Empty Nest menu #163 and waiting

Last week was what Mark would have called a "pisser".  Between waiting for the dishwasher to be fixed while having no water in the kitchen, and wrangling with the bracket that I bought to mount my bedroom TV, as well as other smallish stressful things, I was doing good to get out and buy food, do some home purging and organizing, and not lose my mind.

But it really WAS a pisser.  Sorry, not sorry.

Not to be fretting - I did manage to finish up the puzzle I started in November, fully restocked my groceries, organized my Christmas storage, did purchase a TV, ordered myself some new walking tennies, did uproot all the landscape lights to clean them and check out their batteries, picked up deer repellant to spray the yard with, started a new book, and backed up my computer, among other things. 

A good way to wait is to stay busy.  Also I cooked!  And I have plans to cook some more.

Monday - kitchen closed {on-line training at work}

Tuesday - Chicken Cobb Salad {book club meeting in p.m., on call unless someone switched with me}

Wednesday - Sloppy Joe Sliders, sweet potato chips, apple slices

Thursday - (crockpot) Rosemary Pork Roast, butternut squash, green beans {lunch at a park, prep front rooms to paint on Monday}

Friday - Pork Tacos, refrieds, Spanish rice {do some maintenance in the backyard}

Saturday and Sunday - kitchen closed {Happy Birthday, Firstborn!}

Gina

Big Projects for 2026

One last glimpse at Christmas before I put it all away...

One of my favorite things about January is the sense of  a fresh new start .  I love getting the Christmas stuff put away, the leftovers sorted, the house clean and organized.  In lieu of a menu post today I am posting the new master list of things I want to work on. Admittedly, some of these were on my overly ambitious list for 2025:

get the Christmas stuff better organized

finish the photo album project

paint the front rooms

touch up paint in hallway

repaint baseboard trim in carpeted areas

get rid of the rest of the items stored in the attic

seal and repaint front door

replace carpet throughout house

buy a new fridge (smaller)

work on backyard landscaping

get garage door opener replaced on one side, lock replaced on the other 

fix den ceiling 

repaint all ceilings

repair the jet tub

paint my desk and printer table

empty the stereo cabinet for real?

But also: 

continue to live debt free

keep expenses low as possible

find free things to do

find a hobby

socialize more

take a vacation

Welcome to a new year, new list.  Time to get started!

Gina

5 thing Friday - treats management, dishwasher, handling things, corn casserole, new purse

 The title of this post should be "Thank God December is Over".  Because try as I might, I cannot seem to escape the Cannary tradition on ending the year in disaster. And it usually involves plumbing of some kind.

I made it through the weekend just fine, even after the push of Christmas and working extra hours.  On Saturday I took a bunch of sweets to the breakroom at work to clear them out of my kitchen.  Apparently a lot of other people had that same idea.  By Monday, myself and another person were just throwing the rest of the uneaten stuff away.  But I did manage to save a baggie of some stollen Bubbie brought over.

On Tuesday, I was showered and dressed, ready to tackle the week, heading out the door to grocery shop, I noticed that the KITCHEN WAS FLOODED.

In a mild panic I grabbed the shop vac and started sucking water out of the dishwasher and realized the water was still flowing INTO it.  So I got under the sink and shut the water off.

I gotta admit, I did shed tear or two.  This was not on my short list of ways to celebrate the end of the year.  There was so much water, it was leaking outside of the house, onto the patio. Thank GOD I hadn't yet left the house to grocery shop!

After waiting most of a day to hear back from a plumber, I reasoned out to myself  "I bet its an issue with the dishwasher, as the water pouring into it was still hot.  If the water was flowing, it must not be a water issue. Let me contact the appliance repair guy".  A short phone call and text with the model number followed, and hopefully he will be here today to replace a valve assembly.*

New Year's Eve was quiet.  I made myself a steak and some broccoli with a twice baked potato.  I washed my dishes in the guest bathtub.  I read a book with my feet up.  I was in bed at 8 p.m.

As I have stated before, the year may end badly, but it will not begin badly.  I enjoyed a lunch yesterday of roast pork, corn casserole, coleslaw, and this delightful Moscato from a co-worker.  I mostly putseyed around the house and read and napped and did whatever I wanted to.  So I really have no complaints.  But I would enjoy having running water in the kitchen.

Corn casserole has been a craving for me since Thanksgiving.  I will freeze it in portions and feel the love all of January and probably into February.  Ha!

Merry Christmas to me, the hard-working mom who is single-handedly figuring out her shit and getting things done.  She will not be deterred from moving forward into the New Year and has plans.  And she needs a good purse for that, so she ordered herself one that she can sling over her body as she leaves her house to take over the world - in style!

Happy New Year,

Gina

*Thank goodness I followed up with him today because no, he had not ordered the part yet, and it may be Wednesday before I have both water and a dishwasher in the kitchen.  A few more tears were shed. I'm still going to take over the world, dammit.

Empty nest menu #162 and art in the New Year

I still haven't decided about putting the kitchen table in my sewing room - for now I use a folding table that is a great size.  And lately, its been my art table. A friend gave me these mini coloring books and some markers, and I added them to my stash of pencils, acrylic paint markers, Sharpies, small paint pots and brushes, mixed media notebooks, etc.  I am channeling that child who loved Art class only a little less than my English class.

Go here to look at all the cool coloring stuff from A Brighter Year.

Monday - kitchen closed

Tuesday - (freezer) Baked Chicken Breast, Mac and cheese, kale salad (from Chick-fil-A) {grocery shop}

Wednesday - Steak for one, (freezer) twice baked potato, broccoli {last telehealth appt.!, on call overnight}

Thursday - Sausage and Cabbage, corn casserole, rolls, Moscato {kitchen deep clean, do some sewing in the afternoon}

Friday - (freezer) Hamburger Soup, leftover corn casserole {p/u items at Home Depot, take the Christmas decor down}

Saturday and Sunday - kitchen closed

Gina

5 thing Friday - photo project, pizza, Christmas, cooking, changes

The photo project I am working on is much bigger than I initially thought it would be.  I addition to going through all of the albums (which number in the tens), I also have photos in a couple of places in the house (memory boxes, cedar chest, cigar boxes), and an impressive collection of negatives dating back to the late 70's/early 80's.  Oy.

I stood there looking at the boxes where I had meticulously organized and labeled negatives by decade and thought "no one is ever going to print these".  Instead of leaving it for my kids to deal with some day, into the recycle bin it went - along with the second round of emptied photo binders.  Not gonna lie, that felt good.

I have already purged the albums and recycled the binders.  Now to pull out the photos I am keeping, organize them, replace them into new albums, and scan all of the pages into my computer and then onto thumb drives.  I'm working on this project an hour of two at a time, because its hard on the mama to trip so hard down memory lane.

TMI: Last week I enjoyed some TJ pizza, with roasted garlic, pesto, and added cheese.  Delicious!  But I have decided that after Christmas Day, I will go back to my simple meals featuring salads with added protein and such.  The older I get, the less my body likes certain foods (pizza).  And since I'm trying to find a good balance of eating out/eating in, I need to prioritize things that will not bloat and dehydrate me for the rest of the day. It was good - but it did not love me back.

I got industrious on Christmas Eve and made two quiche - sausage with green chilies, and bacon with green onions.  Also a walnut raisin pie with rum-soaked raisins.  I made a big pot of stew and did some rolls as well.  Leftovers were sent home or stored in my freezer.  But I would like the food prep to be even easier next year.

Church on Christmas Eve was lovely.  I am so glad I have added this in as my tradition.  It was something Mark and I did regularly before kids and even when they were small.  Maybe as time goes by, my peeps will want to join me, but for now I'm not pushing it.

This church holds deep and personal happy memories for me. The whole time I was sitting here watching the church fill up, I reflected on how absolutely blessed and lucky I am to be able to sit here and freely worship in warmth, surrounded by beauty, feeling the peace of the Christmas season like a big hug.  I was there by myself and never felt alone. That being said, I am happy to be moving into January and an even slower season.

The Girl kept saying "a pony" when I asked her what she wanted for birthday or Christmas.  So I could not resist adding this horse ornament to one of her gifts. Ha!  But already I am making plans in my head for how I want to handle gift-giving to my adult children in the future.  I will likely keep making stockings (since those are so fun!) but I don't think I should  "be" Christmas for them - they are adults and maybe we can all figure out how to do Christmas for each other going forward.

  Anyone got any tips for me?

Gina

Empty Nest Menu #161 and the movies

I took myself out last week to The Long Center for another of the Butler Pops Series featuring the Home Alone movie.  At the end of the movie, the symphony continued to play, along with a large choir of AISD students - it was lovely!  I had never seen Home Alone - just snippets.  It was pretty fun. 

But did you know that the "scary old guy" in the movie - Marley - symbolized Jesus?  The movie has deeper meaning - not just the comedy we all think it as.  I have watched very few Christmas movies the last four years - I need to revisit some old favorites and find some new-to-me ones, too. 

Monday - (freezer) Pork Roast, (freezer) twice baked potato, carrots {I'm off today}

Tuesday - Crab Cakes, green beans {pick up filler groceries, on call overnight)

Wednesday - Coconut Shrimp, pesto bowties, peas {baking day!, Christmas Eve church service in p.m.}

Thursday - Beef Stew, rolls, Walnut Raisin Pie, Cranberry Bars {Happy Birthday Bubbie!, I work 6a to 3p}

Friday - (all freezer) Turkey Taco Meat bowl with rice, refrieds, salsa

Saturday and Sunday - kitchen closed, but I will probably have leftover stew!

Gina

5 thing Friday - lunch with a friend, treats, bench, thrifting, slow living

Last week I went to a tasting class at Total Wine.  These are generally pretty fun.  You get to try new things and enjoy a charcuterie with like-minded folk.

My favorite thing was the spiced gingerbread cordial - so good!

I bought some for a friend who is coming to lunch today, and I decorated it with a package tie-on version of a clothespin snowflake like I made a couple of  Christmases ago.  This one has vintage and antique buttons.  I will fix Parmesan Chicken and Caesar salad for our lunch.

Using up the other half of a frozen pie crust, I made Walnut Pie for two (well, for one - but I can freeze it in portions for a treat)  The recipe had been in my card box for years.

I sprinkled a bit of sugar on the walnuts I piled on top.  It turned out like a chewy walnut blondie.

These little dishes handle cooking for one or two perfectly!  I would say the pie was "OK".  But it was fun to just go through the box and make something I had always meant to try.

I spied, with my little eye, this picnic bench alongside a neighbor's curb.  (I suspect the husband has passed and the wife and adult son are slowing clearing things out of the garage.  So relatable.)

It was in rough shape, but I gave it a scrub with some sudsy warm water and found a place for it to live in my garage.  I had a plan!

Now ALL of my plants can sit right here and get sun and fresh air a couple times a week while the weather holds.  What's weird is that I thinking that's just what I needed - then it appeared!

I thrifted some things this week - out of boredom - but it was a fun activity.  I got more (new) puzzles to work on, 

Some ornaments and a giant pinecone (all 50% off, making them 1 or 2 dollars each), 

3 tops,

and two books.  I was intentional about what I bought, but this will be my last thrifting trip of the year.  I have been living slowly this week - reading, working my puzzle, and crafting.  Also walking, going to bed early, light cooking...it feels like a mini vacation!

Happy Weekend - less than a week until Christmas!

Gina