Real Housewife of NJ

I suppose I'm a "real housewife" in my own right. Although, as real housewifing goes, I'm not too adept in the kitchen or at "homemaking" in general, but that's not really what people think of when you say "Real Housewives" anymore. If you walk into a conversation about them, you're talking about New Jersey, NYC, The OC, Beverly Hills, Miami or Atlanta. Possibly even DC if they are a real aficionado on the topic since those ladies only lasted one season.

B and I always end up in such random situations. One night I was out with a friend and B was walking with Ethan in town. He walked by the Glen Rock Inn and lo and behold, just casually having dinner outside was Rosie Pierri (Kathy Wakile's sister), of RHONJ fame. I got a text from B that she was there, quickly prompting a text back saying, "You got a picture with her, right??!". Since my loving husband hates to disappoint me, he did go back making our three and a half year old do his dirty work. He had E go up to her and say hello. Yadda yadda, he got the picture. E and Rosie. She was super nice and she introduced B to her friends, one of which is Robyn Levy, the editor/owner of New Jersey Dining Out magazine.

Robyn invited B (and +1) to an event she was having this past Friday night at Al Di La in East Rutherford. It was a cocktail party collecting toys for children in need. B thought it would be nice to get out and go to it. He was appreciative of the invite and we had toys to give anyway. I happened to wake up with a cold that morning, it was raining and about forty degrees out so we thought about cancelling, but we already RSVP'd and had a sitter so we figured we'd just go. Well, I couldn't have been happier that we did decide to go!

It was a cocktail party to collect toys, BUT it was also part of an episode of RHONJ's next season. If there was any event for me to randomly end up, anyone that knows me knows this would be it. How exciting, right? Whatever- judge away if you're a Housewives Hater but I know for plenty, it's definitely a fun guilty pleasure. For me, it's not even a hidden one- I'm out and proud of my Housewives love.

At first, we didn't see anyone affiliated with the show. We were there for what seemed like awhile, made friends with another couple- Christina & Matt, who made the night really fun just by being cool to hang out with and very friendly. B & I can always find stuff to talk about with each other, but it's nice at one of these kinds of things, to find other people to chat with.

THEN, we see Cameras, Flashbulbs, and HOUSEWIVES (and husbands, grown children, and siblings)! Oh my! I realized that since it was FOR Dine Out NJ, food and drink companies were sponsoring and there to get their stuff out there. Kathy was promoting her cannolis, Christopher Laurita was promoting BLK Water (and maybe other liquids?), and I guess Jacqueline was there to support her husband (and just be...herself), Rosie was there because she's Kathy's sister and friends with Robyn, and Rich Wakile and kids were there to support Kathy. I think Rich's sister was there too. She looked familiar. I feel like she may have been on the show at least once. Or she just looks familiar to me.

First of all- all the women are SMALL. Way smaller than on TV. Not that they're "big" on tv, but you know what I mean. Jacqueline is SO tiny! Like, I felt like the jolly Green Giant next to her. They were all VERY nice and very happy to take pictures. I am obviously not shy about asking- just ask Matthew Settle (Rufus, Gossip Girl) who I chased down on a Manhattan street for a photo. Everyone was trying to get their attention but they were very personable and friendly. Rosie remembered B from the time they met on the street so that was pretty cool.

The cameras were on them all from the minute they came in until we left hours later. It was odd- I love have some tv moments but I really couldn't imagine being on camera for THAT long, just having regular conversations. It's not like cameras are just "around" unobtrusively. These are big, lighted, in-your-face cameras. More than one at a time. And I think the "characters" are supposed to just try to "act natural". But I don't even know how you could. B, Matt, Christina and I were all in the background of the filming at least 3/4 of the time but we could move around, talk freely, etc, and not have to be "on". It actually seemed like a lot of work!

We had fun. It was a really nice party in general. I'd never been to Al Di La before but the food was REALLY good. They had a pasta station with a vodka and a red sauce and both were delicious. I LOVE vodka sauce but it has to be good. Apparently there are so many ways of making it, some places can really mess it up. Well, mess it up for me anyway. But this was PERFECT vodka sauce. They had a chocolate fountain, the cannolis, a candy bar, an OPEN bar (alcohol), and lots of passed hors d'oeuvres. There were even pigs in a blanket. No event is complete without them. Again, at least in my book.

I didn't get to meet Robyn because she was all over the place doing her thing. I didn't want to interrupt her. So I just want to publicly thank her for throwing a great party and including us. It was an awesome event to get to be a part of and I got great pictures. Anytime I get good pictures, life is good.

Al Di La: http://www.aldilaitalianbistro.com/
New Jersey DiningOut: http://www.diningout.com/newjersey/