Wednesday the 29th: setting routines

 *So far we've settled in well, keeping in the same laundry and grocery routines; right now the Son has Wednesdays off, so shopping for groceries on that day has worked out well.

*We have a three week routine for keeping all the rooms dusted and swept; it's possible we'll need to shorten that down to a two week schedule but for the moment it's working.

*We voted today and got a shipment of CD holders from UPS, so those settling chores are continuing.

*Left for the week is building a bookshelf for the husband and oiling the new cutting board. That's good because I need to go to my great aunt's funeral on Friday out of state, so I should still be able to get everything done. 

Tuesday the 28th: Pots and cleaning

 *I might have already posted these pictures when we were prepping the house, but all of these plants have survived and been replanted at my new house so far. Some are better than others but I'm happy to have all of them with me. The begonia in particular is still going strong!

 

 

Monday the 27th: Saint of the Week

 Wednesday is now the memorial for Sts. Lazarus, Mary, and Martha, but until recently it was just St. Martha. Here's her information from my saints document: 

Dates:  July 29; died c.80    

                Place:  Israel

                Importance: sister of Lazarus (raised from the dead), symbol of the active life

                Food/Symbol:  kiddie crescents, keys or a ship. Broom, ladle

                Patron:  cooks

                Quotes:  Lk. 10:41-42, Jn. 11:17-27

“Martha and Mary were sisters, related not only by blood but also by religious aspirations. They stayed close to our Lord and both served him harmoniously when he was among them. Martha welcomed him as travelers are welcomed. But in her case, the maidservant received her Lord, the creature her Creator, to serve him bodily food while she was to be fed by the Spirit.

“No one of you should say, ‘Blessed are they who have deserved to receive Christ into their homes!’ Do not grieve or complain that you were born in a time when you can no longer see God in the flesh. He did not in fact take this privilege from you. As he says, ‘Whatever you have done to the least of my brothers, you did to me.’ --- from a sermon by Saint Augustine

(St. Martha from the Isabella Breviary 1497, found at https://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=79) 

 

 

Friday the 24th: Six Flags

 I pretty much hate roller coasters but I love my students, so when they asked me to go on monsters with them I went. It was terrifying and I would definitely not choose it on my own.

 

 

Thursday the 23rd: Food of the Week

 On Friday the Son is making cacio e pepe from the Betty Crocker cookbook--again, no online reference on their site. We have some real Romano cheese from Fredonia, so we're excited to try it out.

Tonight we're having leftovers and frozen pizza.

Wednesday I made a French Potato Salad from July 2002 Martha Stewart Living. I needed to add a little salt and I included not just celery leaves but celery as well; it was delicious.

Tuesday was going to be Korean fried chicken but the restaurant was closed so we went with the Mall food court instead: Japanese for the other two and a loaded baked potato for me. I was happy with mine but the other two felt the teriyaki was a little lacking particularly in the side dishes.

Monday I made zucchini picadillo.  I had it with chips and tortillas, more like a tostada, and it was great. I think it could be better with some cumin, maybe some cilantro.

Sunday I made a big lasagna, garlic knot rolls from Aldi, and then key lime pie mousse cups for dessert. My mom brought cantaloupe, green beans amandine, and cucumber salad. I really liked the dessert and will make it again; I did keep the crumbs separate until the last minute so they stayed crunchy.

 

Wednesday the 22nd: Settling in

 This week in the moving in process:

1. I had my first dentist appointment with the new dentist. She was very thorough; once we see the first bill (she is out of network) we'll decide whether to stay with her or not.

2. I bought some CD holders and need to buy some more to hold all of our collection.

3. Today I will (hopefully) call a general practitioner to see if they have room to take on my son and me.

4. The Son is working on finding a new psychiatrist.

5. I'm going to sort our plastic bags and figure out where to take the one-use plastics that I can't reuse.

6. I bought stamps.

7. I called a window well egress cover place and they are coming to give us an estimate.

 

That might be enough--I might need to stop for the week! 

Tuesday the 21st: Choir trip cont.

 We ate at Spaghetti Warehouse at Laclede's Landing and had this beautiful view of the Arch from the alley near the restaurant. The children mostly behaved very nicely.

We also had a beautiful view from our hotel. It was so nice to sleep in a little and have a leisurely breakfast before heading to the amusement park. 

 

 

Monday the 20th: Saint of the Week

 Today's optional memorial is St. Apollinaris. Here's what I put about him in my saints document:

 

Saint Apollinaris (OM), Bishop, Martyr

                Dates:  July 20     d.c.79; added to calendar 2002

                Place:  born Antioch, Turkey; died Ravenna, Italy

                Importance:  mentioned in Acts of the Apostles; disciple of St. Peter; first bishop of Ravenna

                Food/Symbol:  sword

 Picture from https://mycatholic.life/saints/saints-of-the-liturgical-year/july-20-saint-apollinaris-bishop-and-martyr/

 

 

Friday the 17th: Students

 I had a small group of students to take care of at the zoo. We made sure we stopped for pictures, and I made sure I got them a ride on the carousel.

 

 

Thursday the 16th: Food of the Week

 *Looking ahead, on Friday we're having black bean and corn tacos. I got the recipe from the July 2020 edition of Southern Living; unfortunately, it looks like their online recipe archive is woefully incomplete.

*Last night we made Mexican Beef Burgers  which are easy but also fall apart. I served them with just cheddar cheese and warmed tortillas. We did a side of roasted green beans; the Son over salted them but they were fine.

*Monday the Son made his dish of the week, Curried Chicken and Pasta from Betty Crocker (again, inadequate online recipe archive). While the dish was tasty, we decided the sauce was more hot and bland than anything; adding some leftover peanut sauce from the weekend helped. (Bottom picture)

(Sunday we made the middle picture, Thai Pork Tenderloin with Cucumber Salad.  The salad had maybe a little too much onion for my taste; I might want to pickle or soak it in water next time to tame it a little.)

(Friday the boy made Fettuccine Alfredo from Betty Crocker and did a great job. We had it with bucatini. Top picture.) 

 

 

Wednesday the 15th: Music of the Week

 *Since I'm unemployed there's a lot less music in my life. I do play every day, but I generally play the same songs for a year or so at a time to work on them, or on a particular book for a year or so. 

THUS I need a new theme for Wednesdays or I need to take Wednesdays off.

For now, Wednesdays can be what needs to be done for the moving process to continue settling.

This week I turned in a credit card application so we can change credit cards to our new bank. That means I need to start monitoring and making a list of what needs to change when we have the new credit card so we can close the old card with as little muss as possible. Same with the bank accounts. Direct Withdrawal is great except when changing accounts. 

I need to buy two new frames, but that's more from taking a trip and buying a print of the Arch along with finding an old game the Husband created when he was young that I want to frame for his office.

We got a phone wallet for the Son so he can stop forgetting to take his cards places with him.

What else will the week bring? 

Tuesday the 14th: Choir trip

 The same week as my retreat we took a choir trip to St. Louis to sing for a festival, tour the basilica, and visit Six Flags. The students (and the adults) were awed by the mosaics in the Cathedral; this is just a very small sampling from the main dome.

 

 

Monday the 13th: Saint of the Week and Hello Again

 *Today's optional memorial is for St. Henry II was duke of Bavaria, then King of Germany, and then Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire from the 900s to the 1000s. While he was married, he maintained virginity while married to St. Cunegunda which makes him a patron for the childless. He is also a patron of the Benedictine Oblates; his feast follows closely after the July 11 date for St. Benedict in today's calendar. 

Prayer from Mass for St. Henry:  Lord, you filled St. Henry with your love and raised him from the cares of an earthly kingdom to eternal happiness in heaven.  In the midst of the changes of this world, may his prayers keep us free from sin and help us on our way to you.  Grant this…Amen.”

 (Picture from Pinterest traced to https://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=3719)