I can vividly remember being in the car on the way to the hospital the day she was born.  Her Dad, sisters and I were trying to decide on what we should call her.  As the baby in the family she was coddled,  adored and spoiled rotten.  Not much has changed.

As the free spirit of the family, she is fiercely independent yet laid back and easy going.  Her journey has not always been simple and there have been times we questioned her path.  But that is all part of being family, being constant, loving forever and knowing we will always be there for her.

With an undergraduate degree in Nutrition/Dietetics, she is heading off in the fall to the University of Kansas Medical Center to get her masters degree and Registered Dietician certification.  We are so proud of the woman she has become and look forward to what the future holds.

Congratulations Molly!

Most of all, I am craving normal, at least normal for me.  I want to be able to:

*Take my camera outside and shoot pictures of spring emerging.

*Go to the grocery store, wander leisurely up and down the aisles.  Bring the groceries home and cook dinner.

*Shop for cute baby clothes for my soon-to-be-born grandson, Levi.

*Move freely between the first and second floors of my house without having to have my “spotter” standing in front or behind me, making sure I do not lose my balance on the stairs.

*Sleep in a position other than on my back.

*Go out of town for the weekend.

*Be able to walk without thinking about how strange my knee feels.

In summary, I am ready for this whole TKR (total knee replacement) experience to be behind me.  Gail, my wonderful in-home physical therapist, told me life would be closer to normal at about the eight week mark.  Five more weeks to go……seems like five years!

Let’s break this look down shall we?

1.  White Compression  Hose – This part of the assemble is pure evil.  Although presented by the medical profession as an important tool in preventing blood clots, the truth is they cut off total circulation in your leg.  No blood, no clots, no nothing is moving under these ultra tight,scratchy demons.  Trying to put them on after you have taken them off to shower is, well, no words can describe that fun!

2.  Ace Wrap -  Although this is an optional item at this point, it does play a wonderful role in keeping the cooling system attached to your leg.  This fashion item is just a part time addition.

3.  Cooling System -  Although this would be a bit cumbersome if you were very mobile,  it is perfect for this first week when you are doing very little except trying to articulate your pain on a scale of 1 to 10. Looking like my own personal beverage cooler, this unit delivers localized cold therapy by the use of a pump that circulates extremely cold water to the desired area.

As lovely as this look is, I certainly do not want to make this a permanent part of my wardrobe.

According to the multitude of health professionals that have been traipsing in and out of my bedroom the last few days, I am doing great for a week out of surgery.  My only goals are to see how far I can get my knee to bend and how many laps I can make with the walker around the second story of my home.  I have NO desire to tackle those stairs again for while, although the therapist says we will be working on that by the end of this week.   The knee bending goal is 120 degrees over all, but only 90 for the first week.  I have been having a very difficult time with the knee bending,  but today with the therapist pushing and me breathing like I was about to give birth, the 90 degrees was finally achieved.  YEAH!!

Another issue I will be fighting over the next few weeks is the IMPATIENT MONSTER that lives in my brain.  I know when work and life gets crazy I often dream of a few days of downtime to do nothing.  Of course that downtime is usually more about sun, sand and beaches than pain, immobility and 25 staples.

I want to truly thank all of you for the visits, plants, phone calls, food and warm wishes.  I can not imagine going through this without the support of my family and friends.

2. That staying focused thing is not working too well for me, take a look at all the shiny new hardware I will be sporting.  Kinda makes me hurt a little a lot.

3.  Daughter #2 and I cleaned out her old room in our house on Saturday.  Given the three years she has been married plus the four years she spent in college, she really has not been here on a long term basis for almost seven years.  Seems like it was time to pack up the “I Love Lucy” collection and give away some of the clothes still hanging in the closet.  Besides that, she has her own house now and has more storage space in her basement than I do!

4.  The cleaning mentioned above was in anticipation of daughter #3′s move back home after she graduates from college in May.  She will be attending a nutrition/dietetic internship at KU in the fall.  While working on her nutrition major/food minor she took several cooking classes and catered several events.  She even butchered a pig and took home pork chops!  I am really excited to have her home again and hoping she will use some of the nutrition/food knowledge I paid for in some of our evening meals. (minus the pork!)

5.  I also spent several hours in the kitchen yesterday cooking ahead a few of my favorite comfort foods and freezing them for after surgery.  I made vegetable barley soup that I shared in this post.

I made Black Bean soup that I wrote about here.

And I made a double batch of sugu (pasta sauce) that is a family favorite.  I don’t think I have shared that recipe yet, but definitely need to do that sometime in the future.

6.  The best thing I accomplished this weekend was making a decision on the quilt I will soon be starting for my soon-to-be born grandson Levi.  I love fabric and quilting SO much I have a very hard time making a choice on a pattern and the color I want to use.  There are so many things I like!    Besides the three t-shirt quilts I made for my daughters when they graduated from high school, I have not made a quilt for several years and I am very excited to start again .  I purchased all the material and am hoping I will feel well enough during my recovery over the next few weeks to get the pieces cut out.

Not sure if I will be posting next week or not, but if I do, please do not hold me responsible for what I say……I am hoping to be under the influence of some powerful drugs

I was ready to start looking for white (boring) lamps until this past weekend.  The Mr. and I were hobbling around Target, actually it was just me hobbling, when we spotted this lone lamp sitting on the shelf.

The color and size were perfect and the price was GREAT!  The problem was there was only one.  I jotted down the product number thinking I would be able to come home, hop on the computer and order two of them on-line.  No such luck…..they were not for sale on the Target web site.  I thought about the lamp for a couple of days and then decided to run (hobble) back to Target and hope the lone lamp was there.  YEAH!   It was there and I quickly purchased it and brought it home.  After work today, the MR and I jumped in the car armed with a list of 5 other Target stores.  I was on a mission to come home with another matching lamp.  At the first Target we stopped at, we found  another lone lamp on the shelve.  But one lone lamp was all I needed…….now I have two!!  I love it when my plan actually works!

The race is on to get the basement project complete before surgery……only three weeks left.  The things left on the to-do list include:

• Install floating shelves on the wall
• Paint two end tables
• Make the window valance
• Make a few throw pillows
• Hang artwork on the walls
• Hang pendant lights over the bar

There are a few other things we would like to do, like build a wine rack into the bar cabinet (which will require my brother-in-law’s services) and install a new light fixture (which requires new in the wall wiring) but I am pretty sure those will not happen in the next three weeks so I am not even putting them on the list.  I can be practical if I have to be!

Between hosting an Easter brunch, work, a trip to Omaha, and pre-op visits to the doctor and the hospital I will be hard pressed to get all these items done in 18 days but I am going to give it a try!  Hope you all have a great Easter!

I was not that unhappy about it though, I just went into SNOW DAY mode.  For me that means staying in your pj’s all day and cooking!  What can be so bad about that?

I started by getting chili in the crock pot.  I make a very simple chili that my mom use to make, just hamburger, chili beans, onions, green peppers, tomato sauce and Williams chili seasoning.  In my book it is not chili without Williams Chili Seasoning.  I buy it in bulk size from the wholesale club and use it for everything from chili to tacos to dips.

I always make it in the crock pot, either 4 hours on high or 6-8 hours on low depending on what time I get it started.  I am guessing this will be the last time I make chili for awhile…as much as I love it, I only make it in the fall and winter.  There are rules about chili you know!!

I usually serve it with fritos or saltines and lots of grated cheese.  Some in my family like to add vinegar and ketchup but I am not naming names!  I also came across this cookie recipe at Six Sisters Stuff  this morning and thought the Mr would love them since they include two of his favorite ingredients, applesauce and oatmeal.  By the way, Six Sisters’ Stuff has tons of recipes if you are ever looking for something new.

To make the cookies you start by creaming together butter, applesauce and brown sugar.

Then you add an egg, flour, oatmeal, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg and mix together.

Drop by rounded tablespoons onto your baking sheet.  I used the Silpat I got for Christmas for the first time and BOY do I love it!

Then bake for 13-15 minutes at 350 degrees.  They turned out mighty fine!

Now I am off to do a little on-line shopping for my future grandson!  It is a great day!!  Below is the entire cookie recipe…hope you enjoy!

Applesauce Oatmeal Cookies
Ingredients:
1 cup applesauce
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 egg
2 cups flour
1 cup oatmeal
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1 cup chocolate chips (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix together applesauce, brown sugar, butter, and egg. Add remaining ingredients (except chocolate chips) and stir until combined. Dough should be firm (add more flour if needed). Fold in chocolate chips and scoop heaping tablespoonfuls onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake for 13-15 minutes (until golden).
Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

Linking up to Seasonal Sundays

Linking up to Sunny Simple Life

                                                           Source

Two years ago today I wrote my first blog post on Ruminations and Reckonings.  To celebrate the day I have decided to give R&R a little facelift.  If you are reading this in an email or an RSS reader, click on over to the site so you can see the new layout.

One of the changes you will see are the new menu items.  I created those a month or so ago and if you looked hard on the old site you could see them…..but now they are front and center.  Clicking on one of those menu items will take you back to all the posts related to that topic.

I wrote that first blog post about two months after my first hip replacement and about two months before my second hip replacement.  Interestingly enough, this anniversary corresponds with me preparing for yet another surgery, a complete knee replacement to happen on April 16.  Although I knew this was in my future, it came about a little faster than expected so I am having somewhat of a minor (ok major) pity party.  I know life will be even better a few months from now, but I do not relish the thought of slowing down to recover once again.

To get past this dark place I did what I do best…….make a list!!!  I am such a structured person that a list provides comfort; check things off, life is good.  I have about twenty things I need to accomplish prior to the surgery date not including a trip to Omaha and an Easter celebration.  Many of the items are related to finishing my basement makeover.

Speaking of the basement makeover, here is an update on the progress.  Remember this lonely corner I showed you…

This is how it looks today, still a few more things to do but it is looking better.

Thank you all for reading these past two years!

I was a little panicked at first when I first heard the Google news, I can not imagine being able to keep up with the 40+ blogs I subscribe to without an RSS reader.  However, the lovely Madison at Espresso and Cream posted yesterday about a new RSS reader she found called Bloglovin’ that seems to be as good as if not better better than Google Reader.

An RSS Reader also known as a Feed Reader is a place that aggregates all your on-line subscriptions into one place to make it easier to view.  I would go nuts if I were getting 40+ extra e-mails per day telling me my favorite blogs had published a new post.  I already get way too many e-mails and am afraid I would not be able to keep up. (I HATE the thought of missing something!)

With my current Google reader, when I have time to read my subscriptions I just click on an icon I loaded onto my desktop,

then all the blogs I subscribe to are shown and the ones that have new content (items I have not read) are highlighted.

It is so easy then to just click from one to the other and I can usually get through most of my day’s reading in 30-45 minutes.

Bloglovin’, the new RSS reader Madison highlighted yesterday, is VERY easy to set up.  Just go to the Bloglovin site, you can do that by clicking HERE.  Once there, sign up for an account.  Word of warning……unless you want everything you read announced on FACEBOOK then I would suggest you NOT sign up with your facebook login.  Instead, select the e-mail signup.

Once you have signed up, you can choose to migrate all your Google reader blogs over to this site or you can do them one at a time.  If you do not currently use Google reader, you can start subscribing to blogs like Ruminations and Reckonings just by typing it in to the subscribe box.

There are a few custom settings you can change if you want, like getting no emails or one email a day, etc.  The only feature I have not been able to find is an icon for my desktop but I am still looking for that.  They also have an App for the iPhone that looks promising.

The good news is if I decide I do not want to use this reader I can easily convert to something else.  The hubby sent me an article this week listing a few other alternatives for google reader such as FEEDLY and THE OLD READER.  Click HERE to see that article from Computerworld.  He also mentioned that people are begging Google not to shut their reader down so who knows it might stick around after all.

If you read more than two or three blogs on a regular basis I would encourage you to give an RSS Reader a try.

Happy St. Pat’s Day!

#1 – As I was writing the title of this post I had to say to myself, “i before e except after c.”  Do you ever remind yourself of something by using silly rules like this? I say this one in my head frequently and sometimes it helps, unless of course I want to spell something like CONSCIENCE.   That is WEIRD isn’t it?

#2 – There is a constant pounding coming from the basement of our house today.  Any thoughts????  If you guessed the new carpet is being laid you are correct!  WOOHOO!  An update on the basement makeover will be coming soon.

#3 – The Mr and I just returned from a week in our northern home away from home.  On occasion we get to spend a fun evening with friends instead of just being stuck in the hotel room watching tv.

We visited the Cantina Lorado which is a fun Mexican restaurant in the new MidTown Crossing development in Omaha.  This upscale urban area is packed with restaurants, shopping, condos, apartments and events.  If you ever venture to Omaha this should be on your list of places to visit.  I plan on going back when I have more time to explore.

#4 – I had a small setback this week that resulted in getting this ugly thing out of the closet.

As many of you know, two years ago in May I had the second of two hip replacements.  Since that time, I have had a new found love of life; walking, shopping, dancing to the X-Box, doing water aerobics and just about anything else I wanted.  Last week something happened in one of my knees that has made walking very difficult.  I am  visiting the ortho doc on wednesday so keep your fingers crossed it is a temporary slowdown.

#5 – One week from today we will learn if our under construction first grandbaby is a girl or boy!  So excited!  It is about time to break out the quilting supplies.

#6 – A couple of months ago I signed up for a two evening photography class on lighting at the local community college.  I love working on my photography skills, just hope I can hobble enough (see #4 above) to make it to the classroom.

#7 – I spotted this on pinterest the other day and it made me laugh.

Happy Day Everyone!

tropical kitchen design by miami interior designer JMA INTERIOR DECORATION

contemporary kitchen design by minneapolis cabinets CliqStudios Cabinets

traditional kitchen design by minneapolis cabinets CliqStudios Cabinets

traditional kitchen design by boston kitchen and bath remodelers Village Kitchen & Bath Design

I especially like the thought of white cabinets with the island painted a different color similar to the pictures below.

traditional kitchen design by san francisco kitchen and bath Kitchens of Diablo

traditional kitchen design by other metro kitchen and bath fixtures Kirkland Custom Cabinets Inc

Now if I can just convince the hubby…….