Jessie.....

Here is the obituary that I wrote for Jessie that was published here in Reno:

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/rgj/obituary.aspx?n=jessie-turner&pid=154077184

I guess she was so 'popular' of a news story that the newspaper decided to do a special article on her. It is a fitting tribute to my little sister:

http://www.rgj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2011110300348

She will always be the smiling angel looking down on me. She is doing ok though, I know that she is. Brian and I went to Disneyland for a week and just got back. I will upload some pictures in the next week but while flying home I was thinking of Jessie and the last time we went somewhere on vacation was our trip to Mexico. I was thinking of her laughing and smiling and I swear I heard her laughing on the plane. I know she was with Brian and I as we went on the rides and had a great time.

Happy Halloween Jessie :)

The end of a bloom in life....

Jessie passed away last Monday 10/10/11. She was at home surrounded by constant love with Mom and Dad and myself.

Sunday was a really hard day for me. Jessie wasn't really responsive; just really tired and having some trouble getting air. So called the nurse and she said that her body was starting its 'shut off' process. I was not aware that the body does that but I guess it does. She said the keep Jessie comfortable as we would only have 24-36 hours left! I couldn't believe what she was saying. As the nurse left us to go along with the process, I just felt like my heart was going to stop. How can you measure what time you have left on earth. I know Jessie heard and I feel that she decided that she still had some fight in her. She didn't want to go just yet. I told my Dad that it was time to call the priest for Jessie to have her last rites.

Sunday night was a long night - no sleep. We just cried and cried over Jessie. I know that it must have been hard for her too as Mom said it seemed like Jessie was upset and crying too. We talked to her and tried to comfort her with her meds. We got to share with her our love and kisses and hugs. We got to tell her how sorry we were and how we would do what we can to make things better. It was just a long, long night.

Monday the sun came up and I ended up going to bed a bit in my room while Mom and Dad continued the vigil on Jessie. Dad called Uncle Steve and his cousins in California to tell them what was going on. Steve drove straight from San Francisco to be with us. Brian's mom Therese came by to and spent a few hours with us as we held Jessie's hand and stroked the few bits of hair on her head. Cousin Donna and Heidi arrived just as the hospice nurse was leaving to check on Jessie. They said that when they were heading towards us they saw a rainbow leading them to our home.

Jessie passed away surrounded by us all around 6:45pm. She fought until her last breathe but when it was time she opened her eyes and smiled! I know that her spirit left her and she was free. All I think was that she was free from the pain and suffering. Her body just couldn't keep up with her spirit and it was time for her to go. She waited until she knew that we had someone there to help us and comfort us like we were there to comfort her.

Jessie was the 'delicate flower' when she was in the hospital. Everyone that met her loved her; she was a beautiful and loving soul. I will miss my little sister but I know that she is always with me, always there to watch over me. I have been truly blessed to have had her as my sister and my best friend.

I love you Jessie.......

August/September Update

Time for another update...


Jessie came home the first part of August after spending a lot of time at the hospital. We finally got her cleared to do at-home chemotherapy through her insurance so we got her home and got things going. She was doing really well and all was great. Finally got a routine down with Jessie's meds and such. I got up at 6am for her first dose of pills, got her cleaned up and turned after sleeping on her side for the night, got ready for work and gave her the 8am pills before I left her in Dad's care. It worked our pretty well for us.



Then she got her second at home chemo session and got really sick. Over the Labor Day weekend she was really weak and tired. The nurse came and during a routine blood work found that her blood count was dangerously low. She was at a 5 where 12 is normal. So we had to rush her to the ER for a major blood transfusion and plasma was also needed due to her coumadin (blood thinner) level was so high. I felt like when we took her to the hospital that she would be there for a few days and then all would be well. Of couse I was wrong.



Jessie ended up in the hospital for a week and the oncologist finally said that he couldn't do anything more for Jessie. The chemo treatment is just too much for her body to deal with; causing way more harm than good. He said that it was time to take her home and start hospice care so she can be comfortable and enjoy whatever time she has left. Needless to say that was not what Dad and I wanted to hear but we understood. He gave us his 'medical advice' on her remaining time but that is besides the point. She doesn't have an expiration date so we didn't tell her that. She doesn't need that looming over her.



So Dad started to get the arrangements made to get Mom up here to spend time with us. I helped get Jessie home and comfortable and the get hospice started. The people with hospice are very nice. They have to be; this is definitely an unique job and takes a very special person to be able to work in this field. Jessie, of course, is still very clear thinking and wanted to know why we had different nurses so I had to explain that we can't do anymore chemo and switched nursing care to the hospice company. She was so upset and I don't blame her. But I was strong when telling her and explaining that we are doing what is best to keep her out of the hospital and health and comfortable at home. I think that hospice is great because they take care of all of her prescriptions (no more waiting in line at Walgreens) and they bring everything to the house and do it all! For time efficiency reasons, it makes perfect sense. And their social worker explained to Jessie that they have people on hospice care for years so she doesn't need to worry.



Jessie is still strong although she has crappy days and good days. She actually is more aware of things now that she is out of the hospital and we have had so many people stop by and visit everyday of the week! Her friends at one of her old jobs made a lot of pre-made dinners for us and bought frozen food (via our 'meals on wheels' Lacey) that it has truly been a blessing for us. Mom and Dad are so touched and amazed at the love shown to Jessie. She has touched so many lives and this is just proof of that.



So now it is the end of September and we just don't know what the next weeks or months will bring. Jessie still has an amazing smile and laughs and cares about so much. She is my best friend and sister forever. Whatever life brings I know she will be okay :)







Here is a quick collage I made on my iphone of her and her flowers. Always smiling and happy!

10 Years ago....

So I thought I would post a quick note about what has changed in the past 10 years, just easy to notice, simple stuff:

* Graduated from UNR - Wow! Really it has been 10 years? I am getting old. I graduated 10 years ago and it just doesn't seem that long ago. The days of going to class, melting in the August heat for Marching Band, staying up late to write papers and make presentations in PowerPoint seem like only yesterday...

*Got a big girl job - After graduating from UNR I was looking for a full time job. At the time I was working part time at Best Buy (the first one in Reno by Barnes and Noble). I had been there since they opened in 1999 and though maybe I could stay there for a while. The management however didn't want to offer me full time. They said "You have a negative attitude". I seem to get that a lot but I have found it isn't me having a bad attitude; they don't like having free thinking employees speak up for themselves or point out problems/issues and try to fix them. So after a few months of stringing me along with the hopes of full time job, I decided to look online with the State of Nevada and TA-DA! Got my current job at UNR. So I have been here 10 years and seems like only yesterday I was the green grasshopper in the department.

*Got a new car - Mom and Dad helped to get me a new car once I graduated. When I first came to UNR I was driving my awesome 1977 Chevy Nova. It did ok the first year or so when I lived on campus and wasn't driving it every day. But when I moved off campus and had to commute, it was not a happy camper. It didn't like the altitude and the cold. So Mom and Dad let me drive the Mitsubishi Galant (which Jessie and I drove into the ground) during the rest of my college days. Once I graduated they helped me get a 2001 Toyota Carolla and I am still driving it today. It gets great gas mileage (34 miles to gallon last time I filled up) and has had many trips to/from Bunkerville and even Disneyland, San Francisco and the California Coast. Love my little car.

*Bought a house - Ok so this is more like 8 years ago but close enough. Mom and Dad helped me to buy a house and Jessie and Brian (my husband now but my boyfriend at the time) became roommates and had a lot of fun. We landscaped the front yard (with the help of Mom, Dad and Uncle Steve) moving a mountain of rock. Brian did a great job with the lawn, plants, and irrigation. Only blew the backflow converter 3 years in a row before we figured out what we were doing. Now we are doing the back yard, little by little, but it is starting to come together finally. Brian and I just laid out some brick tiles for a temporary resting place for my fire pit. We hope to have it blazing next week and hopefully Jessie can come back and chill with us out there.

So that pretty much is it. I will add some pictures to the post in the next week or so. You can then really tell the difference.

Until next time.....Remember to stop and smell the roses, they are a blessing from the Lord :)

July Update

Ah, here I am again writing another update. At least this time it is only a month from the last time.

So it looks like the last I wrote Dad just got here and Mom was handing over the care of Jessie to him. Mom left the Monday after 4th of July and it is has been a crazy 3 weeks to say the least.

Jessie got sick again and had high potassium in her system. It was so high that the nurses had to have her taken up to the Telemetry department to try to get it under control. Potassium naturally lives in your blood but having too much can cause a lot of problems, especially with your heart. It can cause people to go into cardiac arrest. Thank goodness that the nurse (who were in the Neuro unit and they have all had Jessie under their care at one time or another) realized that she wasn't acting normal and had blood work done. So she went to Telemetry. She had just started doing the chemo pill again, Temadar. Reading online it seems that chemo can also casue the potassium problem as it destroys cells; that is how it fights against cancer. So to me, in my non-medical opinion, was sick due to the chemo.

Later that week the doctors told Dad that there was nothing else left to do for her and that we should think about her end of life plans. WHAT!!! The doctors felt that she wasn't getting better and that he mental capacity had reached its limits; to them there was nothing left for them to do. So Dad called me at work and was upset, which of course anyone would be upset. He said the doesn't want to see Jessie suffer. I understand that, and I get that. But what is going on with the hospital?!? To me she was getting better.

So the next day I asked to see Dr Morgan, Jessie's Neurosurgeon and who had been on her case since day 1. I told him that I had to hear what was going on from him. He explained the situation and said that the doctors felt there wasn't much more they could do for her. I said that right now Jessie has two problems; one is that her body is so weak and can't fight the infections and two she has a tumor. I felt that getting her off the chemo and giving her body a chance to get better would be what I wanted. Daddy said it was my decision so I asked to have her stop the chemo for a week and allow her body to get better. Dr Morgan said he would do that and we could go from there.

Now, I am not a parent but I am a sister. Jessie is my best friend, my partner in crime. I have done everything with her. I cannot let her go. I cannot give up. I know that it is selfish of me to ask for her to keep going but I know in my heart and in my soul that this was not the end. The doctors were telling me to take her home and let her pass. To me that meant to let her go home and die from a bladder infection or high potassium, things that they can fix! So that was what we were left with. My hopes were....

1) She gets better but cannot do chemo. In that case she comes home and lives the rest of her days at home surrounded by her loved ones and her favorite things.

2) She gets better and does chemo. At least that way we keep fighting.

3) She doesn't get better at all. We at least tried what we could and take her home to pass.

So, we get Jessie stabilized and finally have her moved back to the Neuro unit. The doctors want her to go to the Oncology Unit. I told them that she cannot go back there. I didn't like the treatment she go there before and that the nursing staff in the Neuro unit knows her and we (Dad and I) would be more comfortable with her being with people we trust.

She went back and gets stronger. She becomes more alert and aware of what is going on. She still has her feeding tube because doesn't eat much and is still really sleepy.

And then, the Oncologist comes by and talks to her without running it past us....

He tells Jessie that she either has to think about going to Hospice Care or continue with her chemo treatments. He tells her at 8:30am. She sits alone for 2 hours before my dad comes to visit with her during the day. She says nothing. I come after work around 5:30pm and then Dad leaves. Then she starts crying and Lacey and I don't know what is going on. Then she tells us what the doctor said. At first I am kind of shocked and had to question her since sometimes I am not sure what she says happened really happened. But she is upset.

With tears in our eyes I explain to her that this is her life; her journey to travel the path God has given her and that we can only hold her hand and walk beside her. I tell her that if she is tired and doesn't want to fight anymore then we will take her home and see where it goes from there. And I tell her how selfish I am that I don't want her to leave me and that I want her to fight. So I ask her what she wants to do. And what does she say? "I want the damn drugs! I am not ready to give up! I want to fight!!!" So I told her I will let Daddy know and we will start the chemo next week.

So last Tuesday (7/19) she got her first dose of Avastin. It is stronger chemo that is given through her IV and is a 90 minute session. She gets the chemo once every other week through the IV. I was expecting her to be worse than when taking the pill but she has done so well! She perked up and even started to crave food. We actually had the feeding tube removed! She is stronger everyday and alert and aware. She is almost back to her sassy self. Of course she has some days where she is really tired and sleepy but for the most part she is doing better.

I feel that God helped me to make the right choice. I know that Dad was having a really hard time with everything and maybe he lost hope. But I didn't and I won't. I have been with Jessie everyday since this started and I know that she still has that spark, that drive to beat this. For whatever reason I feel that if she can get through this, she will be ok by September. I know that the doctors are somewhat shocked at this turn around and they still don't have the hope we do. But you know what? I won't let the doctors crush my hope, my passion for her to get better. All I can do is pray and I do that everyday, along with lots of friends, family, communities everywhere! My friend in India prays for Jessie and me; our friends in Australia pray for us! Every voice counts and I know it. We are truly blessed and I am grateful everyday.

So that is it for now. I will share a few pictures of Jessie from the other day when we went outside. This was before the feeding tube was removed. She is just as photo-genic as always :)

June Update

Aaahhhh.....where does the time go? In the past few weeks it seems like time has stood still and the world just passed by me.

So here is a quick update from the first part of the month. On Friday June 10th I went to work and then went to a surprise party for a collegue and good friend of mine from work. Jessie's friend Lacey came with me since my mom was at the hospital all of the time with Jessie and I really need a little break. So we went to the party, met new people, ate some great food and then headed back to the hospital. At this time Jessie was staying at the neuro unit in the hospital. She was still having seizures and the her neurologist Dr Bigley was trying to get her meds figured out to stop the seizures as she kept having them on a pretty regular basis. Well, this Friday night Jessie had a major seizure. It was horrible! The seizure lasted over 5 minutes and she was then unresponsive for almost over an hour! The nursing staff had to call their rush team to work on Jessie and they didn't know what to do. Eventually Jessie came back around but it was just horrible for Lacey, mom and me. My mom always says that it is harder on the family than it is on the patient. The patient a lot of the times doensn't know what is going on and sleeps through a lot. But the family is aware and awake and see it all and it is just a mental and emotional anguish. Dr Bigley came back to the hospital at midnight to see Jessie and had her sent down immediately for a CAT scan. He said that he didn't know the cause of the seizure but would talk to the surgeon and see what the next step would be.

The next day (Sat) I headed back to the hospital. Mom was staying there 24/7 and was always by Jessie's side. When I got the hospital mom said that Dr Bigley and Dr Morgan agreed that surgery for a shunt is the only thing we can do at this point in time. They had to take Jessie off of the blood thinner meds so her body will be prepared for surgery. So that meant she would go in for the procedure on Wed 6/15. For the next few days Jessie didn't talk to us or eat or anything. She was basically unresponsive. When it came time for the surgery mom and I were at a loss. We didn't know what we could do. Dr Morgan (Jessie's neurosurgeon) explained the procedure and what was going to happen. He said it would only take 30 minutes to put in an external shunt. The shunt would drain fluid from her brain into a bag outside of the body. They would then test the fluid for tumor cells. If it was positive they don't want to recycle it back into her body. That makes sense. If the fluid is negative they will do another procedure and put in an internal shut. This would mean that the fluid would recycle back in the body and re-absorbed. Dr Morgan also explained that both he and Dr Bigley felt that the chances the fluid being the cause of pressure and seizures was low; the chances of it being related to tumor or tumor growth was high. With tears in my eyes, I had to explain to my mom what was going on. I then turned to Dr Morgan and said we don't have any options right now. Mom and I need to hear Jessie speak to us and open her eyes and acknowledge us. She is basically a vegetable to us and that is no way to live. Dr Morgan understood and said that he would do whatever he could. Mom and I said that we know that Jessie's in good hands.

So we left the pre-op room and said our silent prayers. We waited in the waiting area, wishing and hoping for a miracle - that God would turn things around for Jessie.

About an hour later Dr Morgan emerged from the operating area. He said that the surgery went well and that Jessie would be in the recovery area for a while and then go to the ICU for observation due to the external shunt. Mom and I smiled at Dr Morgan and felt a small weight lift off of our shoulders. Since we had to wait to see Jessie we decided to go to my in-laws to visit and grab a quick bite to eat. Mom got to meet my niece and nephew and it was nice to be able to get out for a few hours.

When we went back to the hospital, we saw the result of the surgery. Jessie was awake and talking! She was really upset and confused. She didn't know what was going on. When I told her she had surgery, she got really upset and wanted to know why. She had been so unaware as to what was going on, she thought she was still home. She didn't remember the seizures, the REMSA ambulance trip, the hours at the ER or her hospital stay. Goes back to mom saying we suffer more than her. She spent the next week in the ICU recovering from the surgery, saying crazy stuff due to the drugs. Sample of things she said:
* I know who is going to win the Super Bowl! Who?? Nobody :)
* Give me my rainbow drug monkey so I can push the button!
* What does the feed tube stuff taste like? A hotdog.
* Hey! I want to go with you help me out of this boat. Is my butt hanging off the boat? I don't want a crocodile to bite my butt. They can bite my leg since I can't feel that.

At least she has her sense of humor while on the drugs....

So last week Dr Morgan said that she would have an internal shunt put in as there were no tumor cells in her fluid, at least that is what Jessie said. I was confused since I haven't heard anything from anyone. The nurses didn't say anything, haven't seen the doctors so had to go with what Jessie said. And then, mom and I show up to the ICU and see a note in her room that she is going in for surgery Sunday (6/26) morning. Jessie knew what she was talking about! So mom and I and Lacey show up at the hospital bright and early and follow her to pre-op again. We talk to Dr Morgan and he says that they tested the brain fluid TWICE and it came back NEGATIVE!!! Being negative meant that they could proceed with putting in an internal shunt and work on getting Jessie out of ICU and hopefully back to getting some physical therapy and back home. We were so happy to finally hear the news directly from Dr Morgan I personally just wanted to jump up and give him a big hug. I think he knew how we felt because Lacey asked how long the procedure would be and he joked with us and said 14 hours. Then he laughed and said about 45 minutes. We asked if he could have them shave the other part of her head since she was sporting a Flock of Seagulls hairdo from the last surgery. He laughed and said he would see what he could do.

So Jessie now has nicely shaved head and is awake and alert. Dad and Uncle Steve came up yesterday and Jessie was really happy to see them. I don't know if Jessie or Daddy was more happy. Daddy even brought a cute bunny for Jessie. Dad was able to visit while I was work and said that the nurses said that Jessie might be moving out of the ICU by the end of the week. Yet another step towards the right direction.

So that is it for now. We are so truly grateful and blessed to have the small miracles we have had this month from God. Please keep the positive energy and prayers - we need to keep the faith going to build the momentum! Thank you all for keep us in your thoughts.

"Prayer is asking for rain ~ faith is bringing your umbrella"

Spring 2011 Update

So, it has truly been a while since I have updated this blog. Really the major news to report is about Jessie.

At the beginning of the year, Jessie wasn't able to walk to she was getting around with her wheelchair. Jessie and I would carpool to work to town together since Jessie's car wasn't wheelchair capable for her to drive. So that went on for about a month. Jessie decided to talk to her rehab doctor and see if she could be re-admitted to the in-patient rehab so that she could build the strength she needed to get around better in the wheelchair. Jessie was approved and admitted to rehab the first part of February and spent the month working with the therapist to strengthen her core and arms.

Jessie came home right before her birthday, the first part of March and almost immediately complained of bad headaches. After about a week Jessie went to see her doctor about the headaches and was sent to the ER for observation and testing. It was then found that her tumor had moved to her neck and she had some questionable spots in her brain. This definitely was not the news we were expecting to hear and to say we were sad and devastated is too light of a term. Jessie was re-admitted to the hospital and started agressive treatment for her tumors, which included 5 1/2 weeks of radiation and chemo. Jessie had radiation before so we weren't too concerned about that as we were about the chemo. It is so hard on the body and basically kills everything, good and bad cells. Jessie wasn't able to complete her full schedule of chemo due to low blood counts and a low immune system.

Once all of this was said and done, Jessie went back for a few weeks to rehab and then was released back home the first part of May. However, she came home and a few days later had a major seizure. We were not prepared for that and had to call 911 to get her to the ER. She was at the hospital again for about a week and came home. However, while at the hospital and due to her low immune system, she got shingles. It was horrible to watch her suffer through the shooting pain due to the shingles. It was so bad that she passed out from the pain and we were so concerned already of her high blood pressure that we scared that she might have stroke. So off to the ER again we went. This time, she went to have her heart monitored and then ended up in Oncology, which is weird. I am sure that people that go to the Oncology ward appreciate the doctors and nurses there but with Jessie's case, I was not pleased with the care she received. I feel the attending doctor (who was not anyone we ever dealt with before) didn't listen to our concerns and left the other doctors in the dark. On the last day there, Jessie had a seizure and I explained to the doctor that it wasn't normal for her to have seizures. All he did was give some meds and said that if we take home and she has seizures that we need to contact her doctor to adjust her meds! That was it! No concern about what I said about not having a history of seizures! I ended up calling her neuro-surgeon and got him in the loop.

So home again we go with Jessie (this was last week) and over the weekend she again had a series of seizures. She was having them almost every 10 minutes and then had a major seizure that we had to again call 911. Thank God that the fire station is just around the corner and the firefighters are so caring and professional. It helps to calm us all down when you see they really care and are concerned. So back to the ER we go and now she is in the hospital as they adjust her meds. She is definitely doing a lot better. The doctors are trying to pinpoint the cause, but they do not believe it is tumor growth. They feel it might be residual inflammation caused by the radiation.

So that is pretty much the news for now. Oh, and due to the fact that Jessie was out of work for so long she lost her job at Harrah's. But, it has been a blessing for her. Her position was being elimiated anyways after the summer so she would have had to look for a job. Plus, due to be let go for medical reasons, she can have extended COBRA benefits so that will help us out a lot. Harrah's was an amazing company and with so many people that really cared for her wellbeing. I will always say good things about Harrahs due to the way they have treated Jessie, as an employee, and myself, as her sister, during these trying times. It makes it so nice to have a wonderful employer that tries to work with you during a medical crisis.

I will try to post more as things progress. Take care, thank you for prayers and positive energy and Thank God for all of the blessings and little miracles we have had thus far. We know He is with Jessie during these trying times.

Keepin' it clean....for now!

So I have been working really hard to keep things a bit cleaner or tidy around the house. It has been hard as I have realized that I am a paper-hoarder in the worst case! Cleaned out boxes of stuff that moved to the house with me from the condo and it was old paperwork, statements, check book registers, etc that needed to be shredded! What chaos! When I was cleaning out the bedroom closet Brian said it looked a tornado hit the bedroom! Anyways, a whole two boxes got shredded and there is so much more to go! Even Jessie got on the organization circuit as she is working to get her paperwork together for her taxes (seeing if she can write-off the medical this year) and the paper to be shredded is getting bigger and bigger! I feel like I need a bigger house to store everything!

On the bright side, Brian did build me a little platform for my ATT cable receiver (kitty Belle liked to sit on it during the cold winter mornings and I was worried she would break it) and bedroom TV. I moved the TV closer to the bed and can you believe I can finally read the bottom screen scroll at night on Sportscenter! Amazing what moving it just 2 feet can do! So now that there is an opening on the dresser I bought the big-daddy humidifier from Walgreens and it is amazing. It is ultra-sonic (not heat/steam for humidity) and it just makes that much more comfortable for me. It cost a pretty penny but I think that it will finally give me the edge to get over this lingering cough. The doctor said that I have asthma that is causing the chest distress but I don't know. I feel so much worse using the inhaler that I just suffer through it. I read online that there was a study in Sweden regarding vehicles with studded tires (snow tires) and that it kicks up a lot of road debris and since then I have been driving with the vents closed and I feel so much better when out of the house or office. I think the next thing for me would be to invest in a small Hepa air filter for the use in the bedrooms and I think I will be set.

Moving on to Jessie news: We went to see her radiologist/oncologist regarding the MRIs and craziness with her spine. Dr Morgan (neuro-surgeon) said that the 'growth' may be an additional tumor or cells growing, thus causing the issues that Jessie is having with her legs. She can't walk at all and is pretty much set in her wheelchair. He also said that it could just be radiaion 'fall-out' causing inflamation in her spinal cord. Well we went and saw Dr Dardick and he didn't feel that it is additional turmor cells, which is great news! But he also doesn't know what exactly we are dealing with. Most likely Jessie has some inflamation in her spinal cord (we don't know a cause or reason) and it is something that she can be living with for months or even for the next year. So that kind of sucks but still, no turmor growth! Great news none-the-less. So we just have to keep praying and thinking positive energy to make Jessie better.

I firmly believe (even though I can be a pain in the ass and snippy with her) that Jessie is going to be 100% sometime in the future. It will take a lot to get past this 'relapse' but Jessie is such a fighter and is so much stronger than I could ever imagine! She is my inspiration and I am going to try to live a more calm and stong life this year.....along with a diet :)

Happy New Year 2011!!!

Awe....goodbye to 2010 and hello to 2011! I decided to cook the turkey that Jessie got from Harrah's for her Christmas gift and had our good pal Lacey come and join us for dinner. Here is the turkey with green bean casserole and mashed potatoes ready to go. We also had warm apple cider and sparkling cider.

Here is the complete dinner with homemade cranberry relish, dinner roll. So much fun to have dinner on a cold, snowy night and celebrate with a full tummy!

See Jessie was so excited she jumped to her turkey leg! Hahahaha.....

Wishing everyone a very Happy New Year and let's hope that this new year brings happy news and memories for everyone around the world.

I promise to do better in updating this blog.....

~ Joan