Sunday, August 15, 2010

Kitchen compression

My goodness I'm tired! Deservedly so, but tired nonetheless. Friday Matt was supposed to have a golf tournament with his work so he was only booked for a short day and then was supposed to golf in the afternoon and I was supposed to join him in the evening for dinner. Well, at around noon Matt called me to say that due to crappy weather the tournament was canceled and he asked if I would instead like to go to Edmonton for the night! His sister had asked if we could go up to help them Reno a bathroom and initially we had said no because of Matt's work thing but we felt bad about not being able to help. Well, by 5:00 we were in town and started helping. Well, Matt did at least. I sat around and talked with my sister-in-law which was just as rewarding. At 7:30 we went for dinner at OPM again. That place is awesome. This time we had the Mongolian beef, the sweet and sour chicken, a yellow curry prawn bowl, a coconut curry chicken bowl and Ginger beef. The Mongolian beef was still my favorite but the rest were all fantastic. After dinner there was little time left for anything but bed. Unfortunately, sleep did not come too easily for me. A car alarm went off 4 times throughout the night, someone lit of fire crackers, people kept talking in the alley and eventually, after probably only 3 hours of sleep, I got up at 5:30. I made myself some coffee and read a magazine I had brought until people started getting up around 7. Then I made everyone breakfast and Matt and I zipped off the the Old Strathcona farmers market. We got there just before it opened at 8 and were able to get an awesome parking spot, there were no crowds and all the best product was still there! We got some snow peas, golden plums, cherries, cheese bagels, creamed honey and a zucchini the size of my arm (which only cost a dollar!). We picked up Timmy's for everyone on our way home and were back by 8:30. Matt hadn't eaten yet so I whipped up some breakfast for him and Gabe and then the boys went to pick up some supplies for the Reno. My sister in law was working so I was home alone with Gabe and the dogs and I decided that I wanted to contribute to the cause. The Reno was going on because my sister in law and her husband were moving upstairs in their house after having lived in the basement for a year. The upstairs was a bit of a mess when they moved up and some things had been left uncleaned for a long while. So, I finished up the breakfast dishes and set out to clean the things that no one notices when they are done but everyone notices when they aren't done: light switch plates, baseboards, window sills, walls, etc. It felt good getting that taken care of for them. The boys got back from their supply run and set to work while I watched Gabe and finished reading my magazine. Matt and I had to be back for dinner with my parents so around 2:00 we set off to IKEA. We grabbed lunch there (I had the roast chicken and it was surprisingly good and Gabe had the macaroni and cheese and burned his mouth in spite of all my testing) and then did a quick run through the store. We found a large kitchen drawer organizer which was just what I needed, two side tables for ten bucks apiece, a potty for Gabe for my mom's house, a warm weather duvet for $15 and a French press coffee maker! They make such good coffee... Well, we got home with enough time for me to change the sheets and the comforter on the bed, to reorganize our kitchen (I compressed our knife drawer and our gadget drawer and made a drawer for trivets and coffee accessories!) before we went to dinner at my parents' place. After dinner my mom and I played a game of crib and then we had a bonfire while we drank coffee, reading trivial pursuit cards and watched the meteor shower. Today Matt and I were in infant care at the church and we've never had that many screaming babies at one time. Then Matt took me to Earl's for lunch because I've been craving their chili chicken and Gabe made such a fuss we actually had to pack our food up and go home. This afternoon I got in a much needed nap and then went out and weeded my front garden which had been left for far too long. Oh, and I made Matt and I some affogato. Then I made dinner while Matt moved tables around in our house. Once dinner was done I ran to the grocery store, made Matt his lunch for tomorrow, did a little more yard work and sorted through some papers. I'm feeling so tired from not getting enough sleep and being so busy. The sleep will get better but the busyness won't. This week I have some training for the cafe at church and then we've got to get ready for the camping trip this weekend. We've also decided to host a big backyard party the weekend after that so I've got to do some menu planning. I'm thinking signature cocktails, margarita mix watermelon slices, home made ice cream and assorted phyllo cups.
Well my baby finally fell asleep and it might be a good idea for me to follow suit!

Mrs. Vander Leek ;)

1 comment:

I would love to know what you think of my recipes, or even of my antics! Let me know!