Dinner...Chicken Dinner

Basically southwestern twist on 'chicken & dumplings' on Sunday:

• Chunks of boneless skinless chicken thighs & tenderloins, sauteed in butter with onions, chile powder, cumin (whole & powder), oregano, garlic, carrots, zucchini & red bell pepper. Added chicken stock, and made the cornmeal dumplings from this recipe (with polenta instead of cornmeal, water & stock instead of cooking liquid, and seasoned with smoked paprika & cumin). Chopped cilantro over the top. Yummy!
• Salad of red leaf lettuce, sliced radishes, a little bit of cilantro tossed in, chopped avocado.
• Leftover lemon-cherry sorbet (snow) from last week with another round of fresh strawberries.
• Delicious lukewarm mint tea with fresh-squeezed orange and lemon juice to kick it up (even better later when the ice cubes were frozen and ready to use.)

We actually had a fun although too busy weekend.

Saturday was mani-pedi, haircut, and take Juj to a birthday party at a roller rink for me (where I did lace up a pair of skates and relive my youth albeit sans much disco music); a full day's hard labor on the front yard (which looks MUCH better!) for Gilster. Then we hit the movies in the evening, and agree with so many who recommended How to Train Your Dragon (yes, fun for the whole family, except dad was so tired I think he did zzzz through a bit of it).

Tried to relax a bit more on Sunday, and did manage a little nap (or at least a rest) after Sunday school and grocery shopping, before making dinner. I am SHOCKED at how much work there is to be done as an adult and parent. Sometimes I miss being a kid, or even a double-income-no-kids. Youth is wasted on the young.

And now, it's late and so to bed... This quotidian post will have to do.

Not giving up Sunday dinners or blogging; just been incredibly busy trying to get my current work project phase completed so I can go on the second annual Griswold family road trip.  (Oh, did I say Griswold?  I meant Guerrero-Weintribe, or is that Weintribe-Guerrero?)  This year, the beach -- no more acute mountain sickness for me.

Did take a brief time-out this afternoon to check Momma Mia (the movie) at Juj's request.  The boy is so familiar with the Broadway score CD that during the credits, he told me which songs had been cut out of the movie!  I love that he wanted to go with me, plus I'll have an embarrassing tale to tell on him when he starts dating in ten years.  (It will be ten years and not sooner right? Going into junior year of high school??? Please...)  Not that anyone will know who ABBA was by that time.

Anyway more later, but I felt the need to jump on here.  Plus I finally went around and visited all my (mostly virtual) friends this evening.  Eww - virtual friends and I took an almost-six-year-old to a movie based on ABBA songs?!  I need to get a life!

I'm baaack...

Forgive me Blogger, for I have sinned. It's been four weeks since my last post...

Seriously -- this summer is whizzing by, and I am not keeping up (in fact, I planned to include some links in this but I wanted to get it posted; maybe I'll update later, LOL).

Been to my last week of Lean Six Sigma training (all Lean all the time for this one - ask me about 5S sometime!)... been to San Antonio by train (where I spent most of a week napping or splashing in the pool with J)... been to see some movies in the theatre (Wall-E, and Indiana Jones rides again)... been working on coming out of my self-absorbed depression wallow (which seems to be finally ending)... been trying to get caught up at work and at home (see previous items -- did take a whole carload of stuff to Goodwill already 'though we're still got a ways to go)... been trying to stay cool (the usual Texas summer challenge).

I have even been cooking a bit. Sunday supper last week was a nice Thai beef salad, 'cuz I love flap steak, and leftover cheese with dried fruit, nut and chocolate nibbles for dessert because we'd been to a fabulous wine tasting / potluck the night before. And Julian stayed with an honest-to-goodness babysitter, said he liked her, and fell asleep before we got home! No doubt, we've cooked one or two other meals, but I'm not sure what they were.

Tonight we had over a couple we met through Horizon, and had a delicious dinner:

• Elderflower Sours
• Killer Shrimp
• Wolfgang Puck's Chino Salad
• Martha Stewart's Peach, Cornmeal and Lavender Upside-Down Cake with vanilla ice cream

Wine with dinner, and Averno afterwards -- a good time was had by all, especially because Unca' Ron was kind enough to take the Juj to the movies for part of the time. (J gave Space Chimps a thumbs up; haven't got Ron's review yet.)

However, I think Sunday supper may be take-out. We did a a pretty good job cleaning house today -- Gil even spot-shampooed the carpet -- and we were both showered and relaxed with all the dinner prep work done before our guests got here. And anyone who's been to dinner at house knows what a rarity that is. ;-)

So a happy weekend to all, and to all a good night!

Should I or shouldn't I?

I've been thinking a lot about blog content lately. I'm bored reading our weekly menu, and trying to decide whether I'm ready to open up and start down a more personal path here.

And then I see a PSA on television aimed at teens, reminding them that anything you put on the internet can be read by anyone.

So, while I hope to take the time to pick up F5's meme soon -- to highlight how fast trends change (my frosh year was earlier than hers) and because J asked me when I was "going to write about the music of my youth" (we've been listening to a lot of 70's pop and classic rock lately) -- I'm not sure I'm ready to bare my soul too deeply yet... sex? depression? politics? hot flashes? Even if it would possibly make for a more interesting, or perhaps less dull, blog.

So... Sunday dinner with tia Elsa & uncle Ron, anyone?

• Elderflower sours with fresh mint (loove St. Germaine!)
• Cornbread mini-muffins with cheese, bacon, red pepper and green onion (yum-o! yes, it was a riff on a Rachel Ray recipe)
• Pan-seared flap steak with a chile rub over a mixed salad with celery, carrots, red cabbage, daikon, red onion, and avocado
• Homemade gingerbread cookies (from Williams & Sonoma Kids Baking - deelish!)
• Fresh strawberries with softly whipped cream
  

But maybe I can manage some occasional pix to spice up the ol' blog. (At least, I find 'em fun on your blogs.) So here are some from J's kindergarten graduation last month. (Now if I can figure out how to suck over the photos from my phone, I'll really be set.)





By the way -- Kung Fu Panda? Totally rocks, dude! (Been a long time since I got to hit a movie on opening day!)