So when life hits you with a 2×4, what do you do? How do you make your next move when the emotional weight actually makes it hard to breathe? I have been delving into some of these questions in the past couple of days. I apologize for the lack of make-up or pretty camera angles, but I am just throwing this together as I go, in hopes that someone will have something to say on it. Anything would be appreciated, even just a kind word or a little joke would be great! Please check it out here and give me any input you can. Love and light, carry it on people!!
Tag Archives for Parenting
Pillsbury Crescent Breakfast Boats
Lately I have been on this kick of simplifying meals around this house. Not quite sure what got me on the Pillsbury Crescent Rolls kick, but tonight was one of my first attempts at an actually meal. Don’t get me wrong, I have wrapped hot dogs and cheese up with crescent rolls before, but that is the most simple recipe. I do try not to make it often though because hotdogs freak me out.
Wish I could say that I had a recipe to go by, but I decided to wing it… I went with whatever was left in the fridge that was going to go bad. Need to start doing that more often raising these boys, they are going to eat me out of house and home before to long here. No sense in wasting anything when I can find some kind of dish to throw it in.
I had:
- About 1/2-3/4 cup of diced ham
- 1/2 Large Onion
- About 3/4 cup chopped mushrooms
- 1/3 cup cheese (some feta and sharp cheddar)
- 4 Eggs
- 1 Package of Pillsbury Crescent Rolls
First thing I did was saute the ham, onion and mushroom in a skillet until brown. While they are cooking, grease muffin tin and spread out a roll in each. It didn’t have to be perfect, mostly just to cover the bottom the best I could.
Then, I put a layer of the mix in each cup, scrambled the 4 eggs, and filled each cup 3/4 of the way with the eggs. I think the next time I make it I will only use 3 eggs and fill 2/3 of the way, it was way too much egg.
Wasn’t sure how each would taste, so I used sharp cheddar on 3, feta on 3 and both on two of them. Really didn’t matter much, tasted similar in the end. Sprinkled a little cheese on each and folded the sides lightly over the top.
Put in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for 20 mins. My oven runs high so I had to drop down to 325 and shouldn’t have left it on as long myself. Thinking that those who’s oven runs normal should stick with the 350 for 20. I stuck a toothpick in it to make sure that it was cooked thoroughly.
They turned out so good my 2 yr. old toddler ate two of them (and some strawberries) for dinner. My 9 yr. old wasn’t too keen with them, but he’s never liked things with egg much. I will most definitely make them up again! Next time I will switch up the ingredients to fit the mood that I am in.
Lunch at Como’s and Theatre Bizzare
Had to go out to Rust Belt Market in Ferndale to grab the tickets for Theatre Bizzare, so while we were here, Spyder and I decided to stop at Como’s for pizza for his birthday lunch. It was the only meal I actually got to have on a patio this summer. This photo was actually taken by Spyder, which makes me laugh because he isn’t the best with my phone. Kind of like how the dread beads are working here though!
It didn’t matter to him that his chin barely came above the table and he still had to eat his pizza, Spyder insisted that we sit at one of the high tables so that he could see the traffic on the street going by.
The tickets to Detroit’s best Masquerade Ball!
Adaptation of Sequence for the Colorblind
Over the past nine years I have learned quite a bit about Achromatopsia and more importantly BCM (Blue-Cone Monochromacy), that is a given. One of the things that is always entertaining to learn, is how to adapt board games for the boys. The problem I have run into is, how do you adapt a game without interfering with the game itself and without somehow giving an advantage to those who do not have a visual impairment? Sequence is an awesome game in our household, as is Monopoly and Life. When it comes down to a game my oldest son and I can agree on, Sequence is the answer.
Lately, after me getting impatient and trying to “rush” my son to make his move, he once again, put me in my place. He let me know how hard it was for him to distinguish between the red and black cards on the board because of the glare overhead. The only way I could think to remedy it was to put a diagonal slash through each of the red cards on the board and also in the deck. Let me tell you, I felt horrible for rushing him, but I can’t tell you what frustration putting a little line on a card has saved the both of us! We also are talking about marking the blue coins on both sides with a white dot in the center, so that if someone else decides to ever play with us, he will be able to distinguish between those coins on the board easier too! We will keep you informed…
My Boy and the Mushroom
I haven’t been to Plummer Pool in Sylvania, Ohio in close to ten years but ended up going today with my boys. Mom said that she couldn’t work the camera on her phone, which was of no surprise to me. The surprise was finding out that she actually was able to get a few shots and I just loved this one. This was the Lemur King’s first time around a water “mushroom” and he was clinging to me like a little monkey! He would stick his hand out so the water could hit his hand, but then scream and laugh in delight all while acting like he wanted to run away.
I get the biggest kick out of people. Funny how many people make remarks about my hair as if I am not standing in earshot. The biggest misconception still being that my hair is dirty. Please people, think about this logically, with all the advancements we have made in technology, science and otherwise, don’t you think that there are cleaner ways to put your hair in dreads?
I’ve Got My Blanket…
This boy can sleep an incredible amount. This surprises me because he always feels the need to have this blanket with him. I love it, but it is LOUD. When he was born, we knew that there was a 50/50 chance that he would have the same genetic condition, Blue Cone Monochromacy, that his older brother had, so when it was confirmed we took it as just another important piece of the puzzle of “him”. With BCM, his central visual acuity is roughly 20/80-20/200 at any given moment and he is colorblind. We have found that his colorblindness is not complete and that he can see slight amounts of yellow and red, though we don’t know in what amounts. My mother is brilliant when it comes to sewing and put together this baby blanket for him. It is black, white and yellow, with geometric patterns, dots, penguins, etc and very busy. She made this blanket and a mobile for over his crib, how awesome is that?! It amazes me everyday the challenges we face and the things we learn. I constantly say that we are blessed that he was given this condition… it forces us to change and adapt accordingly. How he possibly adapts to sleeping with that beautiful, yet loud, blanket is beyond me…
Purely Awesome
I saw this floating around today and had to bring it to the masses… well, my masses. This has got to be one of the most beautiful photos that I have seen. It is everything that I strive to be. I love that the labels are taken away and we are left with expression, joy and pure love. I wish that all the people who bring themselves into my life felt this exact way….
The Passing That Led to My Disappearance…
I’m back my friends, I have missed you all greatly… My father went into the urgent care a couple weeks ago with a cold. That “cold” was pneumonia and that led to finding out he needed his third open heart surgery. On April 16th, he went in for that surgery and ended up having another heart attack on the table. After being on machines for almost seven days to give his body a rest, they tried the surgery again on the 22nd. During that surgery, there was too much bleeding and we lost him.
My brother and I may have been adopted by my father, but he was the one man that stood by us even after things with my mother had ended. I called him Dad and loved him more than most people in my life. A strange thing happened when he went in the hospital… because my youngest boy’s father lives in the area of the hospital, he was able to take most of the responsibility of the care of our little man, giving me the opportunity to stay up at the hospital with my father. I was able to talk to him for hours on end before he went into surgery.
I was able to learn so much about him. I was able to learn that he had found God and that he was not scared. That alone eases all the pain that I could feel. I was able to learn about his parents, how he grew up, how he felt like a wimp when he cried and how he finally realized that he had to be open to people and situations. I got to sit and talk with my daddy, as an adult, saying what we needed to say… we were blessed.
And then it all ended… not even 15mins. after the doctor and chaplain walked out, my estranged step-brother started talking about life insurance policies and his quarter share. The very next morning he was at my father’s door at 8:15am to start going through my dad’s things. We called him up and my other brother up to meet at my dad’s favorite diner, where he went off about being slighted all his life and getting his fair share of dad’s things. During that breakfast he declared that he wanted copies of all paperwork and to be on the phone when we handled the accounts. Now, dad wasn’t a wealthy man by any means, he called a small trailor his home, all his cards were maxed and he had a new van that hadn’t even had a payment made yet. He left the breakfast in a huff, talking about getting a lawyer and such. He followed that up with calling the cops and kicking us out of dad’s house when we went to look for the paperwork. This was all followed by hateful names and bodily threats if we were to show up at the memorial from one of their family members….
It has been just over a week and we are now beginning to grieve… my dad was the best and this situation has been the worst. So disrespectful to his memory. I have quit smoking in his honor though, he would be incredibly happy with that. I am missing him more than I could have imagined. He really was a man of honor and loyalty, that is what I have to remember. I also have to remember that it may have taken him a lifetime to understand how important it was to be open to love, but he understood it before he left us, he took that with him. He was laughing as always when he went into surgery and he wasn’t scared. I couldn’t have prayed for more…
He Might Drive!!!
So… Spyder had another low vision appointment this morning. Generally he’s right around 20/80 with drop to 20/200 (or more) in very bright light. Obviously there is nothing they can do about the colorblindness, so that will never change, BUT his condition is NOT degenerative! Stopping braille and possibly dropping down orientation and mobility. One set of regular glasses with transitions AND a darker grey or amber clip on. ALSO another set of new orange tinted glasses with bifocals for school and reading. AND SHE THINKS HE IS GOING TO BE ABLE TO DRIVE!!! She said she can’t promise, but she noticed he picks things up extremely fast, so with that and being able to control the light, he will probably be able to learn to use a telescopic piece to drive! I can’t contain myself!
Update on the IEP
Had another IEP for the Lemur King this morning… they were impressed how current he is with his skills despite his visual impairment. They were also impressed with his vocabulary, use of Sign and putting a few words together. They said I was doing a good job! I SO needed to hear that… Once a week Group and once a month with the Specialist! Woo hoo!!!
