Planning our exit...

J and I have been working on this for quite some time.  Seems like it always takes just about forever to get from A to B these days.  With J being home since May, yep, since May we've been working on doing what we can to fix up the house and get out of this state.  I like the friends I've made and my neighbors but we need to live somewhere that the cost of living isn't so crazy.  Our property tax on our house is almost the same as our mortgage payment.  And we don't have a big house or live in the best area.  Especially when it comes to school for Giuli.  

Anyways, since J has been home and collecting unemployment (not much) I was able to get a loan from my 401K.  A big loan.  We put in a fence and updated our landscaping.  Also, replaced the counter and sinks in the bathroom.  Sinks were cracked and the counter was part of the sink.  Replaced the front door and storm doo.  Also needed to use a lot to pay bills and just live.  So now we still have to fix the roof and the front steps to finish the outside.  Then we need to replace the carpet and flooring in 2 bathrooms.  Fix walls, change out light fixtures throughout the house and throw out lots and lots of stuff.  Just writing all this out gives me such anxiety.  Especially now that most of that money is gone and I need to start paying it back out of my check.  Ouch.  Talk about stress.  Hoping it will all pay off and we can pay down some debt that we are accumulating once we sell the house and move.  Can't wait till we are out of here.

Meat Sauce....

So I have this meat sauce recipe I've used for years that I got from San Giorgio pasta. They have a lot of good ones.  In the last year, a friend mentioned to add riced cauliflower for veggies.  Seemed like a good idea. I also made an error when looking in my pantry for crushed tomatoes.  I accidently grabbed diced tomatoes which was a good accident as we like it with both crushed and now a can of diced tomatoes.   Not long after, J started saying he really didn't like the meat sauce.  Not his thing.  So on Monday, I made the meat sauce. It's been a while and my little one loves it.  I didn't put in the cauliflower.  J now likes it again. Says it tastes better.  So for those wondering if cauliflower made a difference (I didn't think it would) it does.  Now we are all happy with the meat sauce again and I can add it back to our menu of dinners.

Meat Sauce recipe if you are interested

INGREDIENTS
1 lb ground beef
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced
28 oz can crushed tomatoes
1 14 oz can of diced tomatoes
1 cup water
6 oz can tomato paste
1 tablespoon fresh parsley
2 teaspoons dried basil
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS:

Brown ground beef in a large skillet; add onion, garlic and cook until onion is tender. Stir in crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes, water, tomato paste, parsley, basil, salt and pepper; simmer 30 minutes.

Freedom....

 Last week was an unusual.  The Capital was attacked by rioters and it made a lot of news.  What baffles me is the "mostly peaceful protests" that happened over the course of 2020 but didn't sound as harsh by most of the media.  Does our media really have that much power?  Should they be putting in their 2 cents if there job is to report the news.  They downplayed the riots and burning of businesses.  That's not right.  But then they go out of control on the protesters by the Capital.  We all have a right to free speech but I don't feel like I can do that on social media.  Should I worry about my job because of what I believe?  I'm not a protestor or a rioter.  I'm a Woman, a Mom, a Wife, a Sister, a Daughter.  I believe in what this country's constitution says but I know that I can't say what I believe in on social media for fear of retribution from my colleagues.  That is a sad day in this country when people have fear of expressing themselves.

Taco and Quesadilla Time...

Lately, my little one asks, "what's for dinner".  I'll tell her and the next sentence is "do I eat it".  I always say yes even if it is a new dish because it's usually the same foods cooked a little different.  Either way, I'm hoping she'll try them.  Now, we had luck with tacos a few times and quesadillas.  Then all the sudden, she was in rejection mode.  I want mac and cheese.  That's her comfort food.  So I made mac and cheese because I didn't want fighting.  I made taco meat, black beans, cheese, chopped tomato and lettuce.  J wanted hard taco shells but I opted for soft.  G say the soft and suddenly wanted a quesadilla.  so I made her one with cheese.  Then she decided to add black beans, tomatoes, lettuce and meat to it.  She ate half of mac and cheese and half a quesadilla she put together.  I guess that's a win for eating.  

Tomato Basil Soup...

This is one of my favorite recipes that I got from a friend.  We don't eat it as soup though.  We use it on our pasta.  If my 4 year old eats it up then I'm thrilled.  Nowadays, she'll ask, "do I eat that".  We always say yes even if she just picks at it.  However, she does eat this one most of the time.  

Tomato & Basil Soup
Servings: 6

Ingredients
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 cup chopped carrot(s)
1 cup chopped onion(s)
1 cup chopped celery
1 tsp. dried thyme
2 tsp. minced garlic
1 leaf bay leaf
1 28 oz can and 1 14 oz can diced tomatoes
1 3/4 cup vegetable broth
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
4 Tbsp. chopped basil

Directions
Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add chopped carrots, onion and celery. Sauté` until beginning to soften, about 5 minutes. Mix in thyme, garlic and bay leaf. Add all canned tomatoes with their juices and vegetable stock. Simmer about 20 minutes. Add whipping cream; simmer 5 minutes. Mix in 4 tablespoons chopped fresh basil. Remove bay leaf. Working in batches, puree soup in blender. (Definitely small batches unless you are ok with it on your ceiling) Transfer to large saucepan. Season soup with salt and pepper. Serve over pasta or as a soup.

New year, new me....

 No doubt in anyone's mind, 2020 was not a good year.  Things changed and hoping it's not forever.  I would love to visit my family in the summer but not if it's still like this and if it is, probably won't go back to NY unless I have to.  I don't like the idea of living in a police state.  That is not American to me. 

On another note, I will try my hardest to improve my diet.  I noticed that when I eat my weight in sugar cookies, I don't feel that great.  Glad to say the sugar cookies are now gone and I'm quitting it cold turkey.  Just going to be mindful of what I put in my mouth so no big plans.  Just tracking and being mindful.  Drinking more water, less sugar.  

It's nice to get back to normal (haha).  At least what I've been used to the last 9 months.  In my office at home, working at my desk.    Setting my meal plans so we have things to eat at dinner other than fast food.  I guess that's one thing that WFH has helped with.  Making better dinners for us.  I refuse to go back to eating on the fly.  This is working out so much better for us.