Jun3

Exhausted again

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Exhausted again

Today started with racquetball, which was fun, then I walked the dog, met a friend for lunch, and took the kids to the house of another friend, where there was much swimming, walking around, talking, laughing and a general good time. Then I came home and remembered I pledged to post here every day this month, but I have nothing. Nothing but sore muscles and being glad to see old friends, which is enough for a good night’s sleep, but too much for coherent thought, :) . At least I am keeping the habit, right? Hopefully tomorrow I will write something worth reading.

Jun2

Whither the relaxing weekend?

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Whither the relaxing weekend?

Is the weekend really supposed to be a relaxing break from the workweek, or is that just a fantasy? Today I have gone out to lunch with my mother, aunt, kids and grandmother, dropped my daughter off at one store while my son and I went to another, went to a third store all together so that we could buy a bat mitzvah present, went home so the girl could get ready for the night, drove her across town, cleaned up the boy, walked the dog and made food. I still have to go to Art & Air to see Javier Mendoza tonight, but that at least should be relaxing.

Tomorrow will be almost as busy (racquetball in the morning, then lunch with a friend, then pick the kids up from my parents’ house and head over to another friend’s house for swimming–and somewhere in there I need to plan a menu and buy groceries). A lot of these things are fun, but it leaves little time at home for relaxing or house cleaning or writing!

Am I the only one who is still looking for that relaxing day? Anyone have tips for getting everything in and still having downtime? Sometimes I feel like I have it down, and sometimes I feel like I am coming up for air after weeks of no breaks. Part of my issue today was sleeping in this morning–the rest of day feels rushed when I miss the morning hours.

Jun1

Jumping in again

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Jumping in again

The theme for BlogHer’s June NaBloPoMo is Jump, which is perfect for me right at this moment. I mentioned starting a daily writing habit in my Summer Goals post, but it wasn’t a very structured goal. Saying I will start a daily writing habit is not the same as making a plan that can actually be followed.

Last November, I did the official NaBloPoMo, and it really did help with the discipline. It even carried over some–I didn’t post every day in December but I did write 14 posts here, plus a couple of posts at GamingAngels, which I think is pretty impressive for such a busy month. Things have tapered off since then, however.

So, I am jumping in to post every day here. I need specific goals with freedom, so I am getting specific with “Post something every day” but I am keeping things open-ended by not imposing a specific topic on each day. I do want to do something with short fiction of some sort, though, because that is what I want to do the most, and it is also what scares me the most. That will be my task for tomorrow, jumping right in the deep end.

May23

Summer Goals

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Summer Goals

Today is the first day of summer vacation for my children. I still have to work, of course, but they have lots of free time on the horizon. Today I left them asleep while I headed off to work, and I didn’t give them any directions for the day. It is the first day of their vacation, they should decompress, relax and enjoy it. Especially since things will be changing soon.

Last summer, my kids spent so much time watching television, I had to prompt them to reply to anything I said.
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“I am really here in the room, not on TV entertaining you! Answer me! Have a conversation.” This year, I have vowed that things will be different. The TV will not be the primary form of passing the time. They will use their brains and their bodies for more than holding the couch down and watching other people far away do interesting things.

This is not the first time I have tried to get them to watch less tv. I work at home two days per week, but I am in the office the other three, and in the past, this has translated to at least three days per week of almost constant TV watching. To counteract that to some extent, I have decided that this year there will be goals in 4 areas:

  • Reading
  • Writing
  • Physical fitness
  • Science

The girl also needs to start thinking about a service project. She is entering high school in the fall, and she needs to start thinking about building her record for college applications. Plus, we need to do something to show her that the fact that I don’t buy her everything she wants as soon as she wants it does not mean she is disadvantaged, ;) .

I broke the news to the kids over brunch this past Sunday. They were not impressed. They became a little more enthusiastic when I said that they could choose their own goals (although I have to approve–they must be an actual stretch). So far, the girl has decided to learn to play golf with my dad, and the boy has decided to finish a story about dragons who live in the sewer system he is writing with his best friend. They are still thinking about the remaining goals.

For the science goal, I have decided we will do one science experiment per week as a family, so they don’t need to come up with a separate goal for that. They can find something they would like to do, or I can come up with one, but ev

eryone has to participate. Also, to make this whole thing slightly more fun for them and less heartless, I bought the family pool passes. If they are at the pool, they are doing at least some moving around, and they won’t be watching TV.

As for me, I am making a few goals as well.

  • Writing: Establish a daily writing habit. I need to post more regularly here and at Gaming Angels. I am also working with a friend to start a crocheting blog for her new business. And I keep saying I write fiction, or at least I want to write fiction, but not doing any writing. It is time to change that. Oh, and here of course.
  • Physical fitness: Since I got the FitBit, I definitely exercise more. I take more steps, and I am less sedentary. I could do better, though. For the past 30 days, my average number of steps is 5,612–not terrible, but I can definitely improve. I want to be consistently at 7,500 per day by the end of the summer. I know 10,000 is the usual goal, but I want to try to get there a bit more gradually; once I have mastered 7,500 consistently, I will raise the goal again. I also want to make sure my total active time for each day (lightly active, fairly active, very active) totals at least 4 hours every day, with at least 1 ½ hours in fairly or very active.
  • Crafting: I am substituting this for science, since that is covered in the family goal, and I have a ton of crafting projects I want to do. For now, I will be relatively modest in my goals: 5 crochet projects and 5 non-crochet projectscompleted before school starts for the kids on 8/14. 

You may have noticed I didn’t put a reading goal in there; I am not sure what to do. I already read a lot, and I don’t have a lot of spare time to devote to reading more. All those goals up there will take a lot of my time spent not working, eating or sleeping! I am still thinking about this one. I haven’t made the kids finalize their goals yet, after all, why should I be done with mine?

Do you do summer goals? Or is it all loose and easy at your house?

May21

Menu, Week of 5/21

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Menu, Week of 5/21

Lately, all I want to do with my time is crochet things. This is an offshoot of my desire to create/build things in general, but I have been focused on crocheting in particular for many reasons. It makes me feel close to my grandmother, I am getting better and producing things I really like, and there are just so many things to make! So, last week, I made a quick and dirty menu plan and didn’t even get to post it. Then, I totally forgot I even had a plan. This week, I have to do better, :) .

Monday: I am picking something up from Crazy Bowls and Wraps. Tomorrow is the last day of school, the girl is behind on the dishes and wants to go swimming after school today, and it is payday. It is not the time for heroic cooking efforts!

Image Credit: BBC Good Food

Tuesday: I will be working from home tomorrow, and only working a half day. So, even though it will still be a hectic day (the girl getting home from Six Flags at 5:00 and needing to be picked up, a big party at the boy’s school at 6:00), I can throw together something quickly. I usually don’t mind standing over the stove to make risotto-I sip some wine and get my zen on–but this Oven-Baked Leek and Bacon Risotto looks perfect for the last day of school. The kids love almost all risotto, but they will especially love it with bacon, and it will be easy for me to get in the oven before I go to pick up the girl, then we can eat before walking up to the party.

Wednesday: Ah, the first day of summer vacation! I could ask the girl to cook, but I did tell her I would let her have one slothful day before I start giving her summer tasks. Peanut coconut chicken curry is not their favorite, but they don’t hate it, and I love it, so that is what I am doing. I don’t follow the linked recipe exactly (when do I ever?), but it is a good base. I will use reduced fat coconut milk, less chicken, and add in chickpeas and veggies for a nice one dish meal, if you don’t count the rice as a dish.

Thursday: I’m thinking this would be a good day to BBQ. Bratwurst, spicy mushrooms, slaw, grilled zucchini and yellow squash, mojitos, mint lemonade. I have a lot of mint in my garden, and I have not even begun to use it.

Friday: The kids’ schedule has been up in the air lately, with their dad having a new job. If they are here, we’ll have pizza or leftovers. If they are not, almost certainly I will have leftovers.

Saturday: Family is coming in from Ohio this weekend, and this is my night to host dinner. I want to do something fairly easy that uses stuff from my garden, so I think it will be chicken/veggie stew over rice with a side of Pickled Beets.

This menu will be linked up at orgjunkie.com–head over there for lot’s more inspiration!

May9

Crochet progress

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Crochet progress

Awhile back, I talked about my past struggles with crocheting, how I would try to jump in too quickly and get frustrated and quit. This time, I was determined, I would be kinder to myself, take things more slowly, and work my way up to the hard stuff.

I am happy to report that this is working! I have actually made things that are not embarrassing to claim! I have completed three hats, and while the last hat is definitely the best looking one, the first two are not bad, if I do say so myself. I used this pattern, which is all single crochet stitches, and it did wonders for my confidence and getting into a good rhythm of stitching. I have also finished two scarves, because they are quick and easy.

I can’t find a picture of my hats, but I do have pictures of the scarves. Both were made up patterns, just getting used to working with a slightly larger project and trying out yarns or threads I liked.

First, a jewel-toned scarf. I love variegated yarns, and I love jewel tones! This picture makes it look more blue and less purple than it looks in real life; I used my iPhone camera at work, so not the best lighting.


Next, I bought a bunch of cool multi-colored thread from a local yarn shop, and I wasn’t sure what to do with it. This is a scarf I made using it on the same hook with the purple yarn I used for the main part of the scarf. I love how it turned out, and my daughter, who was the recipient of this scarf, loved it, too.

I also made a quick necklace with the thread, but it wasn’t terribly sturdy. I need to practice more on this idea.

Beyond that, I have started many projects. I have even gotten pretty far on some of them. However, I haven’t really finished much. I have high hopes that I will have many finished projects soon, though. I have a few that are pretty close to being done, and I am trying to finish at least one thing before I start a new project. So far I haven’t had a lot of luck with that–I have 5 projects I am working on right now–but I am bound to finish something sometime, right?

May7

Menu, Week of 5/6

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Menu, Week of 5/6

I am once again in a place where I need to be extra creative, because I need to make due with what we have in the house. I did go buy a few perishables this weekend, but end of school field trips, fees and I don’t even know what else are squeezing our budget. Fortunately, I have a lot of staples on hand, and I like being creative!

Sunday: Fend for yourself – I made a big pan of Taco Lasagna Saturday night, so I wanted to get that eaten up. Unfortunately, the kids were not big fans of eating it two nights in a row, so only I ate it, and there is still a lot! They found other things to eat, though.

Monday: Speedy Jambalaya – We did some cleaning this weekend, and I found an old copy of Taste of Home with this recipe. When I told the girl what we were having, she was very upset and said “That is not a real food, that is just a world people made up” with great disgust. She has a problem with new things. This isn’t even that strange–we eat other creole dishes, some of which she even likes! It turned out very good, though, and she didn’t hate it at least.

Tuesday: Chicken in peanut coconut curry sauce, Red Lentil Dal – This is easy, cheap, and something the kids don’t appreciate as much as I do, so it is good for a night when they will be with their dad.

Wednesday: Chinese meatballs with peas and pineapple over rice – I will make this with ground turkey instead of beef.

Thursday: Beef stew – This will probably be more like what Rachael Ray calls a stoup–not quite as thick as a stew, but definitely not a soup.

Friday: Honey and hot sauce chicken strips, steamed broccoli, pumpkin pasta (made with corn pasta)

Saturday: Leftovers, or something creative…

This menu will be linked up at orgjunkie.com–head over there for lot’s more inspiration!

Apr23

Menu, Week of 4/22

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Menu, Week of 4/22

Oh Costco, how I love and hate you! I spend so much money, but then I have food for a long time, so that is good. I get good deals, but I lay out so much money the weekend after payday that I feel broke for much of the rest of the month. I got a new shark steam cleaning mop and a bunch of food this weekend, so I am prepared to have clean floors, but terrified to spend much money at all at the grocery store!

That is what planning is for, though, right? I am going to come up with a plan this week that involves purchasing a bare minimum of extra ingredients, while still being tasty. Thank goodness this isn’t my first time to the rodeo–my menu planning habits are sure to be helpful.

Sunday: We went to a friend’s house after the earth day festival

Monday: Tomato and sausage risotto, salad

Tuesday: out to dinner with a friend (I know, that is spending money, but she is in from out of town…)

Wednesday: Rosti with Bacon and Scallions, scrambled eggs, fruit smoothies (we didn’t actually eat this last week; the combination of a field trip for my youngest and a cheerleading meeting for my oldest meant we gulped down leftovers in the 15 minutes I was home between activities)

Thursday: Curry coconut shrimp, red lentil dal, rice (we didn’t do this one last week, either–we went to my parents’ house for dinner on Friday)

Friday: Roasted Italian sausage, potatoes, bell peppers and onion

Saturday: Grilled chicken for fajitas, mushroom skewers, grilled peppers and onions, black beans, mexican rice, guacamole, mayo-less Mexican slaw (we’ll have friends over for this, I hope…)

Not bad, eh? My grocery list is nice and small, too:

Arborio rice
vanilla soy milk
cereal
bread, regular and gluten-free
bananas
hummus

Wow, that is so small, I almost think I am missing something. However, we have lunch meat and lots of fruits, veggies, and snacks to put in lunches, plus, we are starting to get stuff out of the garden, so we are in good shape. Now I can breathe a bit more easily when thinking about funds for the rest of the month. Menu-planning to the rescue!

This menu will be linked up at orgjunkie.com–head over there for lot’s more inspiration!

Apr16

Menu, Week of 4/15

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Menu, Week of 4/15

Last week, I didn’t make a menu plan, and I didn’t do much grocery shopping, but we still ate at home every night. Go me! We ate a lot of chicken–chicken tenderloins are so convenient, and easy to defrost even at the last minute–but I think we ate pretty well overall.

Here is what we had, not in order:

Image credit: Lets Dish

Chicken in mustard cream sauce, brown rice, edamame

Curried Stir-fried noodles and veggies

Chicken risotto/paella

turkey/goat cheese/spinach burgers, roasted veggies, quinoa salad

Italian sausages, quinoa salad, steamed veggies

Scrambled eggs and hashbrowns

So, not as much chicken as I was thinking. We are starting this week with two chicken dishes in a row, though, and the chicken in mustard cream sauce was Saturday night, so we are on a chicken run. I could rearrange things, but I want to make the inside out chicken cordon bleu tonight while my mother is over, so it can’t be helped.

Sunday: Curried chicken and rice soup

Monday: Inside out chicken cordon bleu, salad, steamed veggies, rice pudding

Tuesday: Chili, cornbread, sauteed mustard greens

Wednesday: Moo Shu Pork Casserole, Asian slaw

Thursday:  Rosti with Bacon and Scallions, scrambled eggs, fruit smoothies

Friday: Curry coconut shrimp, red lentil dal, rice

This menu will be linked up at orgjunkie.com–head over there for lot’s more inspiration!

Mar26

Menu, Week of 3/25

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Menu, Week of 3/25

We left last Saturday for our vacation, and then I had five nights in a row where I just had to go to the cafeteria and choose from foods someone else prepared. It was great in one sense–a real vacation in a way camping is not–but also, I ate too much, and the food was not what I would generally make. It was good, just a little bland and generic for my tastes.

Still, it was hard to come back to cooking again. Thursday and Friday nights, we ate out. Last night I just made some frozen salmon burgers with teriyaki sauce and microwaved some pumpkin souffles from Garden Lites (unfortunately, this was a seasonal offering only, although the Butternut squash souffles look similar).

It is time to get back to normal, though. About halfway through my vacation, my computer stopped working. It powered on, but wouldn’t load Windows all the way. I ran diagnostics, searched for error codes on my Nook and found scary posts about needing a new hard drive. I tried many repairs, and they would seem to work and then hang up again. Finally, I tried one last big repair and did the one thing guaranteed to make my repair work–I went out and bought a new laptop.

I meant to just do some price comparisons in case I needed to make a purchase, but I found a really good deal. Plus, we have been seriously having an issue with the fact that my son and I both want to use my normal computer. AND, the battery doesn’t hold a charge anymore, so it is stuck on my desk with the wall plug, and I wanted a truly mobile computer. Yes, I know this is a lot of justification. But, it is too late to change the facts now, so I just have to economize and move on.

Sunday: Chicken tacos

Monday: Rosti with Bacon and Scallions, scrambled eggs, fruit smoothies

Image credit: www.bonappetit.com

Tuesday: Spicy Orange garlic shrimp, rice, broccoli

Wednesday: Salmon noodle casserole, made with gluten free noodles, peas, pumpkin pudding

Thursday: Chicken/veggie stew, rice pudding

Friday: Pizza, salad

As you can see, this will be a fairly easy week to get me back on track. I do miss heading down to eat someone else’s cooking on dishes someone else is cleaning (and the never-ending coffee pot! Always fresh!), but it will be nice to get back into our normal routine.

This post will be linked to Menu Plan Monday at orgjunkie.com–lots more ideas over there!