Dinner was interrupted by ghosts and goblins and the like begging for treats which we had to oblige, lest we fall prey to a trick. Our trick-or-treaters were of the cutest variety. At last we felt less than evil for breaking open that bag of treats and helping ourselves to a few.

Jim just declared that “one for you” equals “one for me” for the rest of the evening! It’s a wonderful evening, still warm for this time of year and the neighborhood kids are having a great time. The cats are being admired by all.

I was waxing philosophic about the maturity level of kids in today’s violent society when Jake inquired as to how many glasses of wine I had. Really, it was only two. I took it easy with dinner. Just canned veggies, but, as usual, my chicken was perfect. I selected “Sounds of the Season” for dinner music to complete the Halloween atmosphere.

It was another crisp autumn day and the electric jack-o-lantern grinned in the bay window as we ate. The cats, Smokey and Bandit, wandered in and out, munching on their own dinner.

It’s not my fault, of that I’m sure, but the beef for the stew was tough again. We need to buy stew meat elsewhere, or a different cut of beef, because this is getting to be aggravating.

Jim looked so handsome tonight in his red shirt, sipping his merlot. Though the beef was tough, he went back for seconds and said it was very tasty. He’s impossible to resist.

Wė decided to go out for a pizza tonight, something we rarely do. It was a mouth-wateringly delicious thin-crust, my half pepperoni, Jim’s sausage. We ate at a local joint, not too impressive, but the pizza is good.

We finished off our dinner by buying one of those scratch off lottery tickets, which, of course, didn’t make us rich. Then we headed off to the grocery store. Wow, we two sure know how to spend a Saturday night! That’s okay, we’re home now, alone with our cats, Smokey and Bandit, comfortable and cozy.

Dean Martin serenaded us while we ate our hearty dinner of Italian sausage and peppers. Jim gave me one of those amused crooked smiles when I explained that I like to play Dean when serving Italian so that it tastes more authentic. The window allowed the crisp autumn air in and the house smelled of garlic.

I’m not sure exactly what got into me tonight, but that plaque in our kitchen, “In Wine There is Truth” probably explains it. I didn’t have more wine than usual, but for some reason I went on a wild talking spree at Jim’s expense.

It all started when I told Jake that I’d just finished watching the latest episode of “Meerkat Manor” and learned of Flower’s death and Zaphod’s confusion. Okay, so they’re only meerkats, but it got to me!

Jim looked intently into my eyes, sipped his wine and nodded with the patience of a saint.

I was feeling very lazy today, so I roasted a big fat chicken, but only made canned vegetables. I think Jim was disappointed that I didn’t make a salad, but I was sooooooo tired. I figure we’ll make up for it later, since it’s Friday night and I’m sure we’ll have some popcorn.

We finished eating and were chatting while sipping our wine, when that familiar ring of one of my children interrupted us. It was my daughter, calling to tell me that she was feeling ill. I really miss that girl of mine. Jim understood my need to chat with her, cleared the table and went back to his computer. We’ll meet again later in front of the TV.

Hard to describe dinner tonight. We had the third roast from a package of four that we recently bought and froze. Like its predecessors, this roast was tough and difficult to chew. Tough meat in a crock pot is a fairly difficult thing to accomplish, so I’m going to take the blame off myself and just say this was a bad roast deal. I’m not looking forward to the fourth roast in this series.

We just went grocery shopping and, hopefully, we bought something which will be more edible than tonight’s roast. One thing about a ruined diner — there’s always tomorrow to try again.

Badly in need of comfort food, I made an Italian sausage stew for dinner that really and truly hit the spot. Damn, that was good! Why certain foods are a comfort in times of stress is a mystery to me, but comfort it does.

Although the atmosphere in our home is peaceful and we are the happiest couple I know, we must be ever-vigilant not to let these stresses overcome us.

I’ve most definitely overeaten today. We decided to go out to lunch and ended up at “Red Hot & Blue”. There is no way to walk out of that place without feeling overstuffed.

Consequently, I made an extra light dinner. I still wasn’t hungry in the least, but ate anyway. Now why did I go and do that? I just might have to skip the popcorn tonight.

We were both groovin’ to the 70’s station while we ate.

Just as I foretold in last night’s post, dinner was great tonight. If I say so myself, I make great chicken. Dinner was late because we splurged on popcorn and a movie this afternoon. Thing 1 is kicking up quite a fuss tonight with his mouse toy.

I came to the table with my arm out of my newly acquired sling. I kept it around my neck, but threw it over my shoulder. I just didn’t know how to go about making dinner or eating it with my right arm in a sling. While still enduring the long, painful wait to see the orthopedic surgeon and with no advice from my general physician, we decided to try a sling.

The vision of me wearing this sling brought to the forefront all my anxieties about myself. The MS, with all its unattractive symptoms, and now the arm/shoulder thing. Seriously, I look like one arm is attached to my body. I can’t move it up or back or out and that means I can’t fix my hair right, can’t wear anything but a button shirt — good grief — I can’t even hook my own bra!

Despite our healthy relationship, all this is enough to make me wonder about my desirability. Although his actions would indicate that I am the sexiest woman alive, I wonder how can this man possibly be romantically attracted to me. Upon my tear-driven statement of inadequacy, Jim reassured me that none of my physical problems diminishes his romantic feelings for me. Looking into those hypnotic eyes, I knew he spoke the truth.

Information Interlude
A baby sitter becomes a necessity for working parents, specially if you have a feisty baby boy. Getting a baby monitor is advisable under any circumstances though.

The pork chops were dry. How I managed that using a crock pot is beyond me! Either I’m way off my game in the kitchen lately, or we’ve been leaving meat in the freezer too long. In any case, Jim manages to smile pleasantly and choke down whatever I serve him as if it’s the best thing he ever tasted. In some ways, it’s quite amusing. I’m planning on making a chicken tomorrow night, and that’s something I never mess up.

We have a large bay window in our kitchen and we observed that the house across the street is all decked out for Halloween. It’s a wonderful time of year and I’m keenly aware of the presence of the bag of candy we already bought for the trick-or-treaters. Although it whispers my name every time I pass by the cupboard, I will fight to resist its evil temptation, although the chocolate industry has made great strides in convincing us that chocolate is practically a health food. I

Just another Saturday night dinner at our place.

Dinner was disappointing. The meal, I mean. The roast we bought and froze was a little tough. I made it in the crock pot, on low, so I don’t think it was my cooking. Jim made a funny face with the extra chewing required, but it only made me laugh.

Jake and I had a fantastic afternoon (Wink).

I was rocking in the kitchen tonight! Instead of listening to the evening news and letting my blood pressure rise, I cooked along with the sounds of the 70’s. When Jim came in the room he had a smile on his face and told me that he enjoyed hearing me singing happily in the kitchen. It felt good, too. Guess I’ll try that more often.

We ate lunch today at our local French restaurant and it was superb! Such a wonderful and enjoyable place.

Oh, yeah, Jake’s looking mighty fine tonight.

Italian sausage and peppers is one of my favorite meals. It’s a comfort food and the whole house smells appetizing.  Jam even went back for seconds.

After he cleared the table, I spent a few minutes hanging on to Jake. I appreciate the man he is.

The setting was our local Italian restaurant. We enjoyed our wine and pasta outside on the patio with the early autumn air and  a slight breeze. Truly, the simplest things in life bring the most pleasure.

Earlier, Jim gave me a bouquet of beautiful red roses for my birthday. It doesn’t get much better than this.

The future is full of promise.