40th Birthday Plan #456

No one ever said adding kids to the mix would be easy but I didn't imagine I'd have to think up, plan, and then reconfigure half a dozen different birthday plans.  Pre-kids my dream of celebrating my milestone 40th was to take a trip to Belize. Obviously, with two kids involved and the pandemic, Belize was not a possibility.  We talked about taking a domestic family trip but realized that didn't exactly work if Evan and I wanted any time alone to have a special dinner.  Then we thought of doing something local but maybe spending one night out.  Well, none of the parents were willing to watch both kids overnight. So then it became about securing a dinner reservation and hiring a babysitter for a few hours.  Within two weeks of both our re-do anniversary dinner and my birthday dinner, our babysitter flaked and we had to beg the parents to help us out.  I had to cancel our dinner plans (the parents prefer to not do nighttime babysitting) and the activity that we were doing alongside the dinner, both in DC.  And let's not forget, the dinner reservations I made were third or fourth choice anyway.  I couldn't even get into my restaurant of choice because they closed on my birthday for a special event AND I could only get on a waitlist for some dates around my birthday.  Oy vey.

Very last minute, about a week out from my actual birthday, I found an option that wasn't easy to plan (poor communication on the part of the vendor) but was ultimately a nice, novel idea - a "luxury picnic" at a vineyard about an hour west of us.  The grandparents split duties - my in-laws picked up Aura from preschool and watched her for the afternoon and my parents came to our house and watched Iris, who was napping for half the time.  

The picnic setup was lovely but it was definitely one of those looks-nice-but-isn't-exactly-functional things.  I tried to set up the pillows to sit on but immediately slid off and looked like a complete idiot, landing on my front on all fours.  It provided a good laugh but obviously, the seating was not optimal.  The vineyard has Adirondack chairs scattered all over the hillside so I'm not sure why no one thought to put that together and combine it with the picnic setup but we did!  Evan pulled over two chairs and we sat comfortably while we snacked on a very bare bones charcuterie box that we ordered from the vineyard.  They indicated that the charcuterie box was enough for 3-4 people but it was barely enough for Evan and me. We arrived starving and so with barely any food in our tummies and a full bottle of sparkling wine (which we also ordered) we got buzzed very quickly.  Fortunately, the buzz helped me to overlook some of these little snafus but the thing that really bugged me and I will never let go is that the picnic planner couldn't be bothered to personalize the chalkboard that said "Happy Birthday".  When I perused the picture gallery on their website they always personalize with "Happy Birthday Sue" or "Happy Engagement Jack and Diane".  They couldn't take an extra two minutes to make me feel special on my milestone birthday and say "Happy Birthday Denise"???  

Anyway, the environment was lovely.  Even though the leaves were past peak there were still some colors left, it was an unseasonably warm day with a breeze, and we had the hilltop to ourselves.  After an hour (we had 90 minutes to use the picnic setup) we moved over to the vineyard seating.  We sat in a swing bench and enjoyed our buzz.  If we did this again, and we might, we'd not even bother with the picnic part and just go to the vineyard and sit in the Adirondack chairs overlooking the valley.  The sparkling wine was so good that we bought two bottles and brought them home.  We'll open one on New Year's Eve.  

When we got back home we reunited with the kids, brought dinner home from a local restaurant and ate on our deck, and then had cake that we preordered from Wegmans.  It was a low-key but ultimately satisfying and lovely birthday.  I loved sharing part of the day with Evan (it's so rare that we get time alone together) and part of the day with my girls.  I also had a nice little picnic and outing with Aura the day after at a local park.  And today we're going to a baby shower for friends of ours that have been trying to have a baby for over a decade.  It's been a good weekend! 

I'm still hoping that we can do something big for our 20th anniversary/45th birthdays to make up for some of these challenges.  Evan and I need to put our heads together and figure out where we want to go.  The girls will be 9 and 6 in five years, more independent and both potty-trained, so our chances of going somewhere cool are much greater.  We should start saving now.   

  

15th Anniversary Dinner Re-Do

Evan and I celebrated a big anniversary this year - 15 years of marriage!  Unfortunately, we had quite a few snafus leading up to our dinner this past Saturday night.  

Under different circumstances we absolutely would've celebrated by taking an extravagant trip, but with the ongoing pandemic and having two kids, it would've been unaffordable and irresponsible.  We came up with the Inn at Little Washington because it seemed both special enough for a big anniversary and doable.  We also booked a kitchen table to elevate our experience.  That meant we would be witness to the action and perhaps experience some extra flourishes.

In the days leading up to our anniversary a plague hit our house.  First Aura, then Iris, then Evan, and very minimally, me. We had to reschedule doctor's appointments, an allergist appointment, a play date with Rodney, some fun stuff, and ultimately, our anniversary dinner.  They weren't going to allow us to reschedule until we invoked Covid (we had two negative tests but you never know right...?). 

Then the babysitter I found through care.com and we consulted with to pick a new date, flaked on us.  Fortunately, the grandmas saved us and we had a successful babysitting experience.

...

I really do love the Inn and while our experience was mostly stellar there were a couple of small misses.  

We were initially seated in a small lounge with some snacks.  The snacks were good but what I didn't like was the lack of communication.  When we were seated in a tea room the woman said something like, this will be your table for the evening.  I think she misspoke but nevertheless, it stuck in my mind and the more time passed the more I worried everyone was under the wrong impression and that we weren't going to be taken to the kitchen table.  We were there for almost 30 minutes before we were led into the kitchen.  Evan thought this brief interlude was purposeful and meant to be relaxing and ease you into the experience.  I feel like I would've enjoyed those 30 minutes far more had someone said something like, please enjoy yourself while we get your dinner table ready.  It would've set my mind at ease.

There was also a weird moment during our meal where the bread guy came by with four different kinds of bread in abundant supply but only gave us each one slice/piece.  We had a huge piece of butter that was reminiscent of a bee hive and it went to waste because we had no bread to spread it on!  

When we entered the kitchen we were welcomed by several staff members, Chef Patrick O'Connell, and one staff member dressed in Catholic robes swinging a censer.  Whatever was in that censer practically knocked me out!  Seriously, I was having a hard time breathing.  The Catholic theme continued with the music - our dinner was accompanied by chanting monks.   

We were seated at one of two tables that were placed on either side of a great big wood-burning fireplace.  We could hear the wood splitting and crackling throughout the dinner.  It definitely added to the ambiance.  I loved our vantage point and the comfort of our cushioned bench seating.  The kitchen was big and beautiful and while there was a lot going on, we couldn't actually see much of the action.  I imagine that's somewhat intentional to preserve their intellectual property.  In the past when we've dined at restaurants and chosen the "chef's counter" we've been able to see everything but this was not that.  We weren't promised a place at the counter so to compare the different experiences would be unfair.

Another nice touch is that they printed out personalized menus for us to bring home.  The only disappointment is that it has the date of our dinner printed on it, not our anniversary.  It would've been inauthentic to have them make new menus since we technically dined there on October 29, 2022 and not October 6, 2022 as we had intended.  Oh well.

All in all it was a lovely experience.  I don't think we have to reserve a kitchen table again (just reserving a kitchen table is a hefty price tag) because the meal itself is enough of an extravagance.  I'm glad we did it on this occasion though because now we know what the fuss is about and it did give our milestone anniversary some extra pizzazz.

An amuse bouche of cheese cannolis and communion wafers, another reference to the Catholic theme.

Popcorn garnished with some truffle cheese and/or salt (?).  It's hard to remember all the details when some of the courses are surprises and not included on the menu.  The popcorn is an allusion to the "dinner and a show" you get in the kitchen. Some of the best popcorn I've ever had.  

This was another cheesy, creamy concoction with mushrooms. 

This was some kind of crudo dish.

Lamb carpaccio a la a deconstructed caesar salad.  Absolutely delicious! 

This was some kind of lobster wrapped in cabbage.  It had kind of a jello-like consistency.  It was very good but probably my least favorite course.  Since Evan has a shellfish allergy he had some kind of mushroom pasta.

Duck with foie gras.  Superb!

Evan got rabbit two ways.  See the bunny ears?  We especially love the touches of whimsy.  I think this was the first time we both tried rabbit.  

I can't remember what this was other than a palate cleanser but I do remember enjoying it.  

This was a surprise dessert especially crafted and presented to us by Chef Patrick O'Connell.  It was a baked Alaska with chocolate ice cream.  Chef O'Connell was personable, kind, and without airs.  We enjoyed meeting him.    

This dessert was not only delectable but we loved the whimsy.  It's meant to look like bar soap (white chocolate) in a soap dish with a sponge (angel food cake).  Even the plate reminds you of a tiled bathroom floor.  So creative and fun!

 

A large floral arrangement in the foyer of the Inn.

It was a beautiful, clear night.  One of the concierges was outside talking to us and he said that's what "rush hour" looks like in Washington, VA.