The Good, the Bad, and the Opposite of Ugly

It's weekend recap time, once again.

Let's start with the Good:

Hugh's Mom came to visit for the weekend. It is the first visit we've had in a very long time with no to do list or scheduled activities. We went out to lunch to celebrate the end of test week (woo hoo!), sat on the porch and chatted and watched the birds (our backyard is kind of like National Geographic), grilled out, skyped with my favorite father-in-law, bought some new plants for the backyard, went out to dinner, and generally just relaxed. Oh, and we got Tiki hooked on Modern Family. So funny. A few photos:

Tiki and I share a profound love for dips and for Mexican food. This photo pretty much sums up our perfect meal. I have been known to stand in her kitchen and eat an entire container of guacamole by myself late at night. And then blame Hugh. But she knows the truth.

It was the perfect visit and Sunday morning came too soon.

Now, unfortunately, on to the Bad:

Saturday morning, we were awakened bright and early by a police officer knocking on our door. One of our neighbors was walking her dog when she noticed the door to our Jeep was open and one of the windows was smashed in. Oh, because someone broke in to our car. Wtf? Seriously, our cars are not that nice. And we do not keep anything in them. Except our GPS. Well, now we don't, because someone stole it. They did, however, leave my reusable shopping bags. Apparently petty thieves are not interested in saving the planet.

It was a really shitty start to the day, but we pepped up and moved on. However, if you have an extra Garmin sitting around unused and you want to send it my way, I certainly won't complain. I was lamenting to Hugh how I used it to get everywhere, like places in the city we have lived in for fifteen months. He just shook his head. What can I say? I'm not that good with directions.

And now, the Opposite of Ugly (because you know I'm not going to do a whole post without some Henry and Fletcher cuteness):

Henry spent the weekend hunting moths on the porch. He didn't hiss at Tiki a single time (see: Henry only loves his parents), which we took as a sign that being a big brother is making him more tolerant by the day.

And, well I really don't have a lot of words for Fletcher. Except, are you joking me with that tongue? I die.

Hope your weekend was more good than bad, friends. Happy Monday!

Working Wednesday

I am out of town for work today, which is the Wednesday norm. Having woken up in a hotel every Wednesday morning for the last fifteen months, you would think I'd be used to it. But every week I wake up missing these sweet boys of mine:

And especially this one:

Their cuteness does not help. Counting down to 7:30pm...

I'm Not As Young As I Used To Be.

This weekend was Brittany's Bachelorette celebration. Now that we are all home safe and sound, I can tell you that we spent the weekend at a remote house in the North Georgia mountains. Elizabeth and I were fifty percent convinced we were going to be the plot line of a serial killer movie. But we survived. There was lots of eating and toasting and laughing, with a visit to a winery and a lingerie shower somewhere in between.

Let's start with the beautiful bachelorette and bride-to-be herself:

We arrived Friday afternoon and, after a treacherous drive up the mountain to our house, all fourteen of us spent the night snacking and drinking and catching up:

Gift bags.

Brittany and her Matron of Honor extraordinaire, Emily.

Enjoying the mountain air.

Saturday, we headed to a local winery for lunch and a tasting:

Saturday night we headed back to the house for dinner, party dresses, lingerie, and a very sassy cake:

After a late night, Elizabeth and I were up early Sunday morning and on the road. I had a wonderful time celebrating Brittany's final single days. So wonderful that I came home and took two naps yesterday and then slept for ten hours last night. Oh, late twenties, you insist on reminding me that I'm not in college anymore.

Hope everyone had a happy weekend!

The Return of Bolognese.

Once upon a time, there was a delicious, go-to meal at the White Hot household called Fettuccine with Bolognese Sauce. And then Mandy turned twenty-nine.

Here's the thing about Mandy: I really love her. She is hilarious and thoughtful and just so dear to me, and I felt like her birthday was the perfect time to remind her just how grateful I am to have her in my life. So I made her the Ultimate Lasagna Bolognese (because food is our love language). And Hugh and I drove to Savannah with a birthday party loaded in our car.

Lasagna was eaten, candles were blown out, champagne was consumed, and a delightful time was had by all. Until 5am. Because at 5am, I woke up with the stomach flu.

I will kindly spare you the details, but it was awful. And we had to drive home that morning. If you have ever ridden three and a half hours (that's how long a two hour drive takes if you have to stop every fifteen minutes) in the cab of a truck with your crazy dog and your very sick wife who is insisting that the dog cannot touch her, then you might be almost as great as my sweet husband. I told Hugh at one point that I would rather die than keep riding in the car. I'm sure he felt the same.

Suffice to say, it is a painful memory that turned me off of both Bolognese and champagne for far too long. Too long as in Mandy's birthday was in March and I just had my first glass of champagne ten days ago. But, as of Sunday night I have also reunited with Fettuccine with Bolognese Sauce!

It is the perfect Sunday night dinner:

You can get everything in the pot and let it simmer away and make the house smell delicious. We serve this over fresh fettuccine with a green salad with vinaigrette and some hunks of sourdough bread for sopping the delicious sauce. Enjoy!

Fettuccine With Bolognese Sauce

Makes 4-6 servings

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 3 stalks celery, diced
• 1 carrot, diced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 pound pancetta, chopped
• 1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 6-ounce can tomato paste
• 1 14 1/2-ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano, or 1 tablespoon dried
• 1/2 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan

Directions

1. In a Dutch oven, over medium heat, heat the oil. Add the onion and cook for 2 minutes. Add the celery, carrot, and garlic and cook for 5 minutes more. Add the pancetta and cook for 5 minutes, then add the beef and cook until brown. Add the wine and the remaining ingredients and simmer for 45 minutes or until sauce is thick. Serve with cooked fettuccine. Sprinkle with Parmesan.

Tip: You can turn the heat down really low and let it simmer for longer than 45 minutes. Also, this is even better the next day.

Our Favorite 22 Year Old.

This weekend, company came to town at the White Hot household:

My sweet brother drove up on Thursday for a visit. This is the first time I have seen him one on one in about six years, and we had a delightful time. We did a lot of eating, a little cooking, some football watching, and a lot of chatting. Here's what it looked like:

William is good at reminding me I take things way too seriously. He is the laid back little brother to my Type A big sister personality:

As you know if you've ever met him, or read this blog, Fletcher is a little bit exciteable. Well, apparently a visit from his favorite Uncle takes that excitement to a whole new level. As soon as William walked in the door on Thursday night, Fletcher peed on him. Our completely house broken pup, the one who hasn't had an accident in the house in at least six months, peed all over William's leg. At first Hugh and I didn't believe him, and then when we realized it was true, we were laughing too hard to reprimand the dog. Fletcher must have known that he would be ever more spoiled than usual with William in town:

Post-game nap on Saturday afternoon with Fletcher, the dog who is not allowed on the bed.

We had a great time, Dee. Come back soon!

Soaking It Up.

The long weekend was such a delight that I can't think about the fact that it's over. If this Labor Day weekend had a theme, it would be food, which is just the way we like it. And also, painting. So, let's have a photo recap:

Friday night we started out with Goat Cheese Stuffed Figs Wrapped in Proscuitto:

Then we had Fish Tacos (Hugh would like you to note the amazing ability of the camera in capturing the lime juice. I won't tell you how many photos we took to get this shot, but suffice to say, Hugh's tacos were very limey.):

Saturday morning after lots of coffee, I baked a delicious chocolate cake:

And then, it was finally time for football. Despite some painful moments, our Gators pulled through for the win:

And then we played in the yard with our favorite dog until he was panting like a fool:

Don't worry, our first born got some attention too:


Sunday was a relaxing day with delicious dinner:

Then, remember how I talked about feeling so motivated last week? Well, we finally started redecorating our living room:

I will save the full before and after photo shoot until we get a couple of other things to finish the room, but here's a little peak (and proof that I really was at the White Hot Household this weekend):

And this is what Fletcher thought about being shut out of the room all afternoon:

I hope you had a happy weekend with your favorite person. Here's to a four day week!

Whew!

It's been a quiet week on the old blog, friends. That's because our life feels a little bit crazy right now between working and studying and traveling and being sick and vet appointments and keeping up with the house and on and on.

On top of that, there has been a lot of uninspired eating going on in this house. Like frozen burritos (Amy's, so they're healthy enough, but still), salad, tacos, pasta with tuna, cheese and crackers, peanut butter english muffins, and chips and salsa. I'm blaming it on the summer heat. And med school. And traveling. And work.

But, there is an end in sight! And it almost feels like Fall outside! I woke up this morning ready to cook all weekend, and redecorate our living room, and work in the garden, and go for a run, and groom the dog. That's what I mean by the ebbing and flowing motivation.

Also, we've made it to Thursday, which is always a sure sign that we will survive until the weekend. To say the White Hot household is ready for the weekend would be an understatement. And it's a long one, no less! And Hugh has an exam tomorrow morning, so he will be free for three whole days! Clearly, there are lots of reasons to exclaim.

And with that, I'm off to look for a paint color and have a celebratory glass of champagne. Here's to an extra day off!

Oh, and some Henry Parker cuteness, free of charge:

PS I promise to be a better blogger next week. Stay tuned!