Reunited
I don’t have many crappy days but yesterday was definitely one of them. While there were a myriad of reasons why I couldn’t wait for the day to end, I’ll give you the Cliffs Notes version:
1. My presentation at Maya’s school didn’t go as well as I’d hoped. The kids liked the book but not the samosas. One kid said “These are too spicy!” and then all hell broke loose and all I could hear were resounding cries of “Yes, too spicy!” Followed by a chorus of “Hot, hot hot.” It didn’t help that most kids went to town on the chips and salsa the teachers provided for Cinco de Mayo. I assumed that letting the teachers know I was bringing a snack ensured there wouldn’t be two afternoon snacks. Silly me.
Oh and the flags that I’d printed out for the kids to color? Apparently there was no time for coloring, even though I was well within my 20 minute slot. Instead the teacher just stuffed one in each child’s mailbox. We all know that flag went home with an overtired mother who threw it uncolored into the recycling pile along with the rest of the junk mail she had in her hand.
So much for that.
2. After the presentation I took Maya to the park where I proceeded to get into an argument with quite possibly the most annoying 9-year-old I’ve ever encountered. What was his transgression you ask? He took Maya’s turn on the spinner. He literally just pushed her out of the way and hopped on. I told him he needed to get off and wait his turn but all he did was scream a bunch of very obnoxious words right in my face. So even though the voice of reason told me to walk away I put my foot on the spinner so he couldn’t move and I told him to get off. Then his equally annoying mother comes over and says, “Oh, he was waiting in line over by the swings, he was next!” Call me crazy but the line by the swings is the line for…the swings!
I’ll spare you the lengthy details of our 5 minute conversation but imagine an annoying kid yelling rude things and pointing at me while his mother looks on and laughs. And there you have another reason why I hate living in Los Angeles.
3. After dinner Maya and I had some words about why she didn’t eat her lunch. Again. “I was too full, Mama.” Funny she should mention that because the little traitor had no problem filling up on the chips and salsa at snack time. Apparently my samosas were “too spicy” for her too. The evening ended with me force-feeding her the rest of her lunch while I worried she would throw up on me out of spite.
But since today is a new day with a low risk of vomit and park arguments can I share with you one of the few good things that happened yesterday? Remember the terrible customer service I experienced regarding my defective sweater? Well my sweater and I were reunited thanks to a kind manager at Cusp who had a new, hole-free sweater shipped from Boston for me. She also said that if it rips again I can return it with no problem.
I have no idea why this particular sweater makes me so happy but I am going to go with it. Life is too short to dwell on the negatives for too long.
A State of Flux
I’ve been in a weird state of mind these days. For some reason things that normally drive me nuts don’t seem to be pushing me over the edge. I’ve been letting dishes pile up in the sink, shoes collect at the door, and I didn’t even freak out yesterday when Maya and her little friend trailed cookie crumbs all over the clean hardwood floor. (I haven’t gone completely nuts though, as I did pick up every crumb.)
In addition to letting the house turn into a disaster area, I’ve been spending less time on People.com working and more time with Maya.
We’ve been addressing her math skills. Or lack thereof.
As you can see we have a long way to go. I may just need to quit my job and focus solely on getting her to write the number “6” instead of a backwards “9.”
We’ve been mastering her use of the rolling-pin.
We cooked up a batch of calzones that were enjoyed by Ali, Maya, and my father-in-law. Talk about hitting a home run.
We’ve been dressing up in our fanciest tutus and high heels to enjoy some hot chocolate at Kelly’s Fudge:
Things actually didn’t end so well after our hot chocolate venture…Maya made one too many complaints, threw in a “NO!” and a stomped foot, and consequently wasn’t allowed to watch TV afterwards.
You win some, you lose some.
And now, for the first time ever (bad Boat Room Mom), I am off to volunteer at Maya’s school as a part of Mother’s Day week. I have 20 minutes to teach 25 kids a little bit about India.
I have a book to read, flags to color, and samosas to eat. Hopefully they won’t notice the samosas are a tiny bit burned and that I have no clue what I’m doing. But before I go make a fool of myself I must mention that there may be something in the air here at the Din house because even Ali has been in a state of flux. For the first time ever he purchased these:
Needless to say he didn’t get a single number on either ticket. Not one. He probably shouldn’t quit his day job any time soon.
I’ve Made Peace
I haven’t eaten too many white potatoes in the past few years, thanks in part to everyone from Dr. Oz to my sister telling me that white potatoes are the equivalent of the devil. But after not gaining an ounce after eating hash browns, roasted potatoes, and masala dosa daily, and sometimes twice a day while on vacation, I realized that I really need to stop taking to heart every single piece of advice (solicited or not) that I read/hear. And while we are on the topic of unsolicited advice, can I offer some? I promise you will not gain 10 pounds if you eat white rice, white bread, or white potatoes. My vacation is evidence of that.
Now that potatoes and I are friends again I picked up a 5 lb. bag during my last visit to Trader Joe’s. Since I was totally craving my mom’s Potato Kabobs I figured I’d attempt to replicate them based on memory. Now I may not be the most objective taste tester but honestly? I think these turned out quite good!
Indian-Style Potato Kabobs
4 medium-sized red potatoes
1/2 cup of frozen peas
1/2 onion chopped (I omitted this because the only onion I had was bad)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon garam masala
1/4 cup of water (I used almond milk)
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1. Cut the peeled potatoes into quarters. Place them in cold water and boil until soft. Drain and set aside.
2. Using the now empty pot (because why wash another one if you don’t have to?) heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil and add all the spices except for the salt. Stir for a minute and add the onions and peas. Stir for another couple of minutes.
3. Add the potatoes and water/milk and stir well, until all the potatoes are well coated with the spices.
4. Mash the potatoes/peas until they are fairly broken up and sprinkle with salt. Remove the potatoes from the pot and set aside. Once they are cool enough to handle form the mixture into little balls and flatten them into kabobs.
5. Add the remaining oil to the pot (because again who wants to wash another pan?) and fry the kabobs until they are browned on both sides.
My mom is reading this right now and is thinking, “Ameena, you didn’t use enough oil and that’s why your kabobs didn’t brown properly.” I totally agree Mom, but while I’ve made peace with potatoes I am still working on my relationship with frying things.
Hopefully olive oil and I will get to a good place one day soon.
While I'm not going to win Mother/Wife of the Year Award anytime soon, I haven't killed anyone yet or shot myself in the head. And that, my friends, is how I calculate success these days. 
FANCY THAT FANCY THIS 