Date Night

Hubby and I were completely spoiled on Wednesday night...first, my parents came to babysit the herd, including taking them to dinner at the "99" (my dad and the herd's favorite!) Hubby and I drove off into the sunset (literally!) and sat down to a lovely dinner at Cornell's in Schenectady. We started with yummy bread and butter, and I even splurged and ordered a Malibu and Coke! We shared a scrumptious calamari appetizer (with the most tender calamari ever!) The salads were delicious, and then the entrees...hubby ordered the veal chop special (which was presented beautifully!), and I ordered Frutti di Mare ala Salvin (tender clams, shrimp and calamari in zesty marinara, with black olives, over linguine.) We were stuffed (and my doggie bag would be enough for lunch AND dinner the next day!) and for the first time ever, we didn't order dessert! We did enjoy some strong coffee as we lingered and soaked up the peace and quiet. Before we knew it, we were off to Proctor's for the Celtic Woman show (my birthday gift from my parents). I had seen Celtic Woman two years at Radio City, so I knew it would be an amazing show! I was not disappointed...the beautiful harmonies, the thundering drums, that adorable skipping violinist, even a world-famous bagpiper!! I had goosebumps from the first note to the last...every song was tremendous, the most moving for me being "Goodnight My Angel", "Danny Boy", "You Raise Me Up" and "Amazing Grace." I had to exercise considerable self-restraint to not get up and dance during "Spanish Lady" and "Orinoco Flow (Sail Away)"! (*side note: I wrote three blogs in my head while enjoying the music...one is about living in a different time period, one is about babies and lullabies, and the other is about music lessons...stay tuned as I get them typed some time in the future!) There were several encores before the show ended. On our way out, the bagpiper played for the crowd in the Proctor's hallway area - how the sound carried - breathtaking! As we headed onto I-890, we realized Applebee's would still be open (and appetizers would be half-price!) so we stopped in for a snack and some more conversation. By the time we got home, the house was dark and quiet...I knew morning would be a little rough as hubby and I were sure to be a bit sleepy, but what a wonderful night we had!! Thank you, Mom and Dad!