It’s Been a Long Time

My parents came to visit for the first time in a few years. The house had not yet had time to backslide into messiness and I was looking forward to playing hostess. We were set and I would like to believe that all in all it was a successful visit.

Mom and Dad made good time on Thursday and arrived just in time to partake in the Chicken and Dumplings I had made for dinner. I have been trying to usher in autumn weather by sheer force of will and I decided to shake off summer by making some comfort food.

I also decided to get over my recent cupcake issues by baking some from scratch. Mom really likes Boston Cream Pie and Cook's Country came through by having a recipe for Boston Cream Cupcakes. Whoo-hoo! Here is a picture of the cupcakes before filling and frosting:



I think the cakes turned out well. I need to work on the filling process a bit more. You are supposed to cut out a little cone from the center and then slice off the lower part so you have a disc to cover the hole in the cupcake. My cutting technique needs a bit of work because I could only fit in about half the amount of pastry cream called for. I did, however, manage to dump the melted chocolate frosting over the top. Everyone thought they were tasty, but agreed that a long stay in the refrigerator helped them achieve their maximum level of yumminess. So, as usual, homemade is best.

On Friday, while Adam was at work we went to brunch at Route 66, the other branch of the Triple XXX diner empire. I opted for steak and eggs, Dad for eggs, toast, and potatoes, and Mom went for the Lemon Meringue Pie. Now there is a woman who knows how to rock a brunch! In her nutritional defense I feel compelled to mention that she had risen earlier and had eaten a bowl of cereal. We went on a quest for more comfortable pillows and a newspaper to round out the afternoon. Adam returned home in time for us to meet the Trinkles at the Lafayette Brewing Company. Samuel was in good spirits (the service moved along at a satisfactory pace, and the cheesy potato munchers were plentiful). The ale-battered chicken sandwich lived up to Mom's memory. And Kathy and I had time to rehash the latest episode of "Top Chef". Good-bye, Howie!

Saturday required some planning. Dad has been collecting real estate listings (dreaming of retirement). We spent the day tracking down houses for sale and scouting some of the towns in three nearby counties. I hadn't spent much time in any of them so it was definitely an interesting experience. Dad is definitely more open to the unique fixer-upper opportunity than I would be. My poor performance in Industrial Arts is not an inherited trait. My lack of skills is all me...I guess I should own it. The evening wound down at home with a bad horror movie ("Dead Silence"=Dead Lame) and a computer program problem. Dad has been working on our family tree, but his program of choice doesn't play well with Macs. You can see Adam and Dad at work on the problem.



It is now up to Joe, his PC, and his mad genealogy wrangling skills to save the day. Or it will be put on Adam's "To Do" list when we next visit Louisville.

Sunday's highlight was a trip to Sullivan's Steakhouse for dinner. On Sunday they have a special menu: salad, entree, side, and dessert for about thirty dollars per person. I had the iceberg wedge salad. Iceberg may not be the most nutritionally dense, but when it is crisp and fresh it really is a lovely lettuce. It is also a great foil for a good blue cheese dressing. Adam tried the Caesar, Dad the tomato and fresh mozzarella, and Mom the Spinach Salad. Each was counted a success. Three of us opted for the prime rib and Adam tried the Delmonico steak. Again, each one was a triumph. The prime rib was flavorful and tender.

The sides are the best. They come family style so we each had a chance to taste the mushroom caps (delicious!), the creamed corn (fresh tasting and very creamy), and the excellent horseradish mashed potatoes (creamy with just the right amount of bite from the horseradish). Mom decided to have the baked potato and declared it the best one she has ever had while dining out. I think she also appreciated the tableside presentation of potato "fixins": sour cream, butter, and bacon bits. She told the server not to hold back on the butter: "I'm from Wisconsin and I'm not afraid of butter!". He stepped up to the challenge and put a healthy dollop or two on the potato. Mom was in potato heaven, I believe. After dealing with my fair share of soggy, foil wrapped, steamed, and generally unimpressive restaurant spuds, I can certainly appreciate the excitement that a real baked potato can inspire.

Dessert was also delicious. Adam dug into their Bananas Foster Bread Pudding and I chose the cheesecake with fresh strawberries and blueberries. Okay, Mom's vanilla ice cream was icy, but Dad shared his raspberry sorbet with her. We left the restaurant stuffed and with a generous amount of leftovers. Score!

Though it was a day early, I hope that the feast was a good start on the celebration of my parents' 40th wedding anniversary.

They left this morning and pushed through the rain to reach home safely. I can only hope that they had a good visit and that it won't be too long before they come down again.