Colour me happy.

We have, at long last, painted the kitchen!

The last time I wrote about our kitchen renovation, I prophetically wrote, "We have arrived at the stage in this project where it is easy to run out of steam. The space is functional and attractive. But there is still a long list of things to be done. Not least of them is the backsplash. Every time the water splashes onto the counter, I wince."

That was at the end of February, folks. Almost exactly two months ago.

Oh, Interwebs!

This boy's father uses Photoshop for good, not evil. See more pictures of Wil on That Dad Blog.

Welcome to my periodic round-up of things I've found online that make me smile, cry, laugh, think, shout, or drop my jaw. 

Maybe we need a Ksenia Alert system.

L-R: Cayman Naib and Ksenia Quiros

Twice in less than one month, I have watched a tragedy play out on Facebook. I'm writing today in hopes that, next time, it plays out differently.

Moving From Choppy Waters to Smooth Sailing

Peace on the water.

When you live (or work with) someone who has repeatedly caused chaos and drama, making negative assumptions becomes as easy for us as slipping into warm water. So how can we move forward without sliding into that comfortable assumption?

Here are some basic assumptions that Steve and I learned in the Family Connections course we took and are now helping to teach.

Rhubarb Crisp with a Twist

UPDATE: I've played around with the recipe and have found that adding 1/2 cup of flour to the topping makes it more crumbly and less chewy. Choose the one you prefer.

It's spring (thank God!) and rhubarb is starting to show up in the produce aisle, so it's time to make one of my husband's favourite dishes: rhubarb crisp. Rhubarb is high in Potassium (vitamin K), which is important for heart health and for calcium absorption. Rhubarb is also said to fight Alzheimer's (but I can't remember where I read that).

Here's the recipe I created - for the best rhubarb crisp I've ever tasted.

P.S. This recipe is egg-, wheat-, and gluten-free. If you skip the ice cream, it's dairy-free as well.

Regrets

I realize this sounds like a joke, but I am serious.

If you tell me you have no regrets, I can only conclude that you are either arrogant or have an unexamined life.

Because we all make mistakes. We are human. To my mind, if you have no regrets, it means that you have never looked back at your choices and honestly said, I wish I had done differently. Or you've never had the strength to gain that insight.

Light in Her Eyes

Background: my mother was admitted to hospital with Congestive Heart Failure on April 6, 2015. Read more here. On April 13, my husband and I drove from Ottawa to St. Catharines to visit her. 

This was the first trip I have made explicitly to see my mother in about 20 years. I have seen her and spoken with her in the interim, but I have not made an effort to be with her in particular.

On our trip down to southern Ontario, I bit off almost all my finger nails. I knew it might happen -- I nibble when I'm nervous or bored -- so I had made a point of filing them before we left the house, and I made sure there was a nail file in my purse. It made no difference. I was anxious.

Baggage

My mother, with her husband.

Today, my husband and I  are heading out on the road to visit my mother, who is still in hospital with congestive heart failure. We learned that she'd had a "silent" heart attack about four weeks ago. Recovery will be slow.

Oh, Interwebs!

"Design Museum #8, Mirrored" one of the stunning long-exposure photographs by Sharon Tenenbaum who lives in Vancouver.

Welcome to my periodic round-up of things I've found online that make me smile, cry, laugh, think, shout, or drop my jaw. 

The Call

My father hugs me on my wedding day.

Twenty-five years ago, the phone rang. It was one of my four brothers, calling to let me know that my father had suffered a major heart attack and had not regained consciousness. He never did. Five days later, they removed the ventilator that kept him breathing; he died shortly thereafter.