Can I just tell you it was L-OOOOOO-V-E at first bite?

Ever since that uber-blissful moment, I have become a **die hard fan** of Panera Bread‘s steel cut oatmeal — a dish they describe on their menu as “organic steel cut oats with cinnamon crunch topping and choice of fresh strawberries & pecans or summer blueberries & granola.”

I actually just can’t get enough of this dish. What this means is that I can eat them literally for breakfast, lunch or dinner OR as a simple snack any time of the day or night.

Prior to trying this dish, I had never even heard of steel cut oatmeal before. Since then, however, I’ve learned this type of oatmeal — which is the least processed type of oat cereal – is also referred to as Irish oatmeal, go figure.

In the past month or so, I have probably ordered a bowl of Panera Bread‘s steel cut oatmeal each and every single morning on the way to my office, along with my medium-sized Hazelnut coffee. The cashiers at the Panera Bread down the street from my office barely ever have to ask me for my order. 95% of the time, the order is exactly the same and they already know what I want LOL. They just know me. They also know I like a bit of extra cinnamon crunch topping on my oatmeal as well.

So what is the one drawback to this steel cut oatmeal dish, if any? Well, I do have one complaint. And that is that it seems various local Panera Bread locations are inconsistent with the time they can and/or are able to serve this dish. The Leesburg location says they can serve it at any time of the day, meaning it’s not just served as a breakfast dish. The Sterling location told me the same thing one day, but the next time I went after breakfast hours to place the order, they said the oatmeal is only a breakfast dish and wouldn’t serve it to me. And at Herndon, those folks there say it’s only a breakfast item. Same for the Lansdowne location: they cut off the oatmeal dish by 10:30 am.

Recently, I read this AdAge article (which I tweeted on @mayraruiz a few days ago), where many restaurants are looking to serve their breakfast fare throughout the day and I do hope Panera Bread will consider doing the same.

In the much shorter term, however, it would be wonderful to know why there is inconsistency from Panera Bread locations about when the steel cut oatmeal dish can be served. I can’t always drive out to Leesburg. Plus, what if I did drive the 15 minutes west to Leesburg from my Sterling location only to be told, as I was at the Sterling Panera Bread, that the dish is only available before 10:30 am? I don’t want to get further frustrated or disappointed.

I’m going to share this post on Facebook and hope that Panera Bread peeps will not only respond but also somehow coordinate with the local branches to get their steel cut oatmeal stories straight

Sorry if this sounds very particular but it’s not often I fall so hard for any restaurant dish. Call me passionate. Call me addicted. Whatever. I just hope to learn why there are such inconsistencies for this dish at four of our local Panera Bread locations.

As a total tangent side note, assuming someone from Panera Bread does read this … my daughter Amanda — another die hard Panera Bread fan in our family — says that when she orders a sweet bagel for breakfast, the bagel slicer used by the Panera Bread folks often slices all kinds of bagels before she orders hers. That means that her bagel, which is supposed to be sweet, is often covered in poppy seeds or tastes like onions or other bagel flavors. Soooo … is there any way to address this problem or issue as well?

Let’s see if anyone will respond and when …

Reality: I ***want*** to be a foodie soooo badly but I just can’t be one right now

I want to blog endlessly about exquisite food experiences, take gourmet cooking classes, learn more about fine wines in our area and source my own organic vegetables from my own back yard.

I dream of mingling with area chefs, eat farm-to-table meals at select restaurants, read Food + Wine Magazine and endlessly watch The Cooking Channel during my down time.

Sad Truth: Alas, I can’t

At this time in my life, it’s just way too challenging to dive into my inner foodie because quite simply, I don’t often have the time to enjoy such things. My work and family keep me pretty busy and, as a result, I’m unable to delve into foodie-related activity as much as I honestly would like to.

So in the meantime, all I can do is to wet my foodie palette here and there is to shop at the occasional farmers market, peruse through recipes online, watch occasional episodes of Restaurant Impossible …

… and use Pinterest to pin countless photos of cakes, pies and main dishes I’d love to cook up some day.

Thank goodness for Pinterest! At least I can collect (pin) beautiful photos and cooking ideas (for brunch, as an example) to explore in the future.

Are you suppressing the foodie in you, too?? Please share any foodie suppression tales in the comments below.

As Brandon says, “Mom, did you know ‘Rex‘ means ‘King‘ in Latin?” … or “Mom, did you know T-Rexes have teeth as large as the size of bananas? That way they can C-R-U-S-H the bones of their prey very easily!”

Nice.

Yep, dinosaurs and dino-talk have taken over EVERY SINGLE INCH our lives … and our home. Everywhere (and I do mean e-v-e-r-y-w-h-e-r-e) you look and step, there’s a dino-something in your path.

As of late, Brandon’s obsession with all things JAWS (yes, the 1975 movie by director Steven Spielberg) and great white sharks has been completely overshadowed by the Cretaceous Period and living, ferocious creatures that lived well over 65 million years ago.

These days, Spielberg remains Brandon’s favorite movie director but now it’s all about Spielberg’s OTHER movies…you know, the dino-specific kind, a.k.a. Jurassic Park  (all three of them). LEGO Dino toys are also pretty popular, too. Not to mention countless visits to “dinosaur sound effect” web sites and endless “dinosaur video” searches on YouTube.

So far we’re going on about 4 months or so of hard-core dino talk and dino living in our now dino-filled home. It’s so funny how kids go through these peculiar phases. The JAWS and great white shark craze lasted almost 2 years. Let’s see how far these roaring Dilophosauruses,  Tyrannosauruses, Velociraptors and other dino creatures last LOL. Dad and I are hoping just a few more days or weeks BUT based on the lengthy JAWS and great white shark chapter, it could very well be a year or two.

*Sigh*

I guess 18-24 months is way, way better than 65 million years so I should be grateful LOL and just get through it.

In fact, to fully appreciate this post, it is highly recommended you read my leesburg.patch.com piece so I won’t have to re-explain what this event, which takes place today, Saturday – March 9 –  in downtown Leesburg and starts at 11 am (ends by 5 pm) is all about.

Just in case you are wondering who the lovely lady in the main blog photo above (standing in her shop surrounded by endless high-end eye wear) might be, that’s downtown Leesburg proprietor Paige Buscema of eye fashion boutique Eyetopia.

Paige is just one of the several folks who organized this Saturday’s Spring Forward event along with Terri Downs, who owns interior design boutique, Savannah’s of Leesburg, as well as local gourmet gifts store Downs & Co.

What my leesburg.patch.com piece did not share (only for the sake of brevity) is that this debut event is not meant to be a singular, one-time-only event. Nope. Instead, Buscema and Downs are hoping for future such events throughout the year. “The idea is to hopefully showcase the latest trends in home decor and fashion at least once a season,” says Downs. Buscema adds that such an event, once it gains more momentum and exposure beyond this debut launch, will help position Leesburg as a trendy, fashion-forward town in the minds of area shoppers.

Another important tid bit Downs and Buscema shared with me: antique stores are absolute must-stops for anyone seeking modern home decor? Why? “Because antique stores are all about blending the old with the new. Moreover, what’s old will always be new again. Fashion and home-decor trends find much inspiration in retro styles. And retro, vintage items — which Leesburg has plenty of — are easy to incorporate into most any decor,” shares Buscema.

Sooooo … if you are looking for something to do today AND you were going out shopping anyways, why not hit up downtown Leesburg and check out this fun event? Many local shops are participating (view my leesburg.patch.com write up for the full list) and, if you’re local, there’s nothing better than supporting local businesses seeking to bring you the very best fashion and decor items trending this season. And if you’re coming in from DC or Maryland, this event is just one of many wonderful reasons to make a day-trip into beautiful Leesburg, Virginia.

I myself didn’t have a bridal shower. Thirteen years ago, my husband and I had a very mini, private ceremony with a justice of the peace (almost elopement style) and we really bypassed a lot of the pre-wedding hoopla. And neither of my sisters have yet to wed so my dear friend’s bridal shower is honestly the first of such wedding gigs I’ll be attending. I’m not sure what to expect but for my friend, I will go with with joy in my heart for her and her family … and I expect a good time will be had by all.

So tomorrow, Sunday, yours truly has to leave the comforts of home (and my Sunday-best sweat pants) to drive out to some winery out in Aldie (Quattro Gumba’s Winery) to meet up with the other bridesmaids and help prepare for the bridal shower, which begins at noon.

Along the way, I have to pick up mouthwatering, to-die-for cannolis from Herndon-based Lucianno Italian Restaurant & Pizzeria. The food in this restaurant is just so delicious and I’ve been a patron for many years. Years back, they had a Fairfax location just off of Route 123. Haven’t been there in a while so not sure it’s still there ?? but that’s how far back me and Lucianno’s food go We’re talking gnocci, we’re talking pizzas, we’re talking raviolis and so much more. I can’t get enough of their yummy menu. So when I was asked by the bridesmaids what food item I could bring to the shower, only one thing came to mind: Cannolis from Lucciano’s.

I called the restaurant up yesterday to place a catering order for two dozen Italian cannolis. The woman on the phone, Maria, was so nice. She was very specific about the time of the cannoli pick up because, depending on the time of the event (if the event was at night but I picked up cannolis first thing in the morning, she explained), she did not want me to have soggy cannolis (meaning, the cannoli pastry wouldn’t be as fresh or as crisp).

OMG soggy cannolis??? That would be a major cream-stuffed crisis! Noooo, I was in FULL agreement with Maria: no soggy cannolis! LOL

Maria was so nice. She was willing to work with me no matter the schedule just so I could have the absolute and most fresh cannolis known to mankind.

Later in the day, I spoke with Roberto — the restaurant owner — who, like Maria before him, bent over backwards to coordinate the cannoli pick up. I explained the bridal shower was Sunday at noon, so Roberto suggested coming to pick up the cannolis around the time the restaurant closed on Saturday night. “If you come at 10pm,” Roberto said, “I’ll start preparing the cannolis about 30 minutes before you arrive. Or come at 11pm. Just come.”

Wooooooooow. These guys over at Lucciano’s are like cannoli heros wearing red capes. All this fuss because they want me to have the freshest, non-soggy cannolis humanly possible.

So my friends, tonight is Operation Cannoli Pick Up night … I’m thinking I might drag the husband out for a late dinner at Lucciano’s assuming the kids don’t wipe us out of all energy by end of day.

Let’s see how Operation Cannoli Pick Up goes tonight … and how well I fare at my beautiful friend’s bridal shower the following day.

Stay tuned …

Having once lived in Leesburg previously, I totally get that! Leesburg has an outlet mall, endless shopping options, ample restaurants, good schools and is the epi-center of Loudoun County’s thriving and local arts community. If I were Deb, knowing what I know of her now I possibly would never leave Leesburg often either!

Just a little bit of background: Deb and I have spent literally several weeks back and forth trying to connect and after various tries on either side, we finally were able to meet the other day at my digital marketing office in downtown Herndon.

I spent about an hour with Deb the other day doing this magazine interview. Can I just say “Woooowww?!” That pretty much sums up my Morbeto Interview Experience LOL. Deb’s like a little mini tornado of colorful energy and endless zest that bursts open the moment she walks into a room and opens her mouth.

Maybe that’s what you’d expect from someone so deeply immersed in the arts, mixed media, photography and the like. Or maybe not? I never know. Experience has taught me to not to have expectations during such interviews and just let folks be what they may be as the interview questions get asked.

All I can say is I’m glad to have made the extra effort to connect with Deb this earlier. Her zeal for life, community and all things art was infectious, difficult to ignore and propelled much of my note taking during out 60 minutes together.

I don’t want to give away too much since my article on Deb will be published in an upcoming edition of I AM Modern Magazine. But what I will reveal about Deb is that she’s a local, loving mom, a devoted house wife with a 110% supportive husband and professionally trained artist who is deeply, devoted to her art and her community.

“My art time is sacred to me,” reveals Deb, who jests that her friends say she turns into a pumpkin by 6:30 pm each night. “I hardly go out at night. And I often tell my friends please not to invite me to evening functions, events or affairs and to NOT be offended if I don’t show up if they do invite me. Simply put, come 6:30 pm, I retreat to my home-based art studio and just get lost in all my collages, canvas and mixed media. It’s therapeutic. It’s like brushing my teeth. I have to do my art every single day.”

To learn more about Deb’s start in art and how community and volunteerism are at the very center of her day-to-day life in Loudoun County, please stay tuned to my upcoming article to be published in a future edition of I AM Modern Magazine (I will update here with a link once the article’s been published.).

Until then …

Ahhhh yes it’s the Old Lucketts Store and the email sent to my inbox earlier today from those patina lovin’ peeps says their Design House is back in a big, big way.

“How so,” you ask?

Well here’s what their email says: ”It’s the first Design House of the year and we’re bursting with Spring inspiration!  All new furniture, all new accessories, and fresh new colors…come join us as we bust out of the winter blahs and breathe in some Spring! http://luckettstore.com.”

About The Design House:  The Design House at the Old Lucketts Store is a monthly interior design showcase where everything is for sale. Once there, you will see well-designed spaces that incorporate items that you never would have thought to put together. You can find those unique pieces you’ve been hunting for that will pull together that unfinished room in your house. It’s always fresh and new at each monthly event so save-the-dates and, as we like to say, “Grab your girlfriends! Bring the trailer!” and make a day of it.

So save the dates! March 1, 2, & 3 … from 10am til 5pm all three days!

And here’s where to go: 42350 Lucketts Road in Leesburg VA  20176

For more information: Call 703.779.0268 or visit http://luckettstore.com

Happy shopping

Long story short, I’ve spent the past few days laying up in Bed A in Room 257 recovering after having liver complications and my gall bladder removed.

As the nurses prepare my discharge paperwork, I begin to reflect on my hospital stay and, most notably, the collective medical staff who cared for me ’round the clock since my arrival.

After almost five days, I feel have a long list of folks to recognize and thank.

Here’s my list … I hope I don’t leave anyone out!

First, there’s the “sitters” …
Sitters are the folks assigned to your room to provide you with additional support and care during your stay. Dee was my first sitter, shown below.  A lovely, doting woman with endless TLC for patients.

Then there was Daniel, a young man who’s own mom (who also works in this same hospital) inspired his career choice. Daniel kept close vigil over me and my 87-year old roommate, Lucy, (more on Lucy below) two 7 pm – 7 am night shifts in a row.

He was there to help me in and out of bed, assisting me get to and from the bathroom and overall keeping me safe and supported throughout the night.

I also had the privilege of  being cared for by sitters Catarina and Terri, both lovely, caring women. Catarina helped me wash up the first day after my surgery — not an easy feat when you’re all medicated and bruised up, trust me! And Terri was sweet as pie, keeping me company during the day and being a helpful companion as I was being prepped for surgery.

Next, the nurses …
Ellie!!!

Ellie, born of Persian and Russian parents and who has an exotic J-Lo kind of look to her (or so she’s been told) was and is *awesome.* But then again so was and is Cynthia. I think there was a Stacey-named nurse at some point in the very beginning, I can’t remember … I was kind of out of it early on. But overall my nurses were just fabulous. Any time you needed them, they were there.

Then, the techs …
There were many techs who were lovely and kind but the one that stood out and showed me the most TLC was Albertine, a lovely Leesburg mom of 4 with a fabulous Liberian accent who made me drink a cup full of warm prune juice to help clear out my system. Umm … I have to say the juice was absolutely awful lol but I chugged as much as I could. Albertine, thank you for care and friendship!

… and then my doctors and the various hospitalists who visited me daily …
I don’t know all their names but the two I do specifically remember are Dr. Kris and Dr. Khan. Both consulted with each other closely before and after my surgery and checked on me daily.

I can’t forget about Meryam.
Meryam is the extremely attentive server who brought me breakfast, lunch and dinner during most of my hospital stay.

She spoiled me on occasion with an extra dinner roll or a chocolate pudding in between meals.

And then there was “Hurricane Lucy.”
Well, I’ll be honest with you and tell you I am not listing Lucy, my 87-year old roommate, here to thank her. No. But I can’t talk about my hospital stay without at least mentioning her. Lucy somehow took a fall and broke her hip. A very, very sad ordeal for this elderly lady.

My heart went out to Lucy. She clearly was disorientated and in a lot of pain, often complaining about her leg and hip (who wouldn’t?). But Lucy had moments of aggressiveness and intense fits of anger often in between her many family and friend visits where she threatened to sue the staff, have them fired and accused many of them about not caring enough about her. Other times, she insisted the hospital staff was preventing her from going home and “punishing” her on purpose.

At night, Lucy would wail and howl constantly about having to use the bathroom (literally multiple times every minute, no lie) and if she did not get immediate support from the staff, she would turn very nasty and start yelling and threatening she would “piss her bed” (oh boy, I’ll spare you the gory details thereafter).

Listen … it has been very hard to be Lucy’s roommate this past week. One minute, you couldn’t help but feel very sorry for her but the next minute, you couldn’t help to feel frustration. Lucy did have some moments of kindness, mostly while she had visitors. But the moment the visitors went home, the sweetness would end. And man, talk about a total sour puss! Geez!

Overall, I won’t miss sharing a room with Lucy … but I do hope the poor woman does heal and gets back to her normal routine soon.

Except for having to room with Hurricane Lucy, my time at INOVA Loudoun was a positive, wonderful experience. It will feel almost feel weird going home but I will carry the memories of all my new-found medical buddies with me always.

But that’s not an ordinary pool for humans. Nope. That’s actually a salt-water, temperature-controlled indoor lap pool for pets (mainly dogs) at the Olde Towne Pet Resort in Sterling, Virginia. And that adorable feline is none other than Holly, the swimming kitty who’s stolen the hearts of countless many as she continues to go viral on the internet for her aquatic adventures.

I found Holly last May and blogged about here here and blogged about her again just yesterday over here because her story is one that just won’t quit. And how can it? I mean, how often do you hear about a cat suiting up and taking a dip in a pool?

Well, that being said, Holly’s swims aren’t just about leisure and relaxation. According to all the coverage details, Holly is about 7 to 8 lbs overweight. Her doting, loving pet mom, Dani, began swimming her kitty in an effort to incorporate some sort of physical activity into Holly’s regular routine.

The cat, Dani says, is really sedentary and simply just won’t move. “She has small, tiny little paws which make it hard for her to walk,” shares Dani with vet-turned-tv-host Dr. Katy J. Nelson of The Pet Show on Channel 8 where Dani and Holly were interviewed for a second time.

“Holly also has some arthritis issues so mobility, in general, is rather challenging for her. Additionally, Holly used to have a lesion in her mouth so our vet put her on steroids which made her gain at least 4 lbs of extra weight,” Dani explained during The Pet Show‘s filming. The full interview with Holly and Dani, by the way, will air at 11 am this Saturday on Washington DC’s News Channel 8.

I’ll keep you posted on Holly’s media exposure adventures as well as her physical health and swimming progress and will update you in a few weeks.