Monday menus #75

Last year I just let Father's Day slip by quietly.  I didn't have an agenda with that - I hope my (adult) kids spent some time that day thinking about Mark. But I'm done orchestrating their relationships to each other.  My goal is to encourage, not facilitate.

This year I suggested to Scout that he arrange a sibling day on June 16.  And I will tell all of them I am off Sunday afternoon and wouldn't it be nice if we could share a meal and some happy memories together?  Father's Day may feel hard to them, but losing the father of my kids was an earthquake in my life, too.

Monday - kitchen closed

Tuesday - Korean Beef Bowls with cauliflower rice and green beans {need to get an oil change on Subie}

Wednesday - (crockpot) Lemon Pepper Chicken Drums, chopped salad {podiatry appointment, clean the A/C coils}

Thursday - Cheese and Black Bean Enchiladas, corn on the cob {taking some of Mom's things to my sister}

Friday - Lemon Alfredo Chicken, skinny mashed potatoes, peas {clean outside windows, go get some mulch, meet with dietician}

Saturday - kitchen closed

Sunday - Most likely I will order food to go.

Gina

Mother's Day 2023

It has occurred to me that this blog has become less about our life as a family, more about my life as a widow, and I never would have imagined that.  I do have the other blog, which generally is a place for me to vent.  So maybe I will figure out a way to merge the two, I haven't decided.

Anyhoo, Mother's Day is once again upon us.  And for all of the empty nesters or otherwise child-free among us, its a Hallmark kind of day.  So, here's my plan, and I'm going into it like any other weekend:

Saturday and Sunday, I will go to work. Its been slow at work so I am going to assemble some things for me to work on. (continuing education, writing my mother a letter, organizing a couple of the XR rooms, gathering serial numbers for the equipment, writing a blog post or two, planning my off days next week, etc.)

I bought myself a new comforter and shams, and something to hang on the wall over the bed.  I gave myself a home pedicure, and I may go get my hair cut today. I plan on staying off social media, which makes me feel sad most of the time, and I for sure don't need that. 

 Most importantly, I'm going to remind myself:  the goal of raising kids is to get them to adulthood intact. I'm proud of what Mark and I managed to do.  

Its going to be a good weekend - I hope yours is lovely too!

Gina

5 thing Friday - Halloween, Dia display, Adelberts, moving furniture, Christmas tree

Facebook reminded me of this Halloween scene from 23 years ago: 

I think I've posted this pic once before...

Darth Maul (in charge of the trick-or-treating safety flashlight), a Ninja, The Devil, a worried baby, and Creepy Guy (a hunter? Camper? I can't remember now).  I sent this as a group text and it was interesting to read my peeps memories about it.  Your kids absorb so many more details about growing up than you realize. (I think next year I will decorate for it a little and invite them to come over and pass out candy with me...)

The Dia de los Muertos display at work.  Soon they will tear down our breakroom to expand the Cath Lab at our hospital.  So we will lose this big window that looks out over a green space.  We should be mourning that, too.  But for now, our breakroom is inspiring us to set up things like this and I love that.  We also had a Halloween potluck - lots of good food and fun for everyone.

On Halloween, after work, I went to Adelberts one last time and had a pint.

They are closed for good now - the second brewery in this area in less than a year.  A victim of Austin's expansive growth, developer greed, and change that never seems to let up.  Bye bye, fun neighborhood place that Mark and I enjoyed "sitting and playing cards and eating delicious trailer food with our beer" place.

 

I decided to move one of those black and white chairs out of the bedroom - goodbye makeshift chaise.  I ordered a cube-style footrest from Amazon and I will just read in here.  Also watch TV.  I ordered myself some new bedlinens, too.  I like how the window isn't blocked by chairs.  And don't think I'm not very tempted to buy a Christmas tree for in here - still mulling it.  

After all, a tree is just a giant potted plant until you trim it for Christmas, amiright?  By the way, I finally got one of those collars for the tree in the front room and I love it so much more than a fussy tree skirt.  And now, I will just let the Christmas tree quietly wait here while we wait for Thanksgiving - my favorite holiday!

Gina

5 thing Friday - Randy, FB memories, crochet, Texas Sage, reading

Last week, my supervisor had his last day at work - he is transferring to another site.  Normally we are terrible as a collective group about telling someone goodbye, but this time funny signs and balloons were hung all over, a nice lunch was catered, everyone actually got to eat, a group photo was made

...and there were hugs all around.

I have worked with him since I was in XR school in 1993.  Its weird not having him around and we are all pretty overworked and stressed so his absence is definitely felt.

I love it when FB reminds me with a photo of my peeps.  I always copy and share it with them.  Other than that, I don't use it too much.

The Girl is still at it with her crochet.  Her pumpkin has a wine cork stem.  She is just too much.  My crafty and pretty baby girlie has a birthday on Monday!

The Texas Sage at Highlands blooms like mad when it rains.  I guess this is a wild/native plant?  I know you can purchase them for your landscaping and they aren't cheap.  They are all over the place and some are quite huge.  I wish I could take them with me when I sell.

On the advice of my counseling lady I purchased this book, which was basically free to me with Amazon credits from my Capital One card.  Its a great book, but when I finish it, I'm going to put the grief books away for a few months.  I have a GriefShare class starting on Sunday and I think it will be all the grief "learning" I can handle for the next few weeks.

Happy Weekend!

Gina

5 thing Friday - thunderstorms, Mabel, The Girl's new place, skunks, coasters

 Its been a busy couple of weeks for us, but I am determined to post regularly - it helps me stay sane.

This was our view last Friday evening.  It was taken on the road just outside of the pumphouse, between thunderstorms.

We left Austin around 5 p.m., eating dinner in Liberty Hill as we made our way up to Highlands to collect Mabel.  We thought we had waited long enough at the restaurant there, but we got caught in a hellacious thunderstorm anyway.  Once we got to Highlands, there was short break in the rain and we hooked her up as quickly as we could.  We drove through lightening and rain all the way home.

Not unstressful.

We pulled up into our driveway at Camp Rustown around 9 p.m. and didn't even bother to unhook her before we headed into the house to collapse on the sofa.

The next day we headed over to The Girl's new apartment to let her movers in.  She and Teddy were about an hour behind them.  We picked up Chik-Fil-A and pulled up a patch of floor.

She has a nice-sized patio with a view.

I hope she will be prosperous and happy at her new place!  I think her worklife balance will be much improved, and I'm not gonna lie, it will be great to have her live closer.

We had a slight problem with a skunk that decided to give birth under The Barn at Highlands.  We had no idea that's what it was - we thought rat - and we fogged under the building.  The baby skunks died and the momma dug another tunnel under there to try to save them.

It is not our objective to kill wildlife, so it pains me.

To keep that from happening again (we hope) we extended those patio pavers along the margin of The Barn overhang in back as we did out front.  We need one small square for the end of the row, but for now there are some rocks wedged in there.

Its so empty in here without Mable.

We raked the whole area down and hauled up the patio table we had sitting at our breakfast outlook.  We will get a big picnic table to live in here someday.  That way, we will have a place for more than two people to eat out of the rain and full sun, and we can set up giant Jenga.

The Girl made me a couple of soft and pretty coasters, and this one lives on my desk.  Anything my peeps ever made for me with their own hands is precious to me.  This coaster no less so.  I treasure such gifts.

TGIF and hallelujah!

Gina

Pumpkin Muffins

The elementary school were my peeps went used to have "Muffins for Moms" and "Donuts for Dads" - meetings held once a month or so in the school library to discuss various current events at the school.  For some reason, these pumpkin muffins make me think of that.  

Pumpkin Muffins (makes 12)
1 1/3 c. flour
1 1/2 c. sugar
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. cinnamon and 1/2 t. nutmeg
1/2 t. vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/2 c. salad oil
1/3 c. water
1/2 can pumpkin (save the rest to stir into oatmeal or pancake batter - or double this recipe...)*
1/2 chopped pecans (you can sprinkle these on the top of the muffins, like I did)
Mix all ingredients well and pour into greased muffin tin.  Bake at 350 for about 25 minutes - check to see if tops of muffins spring back when done.  Store in a covered container - you can freeze these and they thaw quickly and stay moist.

Gina

*here are some other pumpkin ideas!

5 thing Friday - snarky sign, barn storage, car tags, hair, Bubbie

When we visited San Saba recently, Hubby came across this sign in a shop and decided he couldn't pass it up:

 He thinks it's hilarious, I think its snarky.  I let him hang it in the back of the barn at Highlands.  

I am looking forward to fall weather and getting the inside of the barn finished out.  We need to buy a storage shed for a lot of the stuff so we have room to work.  And the less stuff up against the outside of the barn overhang, the better.  It encourages critters and such.

 

I harassed Scout for two weeks {or more} about coming by the house to get his auto tag renewal paperwork which was sitting on the dining table - I didn't want him getting a ticket!  Then a couple days ago I happened to look at my own windshield and what did I see?  Yep, expired tags.  Since they hadn't mailed me the form, I had to sit in line at the tax office to pay it.  Ninety some-odd degrees and low on gas.  Sure was fun sitting in the sun with no A/C.  That's what I get for nagging my kid!

 I'm digging my wavy silver hair.  Not too short, not too long, and not in such bad shape.  I wish it wasn't falling out at such an alarming rate.  Eventually I may go back to short hair, but for now it is good to be able to pull it off my neck.

 

Bubbie is getting himself ready for his third semester of college. {here he is shredding paperwork after clearing off his desk}  His grades so far are pretty good and he is self-sufficient on getting his clothes and supplies in order.  He's been doing his own laundry, taking care of the Baja, and even bought himself a new phone with money he saved.  He won't let me cut his hair any more or help him clean his room - signs of independence for sure.  He helps when asked and generally stays out of trouble.  I'm going to miss that kid someday.

Gina

Weekend re-cap: Brenham, WVW, and Desert Door

Hubby is in transition with his job - this time he is returning to the insurance agency he was at for several years, and both of us believe its a good move.  But that doesn't mean it isn't stressful.  So we started our weekend out at Whole Foods on the upper deck with a full growler.

.

 The next morning we headed to Brenham to visit my mother and enjoy lunch together.

She wanted a gardenia plant, so I got a very full and fragrant one at Home Depot.  I also took some homemade stock, rice, a bag of mire poix, and some oranges.  I got to hug her neck a couple of times and wish her a Happy Mother's Day, I made a sausage and rice lunch with garlic toast, and she baked a tomato soup cake which was wonderful!  We did a few odds and ends chores and left around 2 p.m.

  And headed for Saddlehorn.

 It's so peaceful out here.

We were home by 5 p.m., then waited for The Girl to come home to fix omelettes for dinner.  Teddy will be here for a week while she's away to Florida for training.  I'm hoping she squeezes a little R&R in there, too!

Sunday morning we headed out to a winery pick-up, with breakfast along the way.  The restaurant was super busy, but we enjoyed a Tex Mex feast complete with Ruby Red Margarita and Bloody Mary. 

Then it was off to Wimberley Valley's pick-up. The pairings this time were mostly sweet wines, with a new pinot noir and syrah.  Hubby enjoyed the apple wine, and I liked the raspberry.  They were both paired with a desert bite.  But my all-time favorite is:

 BLACKBERRY.
This is the motherlode - directly behind me in the tasting room!

 Card playing on the deck followed.

They have such a giant backyard area, full of old oaks and decks.  It looked like everyone had the same idea for Mother's Day - hang out at a winery.

 

We passed a distillery we wanted to check out, so we double backed and visited this very cool place.  I  have never tried Sotol and have only heard of it recently, but it certainly is not new to the world.  It's not anything like tequila, though you think it would be.  Very smooth, kinda smoky, maybe a little like scotch?  I don't know, so hard to describe the taste.

They had a large outside seating area under a pergola, as well as a cool, southwestern vibe interior with leather couches and rustic wood bar.  I enjoyed a strawberry rhubarb margarita and some live music.

Then we headed home for queso, sloppy joe's, guacamole, and time with the fam.  Can you believe we are halfway thru May?

Gina