I talked to Aunt Judy yesterday and she told me that the quilt tops I’m sending her way are next on her list, which means I need to get my butt in gear and, you know, actually send them. Which further means (check out my amazing reasoning skills) that I need to finish the one, rather than just gaze lovingly at the stack of fabric on my sewing shelf. But that would be too easy, wouldn’t it? So instead I’ll just sit here and piddlefart around and eat grapes until Simon wakes up (at which point I’ll kick it into gear and start sewing. Promise ;-))
I just cut myself a thick slice of that bread from Tuesday’s dough pic, but then completely neglected to take a photo before slathering it in Nutella and cramming it in my gaping maw. So, sorry. But also yum. Seriously, go check that out if you want a hearty-yet-soft bread recipe.
Speaking of food (since apparently that’s all I’m capable of at the moment), have you seen the Italian Wonderpot recipe going around Facebook lately? It really seems too good to be true. So in the name of Science!, last night I made it for dinner. Here’s an awful picture just a few minutes before it was ready to serve (you let it simmer down until most of the liquid is evaporated/thickened):
That’s a horribly unappetizing picture, I know, but the actual dinner was pretty good. I used whole wheat spaghetti instead of fettuccini, and stirred in some garlic chicken sausage that I’d browned in my cast iron, just before serving. Our family’s consensus was that it was all right, but grossly under-seasoned (this even after I upped all the seasonings). Next time I think I’ll used Trader Joe’s diced and fire-roasted tomatoes instead of plain diced tomatoes, will add more salt, and maybe 16 oz of spinach instead of just 8 oz (the benefit of 8 oz, though, is that I could convincingly tell Jeff the green flecks were just herbs ;-)). I also think it would be good with Trader Joe’s basil linguine. But all in all it was a good, easy weeknight dinner (with enough leftovers to keep us in lunches for a week!). Add a side of roasted asparagus and a good salad and you’re set.
Yesterday during the day we made our pilgrimage up to Cleveland for Trader Joe’s, and my total was about 1/3 less than usual (even though I bought the ingredients for 10-12 meals, just like always). Part of that is because they didn’t have a few things on my list, but mostly I think it’s because I’m a lot less inclined to dawdle and loiter and browse when I have a tiny tornado pushing the shopping cart than when he’s snugly wrapped on my back. He was OMG SUPER NOT INTERESTED in making the trek home, though, and I didn’t feel like facing a 35-minute car ride of screaming, so we hit up Panera for soup and a bagel (and then a diaper and some boobies) before heading back down to Akron. He slept in the car but only fitfully: overall, definitely not his most satisfying morning. I think it may make more sense to do subsequent adventures in the late afternoon (bonus: then Jeff can haul in the groceries when he gets home from work.)
Today was the penultimate storytime of the late-winter session, and it was a little bit smaller group than usual. Possibly not coincidentally, Simon warmed up a lot more quickly than he has in weeks past. Today he was actually brave enough to dance with the librarian for a moment, and grab his own shaker out of the music basket. Progress! He even pitched a fit when it was time to leave, which was embarrassing but also sort of reassuring. The librarian is going to be out on maternity leave starting in May, and with Garfunkel coming in July the spring session may be our last. I’ll miss it!
After a quick stop at Chipotle for a mama-baby date, we went to a new kids’ consignment shop that just opened a few weeks ago (the owner is a young mom who’s been advertising it on the Facebook baby/kids resale group I follow). She had a pretty large amount of stock, but nothing much that I felt we needed, and most everything was WalMart/Target brands anyway. I got him one little Gymboree shirt for this summer, but think I’ll have to head back down to Once Upon a Child (down in Canton) for a few other things he needs.
Well this one isn’t going to win any “fascinating blog post” awards, is it? Have a sleepy Simon by way of apology:
And now, of course, he’s awake and I’ve got to get my butt off the couch. Until next time!
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