thanksgiving: a much overdue post

dear world,

we hosted thanksgiving dinner this year at our new house. my whole family came in for the week. both my sisters who live out of state and my grandma came down and we were joined my my mom, my uncle and his lady friend. all in all, including kids, we had 12 people!

M cooked the largest turkey we’ve ever had and as the night went on, the turkey got bigger and bigger to hear him tell the tale. it turned out beautifully!

i cooked just about everything else and i have to say i’m the most proud of the cranberry sauce. growing up, we ate the cranberry sauce that came out of the can with the little rings around it, sliced into a lovely glass serving dish. for the past couple of years, we made homemade cranberry sauce which was chunky and my family eyed it with distrust. this is not what we’re used to eating. this year, i made the ultimate compromise. homemade jellied cranberry sauce. folks ate it up.

food and wine’s cranberry sauce

i finally made something that looked like the picture.

my version

then, M started to make stock with the turkey carcass, but fell asleep putting V to bed. so at the end of the night, i finished my evening quietly.

feeling thankful,

cm

thanksgiving menu

dear world,

i rarely have time for one post, let alone two, but here we are.

this year, we are hosting thanksgiving dinner at our house. and we’ll have 12 people including the kids. yikes! it’s going to be a little nuts, but here we go. this year, i’m pretty excited about our menu. M is responsible for the turkey and gravy and i an responsible for everything else. our meal will have:

• turkey and gravy (obviously)
• homemade stuffing
• mashed potatoes whipped with roasted parsnips
• roasted brussels sprout with either shallots and balsamic vinegar or maple syrup and brown sugar (i can’t decide!)
• roasted sweet potatoes
• jellied cranberry sauce
• green salad

we’ll also have 2 pre-meal options so folks can munch while we’re cooking: pears with goat cheese and arugula wrapped with proscuitto and an old-fashioned cheese ball (like we had at my grandma’s parties all those years ago.)

and pies. lots of pies. i’m making a vegan pumpkin pie and apple pie and my family is bringing even more desserts.

i cannot wait. happy thanksgiving!

cm

french toast, for the win

dear world,

this past weekend, i asked my husband to pick up a load of the really nice bread from the local bakery so i could make french toast for the girls. but, it turns out they wanted pancakes instead. which is fine. to be fair, this is what they were supposed to look like. mine were a little droopier. but they tasted awesome!

photo credit: post punk kitchen

however, i had this load of really nice bread just sitting there getting stale. so, rather than totally waste it, i made french toast last night after they went to bed and popped it in the fridge so they could have it this morning. apparently, it was a hit. every once in a while, i feel like a nail this mom thing.

for the win,

cm

PSA: wax paper is not the same as parchment paper

dear world,

in our effort to eat more whole foods and less processed stuff, i’ve started making homemade cereal bars. i’ve tried a couple of different recipes, but this one from weelicious.com tasted great and requires no use of the stove so the girls can help from start to finish. apparently, the bars are supposed to look like this when finished:

 

photo credit: weelicious.com

however, the first time i made them, i used aluminum foil to line the pan so the foil stuck a little to the bottom and i let them cool for a bit too long before trying to cut them. they certainly weren’t pretty, but they were absolutely edible.

this time, i thought, i’ll use wax paper to line the pan. the box says it’s oven safe. i mean, i did check the box and since we don’t have any parchment paper, i took the plunge.

my cereal bars turned out like this:

cereal bar crumble

apparently, wax paper, when baked in the oven for any amount of time melts into whatever you happen to be making. my cereal bars had a fine layer of wax melted into them which i then had to peel off.

it was messy business.

in brighter news, my cereal bar crumble tastes just as good as a properly formed bar. one simply needs a spoon or many many napkins available to eat it.

crunching away,

cm

ps- does anyone have any good no-heat recipes that kids can help with?

school lunches – it’s a marathon, not a sprint

dear world,

as this is the first year we’ve been responsible for providing lunch for V, i thought i’d look to the internet for help. i want V to eat well. i want V to have healthy choices. mostly, i just want her to eat what i pack. where to start?

well, the internet suggests about a million things and i kid you not, all these moms are making food that looks like owls for their kids school lunchboxes and i’m all like, oh shoot, i have to figure out what to pack for tomorrow and it’s 10pm.

last night, when this very thing happened, i wandered into the kitchen, stared deep into the fridge and decided on making her a quesadilla with peas on the side and threw in some leftover popcorn and a whole apple. then i almost burnt the quesadilla and totally exploded the peas all over the microwave. but, i think she’ll like it. it wasn’t pretty, but i covered my bases.

here’s what i learned:

1. land’s end makes a lunch box that wipes clean and fits enough food for lunch.
2. goodbyn makes a 3 section lunch holder and the stuff doesn’t leak into the other sections or the lunchbox (unless your child forgets to shut it when she’s done).
3. it’s hard to think of a variety of choices so you don’t end up with pb&j 3 out of 5 days
4. it’s kind of fun to use pretty toothpicks to hold a sandwich together

i went to a playdate/lunchbox party with some friends and got some good ideas. i bought a cookbook that is *fairly* optimistic in packing suggestions. for example, V thinks lettuce is only for grown-ups- kind of like coffee and wine, and this cookbook suggests things like skewers with tomato, fresh mozzarella, bread pieces and fresh basil.

and then, today, i read a post about the pinterest bitches who stay up to 4am making totally over-the-top stuff for back-to-school time. i’m thinking i can settle down. V is fed. she’s excited about what’s in her lunch and she loves her “coffee cup” which will keep milk cold for 7 hours.

happy eating,

cm

ps – the second week of school, V very specifically asked for lunch money so she could buy her lunch at school including strawberry milk. oh well.

 

happy thanksgiving

dear world,

we cooked thanksgiving dinner at our house this year. my mother came as well as my sister, her new husband and their new baby. all in all, it was a pretty weird experience.

i guess i had my hopes up too high that we would get to spend some time with each other before the meal then sit down and catch up over dinner. instead, my mother arrived about 30 minutes before we planned to eat and when i called and texted my sister at quarter til, she didn’t pick up. i figured we’d just eat without them if they didn’t arrive. but they did. and we ate.

i’ve known my family forever, yet we had nothing to say at the dinner table. it felt awkwardly quiet. MHM saved the day and asked my sister’s husband something and then we got rolling. nana held the baby all through dinner and nobody ate much of anything. i thought it tasted pretty good. i certainly ate my fill.

and now we begin the eating of the leftovers. tomorrow, we’re having turkey soup with the stock we made from the turkey carcass. i’m really looking forward to that.

celebrating,

cm

ps- i’m really glad to have met my little nephew, but it’s a bit odd to see my sister as a mother.

susie home maker

dear world,

i am back to work half time, but today i think i accomplished more since i’ve been home than i did at work. it’s a little hard to get in the swing of things again.

at home, though, i’m on it.

we have our annual halloween parade and trick-or-treat tomorrow night in the neighborhood. obviously, i committed to bring cookies. how many cookies? i made a batch of chocolate chip cookies this afternoon (using real butter!) and the package said i should get 5 dozen cookies. i got 3 1/2. i guess i made the cookies too big, but they look wonderful. it’s a shame i can’t taste them. i’ll have to get feedback tonight. if they’re bad, i’ll just go to the bakery on the way home tomorrow. no one will know.

then, i *may* have overspent while on medical leave this time around. i felt kind of sad and stuck in the house. and not the productive let me clean out my closet stuck in the house. i guess i figured i’d get some pretty clothes to cheer me up for when i went back to work. i got a lot of them. so, this afternoon, i opened a 0% apr credit card, transferred my balance and now i have 15 months to pay off my wares. this is using credit to my advantage.

and now i’m done. and it’s only 2:50pm. i have a whole afternoon ahead of me. i think i’ll watch tv and save up my energy for my little ones when they get home. nana is coming for dinner and it’s like a madhouse when she comes, especially on a week night.

i read an article recently that said that women are now primarily the breadwinners in the family and when asked which responsibilities they kept for themselves a majority said the household finances. and baking.

typically,

cm

fresh strawberries

dear world,

friday night, my deal with V to settle down without fussing allowed her to choose her reward: 1. go to the book store in the morning and pick a book or 2. go to the farmer’s market and pick a treat. she picked go to the farmer’s market. (and she settled down without fussing!)

saturday morning, she asked first thing after opening her eyes if she had good enough behavior to go to the farmer’s market. she did, so we made the plan. she had to wear pants with pockets because she was going to get to carry her own money with her to pick out her very own treat.

this is the first time my daughter has left the house in jeans. she’s more of a leggings/skirt/dress type of girl.

at the farmer’s market, we picked out peas and asparagus for dinner. then, we examined each selection of strawberries before making our choice. she paid with 2 $2 bills, gifts from her great-grandma ann. she was so proud. she ate one in the car on the way home. she ate them for snack. they are now all gone and it’s only sunday evening.

peaceful bedtime in exchange for a quart of strawberries – yes please. i’m so trying that again next week,

cm

holiday gifts for great-grandparents

dear world,

our children are fortunate enough to still have several great-grandparents around. however, this leads to a challenge at holiday time. they don’t want stuff, but we still need to give them gifts. the level of thoughtfulness has been increased. this past year, i decided that we wouldn’t get any great-grandparent something that couldn’t be consumed in some fashion- food, stamps, notecards. only useful, usable gifts from now on.

last year, we gave each great-grandparent two wallet size photos of V and two pretty magnets to hang them on the fridge. this year, V decided she wanted to make treats for them. this is our inexpensive, pre-schooler friendly treat solution. it kept V engaged for a long time and she asked to make more the following day. (i should note that the fun is increased by listening to christmas music the whole time.)

ingredients: 1 bag of small pretzels, 1-2 large bags of hershey kisses (depending on how many you want to make), 1 large bag of red and green plain m&m’s

 

1. pre-heat oven to 250 degrees. line cookie sheets with foil and spray with cooking spray. (i think the spray is probably optional, but we had it so we used it.)
2. take the wrappers off of a bag of kisses. put the kisses in one bowl and the wrappers in another.
3. arrange pretzels in a single layer on a cookie sheet. fit as many as you can on there.
4. put 1 kiss in the center of each pretzel then put in the oven for about 6 minutes. (you want the kisses to just start to soften, but not get too melty or the pan to get too hot.)
5. remove pan from the oven and put 1 m&m in the center of each kiss and squish it down.
6. let cool completely and store in a bag until ready to transfer to festive holiday bags.

the one warning i have is that if you have a young person helping you, be sure to warn her that the pan gets hot. V and i each accidentally touched the pan a couple times. no one got burned, but it is certainly not cool to the touch. we looked pretty funny making these last weekend- i had baby N in the front pack carrier, V stood on her step stool as we took off wrapper after wrapper. we had a ball.

happy for edible holiday treats,

cm

 

looking forward to looking back

dear world,

people always say how quickly kids grow up and we should really cherish these times when they’re all young and sweet. i have to tell you, i’m really looking forward to looking back on this year. i’m hoping my memory will cloud (or frankly erase) some of the madness we’re currently experiencing. let me tell you about yesterday:

my mother has been asking to take V for a day since the new baby was born and we agreed that yesterday would be a good day. we took her over to nana’s after second breakfast and spent the day quietly at home, just me, MHM and N. we cleaned a little, took a walk, took care of the baby. nana and V came back around 4:30pm and we planned dinner for 6pm, not remembering at all about the time change.

i tried something new for dinner and since N was fussy, i cooked with her in the front pack carrier. i made carnival and delicata squash stuffed with rice, lamb, rosemary and cranberries. it sure looked good.

as soon as we sat down at the table, N woke up screaming. not little cries to say, hey mommy, i’m awake and hungry. she belted out giant ear splitting cries to say something more like, hey, why haven’t you fed me, i’m starving, the world is ending unless i get milk in the next 10 seconds.

V took her signal from N and ate her pear and nothing else. then she proceeded to fall out. she did donkey kicks on the sofa (dangerous behavior). she cried, she whined. at this point, N is done eating and now screaming again like i’ve poisoned her. i’m sitting on the sofa, my uneaten dinner is sitting on the table in the dining room, N is on my knee wailing. MHM is sitting next to me. V is on the floor wailing.

nana went home. V watched a program and calmed down. N eventually calmed down. MHM eventually got V into bed. i eventually ate dinner.

i feel like we could have given V a better chance to be successful, but i forgot about the time change. she’s always so amped after a visit to nana’s that a complete meltdown should not have been a surprise. it’s just awful when they’re both throwing a fit at the same time. i want to cover my ears and close my eyes and wait until they’re finished. but i don’t do that. i feed the baby and calm her down. i do my best with V to help her get off whatever loop she’s stuck in and on to something more productive. i don’t know how i’m going to do bedtime by myself.

ready to move to the next phase,

cm