There was nothing truly monumental, but a series of little things that just kept adding up and made it one very memorable week indeed!

First, the Teen got her G1 driver’s license. In Ontario they like to call things by silly names. Everywhere else, it’s called your “learner’s permit”. She was in no hurry to get it, clearly, since she’s almost 17! (I got mine when I was 14, and my license on my 16th birthday, for pete’s sake!)

Here she is wearing her boyfriend’s hoodie for good luck, and waiting to write her written test (which she aced, first time!)

I knew she’d pass the test with flying colours, and she did. Then came the scary as all get out fun part… actually driving!

Wednesday is cadets, which explains the uniform… I let her drive to pick up her BFF, and she’s parked in her driveway calling her to get her rear in gear. That girl is always making us wait. I had a video of her leaving our house, but of course I held my iphone the wrong way, and it’s sideways. Grrr. Anyone know how to rotate a video so it plays without making people strain themselves trying to watch it??

We picked up her BFF, and she drove all the way to the ship without getting us killed or damaged in any way (except emotionally)!

That evening, my cadet got quite a lovely shock – she was promoted to Chief Petty Officer 2nd Class (CPO2)! This was completely unexpected, and came after a great amount of upheaval within the corps. I won’t even go into that, but suffice it to say it was not pretty, was due to a CO who is most definitely not worth his salt (and is fortunately about to be relieved of command), and was bad enough to cause one long-time cadet to hand in her uniform and walk away. The Teen was the same rank as the departing cadet, and equally dedicated to their minions subordinate cadets. It was quite a shock for the whole corps.

On another note entirely, I don’t talk about it much, but we battle A.D.D. in our household, and have for a long time. At first, when the Teen started middle school and her grades started to slide down that slippery slope, we didn’t know what to call it, either. Ok, I suspected, but didn’t want to label it. I also swore I’d never put my kids on drugs. Well, a few months ago, faced with “un-good” grades, and given the stark fact that she has only a short time left in high school, we decided to seek help for the Teen. It was an easy testing process, and answered a lot of questions for us. We tried a series of drugs to help her focus (these are not the drugs they used to give kids way-back-when that turned them into zombies), and found one that works for her – now I wish we had done this years ago!! She brought home her first “A” in English with her last report card, and the difference it has made to her has been phenomenal. The drug, which is at a relatively low dosage, has had no side effects whatsoever except that she is now able to focus her attention on her teacher and her work. Not only that, but her frustration levels have plummeted, and she’s a much happier, relaxed young lady. What a difference!

The Teen also got called for 2 different job interviews this week! Exciting stuff. I love to see her becoming such a capable young adult. I’m so very proud of my kid!

Sunday was a big day for me; It was, of course, Mother’s Day, which was quiet but lovely. I was showered with flowers and cards by my family, and the Hubby cooked a lovely meal for both my mother and I.

I also received my latest in the series of guest posts I have every Monday. Sherry left it to the very last second because she knew I’d have an issue with her subject matter, and didn’t want me to have time to make her do something else!! She was always the biggest brat, and clearly she hasn’t changed a bit.

We also decided to book a vacation for our 20th anniversary (which is June 1st), and will be trying out a Sandals resort we’ve heard great things about. Can’t wait!!

Yep, it was a pretty great week for the Teen and I.

By the way, yesterday (Wednesday) marked the 98th week for Sensational Haiku Wednesday! Can you believe we’re coming up on our 100th anniversary in 2 weeks?? You have to know the theme will be anniversary related. Not only will it be the 100th anniversary for the meme, but my blog will shortly be 2 years old, of course the Hubby and I will be celebrating our 20th anniversary, plus Main Street -albeit a bit the worse for wear at the moment – will celebrate it’s 2nd anniversary as well – all within a handful of days of each other!

Exciting times in these parts, folks! So glad you can all be a part of it! That said, even if you don’t generally haiku, I really hope that you participate for our 100th week anniversary. It’s a big one, and it would mean a lot to me. Thanks :)

Unless you’ve achieved Iron Chef status in your home’s kitchen (or live alone), you hear that more often than you’d like. (Here’s where you say “Yeah Jenn, you’re so right …and totally not alone in this which would mean you’re clearly a lousy cook!”)

I’m not a bad cook, but I don’t enjoy it either. I’m also no fabulous Baba like ShaMoo, who dives in and makes elaborate Ukrainian feasts that melt in your mouth (and still gets complaints from sons Frank&Frank, but never foodie-daughter Little Bit). I’m just a regular Irish-blooded mom who is at her wit’s end with regards to feeding her flock.

Here’s why.

I can’t face the idea of making the same dishes week after week. I just can’t! My family would probably be thrilled if I did though, at least for a while. They like what they like. The hubby is the biggest fuss-budget I’ve ever met. It took me the first ten years of our marriage to even get him to eat onions, for pete’s sake! Another few years to get him to even try pork tenderloin too, which he now loves. Pork chops? Forget it. Steak? Not on his watch. Roast beef? Only if it’s both a. cooked to a done-ness that makes it almost unrecognizable, and b. smothered in gravy. Are you feeling my pain yet?

Perish the thought of even trying something new. The look on his face is simply not worth it.

Case in point; I bought halibut steaks a few weeks back, and put a gorgeous crust of bleu cheese butter (exactly how it sounds – mix ‘em together) and crushed hazel nuts on it, and baked it to perfection. Sorry, I just drooled even thinking about it. Basmati rice and (I think) asparagus served along side. Oh wow, was it good. Well, *I* thought it was good.

The Teen heard we were having fish, and promptly made herself ramen noodles and disappeared into her cave room.

Wee One whined the entire meal, and had to be force hand fed, after the coating had been carefully scraped off and removed from her plate.

Hubby said nothing, kept his head down, and carefully scraped it away himself and ate in silence.

Now, Hubby loves fish (except salmon, which he’s not fond of). However, it has to be cooked in the blandest possible way or in a way that he invents, or he won’t eat it. There’s only one way that I’ve created in all this time that he has agreed that he likes and will happily eat, and that is poached in a shallow baking dish with salsa and cheddar cheese (or another equally boring, standard fare cheese) over top. I have cholesterol problems. I need to eat more fish! But breaded and fried? No thanks. Once in a while is fine, but geez. Let’s have some variety and excitement here, ok?

So you’re probably asking what we do eat, that isn’t complained about. There is very little that we eat that someone doesn’t have something to say about. I have trouble with pasta – it makes me feel terrible after eating it. Tired, bloated, blech. I suspect I have a sensitivity to gluten, or maybe even wheat overall. It’s not severe, but it’s noticeable. I try to avoid eating it if I have anything at all to do that night, although I will eat it to keep the peace and the three of them happy on nights when I’m a homebody.

We eat a lot of chicken. Hubby loves a chicken breast, bone-in, skin-on. Coated (naturally) and baked. The Teen won’t eat it unless it’s had the work taken out of it (meaning boneless, skinless). Wee One is ok with either, since I generally cut a nice chunk from a breast and she doesn’t have to do much except cut it into bites. I’m fine with either.

I love a good steak, but don’t buy them because Hubby won’t eat it (apparently he objects to the texture) and the kids don’t care either way so why bother with the expensive cuts of meat? However, nothing beats a gorgeous filet mignon cooked to perfection, and I look forward to ordering one when we’re out for a nice dinner. My father often buys a large beef tenderloin and cuts his own… yum. Sometimes I’m lucky enough to be invited over for one! OH happy DAY!

We eat a lot of pork tenderloin, too. I had a recipe posted a while back that is still one of our favourite ways to prepare it, although baked and BBQ-ed is equally great. Incidentally, J-B makes the best pork tenderloin I’ve ever had, bar-none. Don’t tell Hubby I said that though… he thinks his is the best.

When Hubby works late, the girls and I can be a bit more creative. He won’t eat shrimp, so sometimes we’ll have a shrimp dinner with some lovely rice and mixed veggies. Or a shrimp stir fry with asian veggies, which we absolutely love. Water chestnuts are Wee One’s favourite vegetable, even before broccoli, which she loves. Oh, and if we’re feeling extremely decadent? We’ll have an artery-clogging dinner of escargot in garlic butter over mushroom caps… divine.

I would love to be more adventurous, but you see my problem. There’s only so many times I can eat pork tenderloin, broccoli, and potatoes. Or chicken breast, potatoes, and broccoli. Broccoli is really good for you, but come ON. Potatoes are not in my best interest, either.

Friends, I need your help. I need your recipes. Give me your tried and true family favourite recipes please, and save me!!

Truth is, last year we hardly got any snow in Toronto, and this year we’re having a pretty average winter by all accounts. Most of us aren’t worried about the white stuff headed our way. We’re more worried about the people who lose their minds when they see anything other than dry conditions on the road, and drive like complete idiots. I can’t stand bad drivers at the best of times, but weather like we’re about to encounter seems to bring them out en masse. I grew up in Calgary (Alberta… Western Canada for those who don’t know where that is), and when you learn to drive in a place that has black ice on the road 6 months out of the year (potentially), square-tire syndrome from the extreme cold freezing the rubber on your car, and unpredictable weather otherwise… you learn how to drive. Actually, you learn how to drive really well. Or you die, which is pretty much survival of the fittest if you ask me. I can’t see myself ever stepping foot voluntarily back in cow town Calgary, but I do appreciate that the place taught me how to drive.

When I got to Ontario, it was a cake-walk when winter hit. As good a driver as I was even as a teen, I got that much better once I was hired at Air Canada in my early 20s and trained to drive all manner of interesting vehicles, including 72 Ton “Pay movers” (tractors that tow and push back aircraft). I really enjoyed my time there, and not only because I was only one of about 12 women at the time and worked with about a 1000 men… ok, I lie. It was mostly for that reason, and the fun we used to have back then! Met my husband there, and really had some good times, with good people.

I digress.

The coming storm will dump about 30cm (about a foot) on us, and unfortunately, that will probably be enough to bring things to a screeching halt for a day or so. It’s really not that much in the grand scheme of things. People in the states have been hit far worse, and places further up north in Ontario have had 5x that over the past couple of weeks…

I just really hope the dummies stay home, and wait it out. When you’re that nervous or stupidly cocky and hit the roads in conditions you can’t handle, you make it a war zone for everyone else.

It’s sure to be a snow day – the first in a loooooong time – for the kids tomorrow. I think we’re going to have fun in the back yard and make one of those igloos I mentioned before!

As I write this I’m hiding with my laptop in my bedroom, door locked, and lights off. Considering retreating even further… perhaps into the closet, but not yet. The quiet beyond my sanctuary is deceptive, and I’m positive you’re both beginning to realize I’m not there, and wonder where I am. Very soon the hunt will begin.

For 2 weeks over the Christmas holidays and into the new year you have been my constant companions. You’ve treated me to a symphony of questions, impromptu concerts (thanks, Teen, for showing Wee One how to plug that mic into your guitar amp.), audiences whilst I showered or spent any time whatsoever in the bathroom, and a general cacophony of sound that rivals any public institution during a riot. You’ve proven how talented you are as actresses in how quickly you change moods! Highs and lows on a seemingly momentary basis have kept me guessing (and hopping), and all the while, my work hasn’t gone away, or changed at all. Usually I’m able to get that work done during my hours of quiet during the day, but of course that hasn’t been the case. We’ve spent an entire year together, this past 2 weeks.

Let me preface the next declaration with these facts; I love and adore you both, immeasurably. You are the apples of my eye (eyes?). You are the dimples in my cheeks, and the glow on my face. I would give my life for either of you, in a heart beat. There is nothing I wouldn’t do to keep you both safe.

So you’ll understand and forgive me when I say, simply… please, please leave me alone.

I’ve developed an eye twitch. My patience levels are at an all-time low. I feel a great need to open a bottle of wine, and not share. All this will go away once Monday, in all it’s glory and radiance, arrives! Mommy will lose the wild look in her eyes! Mommy will once again smile when she hears you call for her. Well, that might not happen until Tuesday, but I have confidence.

I’m sure your teachers miss you both. I look forward to experiencing the same.

All My Love,
Mom
XOXOXOXO

For anyone who has the complete boxed set of Star Wars movies.

For ShaMoo… the biggest Star Wars nerd I know (although hubby Schmenkman and son Frank #1 come close…)

I present to you… Star Wars Snow Flakes.

For instructions/templates on how to make these awesome creations, and to pay homage to the creator’s husband, head over to http://dancell.cwahi.net/

Incidentally, if you’re looking for free web-hosting, Dancell is currently housed on CWahi, one of the best free unlimited webhosts on the planet.