How are you dressing up for Halloween this year? In the early years, Ben was more malleable and open to suggestions for Halloween costumes than he is now. He has been Woody so often that I have lost count. So, imagine my surprise this year, when he wanted to mix things up and be Phil,…
Category: Life With Ben
¿Por Qué?
When we say it, it sounds more like, “Pork, eh,” and it isn’t a question, but an answer to what’s for dinner every night this week. I guess, when fall arrives, we somehow contract pork butt amnesia. What sounds like a great crockpot idea Sunday sounds a little less great on each successive day, when…
Carrotocracy
Here at Ben’s Day Wednesday, we believe that advancement should be based on merit. Ben did such a thorough job peeling carrots last spring that we thought surely he would be qualified to run the FDA or maybe become the new Garlic Press Secretary or something, but he’s still waiting for the phone call that…
The Tree Didn’t Fall Far From The Apple Crisp
The headline for our family this week isn’t food. All the trees that were dead or in the way of our new carriage house building project had to go, and I was completely mesmerized watching the tree guys take them down. All the players in this chainsaw ballet knew exactly what they were doing, calculating…
Doubles
Calling all cauliflower! When I spied the giant heads of cauliflower at Wengerd’s, I wasn’t thinking “bargain” (though they were.) I saw it as a challenge. Could we use it all in one meal? Answer: Yes, but with leftovers. Ben loves Buffalo chicken wings, so we used half of the florets to make Buffalo cauliflower…
Dress for Success
Waffling over what to make for dinner? We recommend waffles with sausage gravy. If you are using our recipe for overnight waffles (found in our recipe index) you will need to stir them up in the morning so they develop that lovely yeasty, slightly tangy quality, which also makes this meal super easy to produce…
Put. The Pepsi. Down.
Years ago, the mason working on our house was telling us how hard it was to find good help. He wasn’t even going for skill, just someone to show up and do some basic tasks. After watching his young employee struggle with a wheelbarrow, he finally had to say, “Put. The Pepsi. Down.” We have…
Endurance
June Numbers: Days of Employment – 1 Sets of Overnight Guests – 4 Trips Taken – 3 Days Away From Home – 18 Miles Driven – 2,400 Flights Taken – 4 Different Beds Slept In – 7 Birthdays Celebrated – 3 Memorial Services Attended – 1 Siblings Visited – All of us saw all of…
Number 47. Nailed it.
If you know Ben, you know that he carries a sort of confidence that sees him through almost anything. Our cooking this week was nothing more than Ben holding our branding iron over a pile of pork steak while Phil did all the heavy lifting, but “it counts,” as Ben would say. How does confidence…
Half On It – The Ides Of March
One of Ben’s go-to sayings that makes exactly no sense is “half on it,” which is how he responded when I asked him if he was up for grilling some chicken to serve with pasta and broccoli. It might be his approximation of “have at it,” but it’s hard to know. In any case, I…