11/28/25

 Happy birthday to my Mom!  She turned 25 again this year. ❤️🥰

We are always trying to eat healthy, but we do each chips, ice cream, unhealthy snacks and more. So I cleaned out my fridge of all the healthy foods and blended them together for a healthy soup. This is going to be considered my meal prep. 

Turkey vegetable soup with protien pasta. No salt. Sounds gross, but I have added fresh rosemary and parsley for flavor and will add in no salt spices and seasonings.

I even added avacado to the soup. Sounds gross. But it is blended into a puree and will be undetectable. It will silently lower everyone’s cholesterol.

I had my trusty floor patrol waiting silently for anything to hit the ground. He also was trying to look extra cute and may have gotten a piece of turkey because of it. I am a sucker for puppy eyes.

My soup looked a little bit like vomit. But I know it will taste good and will be low in calories.

We headed over to the in-laws to visit. We gathered for lunch. We went around the room and discussed our worst injury we have ever sustained. We all agreed we felt like weenies complaining about our injuries with Ethan in the room. Ha!

We did the annual trip to Target with Aunt Julie. As we were shopping the workers decided to change a mannequin’s clothes in the aisle. 

We inappropriately were watching this struggle. The poor mannequin’s arm fell off, its leg fell off. What a mess. They we felt that the poor mannequin’s was being a bit man handled and is likely going to press charges for inappropriate touching.

We were ill behaved adults. All 5 of us. Ethan, Avery, Kendall, Aunt Julie and myself. Snickering like middle schoolers while this mannequin was being dismembered.

I was glad Ethan came with us and joined in the fun. I was happy to see him engaging. Each year is a little more. I also enjoy seeing him teasing Avery and trying to annoy her. Little by little more of pre transplant Ethan emerges. I blame the TBI (from the stroke) and depression. I never thought about how long it takes to heal a brain injury.

We had a wonderful dinner, I ate too much. Had some pies for dessert. When Dario was a boy (he is 87 now), they fed pumpkins to cows in his little town. When pumpkin pie was busted out, he said “the a-pumpkins are for the a-cows.” He doesn’t like pumpkin pie because pumpkins were considered farm animal feed.

Dario has fascinating views on life. I enjoy his stories. 

A fun way to kick off the Christmas spirit!