Snapshots of a good life

Although I studied fine art in college (for the first year anyway), my first official photography class was from an amazing gal…Karen Russell. Her photography workshop is AMAZING (and registration opens in 20 minutes for her 2013 class…it sells out fast. Like in < 5 mins fast)! The workshop is one of the best investments in yourself and for documenting your everyday life…and anything else, for that matter. Every now and then, I go back and reread the ginormous 4" binder of class information and learn something new…even 3 years later! So much good stuff!

Here's one of the many (many, many) things I learned in her class:

A little adventure

Last weekend, I went to Cincinnati for a photography workshop with my friend Jody. Knowing that we only had a day and a half to hang out without our kiddos (she has 3…whew!), we tried to pack in as much fun as we could.

We met at an orchard (Peifer Orchards) in Yellow Springs. It was so hot that day…I think it was 94 degrees and humid (you know, typical August in Ohio weather). One of my favorite things about our visit, aside from the acres of sunflowers right across the street, was their apple cider slushy. It was so crisp and refreshing and flavorful - it totally hit the spot! If you make the trip there during the late summer months, I highly recommend trying it.

The sunflowers across the street were amazing! I've never seen so many of them at once. Although, Jody said it reminded her of her recent trip to Italy (just one more reason to visit Italy!). 

Yummy sun flare! Sun flare in your photo is a matter of taste…I've found you either love it or hate it. I kinda like it, but I also think it depends on the mood you're trying to capture. :) 

We had to get pretty low to get some of the blue sky. It was somewhat overcast, but we could see a tiny bit of storm clouds building up as we were getting ready to leave.

Jody read somewhere that flower images are much more interesting if they have an insect milling about on them. We had no trouble at all capturing that because there were lots and lots of bees.

In fact, I even captured a bee in mid-flight! Truly a happy accident, because I don't think I could've done that on purpose even if I tried! hahaha!

And Jody turned my camera on me…because when you're the one with the camera, you're usually not in the pictures (I kinda like it that way though...and I may or may not have been sucking in my stomach-bwahaha!!).  :)

After our romp in the sunflower fields, we headed over to check out Clifton Mill/Gorge. It was like stepping back in time. At Christmas, they have it all lit up with beautiful white lights…I can only imagine how pretty it is.

This side trip was definitely a great start to our adventure…next stop: Hollywood Casino! We didn't get back to our room until 2:00 am! We didn't have much sleep before our 9 hour Folio-Love fest the next day…and the train that ran by our room at 4:00 am didn't help much either-hahaha!! We had a really good time!  :)

Back to school - 6th grade

Michael starts back to school in a couple of days. I think he's getting excited about it…as far as we can tell anyway. A few days ago, I saw one of the buses pass by our house timing the new routes. Michael saw it too and scooted so fast to the front door just as the bus turned down another street. He was so upset that the bus left without him. He started banging on the window and throwing a fit…like, "hey, you forgot me!" Poor kiddo. I hope he's that happy to see the bus when it's here to really pick him up (he wasn't).

I am so fortunate that Grandma Carole does the school clothes shopping for Michael, because you all know that I am NOT a shopper (thank you, thank you Carole). She usually buys a few outfits for each grandkid starting back to school, but this year we told her Michael only needed 1-2 pairs of jeans and a pair of athletic pants…he was good with everything else.

And this is what ended up in her shopping bag (because she's magic and finds the most amazing deals):

Michael is so lucky she doesn't listen to me (hahaha)!!!  :) Because of her, Michael is going to be sporting some serious style this school year. Gma has great skills in putting together adorable outfits. 

Would the outfits still be called "adorable" if they're for a 12 year old boy? Wait…would I even use the word "outfit"? Gary said girls have "outfits"…I guess boys have "a set of clothes that happen to match". Either way, Michael's definitely gonna be one hip little dude.

I'm back! Again. :)

It has been FOREVER since I posted on this little blog of mine and I have so, so much to share (birthdays, vacations, family-ness, Arty [oh our sweet Arty], Michael updates, summer fun, recipes, lots-o-stuff).

I have so much I want to share, that it's almost stressful to decide where to begin. Should I start chronologically oldest stuff to newest, or newest first and work my way back, or just scattered little bits here and there? Those who know me realize that these are tough decisions for me (because I can't make a decision to save my life, let alone decide what's for dinner or how to get back to blogging…I'm such a Libra)! So I might as well just jump in and get started.


Didja miss me? I've been missing you!!  :)

Michael's Zoo Birthday

We have a wonderful aunt, well, we have LOTS of wonderful aunts…AND uncles, but we have one aunt that works for the Columbus Zoo (Hi Suzi!!). She has always been gracious enough to invite us to her office occasionally so we can do Behind the Scenes stuff with their promotional animals…you know the ones - the animals that tour with Jack Hannah and make the rounds on the various TV shows like GMA and David Letterman.

She even hosted my bridal shower, and a few years, later my baby shower, at the zoo with adorable animals for everyone to see and hold…yeah, she rocks like that. Anyway, I asked her if we could do something with the animals for Michael's birthday at his school. I chose to have it at his school for a few reasons, with the main one being so I don't have to clean the house (hahaha!!). But also because most of his classmates are all special needs and our house (even with Michael having special needs) is not handicapped accessible. Plus, I don't think we'd have enough room for 20+ kids and their parents and the animals.

Shannon with a baby kangaroo and Whitney with a fennec fox (M just wanted to hug Whitney!)

Michael's BFF (Keith) was able to attend as a special guest…he got to hold the baby kangaroo!

Shannon with an armadillo and baby lynx

What I didn't realize was all the extra steps it took to have it at the school (asking permission from the administration, the superintendent, and signed permission slips from all the parents), but it all worked out great in the end.

Aunt Suzi ended up not being able to attend, but she sent two of the most wonderful and caring gals to do the presentations. Shannon and Whitney were fabulous! They were amazing with the kids and there were lots of smiles on their faces. The girls were so good and patient with how they interacted with the kids and answered all of their questions. If you ever get an opportunity or chance to book the zoo's program, I highly recommend it!

After the party at school, we celebrated at home with Grandma Kita. We had cake with a Buzz Lightyear candle (from Gma Carole) and lots of hugs and kisses.  :)

Me, Michael & Michael squeezing Gary's neck (hahaha); Michael and Grandma Kita

French-Toasted Angel Food Cake

I found this recipe on Better Homes and Gardens (bgh.com) and made it this weekend. It was so good! What I loved about this recipe is: how easy it was to make, it was delicious, it satisfied my sweet tooth and there are a crazy amount of ways you can customize this for your family. I made ours with strawberries and powdered sugar.

But the part I loved most? It was my excuse to have cake for breakfast (part of any balanced, nutritious meal plan)!!  :)

French-Toasted Angel Food Cake

ingredients

• 1 7 - 8 inch angel food cake (ours was store-bought)
• 6 eggs, slightly beaten (we used egg-beaters...you know, to make it "healthier")
• 1 1/2 cups milk (We used skim milk...again, with the "healthy" thing)
• 3 tablespoons sugar (we used 1 tablespoon)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1 tablespoon butter (non-fat spray stuff was used instead of butter)
• Whipped cream or creme fraiche (we didn't have any on hand)
• Maple syrup (we did powdered sugar instead of syrup)
• Cut-up fresh strawberries (ours were frozen...would've been better if they were fresh though)

directions

Slice the angel food cake into 10 to 12, 1-inch thick wedges. In a shallow dish combine eggs, milk, sugar; and vanilla. Soak wedges in egg mixture for 1 minute per side. In a nonstick skillet or on a nonstick griddle melt butter over medium heat. Cook 4 wedges at a time for 1 to 2 minutes on each side or until golden brown. To serve, stand slices in cake formation. Top with whipped cream or creme fraiche. Drizzle with maple syrup and top with strawberries. Serve immediately. Makes 10 to 12 servings.

            If you make this or a version like it, let me know what you think!

Skiing 2012

Although the calendar says it's winter, we've been very fortunate to be having a mild one this year. Luckily (for Michael), there is snow at Mad River Mountain where Michael participates in adaptive skiing.

He LOVES it! He signs "please more go bye" almost every time he swooshes past us. At times, we noticed that he's leaning forward in the sit-ski trying to make it go faster, the speed demon.

Here's video of how they get him on the lift. They leave him strapped into the sit-ski and then lift him onto the seat and attach the tether and lock him onto the back of the lift.

We signed Michael up for Friday and Saturday sessions, so even Grandma Kita was able to see him ski this year (and we got to watch her race)!

This year, the volunteers advanced him to an even bigger hill and he is enjoying it immensely! We can hear him on the lift making excited noises and sometimes hear him coming down the hill.

We are so glad to have this wonderful program (minus the freezing cold part-brrr!) so close to our house. Last weekend, they had an extra lift ticket because a student didn't show up. So they gave the ticket to us and Gary skied for the first time ever. Of course, I didn't have my camera to capture it all (dang it!)...but he did amazing and even came down the hill with Michael once.  :)

Florida, Pre-Day 1

Florida, Day 1 Pre-Day 1

Well, let me back up a day to Wednesday, the day before vacation. It started off full of hope and excitement, but ended up pretty crappy...literally. Gary and I dropped off Arty to be kenneled on the way to drop off Gary at the airport for his flight to Florida. He was going to drive down with his dad and the boat, but his dad left a week early and Gary couldn’t leave with him because of work. So Gary bought a one way ticket to FL for later in the week (he’ll help drive on the way back).  Anyway, I drop off Gary at the airport and start to head back so that I’m home before the boy gets off the bus (it’s almost an hour drive from the airport to our house).  About 15-20 minutes into my drive, I get a phone call from Gary...his flight is delayed by an hour. Oh geez, had we known, we could’ve stopped and had a nice leisurely lunch together (a rarity, for sure). Nothing we can do about it now. Sigh. I make it home in time to mow, get the boy off the bus and continue mowing while he plays in his rock pit (that makes for a happy boy). During that time, I get another call from Gary...his flight is delayed even longer by 3 hours. So instead of arriving in Florida at 3:30, he’s now landing at 6:15pm. That makes for a long day of travel considering I dropped him off at noon. I always try to look at the positives and while this sure sucked for Gary, it could’ve been worse if Michael were with him or if it happened to Carole and I the very next day.

Gary’s bad luck mojo left him after he landed and it came to visit me that evening. After dinner, it was time for the Michael’s bath. He always plays with his water toys after getting shampooed and soapy. That’s the stage he was in, the playing part, when I received a text from Gary asking me to find something off of the desk. Michael is usually fine in the tub for me to be able to do quick tasks, like make his bed which is right across the hall from the bathroom, with me popping my head back in to make sure he’s fine (yes he’s 11, but he has special needs and the fear of him having a seizure and drowning make me a bit protective). So I figure I have enough time to run down 7 steps, check the desk and then make it back to the bathroom without anything happening. 

Well, let this be a warning to all parents to never leave your child unattended. 

Apparently, it was enough time for Michael to drop a deuce....in the tub. No, no, no! This isn’t happening. This was not part of my completely planned out scheduled evening that included something along the lines of getting the boy to bed on time, painting my toes and maybe having a glass of wine. Crap, in the literal sense, has ruined our evening. I say “our” evening because I had to give the boy a shower in the other bathroom to clean him up before I could even tackle his bathtub. He HATES taking a shower and it was torture for both of us. Poor kiddo. 

You know I usually include a picture with each blog post, but I didn’t think you’d want to see a tub full of poop.  You’re welcome.

The only bright side to all of this, was that we were headed to warm and sunny Florida the very next day. Oh yeah, did I mention that the weather we were having in Ohio was 50 degrees and rain for almost the entire 2 weeks leading up to our vacation? And that the weather in Ohio was going to be upper 70s and mid-80s and beautifully sunny the ENTIRE time we were gone? Oh, and the weather forecast for Florida, the Sunshine State, was possible rain, rain, and thunderstorms for every. single. day. of our vacation. 

It made me almost not want to leave. Almost.

still the one

My husband is looking oh so thoughtful in this picture. Deep thinking. Meaning of the universe. Penny for your thoughts. I know the lines of his face and what he's gone through to earn each one of those lines; ruggedly handsome. Total hotness (but I might be biased).


I know what he's thinking in this one though:  "I hope she gets that camera out of my face soon. Why'd I buy it for her again?" You love me, that's why you bought it for me...and I'm going to use it to take pictures of the people (and places) I love.  My snapshots of a good life!

14 years...and he's still the one.  :)

1st day of school (2011-2012, 5th grade!)

The boy has been back to school for almost 4 weeks now. We've adjusted to the earlier hours...well, mostly adjusted...6am comes awful quick when you've had a summer of 9am's (and even a few 10am's).  Michael is in 5th grade, which is a new building in our district. We were concerned with how he would adjust to all of the changes and our concerns were unwarranted because he is doing fabulous!!

First day of school:  cold and tired in the morning.  Happy in the afternoon.   :)

He seems to really enjoy the new routine, teachers, school and his new classmates. The first 2 days were filled with such sad tears, but by the 3rd day the tears had tapered off and he only cried during Art (which broke my little artist heart...and Gary laughed at the school note because he said art class would make him cry too).

Unbelievably, he's even met one of his IEP goals already (hold a container with one hand while putting an object in the container with the other hand)! This is a big relief considering last year we were thinking of pulling him out of school and we were researching what options he had (let me tell you, there weren't many).

I am beyond thrilled (and relieved) that the school year is starting off so well for him and it's just what he needs (and us too)!  Yea!

buffalo chicken burgers...one of MY new favorites!

It's been awhile since I posted a recipe on here...heck, it's been awhile since I posted anything at all!  So I thought I'd try to get back to blogging by starting things off with a yummy, quick recipe I found on Tasty Kitchen.

This "burger" is very easy to make and so, so flavorful!!  Definitely one of our go to dinner ideas for sure!

Buffalo Chicken Burgers

Prep Time 15 Minutes Cook Time 20 Minutes

Servings 4

Difficulty Easy

Ingredients

• 1 pound Ground Chicken
• ½ teaspoons Salt
• ½ teaspoons Pepper
• ½ Tablespoons Italian Seasoning
• ¼ cups Parmesan Cheese
• ¼ cups Buffalo Wing Sauce Plus More For Drizzling (I used BW3's medium sauce for mine and a secret recipe sauce Gary gets from a golf buddy every year...his is really spicy)
• 4 slices, Sharp Cheddar Cheese
• 4 hamburger buns
• ¼ cups Ranch Dressing (or bacon ranch dressing would be good too) for drizzling

Preparation Instructions

Preheat grill or skillet.

In a large bowl combine ground chicken, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, parmesan and buffalo wing sauce. Mix until just combined. Form into patties (they will be pretty "wet").

Grill or pan-fry patties until brown on both sides and cooked through, about 8-10 minutes. In the last 2 minutes, place 1/2 ounce of cheddar cheese on each burger. Place burgers on whole wheat buns and top with a drizzle of ranch and buffalo wing dressing.

The first time we had these, we ate them with corn-on-the-cob.  Celery and carrots would make a good side dish too.

father's day 2011

We went to Gary's parent's house to celebrate Father's Day.  Gary and his dad spent the morning golfing...which isn't really a special Father's Day treat, because that's what he does every weekend (as well as Monday and Wednesday evenings and sometimes Friday afternoons).

But the real treat was instead of grabbing a cold turkey sandwich or leftovers from the night before, we (meaning Carole did all the work, while I kept her company and we chatted away) prepared a feast of the boys' most favorite foods:  grilled chicken (for his dad) and ribs (G's favorite), homemade mac & cheese, grilled asparagus, baked potatoes, salad, homemade cherry pie (G's dad) and angel food cake with strawberries and whipped cream.  BTW, we totally have to wear pants with elastic waistbands whenever Carole puts together one of her amazing feasts.  Just keepin' it real.

G's sister started to put the meat on the grill, but Gary took over from there because he IS the grillmaster.  He has a knack for knowing exactly when to take food off the grill precisely when it's done and not a second longer.  Juicy and moist.  Did I just use juicy and my husband in the same sentence? Is it getting warm in here?

Anyway, after filling our bellies and sitting around chatting, the games came out.  We are a game family. At every family get-together we play games... real sit-down-around-the-table games.  In fact, we host a family game night every Friday all summer long.  This time, a few games of Canasta were played (Carole, Tina and Gary), along with Sequence (Richard, Carole, Dillon, Ashley, Tina and myself) and Rocks (Michael).  We also watched Rory McElroy win the US Open too.  Michael loves to watch golf, so the big boys suffered through watching it with him.  Huge sacrifice on their part.  NOT.   :)

 Happy Father's Day to Gary, Richard and my dad....big hugs to you all!

medical stuff

Sorry to be so few and far between with posting updates around here.  We're dealing with a lot of medical issues for the boy and some tough decisions....like being able to (possibly) surgically remove the spot in Michael's brain that causes his awful seizures, but removing that part of his brain has a risk of potentially making him blind.  Oy vey...we also have a lot of hurry up and wait appointments as well to deal with his tethered spinal cord and decreased walking, knees continually dislocating when his legs are straightened and other possible surgeries to address those issues as well.  In addition to our daily routine of Conductive Education, speech therapy, independent life-skills (like self-feeding, dressing, bathing, etc.), and still trying to have fun and ENJOY life...which we are totally doing too.  Really!  :)

So while doing some research on the seizure surgery, I ran across this presentation that really caught our attention.  There are two topics that he touches on (one he barely discusses), but we were able to key in on right away.  The first is that seizures could be reduced/stopped non-surgically.  The second, is that those with learning disabilities can increase their learning....through neural prosthetics.  So cool.

Here is the cliff note version if you don't want to watch the video:


Ed Boyden shows how, by inserting genes for light-sensitive proteins into brain cells, he can selectively activate or de-activate specific neurons with fiber-optic implants. With this unprecedented level of control, he's managed to cure mice of analogs of PTSD and certain forms of blindness. On the horizon: neural prosthetics. At the MIT Media Lab, Ed Boyden leads the Synthetic Neurobiology Group, which invents technologies to reveal how cognition and emotion arise from brain networks -- and to enable systematic repair of disorders such as epilepsy and PTSD.

http://www.ted.com/speakers/ed_boyden.html

http://www.ted.com/talks/ed_boyden.html

Impressive stuff to say the least.  Now...off to search the net for clinical studies for this new breakthrough.   :)

birthday boy

Eleven years ago today, the most beautiful little boy came into our lives and is bringing us complete joy and laughter, along with the biggest, sweetest hugs ever!

Because he still enjoys Toy Story, we went with TS for his birthday theme: plates, napkins, games to play and goodies for the kids. 

I even went so far as to make little alien cupcakes....which turned out laughably pathetic (not surprising since I have a 50% success rate on homemade birthday treats).  Not exactly what I was going for, but at least the kids seemed to like them.  Except Michael.  He liked the Buzz & Woody plates better.  :)  

My homemade alien cupcakes vs. disney family.go alien cupcakes...can you tell which is which??  hahaha!!

At his school party, we played Toy Story bingo and Michael won (legitimately too)!

Then Michael hung out with his dear friend Rebekah ("hey Michael's mom, take my picture").  At the end of the day, she helped him get his coat on, hood on and zipped up.  She even made sure he was buckled in his chair.  These two are so cute together....lots of hugging and we even caught them trying to kiss (Michael kisses with his forehead, so we figure it's all good, right?).

This was his last birthday party at school.  He is scheduled to move on to intermediate school (5th/6th grade school) next year.  I'm thinking they don't have a lot of moms and dads doing the school birthday thing at that age.  As if.  {insert preteen eye roll here}