adventures of an american housewife in the south of france

Hump Day: Date Night

With the move about halfway to completion, I really felt that last night was time for a night off.  Everything's gone pretty smoothly (with the exception of a small snafu in the bed building process) but I was reaching my breaking point of unpacking and building.  Disorganization makes me absolutely crazy.  Even crazier than I already am.  When I was in college, I couldn't study in my room unless it was neat and clean,  These days, I can't cook in a messy kitchen.  So you can imagine how I feel when confronted with a whole apartment full of open boxes and suitcases with random items strewn about the rooms waiting for their new resting place.

my nightmare

I can feel anxiety coursing through my veins just looking at that picture.  I'm not going to lie, I've had a few meltdowns over the last couple of the days.  These freak outs mostly occurred after finding something I needed in a box, putting it somewhere in the rubble,  and then promptly forgetting where I put it.  The one-zillionth-and-one time this happened, I had misplaced a pillowcase.  And then I threw a temper tantrum.  After tearing the room apart and still not finding it, I sat on the floor like a 3-year old and cried.  I was hot, sweaty, feeling ugly from spending the last 5 days in grungy moving clothes, and I was misplacing everything.  So I had a pity party.  Michael just looked at me, rolled his eyes, started looking for the pillowcase.   A few minutes later I realized I was being ridiculous and pulled myself together.  Immediately, I found the pillowcase.  I don't even want to tell you where I found it because it's just embarrassing (I still haven't told Michael).  Let's just use my mom's catchphrase and say, if it was a snake, it would have bit me. So last night I decided that it was time to get out of the apartment.  I was ready to take a long shower, put on real clothes and go out on the town.  A night of feeling pretty and eating in a fancy restaurant with my handsome husband was exactly what I needed.

outside our apartment - ready for date night!

our walk into town

We headed over to Chez Boris, which I'd been dying to try.  The Hub started the evening with a 2009 Sauvignon called Elégance.  If I were properly educated, I would tell you that it had an incredible nose or something like that, but I'm not so I'll just tell you that it smelled amazing.  It was really crisp and dry just the way he likes it.  I, of course, had a rosé - a 2010 Gris Blanc from Gérard Bertrand.  It was very light bodied. but slightly fruity, which was perfect for the warm evening.

boris

We snacked on l'ardoise de fromages affinés and le wok de légumes while we drank not one, but two glasses of our wines to get us started.  The plats we chose for dinner had suggested wine pairings so we decided to do what Boris told us.  We drank a 2007 Emotion by Mas de l'Ecriture with our Cochon de lait aux epices, which tasted like a delicious, asiany-style pot roast.  This wine was The Hub's favorite, but I preferred the sturdy and spicy 2009 Adrien from Domaine de Sourys that we had with our unbelievable Ravioles aux aubergines et artichauts.  Oh man, that ravioli was to die for.  And it wasn't the kind of ravioli dish where they give you like, 4 big pieces.  It was the kind of ravioli dish where they give you like, 14 big pieces all baked together with a bunch of cheese and cream on top.  I actually had to ask Michael to put the plate in the corner of the table where I couldn't reach it anymore.  Ya, it was like that.

 

vin rouge

Clearly we ordered dessert.  And a second round of vin rouge.  When they brought out the Moelleux au Chocolat (a flourless chocolate cake) I'm pretty sure it disappeared within 30 seconds.  No, literally in 30 seconds I put my spoon down and said, "Oh my god, it's already gone."  So it was a pretty good meal.

We rolled home and fell into bed.  I woke up this morning feeling better than I had in days and ready to tackle my 3 suitcases and 2 boxes full of clothes.  It was a big project that took me all day and I don't think I could have done it without last night's Date Night break.

Thank you, Chez Boris!

 

5 Responses to “Hump Day: Date Night”

  1. Jen G says:

    Sounds like a perfect & well deserved night! I’m just like you with the messy kitchen and/or messy room – I just can’t focus or do my tasks. I’ve deep cleaned our house (like, baseboards, oiled the wooden cabinets, cleaned the furnace closets (???), and stuff like that) in my three weeks off and it feels great to know that by the end of my time off – I will have a very clean house! Your picture into town was amazing and you look great! Love reading about your progress! xoxo

  2. Bridget says:

    I just whiled away an hour catching up on your adventures in France. How fun! I also hate moving and disorganization! In fact, now that vet school is over (forever!), I have been cleaning and organizing the house for the first time in an embarassingly long time. Also, Tracie just found out that she has a conference in France in summer 2012, so hopefully I will see your well-manicured apartment soon!

  3. K. Lanza says:

    I loved reading this. I love reading them all! I too get frustrated when I feel like I have been in my yoga clothes all week. I feel gross. I want to get dressed up and go out on the town;) I do have one question tho…why move the ravioli over? Why not clean the plate? lol That is what I would have done. Gluttoneous me, I guess. lol! ENJOY every second of it, Natalie.

    • Natalie says:

      you’re right. i’d give anything to have those 3 leftover ravioli right now – it was SO GOOD!! but it was seriously to the point that i was SO full but still eating…and we were planning on dessert ;) i should have asked to take it home!

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