finishing it.  Entrees: I had the Butternut Squash Risotto with toasted pumpkin seeds, sage, asiago, garden vegetables.  SOOO good, my mouth is still watering just thinking about it.  My husband devoured the Filet Mignon with duchess potatoes, Maytag bleu cheese, oyster mushrooms and a demi glace.  Three down, one more course to go!  Desert:  We both ordered specialty coffee, I had the Italian Coffee, he had the Nutty Irish Man.  Both coffees were served with whipped cream on the side and a chocolate-chocolate chip biscotti.  (That's not desert)  But we enjoyed that while we wait for our desert.  I had homemade blueberry pie and homemade vanilla ice cream.  I can't even remember what my husband had, it was something chocolaty and in a layered cake, kind of like a tiramisu but not that.  He loved it though. 

We rolled our way back to our room and had to plop ourselves to lay down.  I was so full it was awkward.  And it was then that I remember we had breakfast being served in our room by 8am!  YIKES... more food??? 

Believe it or not, I was ready for it.  I was more than ready, in fact, I was up and dressed by 7:15am!  I don't even do that at home.  But the meal arrived as planned and boy did they not let us down.  We each had an omelet, I had the veggie omelet, he had the lobster and cheddar omelet.  Bacon and home fries, strawberries, toast, butter, jam, coffee, orange juice, water, champagne... oh MY!  We were definitely in heaven with that breakfast. 

Shortly after we finished eating we checked out to go back home.  We could not wait to see our silly putty.  He had spent the weekend with his Nana and Grandpa ("Bumpa") and I'm sure they were looking forward to us coming home too.  Neither my husband nor I could think about food but we ordered lunch anyways and brought it home for my birthday lunch with my parents.  Lunch, a few presents, and yes some cake too, we had more than our share of a fun-food-filled weekend.

To make my weekend even more enjoyable, my silly putty is now calling me Mama  :)  He always knew my name but was always shy about saying it.  Why is that?  Anyways, I guess we stopped making it a huge deal for him to say it, and now he's saying Mama.  :) 

A night out for working Moms (WoMo)

Don't forget, I have plans tonight. 

That's what I told my husband as a reminder.  Plans?  I never go out.  I enjoy my home-time sitting on the couch and watching a couple of shows before bed.  Sometimes I'll savour a late night snack of chocolate chip ice cream.  If you see me eating that after 8, you know I'm splurging!  :)

So tonight I have different plans.  A group of local working mothers are planning on meeting up after the kids go to sleep.  It won't be a long night out since we all have to wake up and get ready for work in the morning.  This group is the first of it's kind for the local Seacoast Mother's Association (SMA).  Most mother groups are with SAHM and their babies.  I joined the SMA group when my son was a few months old and had  hoped that we'd go to some playdates.  But the playdates all take place during the day while I'm at work and J's at daycare. 

Tonight there is an approximate head count of 25 working mothers.  I was shocked when I heard about the final count.  The last thing I read was there'd be about 9 of us.  I'm intrigued to see what the crowd will be like.  Will I click with any of the other mother's?  I am nervous and excited at the same time.  I've been looking forward to the opportunity to meet other working Mom's and the possibility of starting friendships with those who have kids close to my sons age.

Had a good laugh

It's been a few days, but I'm still thinking about the comedy show I went to this weekend. His name is Jim Colliton and I had a hard time remembering it but cannot forget his show. He primarily talks about his family, kids, and the quirkiness he experiences with them. ie: where to go to the bathroom when you're swimming in the ocean; or how honest a 2 year old can be. His opening bit had us roaring immediatly and we were laughing to the very end.

I would recommend seeing him if he comes to the area. He has quite the schedule lined up and you can check it out on his website here.