Foods and Fun

This was a week of large and small joys and few true disappointments. At the very least I am not still totally teed off about the road trip being cancelled, so I will take the good times, even if a few bad ones get thrown in the mix.

This week begins SEC football season and the beginning of football season houseguest. The first is due Friday afternoon, so I need to do some intense cleaning. This is not my strong suit. I could use Kim's Sissie right now!

Menu that was planned:

Chicken piccata over pasta, broccoli

Shrimp and grits, coleslaw

Korean beef over rice, Asian-ish salad

Big salad meal

Out to eat at Hot and Hot

We have a family reunion Saturday and most likely will just eat fruit  or tossed salad 

Grilled tuna steaks, tossed salad, croissants 

Joys and how close or not I followed the planned menu

Monday joy: I guess the joy was just getting the laundry done and reading, of course. Oh and did I mention the joy of air conditioning.

Monday dinner: I am trying to get out of the food rut we have been in.

Korean rice bowl, tossed salad

Tuesday joy: The day was slightly cooler, and it was actually pleasant outside Tuesday night.

Talked with Sluggy and had a lot of laughs. I know she is still recovering, but she sounds so much better than she did the last time I spoke with her! 

And another joy was getting the up-lights in front of the house installed. It makes a huge difference in the way our house looks at night. If I were a decent photographer I would post a picture, but I am not.

Tuesday dinner: Still trying to break out of our dinner rut. At least I made a different marinade this time.

Grilled tuna steaks, tossed salad, croissants

Wednesday joy: Someone told me to check out Bravo's  The Housewives Ultimate Vacation, so I did. They were in St Barths and now I know what we did wrong on our vacation. We did not dress to the  nines  have our makeup and hair done every night for dinner, while yelling and screaming at each other across the table. Instead we sat, talked, laughed and reminisced. 

Wednesday dinner: Our dinner was also one fi the days joys. We met 2 of our friends at Hot and Hot. Once again there was no yelling across the tables, just fun and laughter. I think I am very lucky to not be one of those TV famous housewives.

Tomato salad (me), grouper (TheHub) and we shared a slice of blueberry cream cake 

Thursday joy I was thrilled to go to my happy place to volunteer. Since I was supposed to be out of town most of August, we had not made plans for me to be there. As it turned out they had some free time Thursday and My Beloved Sister and I were thrilled to get to go.

Thursday dinner: I brought home a doggie bag left over from Wednesday's meal. The tomatoes needed to be used right away.

Huge salad

Friday joy: Other than running to Publix to get the bogo peanut butter, I was at home. Since I had a choice of housework or reading I naturally chose reading.

Friday dinner: Don't even believe when I went to Publix I only bought the peanut butter I specifically went to buy. I also found another sale item that meant I would not have to  really cook. To me, making a pot of rice and grating a bit of cabbage is not really cooking.

PF Chang frozen meal, rice, coleslaw

Saturday joy: Every year one of my cousins and his wife welcome the hoard to their home for a family reunion. For some reason we were not able to go last year, and it had been a couple since I had seen several of my cousins. Not only was seeing them fun, but the weather really did cooperate. We have had a few days of unseasonal really pleasant weather.  

After the reunion we stopped at a small produce stand and found some things we needed and some we just wanted.

Saturday dinner:  I knew we would not be hungry for dinner after eating such a big meal at the reunion lunch. Instead we met my cousin and her husband who live in San Antonio for drinks.

An adult beverage or two, shared flatbreads

Sunday joy: We started the day with church, came home for a less than stellar lunch, then started watching the golf tournament (or reading). It is entirely possible both sets of eyes closed during our activity of choice and a short nap followed. Sunday is the only day of the week I fall asleep during the day, but an afternoon nap seems mandatory for some reason. Of course we both "rest our eyes"  in the den. Somehow or another a nap in the bedroom would seem too self indulgent.

Sunday dinner: While at the produce stand Saturday we found something we both decided would be great for dinner, and the fact that it only had to be baked was a win in my book.

Tomato pie, mixed greens salad

Meals for the week, maybe

Shrimp and grits, coleslaw

Chicken piccata,  pasta, broccoli

Stuffed baked potato, tossed salad

Burgers, butterbean and corn salad

Ball game dinner (I will be here alone so popcorn maybe?)

Big Salad meal

Grilled pimento cheese sandwiches, coleslaw

Books read in August (I have a busy week so this might be it for the month)

The Skin Collector

Dark Archives

The Rose Code 

The Thirteenth Child

Hillbilly Elegy

Have a great week staying on plan, going off plan, or with no plan at all.

May all your weeds be wildflowers.

Anne