Full of The Happy

Ah. Sunshine and roses and life is good. Life really is good. I was thinking about it last night, well soaking in the warm glow of myself as I reflected and realised there is no where I'd rather be than right here. It wasn't an especially hard road to get here, but it definitely wasn't nearly as good as it is right now and there are definitely bits I wish I could've skipped over or made better decisions for ... but I think we all have to acccept that without those bumps and bad decisions, we may have ended up somewhere else entirely. So it's nice to be able to look back and although not quite appreciate the downs, at very least be able to say thanks for getting me here (mostly) unscathed.

This has been a pretty good week all round :) Monday was a quiet night in after a trip with Rexy back to the vet. No he still has not stopped sneezing ... I think it must be some kind of allergy, poor boy :(

The Trucker threw together some beef stroganoff (sans mushrooms, of course!) for dinner and sago for dessert on top of that! He is a master of picking up a recipe he's never seen before and making it perfectly. Tuesday proved just how opposite we are in that regard.

I attempted a spur-of-the-moment dinner ... and wasn't as successful. I mean it was totally edible, but it was one of those occasions the boy was smart enough to steer well clear of me till cooking was complete. There were many swear words and threats to bin it and pop out for Steers instead. And what was I attempting to make, you ask ... Spinach, feta and tomato chicken roulade. So while I hit the filling spot on, the chicken wouldn't roll out nicely (perhaps because it had been frozen?) and there really wasn't enough to "roll" into the actual roulade. And far too much left over filling. I attempted to bake the chicken in 2 different ways ... because I found so many conflicting recipes. I won't say it was a disaster, but I won't be cooking it again. To be fair I didn't really use a recipe, I just read a few and then winged it. Which really isn't the way I should cook. Leaves far too many opportunities to feel like I have failed.

So yeah, I skipped SCM this week. Because we had so many other eating out plans it felt like a bit much.

We went for dinner with The Trucker's "other parents" (the folks of his friend in Bermuda that we're going to visit) on Wednesday evening at Shalow Waters (can you tell it's a Chinese joint?). I can't honestly work out if they do the spelling mistakes in their menu's on purpose here or not. Anyone for some Chop Sue? Either way  I was too afraid to try their Bacon & Leeches Spring Roll. Either it is using real leeches or it is meant to be litchis and regardless it doesn't sound appetising! I did have their crispy beef which was delish tho :) Yum.

Oh, and on Wednesday I heard from my surgeon's office giving me the details for Tuesday's surgery. I've got to be at the hospital at 6am. 6am ?! That is half an hour earlier than I get to work even! I was feeling a little nervous about things, the unknown and all that. I think the realisation of the pain potential kicked in as well. Apparently I can't drive at all while I have the drains in. Then yesterday I went to go and meet my Anaesthetist.

That has made me feel much better. I went to the ward I'm going to be in, I met the sister / reg nurse who will be there on Tuesday. Although seeing a lady there who was waiting to have her drains taken out did make me feel a little squeamish ... you have to carry around this square leather bag with the drainage container in it. Urgh. Then I started wondering how on earth I would sleep with these things ... sigh.

She apparently had a preventative double mastectomy, like Angelina got all the coverage for. Her chances of getting breast cancer were higher than Angelina's and her kids are 11 and 6. Yep, I definitely think I'd go that route if I were in that situation (and could afford it, obviously ... I don't think medical aids cover elective procedures like that?).

Then last night I managed to keep another Surprise Date Night venue a secret from The Trucker :) I'm definitely getting better at this ... although I can't keep the fact that I had planned a date night a secret yet, maybe we'll get there ;) Haha.




After reading Jozilicious' blog post, I booked us a spot at The Dining Room at The Union Bar. So this is a little pop-up bar and restaurant in Melrose Arch, which means it's only there till 13 July (next Saturday). I love the idea of this!

Okay so I didn't really know what to except, but we got dressed up and headed to Melrose Arch. It took a little while to find the place, because who on earth knows where shop HL63 is ?! But after a little wander we found it. But there is no restaurant to be seen. We sat and had a drink to start. I tried their 50 Shades of Grey Goose cocktail (sublime, and very interesting with the Sweet Wasabi cream on the strawberry) and The Trucker had a Craft Beer (Mitchell's Milk & Honey, I think). I'm not gonna lie, the cocktails are expensive. My little martini glass was R65.

A little later we got shown into a small dining room off the main bar with one big table where everyone sat and ate together. Not my ordinary preference, but it worked quite nicely. Strangely we sat next to someone we recognised from when we'd both worked at The Big Corporate. The evening started with a get to know the table, everyone shared 3 facts about themselves ... 2 that were true and one lie. This was quite entertaining, even tho the rest of the table was one big group of friends.

The evening was hosted well and the food was superb. My favourites from the 6 course meal were by far the savoury macaroons! Savoury Macaroon Taste Journey: 1) Basil infused macaroon topped with Springbok carpaccio, basil aioli and parmesan shards 2) Butternut scented macaroon with creamy gorgonzola cheese and crushed pistachio nuts 3) Black pepper macaroon with curried crocodile,shallot marmalade and fresh baby herbs. OMG These were superb. I also really enjoyed the Fillet dish. Beef Fillet with Cascading Mist: Chargrilled prime beef fillet drizzled with a rich red wine jus served on a bed of leek mashed potato with candied nuts and baby herbs. Oh, and the gnocchi with the lemon zest was yummy too.

The only disappointment of the evening was dessert. The creme brulee hadn't set properly and was just a very runny custard under the thick glaze (although I did absolutely love the little flair of candy floss!). I was amazed at how just about every dish came with some kind of caramelised something or other. The smash cake also wasn't very tasty (the chocolate or the weird boiled sweets inside). But that didn't detract from a lovely dining experience at all and we had a wonderful time there. Very glad we made it in time :)