A farewell dinner...

The title may sound somber, but the evening was actually pleasant.  Yesterday, Ryan left for Moscow.  Today, (currently) he is flying somewhere over the Atlantic, en route to Houston.  Your immediate question may be: Why are you blogging and not on the airplane with him!?!?!  Great question, one I have asked myself numerous times yesterday and today.  

Originally, I had planned to join Ryan in Houston, but a few circumstances led me to stay in Russia.  First, I would only be going for about a week, with no trip home to the Midwest.  If I am going to spend that much time traveling and with the cost of the ticket, it is much more reasonable to stay in the States for an extended period. Second, many of our closest friends have moved away from Houston.  Chevron is sending people all over the place. :)  Third, Ryan is staying in the Woodlands, so my downtown shopping adventures would not be as easily accessible while he is at work.  Fourth, after leaving Houston, Ryan will spend the next week in Moscow, prior to our R&R departure.  I have no desire to spend an entire week in Moscow.  Fifth, I may have temporarily lost my mind at the time of our decision, but I guess it's only fair for Ryan to make a trip to the States without me.  Since our move to Russia, I have been very fortunate to spend much more time in the States than Ryan.

Be prepared for emotional, endless rambling the next couple weeks.  I have a tendency to blog extensively during Ryan's absences, AND since he will be gone for over 2 weeks, AND since I am bummed that I am here in Russia instead of the States, the rambling posts are only going to be more frequent.  :)

The light at the end of the tunnel......in 2 weeks I will join Ryan in Moscow prior to our R&R departure!!!!!  SO EXCITED!

Also, I made a "small" Kate Spade purchase online and had it shipped to Ryan's hotel.  It has been something I have wanted for a long time and Ryan told me to order it this morning.  I think he could tell I was upset he was leaving.  Fingers crossed it arrives before he leaves.  What?  A bit of retail therapy ALWAYS makes a girl feel better!

So I warned you about the endless rambling.  If you have made it this far in the post then congratulations!  Now, back to the dinner.  With weeks in Houston, Moscow, R&R, and Moscow again, Ryan will be out of our apartment for a month.  I had to send him off with a delicious, home cooked meal!

No farewell dinner is acceptable unless it has a delicious dessert.   I found a "from scratch" version of the "No Pudge" brownies.  

Ok, I added some pudge, a bit of crumbled chocolate pieces.  

Now for the meal.  Chicken Autumn Stew was on the menu.
The carrots, onions and celery are in bags because I planned ahead and chopped them earlier that morning before leaving for the gym.  I was going to have a busy day with my daily gym visit, lunch date (with Ryan), errands, and Russian lessons.  

Beautiful brownies.
I did not feel guilty for eating these.  No oil or butter and they were super delicious.  

I have been trying (and pretty successfully) to cut out bread in our meals.  I am not a huge bread fan to begin with, so it is easy for me.  But, a stew needs a friend, and bread is it's best friend.  I thought I would go "easy" and be adventurous, trying some pre made freezer dough.  

Your dinner is served.  The stew turned out to be really delicious.  I love the smell of rosemary and it added great flavor.  Also, the apples added a lovely sweetness.  Ryan was a HUGE fan of the cheddar, rosemary and garlic rolls.  It isn't noticeable in the picture, but the rolls made perfect sponges for the broth.

We dined on this meal for dinner and the next day for lunch, prior to his departure.