Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Confessions of the Heart

It's late in the day, but I wanted to get this one up before too many days slip by and the magic wears off.  My kinda magic anyway.  I'll be honest:  I'm not much of a valentine-r.  We usually don't do much but wander around in public sarcastically calling one another 'Valentine' all day long (and sometimes for a few days in advance) much to the chagrin of anyone within ear shot.  It's actually mildly hilarious.  And of course there's always the chocolate, but let's face it - there's always the chocolate.

This year the Chef didn't work and this was all he said:  
'Be here at 7.  You're going to pee your pants.  And don't bother asking - I'm not telling you.  Oh, and don't bother guessing because you've never had it before.'
I knew it would be food, but what could it be?  A chocolate covered chicken?  And on top of that something weird started to happen.  I started to get nervous.  Like it was a real date in the old days.  I mean we still go on dates, but they're usually pre-discussed types of dates so this was kind of fun. To get even palm sweatier, when I called to ask what I could bring he said nothing...that he had the menus printed up.  He printed menus.


Exhibit A:  The Menu

Without going on and on like a sentimental fool (and for the record I don't think those could possibly even exist) he came up with a menu that consisted of twists on several of our favorite dishes from some of the restaurants we've been visiting since even before we started dating.  Because we did dinner and a movie every Sunday night for about a year before he finally got the nerve to tell me he liked me.  The whole thing was really special and suddenly I feel like I understand Valentine's Day.

I'm not here to throw sand in anyone's eyes.  Believe me I've spent many of these alone - and while it really didn't bother me, some of my close friends did get kind of down so I do understand.  All I can say is consider this evidence that there are normal, good, decent guys still left out there...and some of them can cook!!  

Tangerineade - made with tangerines from the backyard.
A version of my absolute favorite Luke's lemonade.
Grilled shrimp - we ate it with a curry aioli.
This one is a twist on curry infused shrimp tempura that is a total contraband weakness of mine.
I'd been requesting salmon so he did a version of one of my favorite salads:
heirloom tomato and watermelon, but placed the various ingredients 
atop smoked salmon.  I may or may not have teared up.
Kale - I basically love kale in any form or fashion.  
Here's the kale and gnocchi recipe from last year that people still send emails about.
Here it is sans the gnocchi.
And there's the Chef.  Yes 2 days in a row and I promised him I'd stop it now.
Midway through I said, "hey you're wearing the shirt from the first time you tried
to tell me you liked me."  He nodded and we both kind of laughed.  
He's so sentimental-it's really kind of wonderful!  
Oh and fyi - he's housesitting for his parents.  He does not have pink walls.

So that's about where the pictures ended because let's face it:  enough is enough and we had to get down to watching The Bachelor and laughing our heads off while continuing to consume course after course.  At the end of the day, Valentine's Day is really about doing something special with the person you love - even if it's your cat :).  Oh and p.s. - to anyone who thinks we have a kum bah yah...uh, we totally work each other's nerves on a regular basis.  It's the real world over here baby!

45 comments:

Lisa said...

so cute i love this post!! you look like you had a fabulous v-day and DELICIOUS to boot!! :)

this free bird said...

lisa it was really nice and so unexpected. i'm sure i'll go back to being sarcastic tomorrow, but for now am just kind of dealing with the lump in my throat :)

Liv said...

That's an awesome Valentine's Day!! We did our current-standard-issue Indian take-out + bottle of wine + Jack Bauer, but Saturday we went to a fantastic restaurant. I sometimes get a little disappointed that my man's not very sentimental or romantic-gesturey, but I'm all kinds of sappy for him anyway. It's kind of repulsive. :-)

Lori said...

What a perfect night Carrie ~ all your favs ~ he must really love you! xo

Danielle (elleinadspir) said...

So sweet!!! I love it. What a perfect valentines day. Kind of renewed my faith in the holiday with this post ;)

KatiePerk said...

How delightful! Glad you guys had a sweet holiday! That menu looks divine!

Rissy said...

umm I ate dinner over an hour ago and now I am hungry again. Gosh dang it... thanks a lot ; )

p.s. chef is adorable!

Discovery Street said...

um...did you pee your pants? I really was waiting to see a chocolate covered chicken. :)

It's true...there truly are still great men out there, I'm lucky I found one too!

Moosette said...

What a fabulous evening! Seriously dying over the typed menus... so CUTE!

Closet Fashionista said...

Awww how cute!!! I love that he wore the same shirt :)
http://www.closet-fashionista.com/

Courtney Erin said...

This is so cute and sweet! But I'm not gonna lie, I'm kind of sad that there was no chocolate chicken.

xoxo ~ Courtney
http://sartorialsidelines.blogspot.com

Anonymous said...

This is what Valentines Day should be like because of course its unbelievably romantic and sweet, but its real. Getting on each others nerves? Also real. Daily occurrence over here but hey, thats how it is.

(Um, the food looks amazing.)

the chirpy bird said...

What a gorgeous V-Day with a gorgeous man!
xox tash

Collette Osuna said...

OMG Carrie...wow, how lucky you both are..true love still exists...this post proves it:)

Stop by and say Hello:)
Enter my Silver Lining Décor Jewelry Giveaway!!♥

Daniela said...

man that's like 10,000,000 bonus points for chef!

Alyssa said...

sweet! chef is really talented! and i agree, the best valentine's day is spending it the way YOU want to! aaron and i spent it with a subway sandwich, cheetos, chocolate covered strawberries, and watching old hercules episodes on netflix. absolute perfection for me!

Claire Kiefer said...

Makes me so happy that this romantic evening occurred, that you were surprised and delighted, and that there are men who want to impress their ladies . . . even if they drive them absolutely bonkers the rest of the time. I'm happy for you!

PursuitOfLLT said...

Chef! This is so adorable it put a big smile on my face. What a thoughtful (and delicious) way to spend Valentine's.

So sweet. Loved hearing all about it, pink walls and all!

Unknown said...

You lucky girl!! It all looks so lovely, and I gotta say on Tuesday when my bf and I went out to dinner I felt like all the other couples around were soo serious and we were the only ones laughing our heads off. Good to hear you were laughing yours off too!

xx Cristina

Unknown said...

oh my gosh, what a gem you've got there, C! and mmm, luke's lemonade...i remember that. i bet it's even better with tangerines!

so delicious...so jealous. what a great little date ;)

My Heart Blogged said...

That is so sweet of him. Isn't it nice having a boyfriend who can cook? Those dishes look amazing.
My Heart Blogged

Marissa said...

Oh my goodness, what a sweet, sweet surprise! And in addition to being amazing, it seems the Chef is pretty damn handsome too. ;)

TheChambrayCountess said...

How adorable is that?!?! You have such a thoughtful guy, which you obv deserve, and I am so glad you had a great day!

Marcie said...

Chocolate covered chicken! You crack me up.
Wow, the chef is sooooo cute:).

xo M

Lisa Lisa Lisa said...

Uummmm WOW what a perfect evening! That is so sweet. What a great catch :)

And two... Umm wow what a cutie!! Brothers? Cousins? Any of them hiding in Pullman???? lol

Barbara von Enger said...

The menu sounds delectable - am sure you savoured it all in grand style. Those shrimps appeal to my senses - Your husband looks lovely, and how nice it is to have a fellow cook for you.
xx

Anonymous said...

Awww, how sweet is that?? I´m gonna send this post to my boyfriend ahahahah. We aren´t much valentine-rs either and this would surprise me pretty much too. Really nice to see you had such a lovely evening :) You´ve got a great exemplar of man there ;-)

xx
M.

Josie said...

I know I already Tweeted obsessively about this but seriously Carrie. I adore you guys. It's lovely stories like this and super guys like the Chef that give me hope for my decidedly depressing love live. TMI? Anyway, this is so sweet. And it of course looks super tasty! It sounds like you had a lovely Valentine's Day -- plus, if I recall, your weekend included some J.Biebs -- so that's always quality.
*Back to our regularly scheduled cynical programming*
xo Josie
http://winksmilestyle.blogspot.com

little luxury list said...

OMG. You lucky, lucky lady. What a sweet guy and what a delectable meal this must have been!

Laura said...

what a FABULOUS valentines day.... lucky lady! <3 and i totally agree with valentines day.. it's spending it with someone you love.. even if it is a cat, dog, fish, etc :) it's just doing something that makes you feel loved.. :) I'm so glad the Chef treated you to such a wonderful evening!

p.s. and thank you so much for the congrats... we're SUPER excited for our little one!!

xoxo

Unknown said...

dinner looks yummy xxx

k said...

I think that sounds totally sweet, good for you guys!!

Anonymous said...

Oh, how very sweet. Everything looks delicious. I am still hoping the two of you will adopt me. My wardrobe would rock and I would be well fed!! xo

RosaLovesDC said...

This is such a cute story! I love that he went through the trouble of typing the menu and really wanted to surprise you. Good for you two! (though I was a little disappointed that there was no chocolate covered chicken! LOL).

Isabel said...

sounds like an amazing day!

Valerie said...

Awww, Carrie. I just choked up at this post. The chef put SO much effort into this, what a sweet Valentine's day. The pictures are making me hungry-EVERYTHING looks exceptional. It's so nice to have a guy who's sentimental with these things (maybe because I'm not?). And the fact that you then watched the Bachelor literally makes it the perfect V day. I wonder if they allow married people to go on the show- I'm dying to go to Anguilla.

xo
Valerie

FRANKIE HEARTS FASHION said...

Um...I'm pretty sure I just teared up reading this. Could the chef had been any more romantical?! I think not! You are one lucky girl C-money!! xx

Marie a la Mode said...

Wow! How romantic! You lucky lucky lady!

PhotoPuddle said...

This all looks delicious. I'm glad you had such a wonderful Valentine's Day.

Nikki said...

What a romantic, I love it. He even plated! That made me tear up ;0

Ashleigh said...

Oh my goodness I love everything about this story. How romantic is he?! The meal sounds delish & how sweet are the printed menu's -hello, thoughtful! We are totally in on the pre-discussed dates, but it's nice to be suprised sometimes. Hubby called me with secretive plans on Friday night & I was definitely nervous, I loved having butterflies again!

Kate said...

Wowza! My heart is bursting for you, that's so adorable! I'm with you, I'm not a super valentines-y person, but I am very much a 'thoughtfulness' person, so in that way, I like it! So cute!

She Wore It Well said...

Can't the chef be my boyfriend :((

B is allergic to romance and Valentine's Day. Sucks!

Anonymous said...

stop right now. I just melted.

I gave Rob a wine journal then made a pointless argument throughout dinner to why I should retain my own bank account. Coulda learned something from you two!
xo

Kristen said...

amazing looking foods. you are a lucky gal carrie.

LinkWithin

Related Posts with Thumbnails