MPM--Finally, The Start of School Edition

Happy Monday!

This weekend included my first ever bloggy meetup with a group from Ask Moxie. It was really fun and interesting, seeing, for example, Moxie's whole face, instead of just her glasses; and while many of the women didn't look like my mental image of them, once I met them I felt like, oh, ok, that makes sense too. It'll be fun to read the comments section and have faces behind some of the names. Now if Bossy's group can just get back together on a night I'm not carrying the plague (like I was last time), I'll be in business.

This week should be interesting. Among other things, my older son FINALLY starts school. (He feels that way too!) Last week went well, though a bit off plan. We went to one last baseball game before the season wound down on Wednesday, and then Thursday's tailgate was rained out, so we moved indoors and had turkey chili and leek quiche (adapted only very slightly from this month's Bon Appetit. I do love me some leeks!). So I never got to the pork tenderloin last week, hence its reappearance here.... Here's hoping it's good. I'm making extra to take to my mother and father in law. She's having a long-overdue knee replacement on Tuesday, so it's the least I can do. (And totally off that subject--it's an awesome Bon Appetit month--I can't wait to try this quickbread and this dessert. And I've already made the leeks and another thing I can't think of from this issue already. Thanks as ever to the very thoughtful Best Babysitter in the World for gifting me the subscription!)

I've also tried hard to get back in the routine of making Aid for Friends meals. I'm really unhappy with the number of times this summer I threw something away or (less so) fed it to the dog because I was too lazy to fill a tray. I can do better.

So, this week:

Monday: Spaghetti and roasted tomato sauce from some of the last of the summer tomatoes.

Tuesday: Pork tenderloin and either zucchini rice gratin or couscous salad, plus lima beans from the CSA

Wednesday: leftovers, augmented by freezer food

Thursday: I'll figure out something. (Probably ravioli from the freezer with peas and cheese? Something simple that won't have many leftovers.) Because the rest of the week is easy:

Friday: Homecoming at the high school so we'll eat at the game (if it rains we'll go out for pizza)

Saturday: the Light the Night Walk, in memory of my sister-in-law, whose 50th birthday would have been last Thursday, which was the other reason we had nine people for dinner after the football game. She died from lymphoma in January 2005. (Click on the link to learn more. It's pretty cool; they figured out a way to light up the inside of balloons that float and glow in the growing darkness. And it's an easy, stroller friendly walk if anyone wants to join us.)

Sunday: the Media Food Fest! Totally worth the trip, with food from multiple ethnic traditions. And a place to donate things like instant brown rice that I didn't really need for the Robin Miller recipe last week after all. (The chicken was good, if a bit unusual. I don't often think horseradish on chicken. But the acorn squash with the pumpkin seeds was a winner--usually I'm looking for ways to get rid of my acorn squash.)

Meanwhile, the sewer line needs replacing and we are collecting bids for that. Our dishwasher took another turn for the worse so I'm waiting for the next Se@rs sale to swoop in on my cousin's machine for an upgrade. And our TV has finally really, truly lost it. Of course, I have been watching this exact TV since...um...1988 so it owes me nothing. Anyone have a 27-32 inch flat screen they love that they want to share information about?

Happy autumn, everyone! And a happy Rosh Hashana to those who are celebrating. If I weren't working Monday and Tuesday, I'd make some honey cake to be with you in spirit. This one sounds so amazing I might just make it anyway.