Fun Night with Thirteen Year Olds!

It is the end of February school vacation week...which was elongated by Katy getting the stomach flu two days before school let out.  She recovered...but a couple of days later, I got hit with it.  Worst stomach illness of my entire life...I swear!  Knocked out of commission (and needing to be close to the master bathroom) for 3 days...it was awful.  Luckily, I was feeling better to get ready for Katy's birthday celebration, which took place yesterday into today.  She had decided to 'ring in her teen age years' with three of her closest friends, doing mani/pedis, hair (thanks to Courtney), makeup (thanks to Katy) and then enjoying a Chinese meal at her local favorite restaurant, Asian Grill and Sushi Bar.  She loves the crystal chandeliers, the color changing lights that surround the bar and the cool bubbling water feature.  After dinner, we returned home to enjoy Paula Dean's Red Velvet Cake (minus the pecans b/c Katy doesn't love nuts) and the girls had a very well behaved sleep-over in the 'big room.'  They were great...they had fun...and Katy was happy.  We'll be celebrating again on Tuesday, March 1st, Katy's actual birthday, with another dinner out, just us three.  Enjoy the photos!

 Enjoying their Pedis at the California Nails Salon

 Our hair stylist for the afternoon, Courtney Parsons, did a fabulous job with the girls' hair!

 Katy and Katie showing off the food at the Asia Grill and Sushi Bar (fried rice and mu shu)

Almost thirteen years old...our beautiful girl!

Sinusitis...UGG!

Sorry for the lack of posts over the past couple of weeks...it has taken that long for me to finally start feeling better.  Katy and I caught nasty head colds...she recovered after about a week, but mine ended up in my sinuses and I finally relented and went to the doctors on Thursday.  Armed with scripts for Zithromax and Flonase, and directions for a sudafed/claritin am cocktail, I started treating my infection and finally, two days later, feel better.  Thanks to Kirk, who sacrificed a day off last week to driving me to the docs...then took Katy to her evening activities!

I finally finished my 2010 album layouts and uploaded them for printing.  They arrived 2 business days later (I upload them to a place in Utah that prints them for $1.99 each...and on quality papers).  Always amazing to open that package and see all the printed pages all nice and glossy!  Here are a few I don't think I've posted:

This last one was actually done earlier in the fall...when As the World Turns aired their last episode.  I made the layout using photos posted on the internet and couldn't believe what I could find, including the theme song and entire episodes on You Tube (how ever did people get those black and white gems)?  Anyway...if you enlarge the layout you can read the story of how the soap opera weaved itself into different times of my life...

Gung Hay Fat Choy! Year of the Rabbit!

Originally, we had given up trying to schedule a New Year's dinner as Katy is busy on Friday night, has a demo at a local celebration on Saturday...then Sunday is the Super Bowl.  Tonight, Katy usually has her theater class and I had signed up for a Mom/Daughter workshop.  Well, guess who is home sick today...?  Because Kirk will be home early, and Katy is home, we are having an impromptu dinner.  Kirk will make Beef Tomato Chow Mein, we'll do a Velvet Chicken, and I'm making my mom's unusual fried rice recipe (b/c I can't get lop chung around here to make Jodie's sticky rice...).  We may send out for some appetizers too.  This winter has been a lesson in having no expectations...with the unusual weather patterns...and illnesses floating through...one just never knows what will really happen.

So, I'm posting my mom's unusual fried rice recipe...unusual in that you actually fry the rice BEFORE it is cooked.  She probably got this recipe listening to the radio cooking show, hosted by Gus Saunders, here in Boston in the 60s and 70s.  We grew up listening to Gus repeating the recipes called in my listeners ("that's one cup of rice, two cups bullion") in the afternoons.  Anyway...here it is, and it is bubbling along on my stove as we speak!

Barbara's Mom's Fried Rice Recipe

1 whole onion, chopped
1 whole green or red pepper, chopped
2 cups uncooked rice
Olive Oil (I'm actually using vegetable oil)
4 cups beef bouillon (cubes dissolved in water or canned soup)
Soy Sauce to taste

Heat enough oil in a large skillet to saute vegetables until soft but not fully cooked.  On medium flame, add uncooked rice to skillet, adding additional oil to adequately coat grains.  Fry rice, stirring frequently, until rice is golden brown but not burnt (this is important...so watch it)!  Add beef bouillon to pan along with soy sauce to taste.  Bring to boil, reduce heat to simmer, and cook covered, stirring several times, until all liquid is absorbed.

Believe it or not...we use to have this rice with her Julia inspired Coq Au Vin recipe, and stir fried frozen pea pods.  She would make this combination about once a month in the winter (at least while I was a teen living at home).  If we were really lucky, she'd also make a Black Bottom Pie which was simply delish!

If you decide to try the rice recipe, I'd be interested in hearing how you like it.  It is kind of different!

Longest icicle ever...

Not a great pic...but shot from my bedroom window (again...in reverse).  Been watching this thing grow for a few weeks now.  It has to be 6' long.  We have more icicles on our house than ever experienced before.  Crazy, crazy winter!

More weather to write about!

Today starts two days of bad storms...school is closing 2 hours early today...but both Katy and I are sick with sore throat and head cold so we stayed home.  Should get between 3 - 5 inches today, then get socked again starting tomorrow morning with worse amounts mixed with sleet for a total of 12".  I'm pretty confident the will call school tomorrow given the latest forecast.  Yesterday, the weather people were saying that if you could...you should just stay home on Wednesday.  Very rarely do they say that...especially not 48 hours in advance.  This has been one of the worst winters I remember...usually we'd get a huge storm and then recover...but this has been a series of moderate ones, one right after another.  I honestly don't know where the snow will go after this one...there has been no warming trend so most of what we've gotten this past month is still here.  Glad I got the bird feeders filled yesterday!  Also, last night, saw that we have a resident raccoon who comes by and cleans up the cat food I leave outside for the strays...wonder if he/she is the same little guy who use to come by last summer?  Not little anymore!  And where does he/she sleep?

On another note...today would have been my mom's 82nd birthday.  I usually try to make gingerbread (one of her faves) on her b'day, but I'm not sure if I have the ingredients here and I'm not hitting the grocery store today.  I'm sure she would be proud of all her kids and grandkids; she loved her family so much!  I still miss her every day!