Domestic Goddess: Part 6

So, I went berry picking last weekend! Tyler and I found a cute little berry farm where everything was $1.25/lb. Everything! Compare that to the "deals" in the grocery store where you can buy 2 lbs of blueberries for $5. Um, picking it yourself is half the price and tastes way better! We came home with our loot: 1 bucket of blueberries and 1 bucket of raspberries. All for $6.50! Wahoo!


I proceeded to freeze all of the blueberries because we have a thing for blueberry muffins in the wintertime and make them like every other weekend. I also froze the raspberries.


Then I went raspberry picking again because I wanted jam. And voila! Here is my cooked raspberry jam. There is also a batch of freezer jam I made, but didn't snap a picture because it was in the freezer before I remembered. And I'm kinda lazy.


This weekend, apricots are supposed to be available! If they are reasonably priced, I will try my hand a canning fruit and possibly making a batch of apricot butter. I swear, I really love canning and it's such a fun hobby! I love looking at my batches at the end of the day!

P.S. Pint jars are easier and faster to fill with jam, but the final result is not as impressive as using half pints. If you want to go with the volume factor of "look how much I made today!" then stick with the 8 oz jelly jars. I realize my raspberry jam doesn't look as awesome as the strawberry jam I made earlier, but it's the same amount!

Last Day!

Today is the last day of radiation for Tyler! Let's please just take a moment to celebrate.

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YAHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


In honor of radiation being over, I will take you now on a photographic journey. Documented carefully by yours truly, via her cell phone camera (which, by the way, is where much of my recent photos have come from, allowing me to be more up to date on this here blog).

Here is Tyler before going into surgery. Happy, upbeat, looking like he is alive and well. Note the sexy stance with the IV pole. As a nurse, that definitely makes my heart go pitter patter.


And here is Tyler after surgery. Haha, these pictures really crack me up. Note the severe frown in the second picture. He really doesn't look happy.

Note: Tyler gave me full permission to post these pictures of him. He vetoed some of the recovery pics though haha. I am not an evil wife.

Here is the recovery phase. This is the package Tyler's Mom sent, full of practically everything you can do when you're recovering from surgery. The first aid kit is full of candy and says "Take 1 per hour or as needed. Overdose may be required." We loved the package!

And this is the longest I have EVER let Tyler's whiskers get. I told him he didn't have to shave after surgery which he was thrilled about! (Normally he only goes 1 day without shaving before I withhold kisses from him. I think this was like 4 days haha) Apologies for the sub-par picture, but it is my camera phone here. Really, this pic doesn't do justice. I did not kiss him with a face that scratchy!
Next we move onto the pictures of Tyler receiving radiation. First off, this is the countdown chain for how many days left of radiation. Today we are down to the last ring! For radiation, he has to remove his clothing from the waist down. So, he comes to the clinic from work, and just takes off his pants and puts a gown on. I seriously LOVE the collared shirt he wears under the gown, in combination with the dress socks. Ooh baby!Here's a close up of that beauty. . .
While this is not the end of the cancer journey, it is *hopefully* the end of the radiation journey. In about a month he will get a follow up scan to evaluate how effective the radiation was. We are hopeful all signs of the tumor will be gone by that point, but we won't know for sure until then. Here's to more waiting to figure out what happens next!

Domestic Goddess: Part 5

Technically this one is a work in progress, I haven't actually done it yet, but I have the supplies and I'm working on getting the courage to follow through. My friend from church recently taught herself how to sew. She is unbelievable! She comes to church wearing fabulous dresses she made herself! I told her how I'd love to be able to do that, so she said she'd teach me! We went to Fabric Depot this week (AKA every fabric imaginable under the sun available here) where I purchased this fabric.


Isn't it pretty? And being 40% off, it became even more beautiful. And it kept calling me back to touch it again. I figured, I had to buy it. Now I need to figure out what to turn it into! I'm thinking of doing a dress, so off to find patterns of dresses I like. Enter this number:


Seriously, there is a Kate Middleton engagement dress pattern? Haha, I laughed so hard when I saw this, how the model has long brown wavy hair and has a huge blue diamond ring on. I laughed and proceeded to look at other dresses. However, this one also kept calling me back! And it turns out, the fabric I purchased goes along best with this pattern. So my friends, I will be attempting to sew this dress! I am terrified beyond belief and way out of my comfort zone. I'll let you know how it all turns out!

P.S. Should I do the V-neck shown for Kate Middleton's dress? Or turn it into a cowl neck? I really love cowl necks, but I'm afraid of drawing attention to my, er, chest. Ideas?

Cancer Update

So as word gets out about Tyler's cancer, I've received a pretty standard list of questions that follow. Here are a few.

What kind of treatment is Tyler getting? Will he have to have chemo?
Tyler is getting radiation. His type of tumor is very responsive to radiation and there is <0.5% chance of the cancer returning after his radiation treatments are complete. And even if the tumor comes back (which we are NOT expecting to happen), chemotherapy will knock that sucker out once and for all. But for now, we are just expecting that radiation will treat it for good.

What exactly is radiation treatment? How often does he have to get it done?
Radiation is where beams of energy are aimed at the affected area, in Tyler's case his lymph nodes in his abdomen. These beams are very precisely aimed at each time so as to make sure that only the specified area is being treated. He receives these treatments five days a week for 4-5 weeks. Currently he is scheduled for 22 days of treatment, with the possibility of extra days at the end to make sure it is all taken care of. The treatment itself takes only about 10 minutes. It takes longer to get him properly positioned and the beams lined up than the radiation is being delivered.

How will this affect Tyler's fertility? Will you be able to have children?
Radiation treatment should not affect Tyler's fertility. There is a risk that this might happen, but I compare it to surgery: there is always a risk of death but you don't count on it. While Tyler receives these radiation treatments, his testicle is enclosed in a lead "clamshell" to protect it from any radiation. There will likely be temporary fertility as a result of radiation, but nothing permanent. In any case, we banked sperm to be on the safe side. For $100, we figured we could spare that much to ensure our children's future.
Yes, we will be able to have children, but doctors recommend patients wait a year after radiation treatment to make sure all of the radiation is out of your system before you try to have kids (think radioactive sperm instead of radioactive spider. . . Spiderchild!). No studies have actually been performed to test how soon following radiation a couple should try to conceive, but a year seems like a safe amount of time, so that's what the doctors say.

What are the side effects of radiation? Is Tyler able to do anything while he's receiving it?
Side effects are based on where in the body the radiation is aimed. For Tyler, his abdomen is getting the treatment, so GI upset (read: nausea, constipation, diarrhea) are his symptoms. Patients may experience a degree of fatigue or skin irritation, but Tyler hasn't had any of those problems. His first week on radiation he was extremely nauseated and fatigued for about 6-8 hours following radiation, and then he'd be back to normal. Now he is on a strong anti-emetic (Zofran for my nursing friends :)) which essentially makes him completely normal. He is able to go to work, and actually goes to radiation treatment on his lunch break.
The most annoying side effect would be the gas that Tyler has. Oh. My. Goodness. I swear, we are going through more air freshener these days! It doesn't matter what I feed him, every night it's a stink storm living with him.

How are the two of you handling all of this? Is there anything I can do?
We are really well now. We have answers to our questions and are hopeful about the future. It was rough at the beginning, but Tyler's radiation oncologist (AKA Radonc) is awesome and very reassuring. We feel like we're in good hands with these specialists and highly recommend them to anyone in need of radiation! Tyler is halfway through his treatments now, so we are on the downhill stretch!

Why I'm So Decor Challenged

So, I feel as though I owe you readers and explanation for my lack of decorating skills. First off, Tyler, being a man, has about the same amount of decorating abilities as a chipmunk. It was assumed going into this marriage that I, being the woman (yes, we're sexist like that), would decorate our home in a tasteful, eye pleasing manner. I figured it was something that would come naturally to me, like getting dressed each day.

Boy was I wrong!

Let me explain.

I grew up in a home where the walls were stark white throughout the entire house (which, coincidentally, may have allowed me to be so comfortable inside hospitals). This provided a solid background for the decorations that changed, not just every season, but every month. Yes, 12 times a year decorations would change. We would decorate the house for various holidays throughout the year. When there wasn't a holiday to celebrate that month (May, August, etc.) we made up holidays and decorations. Enter: Strawberry Season for May! And Sunflower season for August! And Snowflake Season (AKA winter) for January! (which is quite ironic considering I grew up in California where I never saw a single snowflake at my house. Ever.) You see, I grew up thinking it was perfectly normal to change the decorations in a house every 3.6 weeks.

It wasn't until I was a teenager when I went to my friends' houses that I realized that they didn't celebrate Strawberry Season like I did. I went a step further and realized that they really only decorated for Christmas and maybe Halloween. I then realized that they had beautiful homes that were decorated for year-round enjoyment.

Now don't get me wrong, I love my mom and appreciate her enthusiasm for holidays (boy, I'm sure I was the most excited kid for Sunflower Season!) but it left me with a considerable lack of knowledge for decorating my house. I do not want to change the decor every month; I don't have the time or care that much to put such effort into something that huge. But now I am left hopelessly stupid when it comes to home decor.

And now that I'm not in school to suck up all of my time, I can actually focus on beautifying my home. Friends, please help me. What blogs/websites do you look to for inspiration? What basic rules are there that I am completely unaware of? What are your tips/tricks for simple decor in your homes?

Domestic Goddess: Part 4

This past weekend, Tyler and I had a sudden urge to paint our bedroom. It was so sudden in fact, that there aren't even any before pictures to show you what it looked like before! But remember the lovely brown walls in my living room? That same color was in our bedroom. It wasn't bad, but it just wasn't us. And it was kinda boring.

So we decided to paint the walls a light gray. And here I'd like to point out that women are always right when it comes to selecting paint colors. I had selected my favorite shade for the bedroom, a light gray that honestly looks a bit like the Oregon clouds we see so much of here. But Tyler thought that would be too dark, so he insisted on this lighter bluish gray. It wasn't too bad, but I thought it was too blue, especially considering the blue bathroom and blue bedspread we have, but Tyler kept insisting on his color saying that it will dry darker than we think and that with shadows it will look darker anyway. So what the heck, I compromised.



While we don't hate the color, it wasn't at all what we were imagining. Honestly, the walls look light blue, not gray like we wanted. (Forgive the poor picture quality; they come from my phone and don't give a really good idea of the wall color.) But we are too exhausted to move all of the furniture back and repaint, so we're leaving it as is. But now I am in more need of decorating assistance.

This is probably the best picture for getting a true idea of what the wall color really is. And forgive the painters tape. . . it's a work in progress.

The trim has been repainted white which I think looks fabulous with the lighter color. It really freshens up the room and I honestly don't understand why everyone doesn't paint their trim white because it really brightens up a room. And I understand the need for window treatments. My question is, what color? I'm thinking white, or maybe a yellow? And I also feel the need for a new bedspread that compliments the wall color instead of bringing out the blue that we don't like. A plain white comforter? Would that be too much white with white curtains? And as always, ideas on bedroom wall art is always appreciated. Now go friends, inspire me with ideas for my bedroom. :)

Domestic Goddess: Part 3

Remember back to my post about my boring living room? Well I finally decided to sew some pillows to brighten up the place. I really like how they turned out! I like the fabric, and despite being a bit lumpy from the stuffing inside, I'm quite pleased with myself.


I ran out of stuffing, so the second one isn't finished yet and thus hasn't been sewn up. But Chloe thought that I made these just for her and I'm having a hard time separating her from them to finish up the second pillow!


I'm working on slowly bringing life to that living room! Horizontal blinds are currently in all of the windows, and I'm working on artwork for the blank spot on the wall. Pictures to follow once I complete that project!

Domestic Goddess: Part 2

I made this little beauty when we were waiting to determine if Tyler would need chemo or radiation for additional treatment. That was the worst weekend ever! We kept ourselves very busy that weekend, Tyler painting the trim all through the house, and I worked on this mini project. It was pretty simple. I found a cheap frame at Wal Mart and painted the frame. Then I took the glass that was inside the frame, and spray painted it with chalkboard paint, found at your local Home Depot/Lowe's for $5. Easy peasy. Just spray paint the glass, let it dry, and place in your newly painted frame! Hang wherever you need a chalkboard, and voila! This is Robyn as a Domestic Craft Goddess, which is even more of a rarity than Robyn as a plain old Domestic Goddess. Go make this easy project today!



*Note the freshly painted door upon which this sits. . . Tyler also worked on this door while I was working on this. We have a lot of paint around here. . .

Domestic Goddess: Part 1

So I've been trying to keep myself occupied while Tyler went and got cancer. You know, gotta find something to do or else I will go crazy looking up cancer statistics in my nursing textbooks. So I started off with strawberry picking. We went to a little farm and picked the smallest strawberries I have ever seen. Seriously. Take a look.



But then I went a step further and transformed these little beauties into this.

Both traditional strawberry jam with a water bath canner, and freezer jam. Tyler and I had a little taste test following both batches and concluded that traditional strawberry jam is much better than the freezer stuff! It isn't nearly as sweet which makes you want more without feeling sick. Although Tyler ate both right out of the jar, plain, so he's pretty happy with both batches. And I must say that freezer jam is ridiculously easy, so I might be more likely to do that in the future. But I can't wait for raspberries and blueberries to ripen so I can make even more jam!