https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/2015/01/01/a-new-option-for-christmas-trees-holiday-trees/2025-07-19T13:07:20+00:00monthlyhttps://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/2014/12/07/deceased-grandfather-supported-grandsons-athletic-endeavors/https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/60dd3-dsc04478_0473.jpgdsc04478_0473https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/cf553-54d1aa616e07d-image.jpg54d1aa616e07d.imageTim and a player from Rock Bridge High School both go up for a rebound, as depicted in this photo from the Columbia Tribune. Note how the boys arms are intertwined; I don't think either one grabbed the rebound. Dad looked forward to attending Tim's games, and he would have loved to attend this one. https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/60f9d-banner.jpgbannerhttps://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/af6cd-football-dsc01301.jpgSierra Exif JPEGDad was a sports fan and a former athlete. He played football at Langley High School in the Pittsburgh area and at Penn State University, and he ran track. https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/b53db-playing-w-timmy-2006.jpgPlaying w Timmy 2006A year before my parents moved to Jefferson to live near us, we visited them in Pittsburgh. Here, Dad and Tim play a tabletop hockey game. 2025-07-19T13:07:00+00:00monthlyhttps://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/2014/11/27/daughter-appreciated-mothers-sympathy-after-miscarriage/https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/0e2c4-scan0029.jpgscan0029My parents drove from Pittsburgh to Jefferson City in April 1995 to join us for Suzette's Christening. They managed to join us when we had our other two children baptized as well. I know they would have liked to have had another grandchild. 2025-07-19T13:06:34+00:00monthlyhttps://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/2014/11/19/recent-memorial-services-force-caregiver-to-face-reality/https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/7b12b-89thbirthday1.jpg89thBirthdayWe celebrated Dad's 89th birthday in the craft kitchen at Heisinger's. A spacious kitchen with several tables, the craft kitchen provided the idea spot for preparing meals and celebrating holidays.https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/56499-imag1339.jpgIMAG1339Dad is enjoying breakfast with his grandson and my nephew Patrick Yorkgitis at Heisinger Bluffs, where my father lived from 2007 to 2013. Heisinger and its sister facility, St. Joseph, held a memorial service in honor of deceased residents. https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/3fb98-lisadadnov2012.jpgDCIM100MEDIA2025-07-19T13:05:00+00:00monthlyhttps://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/2014/11/10/veterans-day-a-chance-to-honor-my-father-a-wwii-veteran/https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/634ba-imag0184.jpgDCIM100MEDIAAfter our presentation, Carol Bax, a staff member at my daughter's elementary school, met Dad and described how her parents became acquainted in Italy during WWII. "I'm glad we had that opportunity," said Carol, whose father, Samuel Lucido, was stationed at a military hospital in Italy in the 1940s. Her mother, Tina Aprea Bax, was from Sorrento, Italy, but was working then as an au pair in Naples. Carol's father used to see Tina walking with the children in her care, and one day, they met. "The rest is history," Carol said.https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/fd9de-italian-airfield-1944.jpgItalian Airfield 1944Ed poses in an Italian airfield, 1944. While he was stationed in Italy, he lived with an Italian family. During our presentation at my daughter's school, I read from his journal about a meal he shared with the Italian family. https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/54639-c47-in-air.jpgc47 in airhttps://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/6f680-gettingpreppedveteransday2012.jpgDCIM100MEDIADad and I arrived early at my daughter's elementary school before the Veterans Day 2012 program. Here, we are preparing our remarks. https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/eb1b5-twoveterans2012.jpgDCIM100MEDIAAfter my father spoke at my daughter's elementary school on Veterans Day 2012, several people came forward to meet him, including this man, a member of the armed forces who had a child at the school. https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/5b51b-formal-military-portrait.jpgFormal Military PortraitFirst Lieutenant Edward A. Yorkgitis appears in his formal military photo. A navigator, he served with the Army Air Corps, now known as the U.S. Air Force. 2025-07-19T13:03:08+00:00monthlyhttps://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/2015/01/27/trip-to-joplin-and-carthage-showcased-steps-in-grief-process/https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/d46cb-dsc05178_00392.jpgdsc05178_0039The spirit tree in Joplin symbolizes the resiliency of humankind.https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/aeaac-dsc05169_0030.jpgdsc05169_0030At the Precious Moments Chapel in Carthage, Mo., artist Sam Butcher painted this mural in a room dedicated to his son, Philip, who died in a car accident. The sign in heaven reads "Welcome home, Philip."https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/68d8a-dsc05178_0039.jpgdsc05178_0039To me, the spirit tree in Joplin, Mo., epitomizes the resiliency of Joplin residents. 2025-07-19T13:00:32+00:00monthlyhttps://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/2015/03/09/lunch-today-lunch-yesterday/https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/80220-1988.jpg1988Yes, I was my parents' daughter as this birthday card from them attests. I was in my early 20's here, and, of course, I had no idea that one day, I would be their caregiver. I also only a glimpse of the friendship I would form with both of them as we would age. (On a side note, the dress I am wearing here was one my mother wore as a young woman. I loved that dress! Made from a crinkly fabric in pale lilac, it had a tight bodice and a full skirt. When I wore it, I felt like a spring flower.) https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/e2af9-scan0014.jpgscan0014https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/87d5e-dsc04693_0787.jpgdsc04693_0787https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/44cfd-dsc04471_0945.jpgdsc04471_09452025-07-19T12:58:43+00:00monthlyhttps://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/2020/02/20/caregiver-of-memories-after-being-my-parents-caregiver-for-seven-years-i-have-become-a-caregiver-of-memories/2020-05-27T15:47:24+00:00monthlyhttps://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/2020/05/01/its-easy-to-scatter-but-hard-to-gather-celebrating-mother-earth-every-day/https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/vida_eggs-e1588185982653.jpgvida_eggsA beautiful spring illustration. My cousin Vida Pranckus creates beautifully colored eggs from recycled onion skins. She wraps each one tightly in hosiery to help deepen the color and create patterns -- what a great eye to reuse nylons!https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/dsc00652-edited-1-1.jpgDSC00652 - Edited (1)https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/dsc00652-edited-1.jpgDSC00652 - Editedhttps://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/dsc00652-edited-e1588179638131.jpgDSC00652 - EditedDated 1964 by the manufacturer, this wrapping paper makes me appreciate my mother's penchant for saving, saving, saving. https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/dsc00643-e1588029833638.jpgDSC00643An assortment of clear glass jars hold makeup brushes, concealer, and other such items. They help me stay organized.https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/archie_french_on_chair-e1588017795911.jpgarchie_french_on_chairhttps://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/arch-in-chair-e1588180835557.jpgarch in chairArchie, our pound puppy, has adopted this chair, which my mother found on the side of a Pittsburgh road. It was brand new, albeit with a broken leg. A handyman fixes it for $50. https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/arch-under-chair-e1588366798816.jpgarch under chairSweet dreams, Archie!2020-05-04T16:39:50+00:00monthlyhttps://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/2020/04/15/a-lithuanian-custom-for-easter-2020/https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/lisa_pic.jpgLisa_pichttps://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/easter_2020_egg_tapping-e1588281608303.jpgeaster_2020_egg_tappingAnother Lithuanian custom: egg cracking. Pick an egg and try to crack everyone else's egg. My husband, left, and his egg beat me and my egg, right. He beat our son and older daughter, but Liz, our youngest child, defeated him with her egg. I had forgotten about this tradition until I began reading online about Lithuanian customs. When I was a child, it was a favorite activity in the Yorkgitis household on Easter morning.https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/easter_eggs_2020-e1586905833456.jpgeaster_eggs_2020For 2020, my family and I dyed eggs three ways: 1) onion skins; 2) a kit of standard egg dye; and 3) egg paint sold with small sponges and a plastic tray. My mother gave me the glass dish cradling the eggs, and my husband bought the cloth hen at a garage sale. It reminded him of the hen his mother used each Easter to hold decorated eggs. https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/lithuanian_eggs_nest-e1588281042997.jpgA Lithuanian traditionA bird's nest and a picnic table showcase the six eggs I dyed with onion skins on Easter Sunday. My son also dipped the center egg in green dye while trying to produce a black egg. 2020-05-02T16:53:14+00:00monthlyhttps://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/2018/01/04/resolved-shop-til-i-drop/https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/fcf25-20180101_120847.jpg20180101_120847https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/677b0-20180101_115141_001-4.jpg20180101_115141_001 (4)2020-04-23T15:57:23+00:00monthlyhttps://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/about/https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/802db-dsc05221_0001.jpgdsc05221_00012020-02-21T21:35:27+00:00weekly0.6https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/contact/https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/person-smartphone-office-table.jpegPlaceholder Image2019-01-03T00:13:41+00:00weekly0.6https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/2017/04/03/a-birthday-note-to-ed-the-baseball-fan/https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/a75cd-pitchingtomatthewsnyderparkearly1990s-1.jpgPitching+to+Matthew+Snyder+Park+early+1990s (1)https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/44d5e-louisville-slugger-bat-with-signatures-for-dad.jpglouisville slugger bat with signatures for dadMy husband and I along with our three kids signed Granddad's souvenir bat. Note how the No. 15 follows Tim's signature. His teacher that year had required the students to write their class number after their names, so that's how Tim signed everything, from school papers to greeting cards to baseball bats. https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/d0941-louisville-slugger-bat-for-dad.jpglouisville slugger bat for dadAll three of my kids have played baseball or softball, so when we visited Kentucky on vacation in 2008, we just had to visit the Louisville Slugger factory. Everyone who takes the tour brings home a mini bat. We gave this one to Dad. https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/2d25d-the-swinger-1-e1491267531849.jpgThe Swinger (1)Dad never turned down the chance to play baseball. I love the look of concentration and the big "O" of his mouth. https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/d91c7-pittsburgh-sports-banner.jpgpittsburgh sports bannerIn the late 1970s and early 1980s, Pittsburgh really was the season of champions with its winning football and baseball teams. Willie Stargell was one of my favorite players. I brought this banner from Pittsburgh when we cleared out my childhood home. https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/d3339-16174923_10208285229631359_4552861519839706865_n.jpg16174923_10208285229631359_4552861519839706865_n2017-04-03T01:31:43+00:00monthlyhttps://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/2016/09/05/potato-salad-more-than-a-picnic-food/2016-09-05T01:39:45+00:00monthlyhttps://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/2015/08/31/a-gardening-legacy/https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/3c5fe-farmer-ed.jpgFarmer EdDad, the gardener, looks so proud of his crop. I don't remember his growing corn, but his corn plants look amazing. I also like the zinnias and how the pine trees -- some of our former Christmas trees -- give him an awe-inspiring backdrop. Note Dad's casual pants. I don't know why, but he never wore jeans, not until he was an older man and my sister-in-law bought him a few pairs he liked. https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/0951b-1988.jpg1988https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/e8e06-scan0056.jpgscan0056https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/8a47e-dsc_0335-1.jpgDSC_0335 (1)https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/7f590-tim-002.jpgtim 002https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/58fc8-banner.jpgbannerhttps://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/abbd1-new-photos-for-11312-1450.jpgnew photos for 11312 1450https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/2f28c-new-photos-for-11312-980.jpgnew photos for 11312 980https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/54098-new-photos-for-11312-668.jpgnew photos for 11312 668https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/be5e4-new-photos-for-11312-2182.jpgnew photos for 11312 21822015-08-31T00:09:11+00:00monthlyhttps://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/2015/05/15/love-doesnt-need-a-measuring-spoon/https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/bc20c-2015-05-13-23-06-38.jpg2015-05-13 23.06.38I sometimes prepare food haphazardly for my family, but I don't remember Mom ever doing that. She even cut sandwiches carefully, from corner to corner. Mom's magnet now hangs on my refrigerator. Years ago, we sometimes joked about her secret ingredient, but I really do think that love helped her turn ordinary meals like tuna loaf into a special family meal. (She also owned a spice canister with a similar message. My sister and I think it's squirreled away in a storage box, awaiting excavation.) https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/729d5-2015-05-13-23-08-12.jpg2015-05-13 23.08.12Mom measured most ingredients very carefully, using the flat edge of a knife to level off spices, flour, and leavening agents. After more than 50 years of use, my mother's measuring spoons are bent, discolored, and disconnected from each other. I still use them, however, and I treasure the connection with her. https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/590cd-dscn1790-1.jpgDSCN1790 (1)We spent Mother's Day 2009 with my mother in the intensive care unit at St. Mary's Hospital. We used this tray table in her room to hold her cards and a flower arrangement my sister and I created using silk flowers. Mom and I had taken a flower-arranging class years before and enjoyed it very much. (Note the handle of my father's cane to the right of the tray table. At that time, my father used his cane in a cavalier manner, often placing it where it would do him no good. He lost it several times, so eventually we put our names and my phone number on it.) https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/99172-ps2_ratchetdeadlocked.jpgps2_ratchetdeadlocked2015-05-15T21:15:00+00:00monthlyhttps://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/2015/04/13/in-honor-of-my-fathers-birthday/https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/b129f-2015-04-01-22-37-32.jpg2015-04-01 22.37.32My mother collected both milk glass and baskets, and I treasure this milk-glass basket. It served as a conversation piece as well as a way to deliver sweets to residents at Oak Tree Villas. I shot this photo in the activity room at Oak Tree Villas. https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/ddff1-2013-09-29-18-23-07.jpg2013-09-29 18.23.07Dad enjoyed having a private room at Oak Tree Villas, where he lived from August 2014 to May 2014. Dad would have turned 92 this month. To honor his memory, two of my children and I visited residents at Oak Tree Villas and served them lemon bars and/or brownies. We remembered a few of the residents from his time in the nursing home, but most people seemed to be new residents. Our visit was a success. "These sure are good lemon bars," one of the residents said. https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/853ef-2009-09-12-11-47-46.jpg2009-09-12 11.47.46https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/a0162-2003-01-01-00-26-43.jpg2003-01-01 00.26.43https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/8266c-2014-05-13-21-50-20.jpg2014-05-13 21.50.20https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/d9361-2011-04-03-03-53-15.jpg2011-04-03 03.53.15Dad liked the sweet and tangy taste of lemon desserts. For his 88th birthday, I made him this meringue pie. I didn't think the pie could handle a candle, so I brought one of my jar candles for him to blow out. https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/b4233-2015-01-25-06-07-50.jpg2015-01-25 06.07.50https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/cb64a-2011-01-30-11-37-10.jpg2011-01-30 11.37.10https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/610b8-2003-01-01-01-44-19.jpg2003-01-01 01.44.19https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/4d778-2003-01-01-01-23-35-e1590591853958.jpgHolding handsMom and Dad look like they could conquer anything as long as they have each other. Dad was 44 in 1967, and Mom was 42. Me? I was a year old. I stumbled across this photo in early 2020, and since then, it has become one of my favorites. I remembered Mom's paisley dress not from my childhood but from when she resurrected it in 2007, the same year she and Dad moved into Heisinger Bluffs in Jefferson City, Mo. "Mom looks so pretty and stylish," I thought to myself when I spotted her and Dad in the dining room of Heisinger's independent-living wing. Mom eagerly listed everything they had eaten that evening. "Lisa, you have to try this piece of cheesecake," Mom told me. "It's really good." She was right, of course. 2015-04-30T03:19:33+00:00monthlyhttps://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/2014/12/19/christmas-traditions-stand-test-of-time/https://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/728ec-king-and-queen-christmas-day-1993.jpgKing and Queen Christmas Day 1993My father picked trees that were very full while my mother always wanted a tall, slender tree. This one from 1993 is both very tall and very full. 2014-12-19T15:34:44+00:00monthlyhttps://sevenyearsacaregiver.com/24-2/2014-11-20T00:38:05+00:00weekly0.6https://sevenyearsacaregiver.comdaily1.02025-07-19T13:07:20+00:00