Childhood Cancer Awareness, Rocketdyne and the Santa Susana Field Lab
“Piece of pie, right Jess Musz?”
“No, daddy! Piece of cake!”
Those were the last words I said to my dad before they wheeled me in for surgery. Diagnosed at age four with Thyroid Cancer, I would spend the next two years in and out of the hospital, fighting for my life and coming very close to dying on the operating room table.
Teriyaki Skewers with Grilled Pineapple
One hundred and five degrees. No, that is not the temperature you need the grill to be at to make these skewers. It is however the temperature of the muggy air outside of my house right now. Sweet baby Jesus, someone turn the heat down please!! Think of the Wicked Witch of the West being held under Niagara Falls by Dorothy; that’s how much I’m melting. Although that doesn’t sound like a terrible thing right now, to be under a waterfall of cool water with a Pina Colada… calm island music playing in the background…. Ahhhh, take me there!!
Soy Ginger Sticky Chicken
A long time ago, I made a vow to myself to enjoy life and adventure. This past weekend we celebrated my birthday at the beach. Birthday’s and age have never bothered me so at the ripe age of 36, I spent the day in the ocean boogie boarding with my kids, digging sand castles and making them sand mermaid tails, throwing the ball for my dog for hours and resetting my soul with the ocean tide. I’ve always felt a deep connection to the ocean and lo and behold, Pixie is half mermaid 😉
Sriracha Broccoli
After seventy-two glorious days of summer vacation, school is back in session. As much as I was dreading having the kids go back to school; I think we were ready to be back on a schedule. We packed it in this summer; from beach days to camping, amusement parks to museums, swimming to family reunions to a few days at Gymnastics and Girl Scout camp. The girl’s have wonderful teachers this year and I just know we are going to have a great year… In 2nd and 1st grade.
I could not have just typed those numbers.
Chores!!!
Chores! All I really want is CHORES! And in the morning it’s CHORES! Cause in the evening it’s CHORES!
Pixie has reached the ripe old age of 7 1/2 and Buggies just turned 6 (excuse me while I cry a river of “where the hell did the time go” tears). A few months ago, I started scheming the chore jar. Since they were in school, I didn’t want to push the whole “ya gotta do chores everyday thing.”
Double Pork Roast
Now that Pixie and Buggies are home for summer, I’ve enlisted their help in running our home. I looked into lots of different chore ideas on Pinterest until I came up with an idea that worked for us. It’s evolved since its inception and I will post the whole kit and caboodle (Ooooooo! Caboodles!!! Remember those from the 80’s?!) in my next post.
Tuscan White Bean Soup with Crispy Bacon and Fried Sage
“If we could change ourselves, the tendencies in the world would also change. As a man changes his own nature, so does the attitude of the world change towards him. … We need not wait to see what others do.”
Gandhi was one bad ass dude.
Crockpot Chili
It’s a gloomy week here in SoCal.
Cold, drizzly weather always makes me want my slippers, fireplace and a steaming bowl of some kind of delicious stick-to-your-bones kind of dish. We are having a chili cook-off with some friends in a few weeks and I’m super excited to bust this baby out.
Hungarian Chicken Paprikash & Cucumber Salad
A few years ago I auditioned for Master Chef. What a complete adrenaline rush… I mean seriously…Holy Hell! Every emotion and feeling you can imagine explode inside you all at once. I went back to my roots and created a traditional recipe from Hungary. It is a favorite in our house and probably the most comforting and delicious dish you can imagine. It is best served along with a cucumber salad. Enjoy!