So...whats for dinner?

luvmygoats

SpecialK - I hear what you are saying. In her younger elem. school years DD wanted to study penguins; that would have been a separation. We still have a house full of penguin stuff though grad. weeding away. Mine lives about an hour away but in Ft Worth so traffic makes it seem longer. She did live away in dorm last 2 years of school (hour away the other way) so separation was a bit easier. Came home for about 5 months b4 moving to her own apt. LOL about the dog. I did the same thing when I moved to apt. I took one of my DM's chihuahua's who lived with me about 1.5 years then he went back home to her.

I think DD is planted for a while despite her wanting to move to NW. Company may be creating promotions and she likes the co. she works for, likes the business and the younger hip atmosphere. So she's waiting until late spring to make any decisions and wants to get her car paid off (Sept. or so) b4 making any moves.

Can't get in cooking mood. Have leftovers from yest (black eyes diff. recipe that DH loved) and spaghetti from NY Eve. Need to take down tree - hint DH carried the storage box in b4 he left for work.

Those of you in NE I have watched a bit of the news. Hunker down is right. OO and Midwest too.

Laurie08

I can not imagine there being a day where I don't have my children right with me.  Hugs to you all who have grown ones who have flown the coop.  It means you did a great job!  Yet our children are our world!  

To share a memory I have with my mom.  Our birthdays were a week apart in May and she and I would take off for a girls week alone once I hit my 20's.  We would hang out just the two of us and do whatever we .wanted.  One night as we sat on a balcony over looking the ocean, our feet up, wine in hand she turned to me and said. " You  know, when I thought about having kids I thought about babies.  How great it would be.  I had no idea that this would be the best part of having a child."  Pretty damn cool.  It still makes me smile and I hope that one day I will be doing the same with my boys.

So yes, we are snowed in!  I have had my neighbors son all day and have had three rowdy boys who do not know what a normal speaking voice is!  Why do they yell so much?  We have played ping pong, they have played a lot of basketball and many more things...tonight's dinner will be eye of the round roast cooked the old fashioned way of high heat, 2 hours off.

I hope everyone is staying warm!

Bedo- tell us more of your friend

luvmygoats

Laurie - I have a brother just 18 months younger than I am. Boys are different. My aunt asked my mom - does P. walk down the hall and just fall into the wall, and keep going. My mom said yes, he's a boy. I think aunt thought something was wrong with hers and there wasn't. There is a scene in Sixteen Candles where the younger brother does just that, maybe he's trying to open the door but it reminds me of DB. Are your boys able to entertain each other - in a good way? At least they will prob. sleep gooood tonight -yes? Love the story about your mom. My parents divorced when I was in HS and my mom and I mostly had each other; DB was more of a free spirit, I was the homebody kind.

I need to get motivated to make something new. No trips to Ft. Worth until end of Jan. so only what can be bought locally. Am craving good apples and store will only have the usuals here. I splurged on apples that ended up almost $3.00 for 2 apples - though they were big ones - when I did the Christmas shopping. I got one, DH ate the other 3. Wish I could remember what kind he liked the best but most likely by end of Jan. they will have diff. kinds anyway. I should look for some soup recipes though I think DH thinks that's not "real" food. He did like the "Kluski" noodles I bought at all places the Mexican grocery. We just have standard dry egg noodles and the frozen Reames kind.

Yes, I agree, Bedo needs to tell us more. Maybe in coded form. Lol.

auntienance

Well, the house is undecorated, the black-eyed peas have been eaten, and "the Holidays" are officially over. Time to get back to the gym and and leave the over-indulging behind. 

The new year has me wanting to bake so yesterday I made two loaves of garlic rosemary bread and 3 loaves of tomato basil parmesan foccaccia, all destined for the freezer. Today, I'm making Cuban black beans (most of which are also destined for the freezer) but dinner will be chopped steak with a mushroom wine sauce. Sides will be a plain old baked potato or maybe some noodles, and a salad. One of my Christmas presents is a brand new 5 quart tri-ply stainless steel saute pan.  Can't wait to use it.

We got around 3 inches of snow last night -- not so much but no one has plowed our street, so we've been in today.  Unfortunately, I have to have labs done Monday when the high is going to be -1!  That is the coldest high temperature here in 30 years. It just makes me hate January that much more. It's a depressingly long month that I can't wait for to be gone.

I still have this cold from hell, which has turned into a cough that causes me to lose sleep and my voice.  Also, both DH and I continue to have perpetually runny noses.  Oh come on, we're going on 3 weeks already! It seems to be the worst when I'm trying to cook.  Sounds like a number of folks have been plagued as well.  Hope yours went away faster than mine.

It was lovely to visit my DSIL and DBIL. I didn't have to cook or plan a thing.  The meals were simple but delicious -- chicken noodle soup with fresh baked bread, milk braised pork roast with parmesan polenta, grilled strip steaks with roasted veggies and Cincinnati Chili!  We relaxed in front of the fire, read books, watched movies and played games.  Big fun!

Now I have to catch up on the mountain of laundry in my basket.  Ugh.

Carole, your trip sounds fantastic.  I would never be able to do that because I'm a terrible flyer. Would love love love to see the Great Barrier Reef!

luvmygoats

Saw a local story in the last day or 2 of how meat is being relabelled. All our cuts (well most) are being named something standard. One of them I kid you not was the culotte steak which I found out is a top sirloin (thanks Wikipedia). What made me think of this was Nancy's comment about the milk braised pork. Know I have a pork roast hiding in the freezer along with a whole chicken (why I bought that I don't know - hate to thaw the things). Pork is one of those things that I can never figure out what I have. Lucky the grocer here labels it with anything I can google.

So with that Nancy what cut do you milk braise? This must be a substantial roast, I can see it peaking out from underneath something else.

I never did get any organization of the freezer done. I still wish I had bought the small upright rather than the small chest freezer.

Laurie08

just got the call, no school again tomorrow!

luvmygoats

Hope you get plenty of sleep tonight. Can DH fend off for you some or does neighbor owe you some time?

We had an unprecedented 4 days off from school last month - though I have no kids/grands etc. in school. That was a Thur/Fri then weekend, Mon/Tue. Luckily my DD was pretty easy to entertain when little, good thing since she was an only child.

auntienance

Luv, it was a loin roast that after browning,  was braised in a mixture of whole milk and cream. The braising liquid was then made into a lovely sauce. Very tasty. SIL's was not, but it can be made in a slow cooker.

susan_02143

I made this for my post-chemo "thank you for your support" dinner. Once you get past the appearance of the milk sauce, it is delicious:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/pork-loin-braised-in-milk-recipe/index.html

SeasideMemories

Eric,

As much as we try to prepare them and ourselves for that moment when they finally fly on their own, it's like they are a little girl/boy when you drive away or they do.  Latest holiday Walmart commercial slays me everytime... http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=IeMB-czqeFw&desktop_...

Laurie,

Love the story of you and your Mom!  That's the place that we, as parents, strive to get to. Kids are grown-up and have become good people that we not only love because they are family but, genuinely like! We're pretty snowed in here, too!  Over a foot but no school scheduled for this week so no cancelations.

Nancy,

If you have the same cold that's making the rounds it's awful!  Easily 3-4 weeks before it's over with!  Hope you feel better soon!

Can't remember who was heading to the cape but the weather there is supposed to be of the blizzard variety!  To you and all getting the brunt of this winter storm... Stay safe!

luvmygoats

Seaside - it was Susan going to the Cape.

Thanks Nancy and Susan for the recipes. Not sure what kind of roast is in freezer. Doubt it is "center cut" because I think it was a 2 fer sale; prob. basic pork roast. Milk sauce sounds like Texas heaven chicken fried steak cream gravy.

SeasideMemories

Luv,

Thanks for the reminder!  This thread moves so fast sometimes that I can't quite keep up!

Susan,

Since you're posting I'm going to assume that you made it to your destination and you still have power where you are! The snow here is of the light and fluffy variety so no big power outages.  Will be interesting to see what happens when the winds pick up over night! Ahhhhh, winter in the NE!

Although I think Moon, being in Wisconsin, most likely has us beat in the winter department!  We lived in MN for 5 years and cold like that I had never felt before nor since!  My hat is off to the folks in the upper mid-west!

luvmygoats

Friend from church her DD and mine same age. Her DD, DH and year old child just moved from NC (think they've been there 3-4 years) to Minot ND (Air Force). I cannot imagine the adjustments one has to go thru. Her DH is from upstate NY somewhere so I bet he was a bit more prepared.  Brrr.

Lacey12

We're probably halfway through our snowstorm.....accumulation supposedly heavier through tonight....then the single digit and below zero temps will arrive. DH has his Nanook from the North gear at the ready for his snowblowing efforts tomorrow. . 

Today we just hunkered down in the house....he finished a book about a DJ he's been curious about. I cooked. Had lots of kale, so I happily made some kale and fruit smoothies, then my favorite kale and sausage and bean soup, then a chicken pasta toss with tomato, onions and black olives. I made so much of everything that I might not cook for a few days....I can wield a snow shovel the next few days instead!

I have to say that snowstorms are not so exciting now that I don't work in a school system. I always loved the thrill of checking the no school listings whenever we had a storm. Oh the child in me......;).

Hope everyone stays safe and warm.....

chabba

Spent early childhood in North Dakota then grew up in Eastern Washington.  As soon as I graduated from college I moved to the Puget Sound.  Must say  I've never missed the -30 temps of ND or the slightly warmer -10 of Eastern Wash. And at least we don't  have to shovel rain!

MinusTwo

Really interested in the pork loin w/milk & cream.  Susan - I doubt I have the patience or stamina to take the time to cook it like the recipe you posted calls for.  Is there a way to get it started then pop it in the oven?  I found a couple of recipes for pork tenderloins or pork chops w/cream sauces, but the meat isn't cooked in the milk/cream.  Nancy - how would you do it in a crock pot? Thanks.  I agree w/Luv - it sounds Southern.

Added to the kids leaving thoughts, here's the crazy side.  I have one son who is now 43.  He went off to college to live in a dorm that was more like a two bedroom suite & "you" provided your own living room furniture which 4 guys shared.  Granted, he was in the same town, but we didn't see much of him.  But we could scour garage sales and find & move furniture for all the guys - the rest were from out of town.  We moved all the stuff to our garage the first summer (including a fridge).  Then we moved him back again.  Then he moved into an apartment.  Then a different apt. Always w/a roommate who's parents lived elsewhere.  Then he moved to Wash DC, then he moved to San Francisco, then there were 4 or 5 moves around the SF Bay Area.  I drove or flew out to help w/each move.  And often when I was visiting one of his friends would be moving so guess who got to help pack up the kitchens & clean the bathrooms.  Finally when the two of us were carrying a solid oak dresser down the steep sidewalks of San Francisco's Nob Hill district and then up the many narrow & twisting stairs of a converted old house ("oh Mom, there's only a few stairs"), I rebelled.  Now I don't go to visit until the move is finished.

Eric - love the 'you tube'. 

auntienance

Wow, hope all of you northeast folks are doing ok! What a winter, stay safe!

carolehalston

Minus, you are definitely a helpful mom!  Enjoyed the stories about helping your son move, especially the experience walking a piece of furniture in Nob Hill. 

We're having the Louisiana version of a cold winter, which means freezing temperatures at night and frost visible in the early morning.  Today the sun is shining and the high is supposed to be in the 40's.  I plan to go out and do some odds and ends shopping.  I don't mind winter weather since I enjoy wearing jeans and long-sleeved shirts.  I have more problems with summer weather than our kind of winter. 

DH and I spent the winter of 1969 in Vermont.  The first year of our marriage.  We worked at Bolton Valley Ski Lodge and enjoyed the winter wonderland landscape.  We could sit at our little breakfast table in our rented mobile home and look out the window at a frozen waterfall.  I did get exasperated with locks freezing up.  Our transportation was a TR-4 convertible.  Top up in the winter!  I would get the door open, remember something I needed to get in the mobile home, go inside and by the time I returned the car door had frozen up again!  This southern girl had some adjusting to do!  DH grew up near Chicago so he had more experience with freezing temps.

In March DH and I thought about the azaleas blooming in Louisiana.  We headed south, shedding clothes as we went. 

This morning the scales reported that I am starting to shed some of the holiday pounds.  Tonight I plan to make a version of a recipe in the latest Cooking Light for mashed "potatoes" made with cauliflower.  This recipe is different from others I've seen because it includes one large potato.  It calls for some cream but I will substitute  Greek cream cheese.  I'm also thinking of making oven fried chicken with a recipe in a Sam's Club publication.  Of all companies to recommend healthy eating! 

Or I may thaw out some catfish fillets and pan sear them.. 

It will be interesting to see how Cooking Light subscribers like this latest issue because it reads like a WW recipe book.  Which suits me fine.  The editor succeeded in a weight loss effort last year. 

Everyone stay warm and safe.

susan_02143

Minus, That recipe doesn't lend itself to many shortcuts. You do have to do all the stovetop prep before you pop it into the oven. Recipe doesn't work with a tenderloin since the milk wouldn't be in the oven long enough to do that weird thickening thing. Maybe this just isn't the right prep for you? These classic Italian recipes do assume that you are home with three generations of females who just clean and cook, when they aren't popping out babies.

We have a lot of snow and it is very cold. My friend's bone biopsy was cancelled. Doctor was nervous that the "support" staff would be missing and the sample would expire before being studied. So they will delay their trip to Florida in the camper for another week. Lots of food was made, and lots was eaten. Turns out that the secret to eating large hunks of meat is having Chester at the table. This guy puts away some meat! Will post some pictures later.... overwhelmed by how much work is on my desk right now.

*susan*

auntienance

Minus, the roast is browned in a tablespoon of butter on all sides, then transferred to the cooker. In the same skillet add a tablespoon of garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Deglaze the pan with 1/2 cup white wine. 

Add 1 ½ cups whole milk,  ½ cup of cream, 1 oz. dried porcini mushrooms, 1 tsp. anchovy paste, ¼ tsp red pepper flakes, minced zest of 1 lemon and 2 sprigs each of fresh rosemary and sage (tied.) Pour this mixture all around the pork, submerging the herbs. Cook on low setting until pork reaches 145 degrees (about 2 hours.)

Remove pork and tent with foil, discard herbs. Puree sauce with a handheld stick blender. Slice pork and serve with the sauce.

MinusTwo

Susan:  Love the comments about multi-generations of women & children hanging around the house.  I usually prefer cream or butter or wine sauces to red sauce - particularly right now w/mouth issues.  I'm so darn picky about red sauce that I've only found one restaurant in this HUGE town that makes one I like on a repeat basis.

Nancy:  I'm looking forward to trying the crock pot pork.  Thanks.

Carole:  Not sure if the point was to be helpful but I've found with boys (at least mine) you have to jump at chances to see them or have meaningful conversations or you miss out.  A couple of weeks ago I asked him to call me on an upcoming Sunday & said I missed talking to him.  He did call, but his answer was 'we talk every day'.  Hmmm - email is talking?  At least he doesn't believe in texting & there will be no grandchildren so I'll avoid dealing w/that.

bedo

Minus, Kids don't call anymore, even each other! Most don't know what a dial tone is, it was found to be a problem in some offices,I read a study,  because there was no personal contact with sales and other things, the workers kept texting clients! lol  My daughter does it too

I apologize for not saying Hi to everyone, it's really hard to keep up.  I work 10 hours a day at least, and when I get home, I kind of zone out except for on weekends, tomorrow hiking with Doc again, My "admirer" is going to show me around on Sunday. He's really nice and funny, But I will be going home in 5 months, so I don't want to fall in "infatuation" lol  The  forest and trails are so beautiful I had to stop and smell everything, the tree stumps, let the water running in rivets down the mountains  run over my hands, and tell him to stop because I wanted to stare at the river and squeeze the rain soaked moss, Yes it was pouring when we hiked. I still sleep 10 hours a day, but feel good when I get up

I'm into garbage soup these days. I throw everything I have in the pot and eat it for 3-4 days. It's surprisingly good. I just made potato leek milk soup but left out most of the ingredients because I don't have them. Sometimes I eat it cold. It's good!  I am very proud of myself. These are the first times I haven't followed a recipe.

best of thoughts for everyone.

carolehalston

Made a big batch of giant meatballs today.  They are submerged in a tomato sauce and the combo will be the main course at noon dinner at my mother's house tomorrow. 

Dinner tonight was the last of the blackeyed peas over brown rice, baked acorn squash and brats simmered in dark beer.

Lacey12

Yes, Bedo, I agree that for the most part, the younger generation prefer(s) to text or email....and even that's too slow for many! So when a random Sunday evening rolls around and DS2 actually calls us (on our land line no less!) to say hi and see how we are, we are thrilled. We do text back and forth, which is fast and dirty in my opinion, but I know I won't ever be changing tech progress, so I comply.

I do think that sons who live independently from the family tend to be connected in different ways than daughters, e.g. DS2 will occasionally call to invite us to tailgate and attend a UMASS or a Pats game with him and friends.....The connection is often about sports in our family...or about their work life. But they often just do not share the affective connection that a girl will with her mom....keeping emotional things a bit closer to their vests. I just keep hoping that whoever he settles with is a connector so I can have a bit of girl conversation....I actually have missed some of his girlfriends for that reason! The way my grown sons communicate to DH and me reminds me of the way they did upon their return from school daily as youngsters.....had little to share....whereas if a girl in the neighborhood was visiting after school, we'd hear everything that happened in school that day....to everyone!! Our pediatrician used to refer to DS1 as "John Wayne". 

Took a nice long walk today....and loved the crunchy still clean snow. Bundling up for the cold makes a winter walk quite nice! Once home, I noticed that I left a whole stalk of brussels sprouts in a cooler in the garage over Christmas week.....so I made a brussels sprouts and sausage soup. Looked kind of yucky at first, but tasted really good....DH had two bowls. So my fridge is loaded with soup. I have a training all day tomorrow, so soup choices for dinner will save the day!

Carole, we just this past week finished watching the final season of Treme. It has been broadcast as a series on HBO over the past three years. It might be worth your while to look into it....about the NO music culture and the effects on it by Katrina. We really enjoyed it.....hate when those kinds of series end. Good luck with your weight liss progress. I was happy to reach a new low today...makes it even easier to take those long brisk walks! 

SpecialK

lacey - you are spot on in your assessment of the boy thing - my son doesn't call me nearly enough, and sometimes our conversation consist of mono-syllabic responses from him and essays from me.  My daughter, on the other hand, is sometimes too communicative.  Granted she just left a couple of days ago and is a bit lonely, but today she texted multiple times, called both cell and landline, and skyped for an hour!  Lol!  At least we got to Skype with the dog too!  Oh, and she sent a video or she and the dog at the beach.

Laurie08

Love tonight's posts.

So my chatty sons will stop talking to me?  Hmmm....I hope not.  But I can see it happening.  Lacey- I too hope your DS picks the perfect girl for you to be friends with.  

Today DH took the boys to see Monster Trucks with a buddy and his kids.  I went to lunch with a girlfriend and chatted for about 4 hours!  Considering I had little voice to start with, I have none now.  But ti was worth it.  Garlic chicken nachos and margaritas.  I am now wishing I had gotten the baby bean and cheese chimi's as well

Laurie08

total side not on this.  As some of you know my MIL has stage 4 uterine cancer and has been given about 6 months to live.  She has refused treatment other than holistic.  She now is declining and has agreed to take Femara to try to slow things down.  I have googled etc but wondered if anyone here can explain things to me simply.  I know this is not a chemo, is it hormone treatment?  At this point in her journey could it help?  Are there lots of side effects?

Thanks for any info anyone can give.

MinusTwo

Laurie:  Sorry to hear about your MIL.  I hope someone knows about Femara.  Yes - your sweet sons will pull away - at least some.  My son & I read snuggled in bed for hours every day & talked about everything.  It's not all bad.  As Lacey says, you just have to accommodate yourself to their schedule.  When they want to talk, they want to talk.  Otherwise, not so much.

Lacey:  Good luck w/ girl friends.  My son has been with the same young lady for 13 years now and we've never managed to bond.  DS says she's that way w/everyone.  I'm grateful that he emails regularly, and more than lucky that he wanted to come out for every surgery and stayed until I was off drugs and able to take care of myself.  He might not be huggy/kissy anymore, but he was a great nurse.  And he shows up at least once a year to take care of heavy chores.  So even if I'd like to "natter" more often, we have a good relationship.

Lacey12

Laurie, yes, Femara is a hormone treatment, called an aromitase inhibitor, which inhibits estrogen production in the body. People vary with side effects from it....and I believe some gals on this thread may take it, so they know more than I. I'm better versed in the tamoxifen treatment and its effects. I do know that hand pain is a common complaint with the AIs and since I already have hand arthritis, my MO is not going to switch me to it, even though that is a common protocol. She does always tell me though that she has patients who have no issues with Femara. Let's hope that is the case with your MIL. I am so sorry for you and DH having to go through this painful time....((((HUGS)))) to all of your family.

And thanks, Laurie, for the wish that DS2 makes a "mother-in-law friendly" choice. Right now he is dating someone in Chicago....not too geographically MIL friendly in my view! But he is such a home town sports boy, hard to picture him transplanting to White Sox/Cubs/Bulls/Bears nation! Back to our original point, I will probably only hear how this relationship is going after he visits DS1 and DDIL, and SHE pumps him for info...sometimes later relaying it to me. He gives me the basics, but not going to show his whole hand. And he was my chatty son.....;/  I do respect his wish to share at his own pace....even tho it's hard. Maybe I should be happy to be spared the drama that girls often need to share. Life is complex....and I am always thankful that DS2 is attuned to our well- being. 

bedo

Laurie, I wish you support with your MIL's diagnosis and wish her the best too. Sometimes Palliative care can help

As far as boys and girls, I have a twin who is 6 minutes older than I but have always been closer to my brother who is 3 years older than I , and my daughter and he talk a lot, so go figure.

I hope to upload a picture of a hike I took today in the world's largest temperate rainforest. It was so beautiful

Tomorrow I see my funny guy, will skip tangling yarn group.

Made great white bean, sweet potato and kale soup, double batch today. Yum!

Skipped rocks on the shore of the inside passage. I heard a worse saying about the 7 men to 1 women here. The first one I heard was, "the odds are good, but the goods are odd" The new one was :" You didn't break up with her, you just lost your place in line"  hmmmmmm. Not sure about that. I'm very picky and not ready for a 5 month relationship!

Looked for seal and whales today at the point but didn't see any today.