Christ-Centered Christmas, Day 8

Merry Christmas!

Christ-Centered Christmas, Day 7

"Marvelous is the chronicle that began with the singing of angels at Bethlehem and ended on Golgotha’s cruel cross. There is no other life to compare with His life. He was the one perfect man to walk the earth, the paragon of excellence, the singular example of perfection."

Gordon B. Hinckley, “The Wondrous and True Story of Christmas,” Ensign, Dec 2000, 2

(A Christmas lullaby from the December New Era, a magazine for LDS teens.)

spt: comfort

During the Christmas season there are more than a few activities/traditions which bring me comfort, but holiday baking tops the list! The kids love to help me. When they are older and think about life at home, I hope they remember our tradition of baking gingerbread cookies, sugar cookies, fudge and gingerbread houses every single year.

Christ-Centered Christmas, Day 6

reflectionsofchrist.org

“For each of you may this be a merry Christmas. But more importantly, I wish for each of you a time, perhaps only an hour, spent in silent meditation and quiet reflection on the wonder and the majesty of this, the Son of God. Our joy at this season is because He came into the world. The peace that comes from Him, His infinite love which each of us may feel, and an overwhelming sense of gratitude for that which He freely gave us at so great a cost to Himself--these are of the true essence of Christmas.” Gordon B. Hinckley, Liahona, Dec. 2000.

Christ Centered Christmas, Day 5

"Each of us is an
innkeeper
who decides if there is room for Jesus."

- Neal A. Maxwell

Elf Crystal, At Your Service

{coaster}

Wednesday night I met up with Kara for our unofficial holiday tradition of dinner and then me acting as her elf, helping with her Christmas shopping. Every year we just sort of find ourselves convening during the holiday rush and before I know it, there we are, shopping again for her five girls. I imagine we'll be doing it years from now when we're old(er) & feebl(er).

As it was, we were mocking the sensible shoes we already wear. ("They absorb the heft, they don't launch the heft!" HA! Favorite quote of the night. Possibly of the year.)

We had our favorite-ever pizza at CA Pizza Kitchen, pear gorgonzola, then shopped, then dessert. I think my sleep-deprived self bored poor Kara to tears, but our friendship has survived worse. The next day I awoke sleepy (out late), but happy (good time with friend). It took me a while to get out of my groggy state & then I spent some time with my little kitchen helper making tiny tea party cakes and then bread.

{tiny cakes}

{soup}

Earlier in the week, baby got to help put up the little tree in the girls' room; the kids & I were cracking up at him laying perfectly still, entranced by the lights. He was utterly relaxed and immobile and remained this way for well over ten minutes!

And no, that is not a real tiger tail. Just in case you were alarmed.

Thursday we made paper chains and christmas tree cards to send for Grandma's wall at the nursing home. My mom circulated a schedule for our family to do a "12 Days of Christmas" for Grandma, assigning each of us a rotating day. I wish I were better on my own at doing little things like that for my two grandmothers. I definitely think this should be a New Year's Goal for me. I have very good intentions, and very little follow-through.
Please take note of Max's hat, which I bought for him the day before during my elf duties. He loves it and seriously does not take it off. I caught him sleeping in it tonight. Sleeping! In! It!

He made this little modeling clay tea set for Mimi and told me it was her Christmas present. Upon realizing it was not actually clay, but plastitak (that sticky goo used to stick stuff up on the wall), he said it could just be the prototype. How does the kid even know that word?

{Tea Set Prototype}

Our Thursday ended with this happy plate of cookies left on our doorstep! I love getting doorbell-ditched with treats! We gobbled them.

And because I know you're thinking it...here is a closer look at one of my most favorite things in the world:

{delightful.}

Christ-Centered Christmas, Day 4

{This is how I imagine angels sing. Exactly like the amazing Sissel.}
{I love this talk on angels among us.}

“For each of you may this be a merry Christmas. But more importantly, I wish for each of you a time, perhaps only an hour, spent in silent meditation and quiet reflection on the wonder and the majesty of this, the Son of God. Our joy at this season is because He came into the world. The peace that comes from Him, His infinite love which each of us may feel, and an overwhelming sense of gratitude for that which He freely gave us at so great a cost to Himself--these are of the true essence of Christmas.”

Gordon B. Hinckley, Liahona, Dec. 2000

I've Been Snorting Lines...of Glitter.

I've fallen off the wagon. What began as an innocuous little foray to the paper store ended with me in my craft room at 2am, bits and pieces of scraps flying everywhere, paper cutter humming, embellishments organized in little glass cups, stamps and inks lined up...and the GLITTER!

Oh, the glitter.

I should know by now that I have an all-or-nothing relationship with glitter, and for quite a while now I've adhered strictly to my policy of abstinence. Really, only 1 person knows of my shady past with paper coordinates and glitter. If I'm anywhere near it, I just can't say no. I've fallen off the wagon, even the baby has bits of it in his feathery hair, and now I just need people to whom I can send the luscious cards!

Please go to my profile & email me your address! I would love to send my Snuffleupagus Friends a Christmas greeting!

spt: joy

Thanks to my own Christmas Miracle 19 years ago,
I have this family & these four little bundles of joy
are with me.

Sneaking sleeping kisses to Max...

...and to Isabelle...

...and to Mimi...

...and to little baby Jack.

Go to Lelly's place for more spt joy!

spt: love

I love to watch the First Presidency's
Christmas Devotional each year.

Christ-Centered Christmas, Day 3

Christ-Centered Christmas, Day 2

Mary's Heart by Liz Lemon Swindle

"And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which has come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.

And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds. But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart."

- Luke 2:15-19

Mother by Liz Lemon Swindle

Christ-Centered Christmas, Day 1

"Christmas is more than trees and twinkling lights, more than toys and gifts and baubles of a hundred varieties. It is love. It is the love of the Son of God for all mankind. It reaches out beyond our power to comprehend. It is magnificent and beautiful.

It is peace. It is the peace which comforts, which sustains, which blesses all who accept it.

It is faith. It is faith in God and His Eternal Son. It is faith in His wondrous ways and message. It is faith in Him as our Redeemer and our Lord.

We testify of His living reality. We testify of the divinity of His nature. In our times of grateful meditation, we acknowledge His priceless gift to us and pledge our love and faith. This is what Christmas is really about.

For each of you may this be a merry Christmas. But more importantly, I wish for each of you a time, perhaps only an hour, spent in silent meditation and quiet reflection on the wonder and the majesty of this, the Son of God. Our joy at this season is because He came into the world. The peace that comes from Him, His infinite love which each of us may feel, and an overwhelming sense of gratitude for that which He freely gave us at so great a cost to Himself—these are of the true essence of Christmas.”

Gordon B. Hinckley, “A Glorious Season,” NewEra, Dec 2007, 2–5

Joy

Move Over, Mr. Darcy

Chillin' with my Bad Self at 2:30am

At the moment, I am trying to calm my frazzled nerves after watching "24" tonight. My theory is this: If I write about my normal, sedate, (non-special op's) & somewhat boring life, I will distract my brain from firing signals to my synapses at 250x the normal rate.

Saturday I mobilized the troops (slang for "lazy kids") and we scrambled around, spiffing up the house to show it once again. We left shortly after to watch the girls dance at the Poinsettia Festival. Mimi was soaking up the spotlight as usual, and Isabelle did a little hip hop number. She was so excited to perform her dance and practiced it frequently at home for a tiny audience of one, seated in a carseat on the floor. Later that night, I went to dinner & to see "Twilight" with the girls. Because I'd heard mixed reviews, I had low expectations and ended up really liking it. Contrary to most people I've talked to, Edward was just exactly as I'd pictured him. I couldn't get settled down after coming home--perhaps due to the fact that I'd consumed approximately 137 Diet Cokes--and held Food Storage Friday by my little ol' self at 2:30am.


I decided I needed something more specific than calendaring my meals, so I followed the how-to at "Safely Gathered In" and planned my 3 month supply. I feel much better about the organization. My first attempt at organizing pantry meals wasn't sitting well with me. I needed more structure. I followed the directions exactly and now feel like I've made a good start. The next step will be to do the math and write out a big master grocery list to work from and start collecting the ingredients. This process had always been very daunting to me, but I figure it is well past time to just start, and I have gained peace already just by making babysteps. It seems everyone I know has ALL their wheat and ALL their grains and ALL their water and honestly, I feel like a big doofus. Yes. I am just starting my measly 3 month supply.***

Anyway, my current plan is to accumulate all the ingredients for my meals on the above list and then work on gathering the long-term supply of food like bulk amounts of wheat, rice, etc. I have found safelygatheredin.blogspot.com to be invaluable! It's a very informative blog, and also very helpful in that they break the process down into just that....a process.

Today was church--without the two Littles. Baby and Mimi stayed home, because baby is sick and Mimi is just tired and grouchy. Little Jack napped from 11:30pm until 4:30pm! Poor little sick guy. I think his power nap was restorative, though, because he woke up playful and happy.

In Relief Society, we discussed Elder Uchdorf's talk, "Lift Where You Stand," which I've actually read a few times in the past week. We talked about how talents of body, spirit & personality are given to us from the Lord to be used in service, to give to others using our unique capabilities. It's a great talk.

Tomorrow I plan to knock out a plethora of errands, then come home and read books to the Littles and make cards for my card exchange. Life is good.


***And thanks, Mom, for my boxes & boxes of food storage you gave me! That's what got me started.

Making a List, Checking It Twice. And Then Checking It 158 More Times.

Today I am watching my friend Emily's two darling girls during the day. I've been looking forward to it all week because it will force me to stay home. The girls all play together amiably; the disappear into the playroom and I don't see them for hours, so I've known I could get a lot done. Earlier in the week, I started a list of little projects that have been on the back burner. My "back burner", incidentally, is no little camp stove...it's a full-blown industrial cooking range.

Your back burner

My back burner

I've been adding to the list all week and have been looking forward to checking off my little boxes. So far I've held a sick baby (best-ever use of my time) and broken up little-girl-brawls.


There's always this afternoon.

Artsy

Has anyone seen the Google logo today??? HILARIOUS!

Which reminds me: Dad. Where are my Daily Levities?
My little email inbox daily dose of joy?

(my dad sends my family funny New Yorker-style comics, which most of us don't understand. Most of us do pretend to understand them. At least I do. But I usually get the ones about art. Maybe I've been bumped from the list.)

A Sick Little Puddins

I have a folder on my computer desktop entitled, "To Blog." Inside are many delights...ideas I've been tucked away, collections of thematic photos I'm adding to, outings and trips I want to blog about but am hoping to give them the time they deserve...little posts waiting to happen.

None of it is going to be gotten to today.

Baby is sick. Today I held him for most of the day, loved him, squished him, smooched him and even made him laugh. He's a sweet little boy; the doctor even noticed. "He's got a sweet disposition for one so sick," she said.

He's finally asleep, behind me in the swing. Poor little ear-infected, fluid-lung boy.



A little side note: When I complimented Mimi for being so good while I took care of Baby she responded, in injured tones, "Well why can't you take care of me, too?" Brother. The girl can milk it.

The House Smells Like Lemon Pledge

I am exhausted.

I spent all evening yesterday & most of the day today cleaning my house in order to show it to a prospective buyer. I consider myself a somewhat tidy person, but there's nothing like seeing your rooms through someone else's eyes to make you SEE YOUR CLUTTER. I whipped through every single room, trying hard to make it devoid of anything that would draw the eye to a clutter spot. I wanted the rooms to seem open, airy, pleasant and, well, roomy.

Basically, I staged my own house.

And it was hard work!

Now, I just want it to stay this way. The entire house is clean at one time...when does that ever happen? We got a good start on it last weekend when I cracked the whip and I honestly thought it wouldn't take long to get it ready to show. Um, nope.

I'm going to try in the next week or so to be extra attentive to setting aside a time for my kids to pickup. We do after-school jobs and they usually have to pick up their bedroom floors before bed, but the "kid stuff" that is scattered here and there throughout the house starts to accumulate. I think maybe as part of our evening routine, everyone in the family will be in charge of a different room and be responsible for getting back into the state it is now. (Is it obvious that I am feeling tense? I worked fast & furious and I dread tomorrow's breakfast mess.) I did have Mike's help last night--he deep-cleaned while I picked up kid-litter. ("kiddy litter!" ha! a new colloquialism is born!) He also spiffed up the garage and then inside today from 4-6pm. And I think I broke the child labor laws today, ordering all three kids around. But still. I just really want it to stay perfectly clean. It feels so good! I don't know if that's real life, though.

Okay. Enough obsessing. Here is a peek into the master bedroom. I usually keep this door closed because there is laundry being folded or toys on the floor. It's nice not to have to worry about it being cycloned if the door is open & someone arrives unexpectedly.

I did a massive clearing of my desk.
Desk Before:
Desk After:

Somehow, I've got to keep it this way--even though the calendar and school papers will need to come back out of hiding. Also, I need to find a magnet board or something to display the pictures and notes the kids give me; it makes me happy to look at those kid scribblings.

If this house sells, we will move across the street to the new house. And hopefully we will be able to stay there after a disappointing financial year. I love my neighborhood and ward and feel very at home here.

spt: me today

Welcome, Christmas!

(For more Self Portrait Tuesdays, go here.)

Some people use medicinal marijuana.

I practice the usage of medicinal carbs. Lest you worry, I'm a user--not an abuser.

I got released from my calling today, a completely unforeseen event. I knew the YW President was going to be released soon, due to a move to Japan (Japan!), but I kinda thought I was going to stick around. I've been in turmoil about it all day because I really love working in the Young Women program. I had Big Plans for the next few months. What's wrong with me, that I got the ax after not even one year of being in the presidency?! I know this is silly, but I can't help the feelings that are bombarding me....inadequacy...maybe I wasn't a good example...I was disorganized...not good enough... unwanted...too silly & not adult enough.....

Or maybe it is because I'm funny looking. I'm not sure.

But really, all those feelings are unreasonable and I know it in my rational brain. My spirit can't help feeling dampened, though. I have become very attached to the girls and it's difficult to think of a new leader taking over my miamaids and having the privilege of helping to direct their spiritual growth. There will be an immediate detachment so they can can attach and bond with their new leader. And that is right and good. But it makes me sad to know that I'm not their leader anymore. Ah, well, such is the cycle of serving in the church. I will admit, too, to feeling directionless without a calling.

So I am drowning my sorrows in The Making of Bread.

I started up my Kitchenaid at 11pm tonight. Mike shuffled by, on his way to bed, and told me I was crazy. Well I'm not crazy--I've just been in a very bad mood for the last ten hours! (anyone know the quote?)

There are some users who
say they "didn't inhale."

But I won't pretend. I did inhale. I inhaled the entire plate.

Menu Plan Monday

Monday
Ali's Crockpot Burritos
Steamed broccoli (that Costco bag never ends)

Tuesday
Homemade Pizza...I'm thinking chicken alfredo
$1 to the person who can name the veggie...

Wednesday
Cheesy Spinach & Artichoke Braid

Thursday
Ali's Chicken Spaghetti
Garlic Breadsticks (homemade! Love this bread class!)
Steamed broccoli

Friday
Janie's Chicken & Rice Casserole
Green Beans
Rolls

Saturday
Leftover Buffet

Sunday
Mike makes crepes. Yay!

* find more menus at orgjunkie's Menu Plan Monday

Whooosh-TA!

Today I cracked the whip.

I made everyone a cleaning list and we worked hard for an hour and a half. The sad thing is, the lists mostly consisted of basic pickup. It seems all I can do to just stay on top of the clutter and the put-away. I suspect the days of cleaning baseboards are gone. Max & Sis each had to clean their rooms and one other room really well. Max did the book nook. Sis did the kids' bathroom. Mimi did small jobs in her room and cleaned mirrors and doors. I thoroughly decluttered my room.

Mike also had a long list consisting of the kitchen, office and living room; I ended up with clean gutters, a sprayed driveway, a fixed rain gutter, a yard cleared of tumbleweeds & Christmas lights strung up.

It seems all I have to do to get my outdoor chores done is give my husband indoor chores. Heh, heh. (smirk, cackle, rub hands together.)

Max helped with the tumbleweeds. Here is the huge pile that is almost as tall as he is. He also pushed the baby around in the stroller for close to two hours...up & down the street and all around the park.

As a reward for finishing their long lists with a good attitude, we went to a movie. (I usually don't have the kids do chores on Saturday; they do an after-school job on weekdays and I reserve Saturday for family fun.) Sis' little friend Lauren was working right alongside her, motivating her and keeping her from dawdling, and she came with us to the movie. We saw "Madagascar 2," which was HILARIOUS. How did I miss the first one? I was gut-laughing the entire time.
A little side-note: Look at Mimi's shoes. Atrocious. White high-heeled sandals--totally inappropriate for a 5-yr old--with socks. In winter. My friend Ali handed these down to her and since Mimi worships Ali's 12-yr old daughter...the white shoes go everywhere, are worn with any outfit and are considered the height of fashion. There is no convincing her otherwise.

And in other news, here is my weekly addition to my food storage. At $1/box, how could I pass it up? It's vitamin-fortified, right? Nutritious. (I also added some Shirley J seasoning, a case of tomato sauce, instant yeast & 6 cans of chicken.)
This week's Food Storage Friday occurred on Tuesday, due to Wendi's trip this weekend to New York City. We took a field trip to the Bosch store and priced wheat grinders; we were both a bit surprised at how expensive they are. I plan to tweak Wendi's nose a little and tell her she could have bought a wheat grinder AND a Bosch mixer for the money she spent going to NYC. (yet again...smirk, cackle, rub hands together.)

I think my plan for Food Storage Friday next week is to get serious about listing on a 3 month calendar rotation all the pantry meals my family likes to eat. My goal will be to gather the ingredients for those meals. These meals might include some fresh ingredients, such as lettuce in taco salad, but those ingredients can be left out in an emergency and the meal will still be tasty. Meals like haystacks, taco soup, spaghetti, black bean enchiladas, etc. I will also work on my water storage. Another goal is to print my 72-hour kit checklist and actually put everything together in one place for a grab-&-go kit. I have most everything I need for our 72-hour kits, but it is not compiled into one place. Can you imagine me in an evacuation situation?....running around, willy-nilly grabbing what we need?

* (please note: "evacuation situation" rhymes nicely. Should I compose a rap?)
* (also note: the phrase "willy-nilly" is vastly under-used. I will for sure include it in The Food Storage Rap.)

For anyone who is interested, it is now 3:08am. What the crap am I thinking, being up this late??? Goodnight.

Today was one of those days where I looked at the clock and suddenly it was 6pm. I'm trying to stuff too much into one day lately. I have a little baby who needs me. Often. Which means I get frequently interrupted & I am not very productive. I really should cut back on my commitments, because I just end up getting them done badly or late. I need to be at peace with taking it slow.

I am not a take-it-slow kind of person.

But I haven't liked how this week went down. I didn't spend enough time rocking the baby. I kept saying, "When I'm finished..." to Mimi. She spent a lot of time being bored this week, wandering the house when we usually are reading books or doing school or painting fingernails. I guess I just feel like I've spent too much time being "busy-busy-busy," and not nearly enough time enjoying the pleasure of the day with the Littles. Not enough mommy moments.

So I think this next week I will consciously try to under-plan.

I want to spend less time out of the house and more time just....chillin' with my mini-peeps.