What am I, a magnet for cranky-a$$ed people? Seriously, I had a bizarre experience at the grocery store yesterday that is beyond comprehension. We normally try to avoid visiting our local Meijer grocery store. A so-called “Hypermarket”, you can get everything from groceries to furniture to office supplies to electronics to clothing to fish for your aquarium. At first (when it opened several years ago), it was a big family joke, initiated by Julesie: “Where you goin’?” “Meijer.” “For milk and a sweater?” “Yup.” (Guess you had to be here.) Over the years, Meijer has gotten very crowded, and S-L-O-W. Jim has boycotted the store since the day he and…
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The Sharing Fairy Only Works Part-time At Our House.
Jim and the boys, especially the younger one, have this “thing” about certain favorite foods and Whose Food It Really Is. For example, if I purchase Honey Mustard Pretzels or Flamin’ Hot Cheetos, whoever finds them in the grocery bag first will declare “These are mine. Stay away.” And then a race of sorts will ensue, to see who actually gets to eat most of them and–the horror!–finish the bag first. (Not necessarily in one sitting.) Recently, war broke out in the kitchen. I purchase sugar cereals very, very rarely, for a couple of reasons, the first being that Jim and I would totally inhale the entire box before it…
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Ms. Maggie Moo and a Bowl of Stew
I have a couple of food-related things to share with you today; the first one is way exciting. Or it could be. No, strike that. It IS way exciting. My girl Mags over at Ms Maggie Moo Talks 2 U is having a contest and I need you to help me win by entering to win yourself! (Still with me?) The prize? Some of her amazing home-baked goodies, shipped directly to your door! (or hopefully, MY door.) It’s easier for Mags to explain, so I’m copying her details here: “The rules are simple:1. Leave a comment (on MAGS’ blog post) telling me (her) you would like to be submitted. 2.…
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Alright, Alright…Birthdays Aren’t THAT Bad, Especially When They Last A Week.
I have done a lot of bellyaching over the past couple of months about turning F…F…Fo…Forty, and although I am still not thrilled, my chosen new attitude is helping me to settle in, along with the wonderful birthday WEEK I just experienced. My friends and family tossed so much love at me, how could I be anything but warm and fuzzy? Last Sunday evening, Jim surprised me by taking the entire Fab Five (if you’re a newbie here at the Scrawl, the Fab Five is me, Jim, the boys, and my sister Julesie) out to dinner. Everyone knew where we were going except for me, the birthday girl. I was…
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Have Your People E-mail My People; We’ll Do Lunch!
“Turning on a dime” is not something I’m normally known for. I like my routine, and although I can indeed change course if something comes up, I don’t usually enjoy making a change; I usually avoid it if at all possible. Unless it’s an emergency or something that just sounds like an opportunity I can’t pass up. Like today. I had planned to spend the day catching up with housework and other boring (but comforting and satisfying!) activities around here since I didn’t lift a finger yesterday. I taught class this morning (and for those of you who read my tweets last night, I totally did not even have a…
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If Only A Frosting-Covered Jeremy Piven Had Been Available, It Would Have Been A Perfect Evening.
Last night we had a ten days-late celebration for Julesie’s birthday. We’ve all been on our various travels, so October 18th it had to be! Dinner was absolutely delicious (marinated flank steak–a new recipe I found online which is a total keeper–with roasted potatoes and my new favorite salad which has unseated my old favorite salad. Don’t worry, recipe is coming for that.). After dinner we played the “Clue DVD” game, which takes absolutely forever and has music that’s a little creepy and isn’t actually about a murder anymore but about a theft–hello touchy-feely 21st Century; the knife and the rope are GONE from this edition–and by the way I…
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We Race Without Ever Leaving The Family Room.
It was a banner weekend for the Fab Five as we planned for the Season Premiere of one of our all-time favorite shows, The Amazing Race. I was overjoyed to discover on Saturday that the Reality Channel was showing a weekend marathon of the Amazing Race All-star season, because we thoroughly enjoyed that one and seeing it again was a great warm-up for the new shows. As I started watching the marathon, I send Julesie a text: “Wanna come for dinner tomorrow night for the season premiere of the race?” She said yes, and asked if I had a theme in mind. Um, no. Not this time. We had planned…
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Stuffed.
Meals in this house are boring about 85% of the time, maybe even 86% of the time. Normally we are too busy, too tired, and too lazy to make plans far enough in advance to pull something out of the freezer in time to defrost, or to make sure we have all the ingredients needed for something “exciting”. We usually really step it up when we have a Fab Five gathering; that’s a given. This past week though, I really wanted to get out of the rut and so I started thinking about dishes that I used to make when I had a little more time and was a little…
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Bucking Tradition…’Cause That’s How We Roll.
You know the drill: click on this for your Official Post Background Music: After one of the most overwhelming weeks in recent history (with no sense of anything letting up in the near future), I decided that I was going to write my freakin’ post about Labor Day Weekend, Part 2…because if I wait too long, it’ll be Thanksgiving or something. So, enjoy. And if you’re hungry, I apologize in advance, for this post is about the Fab Five Pizza Festival! (In case you’re a newbie here at the Scrawl, the Fab Five is made up of Jim, me, the 16-year-old, the 13-year-old, and my sister, who we call Julie…
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Shut Open Your Cake-eater!
Remember this? My sister posted the recipe for the best cake ever at the House of Jules today. Go get it!!