Cooking, Growing and Driving

I'm feeling much better than I was on my downer day the other day--and thank you for the positive, wonderful comments.  Seems like every day something promising happens--I had Youngest son and his friend at a community pool and although I was sweltering in a chair I was able to be out of the house and read a good book and the phone rang from a recruiter.  I had a great phone interview with a recruiter and in a few days I move on the next step by speaking with the hiring manager of the company.

In the meantime I am enjoying hanging out with the guys.

(Here they are standing on Four Corners of NM, AZ, CO and Utah  in early June, part of the trip of their first week before I joined them for the 2nd and 3rd week).

A few months ago my middle son told me one evening that his day doesn't feel all in order until I get home from work.  I'm the glue.

I'm also the cook.  Just the other day I was on a walk with Hubs and it was getting late--close to 7:00 p.m. and I said that we needed to get home so I could get dinner going because dinner these days seems to be very much a big deal to the boys.  We've always had dinner at the table but what I mean is these boys really think about dinner (and dessert) every day.  We got home and when Middle Son came into the kitchen he told me that dinner time is now his favorite part of the day.

(Middle and Youngest son on the North Rim of the Grand Canyon before I joined the boys on the trip.  This is one of the tamer photos--Hubs told them they'd do the most challenging photos at that time and not on the later part of the trip where I'd be there.  When they went the winds were over 40 mph).

Every so often I will cook black beans in the crock pot and when they are done I will have some to use then and some to freeze in a couple of plastic bags or containers in the freezer.  I rinse a bag of black beans and then put them into the crock pot with water about an inch higher than the beans.  I'll add a can of Rotel tomatoes with seasoning or a small jar of whatever salsa I may have, maybe add some onions, maybe some peppers, salt and pepper and cumin. I add more water as needed as they cook on low for several hours and they're done when the beans are soft.  We add some on our burritos, or I make black bean and corn salad with chopped tomato, cuke, green onions and cumin and red wine vinegar and oil.  I just take out a frozen container, zap it a little in the microwave and turn it into this corn salad if I need to bring a dish to someone's house--with tortilla chips.

There's a grocery store nearby with organic chicken that is always going on sale.  I bought two the other day.  One went into the crock pot with its skin removed and with rosemary and thyme put inside and on top of it.  Later I deboned it and the chicken will be made into a pot pie or a pasta and broccoli casserole with my own white/cheese sauce.  I cut up the other chicken into pieces and put my own barbeque sauce on top and baked it.  The chicken's back went into a saucepan with a little onion, celery and thyme and about 4-5 cups of water and I cooked it for a little while and made broth.  The broth usually goes into the freezer in a plastic container but I have it in the fridge since later today I am making a corn and potato and fish (frozen fillets) chowder. 

So, the boys are now verbose about what's for dinner and what they love and it will be interesting to see in the years ahead what they request when they come back home to visit.  But first steps first......Eldest has been driving this past month now that he has a learner's permit.  But not with me till last night.  Hubs has been going with him in the Suburban and also an old, little truck we have that is stick shift (which he doesn't like but we see it as useful and it may be his school vehicle in a year).  Last night after dinner Hubs asked if I wanted to take out Eldest in my car and I said no.  So they went out for a little bit and then when they returned Hubs told me that Eldest wanted to drive with me.  Middle son thought it would be funny to film this from the back seat but that didn't happen.  So I reluctantly went.  It is amazing how fast 30 to 35 mph seems when your baby is at the wheel.  Fortunately a Saturday night is quiet on the streets around here, as Eldest turned right on a red without stopping at all.  I am now about to take him to a new friend's house and he is asking if he can drive there.  Baby steps for me now......