Slice of Life #5

I’m obsessed with this family portrait my daughter drew. It’s insanely accurate, minus how little the baby is, the fact that he’s wrapped in a red blanket, and my daughter wearing a hat.

The sun has emerged and it’s starting to feel like Spring might actually come one of these days. We’re still not adventuring outside too much. I feel like I can’t get on top of keeping my house in order (maybe I never will), but it’s hard for me to take off for the morning when I know I could spend that time cleaning the bathroom / putting away toys / folding laundry / doing dishes / blogging.

I’ve decided to attend Go Blog Social in Kansas City next month. If you’ll be there let me know, I’d love to meet up! Or if you’ve ever been to Kansas City and have some recommendations on vegetarian eating or things to do I want to hear it!

What have we been eating:

Vegetarian Enchiladas with Poblano Cream Sauce
Cajun Chicken Wrap (minus the chicken)
Black Bean Patties
Italian Quinoa Casserole
Deep Dish Pizza
Vegetarian Baked Southwest Egg Rolls
Black Bean Pizza (I add a can of pinto beans instead of the meat)
Spaghetti Aglio Olio
Roasted Tomato and Garlic Linguini
Spicy BBQ Chickpea and Crispy Polenta Bowls with Ranch Hummus

Are you up for talking tv? I’m so glad Parenthood is back but my emotions still can’t handle it. Joel and Julia are both being completely stupid. Is anyone else exhausted by Sarah’s romantic endeavors? She should not be allowed to be around men. I’m sad that True Detective is over. If you haven’t seen it yet I highly recommend it. The first few episodes are engrossing but slow. The second half of the season really takes off and builds to (what I thought to be) a satisfying conclusion. Did you hear the next season will be a totally new story and new characters? I don’t know how to feel about that. The Walking Dead has been knocking it out of the park lately. The Daryl/Beth episode was a little frustrating because I wanted to know what everyone else was up to, but it really made the events of this week that much more heartbreaking. I hate having everyone split up because I want to know what’s happening to everyone all. of. the. time. Then when we do follow people bad things happen and I get all stressed out. Why do I watch tv again?

After our trip to Milwaukee, I was forced to take all three kids with me to the grocery store. Usually I go alone on Sundays, and even though it still sucks it is the ideal situation. To their credit they were perfect angels once they were nestled in this monster cart with enough snacks to last until Y3K. That baby still looks a little devilish though, right?

On a more serious note, I feel like it’s time for a little life update. There are some things that I haven’t really shared in this space but that anyone who knows me in “real life” would be fully aware of.

On March 14, 2008 my dad had a seizure out of nowhere. From there the doctors discovered he had brain cancer and we embarked on a long journey of surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy. While his doctor told him he could expect to live a year from that point, he responded remarkably well to the treatments. He has been fighting yet slowly deteriorating since then. Most recently he has been spending time in a nursing home where they are better able to care for his needs and occasionally having stays in the hospital after having seizures.

Since my dad entered the nursing home it has been hard to prioritize spending time taking pictures of food when I could be spending that time driving the five minutes to wherever he may be (both the hospital and nursing home he has been in are much closer to me than his house is) and spending that time together.

With all of that being said, I wanted you to know what was going on and why there are so few recipes churning out of my kitchen. I honestly love the entire blogging process and providing you with a virtual meal or treat and am not breaking up with you. There just aren’t always enough hours in the day.

You can still expect at least one recipe a week and I will do more as I am able. Thank you for understanding some silence every now and then in this busy time.

So what have you been up to? Eaten anything good? Does The Walking Dead have you seeing a therapist? What should I watch now that True Detective is over?