Snowman! (He's been named "Louis" by the kids, in honor of our dear Siggy Roo, whose middle name was Louis, sniff. We sure do miss him, although it was nice to not worry about rolling up dog doo in our snowballs...) Prrrrfect sticky-snow day for a snowman, thank you sun! And a vegetarian snowdude to boot - broccoli eyes, along with the ubiquitous carrot nose, rad. And so fun, in fact exhilarating (!), to finally be outside.

And nice inside too. I'm braising a pot roast today for...pot roast's sake. To have around for sandwiches, to turn into A Good Hash (if we're lucky), to add a few bites of protein to tonight's main course - and most requested both-kid favorite - Spicy Spaghetti. Not a saucy spaghetti, at all, really just a hint of tomato with lots of olive oil, garlic and enough red pepper flakes to add a kick. So simple, so good. Add broccoli, add shrimp, add anything that your kids (or you!) will like. I try to reduce the ratio of pasta to veg - in this case roasted broccoli - although no one around here uh, embraces the concept as enthusiastically as I...but that's OK, I'll keep trying... (Recipe posted in comments, below.)