Tonight I had my hopes set on a fast and easy dinner. I was ready to slice up a Kabocha squash that I found recently (at a store, not in my closet or something) but after it’s photo shoot on the cutting board, I flipped it over to find mold growing on the bottom and a bunch of soft spots on it too.
Well alrighty then. I had a few choice words for this Kabocha squash, chucked it into the compost and moved onto the next orange fleshed vegetable on my shelves.
Well, I have no pictures of our woodland adventures today because we were not there long enough to take any pictures. Within about 10 minutes I had two very cold, cranky girls on my hands that not even a backpack full of refined carbohydrates (pretzels, granola bars, kashi crackers) could turn around. It WAS cold though, the thermostat in the car read 18 on the way home. Oh well. We tried.
Interestingly enough though, Ava said she “couldn’t wait” to go cross country skiing when we got home. Zak brought his childhood cross country skis to the house yesterday and Ava’s been in love with the idea of cross country skiing ever since.
After what seems like the 100th day in a row of packing and hauling toys and household items to the new house, I found myself blanking once again when it was time to figure out what on earth I was going to make for dinner tonight. I think I made 6 trips back and forth between the cupboards and the fridge with one hand glued to my cheek due to pure puzzlement. I finally waved the white flag and made giant salads of green leaf lettuce, the last of the spinach that expired two days ago, grape tomatoes, carrots, red bell pepper slices, hemp seeds and Annie’s Goddess Dressing.
Why, hello.
This would be my view for much of our 4 hours in the woods today. Who wants to walk when you can be carried?
Despite lugging around 30 lbs of toddler, we had a great time with our homeschooling friends and our day outside!
We walked the trails at a local park and spent the day exploring the woods. We inspected animal tracks in the snow, listened to birds and best of all, waited for chickadees to come eat pumpkin seeds and walnuts out of our hands.
With an active day in store for us, I used my workout time this in morning to make some head way on packing and other turning-our-lives-upside-down prep work. I got my heart rate up a couple hours later during an outdoor homeschooling mid-morning adventure with 28 extra pounds strapped to my back.
She looks thrilled, no? Let’s let this picture be a little cranky pants foreshadowing.
We met up today with our friends for a hike through the woods and to build a shelter made with sticks.
Tonight as I scoured recipes in a couple of different cook books and those in my recipe box, I had no idea what I was looking for. All I knew was that I needed something I could make with with the remaining produce in my fridge or ingredients found in my cupboard. It’s slim pickings until I get to the grocery store tomorrow to restock my personal farmer’s market.
I flipped through pages and recipe cards but nothing jumped out at me or sounded even remotely appealing. I studied recipes and ingredient lists waiting for something with “butternut squash” or “celery” or “old, wrinkled jicama” to leap out at me and flip on the light bulb over my head.
Where’s the place to be on a cold, dreary day?
The beach of course!
We met up with our “Get These Kids Outside Or Bust” homeschooling group and today was a true test of our pledge to get outside even in the crummiest of weather.
It was cold. It was rainy. There was whining.
Ava happily played with her friends but Maxine clung to me like a marsupial and said “I want to go home” about 100x in my ear, throwing in the occassional “I’m hungry” despite having just eaten breakfast 30 minutes earlier.
I’d like to give special thanks tonight to my neighbors, who put up their Christmas tree the day after Halloween. This has been cause for being repeatedly peppered with the “When are we going to put our tree up?” screech question every time we come home in the dark.
Uncle! Uncle! I’m crying uncle! OK! Let’s put the tree up already!
This is the earliest I’ve EVER put up a Christmas tree. I know a lot of people put them up the day after Thanksgiving, I’ve just never been one of those people. I’m afraid I’ll turn into the Incredible Hulk and start ripping down lights and tinsel around December 23rd if I put decorations up too early.
After a roasted red pepper hummus sandwich and a side of carrot sticks with salsa for lunch this afternoon,
we were off with some friends to the local garden center for some holiday fun.
Lots of decorations to check out –
and painted plywood to stick our heads through.
We enjoyed a gigantic train display.
The adults appreciated the finer details of the model, like dirty old men and their posters.
My green smoothie stuck with me most of the morning, but with about two hours until dinner time – I was getting hungry. I didn’t really want to eat anything, I wanted to be good and hungry for a feast! But I didn’t want to get to dinner feeling famished either.
What’s a girl to do?
Juice is always the answer!
Carrot apple ginger juice – the perfect thing to tide me over and leave me ready to eat by 2:30.
This year we brought along our favorite Thanksgiving book, The Thanksgiving Bowl by Virgina Kroll.
More Mama’s Weeds
