Being a teacher is cool when...

you feel like you can make a difference.

I want to tell you about a student of mine who I have had some success with this year. He was struggling a lot last semester, and failed all seven of his classes. He was highly unmotivated, sad all the time, and all he could say was, "school is boring". The only time he seemed happy at all was when we were working together one on one, or in a small group (because where I lack in classroom management skills, I excel in interpersonal skills and I make my students feel heard: which rarely happens anywhere else). So the first thing I did for him was try talking about the other people in his life that he doesn't feel so sad around and he mentioned his school councilor at his middle school. I asked him if he would like me to call her and set up a meeting for the three of us, so that I could get a better understanding of the help she gave him. I wish you could have seen his smile: the biggest ever. She came in a week later and that smile was there again. Leaving the meeting, my intention was for them to keep in touch, but that is not what's happened. Although she was happy to see him, she hasn't been consistent with meeting him again. However, what slowly began to change over time was his attitude at school.

Now here we are, 4 week into a new semester, and he is passing all his classes but two, he is taking notes, and staying awake in class, and his teachers have nothing but good things to say. I hope he can keep this momentum going through the rest of the semester, for now I can say I am really proud. I see that smile all the time now.

The Merchant of Pasta

Dinner at Venezia: this was our first visit to this mid-city New Orleans establishment. We called ahead as the seed of craving was planted, which was a great idea for there was a thirty minute wait when we arrived. They prepared our table while we stepped to back to grab some drinks from the bar. Sipping we took in the ambience. "Nostalgic" was the word we kept throwing around. The same word Lauren uses to describe places that remind her of the Milton Club in Dayton, Ohio; a banquet hall of sorts where generations of folks gather for family feasts. The bar tender was quick to service us in the the very crowded room. The liquor selection was decent, however they didn't carry Lauren's choice vodka, so she went with a glass pour of Pinot Noir. The wine list was simple and reasonably priced.

Our server promptly greeted us with menus and got us waters to accompany our cocktails. There was an insert of specials of the day. All looked appealing but we came for the classics, only they had sold out of Osso Bucco!

 We settled for a calamari appetizer, which was delicately fried to perfection served with house-made marinara. It was melt in your mouth spectacular!  

Lauren followed with a ground veal cannelloni topped with marinara and alfredo! 

My meatballs and spaghetti were as nostalgic as the decor and equally delicious. 

We were able to get out for under $60, and will return again when the craving hits. 

Sundays are for cooking

Every Sunday I spend most of the day prepping meals for the week. Here's what the usual list looks like.

• chopping veggies for at work snacks
• using the week's scraps to make stock
• planning out meals for every day
• making beans to be paired with rice 
• usually baking a chicken 

However, last week I got way ahead of myself so there are still a lot of left overs. So this week, I made stock with left over chicken bones (in the freezer) and whatever veggies were in the fridge that needed to be cooked fast. The recipe is simple:

Any vegetables, but some highlights include carrots, garlic (skins included), onions (also with skins), celery leeks, and so on. I usually save scraps of veggies that don't go directly in the compost for this purpose. The last few weeks I have also been adding chicken bones and bits left over from the baked chicken. To season I use whatever whole herbs I have on hand, and add peppercorns and corse salt to taste. I used to add ground spices, but found that they created too much sediment in the finished stock. 

All the ingredients go into the biggest pot you have. We are lucky enough to have a stock pot with a mesh insert, way less messy that post straining with cheese cloth or a colander. Fill with water, I usually do 18-24 cups. 

Turn the heat on high and bring to a boil. Boil for a solid 30 min. Reduce the heat to simmer and simmer for 2 hours. Strain and let cool. You can freeze in ziplock baggies and store a couple of cups in the fridge to use for rice or a quick soup later in the week. 

I have yet to figure out a less messy method, I am open to suggestions 

yielded 4 freezer bags full. 

Here's what else I made today:

Chicken and Rice Soup with broccoli and carrots

1. Boiled the chicken in a full pot of water.

2. Picked all the meat off the chicken. The bones went into another pot to collect for stock making, and the meat went back into the pot of water. Vegetarians beware, the following is graphic:

3. Add precooked rice (about a cup)

4. Added carrots and broccoli (from the Hollygrove box last week) and spices. 

Welcome! by Lauren

My name is Lauren Hardy and I have been an avid blog follower for the last several years. Reading other people's blogs fulfills my constant longing to be involved in other peoples' business without them ever knowing I was there. There was even a time a few years ago when I had my own blog (check it out here) but it was short lived because my purpose was limiting, and I was super lazy about updating it, and I was confused about who my audience should be...

Solution: a new blog, and a partner (my husband) to make sure that we are always up to date. You see, in so many ways Christian is strong where I am weak, and visa versa. For example, I hate to sweep and he doesn't seem to mind, I know the ins and outs of every account we have from Chase to Netflix and he pleasantly takes the backseat. In this same spirit, Christian is much better at keeping track of his online presence, and I often forget about these things, sometimes for weeks. 

So, there you have it, a blog with a purpose: to open up our life to our family and friends around the world, who we often don't see enough of. And who knows, maybe you'll learn something about love, being thrifty and earth friendly, and what happens when two people meet the love of their life at 18 and decide to make work: f-o-r-e-v-e-r...

Oh, and we're super obsessed with our animals, so please excuse the many photos to come that we clearly think are too adorable to keep to ourselves: