“The difference between school and life? In school, you're taught a lesson and then given a test. In life, you're given a test that teaches you a lesson.” ~Tom Bodett

My family learned a very unforgettable lesson in the spring of last year.  My dad, the man who doesn't go to the doctor unless he is in great pain, went in for a routine physical in the middle of the week.  It turned out to be anything but routine.  A few specialists and tests later we learned that he would need open heart surgery immediately.  So the beginning of the following week we started a journey that was frightening, exhausting, and life changing.  At the young age of 55, my father required not the quadruple bypass the doctors were expecting, but eight bypasses to provide critical blood flow to his heart.

Seeing my dad go through that experience was heart wrenching.  If you've never seen anyone after open heart surgery I don't think you can fully understand the impact it has on a body.  They look like death.  I don't know how else to describe it.  I just could not believe that my dad was that swollen, pale person laying there.  We came very close to losing our dad.  Too close.  He is the rock of our family.  He is the sense of reason and optimism in a home of loving, but emotional females.  We need him!

With time, he made his comeback.  He even went golfing the first week the doctor gave his okay (I think it was in September).  We all  consider ourselves very blessed that he is still with us.  Because open heart surgery is not the solution to heart disease (just a temporary second chance) I decided to try my hand at healthier cooking.  I bought three cookbooks geared for heart health (low sodium and low fat).  I tried many recipes, some good and some not so good.  I shared some with my family, not always with great reviews, but some were better than others.   Then life happened, things got busy, and holidays came and went.  I've fallen back into bad habits and so has my family.

The best dad and grandpa!!

Here's my request if I have any blog readers left.  Do you have any good suggestions for healthy eating?  Any great recipes that taste good but are also low fat and low sodium?  Heart disease is present on both sides of my family tree.  I need some inspiration and motivation to continue the life change and eat healthier.

And, any of you who can, go hug your dad (and your mom, siblings, spouse, kids, etc.)  The people we love need to know it and hear it regularly because we never know when life will send us a test to teach us something!!