Turkey, Cramps, Painting, Butter Chicken…

These past weeks, since I have my lovely space, I have found that I have not been writing as much.  Not because of any reason then time!!!  I have been nose deep in getting all the things done for my projects… which has required lots of running around, phone calls and note taking.  So… I will be glad once the bathroom #1 is complete.  (of course there is bathroom #2 but I am really hoping to cover that with one fundraiser).

Speaking of projects, did you know it would cost $4500 to get my friend, Cesar, the Indian ellie to the dinner?  Wow… that is more than we may make!!!  $3500 to get a Bengal Tiger to the dinner… no kids though, as they are smaller then the cat… so guess they may  be mistaken for a meal!  ðŸ™‚  Oh well, I can dream.

I was going to backtrack a bit… to Thanksgiving Dinner… I had to tell you about my turkey.  It was really good.  I even ate some of it!  Yes, I did brine it.  I took bits of advice from everyone… the whole brown sugar, sea salt, lots of cold water, a cooler and added orange rinds and lemon rinds.  It was GOOD!  Before I baked it, it stuffed it with wedges of oranges and lemons, onions and garlic.  I baked at 400 for an hour, sealed and then at 325 till done.  It was an 18-20 pound bird and was cooked relatively fast.

I made cranberry stuff from scratch (which I really liked, even though I don’t like cranberries) but my brother-in-law still looked for the can of jelly gunk.  Anyway, my point is that brining the turkey is really worth the effort.  Even Sanj, my sweet  husband, who was mocking me the whole time, saying, “White meat is going to taste like nothing… no matter what you do.”  Well, even he had to admit that there was a difference.

I have learned that I love to cook for others.   I love to try out new recipes.  I enjoy the process of cooking.  It is the everyday cooking… that drudgery of what today… what is healthy, low fat, if possible and will taste delish with the least amount of work, since we are often rushing off to something.

I realized that if I was a stay at home literally kind of mom, it would put a whole different spin on things.  I realized that any one can be a good cook and be the next Julia Child if they cooked with butter in everything!

I am going to learn to master butter chicken.  This is my next project.  I want it to be authentic.  Mouthwatering.  Everyone’s version of butter chicken is a little different.  Sanj and I had butter chicken from this little hole in the wall place in Scarborough, when we were first married.  It was SO GOOD!  To us, that is what we compare all butter chicken too yet have not tasted that  which makes us say… “aw!”

I am really crampy today.  That makes me miserable.  Tomorrow is going to be a crazy day…first because cramps on day 2-3 are really bad.  Not to mention that it is a full day… ie… spaghetti lunch day (I have only one person helping so far),  Sanj is off to sunny CA for a “conference” and yes I am jealous… because as much as he complains about this… the classes etc… he is taking his golf clubs so life can’t be that bad!  He is traveling alone, packing for one… so how hard can it be?  Then there is youth group… thank goodness for friends that can and will help with the driving.  

I have a procedure early November that will, God willing, get rid of my monthly annoyance.  So… I am not even scared about the needles, IV and going under as I am praying the outcome will be worth the other pains.  (Yes, I am a big scaredy cat.  I hate needles).

We are having our family room painted today.  I am so excited.  I can’t wait for it to be warm, inviting and just they way I see it in my head.  ðŸ™‚

I am at the end of A Fine Balance.  I was wrong… yes, it can get sadder.  Wow… I never take this long to finish a book.  I found the corruption, violence and dark side of a human’s soul very disturbing.  The sad thing is that I know that much of this is true and does happen.  I can’t image the feel of despair that must go through a person’s heart.

Can you image what Heaven will be like?  When I feel that despair and frustration, I can only turn my eyes upward.  I have to.  What happens when you do not have faith?  What happens to those that see scraps of food, left over by someone else, as a delicious dinner?  What happens to those that are so violated by others?  When they are disfigured on purpose… because they are “worth” more, they are noticed more and begging is a profitable living when they have had their eyes poked out of fingers chopped off… or…

I think of heaven for those that suffer so much.  Does it not make you wonder what God is waiting for?  Please dear Jesus, JUST COME!

I can’t wait for this book to end!  I am really looking forward to having my brother and family.  My kids are eagerly awaiting grandma’s cooking.  


We are having our family room painted!  Wahoo!  When we bought this house, one of the things we appreciated was that the colors in the house went with our stuff.  That was fine for the  last two years… but now I am wanting to make it mine!  I am really excited about it!  It will have a totally different feel to it.  I am using a red for our accent wall with a taupe/grey for the remainder walls.  I took down the plastic valances, which I really didn’t like to be replaced with rods and curtains.  ðŸ™‚  I will have a corner with a little area rug and a bunch of pillows on the floor for vegging out.  I love renovating.  We have a great painter who is good with the little things… and doesn’t skimp.  


Today I was watching her patch.  I am going to patch our room and then give it a touch up.  The painter that did it originally, did not do a good job, so I never felt it was finished.  Then as the family room gets finished, I am going to tackle the mud room.  It has a lower half that has that wooden panelling but not really.  Then my painter will do the top half and the cutting in.  I am hoping that I will be good at it and thus be able to save some money. Yet I am not holding my breath! lol


OK… I am off… Just felt like writing… 




This entry was posted in General. Bookmark the permalink.