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| 31 Dec 2009 11:06:12 pm |
 Dinner Party Time |
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December 30, 2009. We used to through dinner parties all the time and now with Quinn and travel and life... we have been neglect in our entertaining ways. We ramped it up for New Year's Eve Eve and decided to invite our friends Danny/Molley, Jeff/Kerri, and my bro Greg and Donna over. Greg is ill mobilized with his recent ACL surgery and also a great cook. I took advantage of both of these events to plan a great menu. Greg happened to have a duck confit in his fridge (1 in a million chance) and those of you who know this French delicacy know... you never pass up a duck confit. Here is the menu....
Course 1: Baby spinach salad with red onion, roasted chestnuts, and a home made mustard vinaigrette with garlic cheese bread
Course 2: Home made ravioli with duck confit, chestnuts, ricotta and parmesan cheeses, and fresh parsley serviced in a browned butter, sage and cream sauce (greg and I rolled the paste fresh just hours before)
Course 3: Pheasant and Chucker Piccata (lemon, white wine, butter, and capers) with French beans in a pancetta and sweet onion sauce (birds from our annual Tweardy Hunt... alive just days before)
Course 4: Chocolate and Peanut Butter pie with assorted after dinner drinks
We accompanied the dinner with a Barolo and a Brunello, both 2003 and both brilliant. It was a great meal with friends and I wish I had the time and money to do it every week :-) |
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By : John
| Category : News |  Comments [51] |  Trackbacks [0]
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| 31 Dec 2009 10:54:27 pm |
| Christmas Morning |
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| December 25, 2009: Christmas Eve is traditionally at the my parents home and this year's event was the usual mix of wonderful food, friends and family, and one too many scotches. The difference this year was that Quinn is now almost 2 yrs old and she is starting to get the drift of this present and Santa thing. She jumped and giggles with glee at the first presents from cousins on Christmas Eve and twirled around doing her now famous "happy dance". We all exchanged gifts after the guests departed and got home late to play Santa at our own house for the 1st time. Quinn was up early (as usual) and came downstairs to her new baby kitchen set (the big Santa gift of the year... and PINK!). She loved it! The grandparents and Sherrie and Matt all came for a Christmas brunch and she was in hog heaven. Center of attention and entertaining the troops! It was a great first Christmas in our new house on Stratton Lane and I look forward to many more and continuing "happy dances" from Quinn. |
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By : John
| Category : News | Comments [41] | Trackbacks [0]
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| 13 Dec 2009 07:57:59 pm |
| 3rd Annual Chili Cook Off |
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| December 12, 2009: The defending champion (aka me) had to bring his A Game this year as my brother Greg, yet to get his name on the trophy, has been testing recipes for weeks. I stuck with the same formula that brought me the championship last year.... good meats, rich flavors, and a slow heat that come late and brings you back for more. The competition had 9 entries this year and the quality of the event is getting better each year. I tried all the chilis and all of them were good this year. The judges tested and smelled and deliberated and the results were in..... (drum roll please)..... 3rd Place! I am pleased to say that Greg finally got his championship and his chili was marvelous. The Tweardy's swept the winner's podium for the second straight year with Mom's vegan chili (yes... vegan) coming in second. I suggested that I could be a judge next year to give someone else a chance to win... LOL. Great fun and a little healthy competition with family and I will have to go back to the drawing board to get back the championship next year. Watch out Greg! |
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By : John
| Category : News | Comments [41] | Trackbacks [0]
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| 12 Dec 2009 03:29:31 pm |
| Weekend in LA |
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| Novermber 4-7, 2009: I have been working in LA for most of the year, although admittedly, have not seen much of the town. Lisa and Quinn decided to join me mid week and stay the weekend to enjoy the beach and a bit of the LA lifestyle. We started in Westwood right near UCLA at the Palomar Hotel. Work is within walking distance and the girls strolled through Westwood Village and relaxed in the pool. We also hit a great upscale Mexican resturant in Bevery Hills. Mole sampler was delicious. The weekend hit and we cruised Rodeo Drive for a bit to see how the 'other' half lives and then moved location to Manhattan Beach. Much more rool at the Mariott Residence Inn and closer to the beach. Saurday was family fun day and we got down to the 'strand' early and watched the surfers. Then we rented some bikes and cruised south past Hermosa Beach. Great lifestyle out there. From young to old were out walking, riding, and playing volleyball. Beach is wide and soft and perfect for sport. After a nice lunch we all took and nap and our friends the Glasses had us over for wine and a dinner. It was great catching up with new friends and spending time with the family. It was Lisa's first time to LA and I think she loved it. We will be back.... |
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By : John
| Category : News | Comments [38] | Trackbacks [0]
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| 10 Aug 2009 03:04:48 am |
| Back home for good! |
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| August 2, 2009: more to come.... |
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By : John
| Category : News | Comments [111] | Trackbacks [0]
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| 10 Aug 2009 12:57:24 am |
| Long lost Swedes return to Pittsburgh |
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| July 17 - 26, 2009: We finally got the A Team back together. Our great friends Josh and Lisen came all the way from Stockholm, Sweden to visit us in Pit for a wonderful 10 days. The big news was dropped on us the first night that Lisen was pregnant and we could not have been more excited. It is always a balancing act when frineds come as you want to pack as much fun and Pittsburgh sites in as possible but also need to realize this is their vacation, and they want to relax. I think we struck the right balance as we did some big activities, like the Nickelback concert, Kennywood Park, Jam on Walnut, and some nice dinners out and some chill things like tons of shopping (Lisen's official sport), grilling huge steaks, some movies, and basically catching up with good friends. We miss them already and are planning a Euro Trip for next spring for sure. Until next time... love you guys! See you soon. |
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By : John
| Category : News | Comments [108] | Trackbacks [0]
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| 07 Jul 2009 03:48:34 pm |
| A Texas Sized 4th of July |
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| July 3 - 6, 2009: About 17 years ago, three college freshmen from very different backgrounds landed on the 4th floor of Graham Lee's dormitory at Washington and Lee University. Quickly becoming good friends and finghting the odds, they have stayed in touch as each has started his own family and travelled the world. Well, Gray and Brad now both live in Houston and Gray's generous family has a beautiful home in the Texas Hill Country (outside Austin, TX). Gray, his wife Erin and their daughter Hayden extended us an invitation to join then and the Payes (Brad, Dom, Gavin, and Nathaniel) to a Texas style 4th of July. This was simply too good to pass up so I flew in from LA and Lisa and Quinn came in from Pittsburgh to join the party. Now Texas is a special place and I mean that in a good way. The Hill Country is beautiful with lots of cedar and a high desert like landscape. It is also hot as hell... over 100 degress every day. Our salvation was the Blanco River and Gray's house was nicely position right in front of a swimming hole. In grand Texas style we ate great BBQ (brisket of course), home cooked Fajitas, and a classic burger and dogs day on the 4th. Gray also has a traditional fireworks display and has a zealot like passion for things that make big explosions in the sky. The men all went down to the river bed around dark and the families sat perched on the deck for the show. Gray unloaded about 45 minutes of motars into the Texas sky to "uuuhhh's", "aaahhh's", and "awesomes"!! We also hit a huge streat fair, did some fly fishing, hit the cute hill country village and the girls even hit the massive outlet mall about 30 minutes away! It was wonderful catching up with old friends and meeting their families. A big thank you to Gray and Erin for hosting a wondeful weekend and we hope to stay on the list for future meeting in Texas! See y'all soon. |
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By : John
| Category : News | Comments [121] | Trackbacks [0]
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| 07 Jul 2009 03:30:45 pm |
| Summer Vacation in HHI |
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| June 7 - 18, 2009: Almost every year since 1981, the family has been making the 13 hour drive to a little resort island off the coast of South Carolina called Hiltin Head Island. The island has undergone many changes over those years but the core tenents remain the same.... great tennis and golf, wide open beaches, wonderful resturants, long bike rides, and tons of hot and humid weather. My parents now own 10 weeks a year in a time share so they take full advantage. I have not been is a while due to the living in Europe and we decided to let Quinn experience the her first true "family" vacation. Lisa, Quinn, and I decided to fly in and my parents drove in from their annual golf classic in Kentucky with Uncle Bill (they actually almost won this year). The 10 days went by far too quickly with lots of great meals (even some new discoveries), a couple rounds of golf, daily tennis, bike riding, and lots of lounging around. Quinn unfortunately got an ear infection and this slowed her down the first week and took me to the HHI emergency room for the first time (it is like a nice hotel). With some meds she was back to herself and enjoying the beach and all the grandma and pappap attention. My parents really love this place and I can see why... I think Lisa is a convert too so I would expect many more updated on HHI in the years to come. |
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By : John
| Category : News | Comments [76] | Trackbacks [0]
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| 25 Jun 2009 09:08:07 pm |
| Take me out the Ballgame |
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June 5, 2009: The Pirates are a bit of a third wheel in Pittsburgh. With both the Steelers (football) and Penguins (hockey) winning championships this year... noone really cares about the Pirates. And the fact the they are in the mist of their 13th losing season doesn't help! The only redeeming quality the Pirates have is their ballpark. PNC Park is beautiful and with a gorgeous nigth, $1 hot dog night, and the Rockies in town... it was too good to pass up. As luck would have it that, I ran into my old highschool friend Muddy Waters and he work sat the ticket booth part time (school teacher by day) and of course... hooked us up with great seats for peanuts. We were joined by our neighbors and now good friends Jeff and Kerry and they brought their son William (now 1). This was Quinn's first Buccos game and she loved it. One hand on a hot dog and the other in the nachos... just like her Dad. Baseball is still fun at the ballpark and more summer nights to come.
Click for all the pics! |
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By : John
| Category : News | Comments [105] | Trackbacks [0]
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| 25 Jun 2009 08:52:05 pm |
| Memorial Day Pool Party |
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May 25, 2009: First big pool party of the year is always fun over at the rents house and the weather cooperated enough for everyone to take a dip and enjoy the sunshine. Dad cooked up tons of ribs and mom put on her classic spread. All the usual suspects were there... good to see everyone. Summer has started!
Click for all the pics! |
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By : John
| Category : News | Comments [112] | Trackbacks [0]
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