The Five of Us, Spring 2014
Domesticity (or Weekends Are For Blogging)
Well, we're very nearly snowed in here my friends. Here's what it looked like this afternoon out the front door of the office. Before the plow came. Beautiful pristine snow. I just love the look of snow on the trees.
And, again, the front door of my house. Note the deep, deep cat tracks in the snow (last photo in this group). Yikes. I need snow boots.
The Big Blueberry needs chunkier tires. We got stuck right in front of our house today when we tried to go into town to buy a Christmas tree. With the help of Harold, his grown son, and a hoe, we managed to get away to WalMart. (Aside: Now, I know that there are many people in the world who boycott WalMart for a vast number of reasons; however, it is really the only place I've discovered here that feels anything like home to me. Sad--very, very sad--but true.) (Second aside: I suppose you've guessed that since we went to WalMart, we were in search of--*gasp*--a fake tree. I'll explain our reasoning to anyone who asks, nosey nose-a-lots that you are.) Anywho, with all the slow driving due to the still-falling snow, we didn't get home with our tannenbaum treasure until bedtime. We hastily fluffed and directed the glistening wiry branches before bundling the kids in cozy jammies and tucking them in. So, the lovely, lonely tree is just standing there all nakedy in the corner begging, BEGGING to be dressed and I'm so tempted to just do it all myself while the angel-babies are in bed (it would be SOOOO much easier, you know--and prettier too, not that we mamas care about pretty anymore), but I just can't steal all the fun. Punk said over and over, "It's beaUUUUUteefull, Mama!"While we're on the topic of my offspring's cute dialog, I have neglected to tell you something, e-friends and stalkers. Something of great import. My baby-girl has been saying "Ah da doo, Dea" for several days, it might even be in the double digits by now! I love how she adds her name on the end. She's so just repeating what we say, but it still warms my mama heart to no end. She kiss, kiss, kisses us all the time and the best is when she and Punk put aside their rivalry for 2 brief seconds and kiss each other. There's almost nothing better!
One thing that IS better is that Aaron and I had a really nice time alone together today during nap time. One thing led to another (by design, of course!) and, well, we had a really fun "nap"...in the living room since the kids were sleeping oh so lightly in the kitchen. So, I just have to say that I am SOOOO glad that my husband is now mature enough to not get all flustered and ego-bruised when I giggle or laugh during our intimacy-renewing activities (I dunno why but somehow the term "foreplay" just isn't my favorite today). He used to get all weird about it, but now he realizes I'm not laughing at him, I'm enjoying his company. It's really, really good to laugh during love-making (probably not the deep, heavy, really into-it time, but at the beginning and into the middle is great!). It actually makes me feel more intimate with him--ya know, we laugh at the same things. And, laughing is such a fun, serotonin-producing activity (hmmmm, and so is, let me think, oh yeah! SEX!!!). Anyway, I don't mean to beat a dead horse, but I'm casting my vote for laughing together during love making. Um, if anyone is counting votes on that. Right. Moving on.
Okay, so not that I've got that off my chest...I made a lasagne today. And, I thought that you, of course, would have wanted to be here if I didn't live 4 or more hours from anywhere. Obviously, the next best thing would be to blog it. So, here you go.
We're starting at the beginning of the assembly stage which is already a good hour or two into the process, but it can be a bit mad-cap, making photography an unnecessary nuisance. I'm sure you understand. As you can see, we have here the creamy-cheesy (ricotta, cottage cheese Parmesan, eggs, and parsley) filling straight out of the blender, the red sauce (ground turkey, onion, garlic, tomato paste, tomato sauce, stewed tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, and Italian seasoning) filling right off the stove, the noodles, and the mozzarella. Not to mention the 9x13 "PAM"d baking dish. All laid out on a festive tablecloth.
The layering goes like this...A little red sauce on the bottom just so the noodles don't stick to the bottom of the pan. The foundation layer of noodles. Half the cheesy-creamy goodness (parsley is like the best leafy-green veg out there--for reals!). Pause for photos.
Doesn't that look amazingly yummy?! Mmmph! Sprinkle on some mozzerella. Splop on a good bit of the meaty-tomatoey love. And another layer of noodles. Repeat. Smother the top with the remainder of the red yumminess. Bake for an hour. Do laundry, sweep (but not mop) floor, and other quick domestic duties.
After the hour's up, sprinkle with the remaining mozz and bake another 10 minutes. Let it sit for 10 more minutes and voila...wonderful Italian wintery goodness. And again, a cozy warm house from all the baking. Mmmm.
Doesn't that look amazingly yummy?! Mmmph! Sprinkle on some mozzerella. Splop on a good bit of the meaty-tomatoey love. And another layer of noodles. Repeat. Smother the top with the remainder of the red yumminess. Bake for an hour. Do laundry, sweep (but not mop) floor, and other quick domestic duties.After the hour's up, sprinkle with the remaining mozz and bake another 10 minutes. Let it sit for 10 more minutes and voila...wonderful Italian wintery goodness. And again, a cozy warm house from all the baking. Mmmm.And, here's a shot of the pecan pie. While it lasts. Man is it good. Mmmm-mmmm. Homemade pecan pie is now squarely at the top of my favorite holiday traditions. Well, it'll be a tradition by next year, right?
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My Man and Me
married 7/7/2001
Punk
ours through biology, born 7/25/2004, home 8/1/2004
Pea
ours through adoption from Liberia, West Africa, born 7/15/2005, home 10/25/2007
Pup
ours through domestic adoption, born 1/15/2011, home 2/10/2011, final 8/3/2011
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3 comments:
I am SO hungry now!! I had a hot dog for dinner :( Maybe I should learn to cook! How you find time for toddler duty, husband duty,a really involved job and still have time to cook something like that is beyond me :)
Blessings,
Jen-Naoimi's Mama
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