Christmas Wrap-up

Good morning the day after International Unwrapping Day!  Ha, the wrapping paper was certainly flying yesterday and Christmas Eve with the grands and cousins in the mix.  The looks on faces when they see what the have unwrapped, the sparkle in their eyes is unforgettable. Awesome Christmas this year.  We are all tired though but very content.  A year ago we were all on pins and needles with the impending birth of baby Max and his so very uncertain health future.  Now, here we are with him turning 1 year old next week and his future is so bright it is blinding.  He is such a happy baby and has brought so much joy to all of us, especially his big sister.  Oh, she loves him so.

Yesterday brought lots of laughter and utter exhaustion from opening all the presents and trying to play with ALL OF THEM AT ONCE!

Cousin time...

Granddad and grandson time...

oh and some typical little boy things like a black eye...(fell on a toy!)

So looking forward to 2024.

Yesterday the family came here for dinner.  Something I am trying to hold on to for a tradition.  Since my girls are vegan or vegetarian I have to really do some research to feed them and it was quite successful, except for the ham and desserts.  

A HUGE tossed salad...

Frozen green beans with onion...NO BACON!

I also cubed and roasted regular potatoes and sweet potatoes.

And Rhodes rolls, the frozen ones are VEGAN!  I was trying to jump the gun on the rise process a couple of years ago and bought the heat and serve ones but those are NOT vegan.  So back to the frozen and really they are quite easy.  Also on Instagram Christmas Eve I saw a quick video where a guy took the frozen ones and made focaccia bread!  WHAT!!!!!  I tried it with a small pan and O M G, so easy and good.  I took a square glass pan (at the back of photo), greased the pan (spray PAM'd it) and put 9 frozen rolls in it.  They were placed with all the others to rise over a couple of hours and when ready to cook I drizzled olive oil (olive oil from Italy, Bramasole as in Under The Tuscan Sun I ordered) and then plunged my fingers in the dough to make all kind of huge dents.  Then I sprinkled coarse salt and Italian seasoning (you could do any kind of seasoning) and baked at 350 degrees for 15 to 18 minutes!  OMG, so SOOOOOo very good.  They just slide out and on a plate or platter and you pull apart and eat.  I am never going back.

Now here we have apple pie.  I bought a pre-made crust, as I do a lot.  I had other things to do.  Anyway I did NOT do my research here and figured out it had milk in it so it was not vegan friendly.  It was yummy though.

On to cake.  I had a strawberry cake mix in my pantry with a can of whipped strawberry icing and I got a great idea.  I made the cake in two round pans and when cool I spread strawberry jam on the bottom layer and then I added a small container of Cool Whip to the whipped strawberry icing and put a layer in the middle then iced the rest.  It was of course kept in the fridge until time to serve.  SO very good and light.  

In my down time I am either reading (40 books this year) or back to an old love, counted cross-stitch ornaments.  This one I thought was going to be fairly easy because so few colors, but oh no, not so.  Absolutely so intricate you can not imagine and time consuming, but I will finish.  I've finished 3 so far this season and plan on continuing until my hands say stop for awhile.  The arthritis in my hands is a beast.  I tried to do some last night but my hands were so tired from making salad and cutting up potatoes that they just kept cramping.  I had to stop.

It's A Grand Life

All I can say is this has been a YEAR!  Today I just want to enjoy the pics of my grands and daughters.  I have been truly blessed.  The video is Max ALMOST crawling Thursday night while our unofficial daughter, Rachel (B's bestie from her school days) and I watched the kiddos.  Gosh, he was almost there and yesterday he DID IT!  There is a video but I can't seem to get it from my phone to my computer.  It's in a text message and I saved it but it's too big to send to post here.  This is the next best thing.  This little kiddo is progressing in leaps and bounds and I would bet he crawls in a couple of months and then starts trying to walk.  He will be a year January 4 and what milestones he has accomplished.  

The month of December has been extremely busy for my kiddos and their babies with all kinds of functions.  Thursday while I was grand-sitting this one got to ride in a carriage at Woodward.  I'm sure she was on cloud nine as she is so in love with any kind of horse.  She is going to LOVE her Christmas present!!!

Friday night A's choir sang at Cain's for the Jacob Tovar Christmas Spectacular.  It was all ages so she got to go and see her grandad do his dance thing.

There has been a lot of cousin time too.  They are all having such a fun time, especially Max...lol!

Last night they went to Mass at Holy Family and for the second time R got to join them.  

Then it was off to Roppongi for ramen noodles, Min's favorite.  Even Max got to sample some of the noodles.  He is still in a struggle phase of trying to eat some but is getting better every day.  All in good time, all in good time.

These girls, more like sisters than cousins.  

Man, it is times like this when I so wish my mother could have lived to enjoy the grands.  She would have reveled in the joy that they are.  

Loss, Yet Again

June was a horrible month, should have been a good month (my birthday you know!)  

We lost Dana on June 20th.

This is the last photo of us three.  Daddy is gone, Momma is gone and now Dana is gone.  Heartbreaking.

We also lost our sweet friend Tom a few months ago.  

July 15 would have been my best friend Gail's birthday.  It went by without a blip in most minds.  Then July 18 would have been Dana's 64th birthday.  

This week we lost yet another friend that we've know for 21 years, dear Maggie.

She had a massive stroke on Friday morning and was gone by Wednesday.  Man, she and I were messaging a month ago talking about stopping by to visit her but I just didn't feel well enough to be around her.  DAMMIT!  Wish I had just gone to see her.  

This stuff is just happening too often, I am damn tired of it.  I need a few months, no a year or two without losses.  I miss my sister, my momma, my daddy, everyone.  Doesn't help I have been sick for over a month now.  

Honestly today I actually feel like I am getting better.  Can you imagine having a sore throat for over a month, well, I don't have to imagine as I have been dealing with that.  Every swallow has been excruciating but today it is finally where I am not eating Tylenol or Advil.  Of course, it is just before I FINALLY got an appointment with an ear, nose and throat doctor on Monday.  I bet by the time I go in there will be no pain whatsoever.  Just my luck.  It honestly feels like a throat infection.  At least I am on the mend, I feel it.  The past three nights I have slept better than the past month.  My voice is a tad better but I'm trying not to use it much which seems to be helping.  

The babies are all home in their respective homes.  I've had Snicklefritz every morning so her mother could go to work.  She really is quite wonderful to have around.  Next week she goes to horse camp and she is so very excited.  I'm pretty sure I will have her in August before school starts too.  Her favorite thing to eat at my house is breakfast, scrambled eggs, cinnamon toast or waffle.  I taught her how to make the scrambled eggs and now she gets all the stuff out and makes it all by herself, I just supervise.  She LOVES my scrambled eggs.  We've eaten out breakfast a few times too this week.  Yesterday I had both girls as there was a car shuffle with Min's parents as they are still trying to make do with one car.  I think they've got the second one now.  Anyway I had her yesterday too so I took them for breakfast at a place here in Tulsa, Big Baby Rolls that specializes in vegan donuts and cinnamon rolls.  OMG, absolutely delicious.  It was fun on a rainy morning and then a grocery pickup, some watercolor painting, granny napping, yes Friday stuff.  I love having them but I do need some rest this next week and will totally take it.  

So my week is a doctor appointment, which is absolutely NOTHING!  Then delivery of paintings for an art show that opens in Broken Arrow on Thursday.  I've had to enlist my friend/former studio partner, Linda to deliver the paintings on Monday as I will be at the doctor.  We'll having the opening on Thursday and I hope my voice is better by then.  Lunch with my brother on Friday (missed this week because of my gaggle of children in tow) and hoping to head to the cabin after that.  I'm going to try and enjoy my free time the next few weeks, rest, paint and act like I'm retired before August 31.  That is when our little Max has his next surgery.  He is doing very well and even got his first tooth with another one on it's way.  We are hoping that he breezes through this next surgery and will be home quickly, just in time for Min to start her preschool classes again of which I'm sure I will be her taxi driver.  This time next year things (praying) will be more on the normal scale.  

OKLAHOMA HURRICANE 2023

Oklahoma Hurricane 2023

That is what some are calling it because there were winds in excess of 100 mph on Saturday night.  (Forgive if I repeat.)  Our dear little Max is still in OKC Children's Hospital, now day I think 13 and he was on track to come home today.  Saturday his daddy, Nick, came back to town for a gig and to accept delivery of their new couch.  Saturday evening he pulled into the driveway and started to get his vibes out of his red Rave 4 when he said the wind nearly took him out, so he thought the vibes can wait, they will be okay, not him if he was hit with debris.  So inside he went and he had been in the house a few minutes when this happened.  

The neighbors tree pulled out of the ground and crushed both of their cars, absolutely crushed.  Honestly, it is one horrible thing but would have been a lot worse if he had continued on to get the vibes.  He would have been crushed too.  There are small miracles.

It was terrifying for Nick to be at home all alone, to have this happen, no power, in the dark, and he had never been in any of this kind of weather before, traumatizing.  I would not be surprised if he has PTSD from it all.

THANKFULLY the house received no damage, but poor little Min's backyard swing-play center is toast.

She was so upset to see her chalk all over the place.

Now, back at the "ole' homestead" we suffered our own damage.  Our massive oak tree in the backyard decided it was done with one of it's limbs.

It snapped and landed on the corner of our lovely back porch/patio.  This damage will push the need to replace the roof, which we had been putting off.

Luckily, the neighbor next to us is having a pool installed, roof, room addition and had immediate access to a tree guy.  We hired him on the spot but had him first to go to the daughters house to uncover the cars.  Our clearing will happen sometime.  It was most important to try to uncover the cars to see if they can find the car seat for Max to come home.  

Because both girls homes are without power we have a houseful staying with us.  Nick is staying in town to navigate the insurance system and see if he can get a rental because if not my car will be going to OKC and I will have Min.  Even if they get to come home they will have to stay with us because of no power.  There may be a lot of pallets on the floor and we may go to the cabin!!!  Although the generator is running there full time too and here.  Thank GOD we have a generator.  The heat index is supposed to be horrible today so staying in a house without A/C will be miserable and so we may also be housing B's dogs!  Hopefully we can get a small generator going at their house to work some fans.  

On the home note, little Max, who was to come home today, yesterday developed something.  They did not know what was going on with him.  The doctors suspected a brain bleed or infection or something else.  Poor Af was absolutely beside herself with fear for her baby.  She didn't know what was going on and since her car is here in Tulsa, and CRUSHED, she was stuck all by herself at the hospital dealing with whatever it was.  At a bit after 3 am this morning she sent a text saying that it's an infection and he was put on heavy doses of antibiotics.  Thank GOD!  It was so scary to think something else.  Hopefully now the infection will be kicked and he will be home next week if not sooner and that their power will be on soon.  

Another good thing is that is a go for the next surgery, the Glenn in 4-6 weeks when we start the Min sleep-over again.

Also, on the Dana front is that I did get to see her one last time on Friday.  She was coherent that day but I understand from her daughter and my daughter who went to see her yesterday that she is no more.  They've stopped all her medications that she has been on forever and she's only on pain meds.  She is not eating anymore.  This reminds me of Momma at the end.  Momma wasn't even on pain meds, she was on nothing.  The not eating will shut down all her organs so it won't be long.  So sad.