Roadtrips, Reflections, and Ramekins

This weekend my husband and I had the pleasure of visiting with some of my relatives in the Oklahoma City area. We had a fabulous time just hanging out, crafting, playing games, watching movies, and enjoying delicious food! We attended a small town parade where I got to watch one of my cousins march, as well as see super patriotic things like:

Darth Vader and an Imperial Guard…(I guess he’s wearing red so that makes him patriotic?)

and cows pulling a wagon?

Well, I did enjoy cheering on the soldiers and vets in the parade!

Best part: our trip only took 1 full tank of gas. My grandparents happened to be visiting as well. I feel SO blessed to have been able to see them again. The last time I saw them was at Christmas and even though it was a short visit, I loved catching up. Between my mom and grandma I learned how to sew. I stitched my first blanket/quilt with my grandma one summer. I might be biased but the fruits and vegetables that came from their orchard and garden are still the best I’ve ever tasted!

I noticed at Christmas that my grandma seemed to be a little frail. This time was much different. Not only was she having more trouble getting around, but Alzheimer’s is most definitely setting in. My uncle estimated that she’s already at stage 5 of the 7 stages. She was definitely not at that stage over Christmas. It was so hard seeing her and being able to tell that at times she was truly confused as to what was happening around her. It was also so sweet to see my grandpa and his patience with her! The amount of support and love he showed my grandma was overwhelming and inspirational!

Not only was it hard seeing her struggle with what should have been simple memory issues, but even harder knowing that it runs in the family. One day it’s highly possible that my mom will have trouble remembering me and how to do simple tasks, but it’s also highly possible that I’ll have trouble with Alzheimer’s. While it’s far off, it was definitely something I started really considering on a more “real” level this weekend. While no cure is currently known, it seems that eating healthy and exercise (both mental and physical) seem to be the things that help the most. Even if I never run a marathon, I’m definitely more committed to getting a healthy amount of exercise every week!

{photo from Snippets of Thyme, mine wasn’t photo worthy, but it was delicious!}

On a more up-beat note: I made creme brulee and it turned out fantastic!! I used this recipe from Snippets of Thyme and followed it to the letter. (Except for the vanilla sugar. I didn’t have enough for all of the recipe, so I reserved it for the top of the dessert. My dad had sent me some from Germany and I was saving it for a special occasion, and this was it!) It was my first time EVER using real vanilla beans. I split them and was surprised at the inside. I had fun, and boy was the flavor delicious! I got to buy new ramekins, and my husband got to break in the blow torch. I was surprised at how relatively easy the recipe was. I’ll do a bit more of a recap in the next couple of days. The recipe turned out exactly like what I’ve had at restaurants, so I’d consider it a big success. That’s one thing to check off the 30 before 30 list!

Erin