Saturday was quite a feast day for me and Mariah. We started the day with lunch at the Happy Chef in Chinatown . Geri invited me to come along to meet Cielito and her husband (sorry, I forgot the spelling of his name ) I, in turn, invited Mariah to come with to meet Geri. It was a nice, sunny day to spend in Chicago, getting acquianted with new found friends. I felt like I ate for two people considering how much food I gulped down. Needless to say, us girls took delight in speaking in our native tongue (Cebuano or Visayan). Fortunately, Cielito's husband was rather patient and understanding but we did make efforts to include him in the conversation . They were a cute, very affectionate young couple . It was indeed a pleasure meeting them and I look forward to hanging out with them again. Mariah also had a great time meeting everybody. We all parted ways just before 3 pm but the day's festivities were far from over.

I got home and was pleasantly surprised at how much work transpired while I was gone.  Today was also the installation of our hardwood floors. It was quite a cacophony of noises when I left this morning.  I'm already loving what I see and they have not even sanded, stained and lacquered the floors yet. Kenny and I both agreed it was all worth the hard back-breaking work this past week. Last night, Dad Otto and Kenny finished up rather late prepping the house for today. I think Kenny hurt himself moving the fridge out to the garage. We will have to seek Luke's help when it's time to put things back, maybe on Thursday . 

After a much needed late afternoon nap, we freshened up to go downtown to celebrate Mariah's birthday held at a Brazilian steakhouse called Brazzaz .  It was my first time to dine there but it will not be the last. This place has a very fine selection of beef, chicken, and much more, seasoned and grilled the Gaucho way 

 . Their salad bar has an extensive buffet and a variety of appetizers and sides. I love their wild mushroom and truffle risotto, bottom sirloin, top sirloin, roasted pineapple, seasoned shrimp and... I could go on and on. It was a carnivore's delight    but there's also a lot for those who are not inclined to indulge in the protein feast. Their carvers will present you with a variety of meats directly from the skewers. You control the pace and quantity by flipping a Yes / No chip on the table, although  Kenny had a difficult time resisting all the offers from them. All of this is included in a fixed price format. Pretty pricey but worth the amazing experience. Everybody had a great time and that's what it's all about . 

The most primitive form of comfort, and has been for thousands of years, is, of course, food. Who cannot feel benevolent following a good meal? Oscar Wilde once said, "After a good dinner one can forgive anybody, even one's own relatives."