Happy New Year!

Yeah!  We're finally to my New Year's post.  Just a mere 6 weeks late.  At least from here on out we'll be blogging in the current year...2011.  Woo-hoo!

My New Year's Eve could not have been better if I had planned it.  And I definitely couldn't plan this one since I had NO idea I'd be spending it in Dallas.  The impromptu plans turned into one of my favorite New Year's Eves ever. 

When I found out I was stuck in Dallas, I immediately texted/called/Facebooked potential friends who might be up for partying the night away.  Most of my friends were out of town, but Michelle said she was on board!  We originally thought we might just have a low-key New Year's, just the two of us ordering in and planning our trip to Spain.  But, our friend Amber came through with a party for us!  First, I was so glad that Amber got to hang out with us since I hadn't seen her yet.  And, Amber and Michelle together are just toooo fun!  It was just a bonus that Amber had a fun and cool party for us to attend.  A friend of hers from church was hosting a small party at her apartment - a loft in downtown Dallas with views of the midnight fireworks celebration at Victory Plaza.  It was such a fun night! 

It was mostly girls from Amber's community group and it was a small group.  We all brought snacks and drinks and one girl brought a raclette grill!!  Have you ever had raclette?  It's a French thing that I wouldn't have known about if I didn't have a sister who lived there for 3 years and teaches me such things.  My family actually had raclette a few years ago during our Whister excursion.  It's kind of like fondue, but different.  The grill itself is double-decker.  You have little bowls that you place cheese (specifically raclette) in and place them on the lower level of the grill to melt.  On the top level of the grill you grill meats or veggies or potatoes.  You then placed the grilled items on a plate and pour the melted raclette over them.  Yummy!  And such a fun treat for a New Year's party!

This photo is not from our party - just an example from the internets!

After snacking/grilling/racletting, we sat down for some good old games.  First, we played some new game from the makers of Cranium - much fun, but I wasn't so great at it.  Next, we played catch-phrase, one of my favs.  I love game nights and they just don't happen so often in NYC, so this was a lot of fun!  And it worked out really well even though Michelle and I didn't know most of the people there.

After game playing, it was midnight!!  We poured some bubbly and went out on the balcony to watch the fireworks and ring in the New Year - such fun!

Amber & Michelle

 Michelle and I

Fireworks!

Michelle, Amber and I left pretty quickly after midnight.  It was a shame after the fun we had, but I had to be up at 4:30 the next morning to catch my flight back to the city.

New Year's Day was celebrated New York City style!  I met Stacy for dinner at Stanton Social.  I'd been wanting to go there for brunch for a while, but when Stacy suggested it for dinner, I was game!  They serve everything in small bites and family-style...similar to Tapas, but not Spanish food!  I think we got about 4 things and they were all SO good.  We also got delicious drinks and even dessert.  It was definitely a splurge, but hey, it was New Year's!  After dinner, we caught up with Mindy and we all went to see The Magic Flute at Lincoln Center.  This is a ballet performace that they do for a handful of dates during the Holidays every year.  Julie Taymor is one of the masterminds behind the scenes and I'd see anything with her fingerprints on it (she's known for her costumes and special effects).  I was SOOOO tired that night and don't feel like I got the whole experience, but it was good and I just loved being at Lincoln Center to ring in 2011.

 Sorry for the fuzz...my illegal shot at the ballet