Heading to Boston for a party on Sunday, so…since Staten Island, NY is mostly on the way, just a slight detour, so…

I worked all day, then loaded up the car with my bags, my Cricut Joy, the dogs, and me…and we were off! On the road again…ha ha, you are welcome for the ear worm!

It’s about 2.5 hours to get to my dad’s house from ours, not too bad, didn’t hit much traffic, thankfully! We got to my dad’s house, I took the girls for a walk around the neighborhood, gave them dinner while I unloaded the car, and then they explored their ‘paw-paw’s’ house. Check out this shirt I made him for ‘pawther’s day’ last year! World’s Best Paw Paw, with pictures of his grand-doggies! could you just diah! [you need to read that last word with a southern accent!]

I set up the travel crate and, after a bit, got the girls in, then dad and I went to dnner. We were debating where to go and I mentioned mediterranian and we went near the house to a place that used to be a Perkins, which is a 24-hour diner, and now is Zara Forest Grille, a very nice Turkish restaurant. I would say at least 90% of the people there were Turkish or somewhere from the mediterranian. 

It was quite the experience! We sat at a small table for two, they brought out a long platter with a giant piece of pouffy bread and olives. We ended up ordering a Shephard Salad, cheese on the side, and an appetizer plate, it had tabbouleh, hummus, baba ghanoush, eggplant salad, and aci ezme. Everything was amazing, except for the aci ezme, it was sssppppiiicccyy! O M G! No thanks! It stayed on the plate! Dad had a soda, he was hoping for Turkish wine, he absolutely fell in love with Turkey and all things Turkish when he and my mom were there for her 50th birthday trip. No Turkish wine dad, sorry. I had a pot of green tea, maybe next time I’ll get Turkish tea, they said it was very strong, I think I’ve had it, but I’ll try it next time.

For dessert, we had…baklavah! It was soooo good! We reminised about living in Israel and him going to the Arab market and coming back with a giant pink box with nothing but baklavah, and I think it weighed about two pounds, and it cost… about 2 dollars! What an amazing experience that summer was…I need to think about it more, maybe share some stories, at least what I can remember!

What a great experience at this restaurant, they had this one dish, we asked about it because there was such a celebration when it came out! First of all, the lights go out, next the music and clapping starts, then the waiter, well almost the entire wait staff, singing over the flaming plate of meat! It was awesome! Not something I’ll ever get, but still fun to see! Thanks for the great evening out, dad!

Then, back to the house, I was going to show my dad how my little Cricut Joy works, I had been telling him about it a few weeks ago, so now he can see it in action. I helped him with an art project that he was working on, it was a win-win! We discussed, rearranged, and figured out where he wanted what and I was able to print some stuff for him to place. That was a lot of fun! Dad, if you need more stickers, or whatever, just let me know!

Eventually, it was time for the girls to go to be, for dad and I to climb the stairs, get in our jammies, and for me to get in my childhood bed, sink into the covers, tallk to you, then pass out. Sounds pretty good!

Tomorrow…Boston!