Thursday, April 23, 2009

Pooped Nurse Dee


First of all...I stand corrected about my post from last night. I actually DIDN'T have an entire dinner of leftovers at Julie's house last night...she made sure I knew that the pork meatballs we had were actually made fresh that day. The stuffed shells were leftovers but not those delicious balls. Tonight Julie and I cut a deal. I cleaned out our frig in exchange for a wonderful chicken enchilada dinner...yummy! 

After dinner we SKYPED Brenda and Becky to see how the day went. Becky is doing a fantastic job being nurse, cook, friend, house cleaner, napping buddy, and driver for Bren. Thanks from the bottom of my heart Becky. It was really great seeing you guys laughing together.

Bren said they did the usual walking around the shopping center and the Super Target. The usual napping, and then Becky made a great lemon chicken dinner. Brenda said she ate the whole thing and has a chicken breast for tomorrow. Becky's mom is a fabulous cook and they called her for the recipe. Maybe we could have a recipe contest. You could send me a GOOD recipe and I could TRY (that's the operative word here...Ha!) to cook it for her. Heck...if anyone has any suggestions on recipes for this unique palette please help!!! I have quite a challenge ahead of me and am afraid I just can't hold a candle to Becky's cooking. Nurse Dee really has to step up to the plate (HA! No pun intended) with this cooking thing.

I did a ton of running around today trying to get our life in order...I'm POOPED! So the picture I included in tonights post says it all for me. Our girl in Houston is doing OK...so far so good. For those annoying things that come out each day...or stay in...she has a great medical team assigned to her care from all over the US to help her. What a lucky girl she is to have these resources during this challenging time. Thanks to the village and the folks at MD Anderson.

Night all...more tomorrow...ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
Nurse Dee

12 comments:

  1. Thanks Julie for looking after Dee. She needs all the support and pampering she can get. She loves those kisses all over her face, so be sure to throw in a couple of those from me!

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  2. Hi Dee:

    I could always send you the "Flaming Hot Cheetos Chicken" that Courtney and her roommates in Denver conjured up in true 'dorm room' fashion. Not the healthiest meal Brenda could get, but I'm betting it would be easy enough for you. :)

    Remember that the caregiver needs care too. If you need anything while you're in Mesa, many of us are here to help . . . just say the word. . .

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  3. Nurse Dee you're doing a great job. How blessed Brenda is to have you in her life. By the way, Happy Birthday to you today!!!

    Becky, you are such a great friend to these two wonderful people. I hear you went above and beyond the call of duty yesterday and you are now an honorary nurse.

    Brenda, you sounded stronger on the phone last night. You are handling this with dignity and grace just like you've handled are the challenges in your life. I'm sure I speak for all the "Village People" when I say how proud we are of you.

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  4. Happy birthday Dee!!!!!!

    Brenda - good to hear you are getting some outdoor time. I bet by now the folks at the local shopping center are very familiar with you. Besides the recipes - is there anything else you need?

    Recipe contest hmmmm. I do have a sense of humor and I am also very competitive. I can usually be counted on to join any contest, but a recipe contest - that is definetly out of my league. I have one - and only one - meal I know how to make. If this contest is a go I'm in with my one recipe.

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  5. Happy Birthday to you... Happy Birthday to you... Happy Birthday dear Dee! that's us singing off key in the background... have a great day and we will try to hook up with you on our way back from Tucson on Sunday after noon...
    Love & Blessings & a wondrous day
    Cathie & Evelyn

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  6. Hey Sista Peeker!!!! Happy Birthday to you girl!! Love your pictures, although a big difference between the happy Dee in the backyard to wiped out Dee on the recliner. HA HA Funny how wiped out you can get ONCE you actually sid down for a minute! Bet it was nice to sleep in your own bed and sit in YOUR chair :) Bummer that I sent your b-day gift to TX and now your in AZ....Brenda has them waiting for you :)....Hope you have a wonderful day and that someone is treating YOU!! Love you lots, Rhonda

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  7. If we have a recipe contest I'm definitely in! You'll have to beat, brownies and nut roll. I'm sure Brenda remembers driving to our house from the FBI academy and being served milk and brownies. She started coming every weekend after that while she was in Virginia. She earned the nuickname, "Kato" for the guest that never left.

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  8. Sweet Dee,

    Happy Birthday Love!!! I imagine it's both wonderful and also really hard to be in your home in AZ. I know you miss your girl, and it's hard to be so close to home and not be able to just settle in and stay. I want to echo all the things that this wonderful Village keep saying to you. AND, Really take this in sweetheart.... You are an AMAZING pillar of strength. You inspire all of us. You have limitless love for our special Brenda. You are both blessed to have each other. You will both come through this BECAUSE of each other, because of the strength you give each other, the love and the support.

    So, in those moments when you don't feel strong, or you don't know how to get through, just lean on all of us a little. Remember that we have certainly all seen people who didn't handle all this nearly half as well as you both have.

    Brenda, miss your cute little face. Hope you're feeling better on the new meds. God Bless Mary the N.P. huh? I need to send that girl a card. I'm glad they're taking such good care of you. So glad to hear that things like Lemon Chicken go down without a hitch.

    Village....if we do a food contest (which is actually a fantastic idea cause it really could help them...) we need to search for foods that are ACIDIC. She's loving LEMON chicken, and Vinegar potato chips....all acids. Pickles go down like a charm...more acid (vinegar in the brine.) Let's get crackin' on some good Acidic meals!

    We'll be submitting our candidacy for the Supreme Head Dress contest this evening hopefully. Can't wait for the feedback. Make sure you've urinated and that there's nothing in your mouth when you open the blog in the next 24 hours.

    Much love to both of you. Holding you in our hearts and in our minds in every moment.

    Hugs, and Kisses all over YOUR faces....!!!!

    GA

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  9. Oh, well ACIDIC requirement just disqualified my one and only recipe entry. Now I have to read a recipe book. :(
    There are very few people in the world I would do that for - Brenda you are one :)

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  10. Recipe book??? I think I meant to type "Cook Book". Goodness gracious that ought to be evidence of my culinary expertise or lack thereof

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  11. Let the recipe contest begin!!!!!!!!!!

    Recipe entry #1
    by your Tonya Jill, the 1 pot gourmet cook:

    Ingredients to buy: (enough for a couple of meals)
    4 medium sized red potatoes peeled and cubed
    1 large onion cubed
    1/2 small bag of small, peeled carrots cut up into bite size
    1 head of cabbage cut up any way you want, but I like it shredded
    1 package of knockwurst

    Cooking Instructions:
    Place carrots, onions and potatoes in large soup style pot
    Layer the knockwurst over the above
    Place shredded cabbage over the top of the knockwurst
    Fill pot with enough water so that the knockwurst is just covered
    Pepper to taste
    Bring covered pot to a boil then turn down so that it simmers just slightly bubbling
    Cook for 35 minutes or until carrots and potatoes are soft

    Serve with plain yellow mustard on the knockwurst and balsamic vinegar on the cabbage and veggies.

    Dee, many people have poo-poo'd this recipe because they "don't like cabbage", however once they taste it, they're pleasantly surprised. The knockwurst is extremely flavorful and between it and the onion, everything has a wonderful, spicy taste. And...... Brendita will get a honk out of how big those knockwursts get when they are cooked!!!

    How many entries can we submit????

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  12. Well, I pretty much suck at creative headress-type stuff (I couldn't think of anything to do using my mortarboard) but I'm pretty good at recipes. Although my asiago-rosemary bread doesn't qualify for acidic, I do have a couple of salads my mom used to make that everyone always seemed to like. Here ya go!

    Mixed Vegetable Salad (this one's pretty easy)

    1 box of frozen mixed vegetables cooked, drained, and cooled.
    1 can of red kidney beans, drained and rinsed.
    1/4 cup chopped onion
    1/4 cup chopped celery
    1/4 cup chopped green pepper
    Dressing
    1 tbsp flour
    1 tbsp prepared mustard
    3/4 cup sugar
    1/2 cup vinegar
    Cook until clear. Pour over vegetables while hot. Refrigerate. Lasts a long time.


    Garden Slaw (this one takes more time & effort)

    8 cups shredded cabbage
    2 cups shredded carrots
    1 green pepper, cut into strips
    1/2 cup chopped onion
    3/4 cup cold water
    1 envelope unflavored gelatin
    2/3 cup sugar
    2/3 cup vinegar
    2 tsp celery seeds
    1-1/2 tsp salt
    1/4 tsp black pepper
    2/3 cup salad oil

    Mix cabbage and carrots, green pepper, and onion; sprinkle with 1/2 cup cold water; chill. Soften gelatin in 1/4 cup cold water. Mix sugar, vinegar, celery seeds, salt and pepper in saucepan. Bring to boil.Stir in softened gelatin. Cool until slightly thickened; beat well. Gradually beat in salad oil. Drain vegetables. Pour dressing over the vegetables. Mix lightly until all vegetables are coated. Stir to separate vegetables before serving.

    I really like the first one. The second one is not one of my favorites but everyone else always thought it was great. My mom was frequently asked to bring it to potlucks.

    Can't wait to see the other recipes!

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