Dark Days Week 7

I have no idea what we ate this week…it’s been a snowy blur. What happened to the melt???? Perhaps this week’s forecast will finally be right and the rain (and melt) will come. Until then, back to the food.

Tonight I made a mess of a whole wheat bread recipe. Actually I’ll blame it on the yeast…must have been their fault. I have a few bricks to hold open the doors now or, I can try this bread soup recipe. The kids tell me the bread tastes okay, it’s just not very “bread-like”.

Tonight’s dinner was oven roasted chicken on a bed of polenta. I didn’t review the recipe because I *thought* I knew how it went (I saw it in John Bishop’s cookbook “Fresh” a few weeks ago) . Needless to say, I missed a couple of ingredients (*key* ingredients) and it didn’t turn out as well as it could have. I will try it again, but follow the recipe next time.

Luckily the chicken was great, as were the roasted beets and carrots. There will be chicken sandwiches for lunch tomorrow…scratch that…no bread. There will be leftover chicken and veggies for lunch tomorrow and then the carcass will go into a pot to make stock for the week.

Are you bored yet?

Perhaps next week will offer greater inspiration. Or, maybe I’ll find some more energy once the kids have returned to school.

What was your week like?

We Have a Winner! (or two…)

 

Congratulations to Amber at strocel.com – you’ve won a copy of Tuesday’s With Morrie!

And since there were only two of you who commented, there’s something for mangochild (Living In A Local Zone) as well – The Five People You Meet In Heaven is another interesting read from Mitch Albom and it’s now yours!

Please email me at auntylexy (at) yahoo (dot) ca and let me know where you would like me to send your books!

Thanks for commenting, and enjoy!

The Year in Review – Pictorial

As the sun sets on another year, I thought it a good time to reflect on some of my favourite moments. And, while my family and friends played a wonderful role in many of these occasions, I’ve opted not to include any faces in the photographs. Just imagine chatting, laughing, groups of people standing behing the camera.

The other photos that aren’t included are the organized sport activities (I am a soccer mom, afterall) and school concerts – despite their absence, they remain some of my favourite “favourite moments”.

Enjoy…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Best wishes for a happy, healthy 2009!

Book Give-Away – Tuesdays With Morrie

 

 

 

 

 

I ‘ve had the chance to do a lot of reading over the holidays, and Tuesdays with Morrie was one of the books that I really enjoyed. It’s a short, beautiful and impactful story, and I’d like to give one of you the chance to have a copy of your own to read.

 

Here are a few of my favourite quotes from the book:

“The culture we have does not make people feel good about themselves. And you have to be strong enough to say if the culture doesn’t work, don’t buy it.” (p.42)

“So many people walk around with a meaningless life. They seem half-asleep, even when they’re busy doing things they think are important. This is because they’re chasing the wrong things. The way you get meaning into your life is to devote yourself to loving others, devote yourself to your community around you, and devote yourself to creating something that gives you purpose and meaning.” (p.43)

“In the beginning of life, when we were infants, we need others to survive, right? And at the end of life, when you get like me, you need others to survive, right? But here’s the secret: in between, we need others as well.” (p.157)

“Life is a series of pulls back and forth. You want to do one thing, but you are bound to do something else. Something hurts you, yet you know it shouldn’t. You take certain things for granted, even when you know you should never take anything for granted. A tension of opposites, like a pull on a rubber band. And most of us live somewhere in the middle.” (p.40)

I’ll do a random drawing and post the winning entry on January 1 – if you’d like to be included in the draw, let me know in the comments by December 31.

And, if you’re so inclined, feel free to share your thoughts on how the “tension of opposites” is at play in your life.

Looking forward to hearing from you and…Good Luck!