Hi, my name is Kiki

Hi, my name is Kiki.

I am suffering from Holiday Stress Disorder.

I'm stressed, and my life is in disorder and there is a holiday that is arriving a couple days early.

Tonight is our family's Christmas Eve as the kids will fly off to Florida tomorrow to see their Grandmother (over the hill, through the woods & down to the Gulf Coast)

My tree is up, but only 1/2 the lights work and it doesn't have a single decoration.

Today's plan is:
Decorate the tree
finish wrapping presents
make Kringla (click the label to find out about Kringla. it was a much better post than this one)
Make date nut balls. (I'm sure there is a joke in there somewhere)
Make dinner for 10 since I thought it would be nice to have a big holiday dinner.
clean kitchen
curl up into the fetal position and cry

Yes, I did bring a lot of the stress on my self, but I had planned in advance. I have an easy meal. Some how I thought I would be spending today doing finishing touches, not starting everything.

I didn't count on losing my grocery list, getting stuck in traffic at the farmers market & 2 grocery stores (because, this is Reading and you can't get everything at one place. really)

I didn't count on starting yesterday with a minor melt-down, (which followed one the day before), I didn't count on teenagers being teenagers (yes, some things still surprise me), I didn't count on just plain not getting my shit together.
I did count on my husband having most of this week off, but I didn't count on him working from home most of the day Wednesday, a portion of the day Thursday and then going into work on Friday.

So now I'm stressed and my naked Christmas tree is dropping needles and the Christmas spirit is stuck down the street.


So really, I just need to get off the computer & get my whiny butt in gear.

I will take this opportunity to say Merry Christmas. Really, the season isn't about the boxes under the tree, or the food under the table, so I will try to put on some Christmas hymns and let the REAL spirit of Christmas help me through this day.

Oh, I will tell ya what I'm making for dinner
Baked Brie with Caramelized Onions (served on a dish of my own making :) )
Pasta in Vodka Sauce
Grilled Asparagus
Salmon Basilica
Assorted Cookies & Ice Cream.

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Feelin' Saucy

Yes, I have some tomatoes. And peppers. And tomatillos.
So listening with one ear to the wise Miss Holly,I decided to make sauce. Tomatoes, check. Hmmm, plenty of Poblano & Serrano peppers as well. What else is lurking in my larder? Onions, check; garlic, check. What is growing in my garden? Cuban Oregano, Hmmmm. Let's check the spice rack: tasty, a little cumin; perhaps a little chili powder.
Ok, now that I have my 'meez,' it's time to get cookin'.

First off, get the grill going, preferably with some smoky wood chips in there, then I slowly roasted my tomatoes along with a couple onions, some garlic cloves, and my pairs of poblanos and serranos (and only lost one serrano through the grill grate). While they are roasting a way, I turned on the crockpot and added a little olive oil. When the oil was warm, I added a couple teaspoons of whole cumin seed and a little more garlic. After I peeled the roasted veggies and added them to the pot, I added my oregano, along with a little ground cumin (ok, I like cumin, what of it?) and some chili powder with the obligatory salt & pepper. Then I gave it a whirl with the stick blender and left it for the night. This morning I woke up and look, I have enchilada sauce. Fantastic! Now to get some chicken, or some beans & make enchiladas...

This weekend was the last weekend that we had The Boy over to visit before he goes off to college. (I guess I should call him The College Man now, but I'll have to ease into that). We celebrated with family activities such as him showing his Father how to load an Ipod with music. Also, as we know, no College Man is ready for school without new clothes for school. We got socks and a baseball cap. They started out white, then a short time later they looked like this:

And then, finally like this:

Well, the family that tie-dyes together, ummm I'm not sure how to finish that one.

Back to the family activities. We also ATE. I know that will come as a shock to some, but that is considered a family activity around here.
Friday night was Fish Taco night. I know that sounds gross, but really they are quite flavory. The fish were fried in a beer batter and served with HP's homemade salsa (fresh from the garden), Kiki's guacamole with roasted garlic, and plenty of queso fresco. Fish Tacos, who knew?

Saturday was our annualish Crab-Fest. I love Maryland crabs, and look forward to eating them every summer. Unfortunately, as they need to be imported they are a little pricey, so I only get them once a year. This year's fest was served up with the freshest corn-on-the-cob I could find and a loaf of Homemade Pesto Bread. (I love The Herbfarm Cookbook and all the wonderful recipes I've found there!)

Somehow, we did end up with a few left over crabs at the end of crabfest, so Sunday's brunch was this:

Crab & Thyme Souffle adapted from The Herbfarm Cookbook. Now that is TASTY!

The other thing I love about The Herbfarm Cookbook, is that after having it from the library for about a month-and-a-half, I decided to splurge and buy it (after all, I'm worth it & besides, I was worried about spilling something on the book!) Unfortunately my splurge budget is not what it once was, so my solution? EBAY!
That's right, winner bidder kitchenkiki at $4.99. Now that's TASTY!

And a final image, Sunday's dinner (I didn't want it to feel left out)Pizza on the grill! (ok, I had some dough challenges, so one of the pizzas was cooked in the oven)
A perennial favorite: Pizza with caramelized onions, shrimp and alfredo sauce.

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My first Blog

Ok, "Everybody's doing it" why shouldn't I?

I've never kept a diary, I really did try, for a day or two.
I don't really want to share much of the chaos that is my life currently.

But I am full of random thoughts. I am trying to nurture my inner creativity. I feel like talking, but don't feel like bothering anyone. I don't know, it doesn't hurt to try.

I'll start with the weather, it is remarkably cold. My toes are frozen despite the heater, socks & slippers. I'm wrapped in my quilt in front of the computer trying not to freeze. I want to go out today, my car needs an oil change, I want to go to the pottery studio & see my stuff that was fired today. I'm really trying to believe I won't freeze. I'm not convinced since I am freezing just sitting here.

Maybe some homemade stew will warm me from the inside out. It is quite yummy with turkey thigh, garlic, shallots, tomatoes, carrots, a little wine, and my secret blend of herbs and spices. It was really simple, done in a crockpot. I fiddled a little with the ingredients, then turned on the crockpot and went to the pottery studio. I had my hubby throw some carrots in an hour or two before dinner time and voila a stew. Served over noodles with a crusty bread.

I'm still hoping to go to the pottery studio, I had 4 "pots" that went into the kiln for bisque firing on Saturday. I hope they came out ok. Then I get to glaze! Glaze can really make (or break--no pun intended) I'm not sure if they have done a glaze firing yet so I have another waiting for the glaze firing. I'm not very good, but I am enthusiastic. Besides, clay is good therapy! Maybe I'll pull out the camera & take a picture of some of my stuff. If I don't hate it.

Ok, I've tried this blogging thing today. It didn't suck. I may try again tomorrow. If I feel like it.

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