Last week my mother came to Raleigh to keep me from getting lonely during N’s last week away and to boss me around about taking care of my back (which is getting a lot better). Charlie was in heaven with one of her favorite belly-scratchers in the house,

The leaky light effect is supposed to make it look like heaven; get it?

and I was very happy for the company. Moms are the best.

We ate well all week. First we had to gobble up all the leftovers from the cooking spree I wrote about in my last post. My mother bought a bottle of delicious New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, and prepared a couple of her signature meals which have become standbys in the Mueller kids’ houses thanks to a spiral-bound book of family recipes my parents put together several years ago.

We had Vegetarian Chile (I love this recipe which features the unexpected ingredient of squash),

and Sweet and Sour Lentils, a souvenir of my parents’ California years in the ’70s.

She also made wonderful grilled veggie sandwiches which we devoured before I thought to photograph them. Luckily, and intentionally, plenty of chile and lentils remain.

This post was also supposed to feature the musical treats I’ve been enjoying in my leisurely weeks of summer practicing, but I’m getting hungry so I think I’ll work on those leftovers and leave you waiting with bated breath for my next post.