6th Anniversary

Happy 6th Anniversary to us! Six years ago today we were married in the Idaho Falls LDS Temple. It feels like these last six years have gone by so fast, but then I really can't remember not having Brian in my life. Time is funny that way. 

To celebrate, we went to Blue Smoke for dinner. As part of the restaurant, they have a separate jazz club located on the floor below called Jazz Standard. We had wanted to do a dinner and a show, but when we were looking at it we discovered that doing both was a little over our budget. So we had decided to just go there for dinner. However, one of our friends here in the city found out it was our anniversary and generously got us tickets to the show as a gift. We were thoroughly surprised and excited. 

Doors to the restaurant/jazz club opened an hour before the show. We got there right as the doors opened so we could get a good seat. We ended up being seated just off to the right of the stage. We had a great view. 

I loved the place. It was all done in red and black and was very quiet and intimate. I loved the dimmed lights and candles on each table.

The theme of the restaurant is BBQ and Jazz so of course Brian ordered ribs. They provided three different types of BBQ sauce to pick from. We tried them all and they were each wonderful.

I ordered the pulled pork platter that came with baked beans, cold slaw and a fresh slice of bread. It really was a platter of pork. I so was not expecting the amount of meat that I was served. I later discovered that the piece of bread was underneath the mound of pork, but there still was a lot of pork. Needless to say, we'll be having pulled pork sandwiches for a week!

We also ordered some hush puppies! I had never tried them before, and they were delicious. I'm a huge fan now. They were served with a jalapeno marmalade that was amazing. All of the food was so good, but I think this was my favorite dish of the night. My mouth is watering right now as I remember them.

The show started while we were still eating. They turned off the lights completely so that the only lighting was from the candles on the tables and the spotlight on the band. We got to hear the Freddy Cole Quartet play and it was so wonderful. The music was fabulous. Hearing some live jazz was so cool! Freddy Cole played the piano and sang, Randy Napoleon played guitar, Elias Bailey was on bass and Curtis Boyd played the drums. Brian and I both thoroughly enjoyed their performance. I didn't want the night to end. If you haven't heard of these guys, you should look them up on Grooveshark.

It was the perfect way to celebrate our anniversary. The place was full, and although we were surrounded by people, it still felt private and romantic. Yes, I'm getting a little mushy. I highly recommend this place for the food and music!

Afterwards, we walked around a bit before heading home. The Met Life Tower was a lit up and beautiful. Manhattan always amazes me, and this is true especially at night with all the lights.

We stopped off for some frozen yogurt at a place that just opened down the street from our apartment. Brian chose mango frozen yogurt with fresh kiwi slices and I chose pomegranate frozen yogurt with fresh raspberries. It was delicious, and I definitely think we'll be visiting again soon. Especially if this heat keeps up for much longer.

I'm so grateful for my wonderful husband and all he does and is. As I look back over these past six years and see all that we've been through and achieved together and how we've grown, it gets me excited for what the next six years will bring for us. I love you Brian!