Sylvia's Scenario

I am happy to announce that the top recipe for 2020 on my blog was one of  Hannah Freese, RD's  recipe that I make over and over again,  Pumpkin Bean Chili .  Apparently, other people liked it, as well, because it was the #1 most popular recipe on my blog for 2020.   I make this recipe a couple times per month.  I would say that this recipe has taken the place of spaghetti in our house.  We use to eat spaghetti pretty often and it would always be a staple dinner.  Now, it's the pumpkin chili.  Of course, it's been chili-type weather since I started Hannah's method of eating in September.  But interestingly, this is the most recent of the top three popular recipes, yet it got the most hits.  I don't eat pasta anymore and I cook my own pinto beans when I make this recipe.  Pinto beans cook fast so I can start them in the morning and they are ready to add to the chili by dinnertime.  But of course, you can use canned pin...

We are starting our New Year on a spicy note, specifically with  Chicken Curry with Sweet Potatoes  that I made for dinner last night.  We forget how tasty some of the recipes are on my blog and this one is a favorite.  On New Year's Eve, we invited my friend to dinner who lives in the neighborhood and I made my  Chinese Chicken Salad  and  Won Tons .  Knowing my menu, she brought some Vegetable Egg Rolls with Peanut Sauce that was like a rolled up salad with the most delicious peanut sauce that was finger-licking good.  I especially had fun using my new dinner plates on New Year's Eve that Lauren gave me for Christmas from my favorite Seattle shop called Watson Kennedy . These dinner plates are their beige cabbage plates and I love them.  Setting the table brings such simple pleasure and joy when I get to use my new dinner plates.  It was a lovely, quaint evening sitting by the fire talking and getting ca...

I wasn't joking when I said this is our year of reconstruction with our house being remodeled and having a  total hip replacement  in February.  I'm on a roll right now so on August 15th, I had my right knee done, too.  Both my knees need a total knee replacement which is a bummer but I need to just buckle up and get it done.  My hip surgery went so well that I wasn't so fearful of the knee surgery, although everyone keeps telling me they are totally different experiences.  I realize their differences but I was still eager to get it over with.   I'm currently post op. day # 9 and it hasn't been that bad at all.  If I was to give anybody advise about this surgery, it would be PAIN CONTROL.  Duh.  I know that sounds obvious but twice I tried reducing my pain meds because I was feeling so good and twice I ended up increasing them back up to the prescribed amount.  I need to be doing my PT exercises 3X/day and I can't d...