I Get No Kick From Champagne

Sometimes, you just get inspired to throw a little celebration into everyday life. I admit that I'm not always the best at doing this. My husband and I decided early on that we were going to use our fancy, crystal glasses that we got when we got married on a regular basis, and not just save them "for a special occasion"... because that would mean we would hardly ever get to use them. But aside from that, I'm normally guilty of saving the "nice" things until we have an exciting reason to use them. You know, if I'm just going to have a glass of wine while sitting in my comfy pants and watching "Boardwalk Empire", I'm obviously going to open the $4 bottle of Trader Joe's Merlot and not anything nice. But yesterday, I decided to declare it a day for celebration!

I've been taking Cardio Barre classes, once or twice a week, since October. I'm not gonna lie.... I hate them. That said, I always feel great for the rest of the day after I take one, and they really are great exercise, so I keep it up. I've stuck with the Beginner Level classes (except for the one time, on my second visit to Cardio Barre, when I accidently took the advanced class, and I almost lost my very life), which are hard enough, but I had a goal for myself that I wanted to willingly take the Advanced Class again, and live to tell the tale. Yesterday, I took the Advanced Class, and I think I did pretty well! I left feeling very proud of myself, and as soon as I got home, I put a bottle of Champagne in the fridge. I mean, my chunky, middle aged body kept up with all of those skinny, sinewy, 22 year olds in the Advanced Class, which I think is cause for celebration!

I agreed to let them photograph my legs, for use in their future advertisements.

I happened to have 2 bottles of Champagne on hand.... because, I have been saving them for a special occasion ;-).... but also because, as you know, I don't particularly care for Champagne (or any sort of sparkling wine. I know it's only really Champagne if it hails from Champagne). I guess I'm at the point where I can tolerate it, and if called upon to take part in a champagne toast, I can do that, but I want to be at the point where I actually *like* the taste of Champagne! I consider myself to be a lady of exquisite taste, and I consider it to be a real embarrassment not to actually enjoy the stuff!

Hubby had a great day himself, so he had reason to be joyous too! And of course he was proud of me "leveling up" in Cardio Barre.... he knows, all too well, how challenging this whole Cardio Barre thing has been for me. After dinner, we had a Champagne Toast. At first sip, we both kind of made faces. That first sip of Champagne is a doozy! Remember, I still have some residual issues with both white wine and carbonated beverages, which explain my Champagne issues.

Just a normal Thursday night at home.

 Over the course of watching a 3 hour long movie, we managed to drink the bulk of the bottle of Champagne. After the first sip, it does get easier. I suppose once it gets a little bit flat, it becomes more palatable for me. By the end of the evening, I can't say that I legitimately liked the taste of the Champagne, but I definitely showed I could tolerate drinking it! Aside from a few experiences with Champagne Cocktails, I've never drank more than 1 tiny flute of Champagne at a time, until last night. :-) Now, I need to find another excuse to celebrate, so I can open up the other bottle of Champagne I have.... that one is the NICE bottle, which, of course, I have been saving for a REALLY special occasion!

One more thing of note: I made a Broccoli, Ham and Pasta Salad for dinner. It had half a head of radicchio in it. The radicchio didn't bother me at all! I think I'm on the verge of being able to claim that I have conquered radicchio!