Thank you so much for your well wishes, both in terms of my progress toward my to-do list, and in terms of my health. The former is going better than I anticipated (the electrician AND the furnace person have been here since I posted! yay!) and I got a call back from 2/3 of the pool people I left a message for. (The first one left a message and I need to call them back. The second person called, I spoke to him and got some details, he asked me to text him to see if I was in his service area and if I wasn’t he would recommend someone who was; I texted him and he never followed up.)
I am feeling so much better, but also I am pretty sure I have a sinus infection. (By the way, Word is insisting that “sinus” is misspelled. I really don’t think it is, but that little red underline is making me question everything I thought I knew.) A sinus infection is typical for me, when I have a cold. Alas, even though I feel like I recognize the symptoms, it’s one of those things where you have to wait for at least ten days before you can call the doctor, or they will say, “Well, colds can linger. Give it at least ten days and then give me a call back.” No way am I making ONE MORE CALL than I need to. Especially because today I also need to call the orthodontist about a loose bracket and try to convince them that they should see Carla after school and not in the middle of the school day, even though they seem completely baffled every time I suggest the latter.
Carla did end up calling the hair salon to make an appointment for my husband. She did a great job. The only mildly amusing thing was that the scheduler didn’t question her AT ALL. Just said, “Oh, you’re making an appointment for your daddy? What’s his name?” and then went through with scheduling the appointment like it was totally normal for a ten-year-old to be in charge of her father’s calendar. Maybe it is! I am not complaining! I just thought she might get some gentle pushback, like, “Oh, is your daddy there helping you make this call?” or something. I don’t even know. Perhaps since there have been multiple times when people have asked me, a grown woman, whether my husband is there to give his permission for me to talk to them about things for which we share joint ownership, I thought it might be a little more difficult for a CHILD to make an appointment not that I am bitter or jaded or anything.
Oh right, we’re supposed to be talking about DINNERS. What are you in the mood to eat, Internet? I’ve got nothing. And yet I cannot have nothing, because it’s part of my job to plan the meals!
Time to scroll my endless lists of meal ideas…
Dinners for the Week of March 4-10
- One Pan Chicken, Sweet Potatoes, and Broccoli: It’s a sheet pan meal kind of week, I think. Plus, I already have broccoli in my fridge and chicken in my freezer. Maybe a sweet potato will materialize on my car hood tomorrow morning. The thing about sweet potatoes is that I always WANT to like them and then don’t like them in practice. But this dish sounds really good. So probably this is the one time when I WILL like them. Right? Right.
- Lentil and Chickpea Salad with Feta: I’m in a lentil state of mind lately. I plan to eat this alongside some roasted salmon, but will make a chicken breast for my husband because I don’t want him to hate his life.
- Crockpot Balsamic Pork Tenderloin: We haven’t had this in a hot minute! Yum. I could eat a big pile of this tangy shredded pork right now. (We serve it over rice with caramelized onions, feta, kalamata olives, and sundried tomatoes. Look at me, dual-purposing the feta rather than putting half a block in the fridge until it liquifies.)
- Fish Tacos: You know tacos are one of my love languages. Let’s be honest. I will probably use fish sticks instead of buying and cooking wild cod. Wild cod is EXCELLENT, but fish sticks are EASY.
Because I spend too much time ogling recipes on Instagram, I have also been influenced to make this three-ingredient yogurt cake. There is no way it will actually resemble Basque cheesecake right? That is just a pipe dream? But if I can persuade Carla to try it, it will feel like a win. A high-protein win. We’ll see.
Omg, orthodontists. Why. Why. Why. You know what, if an orthodontist’s office hours were like before and after school/ evening, that orthodontist would be the most popular one in town, and could probably charge a premium for their services. Why. Basically 99% of their clientele is in school and yet, do they ever have appointments not during school hours? I remember when J was in high school, calling to make an appointment for “as late in the day as possible.” They were like, how about 1:00. Why. I figured out fast how to get the last appointments, which were still only at 3:30 or 4, which was still a stretch, but WHY PEOPLE.
Can I just say that I never even considered fish tacos made with fish sticks and I am HERE FOR IT. You have broadened my horizons! Thank you!
I feel the same about sweet potatoes – except for the fries, I love sweet potato fries!!
That’s miserable to have to wait for 10 days. In my experience, sinus infections often don’t clear up on their own. I get them rarely. I love fish sticks–no judgment here!
Glad you’re feeling better. It’s sweet that Carla was able to schedule the appointment like a grown-up treated like the one she is down deep.
YAY! So glad you are feeling better. And YAY, that Carla didn’t get any pushback – gentle or not. What better way to build her confidence? Also, see? Those Power Hours are already yielding results.
Does a handful of stale gummy bears count as dinner? Asking for a friend. 😉
Having a precocious 10-year-old, I’d also be concerned that her calling to make the appointment didn’t raise a flag. My girl would run with that freedom and I’m sure I’d be signed up for all sorts of appointments (as would her dad, haha)! Sinus infections are so oof – I hope that it resolves and you don’t have to make another call (but, if you do, then I hope that the call is quick, as is a med/solution!)…
I laughed at how you don’t want your husband to hate his life. I’m in the same boat . . . I would prefer chicken over fish. Does he eat fish? I do not. I would eat fish sticks or whatever shape, but breaded stuff doesn’t work for my GF self.
I’m ALL about trying this 3 ingredient cheesecake. This might be life changing for me, in which case I will be indebted to you. I’ll keep you posted.
Also, sheet pan dish looks great. I love sweet potatoes, but I needed stitches when I tried to cut into one. I buy them individually wrapped and ready for the microwave and eat them with my meal often.
Yeah, I think it’s a little weird that they didn’t question a ten-year-old making an appointment for her father. Very trusting on their part, but it must have made Carla feel good!
I’m looking at that lentil salad… I would make it without the feta but it looks good. Last week I did all sorts of cooking and this week I have no desire to cook. I would love to have a lentil salad in the fridge though.
That yogurt pie is intriguing and sounds diabetes-friendly (not that I don’t eat other treats, as you know, but it’s nice to be able to have a whole serving of something).
North’s had late rehearsals all last week, continuing into this week and they haven’t been able to cook on their night (Thursdays). Normally that day would revert back to me because I am the default cook, but I just didn’t feel like taking on an extra day so I told everyone they could fend for themselves those nights. I felt a little guilty about it, but I just didn’t have any extra menu planning in me. It’s the planning more than the cooking that gets me.
Anyway Beth made red beans and kale with Irish brown bread on Sunday; my plan for Monday to Wednesday is baked eggs with chard and leeks, tofu-broccoli stir fry, and spoon bread with vegetarian sausage and Brussels sprouts; Friday’s pizza; and Noah’s making manicotti on Saturday.
You have to wait 10 days for a sinus infection? Wow, I had no idea. I have only had one or two that I know of in my life, and don’t remember such details, but I do remember that they are painful. I hope it goes away on its own, or is maybe gone already.
We had the worst pork chops ever last night, and tonight was turkey chili from the freezer. Maybe I’ll get inventive tomorrow? (I used Worcestershire on the pork chops, so I didn’t salt them, and they had no flavor. And I overcooked them, so they were dry. Bah.)
Grrr! I’ve had those times when I knew that my “cold” wasn’t going away, the doc told me to “just wait”, and yada yada yada I waited and got bronchitis or pneumonia. Sigh.
Anytime that you have the option to use fish sticks…you should use fish sticks!
Ugh, I am no stranger to the sinus infection, although sometimes I do just get colds that last forever. My new doctor actually insisted I take an antibiotic because something that had stayed around that long was probably now bacterial, when I was only there for a cough, which was a pleasant surprise. I think I need a referral to an ENT at this point because I have not been headache-free since before the new year.
Fish sticks for fish tacos is BRILLIANT.
That is not only sweet about Carla making the appointment but impressive. I made Eve start making her own doctor’s appointments when she turned 18 and she was extremely bitter lol, but she shares my phone phobia.
My son’s orthodontist has a policy that if you’ve had an after- or before-school appt last, then your next appt must be DURING school. It seemed fair in theory, but in practice I felt like we ALWAYS got offered the during-school appts.
Every time you post that Balsamic pork t’loin recipe I’m intrigued. One of these days I’m going to try it.
Hope you feel better soon.
Yup – ortho is fun. I am trying to schedule them at the very start of the day (so she doesn’t go to school at all, but then I drop her off when we’re done) or almost at the end of the day so I can just get her early but then she doesn’t have to go back. Smack dab in the middle is the WORST and we’ve only done that once.
I love that Carla called and made the appointment. You are giving me IDEAS.
I have never bought a single fish stick in the last decade, but it’s kinda brilliant for fish tacos!
I am excited to try that Balsamic Pork. I am printing it off this actual minute and will make it in a few weeks. It looks easy and delicious which is, no surprise, my favourite type of recipe.
*I’m back* – I’m also printing off the yogurt cake! It sounds like a delicious spin on my beloved German/Dutch Baby pancakes. Will report back on this too <3
Fish sticks for fish tacos?! YES, PLEASE!
I love that Carla made the appointment. She has more bravery than I do. ❤️
My kids LOVE fish sticks, especially Paul. I never thought to see if he would eat them inside a taco! I must try this!
We have been living on leftover pizza from Paul’s family party mostly. I made carnitas in the instantpot on Sunday for lunch but it was so so so fatty so I am not really inspired to eat more of the pork. But there is a lot left so I will have to get over that. we did make some pork nachos 2 nights ago and I will probably use the rest to make pork enchiladas this weekend. We are also grilling burgers tonight since it’s so mild outside!
High 5 to Carla for making that appt! I bet the person scheduling it was so charmed by her! I would outsource more scheduling to her! Ha.
I definitely need to hear back from the people who try the yogurt cake! I am intrigued, though I can’t tell you how annoyed I am a a 3-ingredient cake with 4 ingredients listed. I don’t care that one is optional! Truth in recipe naming, please. Ahem. Anyway, I would love to hear from a real person who tried it before I take the plunge.
You don’t like sweet potatoes? This is stunning to me. They are the superior potato in all forms – baked, mashed, roasted. More sweet potatoes for me!!
we are currently done with the ortho (until Dorothy needs round 2 the poor thing) and it is LOVELY. (Harry, then Dorothy for a palate expander and first round of braces and then Coop– Jack has straight teeth **praise hands**) It’s just so inconvenient always. Toward the very end of his stint, Harry could take himself to his appointments because the ortho is right across the street from the high school, so that was kind of awesome. I also get sinus infections every darn time I have a cold– yuck. Hope you get meds quickly.
I remember the days of trying to book every appointment after school hours and it wasn’t easy.
I love that Carla booked her Dad’s hair appointment! She’s a bright and fun girl.
Not sure why your post just showed up today. When I saw: Dinners this week, I had a moment of not knowing what day it was. I mean, I thought it was Friday, but maybe it IS Monday?
I’m glad you’re feeling better and let’s NOT put the sinus infection thing into the universe. 🙂
We do fish tacos with fish sticks all the time too! The ones from TJs are pretty “healthy,” not like the fish sticks we used to eat as kids! Then we also put cabbage on them, and that’s a vegetable so it must all be good for you.
My Dad used to make me call to make dinner reservations and I was so afraid that they would ask me a question I would not know how to answer, but they always just made the reservation without questions! Kids are pretty charming, although we also started doing prank calls around that age, so maybe we (adults) need to watch out!
Gosh! I’ve been out of touch. I hope you’re feeling better! Sinus infections are the worst… I’ve lost my sense of smell and taste a couple of times because of them.
I’m so impressed with Carla’s scheduling capabilities. I have a teenager who wants me to convey their order to the wait staff at restaurants, so this is especially magical to me!
Those fish tacos *heart eye emoji* Can I please come over when you do those.