We're celebrating!

Our Mom and Dad are two fabulous people. There are just not enough words to describe what they mean to our family. Married over 60 years, they are still fun, bright and bubbly and an all around good time. When I was pregnant with my son Jon our family enjoyed a dinner. One of the topics of conversation was the names given to Mom and Dad's friends as they each became grandparents. Oooh the names. We speculated on some names for Mom and Dad and came up with Mimi and Bobo. We thought they were funny and the equal of the names of their friends. We didn't bestow those names on them that day but in conversation the names just kept popping up. Well the names stuck. To this day they are Mimi and Bobo. Dad's parents became Great Mimi and Great Bobo. In fact Mimi and Bobo's nicknames have nicknames - Meems and Bohbs (spelled somewhat phonetically to assure correct pronunciation).

This year has really been a challenge for Mimi and Bobo. Bobo's had a long bout of illness and a very major surgery and his pace at getting better has been more complex and protracted than any of us expected. To say the least it has been frustrating for everyone. Some nasty conditions warranted putting Bobo on coumadin to prevent clots in his heart and worse consequences. Coumadin requires foregoing lettuces and avocados. One of his very favorite salads is an orange, onion and avocado salad I have been making for decades.

This week, we learned Bobo could lose the coumadin and daytime oxygen. Hurrah to the infinite doesn't quite describe our excitement about this. To celebrate we need to make that favorite salad. This one's for you Bobo! Make it and celebrate with us.

Orange, Onion and Avocado Salad

This serves 4-6 people

One large head of romaine lettuce washied dried thoroughly and torn into bite-sized pieces
1 can mandarin oranges, drained
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
1-2 avocados, peeled, seeded and cut into cubes or slices

Place the above in a large salad bowl

Dressing

In a large container with a tight lid or screw top add:
1 C. vegetable oil
1/3 C. orange juice
1 scant 1/4 C. lemon juice
1 T. sugar
1/2 tsp. dry mustard
salt and pepper to taste

Shake well. Drizzle over the salad, toss and serve. I use less dressing to start. You can add more if it's not quite enough but the dressing/lettuce proportion should be very light and not a drench.