A birthday dinner to remember

Mr. Smith has been working pretty much every day since before July 4th. That includes through the long holiday weekend. Through all the weekends, actually.

I know other families deal with this all the time, but this is not what we are accustomed to around here. 

The children are missing their father. I am missing my husband. I know we are doing all of this for all the right reasons. I also know that we have a life that we have chosen that allows us an enormous amount of freedom in so many respects.

This is a sudden increase in our business that we have been hoping for, working for, planning for over the past six years. It is a blessing in every way. I am so thrilled that our little venture is really taking off. It feels like we have paid our dues, and our hard work is finally paying off.

Friday was our 6th anniversary. That is really really hard for me to believe. 

Saturday was Mr. Smith's 44th birthday.

We have very dear friends that recommended Yamashiro and I decided that Mr. Smith's birthday was the perfect occasion to splurge a bit and have a little adventure. So off we went, without kids, to have a quiet dinner and watch the sunset over the Hollywood Hills.

On the way, we spotted this billboard advertising tattoo removal.
As it turns out, nothing really is forever is it?

Yes, Yamashiro is a sushi restaurant. No, I don't eat sushi, but it wasn't MY birthday. Mr. Smith loves him some sushi and luckily they have other items on their menu that appealed to those of us that
prefer our food cooked.

The most attractive part for me was the location and the history of Yamashiro. The views are breathtaking and the palace itself is amazingly beautiful. I could have been REALLY obnoxious with my camera, but I opted to be low key and only take a few shots.

We were really early, so we had a drink in the Pagoda Bar. It is outside and overlooks a pool and of course a pagoda. Mr. Smith very bravely ordered some Darth Vader sushi. It contains black rice (apparently Forbidden Rice...menacing, no?). I think I am safe in assuming that
Mr. Smith will not consider ordering this again.

While I am not a sushi consumer, I am fascinated by the artistry and presentation of the dishes.

Just gorgeous...and a little gross, but mostly gorgeous.

After that we decided to head into the restaurant itself for dinner.

We had drinks and watched the sunset from our table.

Lobster Risotto

Handmade Pasta with Roasted Vegetables

Peanut Butter Cookie Ice Cream Sandwich with Dulce de Leche Ice Cream

I am not sure if it is prettier in the light of day or when the lights blink on and the sun sets. Up on that hill, it is so hard to believe you are in the middle of a huge bustling city.

Thank you Tim and Thom for sharing this special place with us!