Weekending
Friday, I subbed but it was only for half a day in the afternoon. That meant I got to sleep in (all the way to just after 6:00 am when Donnie's alarm woke me up- which is later than I get up on days that I sub in the morning) and had more time to do my normal morning routine of reading while eating breakfast. Then I ran five miles on the treadmill, showered and got ready for school. Subbing was all right- seventh grade~ Friday afternoon~ end of week and nearing the end of the school year excitement~ math- all those factored into not having a perfect half day at school but it was fine ;).
Friday after school I ran to the grocery store. Normally on days that I work, as soon as I come home, I am in hermit mode and try to not leave the house. However, because I only worked half a day, I wasn't feeling as hermity as I normally do so I ran an errand to pick up some grocery items for a meal we were hosting on Saturday. Found some great deals that made my sugar and deal loving heart happy- Easter candy for 70%. YES!!
Alyssa volunteered to pick up food for us for dinner. She also picked up her best friend and they both had dinner with us. Later Donnie and I went on a walk and then watched Netflix (we are watching Good Girls- very far fetched (I like that it takes place in Michigan but none of the actors have that ubiquitous Michigan accent) but entertaining, nonetheless).
Saturday morning was not storming (the forecast had portended bad weather) when I woke up so I ran outside and then came home to shower and get the house ready for guests coming to over later for dinner. This was a two pronged effort for the house was not ready for guests and I had done no prep work for the meal. It was good to do some deep (well, deeper) cleaning than I normally do and dinner work was not that difficult or time consuming because I was not preparing a feast.
I made Italian beef for the main course. One of the easiest and good tasting main course meals that I know how to prepare is this recipe:
Place a beef roast in a crock pot. I trimmed as much fat off of it as I could (not a fun endeavor but the result was no grisly meat so it was worth it...). Then I added a packet of zesty Italian seasoning to the top of the beef. I took a jar of pepperoncini and added about five pepperoncini and some of the juice from the jar- I never measure, I just add some. I added some beef broth that I had in a carton in the refrigerator. That is it. The key is to have the beef in the crock pot on low for nine to ten hours. By nine hours, I can usually shred the beef. I also taste it at this point and if it doesn't taste spicy enough, I add another pepperoncini or two. Everyone who likes beef likes this- since it's so easy to make and is a crowd pleaser, it's a good option for company. Highly recommend! You could eat the meat as is if watching carb intake but if not, add a bun and some cheese. Leftovers are a bonus, obviously!
I also made monster cookies. I had not made such cookies in a long time and something different but with traditional ingredients sounded good. I used this recipe and they turned out quite tasty. I used some candy coated Cadburry eggs that I had gotten at clearance at the grocery store in lieu of the M &M's. They were arguably too big for the cookies but no one complained.
Our friends who are moving back to town after 15 years of living hours away from us are moving back to town. That's who we had over for dinner. We had a great time catching up and talking current events. They stayed for hours and we have plans to get together again soon.
Sunday was church followed by relaxing most of the day. The three of us hung out on the deck after we ate lunch. The sun was shining so I brought my book out on to read. Unfortunately, it was a little too windy for my liking so I went back inside. I continued to read inside and Alyssa ran errands for us later in the afternoon- I am loving her loving her to drive. We just give her a list and money and she is good to go. Donnie and I had leftovers for dinner and then we took a walk and watched more of our show while Alyssa did homework.
What an awesome weekend Maria! Kudos to you on all of the running you got in- you are amazing!
ReplyDeleteI feel like we're very similar in that I also am very hermit-y after being around lots of people. Sundays just about do me in each week, when I have to be around friends all morning and afternoon at church. I totally felt that sentence that you wrote on this topic and it made me smile.
ReplyDeleteMy family also loves that Italian beef- I make that too, but instead of beef broth, I add one can or bottle of beer into it and it kicks up the flavor factor. You should try it that way! Beer is a great meat tenderizer. I have to make two full roasts to feed our family when I make that for dinner! Boys and their meat and potato selves...I always serve it with oven roasted potatoes that are crispy. They're good to absorb some of that gravy.
How nice to have friends over! An older friend once gave me that bit of marriage advice- to entertain often because it forces you to do things to your house you normally wouldn't get done. I thought it was excellent advice! I hope you had a great Monday, my friend!