A Letter to Santa

Dear Santa and Deer,
I have been a good boy. I am a good boy. I play nicely. I listen to teachers. I don't run around. I pick up my toys. Please for Christmas will you bring me a new Lightning and a Mack truck? Thank you.
Love,
Joe
I will learn in the classroom.

Oh Great - Now It's November

I've been an absentee blogger. Every time I think I have a handle on things, I am so wrong. My health has been a little weird lately. I had a cold in early September and still have a fever. Weird. Have been investigated for a few things and now all I know is that I have an enlarged spleen and a hiatal hernia (eew). So, there will be more doctor's appointments in my future. Hate it.
We just returned for our annual Down South Odyssey. It was fab & exhausting!

• Day One: Dawn & Terry's place in Vinton, VA (need to upload photos from my phone). Finally met Dawn's husband. What a sweetheart! They made us feel so at home. We went to a nearby playground so Joe could let off a little steam and then went out to a very nice Indian restaurant. Afterwards, we went to see the Mill Mountain Star. It was really amazing - but quite cold outside. In the morning, Terry made us a delicious breakfast. Gosh, we had a great visit.
• Day Two: Julia & Steve's place in Clover, SC (some photos on FlickR check them out). Finally met Julia's boyfriend, Steve. He seems like a terrific guy! The kids are wild about him and he and Julia were wonderful hosts to us. The whole gang of us went to a nearby Mexican restaurant for dinner and had a great meal. It was fun visiting with everyone - but our visit was too short!
• Days Three & Four: Long drive. In the evening, finally arrived at Dad & Suzanne's in Orlando, FL. Suzanne immediately took over spoiling Joe and it was so relaxing for me! The first night we went to Outback Steakhouse. I ordered a fish special and it was so yummy. I think it was flounder. The next night, Suzanne made a delicious dinner and I remarked to Matt that for the first time in 3 years I'd had the luxury of sitting completely through a meal. I really enjoyed seeing them both.
• Days Five, Six & Seven: In the early afternoon we arrived at Matt's folk's house in Summerfield, FL. Mom made some yummy chicken soup for dinner that night. When I woke the next morning, my temp. was 102.2 and I felt awful. Because I'd been running a fever for so long, I decided I'd better see a doc. Went to an urgent care facility and ended up with an abdominal/pelvic CT scan. Fun stuff. So, that was that day. Last day was Pop's 80th birthday. He's a powerhouse! Still plays 4 softball games/week. We took them out to dinner at Harry's and I recommend you try the food there if you're ever in Ocala.
• Day Eight: Drove up to Savannah, Ga and stopped by the Catholic Cemetery to pay respects to family, then onto Winnebow, NC to visit my Uncle Lee & Aunt Dottie. They have an amazingly beautiful home and were so welcoming to us.

Finally, we returned home. There are a few Joe Adventures from the journey, but I'll save those for another post. Everyone we visited seemed to be doing great, and all treated us like royalty. Maybe we should travel more often!

School Days, School Days

So, ten hours of preschool later...
We've been through a lot!
Day 1: Joe said he had fun. He didn't have much else to say, except that for a snack they had muffins, blueberries and apple juice.

Day 2: Went to pick him up and the teacher asked whether the Director had called me. Nope. Why? Well, he's having a little bit of trouble sitting still and listening, he's not staying in line. Then when we were leaving the building, an administrator said Joe was The Stickthrower and showed me the stick he threw in the lobby. Ugh. We brought the stick outside and put it on the ground. We had lots of talks. I felt like my child was the terror of the preschool. Okay, so we work on that from Thursday afternoon to Tuesday morning. Mind you, he's never been in a structured environment with more than two children before. Also, he turned 3 two weeks ago.

Day 3: Dropped him off and he picked his name out of a bunch of others written on tags on the table - yay! Went to pick him up and was told that Joseph may have behaved slightly better, but at the end of the day he was hitting children on the playground - yikes. Later that day, Joe mentioned that "my teacher put me in the closet, then she rescued me". WHAT?! I remained calm and asked him more questions about it, but he wasn't very forthcoming. The next morning I telephoned the Director. She assured me the teachers had done no such thing, said she'd talk to them and call me back. Long story short, she called me and said that a teacher had taken him along into the supply closet with her. Umm, okay. Still not sure why he said "she rescued me".

Day 4 (today): Thank God! Joe had a MUCH better day today. He was a much better listener and was more in control. I'm so relieved. Only a single positive day, but after the last 3, one is enough for me. If things remain positive, I will keep Joe there. He really loves to go to school.

Life With a THREE Year Old

This picture sums up life with a three year old boy. We try to remain steady and calm while he's always kicking up his heels.

Gosh, so I haven't been blogging lately. What have we been up to?

Joseph celebrated his third birthday several times over the last few weeks. He went to Chuck E. Cheese's for the first time. That was chaotic, but he had tons of fun with Ron, MaryAnne, Natalie and Lizzy. Another day Grammy came over to celebrate. She brought Joe just what he asked for - a hook (plastic). Yep, as in "Captain Hook". That went great with one of the gifts we gave him - a sword (foam). Now he runs around with one in each hand shouting "HA!" as he lunges. On his actual birthday we went to Cabin John Park for fun and came home and enjoyed ice cream cake. He received lots of wonderful gifts from family and friends and has been loving every minute of being the center of attention.

Today was Joe's first day of preschool. He goes to Creative Tot Time twice each week. He ran right in and started playing with the children and toys. He didn't notice I left him there and didn't cry during the session. When I went to get him he said "Mommy, I was looking for you". I think he'll adjust just fine. They go outside to play every day unless it's raining or snowing. He told me today that they had muffins and apple juice and blueberries for a snack. The parents are required to provide a healthy snack for the class once a month or so. There are two teachers and 14 children in his class.

I've uploaded lots of new pictures to the FlickR album. They're mostly from Joe's day out at Cabin John. He's between haircuts, so looking a bit shabby. Maybe we'll get another crew cut in the next week or so. I hope to blog again soon. That's about it for life in our little Romasco World at the moment. Hope everyone is well.

Birthday Bashing the Bells

Yesterday - Cabin John Park - Joe's 3rd birthday.

I will try to post pictures or put them in the FlickR album in the coming days.

Summer Cousins

Savory Pie

A Slice of Savory Feta Pie

Monday I needed to use up the rest of my pie crust from last week when I made Chicken Pot Pie. Having all the ingredients on hand, I decided to once again make a family favorite, Savory Feta Pie, and take a picture of a slice for Mom. I have made small pies or turnovers as the recipe suggests, but find it easier and just as delicious to make one big pie. Mom suggested I add spinach, which I may do next time. If adding chopped spinach, be sure that it's very dry or the pie may become soggy. This pie tasted wonderful and we enjoyed a big Greek Salad too.

Part TWO

This is NOT a "look but don't touch" blog!!!

Please post any time! If you need an invite, email me and I'll be happy to send you an invitation. Share some recipes, tell us what you've been up to, post a picture, comment on something, tell us you stopped by, please participate.

The High Price of Obscurity

CHICKEN POT PIE

I have always loved the movies and I must admit I'm a bit of a celebrity gossip junkie. As a matter of fact, my conscience has just found it necessary to stop my subscription to People Magazine which was one of my only true indulgences. It's so expensive, and these days I can get my daily fix via Perez. A few too many upskirt shots for my taste, but he does seem to have all the buzz before many of the squeaky clean outlets i.e. Entertainment Tonight, etc. So, upon my subscription coming to an end I've been deluged with mail from People. They keep sending me these notices asking me to renew, and reminding me how much that would cost. It's easy for me to discard the notices, but what else in our budget can I trim? We aren't hurting yet, but who knows what's next? Gasoline is just ridiculously priced, but you knew that. Groceries are getting insane. Hard to believe we'll soon have to decide whether we should fill up the tank or buy more organic milk for Joe. Thank goodness we don't yet have to pay for cable or internet. I've been trying to cook more and have high aspirations of cooking every night, but I get exhausted watching Joe all day. He's "potty learning" now. That's the new politically correct version of Potty Training. Well, he's actually in the very early stages and I doubt he'll be wearing diapers to college, but if he doesn't get out of them soon we won't have any money to help him get there!
I've really been trying to use up any food in the house before buying more. Joe loves plain yogurt with a little vanilla, honey and my homemade granola sprinkled on it. I managed to make a Chicken Pot Pie the other night. Hey, stuff it with enough veggies and you've got a one dish meal - can't beat that! A few nights ago I made Ham and Potato Soup with some Easter ham I had frozen. Matt just came back from Sam's Club, a.k.a. Hell on Earth with $176 worth of groceries. It did not seem like an enormous amount of food, nothing that wouldn't fit in the refrigerator. I just spent about an hour making various marinades for chicken and flank steak so that we can freeze it and use our grill this summer. It looks like we will be eating a lot of salads and small amounts of meat in the near future, which is fine by me. I am so thankful that we are not struggling too much and hope that every one else is coping with the high price of obscurity at least as well as we are.

Joseph in Wonderland

First of all, no one voted. Secondly, it's only hair & will grow back. Lastly, we think it's cute -even if he looks a little bit like Curious George.
MaryAnne has been telling me about Dutch Wonderland for a couple of years. Yesterday was absolutely spectacular weather, so we decided to take Joe to the Kiddie Kingdom. He had an amazing time although he cried repeatedly throughout the day. The problem was that he was very upset each and every time his ride ended. He wanted more more more! Too bad so many of the rides were so brief. I guess that would suit many 2 yr. olds, but not Joe. He has an adventurous spirit and was not afraid to try anything. He climbed up a high spiral staircase in a tower and slid down all by himself. Over and over again. Then again. Then he cried because we tried to take him to a different activity. The he wanted to do that one over and over again and cried when we tried to take him somewhere else. Fortunately, by the end of the day he was so tuckered out that he didn't cry at all when we left the park. He slept like a rock last night. Who am I kidding? We ALL slept like rocks. Whew, to be two years old again...

Won't Sit Still

These are pictures Dan took on Mother's Day 2008. The ultra short wobbly bangs are a result of Joe's overzealous mom trying to save a few bucks, combined with an extremely active two year old. Dan did mention that he couldn't get any pictures of Joe until it was time to sit still in the highchair. Next haircut time it will either be Cartoon Cuts or a crew cut. Feel free to send in your votes.

Loafing Around

UNBAKED LOAVES

In the past, I've never been succesful with bread making. The loaves just never would rise for me in this drafty house. A couple of months ago I decided I just had to be able to make bread. I think it's the stubborn Scot in me (no offense relatives). I searched the internet for hints, tips and voodoo. After much trial and error I came up with this recipe. I use Red Star yeast in a jar and my heavy duty Kitchen Aid mixer with the dough hook to make it. If you like sweeter bread, increase the sugar. I found that I have no problem getting my bread to rise if I take a 9"x13" pan and place it in the bottom of the oven and then add about an inch of boiling water to it from a kettle. During the first rise I place the bowl on a shelf directly above the water pan and during the second rise I place the bread pans on a shelf directly above the water pan filled with an additional inch or two of boiling water. The steamy, cozy oven seems to be a happy environment for the dough. As you can see above, my bread actually rises now! When the loaves are fully risen, remove them from the oven and turn it on. Remember to remove the water pan before baking the bread!

Romasco World Bread

Ingredients:

2 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)

1/3 cup white sugar

1 1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1/4 cup vegetable oil

4 cups white bread flour

2 cups wheat bread flour

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, dissolve the sugar in warm water, and then stir in yeast. Allow to proof until yeast resembles a creamy foam.

2. Mix salt and oil into the yeast. Mix in flour one cup at a time, alternating between white and wheat. Knead dough until smooth. Place in a well oiled bowl, and turn dough to coat. Cover with a damp cloth. Allow to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

3. Punch dough down. Kneed for a few minutes, and divide in half (for best results use a scale). Shape into loaves, and place into two well oiled 9"x5" loaf pans. Allow to rise for 30 minutes, or until dough has risen 1 inch above pans.

4. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30 minutes.

I've Been Experimenting

Matt and I have really enjoyed some of the Indian food we've tried. I enjoy most of the mild stuff and Matt's up for anything. I decided to try making Chicken Makhani at home. It's one of my favorite dishes. I read through all of the reviews and decided to grind my own cashew nuts as a thickener and to make my own Garam Masala. It turned out very good and I can't wait to tweak it a bit and get it just right. I got the Garam Masala info. from ochef:

Garam Masala is the most aromatic and fragrant of all Indian spice blends. Used throughout North India in all types of dishes — from appetizers and soups to yogurt salad and main courses — this blend is indispensable to Moghul and North Indian cooking. It is widely available, but this homemade version is more fragrant and, of course, fresher.
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons cumin seeds

2 tablespoons coriander seeds

2 tablespoons cardamom seeds

2 tablespoons black peppercorns

1 (3-inch) stick cinnamon, broken up

1 teaspoon whole cloves

1 teaspoon grated nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon saffron (optional)
Instructions:
Put the cumin, coriander, cardamom, peppercorns, cinnamon, and cloves in a dry heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Toast the spices, stirring occasionally, until they turn several shades darker and give off a sweet smoky aroma, about 10 minutes. Do not raise the heat to quicken the process, or the spices will brown prematurely, leaving the insides undercooked. Cool completely.
Working in batches if necessary, transfer the mixture to a spice mill or coffee grinder and grind to a powder. Stir in the nutmeg and saffron. Use immediately or store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place.
Garam Masala keeps for 3 months.
Yield: Makes about 1/2 cup

Wednesday Night with the Dead

my all access pass

Bill Kirchen and Mark Karan
view of the gig-ready stage

Matt and Mark Karan

A few months ago Matt received an email from Mark Karan saying he'd read a lot of glowing reviews of Matt's amps and would love to hear one. Mark is a guitarist currently touring with Grateful Dead founder Bob Weir's band Ratdog. He also has played with lots of other musicians. Check out his website, linked by his name above. Anyway, Mark told Matt that Ratdog were coming to Maryland on tour in the Spring and when they did, he'd love to check out one of Matt's amps.

Last night Ratdog played their 800th show at the Rams Head in Baltimore. At Mark Karan's invitation, Matt and I went down there and got to meet him. He LOVED the amp. He really showered Matt with compliments. We received "working" passes and could access anything we wanted. We got to go backstage and were offered food and drinks and we got to see the dressing room. It was fun to hang out with Mark and meet his publicity manager and the bass player Robin. Later, local legend Bill Kirchen stopped by to make a guest appearance and we got to chat with him for awhile. Because it was a Wednesday night, we were only able to stay for the beginning of the show. Even still, it was a fun night out, especially since Mark was so nice and everything was gratis. MaryAnne was a lifesaver taking care of Joe for us.

Easter 2008

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter holiday. We had a nice time here in Gaithersburg. Joe was expecting the Easter Mouse to come (I have no idea), but the Bunny came instead. I don't think he was too disappointed. He hunted plastic eggs indoors because we had some snow on Saturday and the ground was soggy. The above photo shows him after a long morning and afternoon filled with tons of candy and no nap. Luckily he did take a little break and Matt and I had a chance to visit a bit with Uncle Roger and Mom. Rog brought the Bee Movie for Joe and a beautiful Easter Lily for me. Mom brought Joe a 2nd Easter basket filled with goodies including the 101 Dalmatians movie. He is in danger of being spoiled beyond oblivion. Joe doesn't understand religion yet, but he did say the traditional mealtime prayer for us. It was very sweet. Dinner was good. We had a Honeybaked ham, red rice, spinach & strawberry salad, deviled eggs and Swiss asparagus quiche. I think everyone enjoyed dinner. Mom made a delicious chocolate macadamia pie. We missed celebrating with most of the family and hope we'll all be together soon. Hopefully I'll be able to post again before Joe has reached the age of majority.

Movie Day - Take III

So silly today!

Movie Day - Take II

Seems to be working... maybe not.

Movie Day

I cannot get this boy to sit still for a minute! Here are some mini-movies taken this morning. He's so excited because the viewfinder screen is pointed towards him and he can see himself in it. This causes him to rush towards the camera and try to grab it. He just runs around the room like a wild man if he can't see the picture (and sometimes if he can), so I turn it his way in order to capture him for a moment. By the way, it is a cold, snowy day here in Maryland. So far, I guess we have about 3" of snow outside.
Grrr - I'm currently unable to upload these. Will try again later.

Hey Ho the Mistletoe!

Have a holly jolly Christmas, it's the best time of the year!

I know, I've really been slacking on blog entries. It's a wonder you're here checking to see whether I've posted.

Yes, I'm posting and this qualifies as a tiny Christmas miracle. We are officially Santa's Helpers now, and it's a lot of work! Joe is now a full-fledged little boy. He has announced that he wants a *wishbox* from Santa and he hopes it will contain a drum or a pirate ship. I think Santa has him covered. The Flickr album contains the latest pictures of our boy.

Ahoy Mateys!

The Dread Pirate Joseph in his Halloween finery

Another Halloween gone by. Joe was a dreadful pirate and enjoyed the company of two fine lassies throughout the evening's plundering. The wee lass Natalie was a splendid ghost, and wee Lizzy a spritely Tinkerbell. The neighborhood was eerily quiet, but the children braved the night air and forged their way from door to door in search of treats. They came away with a fair booty, but alas most of the neighbors seemed to be in hiding last night. The children have not given up hope, and asked me to make sure everyone is prepared for next year's question: do ye have a sweet treat for us, or will it be a trick for ye? Luckily, the children were feeling benevolent last night and not a single trick was played. We hope you had a sweet Halloween and that you kept clear of all scallywags and ne'er do wells.

You Can't Go Home Again?

All of these reunions, along with rummaging through my grandmother's recipes, have left me feeling quite nostalgic.

When I was a child I spent most of my summers (well, at least a few weeks) in Muskogee, Oklahoma. That's where Grandma and Vic lived. Vic was my grandfather. I guess he thought he was too hip to be called grandpa, grandfather, or anything old sounding. So, he was Vic.

I loved the time I spent in Oklahoma. I was Grandma and Vic's first grandchild, and their only grandchild for over ten years. This means I was spoiled. I was not a brat about it, but spoiled is about the best word I can come up with to describe my experience of the many wonderful things I got to have, do, and see when I visited my grandparents.

They had a swimming pool built in their yard when I was very young. It was for me. All year long the pool sat empty except for the occasional swim by Vic after golfing, or maybe the kid who cut the grass would get to take a dip. When I stayed in Oklahoma I wanted to swim from the moment I woke up to the moment I went to sleep.

One year my grandfather took me to visit a friend of his, "M.C.". MC had a farm and I spent the night there. His daughters showed me all around and took me horseback riding. I loved seeing the animals and the gardens/crops. I had such a wonderful time in a home so very different from what I was used to. Shortly after, Vic had MC bring over some bunnies for me. I can't remember how many there were. I'd say at least 1/2 dozen. They released them in the backyard, which was fenced in. I saved carrots and radishes from my dinner salads to feed them. I couldn't believe I had my very own bunnies. Of course, they eventually tunnelled out of the yard one by one until they were all gone. I think the final rabbits left after I did.

Vic also took me to meet many other interesting people. He was very involved in Native American culture and had been Superintendent of Indian Schools for the entire U.S. We always visited the 5 Civilized Tribes Museum and Honor Heights Park (famed for the annual Azalea Festival). He took me arrowhead hunting. At the time I didn't know, but he planted some from his collection for me to find. I thought that was so much fun. Once he took me to see the Goodyear Blimp which had landed in a nearby field.

My great-grandmother was living until I was about 12 years old, so we'd visit her too. At first in her home, then in a nursing home. One time my father visited her in the nursing home and played his guitar for her. She really got a kick out of that. One time she asked whether we'd had any trouble with the Indians on our way to see her. She lived in Oklahoma her whole life.

Mostly things were country. My grandparents lived in a fairly new suburb, but just across the street was farmland. I could always smell the honeysuckles in the air. Imagine my surprise when I looked up good old Muskogee on Google today and found this crazy tourist trap!

So, I cannot go "home" again. Not only is Muskogee not how it used to be, but home is the people. I miss Great-grandmother, Grandma and Vic.