Asian Crunch Salad...

Remember back a few weeks ago I mentioned making salads more frequently?? Well I kinda stayed true to this and here is one of the recipe's that I tried..

What You Need

1/2 cupKraft Zesty Italian Dressing, divided

2 pkg. (85 g each) ramen noodle soup mix

2 pkg. (454 g each) broccoli slaw

4 green onions, sliced

1/2 cup roasted sunflower kernels

1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted

Make It

MIX dressing and Seasoning Packet from 1 soup mix package. Discard remaining seasoning packet or reserve for another use.
BREAK apart Noodles; place in large bowl. Add slaw, onions, sunflower kernels and nuts; mix lightly.
ADD dressing mixture; toss to coat.

kraft kitchens tips

Make Ahead

Dressing mixture can be prepared ahead of time. Refrigerate up to 24 hours. Noodles can also be crumbled the day before; place in resealable plastic bag along with the sunflower kernels and nuts. Seal bag and store at room temperature until ready to assemble salad

This salad was pretty good..i think if I could change one thing it would be to use some sort of Asian salad dressing..i didn't love the Italian dressing mixture, the family liked it but we didn't love it!

Well friends...I kinda had a sad day today, really missing Harley! Is that silly? Its been 8 months and I still cry at least once a week. Usually when something triggers a memory of him...I think buying a cottage in Turkey Point has become a soft spot, I would have loved to have given  him this in his life. He LOVED the beach..he loved Pottahawk, he LOVED turkey point. Paul keeps reminding me of all his times with us at cottages that we rented, time on our boat when we had it down in TP, he had lots of experiences...its just not the same with him not here...will the hurt in my heart ever fade? I miss you Harley..you were my love~

Kailey...slim and fair; darling, beloved; slender".

Look at the smile on this boy's face...having Kailey so soon after such a tragedy was the best thing that we could have done for our family~

Last night I went to my first EVER Spinal Cord Injury Women's Support Group~ Yep, its taken 17 years for them to come up with a support group for women caregivers of SPI husbands,son's, daughters, grandparents..etc etc.
I was a bit nervous going in with not knowing what to expect..I use to go to the occassional support group for mom's with Special Needs Children but always came away more frustrated than when I went in. Most of them complained about their husbands or financial instabilities..and at that time, in the very beginning of our recovery Paul and I were attatched, we were close and we chose to smile. Many of these women were angry bitter housewives who complained non-stop about their childs Autism or developmentally delayed son or daughter..they complained about their husbands lack of interest in their child..OH god, it was awful!!
I didn't ever stay long, I couldn't handle it...and besides, my son wasn't born with a disability, it was an injury from an accident..i never felt like I belonged with them. I also rarely felt bitter or angry about my son's condition(bitter and angry is alot different from grieving)...i was just thankful he was alive, he was here...and I was able to still be his mommy!
Anyways..I guess I was happy to go last night in hopes to have something in common with someone from this group. It helped that they were all living through the same type of lifestyle..they were all caregivers to someone who USE to be different, who USE to be healthy...its just different when its an injury.
Everyone has a story and they are definatly not the same...and after sitting their and listening to all their stories and all their heartache and pain, the only thing that I came away with was "why the hell did we choose to have Kailey so soon after my car accident?"..LOL..seriously WTF were we thinking? I've never truly thought about it AT ALL until last night when I was asked "So, you had another child after your accident?"...my response.."Yes, a year later we had Kailey!"
They were beside themselves with wonder..It was then that it hit me and it hit me HARD, after sitting through all their stories and remembering all the difficult things that we went through...why on earth would we triple our chaos and have another baby?
My answer was the first thing that came to my mind, it was the truth..it was my something that i answered openly and honestly..
"We had her... I guess in a way it was to save us" Braden came home after 5 months in hospital that July '95 and I was pregnant that April '95 then I delivered Kailey the following December '96.
I came home last night and asked Paul.."Why did we have Kailey so soon?' He looked as puzzled as I did and looked at me with an expression that read.."Jesus, why did we do that?"
Know I don't want Kailey to think that we regret having her so soon, because in all honesty she was the best thing we did!! Hands down that baby girl was placed in my arms by god to save my life!
Once I had Kailey I regained all the feelings of being a mom..I wasn't only a nurse to Braden or a physiotherapist..I was a mom again.
Kailey pulled Paul and I out of a life dotting on Braden and probably handicapping him further because he would have been considered "the only reason I had to live", all of my energy and all of our lives would have revolved around Braden and how terrible would that have been?
Looking back know I can't even begin to describe how crazy busy it was, but I will say...every opportunity Kailey had..Braden had too, he has lots of reasons to be thankful Kailey is here today.
The group was good, I can't get into specifics because of privacy issues but I did enjoy it and I will return next month. I was the longest post injury person there, and I was probably the "saddest" too, I don't mean that in a way to bring pity on myself. I think we can all agree that there is really nothing harder than seeing your child suffer in pain, or the loss of a child. I have said it for years..I wish it would have been me injured that day..I hate that he took this hit in life, It should have been me!
With all that said we do have much to be thankful for..many of these families don't have the financial support that we have so thankfully in one aspect our life is easier. Many of them were spouses of men who were injured after they were married, most of them had happy marriages, still strong and making it through.
I think actually that will be the biggest reason for my return, I like learning how these mom's function with a husband in a wheelchair. Eventually my son will be there, these mom's have children and they seem very happy with thier lives. I think they'd agree that its not easy, they live with men who at times can be very angry or even depressed. There are many things that they have to change as a married couple, I hope to learn alot..someday I hope to be a wonderful support for my son's wife. I even said that last night..that I like to hear how they make it work. That someday I hope my own son finds a women good enough for him, someone who can take on the challenges that he may bring to the table.
Well, it was funny to have gone to this meeting last night regarding Braden, but came away thinking more about Kailey. All the questions they could have asked me last night and the only one that they were all thinking was.."Why did you have another baby so soon?"..lol..I had her because I wanted too..I probably wasn't thinking too clearly at the time, and looking back know I can say with certainty she was my biggest form of recovery..she was my saving grace~
Enough said..

Peanut Butter Frozen Dog Treats

I had decided this summer i'd like to try some homemade dog treats for Ollie and Finn. I came across this recipe and thought it looked pretty good. I think I liked it most because of the ingrediants used were low fat and low sodium and you have to remember that dogs have different digestive systems than we do, best be careful when making your own food or treats. Below are the ingrediants and how to make them...my pups seemed pretty happy with them. Nice for a cool treat on a hot day!!

Peanut Butter Frozen Treats Ingrediants   Three 6 ounce Containers of Plain, Low-Fat Yogurt 1/2 Cup of Peanut Butter (Low Sodium) 1 Four Ounce Jar of Banana Baby Food 1 Tablespoon of Honey

Directions:

In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients. Blend well. Pour mixutre into small cups (I used Dixie Cups). Place dog bone in mixture (to serve as the handle). Freeze. Once frozen, peel away paper cup and serve! Yummy!

Waiting patiently for mom to make their treats~

Liking the spoon..best part of baking!!

Ollie's turn..Look at Finn..she can't get enough!

Getting ready to put them in the freezer..Don't you just love the little dog bones used for handles? I actually halfed them for Ollies cups, he's too little for such large bones. I also used smaller shot cups for Ollie's. Finn's Pupsicles are being made with Dixie cups. You can see little Ollie's cups to the right!

Successfully frozen Pupsicle's..Puppy's are so excited!!

Ohh look at the lil'boy! He loves his peanut butter frozen pupsicle!

Ohhh Finn LOVES her treat too~

Well over all this was a success, Mom if you're reading I would suggest you make these for your pup's..especially for the ones you dog sit. Its a nice treat and keeps them quiet for a little while on a hot day!

When Skies Are Grey...

Well lovelies, i haven't forgotten about you! I had my nephew Ethan last week and took some time off from blog world to enjoy his company. The week prior to that was crazy as well. There is so much changing in my life right now..i don't even know where to start. All great things..the kids are done school, both of which did amazing!! Braden graduated highschool..*hasn't even sunk in yet* and is officially registered as a college student this fall. Can you believe that?  Just a side note..we all as parents feel complete pride when our children accomplish such things in life, its huge! Its life changing and exciting all in one.

For Braden its a BIG DEAL..maybe not to him, but to Paul and I..its tear jerking! There was a time when doctor's told us "he's fortunate to have a settlement to take care of him". He will NEVER move anything again, he is completely paralyzed and will be on life support probably for the rest of his life! WOW..were they wrong!! I remember after being told all of this news just standing at the foot of his hospital bed watching him sleep and thinking "There's NO god damn way that will be how my son's life turn's out". Paul and I were very young at this time, and through silent tears at the foot of his bed that evening when everyone else's world may have crumpled...we chose to stand strong.
That night we walked back to the Ronald McDonald House holding hands, still through tears and heartache we made a pact that would forever change our life destination. We decided come hell or highwater..our son would life the life he was born to live. It may be a differently lived life, but nonetheless...it'd be a productive one!
I truly believe it was through these days that Paul and I bonded. We didn't really have much opportunity to talk about our life at the time, we were too busy living it. A secret that i've kept for a very long time is i never really wanted to talk about things with Paul too much because I didn't want to feel the pain that he was feeling..my own pain was killing me!
However without words shared between us, we certainly learned to communicate in other ways, I remember a doctor or therapist coming into Braden's hospital room and leaving us with their words of wisdom or some advice that if taken seriously would have destroyed us on the spot. Paul and I learned eventully how to speak to eachother with body language and eye contact. They could say all they wanted about Braden's recovery or his future...Paul and I only grew stronger through their thoughts and feelings regarding a bleak future for Braden. We knew with all our strength and belief our son would be just fine! He'd never accept anything less then a challenge in his life, he'd have all he ever wanted..including highschool, college and career which would bring him nothing but happiness..everything that we all strive for. His easy life style that the doctor's were oh so happy about, considering his settlement...would be hidden from him for a very long time. We chose to hide from Braden his financial security and raise him as a child who new one day he'd have to have a career, income and hopefully support a family..just like everyother successful man out there.
Having Braden enroll in college this past spring brings a sence of accomplishment to Paul and I, after all these years of putting our time, energy, attention and determination into Braden..its paid off! We got him to a place where we had only dreamed he'd go..and the beautiful thing about all this..is that he did it on his own!
Our son is on his way to a future we were told would never happen...he'd never go to college, he'd never hold down a job.".and why worry about it?" they said, "he has financial support for the rest of his life". Our answer to that.."It's not the money that will bring him the feeling of accomplishment, pride and self-worth, its having the chance to grow and florish into someone who has lived out their own dreams. Its the road travelled and the experiences during the journey that will bring him a sence of self -love and satisfaction.
Braden has worked so hard over these years, its taken him a bit longer to get through highschool..we have seen many many tears shed due to his tired days, sick days, angry days and insecure days. We've also seen many happy days too..it hasn't all been bad. He was the first to be accomadated as an orthopedic student into a regular classroom, he sailed through regular gym class with friends, he  participated in school plays and met some fantastic people along the way. WOW looking back at all those school days its overwhelming, i'm so glad they are done!
Braden you have accomplished more than most people I know and you did it against so many odds. YOU are destined for greatness and I am relieved to know that someday..you will be a happily married man who will NOT only provide for your family, but you'll do so with principle and pride.  You are on your way to an exciting future..and i'm so happy to be a part of it~

With all this said..all our hard work is paying off and Paul and I are finally a place where we can sit back and enjoy our own accomplishments as parents, friends and lovers.
These coming years, i am hoping will be alot less stressful and way more relaxing..i must say with the purchase of our cottage we are certainly on our way~