A Recipe-a-Week in 2010

Week 23
Roquefort Pear Salad



Ingredients

1 head leaf lettuce, torn into bite-size pieces
3 pears - peeled, cored and chopped
5 ounces Roquefort cheese, crumbled
1 avocado - peeled, pitted, and diced
1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions
1/4 cup white sugar
1/2 cup pecans
1/3 cup olive oil
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons white sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons prepared mustard
1 clove garlic, chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
fresh ground black pepper to taste

Directions

1.In a skillet over medium heat, stir 1/4 cup of sugar together with the pecans. Continue stirring gently until sugar has melted and caramelized the pecans. Carefully transfer nuts onto waxed paper. Allow to cool, and break into pieces.

2.For the dressing, blend oil, vinegar, 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar, mustard, chopped garlic, salt, and pepper.

3.In a large serving bowl, layer lettuce, pears, blue cheese, avocado, and green onions. Pour dressing over salad, sprinkle with pecans, and serve.

Recipe from Amberly

Today I am Going To....

Pick up Alexandra from slumber party.

Take dogs to boarding kennels.

Take birds to Libbie's house.

Finish packing suitcase.

Load up the car.

Lock up house.

Set alarm.

Leave for vacation!

I Just Discovered:

Ricky Gervais

and he's quickly becoming my favorite actor.

I think I'll spend the summer watching every movie in his filmography.

Well, maybe not every movie....but you get the picture.

Doomed

Alexandra and I have dentists appointments at 8:00 this morning. That's in 30 minutes. Ugghhh..

Last summer when I went in for my annual cleaning they informed me that my wisdom teeth (which never grew in because they are all laying down flat) were decaying away under the gums. Isn't that disgusting?

So they were supposed to call me that week with a referral to a maxillofacial surgeon (who just happens to be my neighbor across the street) to have them all surgically removed. But....they never called. My referral was forgotten about.

And because I suffer from dentophobia I conveniently forgot about it too.

Which is why I think I am in big trouble at 8:00 when my dentist discovers that my rotting away wisdom teeth are still lying down under my gums....just where they were last year.

Ooops.

The Human Spirit

Last week when 16 year old Abby Sunderland went missing on her solo voyage around the world it got me thinking.

My first thought was,

'What in the world were her parents thinking? They let her sail around the world?!? Alone?!?'

But as the day went on I couldn't get the story out of my mind. And the more I thought it through, the more I realized that I have great respect for her parents.

Yes, Abby Sunderland is only 16....but does that really matter? She had the spirit of an adventurer; she had the skill required; she had the maturity level to handle months alone on the open sea. She, as a person, was ready...and her parents saw that. And rather than hold her back and discourage her from going after such a tremendous feat, they trained her, they prepared her, and they offered their love and support.

I only hope that Donald and I can be such a parents. Parents who recognize the potential within our children and help them achieve their goals rather than limit them because of expectations that modern society has set or fear of the unknown.

Because life is not about limiting ourselves.

Life is about saying, 'I can do it'.

Life is about hard work.

Life is about endurance.

Life is about living your dreams.

Abby Sunderland encompasses all of these ideals. Indeed, Abby Sunderland is what the human spirit is all about; courage, strength, and ambition.

I tip my hat to both her and her parents.

***To read Abby's blog, click here.

Dresses for Sale

My mother-in-law, Susan, just happens to be a talented seamstress. And she just happens to love sewing little girls dresses. And she just happens to have restocked her shop (at Etsy.com). And she just happens to have some adorable children modeling them.

Go check it out. And maybe buy a dress or two....

Twiddlesticks

1st Grade: Complete!

Here we are again, the beginning of summer vacation (although it hardly feels like it; the weather has been cool and windy). But regardless, it is the last day of school and Alexandra has had a successful 1st grade year.

After completing her 2nd year in the dual language program, Alexandra is [for the most part] fluent in Spanish. Let me tell you how exciting it is for Donald and I to see our little girl chatting away in a foreign language!

In the Fall, Lorelai will enter the dual language program and begin studying Spanish as well. How long do you think it will take the girls to figure out that they have their own 'secret language' that Donald and I don't understand? Uh oh....we're in trouble! :)

School's Out!

Let's Eat Out

If the weather is pleasant, I vote for dinner on the front porch.

[Because then I don't have to sweep up crumbs off the kitchen floor.]

After dinner, some Donald Duck cartoons (on the Ipod)...

...and a bike ride for me and Elisabeth.

"Forenson, party of 5"

For the past few months I have been researching airfare for our trip to New York this summer (because I can assure you that we are not going to drive cross-country). Unfortunately, all I could find were sky-high prices. So, I kept putting it off and putting it off; secretly hoping that one day a magically low price would appear.

Well, yesterday I decided that I had procrastinated long enough. I was going to buy our tickets and cross it off my list...no matter how much it cost.

And you are not going to believe what I found......

A miraculous flight from Washington to New York for roughly $125 less than anything I had previously found! When you multiply that by the 5 tickets it's a savings of over $600!!

I immediately went to book our tickets.

But then their website was having issues....

And so I called the airline....

And it took an hour and a half to get the same flight booked for the same fare....

Finally, they emailed me my confirmation....

And I found out that they had booked 5 seats for the 'Forenson' Family....

Who are they??? (lol)

So I spent another long while getting that mess straightened out....

But in the end I was [am] smiling....

5 tickets to New York for the Sorenson's!

Lorelai's Big Weekend: Part II

Spring Piano Recital
2010

The Dress:

A Susan Sorenson Original; my mother-in-law made it especially for this occasion. Is it not the most elegant recital dress? I love how it matched the Steinway she performed on.


The Hair:

One of the reasons I always wanted daughters was so that I could dream up magnificent things to do with their hair. And Lorelai's hair is the perfect candidate for my minds creations. For the recital, I wanted her hair up and out of the way so that it wouldn't cover the dress. A circle braid did the trick.



There are no words to express how proud I am of Lorelai. When she started studying piano (just last Thanksgiving) I had no idea the potential that was within her. In the last 6 months I have seen a musician blossom right before my very eyes. She plays the piano all day long; both her lesson assignments and variations on songs that she has already learned. She loves it....and she's good at it. Not only has she flown through two levels of books, but her teacher graduated her from the books for younger children (she's only 5 mind you) to a set for older kids that moves along a little quicker.

I love my little pianist!

Lorelai's Big Weekend: Part I

Spring Ballet Recital
2010

Reasons that I love ballet: Ballet teaches strength, grace, confidence, and discipline.

Reasons that Lorelai loves ballet: Ballet means tutu's, dancing, music, and friends.

I love my ballerina.

What?! 53 years old?!

Dear Susan,

Wishing you a fashion forward birthday.

Love,
Lisa

(and Stacy and Clinton, too)

A Recipe-a-Week in 2010

Week 22

Vegetarian Penne



Ingredients

2 cups uncooked penne
1 c baby carrots, halved lengthwise
1 garlic clove minced
1 Tbs. oil
2 (14 ½ oz) cans stewed tomatoes
2 cups frozen cut green beans
2 tsp dried basil
½ tsp dried oregano
3 Tbs.cornstarch
¼ c water

Directions

Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large nonstick skillet, sauté carrots and garlic in oil until tender. Add tomatoes, beans, basil and oregano; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered until vegetables are tender.
Combine cornstarch and water until smooth; stir into vegetables. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Drain pasta; stir into the vegetables. Yield: 8 servings

Recipe Submitted by:

Jen

Thanks Jen!

Making Plans

One more week until summer break officially begins in my corner of the world. It doesn't feel like it should be summer yet; I'm still waiting for it to warm up. But regardless, summer is nearly upon us and we Sorenson's are getting ready.

We are currently in the process of planning a vacation to New York in August. I've never been to New York (except for a few layovers in the airport, but that hardly counts).

Yesterday I found a website { Iloveny.com } and it is full of splendid advice and ideas for tourists like us.

Watch out NY, the Sorenson's are coming!

{But don't worry California, we're heading your way first.}

Covered in Books

Every morning after I feed the children breakfast I go from room to room making the beds...



...and without fail, Lorelai's bed is covered in books that weren't there when we tucked her in the night before...

...which means that sometime after we kiss her goodnight she sneaks out of bed and over to the bookcase...

...where she collects her favorite stories and settles in for an evening of pure imagination.

I love her love of books.

Five

I promised more good news today. More good news could be that I managed to get Elisabeth's hair into these darling little pigtails. There was just barely enough hair in the back to pull it off. Just barely. I think it is adorable. And I also think it makes her look more like a 2 1/2 year old and less like a baby.

But, that being said, the pigtails weren't the good news that I wanted to share....



The good news is that I have only seen 5 seizures in the past week. 5. Five. Five is nothing when you consider that she used to have 5 seizures by lunchtime every day.

5

Isn't that amazing!?

And I know the one to thank is her trusty ol' g-tube. I am sure that this major reduction in seizure frequency is because she is getting all of her medication.

Before her g-tube was placed [3 weeks ago today], it was hit and miss as far as what she would eat. We would try and try, but half the time she wouldn't [couldn't] swallow. And the times that she did manage to get food down it would usually reflux right back up.

Now all her meds go straight in her tummy and stay there. And now she has only had 5 seizures all week! And now she is doing things like turning pages in books...which I think could possibly be because her brain is getting a chance to think since it's not constantly having seizures.

Yes, we are happy.

So, so happy.

Things are lookin' up!

"Elisabeth, turn the page!"

This weekend Elisabeth mastered a HUGE skill.



She can turn pages in a book!

Now, let me quickly explain why this is such a HUGE accomplishment for her:

>For months and months it was one of the objectives set by her therapists....until we decided that it was just too far out of reach for Elisabeth and we removed it from the list.

>Elisabeth has been moving backwards a lot lately; she used to crawl, she used to eat...but there hasn't been many new things learned.

>Elisabeth understands me when I say, 'turn the page' ....there are not many words that Elisabeth understands, so this is exciting.

>She can coordinate her thoughts with her actions.

> Even one week ago I would have never thought this possible.

>Did I mention how HUGE this is?!


And because a single picture just doesn't do this milestone justice, I thought a video was in order.

I present you,

Elisabeth Elva, age 2 1/2
"Turning pages in a book"




More exciting news tomorrow....

Season Finale

This is one of the few seasons that I don't have a strong opinion as to who I want to win. I think the last time I felt this way was back in season 4 with Bo vs. Carrie.

But because last night was the final night and I wanted to place some sort of vote I decided to put in a few calls for Lee. But really, either way, I'll be happy.

One last American Idol comment for the year:

Have you noticed how Kara refers to Randy and Ellen as 'the guys'? Do you think that's weird too?

Head over to my husband Donald's blog to read a humorous A.I post.

Click here.

A Review of Resolutions

An update on my
New Years Resolutions 2010:


1. Whiten my teeth.

Check, check, check.

There were many, many good things about my makeover last week. So many that I could never choose my absolute favorite part. But....coming out of it with sparkly white teeth is definitely up there at the top! And I love that I can now cross that off my list for 2010.


2. Eat more oatmeal.

Okay, I started out strong. Real strong. Something like 4 or 5 bowls a week strong. But admittedly, I have slowed down my pace. Lately I have been craving Cream of Wheat. There is something about the taste and texture of Cream of Wheat that is pure goodness to me. Mmmm....

So if you wanted to know why my sidebar count-up has been inching rather than soaring, that's why.


3. Try one new recipe a week.

Help. Life in the last month or so has been busy. My mind has been far from the kitchen and I have fallen a little [a lot] behind.

So I was trying to decide if I should just forget about those missed weeks or try to play catch up.

Final decision: Play catch up.

So please, please help me out. If you have a favorite recipe, leave it in my comment section. I promise that I will try every recipe that is recommended [as long as they are reasonable and don't have bizarre ingredients that I would have to travel to Timbuktu to purchase]. Oh yes, one more thing: no seafood. Seafood and I don't get along.

Thanks!

Just as I Expected...

It's been a little over a week since we've been home and on our own with the pump. Just as I expected, it now seems like second nature. Both Donald and I have become very familiar with the g-tube and now wonder how we ever got along without it. One thing we are looking forward to though: graduating from a 24-hour-continuous-drip to bolus feeds throughout the day. That will be lovely.

But for now we pack her pump with us everywhere we go:

I find this Elisabeth-sized backpack to be adorable. I only wish they offered a color choice.

Oh well, black will do :)

Final Reveal!

Ready...set...

Go Look!

Click here.

Sneak Peek

A Sneak Peek of yesterday's photo shoot!

click here!

Makeover Complete!

You wouldn't believe the day I just had....fabulous!!!

The big reveal will be tomorrow,

but for now you can take a sneak peak over at

Make You Over.

Thanks Chelsea!

This experience was simply amazing!

Good vs. Not So Good

Good: School's out in a little over 3 weeks. Vacation is in 4 weeks. Oh, the anticipation!

Not so good: Elisabeth has an ear infection :(

Good: My Mother's Day Makeover began yesterday and it was absolutely amazing. I, for one, had never done the whole spa day thing before, and now I see that I was completely missing out. Hop on over to Make You Over to get the full report (and see a few pictures).

Not so good: Donald and I own a second home that we rent out. Unfortunately the entire air conditioning system has gone kaput. And I mean completely, 100% kaput. Kaput as in it's going to be something like $8000.00 to replace it all. I can think of a million and two things that I would rather do with $8000.00......but you get what you get and you don't throw a fit, right?

Good: It's been one week today since Elisabeth got her g-tube and she has gained 2 pounds!!!!! How wonderful to see the scale going up, up, up again!!

Have a good day!

A Full Tummy

Good news: we're home.

Home, home, home.


More good news: Elisabeth has a full tummy again.

Full, full, full.


Full as in a 24-hour-continuous-feed-full.


[Elisabeth's feeding tube and pump. The alarm goes off when it runs empty, and so when I took this photo I was on my way to change it out.]

I am so happy with the decision we made to go with the g-tube. It's so exciting to know that your child is actually getting all the nourishment they need; especially after struggling with it for several months. One day while I was at the hospital I was on the phone with my mom and I said,

"It is amazing! Every baby should have something like this". And then she said, "They do, it's called their mouth."

Oh ya....I get so used to Elisabeth that I forget that the mouth is usually a pretty good option when it comes to feeding! lol!

So yes, I love the g-tube. I must admit though, when we first got home from the hospital I was overwhelmed. It was that feeling that you get when you're a first time mom and you bring your new baby home. I was staring at Elisabeth and all of these new supplies and I panicked a bit; there was no nurse call button, no doctors doing rounds at 6am, just me. And suddenly I couldn't remember a thing they had taught me and I may have freaked out just a little. Fortunately, they set me up with a home care agency for Elisabeth and their 24 hour help line talked me through everything and assured me that she would survive (and so would I).

And sure enough, slowly but surely, I'm figuring out all this new g-tube business; it still seems rather complicated with decompressing her stomach and meds and flushing and priming the tubing....but I am 100% sure that it will be second nature to me within the week. The biggest trouble I am having right now is keeping the tube plugged in. I can't tell you how many times I have been holding her to suddenly realize that I have PediaSure leaking all over me...that thing pops out way to easily. Any ideas?



[Elisabeth's one month supply of food.]

If You're Looking For Me....

....you'll find me guest posting at

Make You Over

today.

See you there!

Odds and Ends

>Still here.

>I love the g-tube. Love it, love it, love it. It is going to make our lives so much better.

>Donald has been on a business trip. His company allowed him $78/day for food. The hospital is giving me $12/day for food. Hmmm....

>I've been daydreaming about riding my Taga with Elisabeth. What a fun summer it's going to be.

>I am glad that Michael Lynche got out on American Idol this week.

>I hear the weather is nice out. It looks nice from my window. Perhaps later I will step outside for a bit.

>Next week is my big make-over! Can't wait to see what they do to me.

>That's all for now.

Recovering

[To the left: the fundoplication incision. To the right: The g-tube.]

Sisters (and roommates) reunite!