Here Comes the Rain Again

It’s almost the middle of July, right?  Because I’m in Northeast Ohio and it hasn’t been warmer than mid 80s in a few weeks.  Right now, we’re getting hit with a thunderstorm and the temperature dropped into the 70s.  We've usually had some 90+ degree days by now but not this year.  I know I shouldn't be complaining but it's just weird.  In fact, the weather’s been all wonky this year, though.  When our old hometown of Greenwich, CT gets more snow than we do here, in the Snow Belt of the United States, you know something's wrong.

Today was the first day back at work after a weird work week (we had Thursday off for the holiday but had to work on Friday) and, naturally, the day took forever.  Between the email server screwing up for a good part of the morning (and again after lunch, but just for me because I'm special - no comments) and having to start the leg work for our FY13 audit (we haven't even closed last fiscal year yet but the auditors want us to start sending out bank confirmation already), it definitely wasn't my day.  The only thing that really worked was I managed to sneak in a 1 mile walk during lunch, and that was really nice.

Then I get home and what do I hear?  DD#3 asking for a human-eating lizard and DD#4 asking why we don’t own a thundershirt.  No, we don’t have a dog and, thus, have no need for a thundershirt.  Apparently she thought it might help her with thunderstorms.  I know she’s 7 and that she’s creative (putting it nicely) but DD#4 really takes the “I’m almost as weird as my Daddy” thing too far.  (Those who know DH in real life can vouch that DD#4's comments sound like something her father would say.)  At least she’s now arguing with DH about watching Doctor Who on his computer because the TV keeps going out because of the storm.  (Why yes, we do have DirecTV?  How could you possibly have guessed?  *snert*)  Listening to him repeat over and over that the storm has no effect on Netflix and that streams to the television via our Wii system is definitely amusing.  Nice that someone else in the house has to deal with the typical barrage of "Why?  Why?  Why?" questions for tonight. 

Wisely though, DD's #1 & 2 have been avoiding me.  Maybe they're afraid of getting in trouble for not doing chores or because they overheard the younger 2's conversations with me and figured I need a break.  Either way, I'm a little grateful because it allows me some "alone" time.  With 4 kids living at home, that doesn't happen all that often but when it does, it's appreciated.

I spent yesterday afternoon cooking meals for use during the week (breaded pork chops – which were last night’s dinner, barbecued chicken, and Yankee pot roast) and what does everyone want for dinner tonight?  Yep, you guessed it.  Hot dogs and baked French fries.  WTF?  DH was off work today (as he worked yesterday) so he could have cooked something or just reheated one of my pre-cooked frozen dinner options.  But, no, everyone wanted my lazy “OMG I totally forgot about getting dinner ready!” fallback dinner.  *grrr*  Although it was nice that when my ex-husband called, while I was in the middle of getting dinner prepared, that I had the handy "I'm in the middle of making dinner and can't talk" line available for use.  I really wish he'd remember that we're divorced, we're not friends (I tolerate him for the sake of our daughters), and I don't really care that he's nowhere near the area in Florida that's under hurricane warning.  It's like he forgets that we've been divorced 15 years.  I only have 1 1/2 years left of being nice to him, because that's when DD#2 turns 18.  I'll be civil to him for the girls' sake but I definitely don't want to be friends with him.  (Those who know the circumstances of our divorce definitely know why I don't want to deal with him any more than necessary.  Suffice to say, he's not a pleasant person.)

OMG, DD#2 just came out and told me that her conversation with my ex-MIL involved her weight.  DD#2 put on a few pounds this year but is definitely not obese by any stretch of the imagination.  Apparently her grandmother wanted to know how the dieting is going (note:  she isn't on one) and if she lost any of that weight she put on.  Seriously?!  Because she's no longer a size 3, you're going to start in on her?  Is it because DD#1 lost a full dress size since graduation, thanks to no longer eating the over-processed crap sold in the school cafeteria and actually exercising in the mornings?  One of these days, my ex-MIL is going to understand that I've always struggled with my weight (slow metabolism) and my girls seem to have the same problem.  They're not skinny twigs like their cousins.  My girls have to keep active to keep their weight at healthy levels and no matter how much they work out, they're never going to be a size 0.  (I can't believe I'm going to have to explain to her, yet again, that it's okay that my daughters wear a size 3 or 5.  As long as their doctor says they're healthy and they stay active, I'm not going to jump on them for gaining 10 lbs. or throw a party for them losing 10.)

Tonight I should be dying my hair (thanks again to my father for passing on the “graying WAY too early in life” gene) and maybe painting my nails.  Instead I’ll end up doing the chores that the kids blew off today because, silly me, I didn’t write a list of what I wanted them to do.  You’d think they would be capable of looking around, see stuff to be done, and (oh I don’t know) just do it.  Or that DH could remind them during the day.  But no, if it’s not written down by Mom on the Boogie Board (love that thing!) on the refrigerator, apparently it doesn’t get done.  Then, again, there have been MANY days where I’ve written stuff down and they still didn’t do it.  *double grrr*  I should be happy that at least the dishes were washed, even though they weren't put away.

Well, since I’m the one doing chores tonight, I guess I’ll pop on some Foo Fighters and grab the broom.   ¯¯One of these days... the ground will drop out… from... beneath your feet¯¯

See you later.

I "relish" the days where not everything is "jam"med (and yes, I suck at puns)

In addition to cooking a few meals for next week, I spent part of the day making a half batch of strawberry jam and a full batch of corn/pepper relish.  For those that don't know, I love to can homemade goodies, for use during the non-peak growing seasons.  There's nothing as awesome as a smear of homemade jam on a hot biscuit in the middle of December.  And the relish is just as good as a side dish at a picnic as it is spooned onto a hot dog (in place of a traditional dill pickle relish.)  So, I thought I'd share these two recipes with you.  Hope you enjoy them as much as I do!

STRAWBERRY JAM (modified recipe from Martha Stewart Living)
4 lbs. strawberries, rinsed, hulled, and cut into 1" pieces
5 C granulated sugar
*Note:  You can choose to add 2 Tbsp. pectin if you so wish.  This recipe will set correctly with or without it.

Put a small plate or saucer in the freezer.  Place berries in a non-reactive 10-quart stockpot over medium-high heat.  Using a wooden spoon, mix in 1/4 C sugar with the berries.  Cook, stirring, until berries are juicy (5 - 6 minutes.)  Stir in a third of the remaining sugar and pectin (if using) until dissolved.  Repeat until all the sugar has been added and dissolved, about 7 minutes total.

Bring mixture to a full boil and cook, stirring, for 10 minutes.  Continue boiling and use a stainless-steel spoon to remove the pink foam from surface of berry mixture.  Boil until most of the liquid is absorbed, mixture thickens, and temperature registers 220 degrees F on a candy thermometer (about 30 minutes.)  If you don't have a thermometer, you can perform a "gel" test (place a spoonful of the jam on the chilled plate and return to the freezer for a minute or two.  Remove plate from freezer and gently press the jam with your finger.  It should wrinkle slightly.

After jam passes the gel test (or hits 220 degrees), remove from heat.  Pour warm jam into 10 half-pint jars and:
to refrigerate - seal, label, and refrigerate for up to 4 months
to can - process jars in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes, cool, label, and store
Makes 10 half-pints of jam


CORN/PEPPER RELISH (from Karen Solomon, blogger for Williams-Sonoma and author of several amazing cookbooks - seriously, Google her.  You won't be disappointed!)

1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
3 3/4 C diced sweet red bell peppers (3 or 4 peppers)
1 Tbsp. kosher salt
4 C fresh or thawed frozen corn kernels
1 3/4 C diced red onion (1 very large onion)
1 1/2 C apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 C sugar
1/2 tsp. ground turmeric

In a large skilled over medium-high heat, warm the oil.  Add the peppers and salt, and saute, stirring often, until the peppers soften and begin to caramelize (about 12 minutes.)  Add the corn, stirring to combine, and cook the vegetables until the corn is hot (3 - 4 more minutes.)  Turn off the heat and add the onion to the pan; stir well.

In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the vinegar, sugar, and turmeric, and stir just until the sugar dissolves (about 2 minutes.)

Pack the vegetables into 3 clean 1-pint jars, and pour the warm brine over the vegetables to cover completely, discarding any unused brine.  To can the relish for longer storage, process the jars for canning (10 minutes, hot water bath canning method.)  Otherwise, cover tightly and let the relish sit at room temperature for a day before moving it to the refrigerator.  Refrigerated, this will keep for up to 6 months.  Canned, it will keep for up to 1 year.  Makes three 1-pint jars.