Monday, December 3, 2012

40 years...how is it possible!

We just celebrated our 40th wedding anniversary! 




How is it possible! That's 10 years away from the golden 50th anniversary! It doesn't seem possible, but what they say is true, times flies when you're having fun! I am so thankful for my dear hubby and very best friend! We spent the past 2 weeks celebrating our special anniversary on an amazing vacation together. We had so much fun!   

Now that I have my feet on the ground again, I am prepping for a prime rib dinner for 40+ that we will be cooking this coming weekend. I should be back soon with recipes and hopefully pictures. I think I should strap my camera around my neck now so I don't miss pictures of yet another dinner I have made. That seems to be my MO.

Bye for now!

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Cranberry Relish

I can't believe I never posted this recipe! It wouldn't be Thanksgiving with out this cranberry relish. I just realized that I have never published this recipe, so here it is. This is great on a turkey sandwich. Just freeze the cranberries while they are available and you can have cranberry relish and you can enjoy this relish any time of year.




Enjoy!

Monday, November 19, 2012

It Smells Like Thanksgiving...

We have so many things to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. My good friend Barb was going through breast cancer treatment last year and this year she is feeling great and is back to regular life! For that I am very thankful!! We are also very full of thanks that my biopsy came back negative! No more treatment!! So very thankful for all the prayers that friends and family prayed for me! Thank you! Thank you! 

This weekend, our family is hosting a multifamily and extended family Thanksgiving. I was up this morning at 6:30 and started the Make Ahead Turkey Gravy. 

After 1 hour in the oven

After 2 hours in the oven. You want every drop of the dark bubbly stuff on the bottom.



I will be making another recipe this afternoon!

Last night, dear hubby baked cornbread for the stuffing/dressing. We like a mix of regular bread chunks and cornbread in our stuffing. We won't be stuffing the two turkeys. Now I will keep stirring the bread up to make sure it dries out before Saturday.

It takes a couple days to get the moisture out of the cornbread
This morning I also made a new recipe for cranberry sauce. I couldn't resist a Vanilla Cranberry Sauce with Blueberries!

Cooling
I found this recipe on one of my favorite blogs, Baking Bites. You can find the recipe for it right here.

That's my day so far!


Update!

Well, here it is now, the Monday before Thanksgiving. We celebrated our Thanksgiving on Saturday and we fed 48 family and extended family. A couple times yesterday and today different people have asked me if I am ready for Thanksgiving. It has taken me by surprise each time, and I have to stop and remind myself that the real Thanksgiving is this Thursday. We had a great time and there was only one glitch, a big glitch! During the last minute details, I left my camera at home. We were too far away from home to go back. Such is life sometimes. At least we all have the memories in our heads and hearts! It was a a ton of fun and well worth the hours I spent baking and cooking.

I didn't stray very far from my regular, tried and true recipes. I made a triple batch of Make-ahead Mashed Potatoes, and a double batch of Sweet Potato Puree with Pecan Streusel. Dear hubby made the dressing/stuffing using cornbread and regular bread and lots of other great ingredients without a specific recipe. 

I also baked a batch of Chewy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies and a double batch of these Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes. I also made a recipe for caramel sauce to drizzle over them before they were served with a dollop of whipped cream. They turned out perfect. That is what I contributed to our Thanksgiving dinner this year.



I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving this year as you celebrate with the ones you love!

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

My Dear Hubby Is Now...

Sixty!


Happy Birthday to you,

Happy Birthday to you,

Happy Birthday dear hubby,

Happy Birthday to you!!!


You are the most special

most loving

most kind
 most honest

 most generous man

 that I know!


You are the best dad and grandpa that I have ever met!


I hope this is your best year yet!!!

I

Love
 
Love

Love

You!!!

 
I special delivered these balloons to my dear hubby this morning!

Saturday, October 13, 2012

Banana Pancakes

The boys spent most of last week with us, so I was in gramma heaven!! I love spending time with our two grandsons!



When the boys come to visit, they have come to expect banana pancakes as their second breakfast. The boys have been with us this week and so far, I have made them twice. I expect to be making them at least two more times. No problem! They are so simple, easy and good. 


Of course I didn't get a picture of the first batch that looked perfect in color and deliciousness! The boys couldn't wait. My only picture doesn't do them justice! 

The boys like their pancakes with a squirt of whipped cream!

Enjoy!

Friday, October 12, 2012

50 Years Ago Today

Fifty years ago today, I was 8 years old. It was Columbus Day, back in the day when we celebrated holidays on their actual day, rather than the Monday before. As the afternoon progressed, I remember seeing green and yellow clouds forming and the sky looked very scary. My mom was very scared and worried, and when mom was scared and worried, us kids were scared and worried! My parents had a meeting that evening with their real estate lady to sign final papers on our new house. By the time she arrived, the power was out and they had to sign the papers by candlelight. I remember because I was hiding under the table below them. The wind was really loud and it felt like our house was shaking. I remember watching the lady as she walked out to her car. She could hardly stand up and her coat and hair were blowing around like crazy.

My other memory of that evening was watching my dad out in our backyard. Our fence was falling down and he went out to try to prop it up. I was watching him from the window in my bedroom as branches and other debris were flying through the air. One of the detached boards with an exposed nail swung around it hit my dad on the side of the face. I watched the blood start dripping down his face. I was afraid that he was going to die! Around that time, the whole fence fell over and he came back inside. I have no other memories of that night except for the very loud wind howling and rocking our house. 

The next day when all over, I remember how quiet it was. Everyone came outside to check their property. Trees, branches, garbage cans, power lines and other yard debris was everywhere. No one could drive anywhere because all the streets were blocked. My next memory is of the chainsaws. It felt like that was the only background sound in our neighborhood for years. Just the endless drone of the chainsaws. For several years after that day, anytime the sky looked dark, I was sure we were having another storm. We have had many wind storms in the Northwest but never like that night. If you are interested you can read more about it from our local newspaper.  



Columbus Day Storm Still Howls

The only good thing I remember about that day is it was my youngest (at that time) sister's birthday. Happy Birthday Debra!!

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

Looking For Adventure...

On beautiful and clear sunny days, we enjoy heading out to North Plains to watch the sailplanes. It is very relaxing to watch, with my feet firmly planted on the ground!

The tow plane

The sailplane

Heading up

Bye

Have a safe landing

Higher and higher


The next group getting ready for take off
The peanut gallery - where I hang out

If you are interested in this type of adventure, you can click the link and read about  Willamette Valley Soaring Club.

Thursday, October 4, 2012

I Could Not Resist...

The last evening of snow 2012
...because the Northwest is enjoying summer weather in October! 
And because I just downloaded it 5 minutes ago!

 


Saturday, September 29, 2012

Hyperplasia: What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger

Sometimes when we speak, we have no idea just how true our words will become. In January, I chose "Renew" as my word for the year. I didn't realize where that journey was going to take me. In mid March, I received a biopsy report that read - precancerous cells with treatment needed. I would soon start an intense treatment that would change my life for over 4 months. That's a third of a year!

I started studying my treatment plan and when I read the words "if you lose your eyesight for more than 10 minutes, seek immediate medical attention," I was scared to death and asked my doctor if there was a drug that didn't have such scarey side effects that I could take! She said no, the side effects are all about the same for this treatment. I asked if I could take half a dose! She said no, a half dose would NOT be effective. That was a very disturbing point for me with no good choices. Not doing the treatment could put my future health and life in jeopardy! Taking it could almost kill me or leave me blind! Not a great position to find yourself in.

I started the treatment and held my breath for a few days. First the major headaches started that can only be described as being jabbed in the head with a sharp object. Before long, I felt like a 57 year-old pregnant woman with raging hormones! Complete with nausea, breast swelling, pain, tremendous mood swings and severe cramping. I didn't go through that when I was pregnant 38 years ago! The side effects kept coming, bloating, bulging eyes, double vision, blurred vision, pain behind my eyes, dizziness even while sitting down, and weight gain. It would have been nice if I could have had the weight loss side effect. Does anyone ever get that "weight loss" side effect if there is a choice of weight loss or gain weight? That has never happened for me!

The worst part was the depressive state the drugs kept me in, day after day. It was as if another person had entered my body and I didn't know who that person was. I didn't believe it was possible that the person I had been would ever come back. I maintained a continual low state that often plunged lower than I have ever known. Many days to the point of not wanting to live any more. The life I was living was just too full of pain. Many days I counted pills to see if I had enough to stop the pain. I am happy that my faith in God held me. That is the only thing that kept me alive. My dear hubby was my knight in shining armor and showered me with love and care. He worked a full day, did the grocery shopping, fixed dinner, cleaned the house, and on and on. I so appreciate the support of dear friends that were there for me at any time. They called me, sent me encouraging emails and texts and stuck with me through the really hard days. My dear friend Barb was a huge support! She is such a great example of the kind of person I want to be. She gave me so much support less than six months after she completed her treatment for breast cancer. She is full of courage and encouragement! I am blessed to have her in my life. Sue, you are an angel! Thank you for your strong support and prayers!

I couldn't wait to finish the treatment and start enjoying summer! The closer I got to the finish, the less patient I became. At that point, the dr told me I needed to continue the treatment for another 4 weeks. That was really hard to hear. After another two weeks, I called the pharmacist and asked her what would happen if I took half a dose for the last two weeks. She said I was on a very HIGH dosage and a half dose was what most people took, but don't take that from her, talk to my dr about it first. I told her, I couldn't take all the side effects another minute and it was either that or I was going to quit altogether. She asked what side effects I was having and when I told her, she said that is terrible, she had never heard of the drug affecting anyone that much. I sent an email to my dr and told her what I was going to do and she said, no problem. Wow, I wish she would have told me that 4 months before! 

Soon after completing the treatment, I had another biopsy and I had to wait seven days to hear back. Finally, my dr called me and told me the precancerous condition was gone but the treatment had created a new problem! She said I would need to start a six month treatment for the new problem. She said because I had such a bad experience with the first treatment, she would order the most expensive drug that some women have found had less side effects. I was stunned and speechless! I don't have any idea what was said after that. I don't remember hanging up. 

Well, I stewed on that for a while as I stalled the treatment. One day I sent her an email and asked her, at the end of the six month treatment, what new issues will I be left with? She didn't know. That is when that was a deal breaker. During the treatment, I had been sent to see a specialist on an emergency appointment. He wanted to know about my treatment and had asked me what the plan was when I was finished with the treatment. I told him I didn't know. He spent about 15 minutes, going down the list of hormone treatments, giving me the pros and cons of each one. When he was finished listing all the possibilities, he said, "If you were my wife, I would tell you, don't take anything. Every treatment out there comes with risks and we don't usually find out until it is too late. Don't take anything!" When I remembered that conversation, I decided that my body had been through a lot! I needed to give it a rest from treatments and let it have a chance to heal itself! Besides, I still had some of the side effects - double vision and others! I talked to my gyn and she supported me on my decision and said that we would do another biopsy in 4 months. So, this saga will continue one way or another in a couple months.

That all ended the end of July so that is when summer began for me! I have been very busy enjoying every minute of our beautiful weather. The grandsons came down for a week, we took several vacations, walks in the park, quick trips to the beach, the works! It is so nice because the weatherman just said we can expect temps in the 80's through the beginning of October. There is no rain in sight! Every day is like a bonus summer day, here in the Northwest!

I will post random pictures of our summer travels in the near future. I am still trying to figure out the new format that changed while my blog was inactive. Who knows, I might even post a recipe or two, not that I have done much cooking for the past six months!

I just realized this is my 400th post!


Have a great weekend! 

Monday, September 24, 2012

I hope you are enjoying this 3rd day of  Fall!


Ivan and Wiley 7/12
  
I will be back!

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Happy Birthday Alan!

Dear Alan,

It doesn't seem possible that it was 37 years ago today that you were born, because I remember it like it was yesterday. I had been to the doctor on Thursday afternoon the 20th and the Dr. told me that if I was dilated at all it was just a "dimple" and that I could expect to go 2 weeks over due! Your due date was on March 8th, so I expected that she knew what she was talking about and that I had a long wait. I was so uncomfortable that I could hardly move. Your body was wedged between my left rib and my pelvic bone and I'll just say, there was a lot of pain involved. But, it really didn't matter because I knew that it would be worth it.

That night, Dad and I went out to Washington Square to buy some diapers. The good old fashioned cotton kind that you washed and reused, over and over again. We walked around the whole mall and I distinctly remember how painful it was, but I was on a mission to get what we needed to be ready for your arrival. We got home around 10 and I put all of the diapers in the washer and we went into your room to work on the dresser that Dad had repainted for your clothes. Dad was busy putting the decals on and I was waiting for him to finish so that I could put all of your clothes in the drawers.

  
I was actually very happy, but really tired


Dad working away. It looks like he was lining the drawers.

Around 11pm we headed to bed. I lifted my right leg to sit down on the bed and I felt a gush of something wet. It just kept coming so we finally realized that my water must have broke. I can still see us perfectly in my memory; I'm 20, Dad's 22, we had no experience in having babies and we were very anxious, to say the least. But, we loved you already and knew we had to go through what ever it was ahead of us to be able to hold you and love you in person. 

Dad called Dr. Kulasavage and she said we needed to go to the hospital. I remember the dress I was wearing but it is kind of a blur after that. I do remember them giving me a gown to put on. I was upset that everywhere I walked or sat, I was dripping all over everything. They told me it was normal, it's fine, we'll clean it up, but it was embarrassing because I had no control over it. 

I was in labor all night, hooked up to a very antiquated machine that monitoring your heart rate and my contractions from a strap around my belly. I was having very strong contractions that were zigzagging off the graph, but I no pain at all, other than the intense squeezing that almost took my breath away. All night they kept asking me, Are you sure you aren't in pain? Those are very hard contractions! Every time I turned onto my right side, the contractions were less and your heart rate dropped. Throughout the night, they kept bringing in different monitoring devices, thinking that there was something wrong with the equipment. They told us because of the inconsistency of my contractions, they weren't going to call the Dr. until around 7 am. It was a long night, quiet night. I wasn't concerned about anything because I felt like I was in good hands. I just did what they told me to do and tried to rest between contractions.

Sometime after 7 am, they said they were going to call the Dr. and very quickly everything changed. Suddenly my bed was surrounded by people checking this and that, asking questions and moving very quickly, but they didn't say anything to us at that point about what was going on. A nurse told me that my Dr. was on the way over so I was glad that she was coming. It felt like she was there in about 20 minutes. She checked me over, looked at the graphs and said she had to get the baby out right away. I said, how? duh! She said, surgery! I got it! And then the room went crazy! There must have been a dozen people in the room. I was being prepped for surgery, I was given a spinal, and I started shaking violently. My teeth were clicking against each other really hard! I heard my Dr. saying she should have been called sooner! Dad said she was very angry at the nurses and let them know that they had done the wrong thing. People were rubbing my arms and legs to keep me relaxed. 

I remember this one little lady (Dad says that it was a lady, she was upside down to me) who came and took my hand and started praying for safety for me and my baby! I don't know who she was but I know that I appreciated it right then, even though I still didn't really understand everything that was happening. I remember days later asking Dad about who that elf person was that took my hand and prayed for me. I guess that was the drugs talking, but I still today have a perfect picture in my mind of that face. My Dr. stood at my right side and I know that she was talking to me but I don't remember what she said. When I was completely ready to go, several people surrounded my bed and they started pushing me out into the hall, really fast!! They were running down the hall to the elevator. I had to say goodbye to Dad and it was just you and me at that point! We got into the elevator and when the door opened, my Dr. and others were running down the longest hall ever, lined with gurneys with people on them. I remember the Dr saying, "See all of those people, they were scheduled for surgery but they all have to wait for you. You are going to be a Mom in less than 10 minutes." I didn't know until sometime after you were born that the Dr. had told Dad that she thought the cord was wrapped around your neck and you were being strangled with every contraction over night. The cord was actually wrapped around your leg and your heart rate was dropping every time I had a contraction. You were in serious distress by the time they got you out.

I remember random things. I looked up into the large light hanging over me and I could see my belly in the outer reflective rim. I asked if someone could please move that a little so I didn't have to see any blood. I wasn't able to move my head at all due to the spinal. I could only look straight up. I remember asking where the dripping water noise was coming from and they told me it was coming from me. The doctor told me I had an unusually large amount of amniotic fluid inside. There was a steady stream of fluid landing on the floor for a while. I remember that the spinal made me numb clear up to my chest and it was really hard to breathe. I remember asking, "When are you going to start?" and someone said "We started and the baby is almost out." In seconds, someone said, "Congratulations, it's a boy!" I heard someone say, "born at 8:08." I saw a glimpse of a baby that they quickly waved over the sheet, but I didn't get to see your face. I didn't hear any crying so I asked if you were ok? Someone said, "He's having a little trouble right now." It felt like a really long time, but I finally heard a sound and I said, "It sounds like a lamb crying." Someone said, "That's your baby." I don't remember anything after that. They put me to sleep. 

I woke up in the recovery room and I remember seeing people sleeping all around me. I called and called, trying to get someone's attention. Someone came over and said "What are you doing awake? You should still be asleep!!" I said, "I want to see my baby." They said, "It is going to be a while before you see your baby, you need to rest!"  I don't remember much after that. 

  
Our baby Alan Donald Lytle

I wish I remembered when I held you for the first time, but I don't. I'm not sure if it was on your birthday or the day after. Everything was a blur. I was so high on drugs, I felt like I was up on the ceiling, looking down on everything happening down below. I was higher than a kite! Literally!! I had never even had an aspirin in my life, and now I was pumped and shot full of drugs, specifically, lots of Demerol. I do remember holding you in my bed in my room, (#2126, with 4 other moms) and Dad was right there. I couldn't sit up yet because of the spinal, so I asked Dad to hold you because I was afraid that I was going to drop you. Wow, what a cute baby you were!! All 8lbs. 2 ounces and 22 inches of you! And you had a head full of hair!

  
I wish this picture was in better condition. It looks like milk dripped on it.



 I can't believe that I had to "suit up" to go into the nursery to hold my own baby. Things are sure different now! 

If I didn't have any family with me, the only way I could hold you was to go into the nursery, have one of the nurses lift you out of the bed and put you in my arms. I wasn't allowed to lift anything, not even a water pitcher. I went down there often and stayed as long as I could. Back then, the babies didn't stay in the room with the mom. They only brought your baby to you at feeding time.

 

I couldn't get out of bed until you were 3 days old because I was hemorrhaging. They told me on the second day that if the bleeding didn't slow down, they would have to perform a hysterectomy. In my drugged stupor, I don't think I processed the fact that I would not be able to have another baby. I'm so thankful that I got a little better and that didn't happen!

Finally, after 7 very difficult days of no privacy in a room with 4 other mothers, being woke up all the time, day and night, enduring the pain and disrespect of a very mean orderly on numerous occasions, it was finally time to go home.


 
I was so happy to dress you up in layer upon layer of clothes and blankets that family and friends had hand knit and crocheted for you. 

 

You were the cutest baby that I had ever seen! Look at all that hair! And such beautiful eyes! I was in love, love, love!!

  

Yes, there is a baby under all those layers of blankets!! I'm sorry, I just didn't want you to get cold. After we left the hospital and we were headed home, it finally felt like you were really ours! And our journey as young parents began. When we got home, your new diapers were still in the washer!

 



Thank you, Alan, for all the years of love, joy and pride you have brought to us!!

We loved you then, now and always!!

Happy Birthday!!




An extra little tidbit of information about your Birth Day:
On your birth day, my dad was actually the first one in the family, including your dad and me, to hold you! When he came into my room and told me that he had just held you, I said “What, I haven’t even held him yet.” I’m glad there were lots of drugs involved at that time, because it wasn’t devastating to me right at that moment. Now, as the weeks and years went by, I felt like I had been denied something every new mom looks forward too, being the first one to hold her baby in her arms!
This is how it happened:
On the day you were born, my Dad came up to the hospital after he left school early, (He was teaching at Clackamas High School at that time) and came over to the hospital to see us. He stopped and looked in the nursery window to see if he could find you. He caught a nurse’s attention to have your bed brought over to the window so he could see you better. He told me he pointed at himself and mouthed to the nurse, “That’s mine.” She came around, opened the nursery door and said “Scrub and gown up and you can hold him.” So he did!!  I reminded myself down through the years, “Now remember, your dad was only 42 and he looked very young, and, the nurse did not ask him if he was the father.” “After all, his youngest daughter was only 9 at that time and he had been in that hospital nursery with 6 of his children in the past, so he felt very comfortable in there.” Yep, I told myself all of those things for years and years but it still had a little sting to it.
I kept that to myself until today. I’m so glad that I got over that years ago but I certainly have never broadcast that information until now.  I really think it is very special the way it just accidentally happened. After all, you were  born on his 42 birthday, you were named Alan Donald Lytle after him, you were his first grandchild, so it’s actually very fitting that he was the first one to hold you. And amazingly, look at all of the similarities you both have:  You are both very handsome men, you are both very tall, you are teachers, you are natural born leaders, musical talents without limits, you direct, you play the piano and other instruments,  I could go on and on. Most of all you are both very important men in my life and I love you both so much.
So the secret is out. Happy Birthday!

______________________________________


And, a very Happy Birthday to my Dad, our nephew Grant, and our dog Buddy, who is 4-years old today!

Thanks for making us smile!


We are so lucky we found you!

Alan and Family

=


 
Grandma Wolfe, Auntie Debra, Auntie Cheryl and Auntie Lori meeting you for the first time


 
Auntie Cheryl getting some one on one time with you


  
Grandma Lytle/Hansen


  
Auntie Dee and cousins Cindy, Marsha and Julie


 Cousin Cindy holding Alan for the first time


 
A couple weeks old


 
4 weeks old


  
Category - Happy Faces
Black and White photos
Dad won a silver medal for this photo in an Oregon Journal Photo Contest
November 25, 1975


  
Watch out Alan, there's a monster behind you!


  
30th and Alder 

  
Alan started entertaining before he turned 2




This was written in his baby book when he just turned 2


Great Grandma Letha with Alan and Christy


  
Alan and Christy


  
We have a theme going here


  
 You were always holding hands 


 
Always in the same position


Always the same faces 


 Alan at the Piano


 
 All dressed up


  
Still together


 
 Not sure when this was taken


  
I think this picture was taken at the 10th street exit off the 205, Christy heading back to Seattle, Alan heading back to Monmouth and Dad and I heading back to Walla Walla

Happy Birthday Alan!