Monday menus #43

Scout has a birthday coming up on Tuesday! How is it possible that he is 28?

The focus of my family blog has shifted away from my "kids" as they are all grown now.  But that doesn't mean that I don't celebrate them in real life.  All of them are slowly getting back to life after a pandemic, the loss of their dad, and other calamities.  Scout has been handed his fair share of other challenges in life - I think he is managing well.  He's taking time off this week to recharge his photography skills and just relax.  I wish I knew a way to bundle up enough birthday hugs that would last him for the next 50 years or so...

Monday - 15 Bean Soup with garlic knots (crockpot)

Tuesday - Fried Chicken, potato salad, corn on cob {Happy Birthday, Scout!}

Wednesday - Spinach Baked Gnocci, honey carrots {meet with Mom's executor in Brenham, on call in p.m.}

Thursday - Coconut Shrimp, chopped salad, sweet potato fries {lunchtime retirement planning webinar}

Friday - Chalupas (refried black beans, green chili seasoned taco meat, lettuce, tomato, sour cream) {payday, and putting my Christmas trees up!)

Saturday and Sunday - kitchen closed {Fall back!}

Gina

Little project: painting my office

Long story short:

 

"Train" by Glidden, twenty bucks

I didn't feel much like blogging last week.  I would love to say that depression and grief are not still doing a number on me, but that would be false.  However, I am trying to pull up.  Anyhoo.  I did a refresh of my craft room/office this week.  

time for a refresh of these walls

Originally I was just going to clean and organize it really well and move some stuff around on the walls.  But then I discovered that the touch up paint that I used was not quite right...see the splotches?  I brought a paint sample home that was a very close, almost exact, match to what was already in here, and for good measure I bought a gallon of it and repainted the whole room.

before - why do these shelves not match?

I started around 1030 a.m. and ended precisely at 1 p.m.!  That includes taking everything off the walls and shelves and painting.  I used a pad painter to go along the ceiling and baseboards, took all of the switch and outlet covers off, patched more holes.  Putting it back together again took another hour.

that rack was overloaded, so some of the quilts got moved  

When I put stuff back, I realized that a lot of it could just go.  So its purged and dusted, not perfectly decorated.  I am ok with that.  There is a lot of potential for craftiness in this room.

 its quiet in here, too

I ordered a couple of mats for the frames that hold my college degrees.  For years I did not display them, but I find that as I go along in this life/house I want to celebrate? explore? all of the things that make it mine.  I love having a place to sit and read in this room.  The color is calming, and there are fewer things in it, which makes it much less distracting than it was before.

 eventually the furniture will be painted!

I rescued a potted plant that was languishing in Scout's room, but it won't live in here forever.

not fancy, but just right

Its hard to get good pics in here because its so overcast this week!  But I love that all of the walls are freshened and the space is less cluttered.  And I love the feeling that I am not too old or too inexperienced to work on my house and get a few things done, like repainting a room.

It definitely takes my mind off other things!  Happy Weekend,

Gina

Monday menus #42

 Lately.

The above photo seems accurate.

Monday - Beef Tacos, seasoned black beans, grated cheese, etc. (I will put all of this together and have it on a shelf in the fridge) {working until 8:30 p.m.}

Tuesday - Dr. Martin's Mix, garlic toast {p/u groceries at 830, visit recycle center at 930}

Wednesday - (freezer) Chicken and Stuffing, bacon-y fresh green beans

Thursday - Schwarma Salads (romaine, gyro slices, feta, tomato, cucumber, kalamata olives, purple onion, lemon dressing) {morning SS webinar, evening Beer Necessities}

Friday - Tilapia, butternut squash bulgogi pilaf, broccoli {plan Scout's birthday dinner!}

Saturday and Sunday - kitchen closed

Gina

Monday menus #41

 Last week's creamy pumpkin soup was fantastic.  I added a touch of curry powder to it and served it with bacon and cheese quesadillas.

The boys ate only one bowl of it, so I am counting on it being freezer storage friendly!

Monday - Crockpot Beef Stew {work until 8:30 p.m.}

Tuesday - Tilapia, fresh green beans with apple dressing {pick up groceries, make phone calls from my desk in the a.m.}

Wednesday - Grilled Chicken, brussels sprouts, twice baked potato {seal bathroom #1's grout}

Thursday - Sausage Beanie Wienie, corn, garlic toast {replace the patio lights, buy a Christmas tree for my bedroom}

Friday - Bruschetta Meatloaf, leftover veggies, buttery rice {possibly check on Mom's house}

Saturday and Sunday - kitchen closed {work until 8:30 p.m.}

Gina

5 thing Friday - desk work, books, anniversary lunch,

 My office and craft room, aka The Lounge, has been quite the opposite of a creative and calm space lately.  I asked, and was granted, permission to continue tying up some loose ends for mom from the attorney who is her executor.

Hooray for this big table to spread out on, a shredder (which you can't see behind the table), and the free time to do it in on my days off.

I have whittled it all down to file folders in that basket of things on top.   But each file has something I need to address.  Could I let the attorney do it?  Sure.  For almost $400/hour.  And since I already have the necessary info, I might as well tackle it so we can get closer to probate.  This is the worst part of death - settling someone's estate.

Two hours of office work on Tuesday netted me several legal size envelopes to mail.  It was dreary outside, adding to the blah of the day.

Do you ever purchase almost past date veggies to cook that very day?  Recently I pan sauteed some shrimp, along with some new potatoes and asparagus that were marked down.  It was delicious.  I remember thinking that we were living pretty large whenever my mother fixed us shrimp or crab when I was growing up.  Though we lived in Galveston during that time, it was unusual.

A quiet day at home led me to thrifting where I found several books to read.  I killed at least an hour of time wandering around a tiny Goodwill that I had never noticed before in a strip center near HEB.  The Mitch Albom one is a repeat for me - initially a library loan.  And I have read many Maeve Binchey novels.  I'm trying to put my phone down and do more reading.

Booth for one, anniversary day.

Mark and I used to love to eat at Jack Allen's kitchen - in fact, one of our last anniversary dinners was there.  Maybe the same booth I sat in for lunch on Thursday of last week.  I enjoyed a grilled chicken salad with fig, pear, bleu cheese, and champagne dressing.  I toasted to what would have been our 38th anniversary with my favorite, a Mexican Martini.  And I didn't cry, just enjoyed my lunch.

The whole tiling of the bathrooms has me feeling so frustrated.  Its been back and forth with trying to get it scheduled since JUNE.  As of this writing it is mid-project, and maybe you can't tell, but yes, that is the toilet sitting in the tub.  There are three of us living here right now, and I need this bathroom done so we can move on to the next one.  I try really hard to go with the flow, but sometimes I wonder if I'm not swimming against the current.

Gina

Monday menus #40

 I read a recent blog post that had to do with basically our homes not having to look magazine worthy all of the time.  While I agree with that as a practicality for homes that have kids and pets and people working jobs and family coming and going and the general craziness life brings...

...I have to tell you that on most days, this is what my home looks like.  And not just because my kids are grown. In fact, if you walked in at any time over the years and found it messy, you might immediately and correctly assume I was ill and laying in my bed.  A clean and tidy home has always been a source of calm for me in an un-calm world.  The home I grew up in was dirty and messy and shabby and unhappy most of the time.  I'm not saying my parents didn't provide for me and my siblings, but I'm also not saying that they put the health, safety, and happiness of (all of) their children first.  

My home will always be tidy.  Its who I am.

Monday - Sweet BBQ Chicken Salads (romaine, avocado, tomatoes, grated cheddar, purple onion, seasoned chicken breast strips)

Tuesday - Sloppy Joes, chips, pickles {getting the first bathroom tiled}

Wednesday - Mexican Pork Chops, black beans with pico, yellow squash

Thursday - Chicken and Stuffing Bake, green beans

Friday - Lasagna, salad, garlic bread {lunch with The Girl}

Saturday and Sunday - kitchen closed

Gina

5 thing Friday - trees, work shoes, latte, magazines, flowers

So much random here.

Friday before last the trees around my roof were trimmed.

All because the new homeowners insurance company, that was suggested to me by my insurance agent, decided the trees were shading the house a bit much.  And expensive tree pruning wasn't exactly in my budget.

If I sound annoyed by that, just know that I was.  However, I wasn't sad that less than 24 hours later, none of my tree limbs fell on the roof during a crazy thunderstorm that featured lots of wind.  And I got zero hail, whereas my sister's homes in Georgetown got plenty of that.  So silver linings and all.

I looked down at my work shoes and thought, hmmm...something is wrong here.

Using some credits and a sale, I ordered another pair. 

My work shoes are from Alegria and they have saved my feet from plantar fasciitis, which I always struggled with when I wore tennis shoes to work.  I can wear these for 12 hours, out of the box.

I should have showed a pic of the end result of me brewing pumpkin spice coffee over the rest of a can of whipped cream and a little sugar.  You'll just have to imagine that it worked out great and I had a delightful cuppa pumpkin spice latte.

I'm not exaggerating to say that I have brought home mountains of papers and mail from my mom's house.  I can barely think when I am there, so I bring it home to sort, file, shred, recycle.  The woman must've had 20 magazine subscriptions on every topic you can imagine: gardening, cooking, TV guides, archeology, farming, commentary, politics, short stories, travel, quilting, and more.  Not to mention she got so. much. junk. mail.  And I have had to sort through all of this giant haystack looking for bills, important papers, bank statements.  It makes me feel a little cray.

I put together a random bouquet for my mother's service.  Just something from me to her.  It featured 8 roses (one for each of her kids) and had a strange color combo - one that didn't work with the green ribbon I had on hand.  The Girl to the rescue with some wired burlap that was country chic.

I already miss my mother so much.

Gina 

Monday menus #39

 What a blur these past few days have been.  This is the view as I drove bright and early to Brenham on Friday to retrieve the dress my mother wanted to be buried in, clean out her kitchen, and get the locks on her doors re-keyed.

I had already made out my menu and started this post, and I will carry on cooking at home.  But I don't really feel like it.  Last week was so terrible.  This week is starting off sad.  Next week will be better.  And life still carries on.

Monday - kitchen closed {Mom's funeral}

Tuesday - Chipotle Taco Bowls with creamy avocado rice

Wednesday - Chicken in a Hurry, mashed potatoes, bbq beans

Thursday - Creamy Pumpkin Soup, garlic toast

Friday - Turkey Scampi over Pasta, honey carrots

Saturday and Sunday - kitchen closed {back to work}

Gina