Mojo is sick, and even tho I've been trying to take most of the childcare she overdid herself at work this afternoon and was shot by dinnertime. I had several crises blow up at work, didn't get out on time, Mojo had to pick up the kids, who were tetchy and fussy. Thank god for Thai Ginger! At least I could get some hella good Pad Thai instead of fish sticks and mac-and-cheese (the Stearman-orange out-of-the-box Kraft variety, mind you - the tykes refuse anything remotely natural or wholesome). Frigging wireless goddam printer kept kludging up, going offline. Pissed me off, partially at Mojo, who insisted on the thing and then bought it at damn Staples. Fecking barsteward. I'd like to drop-kick the thing into the street.
Then little girl wouldn't go to sleep, and had to have her toys replaced in the toybox and her little head gently laid on the pillow twenty minutes after bedtime with a stern admonition that Nine Thirty Is Too Late For Baby Girls To Be Up.Then the Boy had some sort of emotional hissy about sleeping with his mom - it's Mom-and-Peeper Tuesday. Finally got him in bed with her and asleep after a twenty minute gabfest. That child is the King of First-Grade Drama.
So I had the house alone to myself. Tidied up a little, did the dishes, and got around to cooking the cabbage rolls I'd been meaning to for the past couple of nights. Mmmm. Some for the fridge for tomorrow, the others to freeze for cold December nights. Finally a moment here in front of the laptop, to record just another weekday evening, another in a seemingly endless string of them. Get up, kids to school and daycare, work, home to pickup kids, dinner, playtime/computer/TV time, bedtime.
Wash, rinse, repeat.I wonder if George Clooney's life is like this?
Oh - and I should note for the record that little man and I played a cutthroat game of Microarmor...which he won. Yes, the former infantryman with twenty-some years in was waxed by a six-and-a-half-year-old with the emotional range of an operatic diva.
Jesus wept.OK, I'm ready for tomorrow already...
4 comments:
Very interesting post from my perspective.
First: "the Stearman-orange out-of-the-box Kraft variety, mind you - the tykes refuse anything remotely natural or wholesome"
My kids were the same way. As a matter of fact they had a huge meltdown when their Grandmother went to the considerable effort of making home-made mac and cheese and insisted on her making the Kraft stuff immediately. She's full of Grandmotherly cheer so she did so but the Christmas gifts were just a bit thinner for the boys that year. Unfortunately they didn't notice but the Grandmother forgave them by the next year.
Second: "Frigging wireless goddam printer kept kludging up, going offline"
This is why I very rarely agree to buy any wireless gizmos. They are just now BEGINNING to meet my speed and reliability standards. Someday I'll buy in but not yet.
Third: My 16 year old was quite annoyed that a toddler is allowed to stay up til 9:30 when he has to be in bed for face MAJOR CONSEQUENCES. I pointed out that she doesn't have to be at school at 7:30 AM and he relented on his judgment.
Fourth: I well remember the first day my older son actually beat me in a fair wargame. I don't pull any punches and try to win. You can argue that is unfair to the kid and I should seek to boost his ego but I feel that the kids should earn their accolades.
Back to the story, he was absolutely astonished and kept expecting me to pull a last trick out that allowed me to win even though the game was over. Then his ego expanded to the point where there wasn't room for him and anybody else in the room. But he'd earned it so I was gentle on him.
Unfortunately, he insisted on playing his younger brother, who had an amazing runs of luck and beat him badly. This led to a vicious physical fight and we had to intercede quickly. Younger brother still refuses to play anything remotely resembling a wargame after two years. Older brother has settled down and become a decent gamer with the appropriately sized ego.
For me, it was the cabbage rolls -- a spectacular meal, and one I am overdue to prepare.
Do you use raisins and rice in your rolls? Any particular seasonings, or the traditional Eastern European bland.
Lisa: I have found the "Persnickity Palate" Golabki recipe to be my favorite:
http://persnicketypalate.com/category/cuisines/polish/
Except I substitute basmati rice for the milk-and-bread. And the ground meat has to be pork - it's Polish, right?
The sauce is the perfect combination of sweet and sharp, very piquant, and I am now craving the three waiting in the fridge for me to get home...
Thank you very much for this link -- I'll be trying the recipe soon.
[And I'm sorry you had such a rough evening. Perhaps tonight will be better :)]
Post a Comment