Posts Tagged ‘lunch’
Lucas sat down on our living room floor this morning and drew a school bus! Pretty good, huh? He *loves* school buses, and I keep thinking about how he’ll be riding one before we know it. He keeps telling us that he has to be 10 years old before he can ride one, though! :)
How are you guys doing today? I totally slept like *crap* last night. And I’m a “single mom” from now until Sunday, when Jeff gets home from Texas. Pray for me! LOL! :) I think that I’m totally going to crash at some point today. I’d *love* to take a nap this afternoon, but I don’t know whether that’s possible with Meredith not taking naps anymore. She gave up naps when she gave up her crib (Lucas did the same thing). But it’s a tradeoff … she does *really* well now with falling asleep at night! Anyway, I’m *so* tired today that I’m not expecting to get a whole lot done. I’m not awake at all. I *have* to put in a few loads of laundry and do the dishes, though, because we have no plates on which to eat!
Speaking of food … one of Lucas’s preschool teachers asked him yesterday what he ate for Thanksgiving dinner. Lucas responded, “Crackers.” LOL! :) Yes, that’s true … we did have crackers and cheese … but he sure ate a lot more than just that! His teacher said that she wishes she had thought of that ~ it would have made cooking much easier! :) I made some potato soup from scratch last night, and it was *so* good. It was a slow cooker recipe that Carol gave me a long time ago, but I turned it into a top-of-the-stove recipe. That’ll be lunch today, along with some rosemary-olive oil bread! Yum!
We watched two movies this weekend: “Transsiberian” and “The Love Guru.” Yes, two dramatically different films! :) “Transsiberian” was recommended to us by a coworker’s girlfriend, and although it was kind of weird in some ways, it was just excellent! I *really* enjoyed it. Most of the story takes place on a train, and Woody Harrelson plays a funny part. The scenery was amazing. “The Love Guru” was silly and good for laughs. Cracked me up that Mariska Hargitay was actually in the movie! I tried to do some knitting during each of these movies, but it was too dark in our living room ~ and the movies *really* captured my attention! :)
Speaking of knitting … I’m knitting now! Yay! :) Carol was *so* sweet to show me the techniques. I even purled a few stitches last night! I can’t tell you how excited I am to learn something new. Right now, I’m using some sage green yarn that she gave me to knit a basic rectangle. I think that I’ll turn it into a coffee cup “cozy” if I manage to actually do it right! :) I’d love to get good enough to make pretty dishcloths, and even down the road maybe I can make some hats for the kids. Carol started me off with some neat knitting supplies and two books to borrow. I’ve been checking those out. I put my name on the list for Ravelry, too. And yes, Kae, I *definitely* need to knit a little pair of pants for my carrot! LOL! :)
Tomorrow is going to be a crazy-busy day. In the morning at 9, I have my moms’ group meeting at our church. Then, it’s lunch on the road as I drive Lucas to preschool at 12:30. I pick him up early because the kids are doing a “Thankful Presentation” (complete with a surprise for the moms ~ I can’t wait to see what Lucas made!). Then, there’s a preschool parent advisory board meeting tomorrow night. I’m absolutely going to crash after that, I think.
Off to finish up some graphic design work ~ have a wonderful Monday, guys!
I was just downstairs with Jeff, commenting on how nice it is that Lucas can now play by himself in our bonus room without getting into trouble. We thought that he was watching his “Jonah” DVD. Wrong! I came upstairs to get Meredith up from her nap, and Luke was completely naked in our guest bathroom. He was squirting hand soap into the sink, filling it with water, tearing off pieces of toilet paper, and throwing them into the “pool.” I *just* cleaned that bathroom yesterday. What’s that saying about kids suddenly getting quiet … that’s when you know that mischief is happening! :)
Jeff had the day off work today (thank you, veterans, for all that you do for our country … we honor you and remember you today), so we went shopping at K-mart because we heard that lots of toys were 50 percent off. I hadn’t been inside a K-mart in years, and honestly, I used to think that K-mart was kind of junky. But I was *so* surprised! Not so! (At least, our store wasn’t.) They had all kinds of great stuff. The kids had a blast looking at the toys. (Lucas wanted some Harley parts ~ just kidding!) We actually did *all* of our Christmas shopping for Lucas and Meredith today, and now my moms’ group is having a gift wrapping session on the 20th (the moms get together for some fun, fellowship, and wrapping presents together). It feels good to have a bit of a head start on Christmas! We also had lunch at Pizza Hut. I lost count of how many pieces of pepperoni pizza Lucas ate! They served this weird dessert pizza that tasted like chocolate pudding with some frosting on top. Blech.
Thanks to everyone who responded to my milk question. I can’t believe all of the different advice that doctors give. I think that we’re going to stick with whole milk for the kids for a while. I’m just happy to see that milk prices have come down recently. A gallon at our grocery store today was only $2 something.
Did anyone watch “The Big Bang Theory” last night? Did you catch Sheldon’s movie reference? Leonard said to Penny, “Congratulations … you are now one of us.” And then Sheldon said, “One of us … one of us …” I wracked my brain last night and this morning, trying to figure out what movie that line was from. We Googled it last night but didn’t have any luck. First thing when I woke up this morning, though, I suddenly remembered what movie I was thinking of. Do you know? (Answer in the comments section!) I was *so* freaking relieved to have figured it out! It was driving me nuts!
I felt so overwhelmed on Saturday. Between freelance assignments with looming deadlines, my ever-growing to-do list, longing for a little bit of a break, and not being able to accomplish much lately, it just all kind of “hit the fan.” I sat down and wrote a blog entry, mentioning at the end that my husband would be in Baltimore all week for a business trip.
A few hours later, my mom called. I knew that something was up, because my parents don’t usually call us on Saturday mornings. She asked me, “Do you have anyone to watch the kids while you go to your doctor’s appointment on Monday?” I said no, that I was just going to bring them with me (ugh!). That’s when my mom replied, “Well … would you like to have a babysitter?” Kind of puzzled, I said, “Uh … sure!” And then she said, “Well … *I* can babysit, if that would be OK!” Huh? My parents live in Indiana! All I could say was, “What?”
That’s when my mom told me that she was going to hop a plane the very next day and stay with us until Thursday. She mentioned phrases such as, “doing the dishes,” “working on some laundry,” “babysitting the kids,” “fixing some meals,” and so on. My eyes immediately welled up with tears. I kept saying, “Oh my God!” over and over. I just couldn’t believe it. We got off the phone, and I just burst into tears. She had absolutely *no* idea how much I needed something like this and what *perfect* timing it was. Jeff said that it was an answer to his prayers, too, because he was concerned about me having to watch the kids all week by myself. I was simply on cloud nine. We hardly *ever* get to see our families. Read the rest of this entry »
Our town celebrated its 399th birthday this weekend. The theme of the event was, “The River and Its People Before 1609″ (with “river” referring to the Hudson River). On Friday, our town’s farmers’ market hosted a special “Harvest Dinner” with Native American-themed dishes made by town residents. I put together some corn salad, and it turned out pretty well. For just a few dollars, we sat down inside our town’s historic train station and enjoyed a Native American meal with friends and neighbors. (And the maple syrup upside-down cake was heavenly! I *must* get that recipe!) Several musicians also played the drums, and Lucas and Meredith took part by shaking some maracas! We really had a nice time.
Yesterday morning, there was a 5K race to honor one of our town’s longtime residents who passed away several years ago. Then, the kids enjoyed a bunch of activities at the playground. They could make corn husk dolls, play some Native American games, do a scavenger hunt (which Lucas *loved*!), make some crafts, and of course play on the swings and slides. Around noon in our town hall, there was a slide presentation about what life was like in this area before Henry Hudson arrived. We didn’t go to that, but we did enjoy a wonderful picnic lunch with friends and neighbors at the playground’s pavilion. Hot dogs, coleslaw, macaroni salad, squash casserole, more corn salad, peaches, chips, mint brownies, lots of drinks … it was *so* relaxing to just sit, talk, and hang out.
Afterward, we drove over to our town’s volunteer fire department because they were having an open house. They let the kids climb into the fire trucks, touch anything they wanted, etc. They were *so* good to Lucas and Meredith. There was even a remote-controlled dalmatian (named “Patches”) in a fire truck! We got to see the department’s brand-new fire engine, and they also led us through the “Family Safety House.” It’s a trailer that simulates a home environment and helps people learn more about fire safety. The “house” could simulate a hurricane or tornado situation, even. Lucas and I went into the bedroom area, and they flipped a switch that caused the “house” to fill up with smoke. One of the firefighters taught Lucas about crouching down low on the floor, feeling the door to see whether it’s hot (the door actually had heated coils inside to simulate a real fire situation), and then finding another way to get out. Lucas learned how to open the door and climb out the window. It was really a terrific learning experience for the kids (and a wake-up call to us, because we need to buy one of those safety ladders to keep upstairs and choose a meeting place in our yard). Makes you think more about term life insurance, too. But you hope that those things will never get used, of course. Then, Luke and Meri got to dress up as firefighters! I couldn’t stand the cuteness! :) The firefighters were *so* good with the kids and even gave them coloring books.
I didn’t take too many pictures for some reason, but there are a few up at Flickr. It was a great day ~ and we didn’t even spend a dime! Amazing! Next year is our town’s huge quadricentennial ~ 400 years old. That event will include fireworks (most likely) and will celebrate Henry Hudson’s arrival. I can’t wait to volunteer for that event and help out as much as I can. I got to design a brochure for this year’s event, which was totally an honor and lots of fun.
I took my blood pressure the other day with our home blood pressure monitor (it fits around your wrist), and my blood pressure measured 142/90. Not good, right? Mine usually hovers around 128/80. But, I was also feeling *very* anxious at the time, and my heart was racing ~ so I’m sure that’s why. I’ve been loading up on sweets lately, and that just *has* to stop! I can feel a difference in my waistline. In fact, I ate *so* much for lunch today that I probably won’t have any dinner. Or maybe just some pieces of lettuce! LOL! :) I’ve been trying to work out on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, but … uh, that plan so far has only been put into practice on paper. *sigh*
Dana commented that I’ve seemed pretty stressed out lately. She’s right. For one, I’ve had a bunch of last-minute freelance feature stories to suddenly put together this past week (because someone else’s stories didn’t get done), so I’ve *totally* had to scramble. That has accounted for much of my to-do list lately (just two more stories to finish by … oh, this Friday!). There’s just always so much to do (and so much to worry about). I wish that 1) I had more energy to accomplish things, and 2) that I could have an entire *week* to myself here at home in order to get things done!
But … summer’s end is unfortunately approaching quickly (anyone remember the old Country Time lemonade commercial that counted how many days of summer were left?), and I’m trying to make a list of things that I’d like to do before the season ends. I wanted to make cucumber-mint sorbet *last* summer but never got around to it … and I haven’t made it yet this summer, either. I want to take the kids to this nearby park/conservatory area that we’ve never been to before. I want to go for more walks around our area. How about you? What’s on your “before summer ends” to-do list?
A friend is coming over tomorrow morning to watch Lucas and Meredith while I conduct an interview for a feature story that I’m writing for our local newspaper. I said that maybe after I get back, she could stay and have lunch with us (as a way of thanking her for babysitting). But now, I need to figure out what to serve! I swear ~ despite all of the fantastic cookbooks that we own, sometimes I just can’t figure out what to make. I know that she likes quiche, but I fixed that the last time she came over. Rachael Ray’s latest magazine has lots of awesome-sounding recipes, so maybe I’ll go through and see whether anything jumps out at me.
Speaking of food … I had *oh* such a healthy lunch today: chicken nuggets dipped in honey, Lucas’s uneaten “Cars” Spaghettios, and a bunch of sugar wafers (which I needed to buy today in order to make Martha Stewart’s No-Bake Chocolate and Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars). Why do I do that to myself? I went to the grocery store hungry, so it was difficult not to pig out when I brought everything home. *sigh* If I keep this up, I’m going to need something crazy like Leptitrex, LOL! :)
Oh, here’s a funny story. I stopped at the post office this morning to mail an eBay package, and an elderly gentleman pointed out to me that I had a leaf or something on the back of my white skirt. I took a look, laughed, and said, “Oh, yes I do … thanks so much for telling me!” He left, and I turned back to the counter and said to our postmaster, “Hey ~ does that mean that he was looking at my rear end?” She laughed and said, “He’s a guy. All guys do that.” :D
So this afternoon, I was making hot dogs for lunch. I asked everyone what fixings they wanted on theirs. Lucas said that he wanted ketchup, and then I said, “We have relish, too. Would you like some relish?” I’d bought some for our Fourth of July cookout last weekend. Lucas excitedly replied, “Yes!” So I searched and searched in the fridge but just couldn’t find the jar of relish anywhere. Frustrated, I said, “How do you lose relish?” And my witty husband replied, “With gusto.” LOL! :)
Along the same lines, I then prepared a yummy hot dog for myself for lunch. (We have tons of buns left over from last weekend ~ have to use them up somehow!) I put some Dijon mustard on mine as well as some havarti with dill cheese, then topped it off with some of Hannaford’s creamy dill dressing. (Yeah, no calories there ~ can we say plus size clothing?) My husband stood there watching me “build” it, shaking his head in disbelief. I looked up and said, “Hey! It’s my dill dog!” And as soon as those words came out of my mouth, we both laughed hysterically. I realized how the words “dill dog” sounded. My husband chuckled and said, “Glad you put a ‘g’ on the end!” :D
Yes, you can see that we’re both tired from staying up late last night, watching fireworks. :) I look forward to recapping our awesome Fourth of July yesterday. We had a great day together as a family. Stay tuned (if you’re still up to reading after this entry, LOL!).
As I mentioned before, my sophomore year college roommate is coming to visit on Thursday and is staying with us until Sunday. Pretty much all of our meals are covered (I figure that sandwich-type stuff will do for lunches ~ or going out to eat). But dinner is another story. I’d like to make a yummy meal for us to enjoy on Thursday evening. (Friday night, we might take her out to eat at our local café, and Saturday night will probably be cookout leftovers.) I just don’t know what to fix. (Funny … tons of clipped recipes in our kitchen but yet I just don’t know which one to choose!)
It would be great to find a dinner dish that’s relatively quick and easy to put together (because I’d rather talk with Claire instead of dealing with a bunch of complicated ingredients in the kitchen). But I’d also like a “wow” factor, too, you know? It’s somewhat difficult because I don’t know what Claire and her daughter like to eat, not to mention whether they have any food allergies (I totally forgot to ask her). I suppose that the dish should be pretty kid friendly, too. Something in the slow cooker would work, and maybe something kind of summery.
Everyone likes pasta, right? Maybe a nice pasta dish with yummy bread and salad? No clue yet about dessert. I thought that I would ask you culinary types out here in blogland to find out whether you’ve fixed any awesome dinner recipes lately or know of some cool links where I could find some. I’ll probably go grocery shopping tomorrow (or even tonight on the way home after dealing with my stupid speeding ticket!). Thanks in advance!
And speaking of food, I’m off to fix the kiddos their lunches. PB&J, here I come! :)
