Another Mothers Day

And another Mother’s Day comes around.  This year, I don’t celebrate me (because, you know, Ma) , I celebrate the two beautiful girls who made me Ma. 

Stacie Anne, who has, herself, four awesome kids that I adore, for 38 years has been a source of love, angst, heartbreak and pride. Mostly love and pride.

 For all the turmoil and anger between us over the years, it always to comes back to this. She is my blood, my heart, my baybeegirl. No matter what, this remains truth. I’ve finally figured it out somewhat…the anger over the years. She is too much of me, too much like me.

As I was with my mother, rebellious, determined to make her own mistakes but hopefully to learn from them.  History repeats, and that sucks sometimes.  I have snapshot memories, so many good times with her, times when she held me up, times when she was my only reason to go on. 

I love the little girl that she was, I have deeper love and respect for the woman she has become, for the trials and tribulations that she has and is still dealing with.

A lesser woman would have given up, but not my girl, we are not quitters. We are strong, we are stubborn, and we are too determined to ever fail. We will come out on top. It may take time, but we always rise again.  So to Sissy, I say Happy Mother’s day, pumpkin, and thank you for being my first reason to celebrate. My love to you always <3

And then there is  Lianna Caitlin. The girl who was never Lianna to anyone aside from her grandmother and her fourth grade teacher.  And Lauren.

My Katie.  Another determined, stubborn  kid, rebellious to a lesser degree. The kid who has overcome emotional stress and turmoil that I would never have wished on any kid.  The girl  who wants to adopt every puppy, feed every homeless person, save everyone from every slight. And I say that with utmost admiration. She is, admittedly, spoiled. She will tell you that. But she is also so very giving and kind. 

She has had a rather bendy path to get to where she is, but she has learned along the way, and I think she’s happy where she is. She knows me sometimes better than I know myself.  She is a softer version of her sister, more sure of herself.  It’s taken awhile for her to get that way but she’s a strong, confident young lady and my other source of pride and joy. And heartbreak and angst and worry. But I guess that comes with the territory. Have kids, commit to a life of worry.  And love and laughter and tears and comfort.
 My Katie, my love to you too, always <3
These girls, these angels in my life, have supported me, loved me unconditionally even when they hated me, gotten me through times when I wanted to just quit. Somehow, their sentiments every year paint me as a role model,  a hero, the person they want most to be like. I never saw it that way. I see it as what I was meant to do, what it has been my honour to do,  raise these beautiful girls to stand their ground, to be the best they can, to survive and to soar. And to do it with love no matter what. My love for them both is stronger than any anger, any harsh words, any force that tries to break us, and for them, I celebrate this Mother’s Day because without them, I would not be.

"But you are never all alone

Because I will always

Always love you" 

In My Arms ~Plumb

Your baby blues
So full of wonder
Your curly cues
Your contagious smile
And as I watch
You start to grow up
All I can do is hold you tight

Knowing clouds will raise up
Storms will race in
But you will be safe in my arms
Rains will pour down
Waves will crash all around
But you will be safe in my arms

Story books full of fairy tales
Kings and queens and the bluest skies
My heart is torn just in knowing
You'll someday see the truth from lies

Knowing clouds will raise up
Storms will race in
But you will be safe in my arms
Rains will pour down
Waves will crash all around
But you will be safe in my arms

Castles they might crumble
Dreams may not come true
But you are never all alone
Because I will always
Always love you

Clouds will raise up
Storms will race in
But you will be safe in my arms
Rains will pour down
Waves will crash all around
But you will be safe in my arms

That Chicken Thing

So I’ve decided to blog some of these recipes that I see on FB because why not.  My life is not all pandemonium and random thoughts. I also cook. And bake.  I often see recipes on FB and think, well that looks awesome, I wonder if it works. And I’m sure you have too.  So recently I did the Bundt Pan Roast Chicken. I give it a ten. Seriously.  Easy and delicious.  It goes like this:

Bundt Pan Roast Chicken

Ingredients:
3 cloves garlic
2 carrots, chopped
1 onion, quartered
1/2 lb. yukon gold potatoes, quartered
extra-virgin olive oil
kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 large bunch fresh thyme
1 large bunch fresh rosemary
1 3-4 lb. chicken, gizzards removed
1 lemon, sliced

Preheat oven to 425° and cover the hole of the Bundt pan with foil.
In the bowl of a large Bundt pan, combine garlic, carrots, onion, and potatoes. Toss with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Scatter sprigs of fresh thyme and rosemary on top of the vegetables.
Pat chicken dry with paper towels. Season the inside of the cavity generously with salt and pepper, then stuff it with the lemon halves, a few sprigs of thyme, and a few sprigs of rosemary. Rub olive oil all over the skin of the chicken, then season generously with salt and pepper.
Place the chicken in the middle of the Bundt pan, breast side up. Bake until the chicken is cooked through and skin is golden, 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes. Let chicken rest for at least 15 minutes before slicing. Serve with roasted vegetables and extra pan juices.

How I did it:
I rough chopped the garlic, and used red potatoes. The Fiance likes red potatoes. With the skin on.  Don’t judge.  The rest was just the same, except for the fresh herbs. I used dried. Again, don’t judge. I bake, I don’t cook. Vanilla beans I have on hand always. Fresh herbs, not so much. Also, oddly the recipe says 1 lemon sliced, but refers to stuffing lemon HALVES in the bird. I compromised. Two lemons quartered. Note: Toss the veggies in a separate bowl with the olive oil, salt, and pepper - I stuck the chicken on the pan…in the pan?  BEFORE dumping the veggies in. Trust me on this. Easier to pack the veggies around the chicken then to move them out of the way so it fits.
PS: Don’t forget to take the gizzards, etc. out of the bird. Just sayin’, I may have a kid or two who has forgotten to do this.
It looked like this pre-cooking:

 

 Also I lined a roasting pan with foil and placed the bundt pan in that, to prevent any unexpected spills or leaks. Heavy duty foil is my best friend in the oven. 

So, in the oven at 425. That’s it. Done. Recipe says an hour to an hour and ten. I would say it went a good hour and a half. I blame my chef kid for making me paranoid about underdone poultry. Though I will never admit that to her. Yes, Katie, I checked the temp.

Done, it looked like this:

Fairly close to what it’s supposed to look like, I’d say. So, let it sit 15  minutes and remove from the pan. Carve as desired. I usually yank the legs off first.
OK so what we’ve got here is a chicken that, I swear, is as good as rotisserie chicken. Not in the least dried out, which I would have sworn being in the oven uncovered for over an hour, it would have been, but nope, even the white meat was delicious. Then the veggies, they soaked up some of that chicken juice, gave them the best flavor. With just two of us, there’s a bunch left over. I figure on one of two things: for chicken soup, I just need to dump some chicken stock in, maybe a bit more seasoning, some egg noodles and it’s good to go. Or I can do cream of chicken. Or perhaps chicken croquettes, salad….it’s such a versatile bird.

Bottom line:  This one is definitely a keeper. Kudos to the genius who thought of it!