Easy. homemade.

When we first found out about Anna's garlic allergy I was pretty horrified. I knew that I would have to start making a lot of basic foods from scratch. From sauces to condiments to spice mixes to broths, very few convenience foods or shortcuts are garlic-free.

I hate to cook.

I became accustomed to creating many foods from scratch out of necessity. Italian seasoning, spaghetti sauce, chicken broth, salad dressing, and hummus. Convenience foods like frozen fish sticks and chicken nuggets. Even foods you wouldn't usually think of having garlic in them, like refried beans, I had to make from the bottom up. Other foods I had to work without because there wasn't a good homemade option that would work for us (ketchup, BBQ sauce, Worcestershire sauce, to name a few).

Now that she is a little older, Anna has been able to handle small amounts of garlic in her diet as her winter clothing protects her skin from breaking out and turning into sores. I thought I would be really excited to go out and buy all these foods I've been missing out on, and I was ... but then I wasn't. I found that many of the alternatives were quite unhealthy and bland. I decided it was just as easy to continue to make some of them from scratch. Here are some of the yummy ones I keep going back to. These are the foods whose alternative store-bought versions are often loaded with extra sugar and hydrogenated oil and are significantly more expensive. These are super easy and quick even for someone to hates to cook.

Here are some of my favorites:

Salad Dressing: I can't believe I've spent so much time buying unhealthy bottles full of junk when the simple, homemade stuff is so much better. I discovered from a friend that half and half oil and balsamic vinegar was as good (and a whole lot healthier) than the salad dressings I was using. I purchased a handy salad dressing pourer that has measurements on the outside and allows you to shake and pour it (see product here. You can get a small version at Bed Bath and Beyond for $7 with a coupon).

Spaghetti sauce: Make your own without sugar and a whole lot cheaper. I make a huge batch and freeze them in individual containers. I use 3 28oz cans of plain crushed tomatoes. Mix in some olive oil and lots of spices: 2T each of oregano, basil, parsley, and some thyme and salt and pepper. Try mixing in shredded carrots, grated zucchini, or the crumbled tips of broccoli to give it an extra nutritional oomph.

Chicken broth: Cooking a whole chicken in the crockpot and simmering, saving, and freezing the broth is a much healthier, sodium-conscious alternative to cans of (expensive) chicken broth. Oh, and it tastes soo much better. You can especially notice a difference in soups.

Hummus: this is so easy to make. You only need four ingredients: chickpeas (1 can), tahini paste (1.5 T), lemon juice (3T) and olive oil (2T). The trick is to run all the ingredients except the chickpeas through the food processor until smooth, and then process in the chickpeas. No garlic, additives, and no spending $4 on a container of hummus. You can add anything you want to it- roasted red peppers, garlic (if that floats your boat), spices, etc.

Refried beans: We eat a lot of beans but the only kind Anna isn't allergic to are pinto and kidney beans. Refried beans always contain garlic in them, so we had to make our own. We puree a can of pinto beans with a little bit of water until smooth. Easy and yummy. Great texture. Once I saw how unhealthy true refried beans at the store were, I was willing to take that extra step to make my own. They are great for making nachos, quesadillas, or burritos. We usually opt for beans over beef for our protein in Mexican food.


Chicken nuggets and fish sticks: It's a bit more work than the above foods, but you cut into strips or chunks your tilapia or chicken, roll them in mayonnaise with a little bit of lemon juice, and then roll them in breadcrumbs. Cook in the oven at 400 until crispy, let cool, and divide into freezer bags. I put one kids size meal in one sandwich bag and then load those all up into big freezer bags. I take out one serving size and pop them into the toaster oven for 10 minutes to warm up.

Little Star

Recently Anna was asked to be in a commercial for the clinic where she gets her prostheses made and of course, we said yes! Anything we can do to help our wonderful clinic is truly a pleasure. We had fun doing this little spot and it has been cute to see people from around town say that they saw Anna on TV.

More and more I forget that Anna has only one leg. It used to be at the forefront all the time. Now, it's more of an afterthought. There is something about winter that makes you forget completely about it. Anna has had virtually no issues with her prosthesis this time around; it has been effortless. We are very thankful for this because we know seasons of ease and difficulty come and go. With the weather warming up soon and the beaches and pools coming into play, we know we will become more 'aware' of her difference ('aware' in the sense that we will think more about it because others will notice it and remind us).

I hear from a lot from parents with kids who have fibular hemimelia and I want to continue to write about this part of our lives. It is such a huge part, though not the main part, of our family's story. We are learning how to incorporate it into our lives and create our new normal.

I love and hate that word.

Normal.

It's such a loaded word. Two years ago I would have burst into tears thinking about that word. Now, it almost makes me chuckle. I've realized how overrated normal really is. How much life and deep joy there is in the abnormal.

I don't feel like I'm missing anything; I feel like I've been given everything.

Getting ready for leg #3

I'm completely behind in posts, but I did enjoy my little blog break! This is one of three posts I wrote over the past few days so be sure to scroll down for the rest.

We have been in the process of getting Anna's new leg fitted for this year. With a few adjustments she has been able make her current one last for 10 months, which is great at this age! Her gait has been off for a while now, and she is in need of a new one.

The process of making a leg is complicated. First they take a plaster of her leg (think paper mache) that is used to make the liner fit perfectly to her limb. The liner is the first part of prosthesis that goes on the leg. They then hand-make a first draft skeleton of the leg. They see how she is able to walk on it and mark adjustments that have to be made. There are usually one to two more fittings to get it just right. Sometimes new parts, like a different foot size or type, have to be ordered and that can factor into the length of time it takes. Her last leg took 3 weeks to receive but this one is taking less time due to the fact that they are  able to reuse her current liner and skip the molding process.

I wanted to document the process, but since they didn't do a mold this year I only got a few pictures. Below are pictures from her first fitting with the skeleton leg. This is the first time Anna will be able to move to a more advanced foot. Previously she had only one choice for a foot because hers was so small. Now she is able to use a foot that looks more realistic, will fit into almost all shoes (except boots that you have to bend at the ankle to get on), and most importantly, it will give her more spring and make it just a little easier to run.

Some kids are hesitant or scared when they are fitted for and receive a new leg. It's a major, personal process to get a new leg. Kids become attached to the leg they have; they are used to how it feels and moves. It is a part of them. I was amazed at how wonderful Anna did at her fitting. She wasn't nervous at all and immediately started walking on her leg. She was even super excited about her new foot!


Each time we go the clinic, many of the staff come in to see Anna. She is the youngest patient and has stolen a few hearts, so she gets lots of attention. There is always a patient or two in the rooms that have prosthetic legs and they come in to chat and show Anna their leg. I love that she gets this exposure to different people. It reminds her that she is not alone and that many others look like her. It also shows her the different legs that are out there; there is such a difference from leg to leg. I really enjoy this time spent with everyone. I love hearing the stories about how people lost their leg. Most commonly it is from an accident (car, motorcycle, work, and even train accidents), but other times from a disease like diabetes. There is something special about being in a environment where people 'get' what it's like to be an amputee. You know how to communicate with them and don't have to think so much. It's kind of hard to explain.


We also learned at this appointment that Anna is going to be receiving a special 'surprise' from the clinic as a thank you for some of the help we have given them in their educational expos and marketing projects. They are making her a second leg with butterflies on it. I was so humbled and blessed by this and I'm so excited to see her first reaction to a designed leg. I can't wait to ask her which leg she wants to put on each morning! Will it be one for 'dress' and one for 'play'? I have a hunch she will learn towards choosing one over the other! I'm sure she will enjoy showing off her new leg this spring. We will save her old leg to use at the pool.

Here are some of the pictures I took from her first fitting. There is a cute little video at the end.

Happy Holidays

We had wonderful Christmas season this year. Ben and I started the tradition of picking out an ornament every year that represents that year for us. We think about the major events and changes we have gone through, pick out an ornament, and then I write the year on it. We have been married for five years and every one has an ornament.

From top left:
2008: our wedding ornament. The year we got married. It says "Ben and Lisa" and the year.
2009: A blue star from India because we spent a large portion of that year working at the children's home.
2010: A wooden ornament from Charleston. We love Charleston and spent a weekend there to celebrate our anniversary. I was pregnant in 2011, so this trip represented the end of our two-person family.
2011: One of Anna's First Christmas ornaments.
2012: Our New Home ornament. I found this one online and I loved how it was a red house like ours.
2013: A little doctor angel to represent Ben's first year working as a professional physician assistant. It was a long time in the making and a lot of blood, sweat, and tears went into it.

 Here are a few pictures of us and the girls from the holiday season.

Anna at the Shriners Christmas party.

 

The rest of these pictures were taken at my in-laws house.

 

DVDs

Anna has to get a breathing treatment every day for her Reactive Airway Disease. Often we watch a DVD during that time. I like to get DVDs that are short (30-45 minutes) and pleasant to listen to (rather than commercial-esque obnoxious-ness). Anna is super sensitive so nothing with a lot of scary or sad moments will do. We have found some great ones that everyone enjoys watching! Here they are:

 

This is the most adorable, heart-warming animated short. It makes me cry every time!

 

 

This is a series of 7 shorts (20 minutes or so each) based on the Guess How Much I Love You book. They are a little too cheesy for me to enjoy, but they are perfect length for Anna.

The Snowman is based on the best-selling book. This animated film is set only to music and it's beautiful to listen to and watch! It's a classic Christmas story, but Anna watches it all year long.

 

 

These popular "Tunes for Kids" DVDs are wonderful. They feature Brent Holmes playing on his guitar and lots of real animals. The songs are funny, pleasant, relaxing, and Ben and I actually enjoy listening to them. At first I thought they were a little cheesy but the second and third times I started to love them, and Anna is obsessed with them. Island Tunes is her favorite, then Sea Tunes and Cow Tunes.

 

 

 

 

I bought this DVD at a yard sale for 1.00 and it was a great find. It features six narrated Eric Carle books.

 

 

This book/DVD set was Anna's favorite when she just turned to. It has a Dr. Suess-y feel to it. The DVD is basically an animated version of the book. It's short, only five minutes long.