“A schedule defends from chaos and whim. It is a net for catching days. It is a scaffolding on which a worker can stand and labor with both hands at sections of time.” — Annie Dillard
And now back to our regularly scheduled chaos.
Although I love a schedule, it’s been a lovely two weeks without one. I’ve barely glanced at my calendar since the kids got out of school. Noah came home this weekend from his week of climbing with the team, so things feel a little more normal already. We’re easing back into it as the harsh realty of school, work, rock climbing, tennis, chess club, getting up and going to bed on time, and calendars all starts tomorrow morning.
Taking one more step toward reality, here’s this week’s schedule:
Sunday: Leftover dal curry soup, prettied up with rice and chana masala (Indian chickpeas) — both easy meals using Shan spice mix. We bought several new such spice mixes at the Indo Pak Market in Richardson. We were a bit rushed to get dinner on the table after relaxing too long so I used frozen jasmine rice from Whole Foods. Package costs $3 for four cups of rice. Not a bargain but after trying this, I think I’ll keep some on hand for the future. There are always times when having rice done in eight minutes would be very handy.
Monday: The last day of Christmas holidays. Clyde’s been dabbling in work off and on for the past two weeks but the boys and I have done little but sleep late (me), rock climb (Noah), and play Wii (Sawyer). Hoping to hang out with friends today. Arroz con pollo with green beans and a nice bottle of red wine is the evening’s dinner plan. (I made the veggie version for Noah last time and froze the leftovers so easy veggie meal already done.) We’ll likely end the evening with a game (hopefully not the Wii but realty Wii rules don’t start until tomorrow so maybe) or a family movie.
Tuesday: Sawyer has chess ’til 4:45 pm, Noah rock cilmbs 5-7 pm. I’ll be up at the gym with Noah so we’ll have something Clyde can easily throw together: leftover arroz con pollo and a salad.
Wednesday: Boys have guitar lessons from 5-5:30 pm. We’re going to try more of our Indo Pak finds: Shan’s butter chicken mix and a curry de kolhapuri with tofu by Parampara, both served over rice with some cumin-infused kale. UPDATE: This is a tricky maneuver as I’ll be gone to said guitar lessons during what should be the dinner-prep hour. Clyde is good at many things, but gets a tad stressed when trying to throw together dinner from a recipe he’s never made before. So I’m cutting up the chicken before I leave (he’ll just add lemon juice and water to start the 30-minute marinade before we get home). I’ll have him cut the kale and other veggies that go in the curry tofu. Then it’s a quick 30-minute deal when I get home. POST-DINNER UPDATE: This meal was a huge hit. Of course, what dish with a stick of butter and half a cup of cream wouldn’t be?
Thursday: It’s all about the Longhorns this evening. UT is playing Alabama in the Rose Bowl. Noah is skipping rock climbing for the occasion. At home. High of 28 degrees, low 14. Football. Chili by the fire seems a given. I’ll surprise the family with UT Sprinkles cupcakes.
Friday: We have extra boys this weekend, so we need easy and fast meals. Going with an Italian soup, salad and ciabatta bread (again, I froze the leftover veggie version for Noah from last time so just one pot of soup this time around).
Saturday: Spaghetti sauce is good to feed the masses. Sadly, unless it’s summer (beautiful tomatoes make an amazing vegetarian sauce), Noah gets the jarred sauce while the rest of us have a homemade sauce with ground beef, crushed tomatoes, a red pepper, onion, garlic, wine, and rosemary or basil.
