Dinner at Las Tablas with Limey and Danielle

Liam, Quinn, Makai, Dallas, Biran, Trent, Fitz, Conor, Todd, Jill, Danielle, Limey, Me, Jen, Jamie

Dallas, Biran, Trent, Fitz, Conor, Danielle, Limey

Liam, Quinn, Makai

Liam, Quinn, Makai, Dallas

Limey was still in town from Singapore and Danielle in from Korea, so we met up with a bunch of the kids for dinner at Las Tablas. Fun to see everyone. Trent also came in from Kentucky! The food at Las Tablas was decent but the service was not good. Maybe because we were such a large group!

Dinner at Grassroots and Avenue Q

 This year we sat outside for dinner and we could see this sign from our seats!

I always wanted to see Avenue Q when I lived in NYC. Finally got to see it tonight with my mom at our annual dinner/theater date! We had so much fun at the Mercury Theater last year, we went again this year. And again had dinner at Grassroots. So delicious! And we love how the owner walks around making sure everything is great and everyone has what they need.

I wasn’t sure how RACY Avenue Q would be. The answer is, it’s pretty racy. But it’s PUPPETS! So it doesn’t seem as bad. It was hilarious and I really enjoyed the show. And how my mom got called out for using the internet for PORN (we had front row seats!).

2018: Grassroots + Avenue Q
2017: Grassroots +  Hair: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical
2016: Daniel Tiger Live with Makai (does this even count!?)
2015: First Wives Club
2013: Shrek the Musical with Dad and Jess (Does this count!?)
2012: Buona Terra + Showboat at the Lyric Opera
2011: Gosu + Beauty and the Beast
2010: El Nandu + Hubbard Street Dance
2009: Rhapsody + Jersey Boys
2008: Landmark + Dead Man’s Cell Phone at the Steppenwolf Theater
2007: Costello’s + Blue Man Group
2005: Hillary’s Urban Eatery (HUE) + Wicked
2004: Petterino’s + Mamma Mia
Ze Olde Days (1999?): Riverdance in Milwaukee
Ancient Times (1997?): Lorie Line

Mike and Jill’s Wedding

The weekend after we got back from Arizona, my parents came down to visit and babysit Makai so we could go to Mike and Jill’s wedding. My dad took this photo of us as we were leaving.

Before the wedding ceremony we all met up at JP Burke’s. Dallas did not want his photo taken. Can you tell?

The wedding was a Catholic ceremony at St. Alphonsus Church. I couldn’t believe the architecture. The church was mind blowing. And the ceremony was only a half hour long! I was expecting at least an hour.

The wedding reception was held at Zia’s Lago Vista. When we walked in we were greeted by a bagpipe player.

I tried on Christine’s lipstick in the bathroom (Stila all day – Fierce).

 At dinner some of us we jammed in the corner because of a seating mix up. Whatever. We still had fun!

After dinner it was dancing, dancing, and more dancing! Fun wedding!

Dinner at Grassroots and Hair: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical

My mom and I have a tradition of going to see a play or musical or opera or dance show every year. Since Makai was born the tradition has been rocked a little. I mean. Kids shows like Shrek the Musical and Daniel Tiger Live don’t really count, do they? And this was usually something we did on our own, not with kids along! This year was a little weird with getting laid off and getting a new job and getting back into a routine and on our feet. FINALLY in late September we finally got to go.

For dinner we went to Grassroots, which used to be called Deleece, but was Deleece’s “newer” location, not the one we went to when Dallas lived on Irving and Ashland. The restaurantis right next door to the Mercury Theater, where we were going to see Hair: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical. When I say right next door, I MEAN right next door. Like the restaurant and the theater share a bathroom!

Grassroots focuses on simple, farm to table comfort food that is locally sourced. To start I had brussels sprouts and mom had a sausage and walnut soup.

As a main course mom had some delicious chicken with beans and garlic mash.

I had shrimp and vegetable linguine with pasta made in-house.

For dessert we shared, but mom had chocolate truffles in an espresso sauce.

I had brownie with house-made marshmallow fluff, bruleed bananas and salted peanut ice cream.

I asked if the theater served cocktails, as we’d had a few drinks with dinner. We were told that they don’t, but that we could get a glass of wine in a to-go paper coffee cup! So we did that, of course.

Since Hair was in a small theater, I splurged and got third row seats. Splurged, but tickets were less than balcony seats downtown! The stage was built out into the the seating area, so even though we were in the third row, we were really in the front row for a lot of the action. Close enough for cast hugs, and the handing out of flowers, and… in the first song, a guy took his pants off and handed them to me! So yah. It got interactive.

Coincidentally, I’ve been reading a book called The Nix that takes place in the present day and also in the time of the 1968 DNC riots in Chicago. Lots of overlapping themes with Hair. War. Peace. Hippies. Protesting. Some themes were a bit more racy, like drugs and sex. At one point in the play, everyone on stage was naked! But it was dark.

I loved the show. So much amazing talent on the stage. I don’t know if I’d want to sit in the front row for every show, but it was cool to experience.

Here are all of the dinner-and-a-show days we’ve done over the years:

2016: Daniel Tiger Live with Makai (does this even count!?)
2015: First Wives Club
2013: Shrek the Musical with Dad and Jess (Does this count!?)
2012: Buona Terra + Showboat at the Lyric Opera
2011: Gosu + Beauty and the Beast
2010: El Nandu + Hubbard Street Dance
2009: Rhapsody + Jersey Boys
2008: Landmark + Dead Man’s Cell Phone at the Steppenwolf Theater
2007: Costello’s + Blue Man Group
2005: Hillary’s Urban Eatery (HUE) + Wicked
2004: Petterino’s + Mamma Mia
Ze Olde Days (1999?): Riverdance in Milwaukee
Ancient Times (1997?): Lorie Line