hmmm...

baked some cookies yesterday - nothing can beat a cup of milk w/cookie after being all day at school - my boys are easy to please!
i also tried a new recipe - crispy top creamy spinach.
my better half grilled porkchop out in the cold...cooking is his way to show his love for us.
i am so very blessed, i hope the boys know that too!
(not forgetting our favorite tom yam soup!)

a taste of Rome

i went down to the school and sat in for the little one's Latin Class and had a lot of funs!
i was impressed with their presentations (of the Roman Project), the kids came up with very creative stuffs.
i must said that the Toga Party was a great success, with plenty of olives to go around!

18 hours round trip

a nine hour journey

one pack of baby carrots
bunches of bananas and grapes
ham or turkey and cheese sandwiches
lunch was on the road

four more hours to go
yeah!
drive-through dinner
from Wendy's dollar menu

on T-Day
five kids and twelve adults
a ten hour Thanksgiving meal

three days and nights spent
with our favorite people -
priceless!

a quiet day

it was a cold and rainy afternoon, no Sunday frisbee so the boys stayed at home.
a quiet day turn out to be a good day for baking!
my 2nd boy tend to cook/bake whenever he's in the mood.
he baked a blueberry loaf today,
and he likes a few slices of the freshly baked loaf w/butter on it.
he used to make us pancake for breakfast every Saturday, very good pancake i must say.
his makes wonderful chicken quesadilla too.

the younger one made a Colosseum model with the dough (have to bake it before he paints it) - project for his Latin class due right after the Thanksgiving holiday.
in the mean time he made the brownie and painted the top w/jelly...yummy!
we are now trying to come up with an edible Colosseum model...any idea?

food, glorious food

tonight's Thanksgiving Dinner was a great gathering!

yesterday, today and tomorrow

the picture says it all - yesterday's lunch was curry vegetable, dinner was sausage and potatoes casserole; so today's lunch was the left over curry vegetable, and the yummy satay chicken, thanks to my better half who grilled a whole tray of chicken on the deck and in the cold!
that also settled tomorrow's lunch...it's going to be a busy day for sure with all the running around and cooking for the big Thanksgiving Dinner at 5:30 pm.

breakfast by the sea

That's where Jesus met Peter & the rest after his resurrection,
that being his third appearance to them.
It's a no brainer where to find Peter - in his state of mind with what he had gone through:
Jesus was captured, he denied Jesus three times, Jesus was crucified, then placed in a tomb; and Jesus' resurrection and appeared in person...
it all seems too much for anyone to take it all at once or at lost of what to do. So he went back to what's familiar, what he knew before.

Jesus sought Peter out, fed him breakfast and then asked him what matters most to him,"Do you love me?" Three times. In doing so, Jesus restored Peter with forgiveness and help Peter to refocused on what's the mission and reinstated Peter for ministry.

i had my own "breakfast by the sea" today.
when He looked into my eyes and help me see that at the core of my heart, i want to go back where there are safe and familiar, i have been away from home for too long, i do not wish to raise finance etc....

"Lord,You know that i love you."
restore me
help me refocus
on what's on Your heart
and what's Your next step
for me

thanksgiving meal on my mind

i'm having my bowl of fruit salad while typing this - we are expecting 60 people on Saturday's Thanksgiving dinner so that mean someone have to coordinate the foods...so far (thankfully) the biggies like turkey & roast chicken already been taking care of! The green bean casserole & corn are easy to make, my better half will bake the green apple/sweet potatoes dish, he learnt from the family who hosted our first thanksgiving farm stay back in Missouri. Someone else will take care of the mashed potatoes,cranberry sauce & rolls, which left the stuffing... i hope this list is as American as it can be!!!
Did i forget anything? And of course we have desserts like pumpkin cream cheese pie etc....

Dinner will be hamburgers because today is the last day of the warm weather before the cold front hits us. Next week's temperature may be as low as 29 degree F when the boys step out for school...brrrr...and there goes my cherry tomatoes and basil and chili plants.

I went to the library today,
the last day of the "Let's speak English!" program for Fall.
I made double chocolate pudding pie and baked a banana nut bread.

There were about thirty of us, half American volunteers and the rest from China, France, Germany, Indonesia, Japan, Pakistan, Poland, South America, Taiwan...and I'm sure I missed out some other countries.

As usual, good conversation with great tasting foods!

lunch dates

for the past few days breakfast has been the good'ol fashion oatmeal w/strawberries jam or brown sugar.

we went to Sticky Fingers for lunch - for the past few Monday's lunches too; that's because we have a few coupons on their chicken wings. we are cheap, we only eat out when we have coupons. I'm not complaining though, because it's always nice to have time out, and we needed that as life has been pretty stressful the past few weeks.

dinner was cream of chicken soup and stir fried broccoli w/bacon bits.
i didn't skipped any meal since i started the blog, yeah for me!

Sunday Dinner

Fried tacos, that's what we had tonight -
a few families decided to get together for sunday dinner once a month.
Nothing fancy no need to cook up a storm, just a simple meal; there's no real agenda, we have a hang time and you can just slump into the couch doing nothing.
Tonight the little ones decided to play house, brought us their version of foods - right after our dinner. Children are good imitators, we hope for the day when they too will open their hearts and homes for others.

Revelation 3:20
Jesus said, "Listen! I am standing and knocking at your door. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in and we will eat together."

i eat to live
or do i live to eat
but you said,
"Man shall not live by bread alone"
let me not be satisfy by what i taste every meal
but hungry for your word instead

you said,
"My food is to do the will of my Father,"
then let your will be my will
for you have the word of eternal life
which is sweeter than honey
and the honeycomb

Yeah, It's Friday!

everyone in my household cheer for Friday! for the kids it's the end of the long week with school and homework. as for me it's the longest day of the week, but i don't have to set my alarm on Friday night, i get to sleep in on Saturdays. (every other Saturday if nothing comes up)

we cheer for Friday because that's when Youth Group meet. That's when the youths have their social/down time. I'm fortunate to be part of the group where all my boys are - and get to hang out with their peers; and we always have great worship!
so Friday is also a quick fix Dinner day!

how long can one go without food?

(It's easy for me to take for granted with every breath that I take, that's beside the point, for it is obvious that we need oxygen to live, and water too.)

It's easy for me to forget about food/eating. Whether I'm doing something at home or driving around running errands or engrossed in a book, I will not feel hungry until I get up and wonder why I'm feeling dizzy and dehydrated.

My problem is I tend to skip breakfast due to poor eating habits while I grew up. It used to be that I could not put any food in before ten o'clock in the morning. I have been working hard the past two years making sure that I eat breakfast every day. Now, whether I feel like it or not, even though there is this urge to reject every bite, I can wash it down with a cup of coffee.

Just don't get me wrong, I love all types of food, and believe me I can eat a lot.

yummy!

Breakfast was banana cake, baked with love by Mrs. Brown.
Lunch was Szechuan Pork Strips w/instant noodle.
Mom ought to be proud of me with that sprite of basil! I'm grateful to her for she always added fresh herbs to our meals while we were growing up.
Dinner was Cashew Nuts Chicken, Collard Greens w/Anchovies and Rice.

breakfast with Papa

on Wednesdays, the high schoolers have delayed start - 9:40am instead of 8:15am,
and it worked out for Papa to take the older two for breakfast on Wednesdays.
This breakfast thingy started since we moved here two years ago, and some good things had came out of it...
this year especially with two teenage boys that need not only quantity time but quality time too; and special breakfast deals at Denny's, Chick-Fil-A, or McDonald's always sound good!
THANK YOU PAPA!
( i had breakfast at home but joined them at McDonald's, just for today)
Lunch, as shown in the picture.

Today's high was 85 degree F which mean hamburgers for dinner - nice day to grill burgers on the deck!

(taste) and see

i went to the advance screening of End Of The Spear this morning. The film is based on the true story about five young men who were speared by Waodani Indians in 1956, and told from the perspective of the one who lead the spearing raid.
Tears welled up in my eyes as soon as the movie began, when the yellow plane sailed over the river in the heart of Amazon; my tears flowed through out the movie.

This is a simple yet poignant story between father and son, and more so the later with the killer, when both came face to face in the climax of the movie, and ultimately found the answer at the end of the spear.

a powerful movie not to be missed.
MPAA Rating: PG-13 - for intense sequences of violence.

i'm dreaming of Krispy Kreme donuts

no not me, it a poem that came up when i googled Krispy Kreme - click to read this humorous poem.

Breakfast was the last of the donuts, and the best way to eat the Krispy Kreme donuts is:
pop it in the microwave for 8 seconds, and enjoy it with a cup of coffee! (i run out of the Super brand 3 in 1 coffee sometime ago, it's so sad...)

i had a bunch of grape while preparing lunch.
Lunch was instant noodles, fancy version.
Dinner will be Fajitas: pork strips fried w/onions and wrapped w/ the flour totillas.

coffee & donuts

yes, i succumbed to the power of donuts especially the all famous KrispyKreme donuts!

hear me out: last year when our oldest boy was baptized, we said "let's start a family tradition";
so on the way home that day we drove past Krispy Kreme and the "HOT" sign was on. (if you walk into the store when the sign is on, you get free donuts)
We marched into the store and enjoyed the free donuts - and we came home with a dozen for breakfast (we fell for it everytime!)

So as to keep up the family tradition, last night after dinner we picked up a dozen donuts for breakfast.
Wished you were here Pat, someone asked if you are coming back!

PBJ

Lunch was peanutbutter jelly sandwich
w/ apple & a pretty bunch of grape.

i spent better half of the day vacuumed the van...quite a long story:
one morning we discovered the rear mirror was shattered someone shot it with a BB gun. So the police came and he mentioned his own vehicle was not spared as he live just up the road.
we found out that there was about sixty over van/SUV in the similar fate. It was some kind of "gang initiation" -
this was the second attempt, few month ago the first shot miss the glass by an inch...

what's for dinner?

Dinner is Pasta & Beef w/Stroganoff flavored sauce
- aiya, frozen one lah!
well, at least the Broccoli/carrots make the dinner sort of an acceptable meal and nothing beats some cherry tomatoes fresh from the garden!

conversation w/my youngest one:
"I cooked your favorite vegetable."
"SzeChuan vegetable?"
"It's broccoli, SzeChuan vegetable is not vegetable."
"Then why it is called vegetable?"
"It's pickled!"
"Pickles are vegetable to me."
"................"

apple on the go...

yep, that was my Breakfast alright, got to be at church by 9:30am.
i had a slice of cinnamon swirl bread while making a pot of coffee for the English Fellowship. I restrained myself from the donuts and opted for half a banana, and a cup of coffee of course!

Lunch was the usual catered Chinese food,
today was chicken and tofu w/veg on rice.
the portion was so big, i felt like the food multiplied faster than i could put them into my mouth!!! i felt really bad when i have to toss it away, i just can't finish the whole plate.
(it's standardize plate , just that i didn't picked up the food today...i usually asked them to give me smaller portion)

baptism/fellowship

my two younger boys got baptised today!

( the story of boy Jesus at the temple came to mind, Jesus was twelve then, in verse 51 "...but his mother treasured all these things in her heart." it's my prayer too that my boys *will grow in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.) *Luke 2:52
we had Dinner at Monterrey Mexica restaurant - i had Steak Ranchero:
grilled ribeye steak serve w/rice, refried beans, flour tortillas, guacamole salad & ranchero sauce!
( i skipped the tortillas and took it home for another meal)

hold me accountable

it's noon and i should get something to eat! the main point to start this blog is to make sure i eat something every meal...i have very bad eating habit all my life - but it has gotten better in the recent years, not to mention i'm gaining pounds since coming to America!

Senate bean soup

Lunch: a bowl of senate bean soup (leftover from dinner), two slices of toast and a cup of honeyed ginger tea.

Breakfast was coffee on the go -
i got to dropped the kids off for their volunteer work; upon returning i walked Jack down the trail with camera around my neck.

it's such a beautiful day!
most of the trees dressed up in pretty colors...
so it turned out to be a long walk 'cause i stopped to snap picture.
(i have a sore neck now!)
i had an apple when i got back from the walk.

Dinner will be macaroni and cheese -
i can't believe i'm feeding my kids these food, well after living in America for seven years...you basically feed them what they want to eat ...(sign)
so as not to feel guilty about it, i will add hardboiled eggs/shrimp/tuna, and baby carrots/spinach.

dinner at 7pm

i picked up the kids at 3pm (they had hotdogs for lunch there) and we were supposed to watch "March of the Penguin" at the dollar theater but they changed their mind.
so i have five boys and a girl under one roof -
the boys had cocoa pebbles w/milk and then we all had ice-cream (Edy's SlowChurned, Rich & Creamy -Light Neapolitan); yum, my favorite!

just as i finished off what was left on the table, my better half called and asked what's for dinner?
"Macoroni & cheese, i thought you had dinner there?"
"No, there were no dinner but it's o.k, i'll just grab something on the way home. Do you need anything?"
"Milk."
"o.k see you later."

as for dessert i had two chocolate flavor wafer sticks - courtesy of Jenny as she dropped by to picked up her kids.
btw, the wafer is made in Malaysia, but why a blonde hair Julie?
i remember when i was young, every year my sisters and i made loveletters for Chinese New Year - it was a lot of fun, no chocolate filling though.
ah...those were the days.