So...whats for dinner?

Or dogs lol!

Susan, oh my!

Thanks for the feedback! I do think that we will pass on this unique opportunity. Yes, I would be nervous about my allergy issues, yes, we do have some mild chemicals on our lawn, but chemicals nonetheless, and Winston the Scottie has deposited a few gifts over the past few months. But boy does that pure white puffball "innerd" look great! It will be interesting to see if we grow another one! It was so odd to see the large white ball on the grass. I figured the boys next door were playing with an oversized ball that they never retrieved. Ha!


So instead of puffball parmesan, we had gnocchi, with doctored up (added fresh basil and some fennel seed powder) bottled red sauce and meatballs I made a couple of days ago. I'm usually not a huge gnocchi fan, but enjoyed these. We had a salad with green leaf lettuce, etc., that I picked up at the farmer's market after brunch today. It was so cold and windy there. Really felt for those vendors! And was particularly sad to learn that my favorite one is finished for the season as of today. That one is where I get my interesting greens, and today the young guy let me buy a half bunch of pea tendrils since their bunch is so huge I end up throwing much of it out. But yes, Carole, bargains are not my main motivation for shopping there, but the produce is nice and fresh, and this Asian vendor offers very interesting greens as well as the best looking familiar ones. We learned last week that this particular farm (Mentor Farm)is a training ground for young Asian immigrants to learn how to farm using the Asian method....whatever that is! They do have wonderful produce!

So our basic brunch this morning was very nice... I can just imagine your mother sitting in one of the booths, Susan! I had a mushroom omelet, fruit cup and raisin toast. DH had the same except for rye. Our niece and DBIL had the eggs benedict florentine. It was very busy as you might imagine on a Sunday late morning. And there were lots of kids there, obviously not worrying about being corrupted. I knew you would have had some kind of connection to The Maugus...little did I know how deep! It was good to see our niece...who is even more happy than last year in her college setting. She has a boyfriend on campus whom she met a year ago, which helps!

This afternoon, I got "phase one" of my seasonal clothes management completed. The thing I like least about change of seasons!

So Carole, don't worry too much about my being able to manage my weight while eating out a lot. HaHa! The four lbs that I packed on over the summer has yet to budge. But I don't think that eating out is too much to blame. I need to get back to my regular work out routine, and see if that will help. Tomorrow we will head to our stretching class before which I do my exercise routine...rigorous treadmill time and weight resistance work. DH has, in addition, been taking a class from one of the new trainors who is like a marine sargent training his recruits! I will not be joining that one!

We started with 6 lbs of meat. So much meat. I am lucky that I didn't trigger any lymphodema with the amount of effort it took to mix. I used 3 lbs of beef which was a mix of flap and short rib, 2 lbs of pork which I ground from country style short ribs and one pound of veal. I have mixed feelings about supermarket veal, well strong feelings, but the texture is so much nicer with this softer meat. The parsley was completely harvested from the garden. I did 3/4 of the cheese as parmesan and the rest was romano. Here is the recipe... http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/anne-burrell/ex... But, this recipe is so much more work than Mom's meatballs, but the texture is marvelous, the flavor is complex, and they are very moist.

*susan*

I missed Susan's post about her mother. After Nance's reference, I went back and read it. I admire her just from what you've told us about her, Susan. I see a lot of you in her strong personality. It seems you were blessed with two interesting parents.

My mother enjoyed her lunch yesterday and that was the objective of going to all that effort. DH didn't go with me for lunch. He is feeling crappy with sinus congestion. We haven't had rainfall for 22 days and the drought isn't bothering the fall weeds.

I have a 12:15 appointment with my PCP. Will be interested to get a report on the blood work. I had only been on Atkins a week so probably not enough time for my diet to reflect in the blood profile. My bp seems to be lower. With the added weight (or whatever) it was elevated.

Saw a recipe on the Atkins web site that looked good. Lemon chicken soup. May make that today. Leftover pork and green beans for dinner.

Lacey, I love the arugula I bought at the farmers' mkt. It is so fresh and peppery. Haven't cooked the bok choy yet. Hm.. It would probably be good in the chicken soup instead of spinach?

Lazy lazy... had meatballs again for dinner. But I did make a lamb stock with all the bones that were left from my sausage making. Tomorrow night, I will make the Ramadan soup, cause I need some fibre, and I do love a lentil. P&S papers are getting almost ready to sign. We meet with the lawyer tomorrow to hash out some of the remaining details. Then I assume we can all sign this sucker. Now we wait for the electrician and plumber to finish the required work, and then, and only then, we can buy this puppy!

Today, the temps dropped and I am cold! Mr. 02143 has a fire blazing in his office's fireplace.

*susan*

Susan - cold here this morning too - relatively. Down to 56. Your meatballs looked delicious. Hope the atty meeting goes well.

Special - when my son was a junior in HS, I came home from work one day to find DH and DS standing with sledge hammers in what used to be my kitchen, covered in plaster dust and all the walls gone. DS said - hey mom, you wanted a new kitchen. I wished I'd stopped after work for a drink first - what a shock. Construction is never easy.

Eric - no way to cook? I can't imagine how you'll last for 2 weeks. But we thank you for your service!!!

Wow! Lots going on. Happy Belated to Susan and Specialk. And keeping fingers crossed that the real estate deals go through.

Back home from my trip. We hit 9 states. I'd only been in 3 before. Saw Garden of the Gods, Cave of the Winds, Grand Canyon and more. Lots of color during the trip. But parts were just starting.

My sister and I are still talking to each other which I think is pretty good after 5,000 miles of car tripping. LOL although on the last day of travel she complained about my breathing like the world was ending. LOL. I told her I wasn't about o quit breathing for her. LOL

Glad to be home, I think my cats are happy too.

Thanks for the reminder, Sas! I should also mention that many businesses have charity committees that are looking for new ideas of deserving organizations to support. Two years ago, my DS2, who is on such a committee, submitted BC.org, knowing from me the important work it does, and was able to direct a sizeable donation to this great org! So there are corporate opportunities to access (through relatives who might be connected)along with our own personal donations.

moon - great pics, pretty wedding! I giggled looking at the bridesmaids - they are all looking at their shoes, or something on the ground.

Day 1 of the outdoor kitchen - fairly uneventful - the contractor poured the concrete for the cabinets to sit on that will be clad in the stacked stone. They have to cure for a couple of days, and meantime he is pouring slabs in an alternate location for the rest of the structure. Day 2 will not occur until Thursday. I did take a "before" pic, but I will wait to post it until there is more progress. Tomorrow is electrician work on the light fixtures. I ordered one for over the sink to coordinate with the others in the kitchen - apparently I missed the size of the alabaster glass shade - I unpacked it last night and it was huge! Looked like a flying saucer! So I returned it today and got a much smaller and appropriate one. Eeesh!

On the plus side - we have passed the deadline for the buyer of the condo to back out without losing $13.5K, so I think it is going to go through this time - they have been approved by the country club, so all seems well. They do not want the furniture, so we will have to go over and arrange for it to be out in the next week or so, and the closing is on Nov. 2 - yay!

What a lovely trip, Moon, and thanks for sharing the photos! Loved the wedding setting! Maybe the bridesmaids are keeping a careful watch for any errant snakes?!

Special, I am impressed with how quickly your contractor has gotten started. That would be rare here... I know it will be a great relief to get that condo settled.

We just had an email from DS2 that he and DGF may be bidding on a condo they saw today....farther IN the inner city! Oy! So many ofmhis Southie friends are moving to the same area. He is seeming desperate to get a bit larger place that includes private parking, before the snow season is upon us! I have some questions about this condo, but nothing so important that I need to impose my opinion, so will keep my mouth shut. The price (still outrageous) is at least within their comfortable range. So we will see.

I spent most of the day in bed....just feeling lousy. I hope it is not the recent viral infection hanging on. I have absolutely NO energy, a mild sore throat, and some congestion that I don't think I can pin on allergies. Annoying!

DH is in Cambridge, so I am eating leftover mushroom flatbread from our dinner out last night...We had stopped for dinner on the way home from the gym, since I was wiped out after only participating in our stretching class. I had a kale and cranberry salad and mushroom flatbread, which was good, if a bit too oily. Had I been at home, it would have been patted down with paper towels. Tonight that happened to the leftovers. Much better!
Still craving some protein with some sweet, I just downed a slice of wheat bread with peanut butter and Bonne Maman wild blueberry preserves. Sort of a pbj open faced dessert after flatbread. Now I am full and just need to get some energy back!

Eric, keep us posted on how you are faring for your meals...

Baked spaghetti squash with homegrown tomatoes & basil, olive oil, salt & pepper.

Duck leg confit (okay, so I nuked it from frozen).

Pan-seared brussels sprouts.

Moon, what fabulous pictures! I am so glad that you enjoyed your trip. I hope you have the time and/or energy to tell us more details. I am traveling vicariously these days.

Lacey, I am so sorry that you are still working your way to health again. Maybe a day or two really taking is slowly will be good for you body. Should I carry some chicken stock to you? Our P&S is suddenly in panic mode, but once I hand off the check I could get in the car. Or maybe, you would prefer an already made soup? Good luck to DS2 and the DS2GF. Willing to tell us which neighborhood?

SpecialK, this deal might actually happen! Whahooo! I spent the most painful two hours with our lawyer today. Paragraph by paragraph, sentence by sentence. We have to review the Trust, Deed, and P&S. Since this is a new condo conversion with only two units, this extra work is in our best interest. I am impressed that Mr. Concrete actually showed up on the promised day. As Lacey indicated above, contractors are really hard to pin down around here.

Carole, how was that ribeye? One of my favorite cuts, when I am in a beef-kind of mood.

Welcome Chi. Not sure I remember you posting here before [but my memory isn't what it used to be.] I am amazed that you are still getting homegrown tomatoes. Ours are done for the season.

After our arduous lawyer meeting, the two of us went to Harvest for lunch. This place used to have the very best burger I have had that we didn't make. Mr 02143 ordered the burger, which sadly arrived overcooked and much less impressive than before the chef change. I ordered a buttermilk fried chicken sandwich with a bunch of sauce kind of things. Like most of the restaurant, I didn't eat the bread. [So funny to see all these well-dressed people eating sandwiches in pieces. No top there, no top or bottom there, all using a knife and fork.] My sandwich was actually delicious. Both sandwiches came with a huge number of fries, presented in the cutest All-Clad croquette. I need several for MY kitchen. Anyhow, by the time we got home, dealt with clients, had our respective naps, it was almost 6pm. Neither one of us was even remotely hungry, so no dinner was made. I had to eat a bit of cottage cheese in order to take my pills. He just made some toast from this week's oatmeal bread. Tomorrow? Who knows just yet.

*susan*

We were fortunate that the outdoor kitchen contractor was just finishing one job and can't start a big job at another home because he is waiting for the pool to be finished, so we had good timing. It seems, at least so far, that this is done in bits and pieces until he starts with the stacked stone cladding and granite tops, and install of the sink and fridge. We are having a large party here on Nov. 14th, so it is also good to have a deadline that he is working against. DH built the grill tonight - it is impressive! It has taken him several hours.

minus - the condo furniture actually belongs to a friend of our friend whose condo this was - he left it to them, they selected a few items they could use but didn't want the rest and had graciously left it in place for staging purposes, and it was for sale with the condo for an extra price. Apparently a lot of snowbird Canadians have condos at this country club and selling the furniture with the condo is done often. These folks didn't feel like it was their taste, so they are starting fresh. I believe that the people who actually own the furniture know of a second hand dealer that will buy the lot. I have a lot of other staging stuff - lamps, framed photos, dishes/stemware, linens, etc. that we need to go gather up before the condo is emptied, but I am up for a road trip - it is about a 3.5 hour drive.

susan - so glad our shared real estate karma is still going strong! Yay!

eric - so glad you had a visit with your "test" DD! Sorry about mom and the shingles - always something, right?

chi - glad there is another in the brussels sprouts club!

i never noticed the brides maids gazes til you mentioned it SK. LOL but if you look closely ONE of them is looking up dreamily. LOL there was a bit of wind and I think they were getting hit by pine cones! LOL.

Supper tonight was oatmeal. I was lazy. It was our anniversary but my DH is working an outage and 12 hour days are not conducive to dinners out. He did send flowers. He won't be home this weekend either as he needs to go and settle his sisters affairs in Montana. He needs to bring back special things and sell or give away the rest. He'll be there at east a week. He didn't do it right after her funeral as they needed all the paperwork completed.

On my trip the grand canyon was beautiful. It rained the night before so everything was bright. Not too man y people. We saw a herd of elk in a subdivision. At Cave of the Winds you needed to watch out for wildlife.....