This week has been dragging, because so many schools are on vacation, and therefore a lot of my team is out of the office. When it’s slow at work, my day seems to go on forever.
Luckily, one of my bosses and I went out for Indian food for lunch to spice things up (Get it? Spice things up? I’m a dork, I know). There is this great hole-in-the-wall place a few blocks away, so we braved the freezing wind to get something other than the typical Midtown soup and salad combo.
I love Indian food. I think it’s a myth that it makes everyone sick. Just be smart about ordering and you are fine. If spicy food makes you sick, stick to things that are more mellow. Also, Indian food never looks awesome.
Looks gross, right? It tastes delicious!
After chowing down on some of the above, I finished out my day and jumped in the car with TBW to go to my mom’s house for one of my little brother’s birthday dinners.
Luke turned 12 on Valentine’s Day and a celebration was in order. My mom is a great cook, so she made dinner. Her Asian Style Beef Brisket is awesome. Oh man it’s so good. She cooked that, some Japanese sticky rice and a big salad and we were some very happy campers. After dinner, Luke blew out the candles on his homemade ice cream cake!
It's covered in sprinkles and Sweethearts (since he is a Valentine's baby!)
Recipes of both the cake and the brisket will follow, obviously.
My mom’s ice cream cake is so good. I am not really an ice cream person, but this cake is just great. Last night’s cake was mint chocolate chip and cookie dough. Yum! I love the chocolate cookie crumbles on top.
Mmmm. Ice Cream Cake!
Once cake and presents were finished, I spent some time playing with the dogs. My family has two Golden Retrievers. One of them is literally like my child. Her name is Ocean and she is four. Her and I have a special bond and I adore her. We could snuggle for hours. I treat her like a person.
Regrettably, she lives with my mom in the suburbs because she has more people around and more room to play. Sometimes she comes into the city to visit me, but it’s not frequent enough. If my job ever changes and I no longer work 60 hours a week, I will take her back to live with me. I miss her everyday. It’s so difficult to say goodbye to her when I have to go home. She stands by the door looking at me sadly. I can’t take it.
The second Golden is Finn and he is just under a year old. My family got him in November and he is very cute, but he is not my Ocean. I took some photos of them to tide me over and show you!
Finn is a bit of a bum, he likes to sleep a lot.
That's Finn on the left and Ocean on the right.
Finn (left) and Ocean (right) in their leis ready for Luke's Birthday!
This is not from last night, but you can see how pretty Ocean is! My mom is the only one who seems to be able to get decent photos of her.
Sorry for the shameless I-love-my-dogs-photos. Actually, I’m not really all that sorry.
I will definitely post the recipes for the brisket and the cake later, because you have to try them!
Are you a dog person? Do you love him/her as much as I do??
Hungry Child in the City. 
the myths about indian food hold true for me.. I was not blessed with a strong stomach. I don’t mind the shameless dog photos. I do it too. My dog has such separation anxiety. I started bringing him to work which only adds to his anxiety when I actually do have to leave him by himself.
– Indian food never photos well! It can be so frustrating. But it is sooo tasty.
– That ice cream cake looks awesome. Recipe? I’ve always wanted to make one.
– Your dogs are so cute. I love dogs, and goldens are one of my favorite breeds.
– I love your blog – it’s so much fun to read all your reviews of the places you visit in NYC. Helps a newbie like me out.