Quarter time

Assuming she lives to 100 years of age, yesterday marked quarter time for DesignerSis. It is hard to believe my baby sister is so very, very old! Nah, just kiddin' she's still just a kid. But a very mature, responsible and well-adjusted one... especially considering the sort of role models her big sisters have provided.

To celebrate 25 years since her birth, we all went out for dinner at Hellenic Republic with DesignerSis - me, DeepSpice, BallFiend, Wigward, CutLuce, DesignerMonkey and StompyDad. We ate ourselves to a standstill all, for around $32.00 each. The repast was fantastic - we had:

• Dips (Taramosalata and Melitzanosalata)
• Tiganites Patates (Deep fried potatoes chips)
• Fasolakia (green beans with feta and pine nuts)
• Kefalograviera Saganaki (Spanikopita served warm with peppered figs)
• Patzari (beetroot roasted in cumin)
• Revithia Plaki (chickpeas cooked in tomato and olive oil)
• Loytianos (snapper, baked to perfection)
• Chicken and Lamb off the spit
• Moussaka

Followed by:

• Bougatsa (Semolina custard wrapped in filo pastry)
• Loukoumades (Greek donuts)
• Risogalo (chocolate rice pudding)

The service was excellent, the food was excellent, the only thing I can really fault is that the music was too loud to talk over. This made it particularly challenging for keeping a tired, yet enthusiastic BallFiend in check.

He had refused to nap in the afternoon, so was particularly tired, then I had plonked him in creche for an hour and a half while DeepSpice and I did a parent re-education camp to learn some new strategies for dealing with those more difficult toddler/pre-schooler behaviours. Then we rushed out to dinner and kept BallFiend out till 8.00 pm (half an hour past his bedtime). However, a little after 8.00 pm, it was clear that BallFiend was exhausted so DeepSpice decided to take him home to bed, whilst I got to stay on and enjoy civilised adult conversation, and more importantly, dessert.
Apparently once he got home, he got a new burst of energy and ran through the house excitedly. However, DeepSpice skillfully calmed him down with a story and had in bed a mere 30 minutes after arriving home. To reward his altruism, I took home a donut for DeepSpice.

Overall, and despite his tiredness, BallFiend was very well-behaved for a 2.75 year old - he threw a few bits of food and made an interesting 'installation' in his water glass using nothing more than strips of lamb, Melitzanosalata and paper serviettes. Mm-mmm! He also seemed to enjoy eating the food - he tried the chicken, beetroot, the dips and pita bread but was fairly cautious about trying other things. As he is getting older, it is getting easier to eat out with a small child... pity this newly acquired possibility for a social life is about to be smashed to smithereens when Thumper arrives in just over two months time.
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