Happy 11th Anniversary

As I type, it's just after 8:00...... we went out for dinner to Babbo Bruno's, for an anniversary dinner. The owners of the restaurant had sent us an anniversary gift-coupon for a free dessert, so we ate just half of our dinners (which we usually do anyway) and then splurged on their "flourless chocolate cake" afterwards. I had to laugh because we didn't finish the main course, but there was precious little left on that dessert plate when we were done. That flourless chocolate cake is served warm, and it's delicious. They always put either ice cream or gelato on the plate, which I only take one tiny taste of..... I figure that I'm using up enough calories on the cake.... I don't need to add on the extra sin of the ice cream.

Eleven years.... seems like yesterday that we were up in NY for our wedding ceremony, and then celebrating at Lou's restaurant for the dinner with our family and friends afterwards. How did all these years go by in just a heartbeat? We have a video of the wedding dinner, and we've watched it over the years. At times it's sad to see, because there are at least half a dozen people on that video who have passed away now.

On this day, right at this moment, my husband is faxing paperwork into the realtor's office for that house on top of the mountain...... so negotiations have begun. It's yet another sign, I swear. The date on the original deed was my husband's mom's birthdate, and now we've set the motions in place on the date of our anniversary. Now honestly....... wouldn't you agree that it's yet another sign? (My husband thinks it's merely a sign that I've lost my mind.)


We were going to call our little Miss C to tell her that paperwork has begun for the house, but we'll wait on that. She's bound to call anyway. That child has been calling here every other day since we got back from the Hill Country. She has no idea about the process of buying a house, and I think she equates the purchase of a house with the purchase of a book: find the one you like, pay for it, and it's yours. Little Miss C already has a collection of things to bring to "her room" in that house, such as artwork she's drawn, and clay statues she's made. She has carefully picked out things from her room that will "fit in" with a country-cottage home on the top of a mountain. And she has volunteered to go up there with us every time we go, so she can help "to clean, to garden, to rearrange, to do whatever you need." Bless that child, I swear. I hope she has extra-special angels watching over her every minute of every blessed day.

From my lips to God's ears............ Do you hear that, Miss Frankie? Watch over that child!

That mountain-top home is so much on my mind these days that I totally forgot that Barry Manilow (!!!!!!) was on The Today Show this morning. Sorry, Barry... it just plain slipped my mind. I wonder if Barry would like to sing from a mountain top in the Hill Country of Texas? I know one thing for sure--- I won't be blasting Manilow's music from that mountain-top, the way I do in my car or in our home here. It's just so quiet on that mountain, and I wouldn't want anything to disturb that. Not even Manilow. (Sorry again, Barry.)