Recipe: Mushroom Barley Stew

Cook Time: 8 hours on low, 6 hours on high Serves: 6-8 1 pound Baby Bella mushrooms, sliced 2 carrots, sliced 1 rib celery, diced 1 onion, diced 1, 15-ounce can diced tomatoes 1 cup uncooked pearl barley 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 tablespoon salt 1 teaspoon dried basil 1 teaspoon black pepper Day of:…

Recipe: Cilantro Lime Chicken w/ Corn & Black Beans

Cook Time: 6-8hrs low, 5-6hrs high Serves: 6-8 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken, thighs or breast (I recommend thighs, they don’t dry out as much in the slow cooker) 1 cup corn 1, 15-ounce can black beans 1 orange bell pepper, diced 1 yellow bell pepper, diced 1 onion, diced Juice from 2 limes 2…

Grateful Moments…

Every now and then I have these moments, moments of pure gratefulness. Moments where I'm happy my body fought for me, and I'm overwhelmed with the fight Wade had in him, for me. Tonight, for example, I had a grateful moment. Hailey was still awake and fiddling around, as Wade did bed time and she…

Life’s Unknowns

I wake up some mornings and look down at my stomach to see - my ileostomy bag (sometimes ready to explode) and the scar from my surgeries. I have a love/hate relationship with this scar. Some days it doesn't bother me, but days like today, when Hailey wakes up and crawls in bed with me…

Scars

Scars tell your story. They tell a story that you don't necessarily have to. People will guess, make their own assumptions, and wonder, but what most people won't do is ask. Scars also only tell your physical story. They don't tell the emotional or mental part of your story. People will also go to assume…

Positivity

I'm often asked, "How did you remain positive throughout your battle with cancer and everything else?" I'm here to tell you it wasn't easy. I'm here to tell you, I had and still have good and bad days. You will find what you need to fight for. I needed to fight to be here for…

Food Preservation

What kind of food do you like to preserve? What ways do you like to preserve food? I've really gotten into jam making - raspberry, strawberry, strawberry rhubarb, huckleberry, and peach. I've also gotten into canning - apple sauce, apple butter, dill pickles, pickled carrots, pickled beets, apple pie filling, peaches, and pears. I want…

The Start of my Burkitts Lymphoma Journey

Well, I figure it's time I tell part of my story for those of you who haven't been following along on Instagram. On January 12th, 2018 I was at my doctors office for some test results, as I was experiencing the early symptoms of Bells Palsy. While at my doctors office, my mother in law…

Life…

Do you ever look at your calendar and wonder where your week has gone? I do this every single day, it's like the weeks are just flying by. I cannot believe it. I'm currently working on Hailey's second birthday because October 9th is coming up FAST! Not only that but I'm working on Christmas/Birthday gift…

Ileo Fascination

My ileostomy has become quite the fascination for Hailey. She attempts to help me empty my bag by trying to undo the velcro that holds it closed, and she will help me "squish" my bag to empty the stool out of it, then she looks in the toilet, points and says "poop" in the silliest…