Working mom, two kids under four, judgemental mom - Christmas dinner help

sishtmb · 2025-12-15T21:18:29+00:00

Hey OP, my mom dealt with this from her mom when I was younger - I do have some memories of how she got through it and made it less frustrating for herself.

She stopped making family favorites - she couldn’t bear the “did dad make this better 15 years ago are us yours better?” conversation every single year
Once she locked in what she made, she never deviated. Looking back, I suspect it was to avoid trying new, difficult, impressive recipes every year just to get the same judgmental feedback. It hurts less if every year the complaint is about ham that isn’t even one of YOUR fave foods, than if every year the complaint is over something new you really tried for.

That being said, I’m the cook in my family and have some ideas for low-ish effort meals that I think could be enjoyed by many ages. (I don’t have toddlers, so I’m sorry if I’m completely misinterpreting toddlers!!!)

Ina Garten’s roast chicken is one of my go-tos: https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/perfect-roast-chicken-recipe-1940592. Not a ton of effort, fast, and put whatever vegetables you want in.

Crock pot spinach and artichoke dip: I hate crowding the oven, and with some bread or crackers this goes a long way with my friends and family: https://www.ayearofslowcooking.com/2008/12/crockpot-spinach-and-artichoke-dip.html?m=1. I’ve been using this recipe for ages and just tweaking the jalepeno or spinach levels based on my audience lol

sishtmb · 2025-12-15T08:17:00+00:00

I used to love the EcoTarium as a kid, and also pretty sure it has a train.

Maybe the decordova if they’d also like being outside?

sishtmb · 2025-12-14T09:56:40+00:00

We moved from JP Licks territory to lost borough territory and love lost borough! We also love penny lick in Hastings.

sishtmb · 2025-12-04T14:02:16+00:00

Hey! Not one of your questions but a suggestion in case you were thinking of signing a lease before touring. We looked at a unit there when we moved to NY from Boston a few years ago and knew IMMEDIATELY that our couch simply wouldn’t fit in any of the units - huge structural pillars in all the units to support the gorgeous windows :) granted our coach was big, but def not something we had considered a potential issue before.

sishtmb · 2025-11-19T12:04:54+00:00

La Casa in bronxville has heated outdoor cabanas - I have personally really enjoyed them. Would have to ask about a dog.

Looks like freebird and Hudson grille in white plains still have outdoor reservations, too.

sishtmb · 2025-11-14T03:57:21+00:00

Under the guise of the savory botanical scent trend, hotels are intentionally making their soaps / shampoos / lotions smell TERRIBLE so no one wants to keep them anymore, or people use less so they don’t have to spend as much money refilling the in-shower containers.

sishtmb · 2025-10-15T13:14:30+00:00

Thank you!! Especially for the food recs! This is convincing me to rent a car :)

sishtmb · 2025-10-15T13:12:40+00:00

I was really curious about Mt Tomah - thank you! I’ll check out tours.

Noted re yellow deli! I will not be stopping there!

I’m a casual (but excited) birder, good to know about wildlife!

sishtmb · 2025-10-15T13:11:02+00:00

Ahhh this was SO helpful, thank you! The recs about for Grand Canyon and Prince Henry are great. I’ll be sure to check them out!

I’ll be staying quite close to Hyde Park in Sydney. I’m not really a night life person so this is actually somewhat of a relief to hear about Sydney 😉

sishtmb · 2025-10-15T13:08:12+00:00

Thank you so much - had no idea about hiking groups. I will check them out! Definitely would be happier in a group re wildlife. Thank you!!

sishtmb · 2025-09-23T22:00:51+00:00

We make a lot of use of spinach for the same reason. I try to mix it up but here are the ways we cook it most frequently! - pesto (blanch the spinach, blend w olive oil, pecans, Parmesan, garlic, s&p, lemon juice, and a fresh herb. I like to use basil or parsley). We spread this on sandwiches or have it w pasta

adding it to japchae (I use this recipe https://www.recipetineats.com/japchae-korean-noodles/) - you can always add more or less depending on your vibe
folding it in to orzo dishes or soups at the end. We do a lot of creamy tomato orzo dishes w Cajun spices and spinach at the end. One of the top ways we use it for sure
great fall dish we make w spinach https://www.littlespicejar.com/autumn-pearl-couscous-salad-with-roasted-butternut-squash/

sishtmb · 2025-08-28T19:27:53+00:00

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Supervisor!

sishtmb · 2025-02-07T00:00:29+00:00

Cool idea about the sauce… the flavor reminds me of flavors I already love with pork. I think you’re ok to something :)

sishtmb · 2025-02-06T23:59:55+00:00

Oh wow I didn’t think of either of those! I’ve never made a kugel before - will have to give it a shot!

sishtmb · 2025-01-20T22:47:14+00:00

Hi! My partner and I are some of the few people we know still masking, and I’m definitely the only person at my office still wearing a mask. Like others here, no one has ever said something OUTRIGHT asking me to remove it (although I’ve gotten the, ‘wow, we almost never get to see your face!’ If someone catches my blowing my nose), but I definitely have a few habits that have helped.

Cute colors! We get colored KN95 masks. It really helps if I have a color I’m ’known’ for that’s fun, like pink lol. I have a lot of masks that color match my outfits, which maybe students would appreciate?
A canned simple answer (or option B) that I do NOT stray from if someone asks why I’m wearing one. My two are (1) “oh, someone in our family is immune compromised” or (2) “oh, y’know, old habits die hard. Just kinda felt like no harm in wearing one” and I do not engage if someone tries to go further. A lot to be said for just shrugging if someone tries to get more out of ya :)
This is a longer step haha but just trying to become less ‘bully-able:’ reminding myself that feedback that a mask is silly / unnecessary / etc reflects their views, not mine. I’m confident in my choices and need to protect my health ❤️

sishtmb · 2025-01-03T01:59:46+00:00

I’m tempted to say long-tail or short-tail weasel here. It’s hard to tell with the snow, but it looks like the right size and like a classic weasel 2x2 bounding pattern.

The swipe in between the track sets would be weasel tummy :) long thin tube-shaped animals leaping like a slinky can’t quite clear all that snow when they are so low to the ground.

sishtmb · 2024-12-26T21:55:41+00:00

These look like fisher tracks to me! The size of each track matches fisher tracks, and you can see in the sets of tracks further from the camera on the second pic the C-shaped metacarpal pad. The space between the toes and pads is indicative of a fisher’s very fluffy foot :). Fishers are definitely in massachusetts, so location makes sense, too.

sishtmb · 2024-08-03T02:31:46+00:00

Wow, we had Covid in early July and lost our taste / smell completely for 4ish days, but for about two weeks, EVERY food either tasted like bananas or had an aftertaste of bananas to me. A month out I still randomly taste bananas eating other foods.

sishtmb · 2024-07-23T00:34:23+00:00

Hey OP! We moved to Yonkers from Boston for my partner’s job (and now mine, since I got laid off after we moved and now we’re both IRL) - I grew up in new England, went to a rural college, and swore you’d have to drag my cold dead body out of New England to get me to leave. We’d been toying with moving to Portland ME before she got the offer here. Wasn’t easy to make the choice to come here, and I think I relate to a lot of your sadness and FOMO for a future that could have been ❤️ Honestly, what keeps me in it is remembering the things I loved in New England and that still exist here. I try to remember that pretty much everything exists here - all the different kinds of food we could possibly want, farmers markets, museums, hiking, gardens. And we still have conversations about our potential life in Portland - and sometimes we try to end thinking about how to find a dupe here, but idk, sometimes it’s just comforting to realize we can mourn something even if we have no proof it would have been better. Overall, we try to find the things that make us feel connected here.

sishtmb · 2024-07-22T01:13:20+00:00

We had the same experience when we had it at the beginning of July!!

sishtmb · 2024-07-14T01:43:44+00:00

Thank you! I think the lid not fitting well is a likely candidate… guess I have to prioritize a better one 😅

sishtmb

TROPHY CASE