Meals

The meatballs lasted forever! Since we didn't eat all the meals I planned last week (went out after Mollie's ballet performance on Saturday), they're coming back again this week.

Mon: Asparagus soup
Tues: Chicken enchiladas
Weds: leftovers (not enough, so shepherd's pie instead)
Thurs: 5 bean soup (leftover shepherd's pie)
Fri: Swiss chard and potato frittata (5 bean soup- the Swiss chard at the store looked old....)

I wish....

http://www.feelhealthier.com/

I wish my house was clean
I wish I could find my dream job in the bay area (or any job really, at this point)
I wish I could have a few do-overs in life
I wish ice cream was good for you
I wish life was a simple as it was in high school
I wish the grass in our yard was healthier

Saturday

What's up, doc?

I just saw this article which expresses something I've felt for a long time.... that most doctors look out for #1. Not that they're all "in it for the money", but it's certainly a factor for most.

I think this explains what happened when I went to my gp complaining of knee pain. He sent me to get an MRI (at a private MRI place, which billed the insurance company $6K- I got stuck with the deductible) and to see an orthopedist. So I get to the orthopedist and he's never seen the MRI and is able to tell what he needs to from a simple X-ray. So why the MRI that no one ever looked at? I'm thinking the MRI place might be giving doctors a little kick-back for referrals.

No wonder we're having a crisis with health insurance! (Okay, it's more than just that, but I seriously think overbilling and over-testing contributes to the problem).

More things that drive me crazy

- fake or "light" butter (I know it's healthier but I just don't like it)
- how we have no sidewalks in our neighborhood (or most of our city)
- "ballet" moms
- the yellow coating of pollen on everything
- when the internet goes out
- the price of postage (and everything else these days)


These are balanced out by the happy list so don't get the wrong idea. I am not an unhappy, miserable person. It just feels nice to get this stuff off my chest.

Meals update

The turkey meatballs were supposed to make 4 servings but ended up making 16 meatballs (we each ate 2) leaving a bunch leftover. They were really tasty though and easy to make. It was a Rachel Ray recipe that I modified...

Florentine meatballs:

2 lbs ground turkey breast
1 pkg (10 oz) frozen chopped spinach
1 egg
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 onion, finely chopped
1/4 cup milk
3/4 cup bread crumbs
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Thaw spinach and wring dry in a towel. Mix all ingredients and season with salt and pepper. Form into 16 meatballs on a cookie sheet or glass pan. Drizzle with olive oil. Roast for 30-35 min. Serve with white sauce and egg noodles.

White Sauce:

1 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. butter
3 tbsp. flour
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup milk
4 oz. grated mozzarella cheese
ground nutmeg

Cook onion until limp in olive oil and butter. Whisk in flour and cook for 2 min. Mix in milk and broth and bring to boil. When sauce begins to thicken (5 min) add in the mozzarella, and season with nutmeg, salt, pepper. Drizzle sauce over meatballs and noodles.

On the lighter side

This one's for you, Dad (TC)!

Chunky Monkey

Hard to believe that 2 months have gone by...



but our "little" Lucy is weighing in at 12 lbs 8 oz and 24 inches long (that's way up in the 90-95 percentile).

And maternity leave is over soon. I hope that doesn't send ME into a downward spiral... I am keeping my fingers crossed (and forming a plan of action) to make this all work out.

Do we have answers?

I feel so lucky that, in the last week, Lucy has been able to meet all four of her living great-grandparents! Mollie knows them fairly well.

But now my grandpa's health is really starting to decline. And, I don't know if this is related or not, Mollie has been very concerned about death and us (her parents) getting old. The concept of aging must be really hard for a child and I try to give her answers that she can understand, and explain that we don't need to worry a lot about it because most people live for a very long time. Sometimes Mollie will just start crying (while we're driving in the car, usually), and when I ask why, the answer is something like, "I'm just so sad because everybody is going to die." It breaks my heart! And it makes me sad, too.

Any advice?

Easter

We hope everyone enjoyed the day!

Nothing brings such great joy as wearing a fancy dress and hunting Easter eggs, accompanied by a little of Uncle R's "hunting music".

Meals

This week:

Mon: Southwestern black bean soup with sourdough bread
Tues: Same (minus bread)
Weds: Noodles and turkey meatballs
Thurs: Same
Fri: Probably leftover meatballs with pasta and tomato sauce
Sat: Asparagus soup

So that leaves us with a good start for next week:

Mon: Chicken enchiladas
Tues: Five bean soup
Weds: Shepherds Pie

I did it!

One mom
Two kids (under 5 years)
Three boarding passes

It was an adventure and few people offered help (especially the employees of United Airlines who refused to issue my dad a security pass to help me through the airport and refused to let me "pre-board"), but we made a cross-country trip to visit family and friends. We made it home safe and sound.

Still recovering from jet-lag and a nasty cold so I'll post some pics soon.

Smiles and frowns

They both are very expressive.

I capture a lot of Mollie frowns...




and I finally got my first Lucy smile (on camera).


Previous post is updated with a few B-day pictures.

All smiles

Happy Birthday Mollie!

I can't believe my little baby is 4 years old! Time flies! She has turned into a sweet, smart little girl. She's energetic, sassy, creative, girly, and fun!

Our other little girl,Lucy, has been smiling now for about 2 weeks when I sing this goofy little song from 1970's era Sesame Street ("You've got baby eyes, and a baby nose, baby lips and baby toes, your my B-A-B-Y, my beautiful baby"). It used to make Mollie smile too!

Anyway, yesterday I was singing with her and dancing around and she actually laughed!

Pictures coming....

Meals

The lasagna lasted 4 nights so we'll be re-running some of last weeks meals this week.

Sunday: Tacos
Mon: Garden burgers/potatoes
Tues: Tamale pie
Weds: Leftovers
Thurs. Chicken with pecans, sundried tomatoes and orzo
Fri: open to suggestions... probably pasta

UPDATE
The birthday girl requests pesto pasta and steamed broccoli for her birthday dinner.... so we'll just shift one of the other meals to Friday. How many other preschoolers request broccoli as a special treat?