So...whats for dinner?

Red, thinking about you and sending healing vibes. 

Eric, trying not to think about you! 

Susan, do take some pictures.  The mayor of Boston was interviewed on MSNBC yesterday.  He was stoic.  The lamb and polenta sounds delicious.  I should check into the availability of lamb from a farmer.  Rancher?  Lamb is not a popular meat here in south Louisiana.  Some supermarkets will not have any.  Mostly what is available is loin chops that are now close to $20 a lb, if American.  The NZ lamb is sold at Sam's and even at Fresh Market.  Shanks and leg roasts are in plastic wrap.  We prefer American although the NZ lamb we ate in NZ was very good.  It's an occasional treat for us.  Oh, ground lamb is sometimes available.  I have some in the freezer.

DH wants red beans so he will be cooking a pot of beans today.  First, he will have to go to W/D and buy a lb. of Camellia brand.  I have other beans but not kidney beans.  We'll probably have coleslaw.  And brown rice. 

Happy Mardi Gras!  The New Orleans tv stations will be showing the parades all day. 

Hello all - have been busy, but wanted to check in!  Spent the weekend in Miami at the boat show and seeing DD.  We didn't go out and about too much in the evening - but ran around the show and Lincoln Road.  For some reason all I ate was cheeseburgers - tried Shake Shack for the first time for lunch on Valentine's Day and got BOGO shakes - chocolate for DH and caramel for me - very yummy, but very naughty!  We went up the coast to check on the condo of our friend for whom DH is the executor - dusted and did the floors - cleaned all the glass surfaces and replaced the air fresheners.  All was well - have fingers crossed that the most recent showing will yield a buyer as this is someone who already lives in the country club so the fees would not be a shock for them and they want to downsize from a villa - same thing our friend did.

lacey - hope you and DH are hanging in!

red - hope the surgery was a success and you are getting by.

carole - great pix!

To all in the frozen north - be careful and stay warm!

Tonight I am doing a bacon wrapped pork tenderloin - pork squared, lol!  Will have sweet potatoes and broccoli with it.

Carolyn -- love the pictures! You and Monte look quite festive!

Some of the larger Wal-marts in my area carry American lamb. It's expensive, but not quite $20 a pound expensive. They had a butterflied leg that weighed about a pound and a half for $17. I got ground lamb for $6.50ish a pound. It's about the only place I can find lamb except for Global Foods (theirs is NZ). Haven't heard from my lamb guy. By now his lambs are getting a little long in the tooth and into mutton territory. Not interested in that.

Tonight is grilled smoked pork chops, roasted asparagus and a baked sweet potato. I'm taking a cue from you Carole and using the ras al hanout. Love that spice blend.

It pained me, but I sprang for some Rao's arrabiata sauce. If I like it, I'll try the recipe from their website next time. I would have gotten the puttanesca but the only way DH will eat an olive is if it's drowned in a bloody mary. Tomorrow is pasta making day. The high is supposed to be 7 degrees and the low -7. Not going anywhere tomorrow. Brrrrr!

Good picture, Nance!  Yes, the beads do get heavy.  We keep dumping ours into the collection bags.

I did exaggerate a bit on the price of the loin chops.  Saw some in W/D today for $13.99 a lb.  Three packages and that was it for lamb.  There was quite a bit of veal, which is pricey, too.  I went on line today looking for lamb and found a farm in Indiana with a web site and some fairly "reasonable" prices.  The sheep are all pasture raised on grass but there is a period before processing that the lambs are fed grain.  I called the number and got a recording.  Left a message asking about the method of packaging.  Shipping is free on orders $75 or over.  I might take a chance on an order.  I like the idea of getting other cuts of lamb besides just loin chops, even though those are wonderful.  

It also might be a good idea to go to the farmers' mkt. on a Saturday morning and talk to the people selling range chickens and grass-fed beef.  They might know about a sheep farmer.   

Carol, you crazy hippies, you. I hope that you get home without being arrested.

I have a quick question.. I bought "previously frozen cod " from Stop and Shop 2 days ago. This is the 3d day that it has been in my refrigerator. Can I still make it? Still getting used to making fish.

I apologize for not reading all the posts, I have been working.

I froze the rest of the minestrone just now. There was so much.

I have milk, frozen corn, and the cod, but no potatoes, so I think that I could do something with that? Oh and spinach. But the rest of the green beans went bad. ?

Hazel the Robot is vacuuming and still cracks me up and making the place look great. Thanks Hazel!

OK, I will try lol. There are words that I don't understand. I can't sew or cook, It makes me feel like my brain might implode, but I do really like food and clothes, and reading about them. We'll see what happens. Maybe I will get some red potatoes and make some awful soup that nobody but me would eat.

Thank you

More snow tomorrow. Lets make snow with maple syrup! I can do that.

So much fun checking in and seeing your pix, Carole and Nance. Sweet!

Red, hope your post op is going well. You should come here...we could have a post op party!

To sum up my current life experience, let's just say, I would not be a good candidate for "full time caretaker of a relatively non-ambulatory person (getting to use the crutches more, finally) with lots of requests that sometimes come across too much as demands". With a little bit of micro management that I do not require, thrown in. Guess that is pretty common, given patient anxiety. The hard part is the constancy...always when I have thought I completed all that was needed and could perhaps tend to myself...another need. Very funny to hear everyone I know advising to be sure to pay attention to self-care. Clearly not gonna happen here! Not even enough time to make a smoothie! But I did get into the shower yesterday...yay clean hair...especially since friends of DH (guys, of course) just drop in unannounced and I look (and feel) like the wreck of the Hesperus (?). At least now I have made some banana bread to offer visitors.

Forget about my gym regimen. Whine.... My exercise is all about shoveling. My shoulders do not even hurt afterwards anymore! That part is good...and all that 15 degree fresh air! It actually has not bothered me much at all.

Sadly, I have managed to develop a sore throat and headache (never should have spent so many hours in that first ER given what my role was to become), making all the necessary tasks that much more challenging. Tylenol is my friend. Hopefully this bug will resolve without moving through my body...no time for that!

Yesterday, while it still snowed, I was able to get out while DH slept and clear most of the last two days few extra inches on the walks and drive, and then chop away to carve out space in the frozen mounds in our driveway so that the VNA staff would have a place to park today. Up to now, they have been parking in my neighbor's driveway....but they are home from FL now and hanging out the bedroom windows trying to blow snow off their garage roof with a leaf blower. Creativity all around!

Oops, DH is off his phone meeting....needs lunch.....tuna sand, packaged soup, chips....bad!

For dinners, we've been eating leftovers from Sweet Basil and that pasta/chicken/rabe casserole I made on the weekend. along with some good salads. I have to say that some of what is challenging for me is producing all of the meals that DH eats...he is a much more "regular" eater than I and usually takes care of his own breakfast and often lunch so it feels like I have toddler's schedule on my hands....constantly making meals, cleaning up, and back to planning/making more meals... when not taking care of outside house management, laundry, calls to pharmacies, docs, VNA, note taking when the VNA therapists are here, etc. etc. And much as I do not feel like being a mindful food planner at this point, I should be making his meals small and healthy since he is going to gain weight otherwise due to his inactivity. Oy! Just learned that he is less concerned than I.....okay!

So, leftovers all gone...and I will figure something out for tonight. Was going to make some chicken orzo soup yesterday, and could not find the chicken....it was still in the trunk of my car overnight (in a plastic bag when all the other groceries were packed in paper bags as I'd requested). Found it at the end of shoveling/carving. That chicken was so frozen, it will take forever to thaw! So I'll figure something out....

I think your NH home looks lovely, Joyce! It helps to have more land to accommodate all the accumulation...and I think we may have received more snow than you so far....about 97" now. But I agree with you about getting the snow off the roof given the current forecast.

More snow forecasted for thru the week, and possibly some rain....yikes we are all in such trouble when that happens! Over 70 roof collapses already. Our house only has two window frame leaks so far....

DS2 returned home from Chicago on Monday night to discover his top floor condo full of ceiling leaks. He was able to contract with and join some roofer guys for a small fortune to clear the snow and patch at least one failing area. Now he is worried about contributing to flooding to his lower level neighbor's basement when it melts on the ground. There was no option for removal other than to toss it in the backyard....or the street....they'd be in jail or dead!! Of course DS2 is not thrilled about poor Chicago girl (and pooch) arriving here next Wed to live, given all this mess. So we issued platitudes about it being a strong test of their relationship. I should hardly be the one to issue that platitude right now! Ha!

Well, I need to get a couple of more things done before the PT lady gets here...hope she fits in to the spot I carved in driveway. ;/ I sort of do like such challenges and problem solving.....just not all at once!! Enjoyed this escape! Thanks for listening to my caretaker vent...so many of you are much better than I at this. I think I went over the edge yesterday when the home health aide guy came to help DH with the stairs and shower, and managed to pee all over the toilet he used before leaving. That could send me into a total OCD event about now!! But I cleaned it up...and just have to decide if I can help do the shower mechanics for DH and not have to clean up after a sloppy stranger! Good question for the PT this afternoon.

Susan, we really should do something creative with all this available snow! Lamb with frosted truffles?

Pix areof driveway (obviously) and view from our first floor family room window...

Notice lovely almost clear roof over family room...had been three feet with four feet drifts. Now it feels pretty safe after roof guy shoveled it, then most recent snow installment. Ice dams may really get us though....

Lacey - it may sound selfish - but my recommendation is to shovel when he's awake and take your shower and maybe even read a book or nap when he's asleep. Get him settled and then head outside w/cell phone - that he's not to call unless it's a dire emergency - like a heart attack or a punctured artery. You really MUST take care of yourself, particularly with sore throat. Been there...tried to do that...did not get the award for taking care of myself as caregiver. It's been my experience that men aren't very good patients when they're sick. Maybe a correlation to bossing people around at work? I understand about cleaning up after the aide, but do you really want to take on another major task with DH? Let us know what the PT says.

Bedo - I don't see you you can dump the bucket either. Maybe a child's swimming pool? But I bet that would be hard to find up there right now.

PT just left....we all went through the shower entry exit drill and I think I will be better mentally for not having that odd health aide man in our house. Lots of gentle PT exercises will keep Dh busy, now, seo I can get to other things. I'm sure there will be plenty of other things to do like today soent two hours chipping away the frozen waterfalls that formed in two of our upstairs windows. Ag least it isndone, and I left towels and sponges in the frames, tomhopefully alleviate some of the flooding when the temp rises. Sorry for all the typos again!!!!

I anticipate using lobster pots if needed. Ds2 did that yesterday for his ceiling leaks. Unpleasant as your landlord is Bedo, he is right. Most people I know are busy catching water in very large pots. This is truly an unprecedented time of weather and building crisis! Good idea about the kiddie swimming pool!

The flAkes have just started again. Hope it stays cold.

Just had a spoonful of peanut butter (my throat said 'ouch' but my body loved the protein) for the first food I've had today....stupid....and never got to the chicken cooking for dinner. Will check to see if it is thawed enough and maybe put it in oven....or maybe pizza. DH will for sure NOT forget about dinner like I might. LOL! It may be easier to put chicken in iven than to drive to the pizza place. I am appreciating all those things that DH typically does. And one of things that isntirong isnthat I get to do "creative" AND "maintenance" now whereas we usually have those roles split! Nance, there are NOO kids looking to shovel...which totally amazes me. My kids always did it in our neighborhood. Times have changed. At this point I have an intense relationship with three different shovels, and I have come to love their versatility!

Spoiler alert Eric......It does amaze me how the personalities of men can change when they are dependent due to illness. My DH is what everyone thinks of as a "mench".....a very sweet, non-critical type guy. But it is probably his anxiety about not being in control that leaves him micromanaging his compulsively competent wife. We had "the talk" about that last evening, after I got some aggression out shoveling, and he is trying really hard to be more appreciative of how I am working hard for him and giving up just about everything else that I enjoy to be at his service. Fortunately, he will not be this dependent for too long. We will get through it! Interestingly, he manages to complete all the phone meetings that he had on his schedule for this week, so in some ways, his life has not changed....but I'm sure he does not feel that way....

Off to check the chicken......

Forgot to say that Minus's idea about poaching the fish is a good one.  Keeps it from spoiling and can be eaten in a salad later if not eaten immediately after cooking. 

Lacey, Oh do I feel for you! Have I mentioned that you need to call in your 30 years of favors from your network? He has friends too. Can't they be "scheduled" to come for a few hours to hang with him to give you a break? Can you create a food schedule, and that is when you will bring him food, and set up a cooler with drinks next to his chair so he can find his own drinks? [Isn't that a funny idea. A cooler in this weather inside when our houses are groaning from ice drams?]

I went out today and it is a mess out there! We now have four places that water is dripping into the house. Mr 02143 did remove ice from the basement access roof today [only one story] and that leak seems to have slowed. Now the flat room off the second floor is acting up. And the third floor roof is a total nightmare. Nothing we can do about those two dams though. Way too high.

Mr 02143 did get to Costco today and brought home a lovely tuna steak. Though the grill is unshoveled, I cooked this inside. 2 minutes per side on a hot grill pan. Served with roasted mini potatoes and roasted green beans. Nice change from all this lamb we have been eating. Made some pumpernickel bread yesterday and it is like a brick. Truly traditional. If you like pumpernickel, this bread is fabulous! I need some smoked fish to have a wonderful Finish sandwich.

Love poached fish, and it is a great way to use previously frozen fish. And the liquid that you poach the fish in become your fish fumée! [which is just a fancy word for fish stock.] Olive oil poached fish is also very interesting though I have only made this a few times. The cost of the olive oil seems too high.

The leftover tuna will turn into a Niçoise Salad.

*susan*

Okay.... my kitchen ganglette.... what should I make for Lacey? you all know what she eats. You know what I make. Where is the overlap? And where is the overlap that can be re-heated later? [And, the kale divide looms large!]

What I have come up with is... make some chicken stock with a whole chicken. This will then be turned into Pasta e Fagioli and Chicken Vegetable Soup [She can add kale to both.]. I would deliver with the pasta separate so it doesn't soak up all the juices. The chicken then could be turned into chicken salad, delivered with some bread to make a sandwich. I would then pack up some prepared veggies that she could top the sandwich, or add to the mix. We all like different things in chicken salad. If there is decent salmon at the market, salmon burger ready to cook with pita and tartar sauce.

The shortcoming in my life is, I don't have infinite time, but I really want to help Lacey out. Thoughts?

*susan*

oh, and the Red Lentil soup! Very healthy!

Susan, I will take all of the above. Sounds perfect.

Bedo, you crack me up. Of course the cats understand English.