Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Show and Tell


Emily's amazing school invited us to a "Show and Tell" to see what she has learned so far this year....




Writing and reading.






How to take care of our bodies. ( "Mommy, did you know apple juice has 26 sugar cubes in it?"  "Mommy, these cookies are in the small part of the pyramid.")




Germs.




Classroom routines.



She is getting so big....


Saturday, October 12, 2013

Obsessed with Smitten Kitchen

Most telephone calls home consist of breads, meats, vegetables, and cookies.  Instead of "How was the wedding shower?" my grandmother will ask "What food did they serve?"  Conversations with Jenny begin, "What cookies did you make this week?"  My mother, at my request,  described in detail the menu for dinner with my brother's future in-laws tonight.  She told me to call tomorrow to tell her if the yeast in my pumpkin-cinnamon rolls worked correctly.  So in that vain...

Saturday,  Peanut butter cookies.  Loved them.  We ate the entire batch.  I may have to start marathon training again.




Sunday,  Meatball sliders.  My harshest food critics, Emily and Owen, ate every bite.    I conferred with both Grandma and Anne on the slow rising of the rolls - a 100 degree oven did the trick.  The kids insist on Halloween plates and napkins.




Monday,  Pumpkin muffins.  Kelly, this recipe is a close second to yours, which I still have in your writing on a small index card.  I actually switched the flour once for ground flax seed and whole wheat.  I insisted the healthy ingredients reinvented them from a dessert to a breakfast.  The Grinch I married ruled against it, "The chocolate chips negate any nutrition."



Tuesday, Roast chicken with dijon sauce and biscuits.  I brined the chicken for 24 hrs for a noticeable increase in tenderness.  The sauce - blah.


Wednesday,  Moules a la mariniere and pommes frites.  After cleaning up Dave asked, "Now what's for dinner?"  Definitely not filling enough.



Thursday,  Apple mosaic tart with salted carmel.  I will never make this dish again.  While it cooked, Owen I completed his monster truck.  I am still impressed with the detail in these Lego kits.  I considering the Haunted Mansion for our next project - well if Congress passes a spending bill.





Friday, Frico grilled cheese and tomato soup.  Perfect for a rainy 40 degree Friday night with a glass of red wine and the "Croods" playing in the background.


And a quick cookie (failure) Oatmeal, chocolate chip and pecan cookies: Unable to find pecans, I used walnuts from Trader Joes.  Not such a great idea.   Let's just say, my entire building enjoyed hot cookies, but Dave and the kids just ate ice cream.


Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Portugal Final Day

In pictures:









Portugal Three More Days

Sunday night ended and so did our access to hot water.  Monday morning - with no hot water and continuing rain in Faro - we returned to Salema hoping for a better forecast.  Luckily, 90 min made a difference.  We returned in the evening unable to face Owen's reaction to a cold shower.  Yes, I am afraid of my four year old.  The Glancalo, apartment owner, promised to fix the issue at 7:00 so we googled pizza and headed downtown.  We found La Pizza in a dark run-down alley.



The authentic pizza reminiscent of Italy truly made my night.  We learned this joint was the first pizza place to open in Portugal.  The waiter folded napkins at the table next to us and explained the election results from the day before.   He asked how much we paid to rent the apartment for a week and declared "to expensive."  We agreed.




(Glancalo restored the hot water.  The kids showered and went to bed.  Dave got in, washed his hair, started rinsing it and...freezing cold water.  It was now 10:30.  Glancalo, who had just returned to his house, drove back out, pushed a button, and the heat returned.  We discovered the next day hot water would work for three minute increments.  To take a hot shower, the person showering needed to turn the water off every three minutes while the other stood by the heater to turn it back on.)


We spent our last night exploring Tavira - especially Pasteleria Ramos - though Emily preferred an ice cream bar.


We hung out in the park.


Emily practiced for her American Idol audition.  (Can we all say Aunt Jenny?)


Owen watched.


Yes, this person is real.






As we walked back to the car after a filling meal, Owen pointed out the tiles we saw on many of the buildings.  I guess they are absorbing something.