Dear Deb,

Today has been happy-homemaker day in the apartment. I've cleaned (using all-natural homemade cleaning products) and cooked most of the day. The annoying rash on my hands has been a wake-up call for me to watch the chemicals I'm around. So we bought some white vinegar and that's what I used to mop floors in the kitchen and bathroom. I added a little bit of eucalyptus oil to the vinegar and hot water and the place smells so good!

Adding to the good smells is the bouquet of flowers Ken brought back from the shops for me. I've been a little moody and down this week, and the sweet man brought me purple and gold flowers! He didn't even know that those are Paoli's colors! It instantly raised my spirits and made me feel more at home. Can you believe that I've never had a man bring me flowers for no reason?

For lunch today, I introduced Ken to the joy of pastrami reubens! He made dark rye bread in the bread maker while I was down and out yesterday. So this afternoon, I took our leftover sauerkraut from dinner the other night, pastrami from the shop and some swiss cheese and thousand island dressing and BAM! Reubens! Had a side salad with it and Ken acted impressed. It certainly smelled good, but there was something missing. I don't think I put enough kraut on it. But then that's my favorite part of the sandwich.

While Ken went to visit his sick friend, I finished cleaning and mixed up a cake for tonight. Mom and I both love the webblog: http://down---to---earth.blogspot.com. And she had a recipe for the "best cake ever". I had to try it! It smells really good and was terribly simple to make. After dinner, I'm going to attempt to make a hard sauce with whiskey and dates to pour over the top of the cake. I haven't even searched for a recipe yet, so I'm not sure it's possible but it sounds good!

It's time for my baked pork chops dinner. This is one of my favorite recipes and I've done it so many times. You brown the chops in a skillet. Chop a couple of sweet potatoes in big pieces and core a couple of granny smith apples. Put the potatoes and apples into a casserole dish or baking pan. Sprinkle with brown sugar, cinnamon, salt and pepper, etc. Lay the browned chops on top and cover and bake. How easy is that?! And it's so tender and yummy! The best part is you only have two pans to clean. I'm going to serve that with some more of the rye bread.

I'm really trying to find my place in the grand scheme of things here and make it my own. You know how much I love to cook so I'm hoping to do some nice things in the kitchen. It's so much more fun to cook for two. And the cleaning is important to me. I'd like to make this home as cozy and healthy as possible for us. I've got your example and the other women in the family as my guiding stars.

In other news, we went to Aaron and Julie's house for dinner on Sunday night. Aaron is Ken's son. Julie made a beautiful corned beef, mashed potatoes, roasted vegetables dinner and for dessert a chocolate pavlova with raspberries and whipped cream! I've had multiple dreams about that dessert! The pavlova is a meringue - crispy on the outside and light. I'm going to try to get the recipe from her for you guys. We had a great time at dinner, they are very sweet and funny. The night flew by. I look forward to spending more time with them both. And their daughter, Aribella, is beautiful and fun. She'll be four in June and like all 4 year-old girls, believes the world revolves around her. As it should.

Well, I need to get off of here and onto the Wii Fit. I have to work off all the food!

Hope you are all well. All my love,
Courtney