RAK #12: Alejandro Barrios Martinez

Anna Blankenheim Death, Random Acts of Kindness, Tragedies , , , ,

This is the twelfth of 49 random acts of kindness (RAKs) that I’m doing to honor the victims of the Orlando Pulse nightclub shooting. Hopefully each small act puts a little bit of happiness back out in the world!

I know it’s been a while, but I’m back on the RAK bandwagon. The RAKs 9-13 are all the same thing, but to five different people. I de-stashed some of my planner stickers and posted to a Facebook group that I belong to that I would be giving them away – the one catch was that people had to comment on my post and share a random act of kindness they had done. The response was amazing – there really are great people out there doing great things!

RAK #12 is in honor of Alejandro Barrios Martinez. Alejandro was from Cuba and was one of the youngest victims of the attack at just 21 years old. He was known as happy and fun loving. Rest in peace, Alejandro.

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RAK #11: Deonka Deidra Drayton

Anna Blankenheim Death, Random Acts of Kindness, Tragedies , , , ,

This is the eleventh of 49 random acts of kindness (RAKs) that I’m doing to honor the victims of the Orlando Pulse nightclub shooting. Hopefully each small act puts a little bit of happiness back out in the world!

I know it’s been a while, but I’m back on the RAK bandwagon. The RAKs 9-13 are all the same thing, but to five different people. I de-stashed some of my planner stickers and posted to a Facebook group that I belong to that I would be giving them away – the one catch was that people had to comment on my post and share a random act of kindness they had done. The response was amazing – there really are great people out there doing great things!

Deonka had suffered tragedy before – she was ejected from her family vehicle in an accident and had a traumatic brain injury when she was a child. She was working at the club the night of the shooting. Rest in peace, Deonka.

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RAK #10: Darryl Roman Burt II

Anna Blankenheim Death, Random Acts of Kindness, Tragedies , , , ,

This is the tenth of 49 random acts of kindness (RAKs) that I’m doing to honor the victims of the Orlando Pulse nightclub shooting. Hopefully each small act puts a little bit of happiness back out in the world!

I know it’s been a while, but I’m back on the RAK bandwagon. The RAKs 9-13 are all the same thing, but to five different people. I de-stashed some of my planner stickers and posted to a Facebook group that I belong to that I would be giving them away – the one catch was that people had to comment on my post and share a random act of kindness they had done. The response was amazing – there really are great people out there doing great things!

This RAK is in honor of Darryl Roman Burt II. He was a member of the Jacksonville Jaycees, a non-profit group of young professionals who help in community projects and events. He was in school, getting his masters degree and was very passionate about his volunteer work. Rest in peace, Darryl.

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RAK #9: Eddie Jamoldroy Justice

Anna Blankenheim Death, Random Acts of Kindness, Tragedies , , , ,

This is the ninth of 49 random acts of kindness (RAKs) that I’m doing to honor the victims of the Orlando Pulse nightclub shooting. Hopefully each small act puts a little bit of happiness back out in the world!

I know it’s been a while, but I’m back on the RAK bandwagon. The RAKs 9-13 are all the same thing, but to five different people. I de-stashed some of my planner stickers and posted to a Facebook group that I belong to that I would be giving them away – the one catch was that people had to comment on my post and share a random act of kindness they had done. The response was amazing – there really are great people out there doing great things!

This RAK is in honor of Eddie Jamoldroy Justice, who was texting his mother while the shooting was taking place. He was described by his friends and family as a very friendly person who would give you the shirt off his back. Rest in peace, Eddie.

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5th Anniversary “Road Trip”

Anna Blankenheim Family, Vacation , , , ,

Yes, I know it’s been forever. Life has been busy, and blogging has been at the bottom of the list.

Each year, in lieu of gifts for each other, Mike and I go on an adventure to celebrate our anniversary. We like the idea of having an experience together as a reminder of why we got married and why we stay married. We still kinda like each other.

This year was no different – we drove down to Springville where our good friends Chris and Kassie live. We spent the night at Kassie’s family’s ranch – a working roping ranch. It was so much fun to watch the cowboys (and girls!) practice their team roping – so different than the cow work we do! The adventure this year was to spend a few days at their cabin in the woods… like REALLY in the woods. In fact, there are three ways to get there: horseback, hiking, or helicopter. The boys chose to hike in (10 miles!) and since that long of a hike and riding are out of the question, I got to take my first ever helicopter ride with Kassie.

The chopper landed at the ranch and before I even had time to get nervous, we were in the air!img_1624

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Our pilot was amazing and talked me through everything. The cool thing about helicopters is that you don’t feel a lot of the pressure that you do on planes (you know, that roller coaster feeling in your belly). Instead, it’s just kind of like floating.

About 20 minutes later, we landed at 9,000 feet at the cabin and got to work setting everything up. The boys showed up a few hours later. The cabin has running water (plumbed from a nearby stream) and a generator to provide electricity. We used the various fireplaces to keep warm. It was so much fun to literally be out in the middle of nowhere!

The first full day there we went on a hike as a group. I was a little nervous about my knee, but it held out really well. I used trekking poles and took it nice and slow. We ended up at these beautiful lakes where we hung out, ate lunch, and watched a storm roll in.

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Almost every day we would do some sort of outdoors activity in the morning, come home for lunch, and nap in the afternoon. It was so relaxing!

On one of the last days there, Kassie and I decided to go stream fishing – something I’d never done! My daddy would be proud – I baited my own hook (worms), handled the fish I caught (four golden trout), and even cleaned one I couldn’t save when Kassie decided to eat it! It was so peaceful and beautiful out on the stream! We were proud of ourselves on our girls fishing trip!

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This was such a wonderful trip! There was so much time to just hang out and it was amazing to be where there was no phone, no cell service, no internet!

In Memorium: Father George Thomas

Anna Blankenheim Death, Family

Yesterday the world lost a really cool guy – Father George Thomas. He’s been a friend of the Blankenheim family for years and a regular at our family barbecues, holidays, and events. Mike and I were blessed to have him marry us back in 2011.

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He was a wonderful man who gave his life to the church, serving as a priest for over 60 years. His little whistle always caught your attention. He had a great sense of humor and loved to just hang out.

Father George, you will be missed – thank you for everything! Requiem aeternam.

ACL Surgery: Four Months Post Op

Anna Blankenheim Health , , , ,

This coming Friday is officially the four month (16 weeks) post-surgery mark for me. At yesterday’s physical therapy session, I was cleared to run. Still no horseback riding (there’s too much of a chance of that twisting motion and/or an uncontrolled movement), but I’m happy with expanding my activities!

I ran today with my sister. We’ve got a little pond at work that has a soft track around it… We started doing a couple laps and ended up doing a mile, with one lap being walked. It was a great start and as the day went on, my knee actually felt looser than it has in a long time (good loose, not missing-the-ACL-loose). I am still having some pain – partially because my IT band and patellar tendon are tight and are pulling my kneecap to the left. Tonight I need to foam roll until I can’t take it and then ice a bit.

Here’s what my knee looks like now. It’s healing up rather nicely! There are 3 “holes” (top right and then two towards the bottom) as well as the larger scar where the hamstring tendon was harvested from. Ignore the white scratch… I was just itchy.

I’m really pleased with my recovery so far!

Chicken Wonton Tacos

Anna Blankenheim Cooking, Recipes , ,

Last night I tried a new recipe that I found on Allrecipes.com… chicken wonton tacos. They were absolutely amazing! They’re tiny, so if you have them for dinner, be prepared to eat like eight of them. They’re great as the main dish or would be awesome appetizers!

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Ingredients

1/3 head of red cabbage, sliced and chopped

4 small carrots, peeled and grated

1/4 cup coleslaw dressing

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons teriyaki sauce

2 tablespoons sesame oil

1 pound ground chicken

1/4 cup stir fry sauce

14 wonton wrappers

Directions

Mix cabbage, carrots, coleslaw dressing, vinegar, soy sauce, and teriyaki together in a bowl; refrigerate until flavors blend, 1 hour to overnight.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

Heat sesame oil in a skillet over medium heat. Cook and stir ground chicken in the hot skillet until browned and crumbly, 5 to 7 minutes. Add stir-fry sauce, cover skillet, reduce heat to low, and simmer.

Form wonton wrappers into taco shapes and arrange between the cups of an inverted muffin tin.

Bake in the preheated oven until firm and lightly browned, 4 to 5 minutes. Spoon 2 to 3 tablespoons chicken mixture into each wonton taco shell and top with slaw.

 

RAK #8: Kimberly Morris

Anna Blankenheim Death, Random Acts of Kindness, Tragedies , , , ,

This is the eighth of 49 random acts of kindness (RAKs) that I’m doing to honor the victims of the Orlando Pulse nightclub shooting. Hopefully each small act puts a little bit of happiness back out in the world!

This one I did at work – I found a vending machine far away from my own desk (where people would recognize my writing) and taped enough money to it to get something to drink. This RAK is in honor of Kimberly Morris, who was a bouncer at the club. She was known as a tough girl, but one who filled a room when she entered it. Rest in peace, Kimberly.

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RAK #7: Peter O. Gonzalez-Cruz

Anna Blankenheim Death, Random Acts of Kindness, Tragedies , , , , ,

This is the seventh of 49 random acts of kindness (RAKs) that I’m doing to honor the victims of the Orlando Pulse nightclub shooting. Hopefully each small act puts a little bit of happiness back out in the world!
I did this RAK while out to dinner with my parents – we saw a family with five adorable little kids and I decided to pick up their tab. This RAK is in honor of Peter O. Gonzalez-Cruz, also known as “Ommy” and who was 22 years old. He was known for making people laugh and always bringing joy to the room. Rest in peace, Ommy.