A little positivity...goes a long way.

Some disappointing news from the surgery day... the surgeon found more cancerous cells on the surface of the liver so decided to not proceed as planned. The new "plan" is to attack these rogue cells with aggressive chemotherapy and hopefully do the procedure in a few months. Thank you for all of your prayers, comments, thoughts and good energy.  I believe that positive attitudes are the substance behind healing.  And I admit, at times, it is hard for me to remain positive.  Not just in this situation, but in so many....I tend to be a glass half-empty person.... 

 

Although, I have learned a lot about the power of a positive attitude lately. I am in awe of how it changes things.  It changes people.  It trickles down.  The strength that J's dad exudes is amazing. The positivity on the tails of the worst news you could get..... awe-inspiring. He even joked that maybe he'd make his dentist appointment this week since he wouldn't be in the hospital anymore.  That's how you look at the bright side! wow.  I am blessed to have such a supportive family...mine and the one I married into.  We all have our "stuff" but what matters is what you learn from it, how you grow from it, where you lean to, and where you go from there....and that you have people at your back.  Support systems, community and love.  Isn't that what it is all about? 

If that is what life is about then we can call ourselves blessed.

Livestrong....

I'll wear yellow.
I'll wear blue.
I will wear these colors to remember to pray for you.

These bracelets around our wrists are not just symbols....they are real reminders for me. They are real battles being fought, and real spirits being tried.  

Don't we all tend to get complacent in our lives when the wheels are turning, the sun rises and sets and we all go on....? What if your world were to suddenly get rocked? Everything was upside down? How would you respond? Things like this show us what we are made of....good, bad, ugly or triumphant.....

The blue bracelet is for a seven year old boy named Forester who is battling cancer in the form of a brain tumor. Medulloblastoma is the official name. It is an ugly name. He's only 7! SEVEN. The same age as my son. He is about to endure his second round of chemo and radiation. This is a terrible thing for anyone, let alone a 7 year old to endure when he should be riding bikes and swimming in the hot summer sun. But, the cards were dealt and he got a bad hand. Now instead of playing like other carefree seven year olds....he is enduring. And fighting. What a hand, but what a testimony of bravery. How would you handle that?

The yellow bracelet has had many meanings over the years. One of admiration to a great athlete who overcame a significant battle. One of allegiance to a spirit of determination. One for a grandfather who lost a battle to cancer....in the form of pneumonia that took advantage of a chemo-laden immune system. But the most significant meaning yet would be for my father-in-law. The athletic, super-fit, super-consultant, marathon-runner, comedian extraordinaire, father of 6, grandfather of my two, plus 5 (soon-to-be 6) others...father to my husband, was recently given a terrible diagnoses. Cholangiocarcinoma. Another ugly word. Cancer of the bile duct. 1 in 100,000 people....rare.... WHAT???!!!

So, we buck up. We pray. And we conquer. This terrible disease has met it's match. As he said, ironically, this is the real marathon he has been training for. He ran the Boston Marathon in April, his doctors say they couldn't wish for a better patient for overcoming any surgical "issues". The best of the best have rearranged their schedules to fit him in. If anyone can do it, he can. So, LIVESTRONG GeezerJock. You are an inspiration to us all.

If you will...please remember J's dad, "Grampa Bill" in your thoughts and prayers on Monday June 15th when he goes in for surgery. 7 hours...for complete tumor removal and no sign of cellular spread into his liver or pancreas. This is still unknown information to us all. If you want more information on Bill's progress and condition, check out this nifty blog.

A fun day for a mud day

I needed to plant a few extra flowers today. I pulled the spent pansies and thought it looked a little bare...so, off to replace them with petunias, lantana, and vinca. Little a. was my helper. Boy, was he ever....


I often tried to get LoJ. to make mud-pies while I planted, but he usually got side-tracked in some adventure with his imaginary family of friends. Notably, burying and then exhuming Kayla in the front flower beds...(another blog post entirely...) So, today when little a. was thoroughly entertained by good old fashioned mud-slinging, I was smiling to myself... and loving the sweet simplicity of baby-hood.

There's J Lo and then there's L O J.

Little j. might have to be re-nicknamed "little old j." because he is seven now. How did that happen?  When did my baby turn into a kid?  When did I leave my 20s far behind and start the downturn into the late 30s.....(well, I do have a few more months before that anyway... )

I can't believe we have a SEVEN year old! That is just nuts. Crazy. It always just seems like yesterday....

Anyway, the little guy opted for a small family dinner party on his actual birthday.  And in lieu of a party with friends, he chose to go to a Braves' game with a friend. He chose his cousin as the friend.  Which all turned out great since that meant that (daddy) J. could hang with his brother as well. So, the brothers and the cousins went to the game today.  Way back when... J. and his brothers had the privilege of being bat boys for the Braves.  "Little old j." (we'll just call him l.o.j. for short) thinks that is just THE coolest thing...today he was walking to the car with a bat in hand, "just in case they remember Daddy and want to call him down again..." (ha! Sorry Charlie...don't think that's gonna happen!) Anyway, fun was had by all and "l.o.j." said he chose well.....it was just as fun as any big party he has had.  Easier on mom too. :)

For his dinner party, I took some advice from my culinary, foodie friend and grilled a bunch of veggies up with olive oil and sea salt. Made a big pot of pasta. Chopped up fresh mint and chives and fresh grated parm. and laid it all out for everyone to serve themselves.  We also grilled yummy beer brats and sweet vidalia onion brats from Harry's.  I attempted vegan, no-soy cupcakes and was mildly successful. They looked a little weird ....but they tasted pretty good.  At least to me...and my niece who was brave enough to try one.  And little a. seemed to like them as well.  The rest of the kids were not going to attempt it.  (Thankfully, I bought a key lime pie as back up!) 

I had big plans for how I was going to detail the laces on the baseballs, but since I was battling with the frosting until right beforehand...well, they didn't quite get the love they deserved.  Oh, well...

 

So, here's to my birthday boy! You are a homerun slugger, ace, hole-in-one getter, best joke-teller and captain of my team anyday!  I love you to the moon and back.  

Sparkled Out

Fizzle. Shizzle. Putter, sputter, putt. 

Out of steam.

Things stored away in the brain..

BUT

right now this SPARK is a dud.

Anyone, have an energy pack to spare?

Time...

SO, this long weekend wasn't too exciting...

But it was nice to just have TIME!  We didn't have any baseball games, or karate, or ANYTHING!! It was great.  We just had time. Time to do things we've been meaning to get around to. Time to garden, time to go on a little shopping adventure (REI...what fun! The boys, well really just the older one, needed new shoes and the little one got some matching....thanks Nana!), time to just hang out together, and time to play a little. But, still not enough time to get around to all the endless TO DO lists...Do you have those too? 

But little a. did so many funny new things this weekend. He's changing so fast! He is still not clearly speaking (talking is overrated anyway...) but he definitely understands soooo much. He says juice and shoes..... and they sound the same.  He says da-da and that......and they sound the same. He says da-da and ma-ma......and THEY sound the same. But hey...I am starting to get it. He does what we ask. (except sit down) and he is signing a bit.... We are progressing! And he gives the greatest kisses and best all out body hugs you've ever had.

And I  just don't want to miss it! Any of it. And, I find myself so pre-occupied at times that I am afraid I am missing so much. Don't you ever just wish you could hit the pause button on your brain?  Or is that just a problem I have?  Overload central! It's all those darn TO DO lists.... I better get better at being present in the moment or all this precious time will pass me by. Check out some of the fun pics I took this weekend:

"There is never enough time to do everything, but there is always enough time to do the most important thing."

Vegan Banana Bread!!!

Yay! I have been on a kick to make homemade banana breads. I made one recently that was super yummy but had eggs in it.  Maybe even milk (I don't remember) but since the a. man has a milk protein allergy and a minor allergy to eggs, soy and peanuts, I am looking to great alternatives.

If you are allergic to dairy, what's the first option you go to?! Soy. Yes, but what if you also are allergic to soy. hmm...tricky. Now, his blood tests showed a higher reaction to these other 3 than did his skin tests. His allergist originally said not to worry about it. I am not so convinced....why, then does he still react?  I  am not taking any chances. So, here's to elimination and substitution. Although, getting the good oils and fats in him is proving to be the challenge. 

So, it turns out, I can bake! Who knew? I can't cook all that well. I think it has something to do with distractibility.  I have great ideas, but to be a good cook, you have to have focus with creativity in the kitchen. If there is one place in my house that I lack the most focus it is THE KITCHEN. There is so much else to do there. Ugh, it is quite distracting and I burn a lot!!  But, measuring things out and setting a timer on the stove...that I can do!  

So, my vegan banana bread was moist, and not too sweet. Just perfect.  

Here's the recipe I adapted from one I found online.

( I actually made 2 loaves so I doubled everything.)

2 large or 3 small very ripe bananas

1/4 cup applesauce

1/4 cup coconut oil (I substituted this for the canola oil it called for)

1/2 cup sucanat sugar

2 tablespoons molasses

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup white whole wheat flour

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9x5 loaf pan.

 

In a large mixing bowl, mash the bananas really well. Add the sugar, applesauce, oil, and molasses, and whisk briskly to incorporate.

Sift in the flour, baking soda, spices, and salt.  Use a wooden spoon to mix until the wet and dry ingredients are just combined. If you want, you could add nuts or choc. chips here....yum

Transfer the batter to the pan and bake for 45-50 minutes. The top should be lightly browned and knife should come out clean.

Easy peasy.  And the kids LOVED it....even my non-baked-goods loving husband.