A big pot of Italian "Gravy"!

I grew up in Belleville, NJ -- A working-class Italian-American neighborhood, about 10 miles west on New York City. Many episodes of the Sopranos were filmed in my home town!

Every Sunday, Italian families would have a big pot of "gravy" cooking on the stove. "Gravy?", you may ask. Isn't that a brown, meat sauce that goes with turkey or meatloaf? No... It is a rich tomato-based marinara cooked all-day long with meat (meatballs, sausage, short ribs, etc.). Traditionally, this is not a fancy or expensive meal... just a basic Southern Italian staple. Gravy is served with piping hot pasta and grated Locatelli cheese, and followed by a simple green salad, it is a delicious meal!

I always loved this meal and longed to be invited to my friend Gina Mustica's house because her mother made the best meatballs and gravy. I would help to finely chop the garlic and/or fresh parsley. To this day, I make a pot of gravy and meatballs one to two times a year. I try to make enough to freeze some, and stretch it out for 4+ dinners.

Yesterday I shopped for the ingredients. I was horrified as I totaled up the cost of this "simple... poor man's meal". Can you believe that I spent over $75 for the ingredients?! I was outraged. What has happened to make this simple meal so expensive? A can of crushed tomatoes is suddenly $2.99 to $3.99 ($28). I needed 8 cans. 3 pounds of ground veal, ground beef and ground pork ran me almost $25. Locatelli cheese was $7. Two loaves of Paesano bread was $7. Then there were onions, garlic, red wine, olive oil, and parsley. Suddenly Justa Pasta's sauces at $5 per pint don't seem so bad!!!

In the end it doesn't matter. It was delicious and I loved watching my son devour two large servings. He told me they were the best meatballs he has ever had!

Elevating Fitness

Strollercize Class - 2004 (not much exercise since!)

We did it... We joined a gym!

As you may know, the goal of my blog is to consume less... Buy less, spend less, waste less, use less, and eat less. Eating less is NOT EASY especially when you have a three year-old and consider yourself to be a bit of a foodie. As I'm getting older I find it more and more difficult to feel good about my body (and fit in my clothes).

I didn't start exercising until I was an adult. It didn't come easy. I worked my ass off for months to run my first consecutive mile at the age of 26. As much as it was difficult, I found it euphoric. An intense cardiac work-out, a good sweat, and an endorphin release really makes food and drink so much more enjoyable.

Since my son was born, exercise has really taken the back-burner and I've been feeling it. Underlying anger and frustration has been building. I love my life but why do I feel like something is missing? Last weekend we had dinner with our super-fit (and childless) friends, and they confirmed that they work-out EVERY DAY. I was so envious! I decided it was time to make a change and elevate fitness in our lives. We took the plunge and re-joined our old gym. I'm hoping that my son is old enough to enjoy the club and benefit from the children's play room, swim lessons and other family-related programs and activities. I'm thrilled that we can put fitness first and make a commitment to spend several hours a week at the gym. It is not going to be easy, but I believe it will be worth it. Wish me luck!

Thought for the Day

"Here is what I think: that being grateful for what I have makes me want less. Wanting less makes me consume less. Consuming less makes me treat the planet more kindly. The equation goes, therefore, gratitude equals kindness." -- Colin Beavan, No Impact Man

For Colin's full post click here

I'm so lucky!

10 years ago Tyler and I were married at the Cannon Beach Community Center. It was a delightful ceremony - shared with about 65 family members and friends. A very eclectic and spirited Rabbi married us. It was a splendid September evening... It was warm, dry and the autumn evening sunlight was magical. In some ways it seems like just yesterday and in many ways it feels like we have been together a lifetime.

We enjoyed a simple celebration this evening... An hour and 15 minute walk to Ken's Artisan Pizza. We got to talk about work, our lives, and our hopes and dreams for the future.

L'Shana Tovah ("A Good Year")

Ours is not a religious home, yet I have always been drawn to the Jewish faith. I especially enjoy the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah. Rosh Hashanah is a time of renewal. It is a time to get your affairs in order. It is a time to clean out your drawers and closets and make a trip to Good Will. It is a time to organize your life. It is a time to catch up with friends and family. It is a time to reconcile any bad relationships. It is a time to get your hair cut and buy some fall clothes. It is a time to plan for the winter and think about how you hope to live in the months to come. It is a time to be grateful for how far you have come.

One of the symbolic rituals of Rosh Hashanah is the blowing of the shofar, a trumpet made from a ram's horn. The sound of the shofar is intended to awaken the listener from his or her "slumber" and alert them to the coming judgment. What a lovely notion to take 10 days every autumn to reflect on these things.

I prepare a special Rosh Hashanah meal every year. Apples and honey symbolize a "sweet new year". This year I tried a new recipe (Apple Coffee Cake). I also made a big pot of matzoh ball soup.

It Takes A Village

As many of you know, my husband was away for the past five days. He cheered on the Ducks as they took down Michigan in the big house. Henry and I spent a glorious weekend at Belknap Hotsprings - on the McKenzie River - in the Cascade Mountains. Our friends Helen and Dennis organized a lovely wedding celebration for their daughter Brooke. It was a glorious three days of eating drinking, basking in the sunshine, chatting, visiting, catching up, swimming, playing, etc.

I was so grateful to be surrounded by such caring friends. Everyone was so generous and helpful with my son. He had an amazing time and connected with so many new and old friends. I'm looking forward to creating more community outings for our family.

Goodbye Summer!

It's hard to believe the summer is over...

This was certainly not Oregon's finest summer. We had so many cool and cloudy days.

This past weekend was glorious and we made the most of it. We spent Saturday and Sunday in Eugene. Tyler cheered for the Ducks as they beat Houston in their home opener at Autzen Stadium and Henry and I played at the Saturday Market and that lovely park at Skinners Butte. We enjoyed the afternoon with friends and then had a really fun playdate with Callia and Delah. Yesterday we got to wish Kelly Fitz a happy birthday with a delicious homemade birthday cake that her mom made, and today we spent the afternoon at the Wilson Pool.

We really enjoyed participating in the Summer Reading program this year.

We loved the preschool storytimes at Northwest and Sellwood Libraries. We enjoyed getting free passes to the Wilson pool as our prizes. We especially loved the outing to Oaks Park with an unlimited ride bracelet for only $3.50!

Here are some of the books we enjoyed most this summer...

A BAD CASE OF STRIPES (David Shannon)

ROLLER COASTER ( Frazee)

HI PIZZA MAN (Walter)

A CAMPING SPREE WITH MR MAGEE (VanDusen)

MERCY WATSON PRINCESS IN DISGUISE (Dicamillo)

EVERY FRIDAY (Yaccarino)

IF (Perry)

Thomas the Tank Engine Story Collection (AWDRY)

Library Lion (Michelle Knudsen)

IF I BUILT A CAR (VanDusen)