Hello Blog Friends!
With the Feast of All Saints upon us, we are now creeping, inexorably, towards Advent!
This week some good progress has been made on several fronts. Sunday afternoon we had a CTM Board meeting and, by Wednesday, our President had approved the draft minutes for circulation. That moprnin g, I also mangaed to squeeze in, befor The Pod, the quarterly cleaning of my pantry shelves (how can it p[ossibly be 4 months since I last did that task??).
Sunday, I was lamenting, to my dear friend, Michelle, the lack of Advent Study Program reflection leaders when she said that she is quite keen to take on all four sessions! I’m not yet “counting my chickens” (an apt Day Camp Alumni analogy) as she does need to look at her already jampacked calendar, but I’m praying that, if she is the person called to do this, then things will fall into place for both of us. Committee member, Sharon, and I met yesterday, on FaceTime, to go over other aspects of the program. I had hoped Michelle might be able to pop into that meeting but she had a prior commitment so we are still waiting to hear if her offer will be feasible.
Thursday, I had planned to get back to the manual sections but was sidetracked by a rather scary (and extremely) expensive plumbing crisis. As mentioned previously, over the summer, there were recurring kitchen sink drain issues. Last weekend my toilet backed up but I managed to plunge it and avoid any flooding. However, I began to feel that the two blockages were connected, this could only mean a problem with the main drain. Then, Thursday morning, the toilet would not flush again. I tried some liquid detergent and hot water and it seemed better but was horrified when I later went down to the basement and found that the soap suds and water had come up in my laundry tubs!! I made the decision to call the plumber we usually use. Sadly, they told me they do not handle main drain blockages and referred me to another company. Meanwhile we were expected heavy rain, which would contribute to the chance of flooding and the person I spoke with said they were very busy and might not be able to come until Friday I messaged two close friends, asking for prayers and they immediately jumped on it.
Fortunately, Jillian and baby Clara were stopping by that morning so I was temporarily distracted from my household worries. We had tea and cookies I and got in some comforting cuddles with Clara while listening to Jillian tell me all about Syndi-Belle’s wedding. After they left, I spent the afternoon trying to focus on CTM work, planning menus for the next two weeks and worrying about how the day would unfold.
In the end, the truck turned up around 5pm Thursday. The two men were very nice and listened to my explanation before bringing a bunch of equipment into my basement. They were here for about 90minutes, clearing out the main drain and the final report verdict was our old nemesis “tree roots” I am now considerably poorer but no longe afraid to flush the toilet!
Some more time, this week, been devoted to the Main Presentation creative activities and that section is now, nearly completed. I hope, in the coming days, to get to the same point with the Creative Connection Chapter, although next week we will be in full prep mode for Season 10 of the Cook-Along, which begins next Saturday afternoon. Mariejoy, an aspiring pastry chef, is leading the first session and I am anxiously waiting for her to send in her list of supplies as the participating families need some time to purchase groceries. Jillan will see her at church, tomorrow and has also promised to do some badgering for me.
Over the week, there has been some extra office work as the Junior Camp directors need some documents that it took a while for me to track down. I did, finally, find what was required and have sent the file to an expert who is checking them over to see if the text is exactly what is needed. Hopefully, the core document can be reformatted and, next week, forwarded to the directors. November 1st is the date for me to remind people of the “one month” deadline for completion of manual sections. Those who have agreed to create video content for Carols & Cocoa also need to send in their files. Most of that work will be top of my list this coming Monday.
And so, today, I’m still cleaning up all the mess in the basement as well as trying to do a bit of raking, although everything is still pretty soggy after all the recent rain. Early in the week I was able to keep up with the leaves but have been defeated since Thursday. Before they were flattened by the deluge ,I was able to cap[ture the fleeting beauty of my Auumn Crccus see above).
Now I should to turn my attention to lunch prep because Mae Anne will soon be joining. We will be sharing a casserole of “mac and cheese”, a suitable, cosy autumn lunch. I have several recipes for this favourite, this one is simple but very flavourful, so maybe you would like to give it a try. I will be sure to snap a photo after it comes out of the oven and before we dig in!
Cosy Autumn Mac & Cheese
- 1lb shell, or elbow, pasta
- 4Tbsps unsalted butter
- ¼cup all-purpose flour
- 4 cups whole milk
- 1clove garlic, finely grated
- 1tsp smoked paprika
- Black pepper
- 12oz old Cheddar, grated
For the Topping-
- 1cup coarse bread crumbs (preferably sourdough)
- 4Tbsps olive oil
- ¼cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
- Sea salt & black pepper
Cook the pasta until just al dente (it will cook further in the oven). Melt the butter in a large heavy bottomed saucepan. Add the flour and stir well, until completely combined. Stir in the garlic clove then gradually add the milk ands keep stirring until the sauce begins to thicken. Stir in the paprika, salt and pepper. Slowly add the cheese and combine with a wide spatula, until completely smooth. Now add the cooked pasta and fold together. Butter a casserole dish and turn the mixture into it. In a small bowl, combine all the topping ingredients, mixing with your hands. Spread the topping over the casserole. Place the dish on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake at 425ºF for 25-30 minutes until; golden and bubbly. Cool briefly before serving. Serves 4-6