Family News

I'm a great grandmother!


One night, a couple of weeks ago, Denise called. It is unusual for her to call at night; she usually calls during the day. She had some news to share...her son Nathanael had called her to say that he and Megan were going to have a baby. Denise told me not to say anything on Facebook or my blog. The pregnancy hadn't been confirmed yet and Nathan didn't want anything said as yet.


Then I called Stephen (my son-in-law) one day a week or so ago to ask him if he knew anything about the new Window cell phones. We chatted for a few minutes and then I asked how Nathan was doing. Stephen told me Megan had been to the doctor and the pregnancy was confirmed. Her due date is sometime in September so the pregnancy is very new.


This past week Nathan put on his FB status that he was going to be a daddy and changed his profile picture to a picture of the ultrasound that was done.


I'm excited that my 1st great grandchild will be born this year, however I must say it does not seem possible. I can still remember the first time I saw Nathanael in person. He was about 9 months old. It was at the airport in Frankfurt, Germany. I had walked through the doors of the customs baggage area and there stood Denise and Stephen with Denise holding Nathanael. He came right to me when I put my arms out to him and had the biggest smile on his face. There was no crying or anything. And he's been "my baby boy" ever since. And now he is going to be a daddy. How time flies!

Return Doctor Visit

I went in to see the doctor yesterday about my persistent coughing. He had told me 2 weeks ago that if the coughing persisted to come back in 2 weeks. He'd have an xray taken to make sure there wasn't anything else going on. I had to wait for about 20 minutes before he came in to see me.


We talked about the xray and he informed me that their machine had gone down and the service technician couldn't make it out until the afternoon. He listened extensively to my lungs and determined that they were clear. He couldn't hear any rattling in the lower sections.


He told me that the viral bronchitis was taking longer to clear up and to give it a few more days. My coughing has improved, however, I still am experiencing episodes of heavy coughing. The codene cough syrup has helped. He told me to call him next Tuesday if the coughing still persisted. So for now, we'll just wait to see what happens. I feel fine, just the coughing that can be annoying.

Tacos for Dinner and the Weather

I fixed tacos for dinner. Remember me saying I don't like Mexican food...I don't. My tacos are so good...there's no spicey stuff in them. I fix corn tortillas for me and Gerry likes flour tortillas. He actually made himself two burritoes then decided to have a corn taco.


Our weather continues to be crazy. Yesterday the sun came out and it was really nice...about 60 degrees. I went out to do an errand and had to take my jacket off and had the window down a little. Then this morning the clouds were back and it was in the 40's. The sun peeked out finally around noon. Then the wind picked up...the flags out front were really whipping around the flagpole when I went to get the mail around 4pm. It sounds quiet out there now.


Two weeks ago I saw the doctor for the cough I've had. It has gotten better although I still have bouts of heavy coughing. The doctor told me to call him and maybe have Xrays taken to make sure there wasn't something else going on. So I am going to call him in the morning and see about having the Xrays taken.


I didn't sleep very well last night so I think I'm going to head to bed.

Pot Roast in the Crock Pot

I fixed a pot roast in the crock pot today. I started it about 11am and it was ready by 5pm. We, in fact, went up to the AT&T store and when we got back I turned the pot on warm. I put the rice on and fixed a vegetable.


I usually fix my pot roast on the stove...I thought it would be a nice change to do it in the crock pot. First I season the roast with Lawry's seasoned salt and McCormick's garlic pepper. Then I brown it on both sides in some olive oil. I turn the crock pot on while I'm doing this so it can warm up and I have a hot pot when the roast goes in. I sprinkle an envelope of Lipton's onion soup dry mix on the top of the roast and pour a small amount of water on top. That is to dilute the soap a tiny bit and make sure there is a thin layer of water on the bottom of the pot. Then I put a cut up onion on top of the roast. This one cooked on low for about 6 hours. It falls apart and its a challenge to get it out of the pot. Its so worth it though...it is so good!!


The sun didn't come out today as the weather people said it would. Supposedly there was suppose to be wind this afternoon that would blow the clouds away. Unfortunately that didn't happen. I just don't like the dreary weather...I don't know what's worse...rain and/or freezing temperatures or the gloominess. Curious to see what tomorrow will be.

Weather - Looking at a New Phone

Our weather is so yucky. The mornings have been cloudy and then some sun in the afternoons. Today was cloudy all day...there's probably some fog out there now. The temperature was in the 50's so not too bad. Tomorrow should have some sun. Sure hope so. I think it was this past Tuesday night that we had some rain; it didn't last very long.


I've been looking at new phones to upgrade the one I have now. Gerry got a new one this past week. He's had to go into the AT&T store to get things fixed, besides talking to customer service and his son. Hopefully now his phone will work. We looked at some phones in the store today and I spent quite a bit of time online looking at different ones. It gets rather confusing after a while. I found a couple that might work for me. I want to look at them in the store and compare.


Think I'll go watch some TV before going to bed.

All-in-One-Pot Saucy Pasta

This recipe was in the Kraft Foods email I got this week, so thought I'd try it. I can't say that I was very impressed. The recipe didn't call for any seasoning, however, it certainly needed some added to the pot.


I liked the idea that everything was in one pot including the pasta. It took about 30 minutes or so to put together.Here's my lazy way of fixing salad...some spring mix greens in a bowl, a little bit of cheese and some Red Wine Vinaigrette poured on it.

Here's the recipe:

1 lb extra-lean ground beef

1 onion, chopped (I used half of one)

3 cups rotini pasta, uncooked. (I used a 16 oz bag. If I do this again, I'll use maybe 3/4 of the bag)

3 1/2 cups of water

1 jar (24 oz) spaghetti sauce (I used a traditional sauce and rinsed it out for the water)

1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms (I used 4 medium size)

1 red bell pepper, chopped (I only used half of it)

1 cup Kraft Shredded Low-Moisture Part-Skim Mozzarella Cheese (I used the store brand and I think it just said Low Fat)

Brown meat in Dutch oven or deep large skillet; drain. Add onions; cook and stir 5 minutes

Stir in pasta, water and sauce. Bring to boil; cover. (I didn't do this). Simmer on low heat for about 15 minutes or so, stirring occasionally. Add mushrooms and red bell, cook 5 minutes longer, stirring.

Top with cheese. Also, add some Grated Parmesan Cheese along with the shredded cheese. Can use another kind of small pasta.

I was amazed the pasta cooked just fine. I may fix this again, however, if I do I'll doctor it up.

A Walk Down Memory Lane

A few minutes before midnight, on Saturday January 13, 1962, I boarded a World Airlines plane at the airport in Honolulu, HI. My family and some friends from church were there to see me off. Thirteen hours later, Sunday January 14, 1962, about 1:30 pm, I landed at the airport in Oakland, CA. And so began my life as the wife of a young Marine.


I was a very young, immature, scared 19 year old who had not ever been so far away from family and things familiar. As I got to the door of the airplane and looked out, I really wanted to go back home. I remember the sun was shining, however, it was cold and there were no leaves on any of the trees I saw. Standing at the bottom of the stairs on the tarmac was the Marine I had married. I remember crying, partly from excitement in seeing him and partly because I didn't want to be in what seemed to me, a foreign place.


My mother had made me an outfit to wear...it was beautiful...a powder blue wool dress with a matching coat. My grandmother had given me some money to go shopping at Liberty House (a store that has been closed for many years) to purchase a black patent leather purse, black patent leather pumps, black gloves, nylons and a black hat that had a short veil. She wanted me to look "presentable" when I got off the plane. Actually I was very uncomfortable and could hardly wait to change into something else.


My grandmother had a sister that lived in Oakland and she had sent with me a box of red anthriums to give to her sister. I had her phone number and address and so we called to get directions. I walked into this grand aunt's house to meet members of her family. I only knew one of her daughters, the rest were strangers. I remember it was a very awkward moment for me...oh, did I say I was also very shy.


My first meal in California was tacos that were made by the wife of the Marine's uncle. They were so spicey, I couldn't eat them. They all laughed and thought it was so funny. To this day, I do not like Mexican food. I do eat tacos and even fix them sometimes. However, going out for Mexican food is not a favorite thing for me to agree to very often.


So for the past 49 years California has been my home other than a few months of living in Arkansas and Texas. I have lived in several cities in California, starting in Castro Valley. Hawaii will always be home and I still refer to it as such.


Oh...the marriage to that young Marine ended in divorce after almost 10 years of marriage. My daughter was born during that marriage. Little did I know that after almost 10 years of being single, I'd marry another Marine...