Organic Chicken Soup

Taking a page out of my friend Sara's blog book, I've changed the design of my blog. I was bored with the black on black. Hope you like it!

Last night, I made an organic chicken soup, sans noodles, from scratch. I can't believe I was unable to chop and cook just a few months ago. I'm so grateful to have progressed so much! What a wonderful gift, to be able to evolve. Danny has a sore throat so I'm taking care of him. It's nice to reciprocate since Danny's always taking care of me.

Here's the ingredients:
Half of a purple cabbage (chopped)
Half of a sweet onion (chopped)
Three cloves of garlic (chopped)
Two large handfuls of Shiitake mushrooms (chopped)
Head of celery, leaves and all (chopped)
Two boneless skinless chicken breasts (chopped)

First things first, I braised the whole chicken breasts in vegetable broth. While that was cooking, I sauteed the garlic & onion in olive oil, tossing the rest of the chopped veggies into the pan shortly thereafter. I then poured the vegetable broth over the veggies letting the whole thing simmer. When the chicken was done cooking I chopped it up and tossed it into the pot with the veggies, letting it all simmer for a few more minutes. Finally, I seasoned it with a tablespoon of cracked pepper and two teaspoons of habanero powder. 

The truth is that you don't even need noodles. It turned out so good that I'm making it again tonight. I think soup might just be my new thing. All of the ingredients were organic, the meat was free-range hormone free. There was no sugar, and no bad carbs. It was guilt free and delicious. I love it!

I'm ever grateful that I have the freedom to do ordinary things, like know how to create a recipe. The body, and the brain are incredibly intricate and resilient. I'll never forget being unable to chop or follow instructions. I'll never forget being unable to take care of myself. I'm so grateful to have the capability to give back to Danny so that he gets nurtured too. It's an overwhelming feeling, knowing he can rely on me.

Clean as a Whistle

The MRI was fantastic! There was a new fellow, a week in at the UW, from Portland. He is an IV genius. He killed it in one shot. The actual MRI hurts less and less each time, it's fantastic! I've never minded the contrast dye, which some people have a hard time with. I'm grateful for that.

The scans were really cool. My brain is shifting and filling the void, which is really exciting. It was kind of creepy to see the first post surgery scan where a tennis ball area of brain was missing.

There's still a pretty good amount of inflammation, and irritation from the surgeries, but that's to be expected. It's getting better each scan, which is relieving.

I have another MRI in April and if it's clean the doctor's going to see if he can push out the following MRI. That way I won't have to stress before our wedding. I thought that was thoughtful, it was their idea. Love those guys, especially Sarah, Rockhill's nurse.

I feel so excited, so happy. I keep referring back to the last MRI, I was so scared, petrified even. It took me a week or two to live my life again. Now, I'm more logical, more calm, and hopeful. I can feel my mind making sense of things. Even in three months I have an upgraded mind.

I left the U District thinking, "You know what, just maybe, I WILL beat this!"