Scalloped Potatoes (aka Cheesy Layers of Goodness)

All summer I had been avoiding adding any unnecessary heat to the kitchen by using my crock pot, microwave, toaster oven, pressure cooker and of course the grill. The summer's unbearable heat was finally replaced with cooler temperatures when it rained last week. That meant I could pull out the dutch ovens and turn on the stove again.

Can you say happy?

Even though I've gotten quite creative with the toaster oven (meatloaf, muffins & chicken tenders respectively) I was dying for a real meal with something that had been baked low and slow to get the flavors just right. After a quick scan of the fridge & google I found the perfect side dish solution.

Scalloped Potatoes using PHILADELPHIA Chive & Onion Cream Cheese Spread.

To die for.

I omitted the bacon* and cut the recipe in half because hello it was only 4 of us eating dinner and we did not need 18 servings. Anyway, I put it all together and stuck it in oven. I *wish* I had taken a picture. The cheese was ooey, gooey right on top and the onions had literally melted into the potato layers while the Philly cream cheese gave it an oomph of flavor.

It was YUMMY good. So good in fact it's going to be the first thing I make next time the temps decide to dip back down.

*No bacon just because I was too lazy to fry any but I'm certain it would have been even more delicious with a little salty pork. Salty pork makes everything better right?

The Big (or maybe not so big) Announcement

I posted earlier in the summer about the teen's decision not to attend a four year university mainly due to cost. (You can catch up here.) Since that had been the plan all along he was at a crossroads about what to do instead & weighed his options with a lot of thought.

*****
I never really thought about it before now but what pressure to decide your future by the time you graduate. Hell, I'm 34 years young and I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up.
*****

The only option that was not on the table was going straight to work. Working a dead end job for minimum wage is not something that we wanted for him. Obviously.

There is a very nice community college nearby that he could have attended for two years and then transferred to a four year university to finish his bachelors degree. That would have been a much more affordable option for us so we even offered to pay community college - no loans necessary & of course he would live at home. We'll call this Plan B.

Plan C was joining the Army. I know, I know. I was vehemently opposed to this option from the start because...well you can imagine why; however I was keeping an open mind.

So the teen embarked on a fact finding mission arranging a meeting with both the college counselor and the Army recruiter. His dad went with him to the recruiters office & they talked for hours. Literally. The teen decided to take the test that tells them which job he is better suited for.

During that week we did a lot of talking weighing the pros and cons of both options. The guys told me everything the recruiter had talked to them about including the GI Bill, aka when they pay for college. They talked about the Army band and the band on each post.

Then he took the placement test. And did really well. After the test he meets with the recruiter again and is offered a job at this time. I knew that. It's standard procedure and we all agreed it wouldn't hurt to listen and then take a few days to think it over.

In the meantime I thought he was still leaning towards community college. That meant being at home and being closer to his girlfriend. The only downside was he wouldn't be able to continue to play and study music while he was there.

The next week the teen and his dad went back to the recruiters office. Again they were there for hours. When the teen finally called me he said that S was on his way back to the office and would call me later. I asked about the meeting; the teen said he was offered the job he wanted and we would talk about it later.

S finally called me that afternoon and I immediately started in with the questions. Then he dropped the bomb - the teen had enlisted.

I FUH-REAKED out.*

I was under the impression it was a meeting and that we would discuss it before any decisions were made. Apparently the teen had a different view of it all and had been doing a lot of thinking on his own. After I calmed down a little S was able to tell me more details. I sighed (heavily) and said "well it's only for two years." To which S replied "He signed up for four years."

And I FUH-REAKED out. Again.*

So to summarize the teen has enlisted in the Army. For four years. And I'm dealing.

He doesn't actually leave until January so I'll have time to get used to the idea before he leaves.

And then I will FUH-REAK out. Again.

*FUH-REAK is putting it mildly. Very mildly. Very, very mildly.

Quite Appropriate for Friday the 13th

I have a doctors appointment today. But not just any doctors appointment - it's my yearly "lady bidness" appointment.

On Friday the 13th.

Yep, seems about right to me.

I haven't quite decided which is worse - the humiliation of the "crotch-to-face" position or the tearing of the paper when they make you scoot down. Oh you know how it goes...you are lying bared-assed in a lovely, not so flattering, hospital gown on a paper lined cot and your gyno says "Scoot down."

"A little more."

"Just a little more."

"Almost there."

RRIIIIPP

"Okay that's good."

Apparently the paper tear signals when you in just the right "crotch-to-face" position. ~sigh~

Next week's post: The eye doctor & tales of dilation.

Damn getting old sucks.

**Okay so tell me am I the only one that wears socks during the gyno check? I just think it's rude to have my bare feet in her face. Oxymoron perhaps?!

August already?

I just cannot believe it's August. Already. I blinked and now summer is almost over.

Here's the lowdown of our happenings since the graduation & cruise:

The teen has made the decision on what his future will hold that I will reveal at a later time. He hasn't told everyone in his family yet (most notably his mother) so I won't advertise it until he does. Just in case the wrong set of eyes sees it. Ahem.

There's been a lot of working and very little playing. We haven't been on the bike once this summer. Blasphemy! I plan to rectify this next weekend...now if the weather would just cooperate.

Speaking of weather we've been sweating. A lot. The norm has been 90+ temps for this summer so it's not been ideal for any outdoor activities. So I've taken to indoor activities like shopping. Specifically Christmas shopping.**

We just got back from an impromptu trip to WV to meet up with friends for a 24 hour visit in the wild & wonderful state. Fabulous.

...and well that's it. Seems like I've been busy doing nothing. How about you?

**Christmas is only 144 days away. How's that for a reality check?!

Baby let's cruise...

A month ago today we were just returning from our graduation cruise. Where has the time gone? While on the high seas the real world takes a back seat. The biggest decision of the day is what to eat.

This is S & I's seventh cruise & the teen's second. Since it was a celebration cruise he brought a friend along and my sister and her friend joined us for a relaxing 5 days aboard the Carnival Glory headed for Canada. It was our first cruise that wasn't going "tropic" but no matter because it was truly Glory-ious.



First I have to mention that this ship had the. best. music. hands. down. I found myself singing in the hallways, in the elevator and of course in the many lounges on board. It was a nice mix of classic rock & popular songs with some dance music thrown in.

Then there were the shows. Oh the shows! If you've ever been cruising you know they like to entertain you with "Vegas-style" shows. Sometimes they hit their mark & sometimes not. On the Glory they had a magic show that was AMAZING. Some of the tricks we could figure out but there were a few that made my mind spin. Making a motorcycle disappear...hello?! I never did figure that one out. Plus their soundtrack during the show was totally ipod worthy.

And how can I forget the food? THE FOOD! It's everywhere. Twenty fours hours a day. Lots of seafood (yuck!) and desserts and...well anything you can think of. No one will ever starve on a cruise.



While the weather was better than expected on this trip (only one foggy day) the two ports of call took a back seat to the ship & the cruise itself. We took advantage of the slight sway and dark interior room taking more than our fair share of naps. It was heavenly.

We sailed out of NYC...



...And went down the Hudson right by the Statue of Liberty


I LOVE this picture of them!


I don't care for this pic as much. I have awful posture.


Ah yes, this is more like me.


Oh Canada! Halifax, NS to be exact.


heehee...Sackville...heehee


Even better than the book version!


Welcome to Saint John...


...where you too can be accosted by a weird albino dude drinking milk in 90 degree weather right after taking this picture...**


...and buy your lobster at good ole' McD's...


...before taking a boat trip to the Reversing Falls.


My only regret is that we had to disembark and come back to reality. I'm already counting down the days to the next one.

**No really this albino dude asked me if I wanted "to have a conversation aye?" to which I replied "uh no" that did nothing to stop him from trying to talk to me. Even after a slight confrontation with S he still continued to follow us for another block or two until he finally said "Hope ya' have a shitty vacation" and then went off in another direction. True story.

Proud moments

While I've been away THIS happened





It was a proud moment for S & I and all of our family to see him walk across the stage. Yep the teen finally graduated and we all sighed of relief that high school was finished over a big stack of IHOP pancakes.

What? We like IHOP. Not to mention it was freakin' 8PM on a Wednesday night and IHOP was right around the corner.

After our celebratory dinner/breakfast it was time to get ready for the graduation cruise. We planned, packed and dreamt of nights on the sea not at all worried about what was to come.

College plans & arrangements were made and only the money part wasn't nailed down. His school of choice had some staffing issues in the financial aid department that caused his paperwork to be sent to us late. "Don't worry" they said.

So we didn't. Then vacation was over and a bill was waiting in the mailbox.

No problem! We had already talked about student loans and narrowed our very small amount of choices* down to one lender - Sallie Mae. Little did I know what I was in for.

First of all, the criteria set by these institutions is just crazy. They really expect a high school senior to make $12,000+ a year? No, they don't but it's their way of forcing the parents to be responsible for the loans.

Not an issue, I thought. Signed my name on the dotted line and told them to proceed. A few days later we got the "good" news - we were approved! Yay! At an astronomically HIGH interest rate.

Uh, excuse me Sallie Mae maybe you didn't hear but I have an 883. In fact Trans Union pats me on the back and says I'm in the top 20% of the nation with that score. Turns out SM could give a darn about any of that.

With this interest rate his loan would be DOUBLED by the time it was paid off, and that's with making a monthly interest payment. Some "they" somewhere makes that decision and there is nothing more that they can do. I can accept it. Or not.

You know what I did when they said that? Bad ass that I am...I cried.

Then I called S & cried some more. It wasn't that we were told no, but it was pretty close because there is no way in hell that I'm going to hinder him (or us) with a loan like that. By the time he graduated he would owe over $100,000.

My God!

S sat him down and explained it all to him. I will tell you as proud as I was when he graduated, it was at that moment that I was most proud of the teen. He took the news in stride, much better than I expected. Then with a very grown, mature attitude he made the decision not to accept that college on those terms and began to talk of Plan B.

I'm not sure where Plan B will take him yet. He's weighing all his options now so there will be an update to come on that but this weekend he stepped into adulthood. And he's walking tall.

My suggestion for any parent hoping to send their little ones to college one day - College Fund. A big, huge college fund. Or maybe start playing the lottery because the costs are only going up.

*Thanks to the new health care plan.

The Gift of an Ordinary Day

A friend sent me this video a couple days ago. Within the email she wrote a few kind words about the teen & how much we will be missed next year.

The closer graduation gets, the more I will realize how much WE will miss them. After 4 years of being involved in the boosters it will seem odd not to be a part of those planning sessions. Not to be a part of the behind-the-scenes crew that makes all of our fundraisers so successful. Not to be with the band when they celebrate their wins & mourn their losses.

It's making me a bit teary eyed and since no one one likes to cry alone, grab a tissue & watch this video.