The First Guy I Ever Loved

 

 It's my dad's birthday today!

I can count on the fingers of one hand the number of times Dad has gotten angry with me -

as far as that kind of out loud, I better close my mouth right now kind of upset with me.

What I remember most about growing up is Dad sitting with me and explaining how he felt,

why I was being disciplined, why my mom was upset

or all of the above.

I love my dad because he loves God, he loves my mom, and he loves me and my sister with a strong, quiet love.  He works hard without complaint and always provides for his family.  He's probably

one of the most patient men I know.  Living with three women for such a long time -

he would have to be.  Clearly.

Along with my dad's calm, loving personality comes a blunt honesty that can sometimes startle you if you're not used to it.  Beware the blemish of your teenage years because Dad might blatantly ask,

What's that on your forehead?

He got this wonderful trait from my grandmother who would always tell me, my sister, and my cousins not to smile as if we were brushing our teeth.  She wanted us all to smile demurely.  It never worked out.

Some of my favorite Dad quotes:

Grace, too much of anything isn't a good thing.

Birds of a feather flock together.  You need to choose your friends wisely.

Grace, sit up.

Ok, so I had a friend (who was a boy) over the house one day.  We may or may not have liked each other (we did), but we were not dating - at all.  We were watching TV on the couch, and I might have been sitting slightly close to said friend - maybe I was leaning in a tad?  My dad walked by, looked me right in my eyeballs and said sternly,

Grace, sit up.

I promptly did.

It's a good piece of advice to follow if you ask me.

What's even more awesome than remembering Dad singing and dancing randomly in the living room or teasing my mom while she washed the dishes - is watching my Dad with our girls.  There's something extremely special about a lolo (Tagalog for grandfather) and his granddaughters.  They love him in a ridiculous way.  Evangeline affectionately calls him Yoyo.

Happy 66th Birthday, Yoyo - we love you so very much.

Valentine's This and That

Isabella partied Valentine's-style with her class yesterday since she doesn't have school on Thursdays.  A sweet momma snapped the shot above since Bill and I couldn't be there, and she made these fantastic personalized bins for the class (Thanks, Robyn!).  Isabella and her teachers made the box behind the bin to hold all of their goodies:
 
Yesterday afternoon, I found these on our porch (in a box) with the sweetest message ever inside:

 Bill set these out before everyone woke up.  My favorite is the homemade card and the special message for each of the girls inside:

Mom came by this morning to bring flowers (from her and Dad) and a special treat

for the little ones:

Last year, I made these adorable valentines for the girls to give to their classmates.  This year, I thought we were still in January - and then all of a sudden we weren't.  I bought a box of Angry Birds, Brave, and Lalaloopsy cards for them to pass out to their friends.  They came with cool pencils so I'm hoping that makes up for my lack of creativity.

I still had time to make a little something special that the girls could give to a few people.  Since the program I used for our other valentines is no more, I found an editing tool online (befunky.com) and made these to share with our family and the girls' teachers:

 

We stuck these valentines on big Reese's Hearts for our amazing teachers:

We were allowed to bring treats to Espy's class today (Gianna's class has too many allergies and a no-candy rule at her school, and Isabella already had plenty of goodies at her party) so I tried my hand at some "homemade" goodness.  I'm a big fan of chocolate-covered pretzels.  I've never made them so I was pleasantly surprised at how simple they were to put together.  It probably would have been easier if I wasn't talking on the phone at the same time, but catching up with a friend (love you, Abbey!) was definitely worth the stiff neck I got while dipping, spreading, and sprinkling.

I'm thankful that only a handful of these are left in the house - as is my waistline.

Smooshie Smooshie

Valentine's Day 2013

 I'm not much for flowers, chocolate, and jewelry.  I know - so weird, right?  Despite my insisting on no gifts, Bill is always guilty of spoiling me (and the girls) - on holidays, birthdays, or just because.  What I find more appealing than the thoughtful presents, though, are his loving words

that accompany the goodies.

Upon seeing the flowers and reading the message that Bill had delivered this afternoon -

Gianna exclaimed,

Oh, no!  You and dad aren't going to do the smooshie smooshie on the bed again are you?

Excuse me?  What do you mean, Gianna?

You know - K!  I!  S!  S!

Oh, probably.  Why do you call it smooshie smooshie?

Because - you smoosh your lips like this (smooshes lips) when you kiss.

Girls - I'm sorry I continue to traumatize you with my crazy affection for your daddy.  I just can't get enough of him.  One day I hope you'll understand - many, many, many (many) years from now.

March 2002

Happy Valentine's Day!

Our Favorite

Happy 36th Birthday, Babe - here's to 36 more!

Can't get enough of these five.

 to my most favorite person (ever) on this earth...the man who makes me feel the happiest, the craziest, and the most loved all at the same time...the best dad, husband, and friend a girl could ask for - Happy Birthday to our special guy from all of your girls.

Strawberry Cheesecake Pie Deliciousness

Our friends Paul and Melissa had us over (all of us: SO nice!) for dinner a couple of weeks ago.  We had a fantastic time getting to know them and their adorables.  We had an even more fantastic time eating the dessert that Melissa made.  It was so ridiculously good.  I asked her for the recipe pretty soon after, and she was nice enough to indulge me.  I made it that week - and again the following week.  I probably shouldn't make it this week.  You should make it, though -

you will not be disappointed.

At.  All.

Melissa's Strawberry Cheesecake Pie

Graham Cracker Pie Crust:
1 1/2 cups (or 1 package) finely ground graham cracker crumbs
1/3 cup white sugar
6 tablespoons butter, melted
 Melissa likes to leave the graham crackers a little chunky instead of grinding it into a powder.
Mix ingredients together and press into a pie plate.
Press just so it's formed in the pie plate.  If you press too much, it gets too hard and chewy.
Bake for 7-10 minutes at 350.
Let cool before spooning in cheesecake filling.

Cheesecake Filling:
1 block cream cheese
1 container cool whip
1/2 cup sugar
 
Strawberry Glaze:
1/2 cup mashed/pureed strawberries
1/2 cup sugar
1.5T cornstarch
3/8 cup water
sliced strawberries (for topping)
In a saucepan, combine sugar and cornstarch.
Stir in water and mashed berries.
Bring to a boil, stirring constantly.
Stir in food coloring if desired (I haven't either time).
Cook and stir 3 minutes more.
Cool in fridge.

Amazingness Combined:
 Spoon the cheesecake filling into the cooled pie crust.
Slice a bunch of strawberries and mix with the cooled glaze.
Top your pie with the glazed strawberries.
Enjoy the deliciousness you just created.
Share and make immediate friends.

Get Outta Here with All That Awesomeness

December 2012

What a fantastic way to start out our year:

January 19

Today my Radiologist/Oncologist called to let us know the results of my MRI on the Jan 14th 2013.  I have no new growth, and from what they could see only scar tissue is left - which is expected with how many 'shots' I got during my Sept 7th 2012 Gamma Knife surgery.  He will not need to see me for another 6 months.  I was declared cancer clear from the neck down on Sept 4th, 2012.  Now, I am cancer clear from the neck up - just in time to return to Honduras in a couple weeks.

GOD IS FAITHFUL...stage FOUR (aggressive breast cancer that metastases to an infested liver and later got secondary brain tumors).......to now........stage FREE...:D  Thank you for praying with Peter, Marissa, and me - through this part of our journey of growth.  What a blessing to be under the care and love of a Merciful Heavenly Father...Love you LORD...and thanks to so many family, friends, and caregiving staff that helped us get through this stage in our life....Investing in one another reaps sweet blessings in both the good and hard times. 

January 27

 I pray women going through cancer discover beauty through their journey.  I did and have - and I could not have done so without God, faithful prayer warriors from my family and friends, and sweet caregivers (....I used western medicine and a ton of lifestyle changes in diet, scheduling, time of stillness, sleep and laughter.).  We are each fearfully and wonderfully made and worth loving and fighting for - for there's a ton of beauty in who you are created to be.

 Many of you have been amazing about praying for my cousin, Maileen, and her journey with cancer.  I'll love you forever for that.  In just a few days - Peter, Maileen, and Marissa will be heading home to Honduras.  Would you pray for a smooth transition back for their family?  Much love from the bottom of our family's heart.  We are so thankful!

A Picky Girl's Favorite

Our oldest doesn't tend to eat a huge variety of food, but she certainly loves this meal - which isn't your typical tacos, spaghetti, or pizza kind of dinner.  My friend Amanda first introduced me to this recipe years ago.  She literally came over to our house one afternoon with all the ingredients, and I watched her cook - and then we ate.  It was lovely.

Chicken Lettuce Wraps
3 tablespoons vegetable oil

4 chicken breasts, cut into thin, 2-inch-long strips
2 tablespoons grill seasoning, recommended brand Montreal Seasoning by McCormick
1 green pepper, cut into thin, 2-inch-long strips
1 onion, chopped
3 large cloves garlic, chopped (adjust to your taste)
3/4 cup hoisin sauce
1/4 cup chicken stock
1 head iceberg lettuce

  

 Heat a large nonstick skillet over high heat with the vegetable oil.

Season the chicken with the grill seasoning.

Add the chicken pieces to your pan and stir while it cooks through.
Add the bell pepper, onion, garlic and continue to cook until the veggies are tender.

While that's cooking, combine the hoisin sauce and the chicken stock in a small bowl.
Add the liquid to your skillet and stir to fully coat the chicken and veggies.
Combine and transfer to a serving bowl (or you can leave it in the pan like we do).

To assemble the wraps, peel a leaf off of your lettuce and place a spoonful (or two or three) of the deliciousness in the center.
Wrap the leaf around the mixture and enjoy!

This recipe is adapted from Rachael Ray's Chicken Lettuce Wraps because

-I'm not a huge fan of water chestnuts.

-I use whatever kind of peppers we have on hand.  Last night we had green.

-who knows what drama would unfold if we had bean sprouts on the table.

-I sometimes have sesame seeds on hand, and when I do - do I want or have time to toast them?  Usually not.

Easy, delicious, and all our girls (and our boy) enjoy it - I should probably make it more often!