Sunday night

I remember when I was little that Sunday night always was a time for comfort food and ritual, and it still feels that way. Just a bittersweet, poignant feeling....and here I am, 51 years old, and still feeling that way.

I'm making cheerfulness by playing a soft jazz cd, and cooking, cooking, cooking! I'm making shredded chicken barbeque and mashed potatoes (one bowl with spinach and onions, one plain) and split pea soup, all for tomorrow night when we are having Randal over for dinner. And for tonight, baked potatoes and chicken breasts baked in foil, with tamari.

I'm feeling a little tentative the past couple of days, as if I can breathe easily, but don't quite dare. The last couple of weeks were so stressful emotionally. Abby came down with a fever and chills, which became bronchitis, which became pneumonia. Seeing her, with each breath hurting her chest, dark shadows under her eyes...it was really hard. Thank God for antibiotics.

Now that she feels a lot better, she's been working hard all weekend on her homework, and has gotten so much done. We're putting a lot of laundry through right now, for a good start to the week.

I drove up to Mom's yesterday and bought a microwave at Target near her house. She had given us her microwave about a year ago, thinking that she didn't need it, but then confessed to me recently that she did miss having it. So, we set it up and went out for lunch, to Steak and Shake for some good chili.

I've gotten so that each time I'm in Kroger's, I HAVE to buy one of those grocery bags for charity, and each time I pass a Salvation Army kettle, I HAVE to put in at least $3 (one dollar to thank God for each of our wonderful children).

Here I am, daydreaming all the time about the new house, and how wonderful it will be to decide where stuff goes....how to decorate....being able to walk places from there...

I'm a lucky, lucky woman, and I know it. Jordie and I are going to have a "money talk" tonight and one thing we need to decide is what charities to give some money to...we're giving Amalia a plane ticket home for Chanukah, and Abby's present is the trip to Disney World over Martin Luther King weekend in January...and Adam will probably get a printer and some cash...and we'll give some money to some good causes.

So, there is no way I could ever walk by the Salvation Army kettle without dropping some money in, to say thanks to God for everything I have, material and child-wise and husband-wise and job-wise and friend-wise...an abundance of riches.

Back to cooking.