Chemotherapy......UGH! What a nasty word in my life lately. Too many friends battling breast cancer, lupus and other horrific things. I feel helpless. What can any of us really do when a friend is at their absolute lowest moment but try to offer support?Last year when I was going through a low dose trial of chemo meds for lupus, I found something that really helped with my nausea. Through time I adapted the recipe to where the moment any one in our family is sick to their stomach, THIS is what they crave. My very special Chemo Moonshine (there is no alcohol, its just a cute name for it). It's good for just everyday upset tummies too!I am far from being a recipe blogger so please bear with me and know you can play with the amounts below to adjust to your taste. I like mine more cinnamony than gingery so I sometimes sprinkle in finely ground cinnamon. Recipe for Chemo Moonshine: A Natural Nausea Remedy Ingredients: Apple Cider- 1 gallon, non-concentrated *do NOT use vinegar! 1 cup Honey or Agave Nectar (I like to use Manuka honey for its healing properties) 5 Cinnamon Sticks Whole Cloves, about 2 tablespoons 1-2 inches Fresh Ginger Root (peeled and chopped or ...
Meet Kiara: Our Leonberger Puppy
The newest member of our family, the much anticipated Leonberger puppy, arrived Monday safe, sound and happy into Denver International Airport via Delta's Pet First program. We anxiously awaited her plane's arrival and I was ready with water and her puppy formula and picked out a place for her to go to the bathroom as soon as she landed. I figured she would be stressed. She wasn't at all. She hopped out of the crate enough to say "I'm HERE!" Her kennel was packed by her breeder with a soft rug, a fresh meat bone, her favorite toy and her next vaccines safely ice packed to the top. Karen, her breeder, waited with her until the last second possible and I was there waiting on the other end. It worked out beautifully. For anyone considering using this route for transporting your furbabies, I would suggest you look into either freezing a block of water or securing the water dish to the crate with something because that is the one thing that came loose. Luckily it was a short(ish) flight since we don't know where it came off.It took us almost 4 days to come up with a name. But we finally settled on Kiara. Officially registered as Irresistible Princess Kiara of Serengeti. For those ...
Confirming the Rumors, We ARE Expecting
As many of you know we lost a dear member of our family a bit ago. Nala passed way too young and too quickly and it will take a very long time for the six of us (including Floyd and Emma here because they miss her just as much) to heal.But we are thrilled to be sharing some good news! We are expecting a new 18 pound-ish baby any day now.Our new baby is just 8 weeks old and will be joining our family next Monday if all goes right with Denver's wacky weather. Leonberger pups from reputable breeders (members of the LCA)are hard to come by. There just aren't that many born a year. So we feel very privileged to have Karen Zedeker of Leos of Serengeti entrust Pink Girl to us. If you are looking for a Leo pup, we have had a stellar experience with her so far. Leo's have many health issues so if you are interested in one that is just one of many reasons to make sure you purchase one from a LCA breeder. Please, please, please don't fall into a puppy mill trap. People advertising lots of litters are very suspect. Reputable breeders only have one or two a year depending on how many females they have. If you aren't sure, leave me a message and I will help you do some ...
Well, May Sucked But June is Looking Good
I wanted to send a quick update for those of you friends that are not on Facebook and haven't been privy to all our ups and downs of the last few months but I'll be vague about Carter since he really hates me talking about his health publicly.Early May was full of promise and quickly turned to crap. Sounds much like the Denver weather this spring. Connor had prom on May 4th and went with a lovely girl he has now been dating a few months. It was a great night for him and his friends. Connor is living life large as the new incoming Senior class. He has the world in the palm of his hands right now and I couldn't be happier for him.We had friends over to help us pass prom night and while we had a nice time it was very obvious Nala was not feeling well. Unfortunately she had been diagnosed a few days prior with osteosarcoma (bone cancer). We had her on every pain med we could to keep her comfortable but it was very obvious as my friends left that night that Nala needed me. I laid with her all night as she continually cried in pain and as the vet opened (thank god ours is open on Sunday) it was very clear we would be saying goodbye. Still as I write this I am bawling. If you knew ...
Our Caribbean Cruise on the Celebrity Constellation Review
This past spring break my family and I took a 4 night Western Caribbean cruise docking in both Key West and Cozumel.Celebrity Cruises had a reputation for being very wheelchair friendly and we choose The Constellation for 3 reasons-accessibility, dates, and we got a kicking deal booking last minute. The Constellation was built in 1991 and while its age is showing a bit, we thoroughly enjoyed our time on board. We had two balcony staterooms, cabins 6107, which is handicapped accessible and 6108. I wrote about the wheelchair accessibility of Celebrity Constellation on Traveling Mom if you want to check that out as well.Here are the Top 5 Things We Loved About Celebrity Cruises Constellation Ocean LinersIn order for us to do a Celebrity Constellation review the PR department was kind enough to arrange a special dinner for my birthday at Ocean Liners, their premier pay French restaurant. The restaurant is beautiful and any foodie would be in heaven here. My family was treated to all the special menu offerings but the highlights were the flambéed lobster and the dark chocolate soufflé. If cruising on board with kids I suggest sending the kids to one of the many activities ...