Celebrations!

Following the graduation ceremony, Tony and I had a family party back at our house.  It was a great way to close out the day, surrounded by great company and good food.

My mom offered the suggestion of having beef on weck (excellent alternative to Tony and my idea--- pizza).  It was a huge hit, and went well with the variety of salads and sides that other people brought.  It was a huge group effort!

The celebratory toast was well-fueled by champagne and my father-in-law’s favorite… Red Cat.  Not a single drop was left in the several bottles finished by the end of the night.  Luckily, people had many hours over which to finish it.

I really enjoyed seeing my mom and mother-in-law together.  They had no problem entertaining one another!  Kit joined in too :)

The guys of course didn't have any trouble keeping each other entertained.  

Tony and I really enjoyed seeing Matt, Sarah, Lindsey, and James.  Tony and Matt at one point brought in some live music, as they went upstairs to play a little bit of bass.  Sarah, Lindsey, and I agreed that we need a girl’s day soon!  I am looking forward to visiting at Sarah and Matt’s house with Tony (and Butters) next week!

Kit and I used the opportunity to get some pictures together.  She educated me on the importance of “skinny arm,” to prevent this: Laura Gross Arm

The retake with “skinny arm” came out much better.  We will have to add Liz in also the next time we all are together.

Since my Grandmom passed away, I know it has been very hard for Granddad.  They were married for more than 60 years, and really were the loves of each others’ lives.  This weekend was the first time I really saw my Granddad enjoy himself since she passed in January.  He enjoyed talking with Pete and Paul, and I am sure entertained them with a few of his great stories. 

Lori and Mitch brought the cake, which was a huge hit!  The design was awesome, and not a single piece left by the end of the night.  

Butters desperately hoped for just a single piece (or maybe two).  He eyed the cake in between distributing puppy kisses to the guests.  He also accidentally got a few sips of champagne that someone had left too close to his level.  Luckily he didn't appear tipsy at the end of the night.

Paul, Jess, and Margie also stayed for the weekend.  Jess and Butters finally got a picture of their matching Tootsie-Roll shirts.   We had a very low-key time together after the eventful Friday.  We played Cranium (first time for Jess) and enjoyed one of Tony and my favorite local restaurants, Militello’s.  

What a great end a weekend of celebrations!

Family Dinner at the Murek's!

Last week, Tony and I celebrated Easter with Lori, Mitch, Shelby, and Rob.  Unfortunately, Haley and Josh couldn’t join us, but hopefully next time!  We had a lot of fun, and Butters thoroughly enjoyed himself as well.  We look forward to these dinners together as a family.  Weekend trips home, like this one, have helped keep us grounded during our time in medical school.  It makes me sad that they won’t be as often when we move to Texas next month.  However, they certainly will give us a great incentive to come home!

Mitch made a new cheese dip!  It was so tasty, especially paired with the mini sausages. 

Mitch loves to take new recipes and add his own finishing touches.  He has done this in the past with stews and soups, which always are a big hit!  This time was no different, as I couldn’t help but have a few extra samplings! 

These two crack me up! What a great couple!

Shelby, Tony's sister, met her boyfriend, Rob, last year.  They go to college together at Niagara University, and it is obvious that they both kinda like each other :) Even though I have met Rob a few times in the past, this was the first time we really had a chance to sit down to chat for a while.  Both are doing great in school.  They are carefully considering career choices, and thinking about grad schools: law for Rob and education Masters or PhD for Shelby.  However, it seems their hardest decision right now is deciding on the kind of dog to join them in the coming years:  Rob is not too keen on the Maltese that Shelby wants.  However, we are working on him :)

Lori made two of my FAVORITE dinner items: twice baked potatoes and seasoned steaks right off the grill. 

Her twice-baked recipe is so good.  She bakes the potatoes first, cuts them in half, and scoops out the potato center.  Using a mixer, she beats the potatoes and adds cheddar cheese plus real bacon (sometimes also sour cream).  Each is topped off with some bacon bits, after stuffing the mix back into the potato shells.  They are baked in the oven for a second time and come out absolutely delicious. 

The steaks came from the Alabama Store, which has the best cuts of meat I have ever tasted.  After adding some seasoning, Lori cooked them to perfection on the grill… didn’t even need steak sauce!

The meal was topped off with this delicious two-tiered cake (vanilla with a raspberry center).  Aren’t the peep decorations a great idea for Easter?  So creative

I liked this cake so much, I just had to pin it (I love Pinterest!)  And, the jellybeans were Tony and my favorite: Starburst Jellybeans!

Butters of course was also pretty happy with the whole visit.  

With all of the food around, he certainly was on his worst best begging behavior. The plate of chocolate eggs had to be temporarily moved, as we all knew what he was thinking by the crazy eyes over the coffee table.  I am pretty sure that he had a few helpings of mini-sausages, as he smelled a bit of BBQ sauce by the end of the night.  Grandma Lori surprised him with a new sock monkey, which he thoroughly enjoyed when he got home.  But, during the visit he preferred to test out one of his all time favorite toys: the good ole’ paper towel cardboard roll.  

As always, a fun and memorable visit!  

World's. Worst. Beggar.

Last weekend, Tony and I celebrated the end of March break with a surf-and-turf night.  This was something we had planned all week, and we had so much fun preparing this delicious meal as a couple.  The table was set and the wine was opened.  The lobster and steak were cooked to perfection.  We were all ready to sit down for a romantic dinner, just the two of us.

But then, there was this…

Worst. Beggar. EVER. This little dog has a lot of great qualities, but his bottomless appetite is not one of them.  And with TWO meat options that night, he was especially on his worst begging behavior.  We make a habit of not feeding Butters at the table, but he seemed to have forgotten all of his training that night.  He gave multiple attempts to convince us he was worthy of a few table scraps.  He tried sitting patiently…

When that didn’t work, he went to his crate hoping we would award him with just one… or two… or three samplings of lobster.

And when these attempts didn’t work, he really put on the charm…

Who doesn't want CRAZY puppy eyes staring over the table?!  

Needless to say, while Tony and I didn’t have the peaceful candle-lit dinner we had imagined, we got a good laugh out of Butters’ desperate attempts at sharing surf-and-turf night with us.

And, we topped it off with Tony's favorite dessert... Strawberry Shortcake!

But, sorry Butters.  Your treats come later.

March in a few moments!

I have been meaning to post on here for a while about Tony and my adventures during our month off.  But, as most vacations go, the distraction of enjoying break made it quickly go by.  Here we are, almost at the end of March, without any postings.  With a little under a week left before my FINAL month of medical school, here are some highlights from break in a 2-part series:

(1) Tony’s Mom, Lori, and his Grandma Dot came to visit for an afternoon and for dinner.  It was so nice to relax on the couch and chat.  Lori brought Butters one of his favorite treats… carrots!  He knows when he sees Grandma Lori that he will be sure to get something special.  Also, they introduced us to the AMAZING Boston Cream Pie sold at Tops… definitely recommend it.  It is made with real whipped cream, and is absolutely delicious.

(2) Tony and I celebrated St. Patrick’s Day with Paul (Tony's Dad), Lindsey (Tony's sister), Margie (Paul's wonderful girlfriend) and her daughter Jess.  Butters absolutely HATED the St. Patrick's ears we got for him, suffering through a few shots.  We enjoyed truly homemade Reuben sandwiches, compliments of my Mom’s recipe.  Paul made his first cooking video, showing all those new to Reubens how it’s done.   Also, we celebrated his birthday with… yes… another Boston Cream Pie.   Butters was absolutely in heaven with all of the new friends to give him some hugs (and new faces to slap wet kisses on).

 

(3) I went to visit my friends Heather and Bruce, as well as their wonderful boys Cody and Gavin.  Even though it had only been a couple months since I last saw them, I could not believe how fast the boys are growing up.  That is the kind of corny things adults would say to me as a kid.  I would think to myself, “Duh, silly adult, what do you think was happening these last few months?  Of course I am getting bigger and all that stuff!”  The one that really amazed me was Gavin, as he all of a sudden has this exponentially increased vocabulary and is talking up a storm! Heather and I enjoyed the glorious sunny weather, getting a tan IN MARCH!!!  Whenever Heather and I meet up, it is just like old times.  We always find something to talk about, and the time passes so quickly just enjoying each other’s company.  Tony will join us next time when we go back to visit them April 1st!  Although the pictures below were taken last spring, pretty much sums up why we are still such close friends after all of these years

Dessert Drinks

It has become a tradition over the last few years to end an Ithaca night with my parents over dessert and a special drink.  Tony has become the official mixologist recently, and boy can he make a tasty drink.  This weekend, the drinks Tony made were Irish coffees with a special twist.. a dash of amaretto!

 Perfect way to end the night, especially with the perfect dessert selection by my mom: German chocolate cake and strawberries!