Happenings 30.4.20
* written in bits and pieces over the month of April.
DOING: sitting on my bed next to Walt. He’s just fallen asleep and is a little restless - rolling around and muttering to himself. So, I’m staying close. It’s 6:58pm on Friday 10th April. Normally Walt is in bed a little later than this, however today he skipped his afternoon nap and was positively exhausted come dinner time, so it was straight to bed for him.
I can hear through the wall that Joan is nowhere near close to falling asleep. Ordinarily I’m laying with her at this point, you see, and she gets a little excited when it’s Ben’s turn; she knows she can push the boundaries and persuade him that she desperately needs to stay up for one more this or one more that. Walt is still restless, so I suppose I’ll have to stay here a little while longer (what a shame. Good luck, Ben).
HEARING: cicadas on the tree outside my window.
DRINKING: nothing at the moment, but when I do have a drink it’s either coffee or water. Oh and orange juice. Ben bought a big bag of oranges at the shops this week, and every other morning we’ve squeezed a few for their juice. The look on Walt’s face when I hand him his little glass (which, for him, I’ve diluted with water) is completely adorable - he couldn’t be more chuffed, and will sit in his high chair, holding his glass with two hands while kicking his legs with glee. When he takes a sip (which is the tiniest sip you could possibly imagine) he lets out a loud, satisfied “AHHHHH!”.
EATING + COOKING: I’ve really enjoyed cooking this past month. Our circumstances are such that in staying home, we now have more time to ponder what it is we wish to make and more time to prepare our meals. Pots can be left to simmer on the stove for hours and hours, dough can be left to rise; it’s been nice.
Perhaps the most exciting eating + cooking development to report is that we are now head over heals in love with homemade flatbread - both the process of making the bread and the act of eating it. It’s exceedingly simple to do. I use Anna Jone’s recipe of flour + baking powder + yoghurt (I also add a little sea salt), though often I'll use self-raising flour and omit the baking powder. I like to throw finely diced spring onion into the flatbread dough and cover them with ghee once they’re cooked. To go with our flatbread we’ve been making big pots of dhal (using the recipe from my book) and other spiced legume dishes. My next recipe for ABC Life uses dried chickpeas, and I’ve come to realise that canned chickpeas are a jolly substitute for dried in some preparations, whereas in others there is no comparison - dried chickpeas are triumphant. I tend to make a big batch of these meals so I can freeze a few portions and eat leftovers the following day for breakfast or lunch. Dhal - reheated and topped with a big spoonful of ghee and some flaky sea salt (and perhaps a fried egg) - is one of my favourite breakfast foods.
What else have we been making? Lasagne - both Julia Turshen’s recipe and my zucchini + leek one. And pancakes - either crepes (these green ones from GKS - scroll down for the recipe. I use spelt or ordinary wheat flour instead of rice flour) or the blueberry pancakes from Pretend Soup, which is a kids cookbook we bought for Joan last year (though I adapt the recipe slightly). But we tend to only make pancakes on the weekends. During the week we’re mostly eating toast for breakfast. Occasionally I’ll make porridge but then I remember that I don’t really like porridge anymore (after being such a fan for years). Walt doesn’t like porridge either, and so, whenever Ben and Joan want oats I’ll stir a small pot for them and make the two of us toast. But then, upon seeing our toast, Joan will invariably tell me she doesn’t want porridge, she wants toast. And so, no, we don’t have porridge much anymore.
Lastly, I’ve been loving Minimalist Baker’s gingery lemon tahini sauce. Quite often I’ll make some sort of bean + vegetable bowl for lunch, and this sauce makes it extra special (see picture at the top of this post).
WANTING: this one is the same as last month - I want the COVID-19 situation to unfold as smoothly as possible. I want to hug my parents and brother. And my grandparents. And my friends - some of whom have new little babies I am yet to hold. I want to be in the same room as my people and be free to move about, talk, plan, share and pass things back and forth.
ENJOYING: this peaceful moment to write. Peaceful, solitary moments are hard to come by at the moment - at least this is true during the week, when Ben is working. What else springs to mind? Oh, I’m really enjoying listening to movie soundtracks during the day. In the morning we might start wth Pride & Prejudice, before moving on to Little Women and maybe Amelie. I find they have a calming effect on the kiddos (and me). Ben’s favourite movie soundtrack is Home Alone, so we sometimes play that at dinner time. I’d also have to say that I’m really enjoying coffee at the moment. Strong, black coffee is my saviour, helping me get through these endless days at home, caring for my little people with a bit more pep.
LOOKING: I’m looking forward to the day when Joan can safely walk into her kindergarten and play with her friends, freely - holding hands and being close without a care in the world.
DECIDING: what takeaway food we’ll have tonight. Well, that’s Ben’s decision, really. It’s now Saturday 25th April and I’m at my desk, writing. I have quite a busy day of work ahead but first I wanted to take a moment to sip my coffee and write. I can hear the kiddos playing in the other room while Ben clears the breakfast things. He was so pleased when I suggested getting takeaway for dinner. He loves eating out and ordering in, and would do so regularly if I wasn’t such a buzz kill. I’m just so frugal and cannot bring myself to spend money (and lots of it, we don’t have cheap options where we live) ordering food, when I can easily and happily a whip up a quick pasta dish. Whatever he ends up choosing, I expect he’ll go wild and order everything on the menu. And I’m actually really looking forward to it.
WATCHING: most nights, when the Joan and Walt are asleep and Ben is working in his study, working, I’ll watch around half and hour of television. I look forward to it so much. I’ve never been productive with work or study in the evenings, and I’m so incredibly grateful that at 8pm I don’t have to force myself to concentrate on anything other than my snack and a show. What I watch varies based on my mood. A little while a go I watched Unorthodox (have you seen it? Wasn’t Shira Haas amazing?). Lately I’ve been moving between Motherland, Killing Eve and Parks & Recreation, which I have started re-watching (thanks for the idea, Hannah. What a joy that show is). And I’m considering purchasing Mrs America, as I hear is excellent. Once a week Ben might finish work early and the two of us will watch part of an episode of Succession, which we’re slowly making our way through (and loving).
READING: after watching tv I’ll get into bed with a book and read until I fall asleep. That doesn’t tend to be very long, which is why the answer to this question is still Fleishman is in Trouble. It’s a great book, I’m just not making the time to read large chunks at the moment. Next up is Secret History, as recommended to me by a friend.
PLANNING: what to cook for dinner. That’s not a new development - I always tend to plan our evening meal ahead of time, as I find taking a moment every four days or so to assess what we have in our fridge and reflect on what I feel like cooking makes my life easier and helps ensure we are using up all our produce (which feels more important than ever at the moment, as are limiting our trips to the shops). Other than that I can’t think of much that I am planning… Perhaps some activities for Joan but nothing that requires much forethought - just puzzles and some terribly rudimentary crafts. We’re still doing our letter of the day concept, as I mentioned in my previous post. Actually, one activity I did plan (and we both loved!) was to interview each other. The letter of the day was “I”, and first thing after breakfast we sat down to ask each other, some family members (via FaceTime) and even one of her toys some questions. As well as inquiring about her favourite foods and which country she’d like to visit (and why), I asked Joan what she liked about being four, what she didn’t like and what she was looking forward to about turning five. That was a really sweet one. We also loved making rainbows. Mostly we just see how we feel in the morning and do as much or as little as we please.
BUYING: we’re looking for a new rice cooker, but I loathe doing research for those sort of purchases, as I know it requires me to look up a bunch of different products and read reviews, so I’m putting it off. Maybe I’ll just cook rice on the stove, like my mum always did.
CRAVING: chocolate cake, coffee, avocado, pasta and big salads with lots of different vegetables - my usual favourites.
WEARING: mostly jeans and cozy knits. Occasionally on sunny days I’ll wear a long, flowy dress, pairing it with a cozy jumper and thick socks to stay warm.
LOVING: our home. The longer we isolate the more grateful I feel for this space, this light, our garden.
PLAYING: Frozen 2. Earlier this month Joan watched the movie and since then she has assumed the role of Elsa. As soon as she wakes in the morning she’ll put on her Elsa costume (from Kmart) then announce that she has to go to Ahtohallan. She will then instruct us to get into character - Ben and I play the parents, and Walt is Anna (no wonder “Anna” was one of his first words). When Walt gets upset, she’ll delicately kneel beside him and sing All Is Found, complete with an American accent (“Sleep my darling safe and sound…”) It’s really sweet. And it’s only a little disconcerting that she now says ‘water’ with an American accent whenever she asks for a drink.
SAVOURING: the ability to wake up and lean in to whatever it is we’re feeling and needing, with no commitments and obligations.
FEELING: Content in my home. Grateful for my home. Grateful for my kids and Ben. I’m really missing Ben at the moment; his work has been super busy and we’re struggling to find moments just for us. I’m also feeling tired from the physical and mental energy it takes to be Joan and Walt’s person. Lastly, I’m feeling so very pleased that I got this time to write. It’s now 7:08am on Thursday 30th April - the last day of the month. I have a cup of coffee to my left and, yes, the Pride & Prejudice Soundtrack is playing. Now it’s time to head into the kitchen and pop some bread in the toaster.
Happenings posts inspired by Pip.
Heidi xo