Today, our focus was tying up loose food ends. I know how lucky we are to have plenty of food, and I want to make sure we are managing our inventory properly before we go out for fresh supplies. Right out of college, I went to teach as a volunteer on the Hopi Reservation in…
Category: Life With Ben
Day 3 – Keeping the Glass Half Full
This morning, as I was having my coffee, Ben poured himself some orange juice and said, “I have an idea! Let’s do normal!” Well, while I can’t promise that, I can engineer chicken parm night, and that was all Ben needed to declare, “Chicken parm? I’m a lucky guy!!!!!” My school has not yet gone…
Day 2 – Happy St. Patrick’s Day!
We had another good day of bike riding, basketball, reading (me) and favorite movies (Ben). In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, this Ben’s Day Wednesday dinner is dedicated to the humble potato. If you are looking for a simple recipe that is not only nutritious, but warms your soul, look no further. Potato Soup 5…
Day 1 in Semi-Solitary Confinement — You Can’t Keep a Good Man Down
I had two required quick, solo trips outside the house this morning while Sophia was still home. The rest of the day Ben and I had a great time. We have talked about the virus but he can’t really take it in. No problem. That’s my job. His job is to keep being Ben. Done. The…
Pandemic Edition
In a family of educators, we are feeling the stress of the current Coronavirus threat. We are coping the best way we know how, which means we are cooking up a storm! A few years ago, when our kitchen was being redone, we had to make do the best we could. I joked that I…
“They are one person. They are two alone. They are three together. They are for each other.”*
For Valentine’s Day, we always stay home and make a great meal together. This year, Ben and I had the day off from school, so we made a dessert together in the afternoon. When Phil got home from work, we made dinner together, while listening to So Far by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young.* Phil…
Birthday Weekend
Last weekend was my birthday, and we ended up going out to eat twice in celebration. Friday we went to Domers, meeting up with all the usual suspects. When Barb and Leslie found out that Saturday was my birthday, they invited Ben to have an evening of adventure with them on Saturday, so that Phil…
Chef Ben – “Let’s Make a Party!”
Anyone who knows Ben, knows that this is his favorite phrase. Yes, he’s in it for the food, but he also has understood from a very early age that who you eat with brings just as much joy as what you eat. At least once a week, Ben attempts to engineer a party. To him,…
How about another fortune?
We did not go out to eat tonight. It was a compromise, of sorts, as Ben always wants wings, burgers and fries. We had delivery from New China Royal, and it was very satisfying. Ben reports that he liked everything “except the skinny white things that taste like veggies.” We believe he meant water chestnuts,…
Sisters, Food, Music, History: A Road Trip Down South, Y’all
For the first time in decades, I had MLK day off, so we decided to travel down south to see Sophia. Due to iffy weather, Ben and Phil picked me up after school Friday and we barreled on to Sophia’s apartment, south of Richmond, Virginia. I don’t need to tell you that the traffic was…