Thanksgiving: the plan

Since this is the first year we're back in California--not to mention the first time we a.) have a real house since living in California and b.) we have a real table--I offered to host Thanksgiving dinner for us, my mom and step-dad, and my grandma and grandpa, plus any extra Marines who aren't going home. It's an odd holiday and most of them save up their money and leave to go home for Christmas. If you happen to live near a base, please consider adopting a few Marines/Sailors/Soldiers/any service member (or a whole unit) if you can. It's very rough to be alone on the holidays. But I digress.

Now, being vegetarians, this has always been a weird holiday for us when it comes to cooking. The first year we went veggie, we had vegetarian shepherd's pie as our main course. Last year, it was lobster tails. This year, we're actually doing the Tofurky route (if you've never heard of Tofurky before, click here). We're actually pretty excited to try it out.

My menu looks like this for now:

Appetizers
- black olives
- green olives
- tomatoes
- assorted cheese & crackers

Main Course
- Tofurky
- Turkey breast (for the carnivores)
- Cranberry apple potato dumplings
- Wild rice
- Stuffing
- Mashed potatoes
- Green bean casserole
- Gravy & cranberry sauce

Dessert
- Homemade pumpkin & cherry pies (Jason's in charge of these--he makes a wicked pumpkin pie)

Drinks
- Mulled apple cider
- Coffee
- Water
- Milk

I'm very nervous to host my first ever Thanksgiving dinner, but I'm also very honored. However, I'll definitely let someone else host Christmas! :)

hello scrumptious!

Deliciousness abounds here at Two Nuts in a Shell!



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Chocolate-Butterscotch Chip Cookies
(these may very well be the best cookies ever made)

Basic sugar cookie recipe:
1 ½ cups powdered sugar
1 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla {I used 2 as usual, because I love vanilla}
1 large egg
2 ½ cups all purpose flour (not self rising)
1 teaspoon baking soda

1. Heat oven to 375-degrees F.
2. In large bowl, beat powdered sugar, butter, vanilla and egg with electric mixer on medium speed. Stir in flour and baking soda.

For Chocolate-Butterscotch Chip Cookies...
Add half a bag of Hershey Special Dark Chocolate Chips and half a bag of Nestle Toll House Butterscotch Morsels to dough. Mix well.

3. Bake 7-8 minutes until edges are golden brown. Cookies will be pale. {I had to cook mine for 12 minutes because our oven is lame}


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I don't know if there is an actual recipe for this type of cookie--I like to think I made it up, because I happened to love the combination of chocolate and butterscotch. But if there is a recipe out there, don't tell me! ;) These cookies are nice and rich, so be sure to have a tall glass of milk near by.

And now some deliciousness for your eyes (since we've taken care of your stomach).



This lovely set of vintage luggage now has a proud owner: ME! I found this delectable treat on eBay for a mere $75. It took almost my whole allowance, but it was money well spent! The outsides are in near-perfect condition, the insides are flawless, and the key is included! Such a set has escaped me for years (I've always wanted old fashioned luggage, even before I was ever "into" the whole vintage styling). I believe these are from the late fifties, early sixties. They're absolutely beautiful and I can't wait to get my little paws on them! I've been picturing myself stepping off the plane in Oregon with my suitcase and hatbox in hand, perfectly complimenting my vintage-esque outfit, curled coif, and artfully applied make-up.

...okay, so I'm a bit more rumpled and disheveled after an airplane ride, but I can dream can't I?!

success all around!

Just this morning I tried my hand at good old fashioned sunny-side-up eggs. Personally, I can't stand to eat egg yolks, even scrambled, unless they're in a cake or something. I had a not so good experience with congealed egg yolks... blech! But Jason loves sunny-side-up, so with our last two eggs, I made him breakfast.


(The bottom egg got a bit wonky coming out of the shell.)

And instead of toast, he wanted to sop up his yolks with a toasted onion bagel half.



I got two thumbs up on their outcome, although he did mention they were rather spicy. I overdid the pepper a bit because I was so terrified they'd taste horrible!

After breakfast, I struck gold with my sponge curlers! Last night I rolled them with freshly washed hair (treated with a leave-in conditioner to prevent frizz). I covered them with a silk scarf and went to bed. This is this morning after taking the scarf off.



They unrolled into very bouncy Shirley Temple curls. I must have stood in front of the mirror for a good three minutes just watching them heave up and down.



Brushed out. The right side turned out great, but there was an explosion of curls on my left side! Had my whole head looked like this, I could have called it a 'do.



But instead, I did my patented faux victory rolls. Basically, I pull the sides back, twist them towards my head, and push forward to give them a little volume. Secure with bobby pins, and voila! Faux victory rolls. A little more brushing and some more conditioner helped tame any frizz.



I'm super pleased with the results; more so now that I know I can actually use sponge rollers. Having to drag curling irons, flat irons, and hair dryers all over the country when we travel is a headache! These are compact and quick--plus, the bulk of the work is done while I'm sleeping!

Oh! I can't leave without the outfit! I did go a little retro with this halter sundress today. I think it's actually an eighties-does-the-fifties dress, but it's a nice lightweight cotton and I can wear my knee brace under it without any problems.



Outfit Details: Cotton halter dress - eBay; black heels - Anne Klein; vintage vanity - belonged to my great grandmother (<--- it will be getting a face lift soon)

on the home front

Yesterday I went to town on our kitchen. Took everything off the counters, took the microwave and the stove apart, swept, mopped, the whole shebang. I find it strangely comforting to walk into the house and smell the aroma of Pine-Sol. I also got to work on our corner unit. We bought (what we thought) was going to be a temporary solution for our storage problems; it turned out to be one of the sturdiest little pieces we've bought--and it was from Target! It's very simple, which I like because it blends in with everything around it, but it really needed another paint job!

Notice the original orange color peeking through the worn espresso paint here.

I think this was the first piece of furniture I ever painted, hence the huge thick drip marks.

I painted it black to match our coffee and end table that we have in the living room (and the color our wall unit will eventually become). I'll get some pictures of it once it's finished.

I also tried my hand at brownies from scratch. They turned out so freaking amazing! I have to admit I have a nice scorch mark on my tongue because I had to have one right out of the oven (who could wait two hours for them to cool?!). I like my brownies on the gooey side and these turned out perfect.

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Ooey-gooey Chocolate Brownies

2/3 cup butter or margarine

5 oz unsweetened baking chocolate, cut into pieces

1 ¾ cups sugar

2 teaspoons of vanilla {I did 3 because I love vanilla}

3 large eggs1 cup all-purpose flour (not self-rising flour)

{The recipe says you can add walnuts, but I’m allergic, so I always omit them}

1. Heat oven to 350-degrees F. Grease bottoms and sides of 9-inch pan with shorting. {I used Pam}
2. In 1-quart sauce pan, melt butter and chocolate over low heat, stirring constantly. Cool 5 minutes.
3. In medium bowl, beat sugar, eggs, vanilla, and flour with electric mixer on high for 5 minutes. {I think at about 2 minutes mine was nice and smooth, so I stopped. 5 minutes seemed like overkill} Beat in chocolate mixture on low speed, scraping bowl occasionally. Pour in pan.
4. Bake 40 to 45 minutes.*

*This is wear the gooey-ness comes from. You can cook the brownies until they’re cooked through in the middle (pierce with a knife to test), or you can stop before hand. Our oven is a bit on the lame side, so at 40 minutes, they were just about perfect. They may be a little jiggley, but they will firm up upon cooling.

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The past two mornings I've also kept up with my stretching that I borrowed from Jitterbug. It's no wonder that girl is dropping weight left and right! These little stretches can really kick your behind! I'm only doing one set of each stretches to acclimate myself with them, but my body feels the way it did when I'd work out at the gym lifting heavy weights. The backs of my legs are extremely sore from the toe touches I did (um, wake-up call! I can barely touch the floor!). I need to get my walking in, but I've been wearing a knee brace since we were in San Diego and just walking around the house is kind of tiring (my knee cap was slipping; a very odd and disturbing feeling, not to mention painful).

I have a new project coming up that I'm ridiculously excited about--simple minds have simple pleasures--but I'll save it for another post. I think I've rambled enough for today! ;)

ufc 101: declaration

Saturday night we went to--you guessed it--The Tilted Kilt to watch the UFC fight. We were joined by my BBF (best-boy-friend) Carson in the standing room only restaurant.

I stood, for two and a half hours, in brand new high heels.







Outfit Details: Grey button up– Banana Republic; Silk trimmed cami– Banana Republic; Jeans– Silver by Maurice's; Faux snake skin heels– Banana Republic; Crystal Gothic cross– Anchor Blue, circa 1999; Sunglasses– Maurice's

the tilted kilt

Yesterday my friend Katie came up to visit us. She was needing some away time and we told her as long as she didn't mind tagging along to Palm Springs, she was more than welcome! Our day started with a little make-up (by moi)...



And a before shot of my light brown hair! Our first stop was Salon 119 to get it nice and dark!

Outfit details: black lace ribbed tank top by Converse One Star, grey plaid vest by Bitten, jeans from Maurice's, black wedge flip-flops by Colin Stuart, grey velvet choker (Alice's choker) by Twilight Replica Jewelry.

Jason was set to get a massage while I had my hair colored, so poor Katie was stuck waiting for us. But it wasn't too busy and thankfully, she was able to sit in the next hair-chair so we could talk while Brittany (my stylist) turned my head into a fluffy chocolate cupcake. By the time everyone was done, we were starving! So we took Katie to The Tilted Kilt, which is quickly becoming our favorite restaurant.


(Why yes, I do think I'm a hard-core rock star!)



It's a Scots-Irish version of Hooters, but from what my boy-friends have told me, The Tilted Kilt has even better tasting food. I know Hubbs loves their onions rings. My BBF (best-boy-friend) Carson loves their wings and says they're "a million times better than Hooters." He says he'll actually never go back. Being vegetarians, we have to take his word for it.



But I think the boys just like the uniforms!



Dinner was followed by a very disappointing trip to see "Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince." Save your money, and wait until it comes to Netflix. The entire ride home all I could say was, "Worst. One. Ever!" Katie put it best when she said, "I don't feel that I got my $10 worth." The movie felt very empty and anticlimactic, which Hubbs kept repeating, was how the book was written. But there were a lot of things left out that he had to explain and once he did, things made a little more sense. So, yes. Worst one ever.

weight & see

I'm working my butt off--literally! I'm being such a good girl with this new workout regime. When I saw I was up .8 pounds yesterday, I ran an extra half mile on my treadmill before my evening walk. I'm thinking I'll do the same again today. I lost .2 of those .8 pounds gained, which is motivating. I'm determined to hit my goal weight (if not close to it) buy August 7. I plan to keep working out steadily after that as well, because I'd love to get down to my pre-surgery weight with my post-surgery results. I'm also going to stop weighing myself everyday because I know that's not going to be helpful.

The one area I could do better in is my eating. I'm ashamed to admit that the past two days in a row, I've had pizza--four slices each day (damn my compulsive behavior)! This morning I'm sitting here with a bowl of healthy oatmeal, made with only a little bit of vanilla creamer to sweeten it up. Lunch will probably be raw veggies, cottage cheese, and tomatoes (something I truly love to be honest) and dinner will be grilled fish with brown rice and steamed green beans. Truth be told, I could eat fish every day! Hubbs would soon grow tired of it, but not me! Give me fish or shrimp, sautéed, grilled, baked--mm!

I'm not the only one being a good girl though! My friend Katie blogged about our workout routine we've started via telephone. She calls me her drill instructor! I've found that by motivating her, it's also helped me to motivate myself as well. We have daily competitions to see how much water we're drinking, what healthy things we're eating, and how our workouts are going. Yesterday I sent her a picture of my vegetarian black bean burger, celery and carrot sticks with the caption: My healthy lunch. What are you having today?

post 4th wrap up

Hope you all had a wonderful 4th of July [if you celebrated]. We had a beautiful view of the fireworks from our neighborhood, so we only had to walk about three houses over. We went to a potluck BBQ our neighbors were throwing. Imagine their surprise when we showed up with our own [veggie] dogs and hamburgers! I also took this for everyone to partake in.



Amber's Not Quite a 7-Layer Dip:
1-can of vegetarian refried beans
1-packet of taco seasoning [halved]
1-8 oz. package of cream cheese [softened]
1-8 oz. tub of sour cream
1-8 oz. jar of Pace Picante salsa
1-10 oz. block of cheese
Lettuce, olives, avocados, and any other garnishes you'd like to add

1. Cook the beans long enough to get them to a creamy consistency. They don't need to be hot since they'll be chilled later.
2. In a medium bowl, mix beans and half the packet of taco seasoning [a little goes a long way]. Spread into bottom of dish.
3. In another bowl, mix cream cheese and sour cream together until blended. Spread on top of beans.
4. Spread salsa, cheese, and lettuce, on top of sour cream [in that order].
5. Garnish with remaining ingredients.
6. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.

Note: If using avocado slices, brush them with lemon juice to delay them turning brown.

And of course, I only managed to get two pictures shot that day. A self portrait of Hubbs and I, and one I had him shoot right before we left. Ah well, that's what happens when you're at a party with a bunch of drunk military families. You don't want anyone to handle your camera!

Flag halter top, no label; jean capris; white sequined flip-flops from Victoria's Secret; white sunglasses from Target; diamond earings & DIY eagle globe and anchor necklace; lipstick shade "Don't Stop" from Victoria's Secret.

friday night

We had the best weekend in Palm Springs! Of course, the number one reason for going down there [initially] was to get a quote on the couch cushions. And wouldn't you know it? We forgot to freaking take them. I was so ticked at myself for that one! I guess that just means another trip is in our immediate future! But, on to the good stuff...

Friday

Friday night we had a delicious meal at a restaurant called the Yard House. We've made it a point to try and eat at one restaurant we've never tried each time we go down there. This place boasted "good food, classic rock." Hubbs was sold on the "classic rock" angle. Walking in, it was like your typical sports bar. Until you got to the menu...



Two full pages of different beers! We could have sampled all night [which you can--$1 per "taster"]. Hubbs tried the Spaten lager; I had a pear flavored beer-cider combo [it may look like water, but looks can be deceiving!].

We split a cheesy appetizer of spinach, artichoke, and crab dip served with fire grilled pita bread. Very rich!

For our meals, we went right for the seafood. I had the Lobster Garlic Noodles, with shrimp and crab meat--oh so yummy!

It was sprinkled with mushrooms and Parmesan cheese. Mm! The noodles themselves were a bit bland, but it was a good balance. The shrimp was nice and garlicky, the mushrooms on the nutty side [not for me] and the lobster meat was so tender I could have eaten a whole plate full.

Hubbs had their Jumbo Shrimp plate, which was very Thai inspired. The shrimp came skewered on lemon grass stalks, and the plate was finished off with Thai fried rice and sweet chili dipping sauce.

We chose a dessert sampler plate of lemon souffle, peach-apple cobbler, and chocolate souffle. I'm all about samplers--the more I can try the better! They were each yummy in their own unique ways. The lemon souffle was like a creamy breaded lemon cheesecake. The cobbler had a wonderful crunchy top and the peaches were caramelized. The chocolate souffle was just like a molten lava cake, just without the molten. Still good!

Before we rolled ourselves back to the hotel, I had Hubbs pop into Pier 1. I've been on a mission to find some knock-off Pottery Barn lanterns for our entry way window. I really love their Malta Lanterns, but they started out at $30 a piece for the small ones!

Thankfully, the girls on The Nest pointed me in another direction. I only paid $15 and $10 respectively for our new lanterns!

We wandered around to see what [if anything] else we could find while we walked off some of our dinner. This lamp was screaming my name, but at $100, it's a wee bit out of my decor budget right now [not to mention I really don't have any place to put it]!

Besides, I knew I had more shopping to do on Saturday...

happy birthday to me...

Today I am 25.

Over the weekend the Hubbs and I celebrated with my mom and step-dad at a lovely Hawaiian fusion restaurant in Palm Springs. It was my first "grown-up" birthday.

Our destination was Roy's, a restaurant specializing in Hawaiian-Japanese fusion cuisine.

It was a very warm breezy evening, making it feel like we were actually on a tropical island.

Me: Pink palm tree dress by California Concepts, straw clutch (actually a make-up bag) from Avon, wedge heels by Timberland (not shown).

Hubbs: Linen palm frond shirt by Tommy Bahama, jeans from Anchor Blue, black shoes by Steve Madden (not shown).

My birthday drink, Roy's Island Mai Tai: "A sweet blend of Cruzan White Rum, fresh pineapple, triple sec and Myers Dark Rum for a flavor only found at Roy’s."

Our meal was delicious. Words cannot describe the absolute creative genius of this restaurant and its chef. If you have a Roy's near you, you must visit! To begin we ordered Crunchy Lobster Potstickers. Oh. So. Good. Mom and Jason shared a platter of Spicy Tuna sushi rolls; she and my step-dad also tried the Kobe Beef sushi rolls and said they were delectable as well.

For our main courses, Mom had Hawaiian Style Misoyaki Butterfish--a very delicate white fish in a rich marinade. Dennis had the Roasted Macadamia Nut Crusted Mahi Mahi [I didn't try it as I'm horribly allergic to tree nuts]. Hubbs had Hawaiian Blackened Island Ahi--good, but I'm weird about raw [or semi-raw] fish. And the birthday girl stuck with a light spring time dish. The Maui Wowie Shrimp Salad: "Capers, Sweet Onions, Crumbled Feta Cheese & Caper Lime Vinaigrette." It also had fresh chunks of avocado in it.

Their desserts were just as wonderful as their main courses. Hubbs had the Molten Hot Chocolate Soufflé, but of course he dug into it before I could even get a snapshot. I again chose a lighter option and went with "Anakalia's Passion," an orange and lemon cake dusted with green tea. It was so good!

But the highlight of the evening was when they brought out this beautiful cream puff for me. There was no calling the restaurant to attention, no butchered rendition of happy birthday from a bunch of strangers. It was quiet, intimate, and beautiful. It brought tears to my eyes.

And of course by the end of the meal I was feeling pretty good from my Mai Tai, and just had to snap this shot of me playing around in the bathroom.



And, without trying to sound horribly conceited, I look good with wavy hair.

Edited: This morning I woke up to four things that made my heart do a little dance.
- My husband came running down the hall to pick me up and spin me around as soon as I opened the bedroom door. His words? "Happy birthday gorgeous! You look a whole year younger!" ♥

- I had two new James Patterson books waiting for me on the couch from him. Sail and 7th Heaven. [Of course, the first thing I noticed was they were aqua and red!] I can't wait to devour them!

- He had pictures printed out of the DVDs I'll be receiving from Amazon: Six Days, Seven Nights; Beetlejuice; Jurassic Park III; and Kissing Jessica Stein. All four for less than $25. Can he bargain shop or what?!

- My inbox held this juicy little surprise for me:

Which worked out perfectly since I was headed their way to purchase something anyways. I chose to go with the Vanilla Cupcake Bubbles and Body Wash.

Apparently I'm looking pretty good for 25!

foody business

Welcome back--hopefully you're joining me from Circa 1952. I have no idea how Google works when you buy a new domain name. So if you're all here, I apologize for the rash of notes I sent. I'm pretty type-A, in case you haven't already figured that out.

I decided to go ahead and change the name of my blog to something a little more all-encompassing. This little name comes from a comment Hubbs made a few months ago. Our favorite thing to do is be absolute dorks with one another. If I tried to explain some of our antics I'd come off sounding half baked and you'd all be ready to commit me to a loony bin, so I won't even try.

On one such occasion, he looked at me and said, "We're not two peas in a pod--we're two nuts in a shell!"

Corny? Absolutely. But accurate? You have no idea...

Anyways, on with the blog! I'm so sad that Real Simple Magazine [which is the equivalent of Redbook in my little world] discontinued their "Fake It, Don't Make It" section. It gave wonderful ideas on how to make complicated recipes simple. One of my favorites was a woman who's son loved ice cream cakes on his birthday. Rather than pay the outlandish prices for an ice cream parlor one, she layered ice cream sandwiches, whipped cream, and his favorite candy together. Voila! Instant ice cream cake!

Another one I absolutely loved was this [like my trying-to-be-fancy photo?]:

Chocolate pastry rolls. Take Pillsbury Crescent rolls, chocolate chips [I prefer dark chocolate, because I think they offer better flavoring], roll them up together, and bake. If you knew how to make icing, you could probably drizzle some of that on there as well. This is one of Jason's favorite desserts now--he always makes sure I pick up Crescent Rolls and chocolate chips when I go grocery shopping.

And if Real Simple had a section for creative geniuses--well, I wouldn't submit anything because let's face it, most of my "amazing creations" come by pure accident. But in any event, genius or not, I wanted to share my own version of a "faked" dessert.

Lemon Bar Cookies

¾ cups granulated sugar
¾ cups packed brown sugar
1 cup butter or margarine, softened
2 teaspoons of vanilla
1 large egg
2 cups all purpose flour [if using self rising, omit baking soda and salt]
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon of salt
Lemon curd, desired amount [lemon curd is usually in the specialty food section, jam section, or I found mine at Cost Plus World Market]
1. Heat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. In large bowl beat sugars, butter, vanilla, and egg with electric mixer on medium speed [or mix with a spoon]. Stir in flour, baking soda, and salt. Dough will be stiff.
3. Spray cookie sheet with light coating of cooking spray. Drop dough by rounded tablespoons onto sheet about 2 inches apart.
4. Using flour to coat your thumb, press down into center of each cookie to create a “valley” in the dough.
5. Bake 8-10 minutes until light brown [centers will be soft]. Let cool 1 to 2 minutes. Using a small spoon [or teaspoon] place desired amount of lemon curd in the “valleys” your thumb created. Use spoon to smooth in circular motions.
6. Gently remove and place on platter. *Top with powdered sugar if desired.
*The dough already makes these cookies rather sweet, so taste before powdering.

Oh these are so yummy! I took a dough recipe for chocolate chip cookies, topped them with lemon curd, and I swear to you they taste just like a lemon bar [which I happen to luvre]! I reserved some of the dough because I had no idea a.) how these would turn out or b.) if we'd like them; I didn't want 50 cookies laying around that no one was going to eat.

And before we part ways, I have to show you this as well.

Yes I know--why am I showing you an apple? Because this apple is over six weeks old! We bought it at Costco when we visited my family back in March. It's been residing in my Debbie Meyers Green Bags. When I saw them at the back of the fridge I was immediately grossed out by the idea of picking up the bag of apples and ending up with fermented apple cider. When they didn't liquefy on contact, I took one out, used my handy dandy apple slicer to open it up, and was shocked to find it without any discoloration! Then I figured it would at least taste rotten. No. Way. Juicy, crisp, just like day one. Since I bought these bags last year [and they're each reusable up to ten times] I'd say they've more than paid for themselves--three times over.

Oh! Side note: many of you e-mailed asking about Alana and baby Hunter--I'm happy to report mom and baby are doing amazing! This shot came to me courtesy of Layne back in North Carolina. Isn't he cute?!

viva las vegas! (pt 2)

Sunday.

Katie and Jason had to check out Sunday since they both had to be back at school and work. Before we left the hotel for more touristing, we had to visit the top of the Stratosphere for a peek! Here we are about 1,000 feet in the air here. Can you believe they have rides this high up and people actually go on them?! We all passed.

Katie really wanted to see the Secret Garden of Sigfried and Roy, so our first stop was the Mirage where we got to swoon over a baby dolphin (Bella) and a new baby leopard (Java).

Us girls wanted to take a cab down the strip to the MGM for lunch, but the boys forced us to suck it up and walk. We got to pass through Hermes, Prada, and the other lovely (over priced) forum shops, but we also tossed many pennies into the fountains outside of Caesar's Palace. Here's Hubbs and I enjoying the light mist coming off the water (it was all we could do not to jump in).

We enjoyed a lovely lunch inside the Rainforest Café. It's a gorgeous restaurant that's all themed out with animals, vines, and fish tanks. About every 30-45 minutes there's a thunder and lightening storm, and it rains (not on you). It was dark and cool, exactly what we needed after our trek.

Before Jason and Katie left, we shot over to the M&M factory for dessert (I was much more behaved this time) and to New York, New York so Katie could reminisce about home. We headed back to the hotel to say our farewells where Hubbs and I promptly fell into our bed for a nap before dinner. Thursday marks four years that we've been together, so along with celebrating Katie's birthday, we also wanted to kick up our heels in celebration of our four years! We made reservations at The Top of the World, the Stratosphere's restaurant.

Little black dress from Wet Seal (another high school purchase--though it fits much better now!), satin heels by Wild Diva, pearl jewelry set from Helzburg Diamonds, vintage black beaded bag.

Hubbs was looking mighty sharp too (forgive the bad flash--ahem!--some one's finger was in the way...).

We got to our table right as the sun was setting.

The special little butters, shaped like the Stratosphere.

The dessert tray, which I didn't touch!

We started to watch the lights come out in the downtown section of Las Vegas...

...and got all sappy looking at one another over the glow of the candle light. We were so entranced with each other, we didn't realize they'd brought us out a special anniversary truffle and told us to make a wish for the years to come. I started crying.

We ended the night winning $60 from the penny slots in the casino and passed out once our heads hit the hotel pillows.

Coming up next, our big payout on Monday...