Happy birthday to my wonderful wife and life partner, and best friend. We’ve been together for half our lives, 25 years, which has been a tremendous journey.
I also want to share my Happy New Year wishes with all my Jewish friends as they celebrate Rosh Hashanah from 25-27 September, which is also year 5783 in the Jewish calendar. Time flies when you are part of the oldest religion in the World.
What food is served at Rosh Hashanah?
It is New year, so we must celebrate in style and with delicious food. And, to indulge, they serve challah, brisket, matzo ball soup, challah, and apples dipped in honey – and my favorite bread, challah. And, of course, some red wine.
Schools are closed Monday and Tuesday to celebrate Jewish New Year, allowing the kids to sleep in, keep their pajamas on, and slumber in front of the TV. And the commuter traffic is flowing much better.
Meeting the South American flower
Our paths crossed in Dublin in the late 90s when we attended a fun night out with our new colleagues at IBM. In her drunken rage, she laid down the road to stop the next taxi – which did not pass by too often. Her antics worked, and an irate Irish taxi driver stopped his little sedan abruptly. We shared the taxi ride, and I ended up paying as a gentleman; and I dropped her off at her place before I headed to my B&B.
The following days we spent smirking and flirting with each other. As a clumsy teenager, I invited her out for a drink and giggled while drooling as she said yes.
And so, a relationship blossomed, and we started to see each other more frequently, both during lunch at work and for a few pints in the evening.
Within three months, she moved into my one-bedroom apartment in the center of Dublin. We started our traveling adventures with visits to Galway, Paris, Denmark, Belfast, London, Kos, and Egypt.
Soon after, we got engaged while in Paris, got married in Denmark, welcomed our three kids to the World not simultaneously, and bought our first house.
Later we moved to the US, where we settled in very well and enjoyed life to the fullest.
She was by my side as I fell seriously ill and supported me throughout my recovery.
Having her by my side is a privilege, and I look forward to many more years.
Celebrating a wonderful woman
It is essential to celebrate the ones we love, so Friday night, we took the lovely wife and mother out for dinner at our local falafel place, loading up on delicious middle eastern inspired dishes. Our local ice creamery sponsored desserts.
Saturday was spent with some hectic kids activities and then a well-deserved sit-down dinner.
I prepared Beef Wellington with cream-baked potatoes, her favorite beef dish. We had a sit-down family dinner Saturday evening, missing the oldest offspring as she is away on college duty, while we enjoyed a nice bottle of red wine.
Sunday, we ventured to the City (New York) to visit an art exhibition for Gustav Klimt. Funnily enough, it is an artist we both admired before we met, so this was a special moment.
We stopped by our favorite Vietnamese restaurant for dinner on the way home from New York.
All-in-all, and win-win weekend.
Cooking For My Love
Supporting our family’s birthday tradition, where the person gets to choose what to eat and do for an entire week, my dear wife selected a few favorite dishes.
She’s a massive fan of seafood and Spanish-inspired dishes, and poultry, so I picked the easiest to make in advance and safely stored in the fridge.
I’ll be preparing other delicious meals on the weekends when I have more time, and we can cook fresh seafood.
| Lunch | Dinner | |
| Monday | Left-over Vietnamese food | Turkey & Zucchini burgers |
| Tuesday | Roast beef & with provolone sliders | Taco Tuesday; tilapia |
| Wednesday | Salami and boiled egg sandwich | Seafood Lasagne |
| Thursday | Mexican Pizza | Spanish Tapas feast |
| Friday | Grilled chicken caesar salad | Sushi & Pizza … I’m meeting up with the knuckleheads for meat, fire, and beer |
One day, I might get so organized that I will link the meals below to my recipes. We can only live in hope!
Have a fantastic week, my friends. I hope you enjoy these meal plans. It is much easier to make food in advance, although you must invest several hours preparing meals during the weekend.
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