Fabulous Reading!

I just finished a delightful book. I read The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. The story takes place in post-WWII England starting in London and ending in the Channel Islans of Guernsey.

This was a very quick read and perfect summer reading. The story has some serious points, but is mostly light and fun. There's romance and a little intrigue (though mild at that). The whole story is written in letters, so you get to know each of the characters both by how they write and by how they are described by others. I especially liked that the main character is herself an author and discusses her own works and her love of other authors. It makes for a great literary adventure. She refers to Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy often and looks for love just as Elizabeth did. You'll have to read to find out if her story ends as happily as Elizabeth's.

Because You Asked So Nicely

Several folks have requested the Spitzbuebe cookie recipe, so here it is for anyone who'd like it. Note that I just use the mixer instead of blending in the flower by hand.

Spitzbuebe
1¼ cups sugar
6 cups flour
2 eggs
1 pound butter
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 pinch salt

All ingredients should be at room temperature.

In a mixer cream the shortening and sugar until fluffy. Add the eggs, a pinch of salt and the vanilla. Beat until thoroughly mixed. Using your hands, mix in the flour but only until it is incorporated into the mixture. Just fold the flour into the batter. The result will be a very sticky batter. DO NOT OVER-MIX.

Spread flour on a large surface and scrape the batter onto this surface from the mixing bowl. Sprinkle with flour and being to spread the dough with your hands to flatten it out. Then use a rolling pin to push the dough flat to about ¼ to ⅜ inches thick.

Cut cookies into desired shape. Make sure there is an equal number. In half of the cut out cookies make a smaller middle hole. Place the cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake in a pre-heated oven at 350° for 10-15 minutes. The cookies should be a beige color and not brown, if in doubt break one to see if it is done.

Let cookies sit overnight, then prepare by spreading jam on bottom cookie and covering with top cookie. Sprinkle powdered sugar over cookies.

My New Goal

OK. I'm putting it out there for everyone to see. I have 54 weeks to train. I've signed up three times and not done it, but next year, I'm signing up and DOING the Danskin triathlon.

• There's a new spinning class at my gym on Monday mornings.
• I started running intervals again last week.
• There's a pool at my gym (if only I could find a time when all the lanes didn't have three people in them).
• My friend Kathleen has decided to train too.

Aren't these all good reasons to do it? I also think it will be enough time to get me there with the 54 weeks to go.

Annzy, are you in? ALL in?!?

Catching Up -- Cookies!

A couple of weeks ago, we had an activity at church where we all came and talked about a country we love and know about (other than the US). I shared some fun and interesting info about Switzerland.

Everyone got a kick out of seeing the cows with flowers on their heads and the beautiful alps, but the best part of sharing my experience in Switzerland was sharing the food. I made cookies that my family calls Bullseye cookies, but are called Spitzbuebe in Switzerland. The name is the word for a precocious little boy, I'm sure named that because the three holes in the top look like a little face.

First I made the dough, which is a lot like a simple shortbread cookie. They have to be rolled out and cut into tops and bottoms. The bottoms are just a simple circle, but the tops have three holes cut out. At least, this is the traditional look of the Spitzbuebe cookies. I've made them at Christmas with stars cut out of the top, but I only ever saw them in Switzerland with the three holes. The DH decided to call them Bowling Ball cookies.

After they're baked, it's best to let them sit overnight to kind of mellow. I'm not sure why, but they're definitely better if they sit for a while.

Once they've sat overnight, they get the yummy jelly filling. It goes on the bottom cookie and then the top goes on and powdered sugar on top of that. In Switzerland, some bakeries put powdered sugar and some put a really thin glaze. I like both, but it's just too much work after everything else to add glazing to the process, so mine always get powdered sugar.

The end result is yumm-o! These are definitely my favorite cookie. I only make them about once a year because they're a bit more work than most cookies, but it's worth the effort every once in a while. And my Swiss friend at work was delighted to share this treat with me.

Weekend Away...

This weekend was the DH's company picnic. His generous company pays for everyone to travel to Portland and puts everyone up in a hotel for one night. So, Saturday morning, we headed South to Portland. It took us just over three hours to get there and traffic wasn't too bad. We went to the picnic where we enjoyed the heat, had very good food, played some games, and enjoyed a lot of good company. We had a really nice time, but finally gave up when we were just too hot. At that point, we went and checked into the hotel and had a rest in the air-conditioned room.

That evening, we went with the Stahl's to shop at Powell's Books and then out to dinner. We had a great time at Powell's and didn't quite break the bank. The DH and I both found a couple of books we wanted. Annzy called at the most opportune time and even she got a book in the process. it was actually kind of funny. She wanted a cookbook that she didn't know the name of. She gave me a brief description that I gave to one of the people there, who quickly handed me the exact book she wanted. I love a bookstore where the people working there actually know the books.

We then went to dinner at Clyde Common, recommended by one of our Mathlete friends. It was a really great choice and all four of us were very happy with all the food we had. My only regret was that we were too full for dessert. I guess that's not exactly a problem though.

We got up and had to get breakfast before heading out of town, so we went to get the best breakfast around at Mother's Bistro. Fortunately, we beat the rush and were able to enjoy fantastic food again.

Of course, it's good to be home again, but we had a great time on our mini-excursion.

The Anniversary of My First Memory

Today is the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 lunar landing. The lunar landing was televised on our black and white TV, and watching that report is the earliest memory I have. I would have just turned 3. My older brother loved all things scientific, so it's no surprise that my memory is of sitting on the floor a foot rom the TV, next to him. We were in the L-shaped family room with linoleum tile on the floor, long before walls were built to add another room and wall-to-wall carpet was installed.

Beauty is Not Optional

Beauty is not optional, but it is often crowded out by the day-to-day activities that make up our lives. We are pressed by things that are important in the moment, but not of import. Getting to work on time is important in the moment. Noticing beauty in our lives is of import.

If we are not deliberate in our lives, we may miss out on much of the beauty that could come our way. Beauty comes to us in many ways if we are aware — a smile, an article, watching the evening sun go down and noticing the firey red clouds, the touch of a good friend — these moments of beauty are all around us if we are not distracted by other things.

The following poem expresses this thought beautifully...

If I had time to find a place
And sit me down full face to face
With my better self, that cannot show
In my daily life that rushes so:
It might be then I would see my soul
Was stumbling still toward the shining goal;
I might be nerved by the thought sublime —
If I had the time!
-Richard Burton

Muslih-uddin Sadi, a sheik who lived more than 720 years ago, wrote the following verse entitled Gulistan

If of thy mortal goods thou art bereft
And from thy slender store two
loaves alone to thee are left
Sell one and with the dole
Buy hyacinths to feed the soul.

That which is beautiful truly does feed our souls.

Terry Tempest Williams, a noted Utah author, was in New York City to see the editor of the New Yorker Magazine. To help break the ice, she had purchased some flowers for the editor. It was very cold as she walked down 43rd Street and caught sight of a woman who was sitting on the subway grate wrapped in a blanket with only her eyes showing and those eyes were focused on the flowers. Terry didn't give the flowers to the woman because that would be patronizing, but in the next block, she found a flower shop and went in and bought some big yellow mums and went back to the woman. As she handed the mums to her, the woman said: "I am eating, but nobody gives me food for my soul – beauty is not optional."

Given this, I was fascinated with the social experiment put on by the Washington Post in April 2007. You can read about it in the article Pearls Before Breakfast. It's a fairly long read, but well worth the time.

And watch the video from YouTube below:

Holiday Weekend

Last weekend, the DH and I took a much needed vacation. It was my birthday, so I told the DH that I really wanted to visit Granny (my paternal grandmother) for my birthday. She lives in Idaho Falls, ID, so it took some planning, but we got to have a great visit with her.

We started our vacation by flying to Boise. I got to visit with my old friend Rochelle (who I've known since 4th grade) and then we had dinner with my friend Andrea (who I've known since I was 2) and her husband. After dinner, we played games with Andrea, Ben, and my parents. It was a wonderful way to spend a day.

On Saturday, we celebrated my birthday by eating cake and ice cream for breakfast. I did some sewing and then we went to Five Guys for hamburgers (YUM-O!) for lunch and headed out to the freeway to go to Idaho Falls. We got there around 6:00 and went to cousin Aaron's house for a nice BBQ dinner with almost all the Turner clan. It was great to catch up with Aunt Beth and Uncle Bob and see what all the boys and their significant others are up to. After dinner, we went to Granny's place and visited for a couple hours before heading back to Aaron's for a few fireworks and a good night's sleep.

On Sunday, Aaron made Abelskivers for breakfast before we went back to visit with Granny again. It was such a delight to talk to Granny, hear her stories, and enjoy her great attitude. I don't know many people who just turned 93 who are so pleasant to be around. I'm very thankful for such a wonderful example in Granny. After that short visit, we headed back out of town, but on the highway instead of the freeway. Our next stop was Craters of the Moon National Monument. The DH had heard about it and really wanted to go. The nicest surprise about the trip was how green and lush everything was and we loved seeing all the wild flowers. It's been an unusually wet spring in Idaho, so the flowers are in bloom much later than usual. We explored the lava flows, cones, and tubes and met a lot of nice people along the way. If you're ever planning to drive to Yellowstone or Teton National Park, it's definitely worth the detour to see Craters of the Moon. From there, we headed to Sun Valley where we checked out the town and spent the night.

On Monday, we drove up through Galena Summit where we saw a spectacular view of the Sawtooth mountains. It really was an amazing view. From there, we went to Redfish Lake and took a turn about the lake and tried out the fishing. The fish weren't biting, but I didn't care. It was so lovely and peaceful that I enjoyed myself entirely without caring about the fish. From there, we headed through Stanley and Lowman and then over through Garden Valley to Hwy 55 and back to Boise. We had a great visit with my brother and sister and their kids and then went to bed tired. It had been a great drive around the southern part of the state.

On Tuesday, I finished up my sewing and we had lunch with the whole family before heading back to Seattle. I was reminded why I miss Idaho and the DH was introduced to new landscapes that he really enjoyed as well. On our last day in Boise, we started planning our next road trip. We think the next one might be in southern Utah. We'll see!

Feeling Independent

I love Independence Day! I'm sure you just assume it's because it's my birthday, but there's more to it than that. I'd actually be fine if my birthday were any other day, though it's kind of funny when people find out my birthday is on the 4th and wonder what my parents were thinking when they named me.

I love small town parades. We went to Malad, ID at least once when I was young and I had such a great time at their parade. They really went all out. It was cool to see what seemed to be ancient men in the bed of a truck proudly waving VFW flags. Those men were proud and you could see it. Provo, UT also has a great 4th of July parade. The kids end up with handfulls of candy by the end and there's a great sense of community along that parade route.

I love seeing the flag flown. When I lived in Boise, a scout troupe in my neighborhood put flags in the yards of anyone who signed up on all the flag-flying holidays. There were a lot of them and made me feel great to see them all. I miss that in the neighborhood I live in now. I don't see quite as many flags as I'd like, even on the 4th.

As a kid, I thought it was great that we lit fireworks almost all day (it seemed!), then ate rootbeer floats and stood out on the deck to watch the city fireworks. It was fun to walk over to the bench and chat with friends while watching them from there, too.

That sense of belonging to a community that loves this country we live in is pretty great. I'm looking forward to a(n extended) family BBQ and family and city fireworks this 4th of July. I think I'll feel great!


This is one of my favorite renditions of the National Anthem. Jennifer Hudson rocks it! I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Loving My Country

Last weekend, the DH and I spent time in NE Oregon enjoying a lot of the landscape. This weekend, we'll be heading to Idaho to tour a portion of the Southern part of the state. It's my home and I have a certain longing for that landscape. I'm looking forward to sharing that land that I love with my DH.

I've also been thinking lately how much I love my country. We forget so often how very blessed we are and what a great land of opportunity we live in. Even the worst off among us are better off than many in war-torn or third-world countries.

I can't get through the national anthem without tearing up. I loved seeing the original Old Faithful being restored at the Smithsonian when I was there last. I may even be a bit of a sap when it comes to thinking about the ideal of America, even knowing it's only an ideal and that for many it is far from their reality. I truly love this land of mine.

Not the Surprise We Had Expected

The DH and I are heading to his sister's house just outside Hermiston, OR tonight to visit for the weekend. A couple of weeks ago, the DH's older half-sister (H-S) called to say that she and his dad (FIL) would drive up to surprise the DH's sister with a nice visit. It sounded great and we were looking forward to the family visit.

Fast forward to Wednesday night. H-S and the FIL left California to drive to sister's house, but went really far out of the way. Additionally, H-S and the FIL weren't getting along and H-S wanted to drive, but FIL said no, so she actually said she'd rather get out of the car. At a gas station in Wells, NV (yes, very far out of the way), she left FIL alone. She went to a hotel for the night and called the DH's sister to let her know that, SURPRISE!, they had been on the way to visit, but she had left the car and had no idea where FIL was now.

Needless to say, that left everyone in the family considerably worried about the wellfare of the FIL. He is diabetic and has issues with low blood-sugar that can leave him disoriented. We prayed and worried and hoped for the best.

Well, he ended up being just fine. He spent the night in Twin Falls and then drove to OR and landed at the DH's sisters house in the early afternoon on Thursday. The H-S, however, is sleeping in that bed she made in Wells, NV. I'm not sure how she's getting home, but she'll manage somehow.

As for the DH and me, we're headed Southeast this evening to go have a lovely visit with my in-laws. I'm sure we'll have a great time. We'll go the direct route though. We're not taking any detours.

Don't Tell My Mom!

Yesterday, I ate ice cream for lunch. It wasn't just any ice cream though. It was Molly Moon's in Wallingford. And, it was salted caramel flavor ice cream. I fealt like I was really breaking the rules (Hi, mom!) by eating dessert first and then forgetting about any other real lunch all together. It's typical for my dad to eat ice cream for breakfast, but we usually have real meals for lunch and dinner.

I can't even describe how wonderful the salted caramel ice cream was. I usually don't like to mix my sweet and savory, but this salty flavored confection was great. It left me feeling like I'd had a real treat with the buttery, salty, sweet flavor and wonderfully smooth texture. I highly recommend it!

Happy Father's Day!

I'm not sure why, but I always think of my dad when I read this poem. He's such a great example to me and has helped me become the person I am. I look to him as the voice in this poem and, though I'm not aspiring to be a man, I have watched him guide my three brothers to be the great men they are.

I love you dad!

If
-- by Rudyard Kipling

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you
But make allowance for their doubting too,
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream--and not make dreams your master,
If you can think--and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it all on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinews
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on!"

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings--nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much,
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And--which is more--you'll be a Man, my son!

Fun With Food!

Last week, I got a bee in my bonnet about making something asian for our themed ward party. I saw a blog that showed the really great dessert sushi and I just had to make it! On Saturday, I bought all the ingredients, but then ran out of time before we had to go to the dinner, so I just took cashew chicken instead.

Since I had everything to make the sushi, I just had to do it. It was actually kind of fun to make and turned out pretty cute. The DH was even impressed (after thinking I was a bit crazy to want to do this).

The first bit of sushi in the middle of the picture was made by putting a slab of rice crispy treat about 10 inches by 2 inches on my silpat, then running gummy worms down the middle and rolling it lengthwise into a roll. I then wrapped that with fruit roll-up and then sliced it into pieces. After that, I put orange sugar on top to look like fish rowe.

The other sushi was made by making a little wad of rice crispy treat, putting a swedish fish on top and then slicing a bit of fruit roll up to make a little wrap.

To work with the rice crispy treat, I put on a surgical glove and sprayed the glove (especially the ends of the fingers and thumb) with PAM cooking spray. When I tried to work with the rice crispies without that, it was just a gooey mess that wouldn't stick together. I also appreciated the help of my able assistant Bop as it was a little tricky at times.

I really like the finished product! It turned out to be pretty cute and took about 20 minutes total in effort with one batch of rice crispy treats. That batch made about 30 pieces of the sushi roll and 20 of the fish pieces. I had to go to two stores to find green fruit roll-ups and that was probably the hardest part of getting it done. I highly recommend it for a time you want something a little different and creative for a treat.

Song of the Lark

I graduated with a degree in English Literature. I love to read and my favorite literature is Western American Literature. I think Willa Cather is one of my favorite authors, so I was really looking forward to reading Song of the Lark. I even read the really long foreward. The story is supposed to be semi-autobiographical, so that drew me in.

The writing is great, but I just could not get behind the main character. In the end, I found her quite unsympathetic. In this story, she is an opera singer instead of an author, and there is a heavy focus on what the woman sacrifices to be the artist she was born to be. The sad thing is that she really loses out on all the intimate relationships she could have had because she is so focused on her art. I guess I just question the either/or mentality. If someone is meant to be great, then I don't think that having real relationships with people would put that in jeapordy. I do realize that the lifestyle of an artist comes with some sacrifice, but there was just too much for my liking.

One thing I really liked about the book was the side story about how the girl goes to sing with the Mexican community in her small Nebraska town, much to the dismay of most of the Scandinavian town folk. Her mother doesn't mind it, so she's not having to sneak away. She really seems to connect with several of the Mexican characters, but they are still shown as very marginalized in the context of the story. I think that's just part of the period she lived in.

Willa Cather really is masterful at setting a scene and taking you there in every way. I could almost feel the rain when she described the stark Arizona landscape and the afternoon rain shower in the canyon. If you want to read Willa Cather, I would recommend My Antonia or Death Comes to the Archbishop before this book, though.

A Couple Days Late for Memorial Day

Please read this very beautiful blog post. Thank you Sean for what you do. Thank you Nathan. You're the only two people I know personally who are in the military right now. I think you're pretty great for doing what you do.

Need a Laugh?

Read the comments on this shirt on Amazon.

Huh-Larious!

The Promise of Warmth

We had a lovely weekend, but this morning, it sort of felt like Summer when the DH and left the house to go to the gym in the early hours. The sun was already up, and it smelled summery. It was still cool, with plenty of dew on the ground, but I loved the feeling I got walking out of the house.

The day started out overcast and a bit chilly, but I still left home without a jacket. The thought that crossed my mind was that it was well within the rules. As kids, we were allowed to put on shorts if the thermometer got above 65 degrees. The day promised 67, so surely I could go without a jacket. I remember begging to put on shorts as soon as it looked nice out in the Spring. It may have only been 53 degrees outside, but it was BEAUTIFUL! It looked like shorts weather, so I needed to be wearing shorts, already.

I'm a little more practical now (and wear shorts far less often), but I did ask myels, when would it be appropriate to start wearing capris to work? Is there a rule about that, like no white shoes before Memorial Day? At any rate, we quickly approaching that day, so you'll be seeing me with capris and no jacket for the next few months.

Thanks, Whitney!

I've finally put away the last of the Christmas presents. Are you proud of me?

The very last thing to do was to hang the very cool note board that Whitney made for me. The magnets are from the Duchess over at Yarnation. It's all very cute.

The first pic is the closeup view and the second is the view for context.

The note board is hanging in the laundry area of my kitchen. I love how it looks! Thanks for the cool Christmas present, Whitney.

Funny Spam (Redux)

I just went to delete the mail in my Spam folder and got a good laugh out of some of these, so I just had to share. I have not doctored any of these. They were real subject lines for mail sent to my e-mail address:

• You've recieved an answer to your question
  (funny, I don't remember asking)
• Putting Holy Fire in your Marriage!
  (I don't want to know how they plan to make that happen)
• Erase your man troubles xjum
  (still wondering what the xjum is and how it might help)
• Obama: I hear voices of dead people
  (Really? would that get you to open the message?)
• Don't Waste Your Time
  (Don't worry, I didn't)
• Pqraz Wubag
  (Who opens mail with that kind of subject anyway?)
• Buy our goods -- live 200 years!
  (No thanks. All my friends would be dead.)

All that and many very offensive messages and other crazy things. I do get a kick out of some of these though.

My Fun Weekend

I realize that it's been a few days since my return, but I still need to catch up on the fun weekend I had last week.

It started with a flight to Salt Lake on Wednesday evening and then a drive to Springville to visit Camille and her brood. It was great to see all her kids. They're growing up into such great people.

On Thursday morning, we left Springville for Provo and the BYU Women's Conference. I had some trouble sitting for long periods of time in the stadium seats, but other than that, it was really wonderful. We heard some great, uplifting presentations and went away from the day spiritually full. That evening, we went to Jason's Deli for dinner and then to the Scera Playhouse to watch Thoroughly Modern Millie. It was such a fun show! Diana's father-in-law did the sets, so we got comped tickets and it would have been worth it even if we'd paid full price. It was a little different from the movie and just as fun. It was also great that Ann joined us for the evening.

On Friday, we had more Women's Conference and I also spent the middle of the day with my old friend Browynn. We were best friends during our freshmen year at BYU while we were both totally engrossed in the music program there. When we were in school, we'd meet up in the main lobby of the HFAC and then wander over to the CougarEat for lunch and laughter. For this day, we just met at a local restaurant and then spent a couple of hours remembering those days and catching up on what we've been doing in the interim. Browynn has six (yes, six!) kids and lives outside Lehi now. We talked of struggles and joys and everything in between. I had such a nice time, I almost didn't want to leave. However, I knew more fun people were waiting for me back at BYU. We finished off the Women's Conference that afternoon and then drove up to Heber City in the canyon and checked into a condo there and then went out for dinner. We talked and laughed and had a great time staying up too late.

On Saturday, we stared with an early lunch at the Zermatt resort and then went into Park City. Ann, Camille, Karen, and I went for pedicures, then met up with the rest of the ladies at the outlet malls. We took a break for a movie (the forgettable Ghosts of Girlfriends Past) and then went back to the outlets until they closed. After that, we went to dinner and then back to the condo for more talking and laughing.

On Sunday, we ended our stay in Heber with a huge buffet brunch at the Zermatt resort. It was the best meal I've had in ages. We really enjoyed it, too.

Then we drove down to Salt Lake and walked around temple square. It was gorgeous! The flowers were beautiful and we got a bit of a break from the rain while we were there, so we could really enjoy it. Then Shannon, Gwen, and I were off to the airport and had to bid the Dixon women goodbye. It was sad to leave, but we had such a great time and I was really missing the DH by then.









While I was waiting for my plane in the airport, I was sitting by a window when a huge storm rolled through. The rainbow at the end was beautiful! The picture doesn't quite do it justice, but it was a wonderful end to a great weekend.

This American Life -- Live!

Thursday night, the DH and I went to see This American Life -- Live! at a movie theater. The show is on NPR, which makes it a radio show, and the premise is that they pick a theme each week and provide several stories on that theme. The radio program has been around for years and years and they started a TV series on Showtime two years ago. I haven't seen the TV show, but I love the radio broadcast. I get the podcast download and listen to it at the gym. It makes the time go by quickly and I have a hard time being in my car at just the right time on Saturdays to hear it when it's on.

They record in front of a live audience on accasion and started broadcasting the live feed to movie theaters last year. Basically, you get to watch them record the whole show, from the comfort of your movie theater seat. I'd heard about it and really looked forward to seeing it.

The fact that I can't sit comfortably yet for more than an hour put a damper on my enjoyment, but other than that, it was great. We really enjoyed the whole thing. The show we saw will be on the radio May 7th, so anyone out there can hear most of what we saw.

More than anything, this whetted my appetite to watch the This American Life TV series. I'm putting it in my Netflix queue now.

On Being Ill

I'm generally a very healthy person with very few issues. Getting really sick is very unusual for me and certainly not something I really know how to react to. The process has helped me learn a few things about myself.

• I have a pretty high tolerance for pain, but that may be a bad thing. It kept me from going to the hospital the first time I had a problem with my gall bladder and delayed my inevitable trip to the ER.


• I have never been a fan of drugs (legal or illegal) and have really never taken anything more than Advil for most of my adult life. As a result, the pain killing drugs worked really well, but I didn't have any fringe benefits from the heavy doses of drugs. The feelings I got that were not just pain killing, were rather uncomfortable (like the room spinning), so I'm pretty sure there will never be at risk of abuse.


• I'm not very good at sitting around. I'm used to having a pretty full schedule and have had a really hard time taking it easy. I do OK on vacation, but that's with activities planned too.


• Anesthesea does a number on me. I was unable to focus on much of anything for three or four days, so I couldn't even read effectively for a while.

What a Week!

Last week at this time I was feeling quite overwhelmed by the thought of our Women's Conference coming up and getting all that done. The good news is that everything went very well. Our theme was "Rise Above it All" with hot air balloon decorations. We ended up having over 130 people show up and the classes were very well attended and people seemed to have a really nice time. We had worried because it was the day before Easter that many women would have other conflicts, but there were plenty of others who made up for those who couldn't come.

On Sunday, we had a really nice Easter dinner. I even made homemade rolls. Everything about it turned out nicely. Then later that evening, life took a bit of a left turn. My stomach started hurting and progressively got worse during the night. I called in sick to work, but tried to ignore the pain. It really was so bad I had to do something about it though. By Monday afternoon, I was scheduled for surgery to have my gall bladder romoved. Apparently, I had a gall stone the size of a boulder (the big marble in a marbles game) and I could choose to wait until it attacked again or just get it removed immediately. I chose the latter.

I had laproscopic surgery, with four small incisions. Then they super-glued me back together. It's all supposed to make for a "quick" recovery. I'm feeling a bit peeked still, but doing quite well. I decided not to take the Vicodin today and I'm managing with just a little discomfort. At this point, the most annoying part is that I can't seem to concentrate on much, so I'm not getting any good reading or video watching done. I have it on good authority that it's a common side effect of the anesthesia. I'm hoping that's worn off by tomorrow.

I'll check in later and let you know how it is on day 4.

Expiration Date

The DH and I spent a couple of hours enjoying an indie film last night. Expiration Date is a wonderfully entertaining little movie filmed mostly in Seattle. We loved seeing places we recognized (like the troll, gassworks park, and Ballard) and loved the characters in the movie. It's especially good that all this entertainment didn't include anyting lewd or really even much in the way of inuendo. I think that's the mark of a great script. I'm not sure the young kids would be interested in the movie, but you wouldn't have to turn it off if they were around.

The story is about a man whose father and grandfather were both killed by milk trucks on their 25th birthdays. As a result, our main character believes he will expire at the hands of a milk truck on his 25th birthday as well. The movie basically chronicles the week leading up to his birthday and there is a lot of comedy and drama intertwined in those few days.

We both give it two thumbs up and recommend it for everyone.

Unfortunately...

I got the biggest kick out of this. You'll have to try it yourself as it's quite entertaining. Go to Google and type in "unfortunately, [your name]" and don't forget the quotes. Here's what I found:

• Unfortunately, Noelle is not a music librarian and could not understand all of the road maps found in sheet music.
• Unfortunately, Noelle's feelings about home -- or rather, her hometown of Rose, Oregon -- were changed forever the day Thomas Sutton broke her heart.
• Unfortunately Noelle fell victim to the ball last night. The field was a little damp and covered in goose poop last night, which may or may not have added to any body malfunction.
• ... unfortunately Noelle is likely to miss the game against St. Mochtas.
• Unfortunately, Noelle didn’t think to ask about the condition of the radio until they were half an hour into the flight.

I just can't tell you how unfortunate it really is that I'm not a music librarian. I'm still wondering who Thomas Sutton is. And I hate to think of the words "falling" and "goose poop" in the same context. I'm OK with missing that game against St. Mochtas, though. I'll worry about the condition of that radio later.

Monday Pick-Me-Up

This made me smile when the DH forwarded it in e-mail. Enjoy!

Mrs. Salty's Peanut Butter Pie

I volunteered some time ago to help our friend Tina make desserts for an auction at her son's school. I originally only signed up to make one, but as it got closer, it was clear that Tina didn't have enough help, so I ended up making three. I have tons of great chocolate recipes, but they already had too many chocolate desserts, so I had to come up with something new. Tina suggested something with peanut butter, so I searched on Food Network and found a peanut butter pie recipe. The funny thing is, I keep thinking it's "Mrs. Salty's" pie but it's really "Mrs. Salter's" pie. I like my name better, so that's what I'm calling it. I think it turned out pretty good (assuming you like peanut butter). I made it again for a get-together tonight, but this time, I added some chocolate. Chocolate just makes everything better, doesn't it? Here's the original recipe:

Mrs. Salter's Peanut Butter Pie
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup sugar
8 ounces cream cheese
1 cup crunchy peanut butter
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1 graham cracker crust, store-bought or premade (I bought oreo crust)

Directions
Whip cream with 1/4 cup sugar. Mix all other ingredients until smooth and fold in whipped cream until well blended. Pour mixture into a graham cracker crust and chill for several hours before serving

I Win! I Win!

I'm a little competitive, but only on things I think I can really do well at. I had no idea that I'd be winning contests at the doctor's office, though. Who would ever think of it? And who would ever want to? I mean, who wants to have the highest blood pressure they've ever seen in someone still standing, or the highest cholesterol of anyone without heart disease? It's just not the place to get competitive.

I had a doctor's appointment on Monday, where I mentioned a list of symptoms that generally boil down to the fact that I just don't feel that great. The doctor did a blood draw and the general stethescope listening and sent me on my merry way. Last night, I got a call from said doctor. I wasn't asking to participate in the contest, but apparently I won for the lowest Vitamin D levels they've ever recorded in a patient. Lucky me! I win!

The bad news is that I have dangerously low Vitamin D levels. The good news is that just about everything I complained about can be attributed to low levels of Vitamin D. I also found out that it's quite common to have low levels and that it can manifest itself in much the same way that thyroid and blood sugar problems show up. Vitamin D also contributes to an overall healthy immune system, so people with higher levels do better at warding off colds and flu and are less likely to develop many types of cancer, including colon cancer (and who'd want that?!?).

So, I'm starting on perscription strenght Vitamin D supplements and hope to feel better soon. It won't improve quickly -- the doctor said I should come get checked in 6-8 weeks to see if the levels have gone up noticably -- but it will improve over time. That means, I should be feeling more myself over time as well. And that makes me feel like I really did win.

Highlights for another week

It's been another whirlwind week. Work actually turned out to be extremely difficult, so I was very happy to have some nice things going on outside work. My DH was great the day after my company laid off a bunch of people. He gave me big hugs and took me out to Bick's for dinner. I had my favorite, seafood curry. No one on my team got laid off, but there was a lot of drama and plenty of questions for me to answer. I guess another highlight is that no one on my team got laid off last week.

This weekend, the DH and I hung out with the nephew here in town. We started out Friday evening with dinner at an Italian restaurant and then books and bed. Saturday, we hung out and ran errands and did grocery shopping and all the while, the nephew was a great sport and had a good time with us. We also played with the Wii and watched movies. The nephew shared one of his favorites with us -- Star Wars Clone Wars. It's a cartoon and we liked it. I was impressed with the nephew's knowledge of space and I was certainly glad that I like Star Wars. I think that he enjoyed going out to breakfast with us and getting McDonald's for lunch. After all that cruddy food, we ate dinner in.

Tonight, the DH and I got to help a couple in our Ward that we're friends with. They needed help with their satalite TV and called in a frenzy. This from a couple who wouldn't call for help if a meteor fell in their backyard. We had a great time joking around with them and I called the helpdesk after fiddling with the remote for 20 minutes didn't work. All in all, we had a great time with them and we figure we can help them out any old time.

Playing on my iPod This Week (Mar 6) -- Neko Case, Middle Cyclone

I saw that my friend Ed was listening to Neko Case and was reminded that she had a new album out. The new album is Middle Cyclone. I love Neko's style and sound. She has such a haunting voice that I really enjoy. I've listened to the album a couple of times now and I'm liking it quite a bit.

I couldn't really find a single from the new album, so this will have to do. It's still interesting.

To Sleep Perchance to Dream

I had the most disturbing dream last night. It actually kept me from going back to sleep.

In my dream, I noticed that there was a little bit of green in my belly button. I pulled on it and nothing happened. Then I got a really good grip on it and pulled the little green sprout, and the large seed it was sprouting from, and the 2-3 inch tiny thin root out of my belly button. I had to grip the sprout just right and tug for a while, but it finally came out. The seed looked about the size of a large grapefruit seed. I was both relieved to have gotten it out and completely repelled by the fact that it had been there. And how had it gotten that big?!?

Seriously, this dream was worse than any when I've been chased by bad guys in the dark, been a month late for a college final, or been in the middle of some other catastrophe.

Highlights...

It really has been a good, busy week. It started off with our weekly Family Home Eatin' with the usual suspects. We really enjoy the company of those folks. On Tuesday, I had a stake relief society presidency meeting where we got more plans in place for our women's conference in April. On Thursday, we were going to home teach, but instead we spent a few hours at the hospital ER where one of the women we home teach was admitted when she lost consciousness. She's fine now and out of the hospital, but that certainly added to the excitement of our lives for a couple of days.

On Saturday, we headed out to Monroe with Beep and Bop to see our friends, the Momma's Boys. We had a fantastic dinner! I'm very lucky to have friends who are such great cooks. Nicole made corn chowder and homemade rolls (divine). Dan made the most amazing dessert of grilled pineapple, mascarpone cheese, nutella, and toasted hazelnuts. I never knew these things could be so delightful together. You can read Giada de Laurentis' recipe here. After dinner, we had a great time talking and playing fussball, ping pong, and pool. I think I could really enjoy pool if I got a little more practice.

On Sunday, I got to go to my own ward for church. I like ward conferences, but they take me away to other wards and I prefer going to my own ward, so this was a good thing. We then had a very low key Sunday with no other plans. The DH got a long nap and I caught up on some of the ABC TV shows that I can't see on TV due to the Dish Network issues with Fisher Broadcasting (Booooo! as said by the witch in Princess Bride). And now we've started another week...

Did You Know...

This provided the teacher in me with plenty of food for thought. Specifically, I was thinking how important it is for all of us to learn to be good critical thinkers and problem solvers. We need to learn to be flexible and adaptable. It's important that we know facts (like learning about history and math), but the biggest impact that information will have on us is in helping us to create a framework on which we can build the problem solving and critical thinking.

Create

I've been thinking lately that I've not been putting time into some of the things that make me happy. I've just been working and going with the flow. This needs to stop. I need to be more deliberate in choosing what I do and making time for the things that matter most. I need to create more. I need to read more. I need to exercise more. All of these things make me feel good about myself and make me better at being good to others.

This is my thought for a Friday.

Let's Look at the Bright Side

I love this interview on Conan. It does put things in perspective to some extent. Unfortunately, embedding is disabled, so you'll have to watch this on Youtube.

Everything is so amazing and nobody is happy...

Highlights for the past couple of weeks

I've still been having trouble posting regularly, but I'm trying to get back in the habit. The last couple of weeks have been full of fun and friends and all kinds of good stuff.

• For President's Day weekend, we went to Seabrook (20 miles North of Ocean Shores on the Washington coast) for a bit of a getaway with friends. We loved the house and little community that they've built there. And the bed was amazing. Patrick and I are trying to figure out how we can get that same mattress at home now.
• Extra time with my husband because of the weekend away. I don't know why, but we both really like going on road trips together. It's great to be in the car and have good scenery along the way.
• Our friends Carolyn and John got married last Friday. It was great to go to their wedding and share the joy with them.
• Carolyn's friends Serge and Linda came up from Las Vegas and we had a great time visiting with them.
• I enjoyed seeing some old friends from working at Microsoft at the wedding parties. Carolyn is working in the group I used to work in at Microsoft, so we now have several mutual friends.
• I had lunch with Jan and Julie, former collegues at Microsoft, yesterday and had a great time catching up. I was so lucky to work with great people while I was at Microsoft and I still really miss them.

That's the short version. I'll try to get to posting some pictures of the beach trip when I'm home one evening.

You're It!

I got tagged. This is how it works: go to the pictures folder on your computer, go to the sixth file, go to the sixth picture, post it, then tag 6 people.

This is a picture of the Chaco pueblos in New Mexico. In 2004, Mom, Dad, Ann, and I went to Santa Fe for Christmas. On the drive home, we stopped here. It was really cool (and kind of cold, too).

I'm now tagging Daddy Shark, Bop and Beep, Lucy at An Ordinary Mom, Lizzy at My Ice Cream Diary, the Accident Prone Lefthander, and Becky.

My Mom the Blogger

It took a while, but my Mom is finally blogging at Grammy's Place! Go check it out and give her some encouragement.

Playing on my iPod This Week (Feb 3) -- Gomez

I really enjoy the band Gomez and have especially enjoyed the album How We Operate. The DH likes it too (and I think he'd even admit it in public). I think they have a really interesting sound and I love that they don't sound the same on every song. I can actually listen to the whole album without getting bored.

I love the song How We Operate... and hope you do too!


I also love the song girlshapedlovedrug because it has the best lyrics. But don't go looking online for the lyrics. When I did it gave me some crazy compter virus site. You can't trust that!

Highlights for the last month?

Even though I had a lot going on, there were still several highlights over the last month. Here's the good stuff:

• In mid-January, I got to hear Michael Pollan speak at the Seattle Arts & Lectures. In addition to being very entertaining, he also got me thinking. I'm now looking forward to reading some of his books. Thanks, Kathleen, for loaning me one!
• Later that same week, I made the trek over to the U district to hear Julie Beck, the General Relief Society President. I really enjoyed her message about how none of us really get to live the "dream" we thought about as young girls. It was a very nice reminder that although life doesn't often turn out as you thought it would, it can still turn out quite nicely. I left feeling pretty good about my life as it is now.
• Last weekend, the DH and I got to help celebrate a friend's birthday at Luau. The restaurant is really fun and the food is fantastic. We also got to see some folks we don't often run into, so that was fun too.
• On Saturday, also last weekend, was the Seattle Mathlete's baby shower. Beep did a fantastic job of planning, creating, and decorating. You can see more of what she did here. I loved the chartreuse theme, but the very best was her invitations and the onesies that she embroidered with the same bird she put on the invites. She's brilliant!
• Later that weekend, the BIL, Brent, came to town for some business. Since his business just happens to be my business, we got to hang out some. It was pretty cool going on a client call with him.
• Last week was super hard, but another hightlight was finishing two HUGE projects that had completely unreasonable deadlines. It feels fantastic to have them done and out of the way.
• This weekend, I finally got a pedicure that I've been wanting for weeks, but just couldn't find the time to do.
• My Sunday was actually very relaxing and I didn't work at all. That's the way it's supposed to be.

What have your highlights been? Enquiring minds want to know!

Coming Up For Air

Ah, it's been quite some time since I posted regularly. This month has been especially difficult and busy at work, I've worked well past 9:00 most nights and the last three weekends, and a couple of nights past midnight this month to get everything done that had to be done. Most of the really difficult things should be behind me now. Of course, you know how it is with work. Something's sure to come up, but I'm quite certain it won't be as difficult as the last few weeks.

The DH has been particularly supportive while I've been having to work so hard, so I thought I'd reward him with some cool t-shirts. I love Threadless, so I found a couple I knew he'd like. He's particularly fond of toast and bacon (not necessarily together, but that would be OK too), so there are the cool T's that I found for him.

And, because great minds think alike, the DH thought I might need a little pick-me-up so he bought me a really cool sweatshirt. If you're not familiar with the logo, it's for the fictional coffee-shop in the TV show Gilmore Girls. He tolerated a lot of episodes of that show before it went off the air. He's such a good guy!

And, earlier in the month, he found this really cool and unique vase at the consignment shop around the corner. It's wonderful.

"All About Us is Din"

This morning, I saw a new president sworn in. The world is in economic turmoil. There is war all around. Many in the world and the nation are suffering.

We live in a great nation. We have a peaceful transition of power. The process was followed from start to finish. I don't live in fear that my vote does not count or is not counted. Men prayed at the inauguration.

Many have died for this day. We are not always right, but the constitutional republic is a beautiful thing.

On My Bookshelf

Tinkerdoodle lent me the book Persepolis, a graphic novel by a woman who grew up in Iran until she was shipped out to boarding school in Austria. Marjane Satrapi was only 9 years old when the revolution took place in 1979. She depicts how the changes that took place happened through the eyes of a child, but with the depth of an adult seeing it all in retrospect.

I enjoyed the style of the graphics and thoroughly enjoyed the story. It gave me more insight into life in Iran. I also listened to Rick Steves talk about his recent trip to Iran and the filming of a documentatary about Iran. I must say, it's left me wanting to learn more. I feel like Iran is severely misunderstood by Americans and I'm ready to learn more.

I highly recommend Persepolis and look forward to reading the next installment, Persepolis 2. Once I've read the second one, then I'll watch the movie. It was a big hit at Cannes a year ago and got quite a bit of press when it was in theaters here, but I didn't get to it then. It may have been the French with English subtitles that made me think renting it might work out better for me. I'll let you know how I like the rest of the stories.

Sharing Some Crafts

These are two of my favorite Christmas crafts.

The first is the pair of lounge pants that I sort of made. I had some help from my mom and sis, but I started them and I finished them, so they were made by me. Right? Right! They were a gift for my SIL and she's worn them, so they must be OK.









The second is a craft made by my crafty friend, the Duchess. She's pretty darn good considering that her specialty is fiber arts. Aren't these the cutest magnets? They totally fit my design sensibility too. I just love them. Plus, they look fantastic on the message board that my sister crafted for me!

New Look Getting Better

The Blogger error went away, so I could upload the new template. YAY! I'll customize soon.

New Year, New Look

I was trying to upload a cool new template when Blogger pooped out and kept giving me errors. So, now it's totally messed up. I'll fix it when Blogger is playing more nicely.

Happy New Year -- and Playing Catch Up

There's been so much happening in the last week that I'll just have to give you the highlights.

Christmas Eve was spent making homemade pizzas with our friends as we helped them celebrate one of their traditions. We had a great time visiting, playing with kids, catching up on the goings-on, and just having a really nice time with fantastic people.

On Christmas day, the DH and I woke up to open presents. I think we both did wonderfully. Here are the spoils for me:

and here are the spoils for the DH:

My best thing was probably the Lodis red handbag, big enough for the laptop. It's beautiful, but the best part is that the DH had seen me coveting it and then went back later and picked it up. I think the DH likes his new iPod the best, though he should probably speak for himself.

On Christmas day, the brother, SIL, and nephew came over for Christmas dinner. We had smoked turkey from Jensen's smoke house and I think I'm never buying regular turkey again. It was SO yummy! I highly recommend it if you can get a smoked turkey. The SIL also made really tasty pumpkin cake that tasted super yummy, a little like gingerbread. I made pear cake with no refined sugar for the DH and we had whipped cream with cinnamon instead of sugar in it. My friend Kathy came up with that brilliant idea and it's really tasty (assuming you like cinnamon the way I do).

The cream pudding was too thick, so after we ate, I mixed the rest of the cinnamon whipped cream into it. Now that was a happy accident! It was even tastier than it had been, which is pretty tasty.

On Sunday, we enjoyed turkey and dumplings made with some of the leftover turkey. The smoked turkey made that taste great too! Bottom line -- smoked turkey rocks.

This week, the DH has been off most of the time, but I've still been working. It's been super busy at work with my right-hand gal going out on maternity leave any moment now. good times!

Last night, for New Year's Eve, the DH and I stayed home and I set up a new printer and did some cleaning and purging in the office. I like to save a lot of things, but I sure enjoy getting rid of stuff. I like order more than I like stuff. So far, I have four boxes of things to take to DI. That feels good. We stayed up until midnight and toasted in the New Year with blueberry sparkling cider and watched some of the space needle fireworks on TV. We'll need to go see those in person some time.

This morning, we slept late and then took down all the Christmas decorations. The DH still needs to take down the lights outside, but other than that, it's all cleaned up. The house seems a little emptier now, just like it does every year. It's also a little more orderly and looks like a home ready for a new start.

I hope you all have a very happy new year!

Tradition!

I have strong opinions about tradition. I come from a long line of folks who love Fiddler on the Roof. Plus, I know how tradition and memory help ground a person.

When the DH and I got together, he didn't have many Christmas traditions. I had several from my family, but we wanted something that was just ours for Christmas. The main things we have now are selecting at least one new Christmas tree ornament together and going on the Christmas Ships. We also share some of my old family traditions, including putting a chocolate ladybug in the toe of our Christmas stockings and reading the Christmas story on Christmas eve.

Well, this year seams to have turned out as the year the traditions didn't happen. There was a huge storm the day of our Christmas ships reservations, so we didn't make the treck out to the docks in Kirkland to go. Because of all the snow and storms, I couldn't make it downtown to Cost Plus to find chocolate ladybugs. The ornament we were looking at in Hawaii somehow didn't get purchased (but Mom sent an ornament, so maybe we can consider that our ornament for this year), and we didn't even read the Christmas story on Christmas eve.

It may sound like a very sorry Christmas, indeed, but really it was wonderful. Instead of our normal traditions, we had the 9 days of Christmas from my parents, went to our friends' house for Christmas eve homemade pizzas (their Christmas tradition) and had a wonderful visit with firends there, we both recieved lovely gifts from each other, and we had a wonderful time with the local family here for dinner on Christmas day and seeing some of the neat toys the nephew got for Christmas.

Out of this, we may have a couple of new traditions. I like the Christmas dinner on Christmas day and I think we'll keep doing that. We had smoked turkey (divine!!!) and I think that may become our Christmas staple. We may have to join the Christmas eve pizza eaters, too. We had a great time making our individual pizzas and sharing with friends.

In the end, I learned that the most important part of the holiday is who I spend it with. In spite of the snow and mixed up plans, we had a wonderful holiday. I'm so blessed with my wonderful family and happy that we got to spend time together without the interruptions of work. The most important tradition still happened. I spent Christmas with the DH.

The 12 -- Oops, Make That 9 -- Days of Christmas

This Christmas, my parents did something really wonderful for all of us. They put together a series of gifts for us to open each day on the nine days before Christmas. We opened books, puzzles, holiday pillow cases, a wonderful Christmas CD that my dad put together, and more fun things. '

Tonight, we opened the last gift, the ornament you see here. If you can't read it, it has Christ in large letters with the smaller lettering reading Wise Men Still Seek Him.















On this Christmas eve, I wish you all a very merry Christmas. Love to all of you!

Snow Days

We've had more snow in the last week than I've seen in one place in years. I don't even think I saw this much in Boise the last few years I was living there. I believe there were at least ten inches of snow on the ground by early this morning. In fact, I think there's a good five or six inches packed on the road.

As I was trying to get out of the neighborhood, it reminded me of growing up on Wyndham lane, another street with low volumes of traffic. We had a few winters with quite a lot of snow. One winter, we even had snow days – not because of the snow exactly, but because the boiler went out at the school and there was no heat. They never closed the schools for snow.

We've seen all the main roads here get plowed and sanded and the lovely side streets stay heavily laden. In those heavy snows back home, the families on the street got together and actually paid to have the street plowed. It meant that we could safely get in and out of the street when the rest of the roads were easy to traverse. It also meant that our street melted and was dry as quickly as any of the main roads.

Today, we're going to see some ugly streets as it's started to thaw and those ten inches of snow are blocking the storm drains. I think it will take a few days for everything to melt off, but the worst of it is over now. And I don't think we'll be having a white Christmas after all.

Playing on my iPod This Week (Dec 23) -- Kathy Mattea "Good News"

Kathy Mattea is a super talented Country singer. I don't have any of her Country albums, but her Christmas album Good News is one of my favorites. And, for once, this is a song even my dad will really like.

Like my sister Annzy, I really love the Christmas music, but I stear clear of The Carpenters and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. I like things with a little extra something. That's what I get from Matea's Christmas album.

Enjoy!

Highlights and more...

I didn't post highlights last week, because it was just too crazy, so I'll have to cover the last two weeks. Here are the good things:

• A fun project with the Relief Society making stockings for under-priveledged children. We also had very yummy soup for dinner and I got to hang out with some fantastic women who I really enjoy.
• Going to Seven Brides for Seven Brothers and then getting Annzy jealous about it. It was based on the movie, so it had all the fun things Annzy loves.
• A weekend with NO obligations at all and then church cancelled. It's been a long time since I could just take care of personal stuff and enjoy the weekend.
• A super fun Indian cooking class with Carolyn and Lori. The food was fantastic and I need to get some of the spices so I can try the recipes. We totally stunk after the class, but it was worth it.
• More Indian food the next night with my co-workers. The only down side of that was wishing Patrick could have joined me.
• Snow, snow, and then more snow! I guess this is good and bad, but I'm not stranded anywhere, not missing a trip to see loved-ones, and not worried about getting in a wreck on the roads. I'm blessed to be in a nice warm house and be able to work from home, so I don't have to stress out about things getting too far behind there.
• Making pecan brittle and having it turn out right on the first try (so I didn't have to waste all that butter and pecans).
• Giving a talk in church yesterday. I know it's hard to believe, but I actually volunteered and then got help from Dad and gave a talk that got pretty good reviews. There were only 28 of us at church and I must say that I enjoyed the much more intimate meeting.

Well, life is good and I'm looking forward to the rest of this week. We may see a thaw, but we may see more frozen stuff too.

Halls Officially Decked

It took us a little longer this year than usual this year to get the decorations up, but they really do look lovely. When we went to get the tree, we saw boughs of fresh greenery, so we picked up some of that too. I used it on the fireplace and was really pleased with how it turned out.

We also got the tree up and decorated. It only took a week to get it all done. The tree stood bare in the living room for a full week waiting for lights and decorations. Patrick had gone out of town for a few days and I just didn't want to decorate it without him.

I have many "favorite" decorations, so I couldn't point out the best one, but I sure like how the nativity scene looks this year.

Let It Snow

Time: 5:45 p.m.
Date: December 20th, 2008
Temperature: 23 degrees fahrenheit
Skies: Overcast and snowing
Location: Broadview neighborhood of Seattle, WA
Time to drive to work: silly, it's Saturday. No driving to work today. And church is already cancelled again for tomorrow.

Baby It's Cold Outside

Time: 10:20 a.m.
Date: December 19th, 2008
Temperature: 25 degrees fahrenheit
Skies: Clear and sunny
Location: Wallingford neighborhood of Seattle, WA
Time to drive to work: 27 minutes (half the time it took yesterday)

A First

It's a beautiful day in Seattle today. We have an inch of snow that fell overnight. It started after about 9:00 last night and kept on for a good part of the night. The snow cover makes everything look clean and pretty. It's especially nice with all the Christmas lights on the trees and houses peaking out of the snow.

It's the first snow of the season for us, but not the "first" that I'm really blogging about this morning. In over 40 years of living in the intermountain west, I have never seen church cancelled. Today, no church! We got a call about 6:30 this morning to tell the DH that his early meeting was cancelled and asking him to call a few other families to let thme know that church would be cancelled as well. So, the DH and I will enjoy the morning at home in our nice warm living room that's all decked for the holidays now.

The Secret -- I Guess It's Not an Inside Joke

18 months ago, or so, I learned about "The Secret" from a friend at work. It was discussed on Oprah and then Kevin lent me the DVD. It was astoundingly silly and the DH and I had a good laugh about "using the Secret" to get the things we want. You see, the concept behind "The Secret" is that you can get anything and everything you want in life by simple positive thinking. Well, there may be some truth to the positive thinking, but it's not going to get you a dream house or delightful vacation.

So, after watching the DVD, the DH and I started talking about "using the Secret" to get the red light to change to green or find the best cut of meat. Then when Annzy and Aimes came, Annzy "used the Secret" to get a trip out to Forks.

Now, everyone's using our joke! First it happened last week when Yang talked about "the Secret" on Gray's Anatomy (and did they jump the shark this season with the ghosts and operating on each other, or what?!?). Then this week, it happened again on Pushing Daisies. I watch four TV shows, and in the matter of a week, "the Secret" has been mentioned on two of them. Go figure.

7 Brides, or How to Make Annzy Jealous

Last night, I got to go see 7 Brides for 7 Brothers at the 5th Avenue Theater. It was great fun! I wanted to go, but of course the DH would rather have surgery than go see a musical, so that wasn't going to happen. He's at training out of town this week, so when friends asked at the last minute yesterday afternoon, I was thrilled that I didn't already have plans for the evening.

I met the group at a restaurant accross the street from the theater where they met for dinner before the show. We went over to the theater to find our seats somewhere near the very top of the back balcony. Well, the show was free for me, so the seats were fine. Just before the lights went down, it was obvious that many of the balcony seats were not going to be occupied so we moved quite a bit closer.

7 Brides is really just a fun show. There's a LOT of dancing and this particular show had quite a few scenes where the shirts fell off the men. Considering that these are very fit men with abs of steal, the shirts falling off was just fine. There are not really any tunes you'd be humming on your way out of the show, but it doesn't really matter. It's a bit of fun for the couple of hours your there and the cast really delivered on the fun. I love watching performers who clearly enjoy what they're doing and you could tell how much they all enjoyed it (or could really act like they enjoyed it).

If you're in Seattle and can get to the show, I highly recommend it -- unless of course you hate watching people sing and dance. There's a lot of that going around in 7 Brides.

Playing on my iPod This Week (Dec 10) -- Barenaked For the Holidays

My apologies to the young ones reading my blog, but I really like the band Barenaked Ladies in spite of (or even because of) the name and their Christmas album is really fun. I think the DH is already tired of it, but I love it. I have a lot more love for the Christmas music than he does anyway, so one time through was probably enough for him.

I really enjoy Christmas music that is a little less traditional. I grew up with Soulful Strings, a Christmas album with all instrumental jazz arrangements of Christmas tunes and loved the Charlie Brown Christmas soundtrack. Now, I enjoy the Manhattan Transfer and Cuba L.A. albums, but my favorite is Barenaked for the Holidays. Good stuff.

Take a listen (and be sure to stick with it, because it just gets better):

Highlights -- and We'll Forget the Lowlights

Life doesn't seem to be slowing down at all, but it's been a great week. The DH and I bought a Christmas tree this weekend in addition to going to two parties with lots of fun friends.

Friday night we went to the famous nacho party hosted by those crazy ice cream eaters. The nachos were great and the green tomatilla salsa was the highlight of my night. Wait -- maybe it was the peppermint bark. Both were very tasty!

On Saturday night, it was the annual Christmas gift exchange at Fred and Cathy's house. We all brought two gifts to exchange and that's just where the fun began. The gifts were funny, irreverant, practical, and everything in between. We left with a purse, a teepot, a spork, and a gnome. Now, that's fun times. I was a little sad when the DH lost the lottery tickets, but we'll live. I like to work anyway.

Sunday we had a wonderful time visiting with another set of friends who live in Lynnwood now. We went to church with them and then had a great pot roast dinner. We got to see their new baby and I even got to have spitup on my shirt. Good times! That evening, we went to a stake Christmas event around the broadcast from the first presidency and Mormon Tabenacle Choir. The presentation was a very nice way to be reminded of the reason for the season and associate with some really nice people. I was in charge of refreshments, so I ordered brownied from QFC and topped some with Andes mint sprinkle. I had a few friends (and tons of help from the DH) to get everything plated and out to the masses. It was an hour of pretty intense work, but everything went off without a hitch. We had exactly 20 brownies left over. How's that for planning? I was pretty happy about it.

Week in Review and Highlights

I've had one crazy week, but it's all behind me now. Here is some of the wackiness:

• I don't even know how many hours I worked last week. Even with the holiday, I know I topped 40. The DH and parents got to hear my conference calls, the BIL got to be part of my meetings, and the whole family saw me watching movies with my laptop always attached. It's ugly when there's a big deadline on December first.
• The DH and I traveled to Boise and go to spend time with my family. We also spent an evening with the Ips and an evening with the Godfreys. They are both great couples that I miss a lot being so far away.
• Thanksgiving dinner was GREAT! My family really can cook and there was too much of everything. It was also great to be in the same room with my entire family, parents, siblings, brothers and sisters in law, and all my nieces and nephews. They're all such wonderful people to be around. I think all the nieces and nephews just keep getting to be more fun too.
• A bunch of the women went to see Australia. I loved it. The cinematography was outstanding and the story moved along nicely. Even at one hour and fourty minutes, it didn't drag for a moment. And of course, I enjoy a good love story. I'd recommend it to anyone interested.
• The DH and I took two nieces to the World Center for Birds of Prey just south of Boise. It was really interesting seeing the different birds and hearing the volunteers there talk about the birds. The birds in the center now are all birds that couldn't make it in the wild.
• Had a great dinner at Flying Pie Pizzaria Gourmet Night with Whitney, Brent, and the girls. They have all you can eat gourmet pizzas in addition to all the regular stuff. YUM! And fun with such good company.
• The DH got to see three football games on Thanksgiving day and watched the BSU/Fresno State game on Friday. I can't say he got his fill of football (because he may never get his fill), but he sure got a good fix.

All in all, it was a great week with a lot of time spent with a great family and some good friends. I miss them already!