Eucalyptus and Chocolate

So this weekend I had my first night away from The Squid - she survived and, thankfully, I did too. Stephen and I went to Saratoga for our 2 year wedding anniversary. I'll admit - Saratoga is approximately 10 minutes from our place, but it still counts as getting away!! I had picked a hotel I randomly found on the net pretty much solely because they had a "Wine-Lovers Package" that was a good deal. Not only am I a sucker for wine as I'm mentioned before, but I am a sucker for a good deal. I'm the type of person who will proudly tell you that I only paid a dollar for my shirt at a thrift store if you tell me you like my outfit. Anyway, I was a bit leery of what our room would look like and, lo and behold, it was BEAUTIFUL! Huge, newly furnished, and equipped with a kitchenette, dining table, steam shower, fire place, and...get this...a bidet. Have you ever used one of those things? I have to admit that I spent lots of refreshing time on that toilet! Good stuff. 


Our hotel package (Saratoga Oaks Lodge btw) included complimentary wine tasting at two nearby wineries as well as a "Private Eucalyptus Steam Treatment" at Harmony European Day Spa. We were both not sure of what to expect with this one. This equaled excitement for me and not-so-excited for my loving husband. It didn't help matters when the receptionist brought him a bathrobe and told him to undress. ha! He was mumbling on and on about how I "always get him into these crazy situations". In the end, though, it was really just a private steam shower with a Eucalyptus scent, and I really think he'd admit it wasn't so bad :) 


The grand finale of our weekend was definitely dinner at La Fondue. They bring you the cheese fondue of your choice with lots of veggies, fruits, and bread for dipping. Then you get to choose from a list of just about any kind of meat imaginable, and you cook it on a little grill right there at your table (no discount for having to cook your own meat - shucks.) Really though, this part makes the dinner interactive and more of an experience than just a dinner. We ate shark, wild boar, antelope, and alligator. The wild boar was awesome - the rest I could probably live without, but it was fun to try nonetheless. Best part of La Fondue??? THE CHOCOLATE FONDUE. We had dark chocolate mixed with Grand Marnier. The goodies for dipping were: 


strawberries
bananas
grapes
dried cherries
apples
rice krispie treats
snickers bars
cookie dough
cream puffs
cinnamon cheesecake


NO JOKE. You all seriously have to get to this restaurant someday...I don't care how you get there...just get there. 


Needless to say, we both ate an overly excessive amount of food. Oh well - all for a good cause, right?! Not really. Wish I could say that :) 


Oh, in closing I wanted to give you a Sydney Update:


-She is now reaching for and grasping items. Her favs so far are the little monkey toys on her play mat, her binky, and my hair. 
-She sat in her Bumbo for the first time last night. She's not so thrilled about it yet (see the arm flailing?), but we'll work on that :) Here she is (excuse the horrible picture - it's from my phone.)

Love and Chocolate,


Em