Visit to Ethan plus Recipe

We just returned from LA, after a week's visit with our new (6 wk old) grandson, Ethan. How delicious he is! These two photos are from before our visit. At one month old, he weighted 12 lb 7 oz. He is such a big boy. Eats well, but isn't sleep as well as his folks would like, because he is up feeding every 2 1/2 hours or such. While we were there, they upped his oz bottles to 5 oz, and he was a bit longer between feeding but not always.

It was such a treat being able to spend the time with them! Grace was going back to work as a teacher for the last month of school, and it was Brian's first week alone with him. We acted as support during the days. Luckily, we alder cockers (old folks) got to sleep at night. He'll be sleeping downstairs in a bassinet in their room for the first three months, so we didn't hear a thing up stairs, or else we just slept through it. 

It was such fun feeding Ethan and playing (a little) with him. He's holding up his head just a little, and is starting to coo and babble just a little too. He already knows how to kvetch and cry, no need for instructions there. Art was wonderful with him. I have a great couple of photos of the two of them. Here's one:

Here's one of whole family:

While visiting, I made a pot of Shitake mushroom and Onion Soup. It was delicious. So, here's the recipe, which I originally found on Dr. Ben Kim's site. I didn't really measure my ingredients, and it make enough soup for five.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup organic extra virgin olive oil

4 cups onions, thinly sliced

2 cups shitake mushrooms, thinly sliced

1/4 cup parsley, chopped

4 cups organic vegetable broth

2 tablespoons miso

Instructions:

In a large pot, heat the oil and then cook the onions over a medium hear, until they are translucent.

Add the mushrooms and parsley and cook until mushrooms are soft.

Add the vegetable broth and stir well. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 20 minutes with a lid on. If the pot looks like it will boil over, reduce the heat again.

After 20 minutes, remove the pot from the heat. Add some liquid to the miso and stir until the miso is dissolved. Add it to the pot and stir well. Serve. ENJOY!!!

Feb & Mar Bead Journal Project and recipe

It's been an interesting few months, and as you can tell, I'm a bit behind on getting my monthly projects completed. In Feb, I was told I had a recurrence of my cancer and it was inoperable, which is how I had managed my last recurrences. Chemo seemed the way to go, although it was not an easy decision, and one I had resisted for four years. So, my beading took a back seat. Although I had finished my Feb in Feb, we needed a new scanner which took a while. These two photos were actually taken with my phone. They are both brooches and pendants.

Feb, for me, has always been about love. I used the darker seed beads as my diagnosis was a dark one. So, we contacted the healing group my husband is part of, and the outpouring of love, support, and such great suggestions of complementary medicine to help support the chemo were incredible. I love using pearls and always have them on my pieces, whether it's jewelry or bead embroidery. I had thought I would use only stones, but this called for glass beads as well. The hearts are Rhodonite and Howalite, as well as red glass and clear glass with a green interior. I also used sequin flowers, as flowers and hearts go together too.

In March, I started my chemo protocol; so that month's project is a healing brooch/pendant. I have an angel looking out for me and a four leaf clover for luck. My sister, Karen L Cohen, also a member of the BJP, came to visit and that visit is represented by the buttons; our Dad was in plastics and buttons were part of his inventory. One of the buttons is the Susan button and the other is the Karen button; wonder who they were named after? My sister still had them (she is concentrating on dealing in buttons and is creating fabulous ones in bead embroidery, enamels, and metals and more) and gave them to me to use. The semi-precious stones I have used are red jasper for healing cancer, hematite for grounding, protection, and promoting new blood cells, mother of pearl for focusing one's attention, malachite for detox against tumors, tiger eye for courage to combat fear, pearls, for calm and beauty, stomach digestion and emotional stress, and turquoise for healing, balance, and strengthening. I added the believe charm, as I truly believe that the chemo is working and all will be well.

I hope to finish and publish my April one before the end of the month. However, we leave for Boston on Wed for my scan and then to meet with my doctor at Dana-Farber. We will know more then. In the mean time, here's a recipe:

Quinoa Salad

The basic recipe comes from a bag of Quinoa. Each time I make it, I change the vegetables I use. This was for the pot luck lunch we went to for the Chinese New Year 2012, Year of the Dragon, and I made one and a half recipes. All of the ingredients are organic, and it doesn't matter what vegetables you use, as they all tasted wonderful.

Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

2 cups vegetable broth

1 cup Quinoa

4 cups vegetables and fruit combined:

     steamed broccoli, small florettes and stem pieces

     steamed zucchini, small chunks

     cucumber, small chunks

     red pepper, diced

tomatoes, diced

sugar snap peas, cut into pieces

mango, diced

edamame

½ large red onion, minced

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon coconut vinegar (can use any vinegar you like)

3 ½ tablespoons olive oil

Sea salt and fresh pepper to taste

3 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted (can use any nuts, like almonds)

½ cup chopped cilantro

Instructions:

1.  Cook the quinoa with the broth as directed on package. Allow to cool. This could be done the day before.

2.  In a large bowl, combine the vegetables and everything else except the nuts and cilantro.

3.  Add the quinoa, nuts, and cilantro, and mix well.

4.   Taste and adjust the seasonings. Can be served cold or room temperature.

ENJOY!