Making Yogurt

We never had much money when I was growing up.

We weren't "Angela's Ashes" poor (at least I don't

think we were), but we didn't have a lot

of cash. As I grew older, my Mom would share

stories with me about times that were

especially hard, and some of the things

she would do to save money. One story she

told me was about using coupons to buy food.

Back then, if you used coupons, the store would

give you the cash you saved; not deduct it

like they do now. My Mom took that cash,

saved it, and bought herself a yogurt maker.

Home made yogurt was something that

I grew up with.

My Mom was so proud of that yogurt maker.

It cost her something.

She had to save for it. She made my brother and

me yogurt all throughout our childhoods.

I still remember the taste of home made yogurt.

There's nothing quite like it. I swear, it tastes

better than store bought.

Shortly before my Mom was diagnosed with cancer,

she'd decided she wanted to make yogurt again.

Her original yogurt maker was long gone. Not to be

deterred by the lack of a yogurt maker,

my Mom started her Internet search.

She finally found a maker she liked.

She didn't have to save the money this time,

she could just buy it. She was just as

excited and proud of this new yogurt maker.

She showed it to me when I was down visiting.

She was always planning on making more yogurt.

Then she got sick.

The yogurt maker just sat and sat. She was too

sick to eat, so we didn't use it. She always said,

"When I'm better I'll be making yogurt".

I used to tease her and tell her she should just

give it to me, and she would tell me

"No, I'm going to be using it."

I wish she had. When she died,

my Dad came across her yogurt maker,

he packed it up and brought it to me.

It didn't feel right to use it without her.

For a while, it just sat. Then I thought of how she would

want me to be using it. She would want her grand kids to be eating

some home made yogurt. So now I'm using it.

My kids are enjoying the taste of home made yogurt, and I'm

able to share with them the memory of their

grandmother making yogurt for me.

Today, while I was making the yogurt again, the kids

were telling me how they couldn't wait to eat it. They were

talking about how good it tasted, and I swear, I could

feel my Mom smiling down on us. Happy to see

her yogurt maker being put to use.

One Lame Dog

Kalea is the first dog that Jon and I bought.

In the past, feeling there were so many dogs who

needed homes, we've adopted from our local shelter.

Kalea was the dog we bought after

Tyler died. We just couldn't

think of burying another dog, and a puppy seemed

like a great idea. After all, we'd both had puppies

as children, and we wanted our kids to have

the same kind of fun that

only a puppy can bring.

Kalea is a Basset Hound. She's a breed that

we didn't know much about, but with a little

research, we felt she would work well for us

and the kids.

She's a great dog. Very easy going. She prefers

to eat and sleep. Every now and then, she'll

have a burst of energy, she'll run through

the house, chew some things up, and then

fall asleep for hours.

She goes to bed every night at 7:00.

She's a very low key, easy going, good with kids, sort of dog.

Right around the time my Mom died, Kalea started limping.

She hadn't really injured herself, she didn't act

like her leg was bothering her, she just

started limping.

As you can imagine, losing my Mom, the holidays,

the kids, all of those things

kept us really busy.

Kalea was still

playing, walking, running and jumping.

Sometimes she'd limp, sometimes not.

Eventually it seemed like her limp went away.

This past week, she started limping again.

Jon made an appointment for her, and I took

her to the vet. Kalea LOVES to go to the vet.

She firmly believes that all of those people are there

to see her. To pet her. To LOVE her.

All of the other animal patients and owners are

friends she hasn't met yet.

She loves the vet.

Like a good mother, I waited with her for

the vet. Kalea was so excited.

She was wining and crying

and scratching on the exam room door.

She needed to be with all of those people.

Not once did she start

limping. Not once

did she seem to be in any sort of pain.

The vet came in to see her. I explained the situation.

He looked at me and said,

"She's a Basset Hound. Any other

breed, I'd be worried, but she's a Basset."

Apparently Basset Hounds are

known for their lameness?! What?!

This comes with the breed.

So, she may be limping like a pirate with

a peg leg, but no worries. She's a Basset Hound.

He did send me home with some medicine, for

days when her limp is bad. Oh, and a bill.

I had to pay him money to learn that I, in fact,

do own a lame dog!

A Morning In Our House

I am fortunate to have had a childhood

filled with happy memories.
When most women were entering the workforce,
my Mother chose to become a home maker.
The last year of her life, my mother told
me that she had no regrets. All she'd ever wanted to
do was to be a wife and mother.
She only wished it had lasted longer.
Many of my childhood memories are centered around
the kitchen, baking, cooking, eating. When Jon and I
bought our house, I really hoped for
a great kitchen. One that would hold happy
memories for our family.
Gradually, we have transformed our kitchen
from a dark and ugly room, to a really bright and
cheery room. The kids and I spend our
mornings together in our kitchen.
They work on their school work while
I bake or get stuff ready for dinner.

At night, our family eats dinner around our

kitchen table.

I pray that my children's childhoods will be

littered with happy memories.

Littered with the knowledge of how

loved they are, how wanted they

are, how important they are.

I pray that when my life ends, I'll be able to say

I lived with no regrets. I was everything

that I wanted to be. I did every thing that I wanted

to do. Each day, as I go about the task of being

Mom, I think of my own mother. I miss her,

I remember her,

and I pray that I will be even half the

mother to my own children that

she was to me.

BRRR....

Walking in
a winter

Wonderland!

One Italian Grandmother

For Christmas, I really

really wanted a pasta maker.
My sweet hubby bought it for me.
He's good like that.
I've never made
my own pasta, but I thought
it would be fun to try.
My first batch was really sticky,
and it didn't run through my pasta
maker right. I was ready to
go on a hunt for an Italian grandmother
who could teach me the art of pasta making.
I wasn't too sure where you find an
Italian grandmother, so I settled for Youtube.
I watched all sorts of videos about pasta
making. There was even one
that had my Kitchen-Aid pasta
attachment.
Today, minus an Italian
grandmother, I tried my hand at pasta
making again.
This batch turned out much better.
I even used whole wheat flour.
At least my noodles will be healthy.
Now I'm off to try my hand making cannoli.
My Dad got
me cannoli tubes for Christmas.
I really do need an Italian grandmother
to help me with all of these
recipes.
Maybe I'll put that on my Christmas
list next year.
One Italian grandmother.

Good-Bye '09

Good-bye 2009.

You were a really hard year,

but you were a really good year too.
We made a lot of memories,

and so we said good-bye by

making a few more.

Doodles got beautiful in
time for our big family party.
Notice the strange middle Eastern earrings,
compliments of the dollar store.
She had to make me beautiful too.
Notice how wet I am.
She thought if she got my hair wet,
it might curl.
Swim fins. You can never be
too prepared.
Fins compliments of the dollar store.
Family Monopoly,
Marvel Style.

Too cool to be in this

kitchen. Rockin'

out with the kids.
3-D glasses, compliments the

bookstore.

My future is so bright, I gotta

wear shades.

Doodles informed me she

was, "Rocky". Not sure

if she meant the prize fighter

or that she's a rock star.

Either way, we had

fun saying good-bye

to '09.

Happy New Year.

Our Year In Review

Last year, we celebrated New

Year's Eve at my parents house.

We didn't know what this year

would hold.

We never do.

We had lots of happy memories.

Easter with my parents.

My Mom cooked the meal.

A much planned trip to Joe's

Crab Shack.

Something my Mom really

wanted to do.

A trip to see Mary Poppins

on Broadway and a trip

to Katz after.

A Fun Girl Trip to Maine with

Mom.
The celebration of our kids one
year Adoption Anniversary.
Mom celebrated with us.
Halloween trick-or-treating
with the kids and my Mom.

Celebrating our first Thanksgiving

without.

Celebrating our first Christmas without.
This past year has been one

of the hardest of my life. For a year we

hoped, we prayed, we planned.

We hoped for a cure, we

prayed for a cure,

and we planned what to do with the time

we'd been give.

We had the privilege of spending our

year making memories with Mom.

We had the privilege of a year telling her

how much we loved her. Next year

will be our first year without her.

Next year will be different than this,

but it is a gift of time. Time for us

to make memories together.

Happy New Year.