Happy hump day, Friends!  

I have to say - the storms in Indiana today have been spectacular!  The stay-in-bed-all-day-while-it-rains-and-pours kind of storms!  And because of this, I had little motivation for culinary adventure in the kitchen tonight!  I took the high road and we called on Fox's tonight!! 

I have spent the "extra" time out of the kitchen planning the rest of the week's food and finding new recipes.  This is really exciting and fun and much more productive than Candy Crush and the like.  It's nice to walk in and dinner already be ready or know the plan the make it happen fast!

I think we'll be having some left over beef brisket tomorrow & flank steak tacos Friday night!  Oh, and no worries - the grill will be rolling this weekend.  Isn't it un-American to not grill over a 3-day holiday weekend?!

And, on a side note ... I got a call to go have a CT scan and some blood work done.  I apologize if this creeps you out, but ... they took all of 6 gallons, I think!

Well, it's a quiet kind of night, so I think I'm gonna run!  Sleep tight!

Yes, so, Blogger has reminded me that I have not posted anything since August 2013.  Well, that's a bummer!  I really want to be more active on this to share fun news, serious bits and a lot about what we're up to!!

Here's a quick little update on us:  The dudes - big and all have been doing great!  We are really looking forward to summer vacation!!  I however, have been recovering from the onset of drug-induced lupus.  Yes, that's been as much fun as it sounds.  The good news is we know what we're dealing with now, stopping the bad drug, adding some new ones and moving on.  My heart, lungs & liver should be their old self again within 6-12 months.  Yippee!!

So, I have been doing a lot of research into eating more Paleo.  Not so much to drag my knuckles and beat Chad with a club (though that sounds like fun!), but to eat much cleaner, in hopes to be much healthier.  So tonight we had Zoodles (thank you nomnompaleo.com & Michelle Tam)!!  Let me tell you, the three dudes stood and watched me spriralize those zucchinis into beautifully weird looking noodles, scratching their heads that this would ever turn out okay!

So, while the zoodles were being manufactured, I browned some ground turkey and made a little pasta sauce simmer.  I nuked the zoodles for about 2 minutes and tossed them with a garlic butter sauce.  Voila!

As the skeptics took their places at the table, the little dudes ate their other veggies first, thinking the zoodle thing was just too weird.  The next thing you know, bowls were spinning and the big dude (and me) were going back for seconds!  Yes - SUCCESS!!!

Here's a peak at the spiral vegetable slicer I got myself for my birthday (thank you Amazon gift cards!!):  You can get yours here: http://www.amazon.com

And here's a peak at what my (very big) lunch for tomorrow looks like:

Well, that's about it for now!!  The big dude has been working hard getting the gardens going - I can't wait til stuff starts growing!!  There's nothing more awesome than a fresh cuke off the vine, just in time for dinner!  :)

I should also mention that Ryan has decided to name the elephant in the picture below "Addy" - yep, short for adenoids since he got her on his surgery day!  Love this kid!

Farewell cooties!

Well today has been exiting! Have you ever told Ryan that he wasn't allowed to eat first thing in the morning? Well, we didn't have to be at the hospital til 10, and they didn't take him back til almost noon ... So he was one hungry boy! He got out of surgery about 35 minutes later and he was in his room by 2 - he became the very hungry caterpillar! One popsicle, one cup of sherbet, water, a cup of strawberries, a cup of canteloupe, chocolate pudding, a peanut butter sandwich and a sprite. Then about 1.5 hours later, another cup of strawberries, cup of canteloupe, green beans and another peanut butter sandwich! Now that we're home, he's eaten a fazoli's breadstick, a clif bar, strawberries & blackberries out of our garden and is working on a lemon ice drink! I promise you- I could not make this up! I am not sure if he will ever get full today!

He has done great today - he's been so brave! He's having good pain control too! The doctor said his left tonsil was full of infection and likely where the cooties were hiding in between times of him getting sick each month.

So - here's hoping & praying this is the end and beginning all in a day's time! And please pray that the rest of Ryan's recovery goes as smoothly has today has gone. I kinda hope he was so sick with rotten tonsils & huge adenoids that recovery from removing them is a walk in the park!

Please tell us too ... How can we pray for you today?

Goodnight! ~ M

Summer Update

Hello friends and family!

Chad and I made it safely to, through and from Jamaica.  The boys survived the week without us and we are all happy to be back together again!  I never really knew how much I would be affected by a trip like this.  I have struggled since being back with what God's plan for myself and our family looks like.  I really did love Jamaica, and have felt a pull or tug for sometime now that where we live and what we do isn't our "forever place."  Chad and I are praying that we can discern the messages and feelings we have both been feeling in that regard.

The boys are loving summer!  They have had so much fun travelling, going to Boy Scout camp, swimming and going to VBS.  Matthew has filled up his reading chart for the summer and will get to go pick out a free book at Barnes & Noble!  He got his first filling in a baby molar last week and got his vision checked.  He did great - apparently he has a tongue that needs lasso-ing and does not need glasses!!  Ryan was finally able to see the Ear, Nose & Throat doc and he's looking forward to "all the ice cream and popsicles I want" in just 4 weeks.  :)  He'll have his tonsils and adenoids out on August 1, so hopefully the start to school won't be too rough on him.

I think that's about it for now.  It won't be too long til they are down in Kentucky again!!

Love,
M

Happy St. Patty's Day!

In the spirit of St. Patty's day, I decided to get a little crafty in the kitchen - no corned beef or cabbage for us, more like freaking out and entertaining the kids!  So, I made green pancakes and green scrambled eggs, I also made cinnamon rolls and dyed the icing green in case they couldn't handle the green pancakes!

Well, they were sure surprised!   Honestly, Matthew was the hardest to sell on eating this green food!  Once he saw the other three of us eat it, he began to try it all - very slowly.  But, like the good eaters they are, they all ended up with sunshine plates!

Well, it's cold and cold here.  Chad's in the garage, hopefully putting the finishing touches on the first set of shelves to go in our front room.  The boys are running around - shirtless & sockless.  I am on the computer for now, but am hoping working on a cute skirt for warmer weather can actually change the temp outside!

Matthew has spring break coming up soon - trips to an orthodontist and eye doctor are the highlights thus far.  Ryan had his kindergarten assessment this past week - he said it was fun and "knew how to play all her games."  :)

Well, here's wishing everyone a happy St. Patty's day and nicer weather wherever you are!  

Love, M

MD needs to go get her MD

I just thought I'd send out an update ...

The ID (infectious disease) doc believes Ryan indeed has PFAPA.

So, we are waiting for the next round to strike, and when we notice the first sign, we'll give him a 20 mg dose of prednisone and then again 12 hours later.  He should turn on a dime and not get sick at all.  If it works, it is indeed PFAPA.  If it doesn't, sounds like a lot more testing will take place, but he seemed pretty confident that the 'roids would do the trick.  There is still the option to, at some point, to have his tonsils and adenoids removed - which should "cure" him.  Oh - and he's almost back to fighting weight - he's gained back 2 (of the 3) pounds he lost!

Classic Melanie moment - the doc says, "So, you know what he has?" and I say, "PFAPA?"  His confidence in my answer was obvious with a head shake 'yes'.  My ego may not fit in my house too much longer!  :)

We have had a hectic week with getting back into the swing of things, but are relishing in a Dumbris-style Friday night - awesome.  Good night!