A Day of Rest

Today I will be resting.  Well, I'll rest as much as I can.  Somehow I always find an errand that needs to be done.  But I definitely need to rest!  Let me back up and update the last few days.

Toward the end of last week I wasn't feeling great.  My body started aching with a flu-like feeling, which is an immediate signal for me to slow down.  This definitely wasn't part of my surgery recovery.  It was my normal "getting sick" signal.  So, I did my best to rest up and get sleep (easier said than done).  I knew I had a big weekend ahead and I needed to try to be one of those "normal" people who can go to a family event for the weekend and not need to slow down.





On Thursday I tried some new recipes.  I know everyone loves to hear of my food follies!  The initial plan was to make meatloaf and potatoes au gratin with sweet and white potatoes.  The potato recipe was from the same book as my other attempts at cooking.  I chose it hoping that the kids would eat it.

I journeyed out to get bread crumbs for the meatloaf and pick up some other things.  At Target, where I had gone for some other items first, I found bread crumbs.  I don't know what made me read the ingredients on the bread crumbs, because I thought they would be pretty simple.  I was amazed to find tons of chemicals listed on the label!  So I put those bread crumbs back and figured I would just have to make another stop at the market.

But right next to the bread crumbs, I saw a box of Shake-N-Bake.  I checked the ingredients on that, knowing that I also had chicken breasts at home.  I was again amazed, this time in a good way.  Simple ingredients and no chemicals.  It was going to be a Shake-N-Bake dinner instead!

Later that day as I started cooking, I realized that I hadn't left myself enough time.  Both recipes seemed simple when reading them, but the execution was a bit more time consuming than I expected.  I'm sure it would have taken even less time if I hadn't sliced my finger - TWICE - while slicing the potatoes!  At least I know the mandolin slicer is sharp.

The verdict of the meal - score one for the kids and two for the adults.  I did not hear one complaint from the kids on the chicken.  I had made the "Southern Un-Fried Chicken" recipe, which first coats the chicken in Ranch Dressing.  It was delicious!  The kids ate it without a word of complaint.  I don't ask for praise.  No complaints is good enough.  Sean and I also enjoyed the chicken.  The kids didn't like the potatoes.  Next time I will make them cheesier and maybe we will get a better result.  I have to learn how to doctor up certain things for my family's taste, but first I need to learn how to cook without killing myself.  On the other hand, Sean and I both loved the potatoes.  So for that, I'm happy.

Moving on to Friday, I spent the morning packing and getting ready to drive to northern NJ for a Bar Mitzvah.  It was a hectic morning as I tried not to forget anything.  I lost that battle.  Items I forgot: 2 brand new headbands that I bought for Megan just for the Bar Mitzvah, pajamas for me, socks for me, one medication for the kids, and my razor.  The evening was just as hectic as the morning.  We picked up both kids from school, drove to the hotel, got dressed for synagogue, went to dinner at the synagogue and then services.  I was thankful to be back at the hotel and ready for bed, figuring I was so tired that I would just konk out.

No such luck!  The kids took a little while to settle down and fall asleep.  By the time I got in bed, the chaos started.  From 11 to 3:15, there were some inconsiderate hotel guests being extremely loud in the hallway.  Things finally settled down after that (after hotel security took care of the problem), but by then I was just awake.  I was hungry, I was thirsty, I was everything but sleepy.  I think I finally fell back to sleep around 5:00, and the kids woke us up around 6:45 (they never sleep in on the days that you want them to!).  An hour and a half of sleep before another hectic day.

Breakfast, back to the room, get everyone dressed, and off to the Bar Mitzvah by 9:00.  I have now realized that I have to double the time it takes me to get ready, since Megan has become a mini-me.  I have to dry my hair; I have to dry her hair.  I have to straighten my hair; I have to straighten her hair.  I have to put on my makeup; I have to put on her makeup.  Somehow we got it all done though.

The Bar Mitzvah was great and everyone had fun.  By 6:00, I thought for sure the kids would rest in the room (so I could, too).  What was I thinking?  They couldn't settle down.  So at 7:45 we went to the hotel restaurant to meet the family for a while.  At some point while we were at the restaurant, Megan fell asleep on my cousin Ellen.  Jackson was out quickly when we went back to our room.  Everyone was exhausted and I figured I would finally get some sleep.  WRONG!

The hallway chaos started up again.  By 2:30 I had had enough.  Sean called the front desk and eventually the guests were kicked out.  Another night of minimal sleep.  Awake at 7ish, breakfast with the family, check-out of the hotel (and get an $80 discount for the 2 nights of no sleep!), and drive home.  Pure exhaustion, and a sore throat to go with it.  Another sign of an oncoming illness.

At least last night I had a decent night of sleep in my own bed.  No drunk 20-somethings being loud in my hallway.  Everyone was a little slow getting up this morning, with good reason.  This all reinforces my need to improve my health.  I need to be able to do "normal people" things like this without getting sick or needing extra recovery time.  Granted, even a "normal person" might need some extra sleep after the hallway chaos 2 nights in a row, but most would be able to make it through without getting sick.

So, today I'll rest.  I'll try to plan a healthy dinner, but it will definitely be on the easier side of cooking.  Thankfully, I don't have any appointments today.  I'll keep my feet up, and later I'll take a nap.