What I think

The ghoulash of last week was deemed just ok. Not one I would make again. This week I was going to use the Fix it and Forget It cook book, but there are very few vegetarian recipes and that's what I need this week. I am making Black Bean and Corn soup from it tho. I think it will be more like a chili then a soup. I'll have to get back to this book next week. On the school front, we have just been reviewing. Using Khan Academy for Math.

The coffee roast turned out well. Even roasted asparagus to go with it. Today it is hungarian goulash, because this is either not the recipe I was going to make or I just didn't read the entire recipe, I have had to alter the recipe. It calls for canned diced tomato with the juice. I didn't buy them so I am using fresh cherry tomato and added a little water. So 2 new recipes this week. Will try for 3 and a different cook book next week.

At the beginning of the year I intended to start cooking more and using all the cookbooks I have, I was going to pick 3 recipes to try and if they worked I would keep the book if not I would get rid of it. Well I didn't do that so I decided I would start in June. Half year resolutions. And that didn't work so..I picked up the Taste of Home Recipes across America. Not a good one to start with because there are so many recipes. I picked 2 recipes. One of which I can't remember and if it's the one I think it is I did not get all the ingredients for. Today we are having Coffee Beef Pot Roast. It was easy to put together so we will see how it tastes at the end of the day.

It has been almost a week since the phone call came that changed so much. When dad passed we knew it would come sooner than later. Tho for months I would see him everywhere. When mom passed it was so unexpected. It has thrown the earth off its axis. Its spinning but it can't center itself. The first days I was almost dizzy. Now I have no feeling at all. Numb and empty. I can not think of her or talk about her. I wish we had a tape of her voice. I do not want to sleep but I don't want to be awake. Time keeps passing and I keep moving but I don't know how or why,

Hanks 10th BD was yesterday. I did not have a good one. He said it was just a typical day. He had a melt down, I think, because he did not get the one thing he really wanted. He never asks for anything so this was important. His Vita accidentally got dropped in a toilet and has not worked since. He did not do it. The one thing he really wanted was a Vita game. I really think he was expecting to have gotten a new Vita (or his working) and the game. He does not know how to handle disappointment. It was hard for him.

Finally some nice weather to plant. Potato, broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage, Peas have started. It is still pretty raining but warming up so hopefully things will start growing.

I made orange muffins today. http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/orange-muffins-recipe.html # Hank says he'd eat them everyday. That never happens. The recipe says it makes 6 muffins. I made 18 of the regular sized muffins. The cupcake papers seemed a little oily when I took them out of the tins.

Still lots of snow on the ground supposed to warm up and rain. I have been knitting hats without much success. I broke the needles with the boyfriend hat on it and do not have another pair. I also started the sport wt. red beret hat, I had to rip it out because I had done the hem version and didn't think I would have enough yarn. Hank and I made bread using the traditional white bread recipe from Allrecipes. He turned out well and he liked it. He wouldnt knead the bread because he didnt want to get his hands sticky. He hasnt decided what he wants to make next.

The snow started yesterday afternoon. We probably have 4 or 5 inches by now. Still suppossed to snow tonight. Bill had today off for his BD and school was cancelled. Didn't do much. It is pretty but very cold. Hank won't go play in the snow because he doesn't want to wear shoes. He is such an odd kid. We are, as always, behind in school. He has many other important things to do. His vocab. is good for his age. And he is learning to do things on the computer so I suppose it is ok to take time off from actual school type education. He really does not want to go to public school. I have finished 3 books alread in Feb. No motivation to do much else. Only read the books because they were due at the lib. and could not be renewed. Now I want to make hats and gloves because it is so cold and I am sure we do not have enough.

I have been knitting back to back projects. I finish one thing and right away start another thing. Nothing is technically finished since ends aren't woven in and pictures aren't taken but knitting is done. Its been small things. Now its a scarf with the cobweb lace weight yarn that someone got from ebay, I really don't know what I am going to do with all that. I have been spinning again too. Still not getting enough yardage to do anything with but maybe some day. Hank will have his second cooking lesson today. We are gonna make raviolli. We tried it once but the pasta stuck together.

This year I will be knitting log cabin afghans. I started one and ripped it out because it was not laying flat.  Must have used the wrong weight of yarn. Now it has been re knit and seems to be working better. I am doing a blue and green one and one that is pinks and purples. All left over worsted weight yarn. It's gonna take awhile. And I am going to knit hats and other small things. Started and Irish Hiking Hat. Tom. we will start school again. We have had a long break, maybe too long. A few days of review will be helpful. He wants to learn to cook and paint and make video games. He is not thrilled to learn he still has to do math and reading.

2013 was an ordinary year and that is good. Let's hope 2014 is ordinary too.