November 27, 2009 at 8:30 pm (Uncategorized)
Our house smells amazing. Again. Yesterday I made one of the turkey’s for J.’s family’s celebration. It was my first attempt at making a turkey all by myself. Using my mom’s recipe, it went very well. The particulars: sage/thyme butter under the skin. In the stuffing we had leeks, apple, cranberry, sausage, rosemary. Then I caramelized a giant skillet full of onions and shallots. and added them to the turkey drippings. That ended up making the gravy. The turkey got an apricot jam glaze from apricots I preserved myself in the summer. I was so exhausted by the end of the night that I fell asleep at 9pm.
Today I stopped by my mom’s to borrow her giant soup pot. Making stock in two pots last year was fun and all — but I was ready for some simplification. I had considered buying one myself but that would have required my violating “buy nothing day” (which I’ve been faithfully adhereing to for 3 years).
Turns out my mom wasn’t feeling well, so I got a turkey stock started for her and hopefully she’s been enjoying a few good bowl fulls this evening.
Then I came home and got started on our stock. It’s on hour seven and the house smells lovely. I think I’ll let it go for a few more hours while I do some work. (The fun part is that we got two carcasses this year. I froze the other one for some stock in the future)
Max has had a lovely holiday. He has eaten plenty of turkey (light and dark meat), yams, potatoes, stuffing and a little bit of pumpkin pie that J.’s mom made.
(photos to follow tomorrow?)
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November 21, 2009 at 6:05 pm (09/10 Dark Days Eat Local Challenge, Garden)
It’s time to catch up on my life, catch up on the blog, and catch up with Max who is running all over the place. Yes, running.
You know how you wish for a weekend day when you can just hang out in bed? Well, careful what you wish for. I’m sick as a dog and didn’t leave the bed till 3. Worse yet, I’ve completely lost my voice, which is driving me crazy. Thankfully we have grandparents in the area that have pitched in with Max.
I was kind of hoping to be able to hit a farmer’s market today and make a meal worthy of kicking off the Dark Days challenge. Didn’t happen. But earlier in the week I made a meal that got fairly close. We picked up some beef spare ribs at the Sunnyvale farmer’s market. I roasted some broccoli. The non local stuff: the pasta, and the can of tomato that I used as part of the slow cooking. We used local herbs, local beer, local garlic. I look forward to the day when I can make fresh pasta like (not so) Urban Hennery.
To catch you up the garden, I’m really excited at how it’s going. I tasted my first arugala in the garden. It was fresh and peppery and a little bitter and I loved it! The chard is recovering from neighborhood cat exploration. The beets and basil look good so far. The rosemary is definitely growing. So far, no fatalities! I am seduced by this by wondering what else to plant? Should I plant more chard to keep the old chard company (and get a staggered harvest)? Is it time to plant mint? Should I think big and finally plant a lemon tree?
I’m also having a lot of fun with the compost pile. I wonder how I’ll ever get “finished compost” when I keep adding new food scraps & clippings and mixing it in. It also doesn’t seem that easy to get to the stuff at the bottom of the pile. I wonder if I’ll have to deconstruct the box to get to it. Shouldn’t be too hard as it’s basically a bunch of lincoln logs.
I hope tomorrow I’m feeling up to going to our old farmer’s market. But I have to force myself to get better because I can’t afford another crap billing week. Grr.
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November 12, 2009 at 9:41 pm (Garden)
One of the first things you are supposed to pay attention to when looking to buy a house is what is the pride of ownership in the neighborhood. The example most often given is whether people take care of their front yard. The guilt was nagging at me because we did not have a lawn mower and the grass was looking a bit shaggy.
Initially I thought we’d buy an old-fashioned manual push mower, but I couldn’t find any positive reviews. I also wanted to be able to capture the clippings for composting. So, we did the next best thing — mooched the mower from my parents. J. and I enjoyed pushing it around the yard and Max enjoyed watching. Who knew one pass at the yard would create so many clippings!
In other garden news, I have not yet killed the Rosemary of Arugula from two weeks ago. (pics included as proof) I felt so good about that that I purchased seedlings for Chard, beets, and a new fangled Basil.
Now, the one thing I wussed out on was making my own raised beds. It felt like a little too much of a project at this juncture. If I am successful with these planters, perhaps I’ll go for the raised beds for spring time. Baby steps.
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November 7, 2009 at 9:38 pm (09/10 Dark Days Eat Local Challenge)
Some of you may remember that I did the Dark Days Eat Local Challenge last year. This is the challenge by which we attempt to cook at least one local meal a week. Even though I am no rookie this year, it feels like so much more of a challenge this time around. Here’s a glimpse at how life is different.
Then: I was in my third trimester with nesting instincts manifested through cooking.
Now: I have a 10 month old that is full-on walking. (oh yea, did I forget to mention that? He’s done with crawling.)
Then: I was fresh off a trial team and coasting into maternity leave.
Now: Like all lawyers of our day, am hyper aware of the economy and throwing as much time at my job that I possibly can.
Then: Apartment Dweller two blocks away from the farmer’s market.
Now: New homeowner! but farmer’s market is 20 minutes walk or a drive away.
Anyhoo, the challenge does not officially begin till Nov. 15, but what the hey, let’s give it a go!
Tonight’s dinner: braised lamb shanks cooked in Turnbull Sauvignon Blanc, garlic & baby garlic, rosemary and thyme; celeriac and baby yukon potato & green onion mash; and mixed greens. All local from farmers’ market, except for salad dressing which was not local.
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November 1, 2009 at 7:06 pm (Garden, Green Living)
For those of you who have heard me bitch and moan for years about wanting my own plot of land to play out my “live off the land” fantasy, this week I took the first step.
First, I built the outside composter. I need a new motor for the food scraps composter; so, we’ll see if I can overcome inertia, order it, install it, and give it a go. I realized tonight, however, that I need a whole bunch of dirt/finished compost in order to make the chemical reaction work on the outside composter. So, next weekend’s project is to get a crate full of compost from the city and make it happen.
Second, at the farmer’s market today I bought some rosemary and Arugala plants. I planted them in planters that the previous owner had left behind, along with potting soil that stayed behind, too. The next project is to build raised beds for more serious cultivation. But again … project, inertia, winter coming, we’ll see what we can achieve in the coming weeks.
Third, I raked leaves from the front yard’s magnolia tree and put them in the composter along with kitchen scraps.
I am thankful for every minute I got to spend with the yard. Max enjoyed watching me rake leaves for some reason. Then I was able to do the planting while he was napping. I still long for a more predictable schedule with him. There’s no telling if he’ll be down for a monster 2 hour nap, or no nap at all, which makes allocating time for other stuff pretty tough.
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October 31, 2009 at 7:18 pm (Work)
So, we got Max into his Dinosaur costume. The poor guy was trucked all around town in that thing this week. There was my work. J.’s work. The moms’ group. Meanwhile, I was racing the clock to try to get a few more hours billed by the end of the month.
It didn’t hit me till I saw this picture. Amazingly, I managed to inadvertently catch my timekeeping software in the shot. So, while my family is living in the moment enjoying how adorable he is with his huge tail, I literally have one eye on the clock. Sigh.
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October 25, 2009 at 8:02 pm (House)
As I come up for air from all the household errands and catching up at work, I am continually reminding myself why we embarked on this adventure. And this is why:
So Max could eat dirt from our own yard.
We went to the farmer’s market in the next town over. We had been there years earlier, but this was like a new birth! To say we got carried away would be an understatement. (let’s just say that the “frugality” tag would not apply). Some notable purchases: Bison, french salami, kabanosi-type dry aged sausages, two artisan cheeses, olive oil, crenshaw melon, 4 types of peppers, and much more. One thing I wanted to buy but held off till I research how to properly use them — duck eggs!
Tonight we ate ahi tuna in homemade wasabi mayo, with a dill cucumber salad. I also used tonight’s “free” time to pre-make meatballs with beef and bison. (my commute is now 30 minutes, so that’s time I don’t really have to cook anymore).
Stella the cat is still pretty freaked out by the move.
Max crawls around the house squeeling with delight in each new discovery.
I exhale and remember why.
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October 22, 2009 at 6:37 pm (House)
This picture was taken of Max as we introduced him to his new room. He took it very well. I’m trying to harness that joy for myself as I deal with incredible “what else could go wrong?” stresses of buying and maintaining house.
Today’s drama is that the Internet installation (which was attempted but failed on Monday) that should have taken a few minutes, took 5 hours. I couldn’t stay for the five hours, so I left my dad in charge as I headed out to a meeting at work. So that means my work computer was not “installed” by the professional. He said it would be straightforward and I would have no problem doing it myself.
Well. Here I am. My installation on my work computer was unsuccessful. I just can’t afford another night with no billing. I am so stressed out. Thankfully I got a hold of the technician before the end of his shift and he graciously agreed to stop by on his way home. Am waiting for him now. (That’s why I have the luxury of typing a post on my own computer, while my work computer sits there like a paperweight.)
What else have we dealt with this week? Plumber guy. Furnace guy. Shower door installation guy. Discovering our shower has no place to hang a towel and no wall space to speak of. Finding some half solutions at Bed, Bath & Beyond. Researching what TV to buy. Finding the cheap one we wanted after 3 store visits. Thinking we were buying it. Getting home to discover that they actually sold us a more expensive TV and charged us for it! Returning it tomorrow. Finding a bunch of junk of the previous owner and having to figure out how to haul it out of here. Who leaves a mattress??? asshole.
Did I mention we don’t yet have a laundry machine? Heading home to do laundry like a frickin’ college student is so not in my schedule right now.
I know my stess level is through the roof right now. And I know Max deserves better. But the list of things to do at home and at work is growing exponentially and I have no concept how it all will get done.
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October 10, 2009 at 9:42 pm (Uncategorized)
This is one of the last, if not the last, post I’m writing from the old apartment. As a nice going away gift, the floors seem to be leaking upwards in Max’s room — don’t ask me how, but the carpet is wet and getting wetter and there’s no explanation from above.
This annoyance helps combat a little of the sadness that I’m feeling at leaving the place I’ve spent the last 4.5 years of my life. This is where my husband and I dated. This is where Max came to be. There have been a lot of memories.
Nothing like some cobbler and hot apple cider to warm up the soul.
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October 4, 2009 at 8:39 am (Uncategorized)
I’m into the mental to do list. I’m not great at making actual to do lists and crossing them out. The problem with the mental to do list is when there’s a trigger event before anything can happen. For instance, there’s a TON of stuff to do when we get to the new house. But so much of it doesn’t happen until after we move or shortly before.
As a result, I have a ton of stuff on my mind and no real outlet to get it done. Sure, J. and I pack a box here and a box there, but they only serve as a reminder of how much more packing we have to do, yet we can’t jump on it yet because we need access to a lot of it over the next two weeks. Then there’s also the issue of where in hell do we put the packed boxes while we live here? It’s not like there’s a garage to tuck them away, so we’re living amongst the boxes. Remember when a move use to be done in trickling car loads? There was something simpler about that. You pack what you can, what doesn’t make it now goes next time. But with movers there’s this pressure to be 100% ready by a certain point in time and be extra efficient because there’s no coming back.
I look forward to standing at the doorway of the new house and pointing to where this item or that should go, and once the movers are gone, life will begin again.
Unfortunately, the blog has made it onto the “when we move into the house list.” I think getting to all my photos on my computer will be easier when I get settled in to the new place and get some reliable wireless internet connection. Any thoughts out there on cable vs. DSL?
Also, any thoughts on padding for Max’s room? Should I do those ubiquitous interlocking mats, or a festive rug? The mats seem kind of expensive for what they are, but the rug could be a slip and slide situation if it doesn’t grip properly.
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