It’s me, Todd and yes, It WAS my birthday last Wednesday. So all drinks are on me! It’s time to celebrate not just because it WAS my birthday, but because in the past week or two, there’s been a plethora of reasons to celebrate here at the WORC household.
- Thanks to Chuck at Sunday Nite Dinner and FoodGawker we’ve mostly recovered the scrambled mess that our site became. Thanks again, Chuck. You spent hours unraveling the mess the we got our neophyte butts into. We appreciate your patience and knowledge tremendously. You rock!
- It was my birthday, it was my birthday!
- It was our friend Lenny’s birthday over at Chez Us too!
- I got out of a speeding ticket, probably because it was my birthday!
- Life is short and precious, so we should celebrate every day we get to share with our loved ones.
- Did I mention it was my birthday?
- There were a couple other birthdays and one wedding involving my compatriots at the dojo.
- And… It was my birthday!
first pour…
Now that I’ve gotten that gloating out of my system, I’m sure many are wondering what Diane and I did to celebrate. We can rarely think of presents to give each other that are truly meaningful, since neither of us are into “things.” Material possessions just aren’t that important, plus I have all of the Wustof knives I need. Instead of “things,” we like to give each other “moments.” We’ll go do something we’ve been wanting to try, or go to a special restaurant, or take a trip together somewhere. For this latest anniversary of my birth, we were inspired to take a roadtrip with the pups to Yosemite. We’d been itching to go somewhere, anywhere… and all week we were debating about taking a trip. Mid-week it was decided that we would go somewhere. We didn’t know where in the hell we were going to go, but it would be somewhere. More debating; fly somewhere & leave the pups (boo!), roadtrip local or out of state, camping or urban destinations or maybe a cool bed and breakfast place… We just couldn’t decide.
The Champagne Cooler Cocktail
There is some much that we want to see and explore. Still undecided, but we cleared our schedules anyway, and by Monday we would be on our way… to somewhere. Finally on Sunday, Diane struck gold. “Let’s go to Yosemite!” My face lit up and we had a “Winner! Winner! Chicken Dinner!” The little white trouble (Sierra) has never been, it’s been several years since we have been, we have never camped there together (only daytrips), and the Tioga Pass leading to Whoa Nellie Deli is open! We called up the car rental agency and reserved a mid-suv ( our Toyota SUV has 350,000 miles and the truck just isn’t fair to the 165 lbs of canine we would be bringing.) We threw our gear together, grabbed some groceries, then Sunday night after work, headed off on our trip. The trip was of course fantastic. We are finishing off a little video for you all to expound on all of it’s joys, so I won’t bore you with the details now. But it can be said that the smiles on our faces couldn’t be knocked off with a 2×4.
second pour…
Before you start getting jealous, you’ll be happy to know not everything was perfect. I nearly had a heart attack after being pulled over by a National Park Ranger for speeding! Yes, rangers are allowed to give out speeding tickets. But he was a kind Sir, and let me off with a warning. And at the dojo we have a lovely little tradition of throwing someone around on their birthday after class when they are already nice and tired. Take the number 100, subtract the number of years you have walked the earth, and that is the number of times you get quickly and successively thrown. If I was in any lesser of conditioning, I may have lost my cookies. Of course it is all very loving torment, but I can’t wait until I’m 90. At least I’m not 20 anymore.
American Flyer Cocktail
No celebration is complete if it isn’t shared with those around you. So we have researched to find a delicious summer celebration cocktail. Serious celebrating calls for Champagne cocktails. Summer calls for cool and refreshing. I call for another round of cocktails! The champagne cocktail we found is called the American Flyer, and every evening since we’ve discovered it, we’ve partaken in a round or two. It’s almost like a rum version of a French 75. This cocktail is cool, refreshing, and goes down so nice. Tonight we also tried a Champagne Cooler cocktail, which is also quite tasty. It’s a bit harder for those who wish, so we’ll share that one too. Let’s bust out the cocktail shakers and the champagne and share a drink. Life is short, let’s celebrate and drink cocktails!
Print This Recipe
American Flyer Cocktail Recipe
Ingredients
1 1/2 oz light Rum
1/2 oz fresh Lime Juice
1/2 oz Simple Syrup
3-5 oz chilled Champagne
1. Chill champagne flute. Shake all ingredients except for the champagne in a cocktail shaker with ice.
2. Strain into chilled flute, then slowly add champagne. Enjoy. Repeat. Enjoy.
Print This Recipe
The Champagne Cooler Cocktail Recipe
Ingredients
1 oz Triple Sec
1/2 oz Cognac
Couple dashes Angostura Bitters
3-5 oz chilled Champagne
orange zest
1. Chill champagne flute. Pour all ingredients except for the champagne into the flute. Slowly add champagne. Garnish with an orange zest.
Next Post: More of my birthday celebration- Video and pics of our road trip!
More cocktails that you might enjoy:
- Chili Martini – vodka, peach juice, simple syrup, crushed chili
- Pina Colada – rum, pineapple juice, coconut cream
- Blackberry Tom Collins – blackberries, gin, club soda
- Curacao “Island Taxi” – rum, curacao, orange/lime juice
- Limoncello “So Cal Sunrise” – limoncello, blood orange/lime juice
- Blood Orange “Midnight Ride” – cognac, triple sec, blood orange juice
- Mango Margarita – tequila, triple sec, mango puree
- Apple Sidecar – calvados, lemon juice, apple cider
- Classic Sidecar – cognac, triple sec, lemon juice
- Pomegranate Cosmo – vodka, triple sec, pomegranate juice
- Between the Sheets – cognac, rum, lemon juice
Subscribe to White On Rice Couple by RSS
Follow White On Rice Couple - Twitter
Get updates via Facebook
{ 61 comments… read them below or add one }
Belated happy birthday Todd! Time to start storing up all the calcium you can get– you’ll need it to survive being thrown around 40 times when you’re 60! Ha ha ha.
happy belated birthday todd!! may all things great and beautiful come your way, whichever way you wish them be
Happy belated birthday!~ Sounds like you had a great celebration! ★
Hey – happy birthday! Like you, I’m all for birthdays. A great excuse to celebrate long and loud….! See if you can make it last a month…
Happy Birthday Todd and you have many blessings in your life but remember, health is the most important one.
Give your love Diane a big hug & kiss and tell her ya love her because she’s the greatest gift you’ve received!
Happy Birthday! What a great bday trip! We’re heading out to Yosemite early next year and I cannot wait. Looking forward to seeing more pics. Glad you escaped the ranger & the fires that seem to be in the area.
Happy birthday! I love the idea of giving gifts of moments rather than things, and I totally agree with preferring vacations that the dog(s) can come along on. Sounds like a great birthday celebration.
Happy Birthday to you!! Sounds like you had a lot of fun and glad the ranger did not spoil it.
Happy Belated Birthday! Happy Belated Birthday! Happy Belated Birthday to you, Todd!
And there is little doubt you had lots of fun; only come to think of all those cocktail servings you shared! 
Happy Happy Birthday Todd! My birthday was a little over a week ago, too. Also celebrated with great gusto, but no near cookie tossing. lol SALUD!
Happy Belated Todd! Those cocktails look good! Hope you enjoyed as many as you wanted!
Happy Birthday, Todd! I hope you had a great time in Yosemite!
Glad you had such a terrific trip, Todd. I’m not sure I like that tradition of throwing the birthday boy around…
A very merry un-birthday, to who? to you!
happy birthday todd. that getting thrown around sounds worse than getting punched and a pinch to grow an inch buisness. i hope you two didn’t get stuck in the fires this weekend.
park rangers can give tickets, they also carry guns and they do have a little pokey (jail) up in yosemite. at least you weren’t partaking of your drinks while driving!
a belated happy birthday, todd. wish you a wonderful year ahead.
Happy Birthday, Todd! I can’t think of a better way to ring in another year of existence than to romp with the pups in the great outdoors. Looking forward to the pics!
Happy Birthday!!! Only some of those photos loaded on your site though
Aww! Happy Birthday, Todd! Love the pic of you and Diane in Yosemite
Here is to many many more wonderful years 
xxoo
Happy birthday! What a fun way to celebrate.
I’m glad you didn’t have a heart attack. And didn’t get a ticket.
first and foremost, happy belated birfday.
secondly, those are some of the most awesome pictures i’ve ever seen!
Did you say it was your birthday, Todd?!? Happy belated birthday! Hungry Bear believes in the birthday month celebration, so you have another 3+ weeks to enjoy the b-day.
I’m glad I was able to help get your site back to normal. Cheers!
Happy belated birthday, Todd! Sounds like lots of good times had by all. Knowing that there are still people in the world who don’t care about “things” makes me smile.
Very Happy Birthday to you.
Very Happy Birthday to you
Very Happy Birthday tooo yoooouuu,
Very Happy Birthday to you!!
happy late birthday! all of your drinks look refreshingly delicious.
wanted to let you know i tried to respond to your email a couple of times and that silly Mail-Daemon keeps sending it back to me! Shame on him!
That champagne cooler looks killer. Great photos! Perfect way to celebrate. Happy belated B-day!
happy birthday, Todd!! What an amazing way to spend your bday : ) I can’t wait for the video of your trip! Here’s to a year full of health, happiness and LOTS of amazing food : )
Happy Birthday to you Todd and CHEERS!!!
Happy birthday…those are killer looking drinks you have there.
happy belated bday todd! CHEERS!!!
happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday happy birthday, happy birthday Todd!! you just dont see but im seeing and dancing for you!! cheers!! love that champagne!
Happy Birthday Tod!!! Looks like you had a lovely time. I would rather have a good time with someone I love, rather then another shirt. Love the champagne coktail!!!
Thanks for all of the birthday love, everyone!
Manggy – Believe it or not, we actually have a couple 60 year olds at the dojo who can survive being thrown 40 times. Amazing.
Lil – Thanks. I’m lucky enough to being living with the things great & beautiful.
noobcook – It was unforgettable.
aforkfulofspaghetti – As you suggest, I think we will have to celebrate all month. We usually just do a week. Much better your way!
Peter – Well said and always remembered. Diane’s been attacked with love properly. She’s always been the better half.
Sharon – Yosemite it amazing. Our jaws drop every time. Springtime is incredible if you go then. Much less tourists and the dogwoods are in bloom. Pack warm. Have a great time when you go.
Julie – It just wouldn’t have been the same without the pups.
vernon – The ranger rocked. Just gave us a firm fatherly warning.
anya – We did have lots of fun. How could we not, we were together with the pups in one of the most beautiful places in the world.
canarygirl – Happy birthday! Let’s take everyone’s advice & keep on celebrating. Salud!
Lisa – The cocktails were quite tasty. We had just enough to not regret it! Then repeated the next three nights in a row!
Allen – Yosemite was amazing as always. We’re excited about sharing the next video and pictures with everyone
nikkipolani – Being thrown isn’t too bad. It’s a rite of passage and helps make us mentally stronger. At least that tradition only happens once a year.
ECM – We saw a dude getting the full police treatment by the rangers. He was stupid & wasted. With such incredible beauty all around, I wouldn’t want to miss any of it by numbing the mind with alcohol. Plus it makes you tastier for the bears. Well marinated
bee and jai – Life seems to only get better as we savor it more & more.
moowiesqrd – Seeing the pups so happy still makes me laugh.
Matt – Sorry about that. The new WP upgrade doesn’t seem to be agreeing with our post pics for some reason. Working on fixing it…
Jen – Thanks Jen. We’ll have to take some more stunning shots with you guys over in CO.
Kitt – I think I just had a heart spasm. 4 years & no tickets, then almost 3 in less than 1. It’s all these rental cars! Got lucky on this one.
grace – Thanks and thanks. The pics came out almost as good as they were tasty.
Chuck – Thanks again for all the help. We just can’t say that enough! A month celebration it is!
Julie & Toontz – Thank you.
Amanda – Silly MD. I don’t get why that happens sometime. Thanks for the well wishes
Angela, Tony, Precious Pea, peabody, Rita, dhanggit – Thank you, all. Cheers to you all. Thanks for the love.
megan – Thank you. A good time definitely beat out getting a shirt.
Todd, if it makes you feel any better I got pulled over going, like, 40 in a 15 mph zone on our camping trip to Lassen. Those outdoorsy cops, I tell you.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
I can’t wait to hear (and see) more of your celebration. As much as I love being a Mama, I also miss the spontenaity of just being able to say “let’s go to Yosemite!” So I love living vicariously through you guys every time you do. My hub and I aren’t much into the material thing either, so we’d always bust out an experience for celebrations (I surprised him with a trip to Holbox Island for our 10th anniversary last year . . . “just pack your swimsuit” was all I’d tell him). But now that we can’t just disappear, we had to come up with an alternate plan. So for birthdays and anniversaries and valentine’s and the like, we’ve been giving gifts that we create . . . poems, songs, even meals. You should have read his poem for my first mother’s day with our daughter . . . still brings tears to my eyes.
Happy Birthday!
It still looks like a nice trip.
I haven’t been camping since BIVWAC and that isn’t really recreational.
So you like the Wusthofs? I swear by mine.
I dunno about that cocktail. I am still getting over sangria hangover…
Happy Birthday to you!!
You guys make such a great couple. Can’t wait to see more about the trip.
Happy Birthday!
And the one I like best: Life is short and precious, so we should celebrate every day we get to share with our loved ones.
Because now we can celebrate today!!:))
And did I say
Happy Birthday!
Happy belated birthday Todd! Come up T&D! I know just where to take for a birthday meal. Banh Xeo restaurant! You know you wanna!
Oooo! Pretty bubbles! Great photography, guys! (And I’ll add to the chorus of happy birthday wishes!)
Happy belated birthday. Wow! I want one of those lovely drinks. Cheers. Did I say Happy belated birthday?
lol about the dojo thing. Sounds like you had a great birthday and happy belated. Glad to hear it was all good
Happy belated birthday! I’m going to pretend it’s my birthday and have one of those delicious cocktails.
Happy belated Birthday!
Hmmm, so was it your birthday? HAPPY BIRTHDAY TODD!!!! Hope this is your best year ever. I totally agree with your philosophy of giving each other moments instead of stuff! What a great way to live and of course you two are the coolest people I know so I am going to take your advice! Cheers!
happy birthday! who the hell knew that a park ranger is allowed to give out tickets!? learn something new every day!
Hey you guys! Just thought I’d drop in and see how you are doing. Wow what
B E A U T I F U L birthday pictures you took! I bow before you. Your birthday looked wonderful and fun filled! May you next year be full of good food, laughter and love.
Take care
Dana Zia
The good gourmet
http://danazia.wordpress.com/
Happy belated birthday!
Happy birthday to you. What a wonderful time you had (excepting the getting thrown around part).
I love your site and your photography. I can tell I’m going to be spending way too much time browsing around.
Happy Birthday to you (cha cha cha), Happy Birthday to you (cha cha cha). Happy Birthday TODD, Happy Birthday to you! Heres to another July Hottie, having a bday! Next year, the four of us should head to Yosemite & do some climbing to celebrate you & Lenny nearing the 40s!
Well, Lenny much sooner than you! Then we can pop open some of that bubbly and celebrate!
Hope you had a great birthday! Let’s get together soon!
Belated birthday greetings!
“Moments” insted of “things”…I love that 
Once again I want to thank everyone for their well wishes.
swirlingnotions – 40 in a 15… ouch. The responsibility of parenthood changes things, but it seems your spirit is ever free. Your experiences seem incredible. Makes one happy to walk the earth.
Donald – We LOVE our Wusthofs. (damn, spellled it wrong in the post. all writing has been long wore off) They’ve had 12 years of solid use and it seems like we just bought them. The balance and weight seem perfect for our size of hands, and their edge holds beautifully. Our best kitchen purchase ever.
zenchef – Thank you. We are a great couple because I am very lucky.
MyKitchenInHalfCups – Words to live by, eh?!
WC – You are on. You know I love banh xeo. It’s even on my final feast.
missginsu – Bubbles are tasty too.
Ivy, Mike, Madeline, Y – Thank you very much. Cheers!
Simply…Gluten-Free – Awww. Your making me blush.
We Are Never Full – Don’t forget the gun and slammer bit too. You can get in big trouble with the rangers. Especially in the big Natl Prks.
Dana Zia, didally, Nate – We humbly thank you.
Chez Us – Happy b-day to you Lenny! Sounds like a great way to spend our next birthdays. Hopefully we won’t slow you down too much. It’s been awhile since we’ve put on the climbing shoes. Belay On!
joey – Thank you very much. It’s a nice way to think about things, huh.
Happy Birthday! You had a great time. Thanks for sharing those moments with us.
Very belated Happy Birthday, Todd! Any excuse for champagne, I always say! Yosemite on a whim? You guys rock!
Sounds like you had a terrific bday! Glad you were able to get your computer stuff worked out (Thanks to wonderful Chuck)… it can all be so baffling and frustrating, huh? I try not to mess with my blog much because of it. Just hired someone (yes, hired) to make some changes for me
Happy belated bday!
Happy belated birthday to you! What a lovely trip you guys must have enjoyed – the scenery alone is worth the ticket you *almost* got.
About that brand of champagne in your photos—I try to keep a bottle stocked in my collection at all times—I love it!
Happy Belated! I raise my glass to you, your beautiful life, getting out of a speeding ticket and having many more champagne toast celebrations all year!
love,
Brooke
ooh Wish you a belated Happy Birthday Todd, i’m very very late …. but i still wish you all the luck n happiness for the year to come
BTW the drinks shots are fantastic !!! Gr8 light comming thru the bubbly and great capture of the detail.
HOW COULD I FREAKIN’ HAVE MISSED THIS!!!!! WOO HOOO!!!! GIRL, ANOTHER YEAR YOUNGER, WISER AND MORE BEAUTIFUL!
MAJOR CONGRATS SO YOU LOVEY…
LOVE THE BUBBLY!
HAPPY, HAPPY (belated) BIRTHDAY, TODD!!!!! And such a FABULOUS way to spend it, too! *smile* (And gee, I KNEW there was a reason I liked you (and Diane, obviously) – another Leo! I just celebrated mine, too!!)
May the coming year bring you even more joy and success than this one has – you deserve it!!!
….and from ME ME ME, I’m a little late to the party, but, Happy Birthday!!!! I’m all about birthday MONTHS, anyway.
What a rockin’ awesome way to spend it – the beauty of Yosemite is absolutely mindblowing.
I’m going to try the American Flyer this weekend- yet anpther opportunity to show off my new sabering technique.
Another round of thanks to my well-wishers.
Hélène and Toni – Yosemite was incredible. One of the best birthday’s ever. Especially with the company I was lucky enough be surrounded by.
RecipeGirl – Chuck rocks! If I computers weren’t so fantastic, I’d throw the damn things out the window. Thanks for the b-day wishes.
Sandie – Yeah, the VISA commercials could use it. Cost of speeding ticket in Yosemite … Unforgettable B-day, priceless. It is a tasty little bubbly. In the same price point, Hendricks and Besserat de Bellefon also make a good drink.
Brooke, Kate, Bren – Champagne for everyone. I’ll drink a glass for all of you, if you’ll do two or three for me. Enjoy. Happy celebrating life!
Renee – Leos are something special. As long as we can find someone to put up with us!
lifeinrecipes- You’re never too late to celebrate. Between the two cocktail, I think the American Flyer was my favorite. I hope you enoy! Slice it clean!
Belated Birthday wishes & I am glad everything is back up & running…sounds like a total nightmare…I’m going to make sure everything is backed up now :-p btw, love the last shot …very cute!