Menu Planning Monday - March 1st

Hello, Friends and Visitors!

Hope your weekend has been wonderful. For those of your here for Menu Planning Monday, I won't waste any time. Here, for your enjoyment are my menus...

Monday - Chicken Encilantrada, brown rice, with avacado and tomotoes.

Tuesday - Shrimp Tetrazinni, Tossed Salad

Thursday - Chicken Florentine, Steamed Broccoli and Cauliflower

Friday - Crockpot Pinto Beans, Cornbread and Tossed Salad

Saturday - Quinoa, Steamed Asparagus, Poached Cod Fillets

Sunday - Slow Cooker Green Beans, Ham and Potatoes, Steamed Corn, Creamed Spinach

Hope you enjoy the recipes and to see more Menu Planning Monday posts, please visit Laura at I'm An Organizing Junkie!

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Now, I am on to other aspects of life.

We saw another friend in another play, but this time it was wonderful. I really enjoyed it and so did my daughter. "Beauty and The Beast" was well staged, beautifully costumed, well choreographed and enjoyably acted. And no drunk Tevyes! :) What a refreshing experience!

I haven't been able to blog over the past few days, missing out on some of my favorite blog experiences, like Show and Tell Friday, etc. My internet was messed up and then my wireless router had problems. I had to call India to get help and that was a very stressful experience because of the language barrier, but we finally got some of it fixed. Ugh. It's amazing how we never think about the eletronics we use and take them quite for granted until they have a problem, then what a pain they are to fix.

I am looking forward to this week and the beginning of March. I am so completely ready for Spring. I am planning my veggie garden and hoping for early planting. I can't wait to be able to sit outside and listen to my favorite thing - the birds!

How about you? Are you looking forward to Spring? Will you be planting a garden? If so, what will it include?

Blessings,

Elizabeth

Okay, before you throw up, let me tell you what it is that you are looking at (and I won't tell you the rude comments I got from my children before they tasted it!). This is a yummy, cream of veggie soup that I made yesterday. It is very yummy, despite its suspicious appearance.

You make it by taking two small packages of frozen peas and carrots, milk, butter, garlic powder, salt, pepper and a little cayenne. First, steam the veggies. Then, put them in your blender with all the remaining ingredients (I'd use a tablespoon of butter and enough milk to get things going). You can season to taste. What you get is a suprisingly yummy, fiberous and interesting looking soup. It is great with homemade bread with butter and a salad. Trust me! Try this. It is so much better than it looks. It is inexpensive and good for you.

Okay, stop laughing! :)

Item 2 for today is that last night, for our weekly Family Night, we went to a little local production of a well known musical, because we knew someone in the cast and, long story short, cost was negligeable (sp?) because of our connection. Fortunately, few people I know locally read this blog, because it was the worst thing I have ever seen in my entire life. You know, all community theater is not created equal. Some productions have far greater resources than others. They have more money behind them, so they have better production values. They have large numbers attending the auditions, so there is more talent to pull from. And some community theaters attract good directors. Other theaters have none of these advantages. I am sure with this particular production everyone involved did the very best they could. It would have been so much better with competent direction. As it was, the director broke every rule of Acting 101, by not having the actors "cheat" forward (face towards the audience) and even allowing them to frequently turn their backs on the audience. The blocking made absolutely no sense and most of it was carried out with no character motivation. Some of the most important scenes were played way down stage instead of up stage where they could be seen and heard better. During the musical numbers, crowd control was horrible, with too many people going every which way all at once. The orchestra (consisting of 6 people) was actually pretty good, but singing talents were mixed. God bless them for all the hard work, but it was awful. My daughter kept asking me if the main character was suppose to be drunk, because he was constantly lolling about with no focus to what he was doing. He rolled his head around on his shoulders like he had no control over himself and his eyes were closed through most of his scenes (why? I have no idea!). Bless his heart. No he wasn't suppose to be drunk, though he would be very good at playing that. I know this is awful, but I couldn't wait to get out of there. I couldn't see my friend, because I didn't know what to say. I don't lie, but I have no desire to hurt, either. I guess I'm just going to be honest with her and tell her that there was a lot of potential to the production, but the direction was poor. What else can I say? Any ideas? I don't want to lie. That isn't right.

Well, I hope you enjoyed the yummy soup that looks like (I'm quoting my children) green baby poo and my guilty play review.

Have a great day!

Elizabeth

Gracious.

It doesn't help that my background is in acting and film. I was professional at one time and so it's not like I'm a novice. However, I really try to be open and fair.

Menu Planning Monday- February 22, 2010

Hello, Friends and Visitors!

Welcome to Menu Planning Monday at Home Musings.

Sunday - Awesome Slow Cooker Pot Roast, Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Carrots and Broccoli

Monday - Turkey Tenderloins, Dressing Casserole, Asparagus and Salad

Tuesday - Chicken Rice and Green Bean Casserole

Wednesday - Slow Cooker Sausage and Hoagie Rolls and Tossed Salad

Thursday - Sole Steamed with Tomato-Leek Sauce, Quinoa Chard Pilaf and steamed butternut squash

Friday - Veggie Burgers, Hash Browns and Raw Veggies and Dip

Saturday - Lentil Soup, Artisan Bread and Salad

There you go, folks! Hope you enjoy checking out the links. Looking forward to the cooking (and eating!).

Be sure and check out more menu plans, at Laura's blog, I'm An Organizing Junkie.

Have a wonderful day!

Elizabeth

The Voyage

"A ship in the harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for."
—William Shedd

Do you ever feel like you have set sail for a never before seen destination, unsure of the storms that lie ahead, hoping and praying that you are sturdy enough to withstand the onslaught of towering waves, hurricane force winds, or days of such calm that there is no wind to fill your sails? Some of those around us, sail smoothly passed us seemly from start to finish with barely a ripple or cloudy day to mar their travel, while we may feel battered and nearly broken, arriving in port barely held together.

What sustains us as we move forward through both rough seas and calm? For some, it is the knowledge that they are well built and strong, but even some of these will never make it. It is having the knowledge that God is over the hurricanes, the winds, the rains, that helps us keep going. He is the brilliant Navigator in whom we must put our trust, for if we do, He will safely guide us. As for the seeming inequities in life, it is to trust that God will give us the understanding, in this Life or the next, why some smoothly sail while others are devastated by the journey.

Whatever our experience, God has made us for the open sea. It is only there that we experience the exhilaration of the wind in full sails. It is only there that we can feel we are fulfilling our destiny. It is where we learn to be sea worthy. It is our opportunity to learn to trust the Navigator that He will see us to safe harbor when our voyage is over and we return Home to go out no more.

Have a blessed Sabbath!

Elizabeth

Lovely Thrift Finds

Friends and Visitors,

Welcome to Show and Tell Friday. I am sharing some thrift store finds that I don't believe I've shown here before.The above black try has the colors of my home in it and was such a lovely discovery, with so many things piled on top of it. The black rim caught my eye and I uncovered the tray to find a lovely floral still life.
The sage green, red and black goes with my livingroom.
Okay, no one is too old for a precious teddy bear. This one, dressed in red and seated on a black chair, looks lovely parked next to my tray in the livingroom. I couldn't pass this up.

Hope you enjoyed my finds. For more Show and Tell Friday posts, please visit Cindy at MY Romantic Home.

Cheers!

Elizabeth

The Strength to Relinquish

I am looking out my office window at the snow falling all around. It reflects the quiet and stillness of my heart. Since losing my dear friend in January, my grief has caused me to turn inward some, to pull back from communicating as much as I would normally do. I don't think that it has made me selfish, but it has stilled my need to reach out.

I have had a difficult time letting my friend go. I have wanted him back. Yet, I am sure he is much happier now that he has been reunited with his wife and loved ones. Yesterday, I realized that my constant prayers about him, about my missing him, are a pull on him away from what I really want for him right now. I want him to be happy and at peace with his loved ones. Looking back on warm memories is not the same as pulling on a person because we don't want them gone. So, last night, I decided I would stop all this prayer about my friend and just let him go. This is not as easy as it sounds.

My prayers today are to let go with the peace and confidence that I will see my wonderful friend again and that it will be a happy reunion. This requires some faith and confidence in the Lord's great Plan and gratitude for what He has given me.

I am grateful for wonderful friendships that have meant so much to me that they can hurt so much once the friend is gone.

Elizabeth

Down Home Black Eyed Peas

My sweet friend, Myrnie, over at I Wonder Woman, has influenced me to eat more of a bean-based diet. This is for reasons like health, food storage rotation and concern for how animals are treated and if they are fed hormones, etc. (I still eat meat, I'm just more careful where it comes from!). So, what better way to do this than to begin with my all time Southern staple Black-Eyed Peas.

Usually, I just crockpot my dried black eyes with a couple of slices of bacon or a ham hock and add water and salt, but THIS time...I tried a new recipe online for Down Home Black Eyed Peas and it beats anything else I've tried ever! Try it for yourself and see how wonderful tasting they are.

Cheers!

Elizabeth