Cotillion End of the year Party 2009

The amazing menu (my entree of choice - yeah, that would be the lobster!



A cohort in crime - Christie & me



hmmm...what could this be??



I've flipped for the Flip



The girls- Nicole, Rebekah, Gena & Christie


Yup...it's another post on our Cotillion party...seems like I just did this for last year.
Boy time flies. Once again, I overindulged with amazing food,

Ah, my yearly fix of Lobster!

The staff is like little kids at Christmas guessing what goody could possibly be in those red polka dotted bags....

drum roll....

Flip video cameras!!!

I was so excited because I've been wanting to do more video of the girls but our camera isn't the easiest access and I'm always out of tape or battery or whatever. With the Flip it's all digital, I can upload it to my laptop, edit, add music, it's amazing. So thank you to the Martines for always making the dinner so memorable and the working experience so enjoyable!

Another Cotillion Christmas...

Can't believe I'm already posting another Cotillion Christmas...seems not too long ago I wrote about last years party. As is typical with the Martines, they went all out and splurged on giving us gift certificates to Burke Williams Day Spa...along with a bottle of Champagne and glasses to boot. I'm looking forward to six yummy weeks off from work!! Although...I have a feeling it's going to be a filled six weeks of whatever I can possibly pack in...that's just how I am ;-)

Cotillion Year End Dinner

Alas, another Cotillion year has come to an end and as usual the Martine's end it with a bang! This year instead of our normal spot for dinner at the Four Seasons, we had it at the Ritz. Not a bad substitute :-) The evening began with toasts all around for a successful season and continued on with "The Carousel"
A Lazy-Susan laden with Akvavit-cured "Gravlax",
Smoked Idaho Trout, Gulf Shrimp, Dungeness Crablegs, Shelled Maine Lobster Claws,
Goose Liver Paté, "Parma" Prosciutto Ham & "Tartare" of Filet Mignon...and that was just the beginning. We moved onto our next course with Maine Lobster Bisque laced with Sherry & Cognac. (Ok if you're wondering how I'm remembering all the yummy details of each course I have to share my secret...it's called cut and paste from the online menu) The soup was followed by my main entree' Nantucket Day-Boat Scallops Sauté "Belle Meuniere" Pan-seared w/ Mushroom Brown Butter over Mashed Potatoes & fresh Asparagus. So your mouth should be watering right about now...but that's not all. There must be room for dessert! My choice: "Profiteroles", Cream Puffs filled w/ Vanilla Bean Ice Cream, sauced table side with Hot Belgian Chocolate. So one might think this is quite enough to celebrate the years end but not the Martine's. It is a blessing to work for such a wonderful family, and I'm not just saying that because they know how to spoil...even without all the wonderful gifts they always manage to surprise us with, they have been a joy to work for and I look forward to many more years to come. Thanks Martine Cotillion for a wonderful 2007!

Gene Turner- Artist Extraordinaire

Sunday afternoon, Greg and I enjoyed watching a good friend of mine, Gene Turner at an art demo. Gene is the grandfather of one of the gentleman I work with at cotillion and he helps cater refreshments at a few of our local spots. In a passing conversation I learned that he is an artist and actually trained under Norman Rockwell as well as Elmer Tafflinger & Ralph Craig who both studied under the legendary George Bridgeman (for those art enthusiasts out there). He is often invited to different art societies to give demonstrations and invited me to come and watch at a local demo he was giving in La Habra. Gene is 82 years old and yet has such a zest for life, I only hope I'm as active as he is when I reach that age (yes I'm planning on making it, God willing :-) He spent two hours teaching his technique of color pencil over water color as well as sprinkling in the most wonderful stories of his life, from how he found his love for art to stories of serving in World War II. The time just melted away as we watched his painting come to life. The artwork he completed was then auctioned off and I won! Granted, I think I purchased the most amount of raffle tickets so the odds were in my favor. It was nice to stop and pause for the day and enjoy getting lost in art and history and the twinkle of a gentle soul's sweet eyes.

A Cotillion Christmas

Thurs. Dec 14th was the last night of work for Cotillion until we start up again at the end of January. As per tradition, we held a Christmas party after work and were spoiled by an array of goodies from co-workers and Mr. & Mrs. Martine. The big hit of the party - the famed Burke Williams Day Spa gift certificates. They sure know how to build loyalty in their staff :-) In addition to that, Mrs. Martine put together tower boxes filled with goodies from Mrs. Fields as well as movie passes. In the background of the pics you can see a portion of the elaborate decorations we put up and tear down each evening of work. Yes, the swag garland is ours too! I must say, I am very blessed to work with such fun people and such a generous company. It's wonderful to be able to say I love what I do.