Summertime....

Oh, welcome Summer! The boys are off, I am off, and life is taking on a new routine. This week is the calm between the school and the camp, so we're a little bit wandery.

The new CSA is awesome. Not just cut herbs, but plantable herbs! Not just what they grow, but what I want! So this is a nice change though I miss my old site, a lot.

Monday: On the road. We will be coming back from DC. Husband is on his own as this is a mom trip.

Tuesday: Wow, I hope we are at the beach. Weather makes that look unlikely though so taco Tuesday to the rescue.

Wednesday: Lego Build! So out, again. This is shaping up to be a great week.

Thursday: Veggie day. We'll see what we get, and I'll make that and then also chicken nuggets for the kids.

Friday: Neighbor kid's birthday party! The video game truck is coming (did you ever hear of such a brilliant idea?) and all families are invited to join for a grilled dinner. Yes please.

I love this week. Not worth posting really, but when I start to panic that there is nothing in the fridge I will calm myself by reading this to remind myself why. Happy week!

Last Week of School Already?!

One hundred seventy five days down, five to go. My younger son would like to add a smiley face to the title. He can do that on his blog. :)

Last week was the big one--lots of parties, lots of end of year events. This one is a slow crawl to the finish, with our last four regular days of this school year. It was a good one, with a not-too-crazy schedule, some real growth all around for the family, and a good time to end.

Monday: Oh, did I mention the baseball team is still in the playoffs? They are, so this has to be a quick one. Steak, spinach, potatoes.

Tuesday: Taco Tuesday rides again.

Wednesday: Pizza night replaces spaghetti night. Someone who used to be a ref for my husband's soccer league is running for mayor of his new city (and it's one you've heard of). He's having an event in our town, where he grew up, and we're going.

Thursday: Veggie pickup day--woohoo! We are in a new CSA and while I very much miss my former site hostess, this is a better match for our family's eating patterns. So, salad, and either Monday leftovers or freezer cleanout.

Friday: Since the young one is here, he is suggesting spaghetti night replacing pizza night and so he's going to win this one. Spaghetti, meatballs from the freezer, and a big celebration of the end of the year.

Have a good week! See you on the other side of summer.

Better Late Than Never, Right?

Must be the rocket ride to the end of the year here. It's a crazy week--next week actually looks better but this is the End of Everything week. Ok, that sounds a little apocalyptic but really--just a ton of stuff finishing up here.

Monday--swim team tryouts (he made it! but elected the "jv" squad to work on his strokes more--I thought it was a great decision and was very proud that he made the team, tried the practice, and then resisted the temptation to stay in a level that was a little too advanced for him--really an exhilarating mom night, so I can only imagine how he felt). Tacos after practice, and after throwing a ton of fruit at them after school.

Tuesday--"graduation" night for the kids in the language program so a special French-Spanish-Chinese buffet at school. We're bringing lemonade and pico de gallo and chips. It's all I have in me because tomorrow is the third grade carnival and I am having a nervous breakdown about that.

Wednesday--Apres-carnival pasta, and collapsing in a heap.

Thursday--birthday party for the 3 year old cousin

Friday--graduation! Wahoo! I will pick up a pizza and we will eat it at the stadium. So, so excited and so sad at the same time.

That brings us to another fun filled weekend...see you then!

Welcome Sprummer

My kids are a little literal and are not happy that Memorial Day is the kickoff to summer if they still have school and it is still spring. So, they decided to call this "sprummer" and bridge the gap. We had a great weekend away, even though it meant being in our fleeces against the cold...now this week we are looking at temps in the 90s--what a see-saw! This week:

Monday--at the ballpark. Went to a new-to-us one, this time in Harrisburg. It was a nice park and a good way to end the weekend.

Tuesday--Taco Tuesday, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways.

Wednesday--88 degrees does not say "pasta" to me but I may not win this one. Still, I'm thinking of making it early in the morning (or on Tuesday) and making a pasta salad for the husband & me and regular (butter and cheese) for the kids--or I should say, "the kid who eats noodles."

Thursday--90 degrees, ball game, and swim team placements. Oy. Early dinner, so something easy but I am not sure what. I have the stuff for the potato-apple-sausage bake but that seems really heavy for a hot day so I may vamp.

Friday--Prom night! Photos of the seniors, then pizza.

Have a great week, everyone!

More Good Ones

I cannot believe I was a terrible blog-friend last week. I knew I had something to share but couldn't remember what; it was a HUGE thanks to 4everMom for the link to the Dijon-Maple Chicken recipe. I made it with boneless skinless breasts (of course), some ancient Dijon mustard cluttering up my fridge, and the rice wine vinegar I'm working down and it was terrific. I highly, highly recommend it as well, and thank you for the tip! Clearly I'm the last one on the internet to find this recipe but I'm glad she pointed the way. It was not a favorite of the kids but my husband and I loved it and it really hit my happy point of sweet and savory. It's exactly the kind of recipe I need more of: marinade of things I have around the house that only need to be poured on at the last minute and baked. Love that kind of recipe.

Also, I went to a party for my moms' group and the awesome hostess had made Margarita Punch. It was insanely delicious and tequila free. (She had a pitcher with tequila next to it for those who wanted it.) If you like mojitos or margaritas--do not hesitate to make this. Now I need to figure out how to do this one or two glasses at a time.

This week has turned topsy turvy as has a lot of May...I wasn't thinking clearly at the butcher's so we're a little cow heavy this week....

Monday: steak, roasted potatoes, roasted Brussels sprouts

Tuesday: Taco Tuesday

Wednesday: spaghetti and meatballs/meatball sandwiches

Thursday: leftovers

Friday: Pizza night.

My apologies to the bovines in the general vicinity.

Hope you are entering the Memorial Day weekend in whatever way makes you happy!

Still Here!

Thanks for all the comments last week! It was great to hear from everyone.

Our cabbage is still growing but I do not foresee a giant like in the photos. Still, a "Kept-Alive" cabbage will do me just fine.

This is the busy week (she said, before the next busy week overtook her)--ok, this is the busy week with the two nights out. So:

Monday: Joanne's Pork Tenderloin (recipe on sidebar), rice, roasted Brussels sprouts

Tuesday: Taco Tuesday

Wednesday: Wednesday Spaghetti

Thursday: sausage-onion-apple bake, and probably pesto quinoa for kids

Friday: school event, woohoo!

Last week we held things together and pretty much followed the plan. It's been nice to have the grill out again and we are trying to use the yard before the mosquitoes are too much to take. I planted basil and rosemary this weekend, and we'll see if I have the heart to get more tomatoes. Now that there's so much sun in our back yard, I might try again.

Wishing you a happy week with not-too-much on your plate!

Deep Breaths

Ok, things are getting a little better around here. I am outing myself as having completely, totally, absolutely fallen down on a big job I really wanted to do well on, but for whatever reason, I just didn't have it in me. I am mystified by this but what's done is done (and what isn't done, isn't done) and I need to just move on. Fortunately it was for neither work nor family, so what's most important is still intact, but it feels crummy.

Meanwhile, at least it's an ending. Work events continue to come along at a blistering pace, as do school events. And the car needs a new timing belt. (Longtime readers with outstanding memories will remember that the timing belt killed my last car, so car repair shops know they can get lots of moolah out of me by telling me it's time for a timing belt.) So it's a strange one this week, but we'll see how it goes...

On the food front, we had a Sonic open near us. I don't quite get it but it was wildly popular.

The May Weeks of Crazy continue...

Monday: Recuperate from big work event on Sunday. Broiled steak. Side of leftover veggies.

Tuesday: No clue. Could be baseball, could be Lego build. Regardless, I will make tacos and we'll see how it goes.

Wednesday: Unsurprisingly, I did not make the avocado sauce last week (though I had the ingredients I realized my husband wouldn't be home before it browned and after I can eat without feeling sick in the night). This week, I'm not even pretending. There was a sale on Rao's and so back to my favorite.

Thursday: A fun day: the first grade Hootenany is in the morning, so I'm working from home and have some time to cook. That doesn't always inspire me but we'll see. However, I do have three chicken breasts ready to go so that might work too.

Friday: No baseball (but wait 'til next week) so I will probably just pick up a pizza again. There are worse eating patterns.

Next week is the last week of the complete crazy with two work events on Monday and Tuesday, both of which are, of course, nights when we have baseball games. Such a bummer--so many nights with none and then two of the last three games are on these totally unmissable nights. But, that's how life goes, and with a job that lets me chaperone the zoo and make the Hootenany and be at the class parties--two baseball games is not a tragedy by any stretch of the imagination.

Wishing you a good week full of things and people you love that don't stress you out!