Early Summer Books

 I was interested in reading Wild by Cheryl Strayed since I liked her earlier book, Torch, so much. A few years ago, she was a visiting writer when I was in the MFA program and gave a great reading. And signed a copy to my honorary Jewish grandmother. So I added Wild to my list at the library and waited my turn. Once I got my hands on it, I could not put it down. I opened Wild on Saturday night and by Sunday afternoon I was done. Wow! was my first reaction. This was the best book I've read in a long time.  While the book is about her journey hiking the Pacific Crescent Trail from California to Washington, it also delves into her relationship with her parents, the end of her marriage, the loss of her mother, how her sibling relationships changed, and more.  I'm still thinking about it. 

At the library I came across The Kitchen God's Wife by Amy Tan on CD and I listened to it in my car.  I didn't like the setup, probably the first CD or so, but then once Tan got into the story I was hooked.  I was driving slowly to listen to this good book.  It was interesting and some beautiful storytelling.  It was very satisfying.

The Breakdown Lane by Jacquelyn Mitchard got a medium amount of hype and kind of mixed reviews, so I waited until it was available on my Kindle from the library.  It's about an advice columnist whose lawyer husband leaves their family.  The point of view changed from the wife to the son and that's the only thing that stopped it from being totally predictable. Not worth a beach read.

I wanted to like A Changed Man by Francine Prose about a sort-of reformed skinhead who approaches a human rights nonprofit run by a Holocaust survivor.  The writing was pretty good but the story was weak and unbelievable.

The best word to describe The Kingdom of Childhood by Rebecca Coleman is creepy. A middle-aged Waldorf Kindergarten teacher has an extramarital affair with a sixteen-year old student. Eurythmy and child molestation?  Yuck. Disjointed and unrealistic, I kept reading because I wanted it to get better. It didn't.

What happens when I can't sleep?  I read books on my Kindle that I got from the library while everyone else sleeps.  Pictures of You by Caroline Leavitt is about two women leaving their husbands who get in a car crash.  One of them dies and the other one falls in love with her husband after he finds out his wife had an affair.  Of course.

How I Know I'm A Grown Up #33

I buy the clean version of songs on iTunes.

Today I am grateful for air conditioning, my EZ pass, a spare phone charger, clean water, friends, used books, my slow cooker, when Babyface puts his arms around my neck and his head on my shoulder, watermelon, going bed early, and having things to look forward to.

Today I got up with Babyface and did the usual routine while My Heart's Desire slept in, determined that the dirtiest thing in the room (bottom of shoe, trash can pedal) is exactly the thing Babyface will want to put in his mouth, made crab and avocado salad (very tasty but not too filling), finished The Breakdown Lane, took a nap, played with Babyface, made fruit salad, took it to a friend's cookout, enjoyed sitting in the shade and chatting, and downloaded more library books on my Kindle.

The Imperfectionists.

I wasn't sure what to expect from Tom Rachman's The Imperfectionists and was surprised that I got a kick out of it.  I read it on my commute and enjoyed it. This book is a novel in interconnected stories, each one good enough to stand alone.

Bean and Corn Enchiladas

These enchiladas are so good it's hard to believe how easy they are to make. It's just assembly then baking. I often make them ahead (assemble on Sunday, bake on Tuesday). And since it's no more trouble to make two pans than one, I double it and freeze the other pan.

Ingredients (for one pan):

1 can mild or medium enchilada sauce. 
1 can refried or 2 cans of black beans
1 can corn
1 package shredded Mexican cheese mix (I use light but regular's fine too)
1 package tortillas
1/2 cup or so chopped onions







Pour half of the can of enchilada sauce into a Pyrex casserole dish.  Any rectangle or square shaped one is fine.

Put one of the tortillas down in the sauce and put in one handful each of beans and cheese, maybe half a handful of corn.  Add around a tbsp of the chopped onions.  Roll the whole thing up so there's sauce on most of the outside of the tortilla.

Repeat filling and rolling tortillas until there's no more room in the pan.

Then pour the remaining sauce over the top of the tortillas.  Spread the remaining cheese on the top too.

Bake at 350* for 20-30 minutes. 

Bean and corn enchiladas are great with salad and rice.  I usually substitute 1/4 cup of salsa for water when making rice in the rice cooker and it turns out terrific.

Today I am grateful for big sunglasses, registering for parenting class in the fall, portraits of Babyface, the cheap gas station near my office, Kermit Ruffins & Rebirth Brass Band, summer fruit, that I know how to type, having time to mull decisions, and having things to look forward to.

The Worst Book I Ever Read

I read a lot of books and when I don't care for a book, I usually don't say anything at all.  However, this book was so bad I can't help it. 

Why did I even read one word of Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith?  For the book club that I recently joined.  The women seem nice and almost everyone reads the book. And that this month's book club was the last book club event until fall. 

Thankfully, I got this book from the library and read it on my Kindle.  If I had paid even one penny for it, I would have lobbied to get my money back.  Grahame-Smith's book was almost campy in it's badness.  Characters were more like caricatures.  A fourth grader could have predicted the ending.  I was mad at myself for reading it.

What's the worst book you ever read?

Baby Food for Babyface

Everything that Babyface eats, I make.  I've been pretty much steaming veggies and fruits and then puréeing them in the small food processor.  On weekends, I spend an hour or so making purees and then freezing them in ice cube trays.  It's been fine but as the weather gets warmer, I don't like heating up the house.
Last weekend I poked holes in sweet potatoes with a sharp knife, put them in the slow cooker with a cup of water or so, and cooked them on low for three hours.  Then I pureed them in the small food processor.  So easy!  And it doesn't heat up the whole kitchen like using the oven or stove.

About a month ago I broke our old small food processor, it was the 2.5 cup Cuisiniart mini, which had done its job for at least seven years.  So when My Heart's Desire saw this one on sale at Costco, he snapped it up for a song.  It has no bells or whistles, but is perfect for this job.

At the farm stand today I bought some beets and am going to try them in the slow cooker tomorrow.  I puree everything — the beets, the stalks, and the greens.  So far beets are a big hit with Babyface.

Today I got up with Babyface, cuddled and played with him, made a tin and a half of breakfast frittatas, played more, put him down for a nap, worked out, took Babyface to JCP to get his supercute portrait taken, went to our last parenting class (sniff), came home and put him down for another nap, ate goat cheese and apple while watching part of Mad Men On Demand, had Homestyle Roast Chicken with asparagus, cauliflower, and rice with My Heart's Desire, watched the rest of my show, and started my book club book, Abraham Lincoln:Vampire Hunter.

2012 Goals: May Update

Writing
1) My writing group decided to share work in mid-June.  It turns out I wasn't that crazy about the essay so now I'm mulling on something else.
2)  Just like in April, I blogged 7 times this month, which is just shy of my goal of 8 times. 

Healthy
3) I worked out four times a week and wrote it all down on paper. I have to be flexible since Babyface sometimes still gets up in the middle of the night.  One night when he was teething with a fever, he got up every 90 minutes from 7pm - 4am.

Romance
4) I did not go on any dates with My Heart's Desire.  I emailed our babysitter to make arrangements and found out she was going to India for a while.  So, no date for us.  I also put up an ad for a backup babysitter.

Parenting
5) The parenting classes were extended by another month so Babyface and I are enjoying that very much.  I listened to most of Jane Eyre (just to get that extra Britishness) and attended a book club through one of the Mom organizations I belong to.  It is always strange showing up to an event where I know nobody, but I was glad I went.