Saturday, December 29, 2007

Tidbits: Clean studio and menus

Oh my gosh, am I tired!!!!!!! But the good news is the house looks really good!! More stuff done tonight:
*Most of the basement was swept and vacuumed (Dy, did I tell you how grateful I am for your suggestion to get a wet-dry shop vac? I love it!), with a focus on the studio and the stairwell.
*A fire has been laid in the wood stove for tomorrow, and both woodboxes are full.
*All the legos, knex, lincoln logs, and dollhouse stuff was cleaned off the toy table and put away.
*All the table surfaces in the studio have been cleared off, the supplies for all the homemade cards and gifts I didn't get around to making for Christmas have been put away, without any guilt attached.

Both kids are exhausted and tucked into bed- they have been helping me clean the house since Thursday! Such hard workers, really. There were some skirmishes, but overall, they have been helpful and obedient. They are both saving money for big things right now (Interlochen, and airfare for Speech and Debate National Comp.), so I will "pay" them each a hefty sum for all the hard work that was above and beyond their normal chores.

My big sister, her husband, and their son are coming over tomorrow at 3 pm. This is big, amazing news, and I am very excited. Their visit was the perfect excuse for this thorough deep cleaning (which I wanted to do, but really lacked the motivation for these last two months).

The menu for tomorrow afternoon's supper (thanks again Dy, for helping with this!) is as follows:
*Salmon poached in a thyme, basil,lemon, and wine concoction
*Roasted veggies (broccoli, golden beets, fennel bulb, cipoline onions, garlic, zucchini, etc.)
*Sundried tomato and garlic polenta rounds
*Homemade pesto-cream (mock)sauce
*Salad
*Rolls
*Ambrosia for dessert

I have everything done and ready, so I think I should even be able to get to church in the morning if I go to bed RIGHT NOW. Think good thoughts for our get-together tomorrow- my sister told me that if I tear up (over the loss of her youngest son in Nov.) that she wouldn't come over again, so wish me luck. My goal here is to be an open space for trust and communication for my sister and her family, and to start the healing process here.

TTFN,
LB

9 comments:

melissa said...

Sending prayers and well wishes your way. I'm sure that the house looks lovely, and I know that the menu sounds DE-LISH! Have a wonderful time!

Unknown said...

I'm thinking of you all, sending love energy, and hope it is going well. You are such a good cook, I know the dinner will be great. We went to Eugene over Christmas; it was chaotic spending it with a family of seven kids and a sick Grandma but it was good. Then went to Wilsonville and painted half of the house (the other half was done a few months ago). I have to work on New Years Eve and NY day so we are back in Newport. Hope to talk with you soon. Love LA

Dy said...

I am so glad you guys had a good visit! And I forgot to ask - did you like the ambrosia? The rest of the meal has had my mouth watering all day, just thinking about it!

It's two here, now, and I'm winding down. Another busy day tomorrow.

Glad you're lovin' the shop vac. I tell ya, once you go shop vac, you'll never go back! I *heart* Rigid. LOL.

Dy

Needleroozer said...

Dy,
Yes, we loved it! We used 4 different kinds of oranges, and I had a bag of red and green tree-shaped marshmallows in the cupboard that the youngers (my 27 yr old nephew included!) added to theirs. We had a crowd of coconut lovers, so used a whole bag. Yum!
LB

Anonymous said...

Yae! What a day I am sure you had. I've been thinking about calling you all morning, but work stuff keeps cutting in. Go figure? Looking forward to hearing how it went when you can share.

Say, where did you get your salmon? I need to cook for my Dad's birthday with the family next Sunday. He loves salmon and only gets it when his girls make it for him. Mother won't touch it.

...so me and my sister make it for him every birthday and Father's Day. Aren't we all just too funny some times?

Knowing all is divine and perfectly unfolding.

P

Needleroozer said...

LA and Melissa,
Thanks for the thoughts and prayers. They are what helped us all to feel relaxed and enjoy the visit! Thanks!

LA: I need to call you!

Pammie,
I got it at Thriftway- it was pricey (but our families are worth it!), but very good, and it poached up so very beautifully!
LB

Unknown said...

LB

I'm off on Wednesday. Talk with you then? LA

Needleroozer said...

LA,
It's a date. Love you, sis.
LB

Laney said...

Oh how funny! You look just like I pictured you. :-)

Thank-you for the kind comment you left for me at Donna's. You truly have no idea how it touched me and brought tears to my eyes.

A belated Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you.