An Easy Day

I have a great family. We spent the day together just bumming around the house. Earlier the guys played in the pool while I started a pan full of fig chutney. (I called it tapenade yesterday, but this morning I discovered the recipe called it chutney. It's pretty much the same to me, though.) While the vinegar, sugar, onions and spices (a good deal of chopped ginger for heat, cinnamon, all spice, cloves, and salt) were cooking, I chopped the figs and found a little time on my hands so I made quick snack tray of fruit, cheese, salami, and crackers. Then when the guys came in, we played a family game and munched goodies while the chutney simmered. How relaxing is that?

Later in the day, Jeff and I both lolled off to sleep while our son serenaded us on his guitar. It was a peaceful way to spend fifteen minutes or so. Next, I coated some little jigsaw puzzles with glue, munched a few chips with spoonfuls of the fig chutney (so good!) and contemplated working on my novel. Here's where the guys get really great. They volunteered to go to the grocery store while I stayed home to write. This was a treat since I didn't really want to go to the store, but it needed to get done. And their timing was impeccable because I finished an entire chapter while they were gone.

To make matters even better, when they came home, Jeff offered to make dinner (burgers on the grill and fries in the oven). Who could ask for more. Even as I write this, the timer on the oven is beeping summoning me to food I didn't fix. Life is good.