Weekly Meal Plan: Sept. 25 - Oct. 1, 2023

Hey, you! 😊

I hope everything is well. As I mentioned last week, I've been taking things slow. One step at a time, as my therapist likes to remind me. But unfortunately, I received yet again sad news this week - gosh, this month of September is hard! But for every bad thought I have, I've gotten the habit of replacing it either with a happy thought or a funny one.

So let me share it with you. My daughter, S, is 15 years old and she is currently in grade 10. Before the summer, there was this guy who professed his feelings towards her but unfortunately for him it was not reciprocal. Summer passed and about two weeks ago, so the first week back-to-school, he once again approached her to say that he still had feelings for her and if she had given any thoughts about them. She nicely told him no and that she was not interested and that wouldn't change. But last week, one of her new classmates asked her if she was dating "the guy" because he was apparently telling everyone they were. She said absolutely not and when she told me the story, I laughed but I also asked her what she was feeling and if she was mad. Deep inside, I was rolling on the floor laughing. And apparently so was she because no one at school believed the poor guy. They basically grew up together and she sees him as a friend and nothing else. She also has a reputation for turning down guys at school. I keep encouraging her to date and just have fun, but she tells me no one is interesting. Or at least one boy is, but he's so shy that he won't make the first move and she refuses to make the first move. Haha. Anyways, I can't even begin to tell you how different my daughter S is from me, but that's for another post. So that was my funny thought of the week - There's this boy who has been turned down twice and now pretends to be in an imaginary relationship with my daughter. He's telling everyone that he's happily in love, but no one believes him. 😂😂 I don't know why, but I am in tears everytime I think about this. Poor guy.

As much as I want to eat Filipino food all the time, I find it very difficult to cook Filipino dishes. For some reason, when I do, I have this need to have all of the ingredients. Like, I can't do any shortcuts. Which can be hassle when you're in a hurry or when you're living outside of the Philippines. For example, last night, S wanted pasta and in 15 minutes, dinner was ready. That can't happen when I'm cooking Pochero or Menudo. I almost feel like Filipino food has become more of a festive / for celebrations dish, but I'm not giving up. I'm gonna try my best to cook more Filipino dishes. 😊

What do you like to cook when you're in a hurry?

xoxo Elodie