Cooking and Hiking

Now...
If you know me personally, you know that I love to cook!  I had two of the best teachers in the world--my Mom and Grandma Riley.  I love this photo of my Mom caught making a mess with her absolutely delicious homemade bread!

Yes, that is bread dough on her glasses!

I don't have a picture of my Grandma Riley in action, but she worked in a tiny little kitchen, made the most amazing country meals and always hid the dessert in her pantry/laundry room.  My sister and I would sneak around to get a peek of what was to follow the meal so we would know how to pace our eating.  My personal favorite were the cupcakes with different color frosting.  I don't remember if she used a cake mix or if they were made from scratch, but it didn't really matter when they were topped with the colors of the rainbow!  At only 4'8", my Grandma Riley worked miracles in the kitchen.

Now that I have taken a walk down memory lane, here are the photos I planned to share today.  One of the adjustments that I've had to make on this journey with Lyme Disease is how I cook.  Robin's food allergy tests show that she is allergic to a number of foods that make it a challenge.  But, as the years go by, more and more food companies are developing products for those with food allergies.  We hope this will change as Robin's body heals, but currently she must eat gluten-free, dairy-free, egg free (we cheat of this) and NO mushrooms!  Some of our favorite recipes can be modified and not lose their appeal.  This is one of them - Watergate Salad.

The only substitute needed here is the Truwhip in place of Cool Whip.  Truwhip can be found at Whole Foods and Carly C's IGA in Raleigh.

And Then...
It is time to leave high school behind and move on with my story, but there are some very important events of Robin's senior year that are pertinent to the story.

I was your typical doting mother that year.  My youngest child was preparing to leave home for adventures unknown.  The last year of high school was busier than most as we determined to enjoy EVERY moment.  There were last volleyball games, last basketball games, last choir performances, last vocal competitions, last Junior/Senior Banquets, last chapel services and the list goes on and on! Finally, the end is in sight.  Final exams, Senior trip to NYC and then the one Senior year outing that has changed our lives, possibly, forever.

These three lovely ladies and their dads, went on a Father/Daughter outing.  It was just one night, but Robin was a tick magnet!  She remembers removing as many as twelve ticks after their hike.  We had no reason to panic.  She and David came home, we attended all the "last week of school" events--Baccalaureate, graduation, celebrations with family and friends.

And then, a week after the camping trip, Robin has an emotional and physical breakdown.  There are no rashes--just a low grade fever, pain and fatigue.  I did what any mother of an over-achiever, recent high school graduate would do.  I told Robin to go to bed and rest.  

I will stop here for now.  In my next post I will complete the triangle of events that put us on this journey.  There is one more component that may surprise you.