What I Like

Yeah! It's Christmastime and we had a pretty good weekend! On the downside, it doesn't look like we're putting up Christmas lights and I suspect we have mice in our garage :(. But beyond that, no complaints. In fact, there's a lot that I like and so here is a list:

• Goose is starting to ask me how to spells words. She barely can write letters and I'm not certain she can even identify them all but she is finally interested in the written word!



• I love my pandora radio soooooo much. I have two dozen stations now, I believe, but the one I play the very most is Joe Jackson. Such fun music! I can also have Christmas music whenever I want it, commerical-free!



• The Messiah Sing-Along was wonderful, as always. Next year I want to bring one of my kids along. (funny... they don't seem excited by the prospect but I love it so much I want to share it!)



• Along those lines, Husband got out his trumpet and started looking for the music so he can play "And the Trumpet Shall Sound."



• T-Bone has started wearing a Santa hat to school. So cute!



• Last evening the kids watched The Nightmare before Christmas and Husband and I sang along as we were reading our books.



• Goodies have started to trickle into our home.



• I can read The Christmas Miracle of Johnathan Toomey again and cry at the end. I have to read it about three times aloud before I can get through it without tears.



• Marzipan!

Beautiful

I will be the first to admit that I'm a sentimental marshmallow. A couple of weeks ago, I happened upon something wonderful on YouTube. I clicked on a link to a song that I thought was called "Beautiful Gordon" (being related to a very cute person of the same name). Anyway, turns out the song was called "Beautiful," and it was originally performed by Gordon Lightfoot, someone who was way before my time.

I fell in love with the song, and the fact that the singer was a fellow who looked like a happy, bearded Dick Cheney, just made it even better.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZVdw-Rh8gM

When I went back on YouTube to watch the video, I noticed something amazing--a number of video clips from men probably on the downside of 55 who are covering this song. I clicked on them over and over again and heard them singing and playing guitar, resplendent with music and sensitivity that I would never guess from their appearance. Of course, I'm the one with the prejudices and preconceptions, but I love it when I am surprised about people. There is so much more to everyone than meets the eye.

Odds and Ends

So I was looking through Cheeseball's coat pockets this morning, trying to find a paper lunch bag to use (he is the only one of my kids who faithfully brings back his lunch bag) when I find two mini-water guns zipped in a side compartment. I'm pretty sure his school has a zero-tolerance weapon policy; on Halloween, Luke Skywalker can't even bring a light sabre. A little concerned about budding criminality, I asked Cheeeseball about it at the breakfast table. It turns out that his friend had just returned the squirt guns after having them since he and Cheeseball went swimming last summer. At least the weapons exchange was under the radar of the school administration.

On another note, I took the girls to take pictures around Temple Square this weekend. We parked three blocks away (I know; I'm clueless about where I am half the time) and as we walked toward the temple, we passed some of the ubiquitous homeless, one whom was relieving himself in a corner about ten feet away from my four year old girl. Nice! Thankfully no one noticed except me.

Halloween, or a Symphony of Napoleons

Sisters

When Husband went to wake Janey this morning, he saw that Goose was cuddled up next to her in Janey's bed. Not a huge surprise, considering that Goose had a hard time falling asleep last night and was calling out to Husband and me every five minutes or so. Janey went into her room a little after nine and got into bed while her little sister was still awake. Not a good plan if you want ot be left alone! We are lucky that instead of throwing a fit about obnoxious little sisters, Janey simply let Goose in her bed and both got to have a good night sleep. For both the girls' sakes, this better not become a pattern. But sometimes it's nice to know you're not alone out there in the dark.

Some Things I Am Not Good At

We played scrabble with the middle kids today. It was fun, but I'm fairly disappointed with my performance. I always think I should be good at games involving words because I'm certainly not good at games involving strategy, symbols, or numbers! Every once in a while Husband threatens me with a game of chess. I always try to find a way out of it.

Here is a random question: why would an actor of Michael Caine's caliber even consider being in Jaws 4? Seriously. We watched the movie as we finished scrabble and now we're watching it on the sofa as I sit tapping out my blog on the iPad.

Things I'm Grateful For

I have been too negative lately, so I need to write about some of the big and small things I'm thankful for.

my wonderful, loving, supportive and wise Husband

my basil plant, alive and well this year in the garden box

my children are all happy to go to school

properly functioning major and minor appliances

good health for me and my family

good books to read

compassion from kind friends

love and support from sisters and sisters-in-law

Cheeseball's choice to get baptized

Cheeseball and T-Bone's wonderful friendship

time with Goose in the morning

Beulah's dedication to excellence in her schoolwork

forgiveness for my mistakes

Janey's enthusiasm for life's experiences

the freedom to enjoy yummy food without guilt

the beautiful world I can see around me

happy memories of fun times

safe and healthy vacations

consulting work from former employers

raspberries growing

knowledge of God and Jesus Christ and an awareness of their love for me

good examples

afternoon naps

generous donations others make to DI

fabulous pregnancies and safe deliveries

listening to my kids play piano

people who teach my children

supportive and wonderful parents

cool mornings

the hope of an even better future

all those people who have prayed for me and my family

I could and should go on but I have piles on laundry that need my attention.

If a Stevedore Knew Petrarch. . . .

So I downloaded an app for my ipad; the NY Times crossword puzzle. I've solved two puzzles so far, needing help about four dozen times. It's amazing to me how many things I have no idea about--sports figures, rivers in Europe, battles that happened 500 years ago. And it's also amazing what you can learn about with Wikipedia in a matter of seconds. It is a little scary how much time I can spend on a puzzle, but then I rationalize that learning something new can't be all that bad.

First Day of School

Well, catching 1 out of 3 buses on time might not be the worst record ever, but it certainly isn't the best. I don't like the first day of school. I don't like Back to School with it's endless disclosure forms and permission forms and petitions for money, and I don't like that my free time doesn't coincide with when my kids' teachers need classroom help. Growl. At least my children are all happy to go; that's really the most important thing.

Sir Paul

A few weeks ago I gave Beulah an early birthday present of two tickets to Paul McCartney's concert. She has been a big Beatle's fan for a few years (even going so far as to call one of her online avatars "Beatles Babe"). She agonized over who to invite but in the end she brought me, which, of course, is what I was hoping for.

We got there in plenty of time, despite my stressing about being stuck in traffic. We found our seats at the rear of the stadium (not the very worst seats but most were better than ours) and then we waited. When the fog machines started to blow out electric blue air we screamed and then he came out on stage! It was amazing! He performed a bunch of songs in the beginning that I was not familiar with but over the course of the evening he hit my two favorite Beatles songs--"Let It Be" and "Hey Jude" and many other wonderful songs that people have loved for decades. The coolest part of the night was "Live and Let Die" with the fireworks blazing--I screamed myself hoarse! I loved when he invited the audience to sing along with "Hey Jude" and "Oh Bla De"; there I was, singing along with Paul McCartney! I think my favorite song of the might was, "And I Love Her." "Blackbird" was also perfect. His voice stayed true through all the dozens of songs and his energy was great. He looked so happy to be there and he created such a positive atmosphere for all the people there of all ages. Beulah was thrilled when he gave a tribute to George Harrison (he's her favorite Beatle) and I think she had fun. I have been to many rock concerts--most of them almost 20 years ago. But this might have been the best.

Thanks for taking me, BG. I love you!

Father, Can You Get Your Little Butt in Your Swimming Suit?

What is up with Goose calling me and Husband "Mother" and "Father" lately? She is so funny to talk with right now.
On another note, I felt invincible as I was running down a hill this morning, almost like I could keep running forever. Then as I started running up the opposite hill, I thought that it was a good thing I was close to home. True to form, I am the slowest runner in the world.
Last week T-Bone discovered that the two asparagus crowns we'd planted next to his garden spot had finally sent up something green. It was a wonderful surprise. In the spring, I had bought six asparagus crowns and then planted them and so far the ones that T-Bone spotted are the only ones that have produced.
Cheeseball found a Harry Potter Uno game in mint condition at DI. He has been fun to play with.
Beulah has finally discovered the joy of gardening.
Janey is still the reigning Cheese Queen amongst her friends.
Oh, last week we celebrated the 4th of July on the 3rd and 5th. The family, burgers and fireworks on the 3rd were wonderful and the parade on the 5th was fun. The most incredible thing to me about the weekend was how comfortable the temperatures were. I can't remember the last time I felt a cool breeze on the 4th, but the whole weekend was absolutely beautiful. It has been the prettiest summer since we've been in Utah, with all the spring rain we've had. The mountains still look green.

Dead, Dead, Dead

Well we came home from a very relaxing and enjoyable trip in Phoenix to meat juices seeping out from the refrigerator and spilling onto the floor. Right before our trip, we noticed that our fridge wasn't working. We called the repairman and he checked all the connections and got it working again. But he wasn't convinced that there wasn't some other problem. We put all the frozen food that we could into the garage refrigerator, but it couldn't all fit in. So we left a few things in our kitchen fridge, crossed our fingers, and left for several days.

The rest, as they say, is history.

We have decided that we will pay to repair it again, rather than buy a new one our move in our garage fridge (it has broken shelves in the freezer, so things tend to slide and fall out.)

Also, Beulah's guinea pig Sarah died the day after we returned. Who knows why? Beulah keeps checking the online classifieds to get another one but I am hoping she'll drop the idea.

My kitchen basil, which was pathetic at it's best moment, seems mostly dead. One sad little stalk has four tiny leaves that aren't all shriveled up.

But on a happy note, our flowers are all still alive and blooming (and this after they survived a snow storm!) Our garden areas are overgrown with weeds--I don't think it's ever been worse and I've sprayed Round-Up 3 times this spring, at least--but our tomatoes and peppers are still alive and some other plants are popping up. Let's just hope we can distinguish between the seedlings and the weeds.

The weather in Phoenix was hot, but not too bad. All we did was swim and fish and make one 40 minute trip to the 99 cent store. On the way down, we stopped at Goblin Valley for a couple of hours and saw some amazing sandstone structures.

Yesterday the kids had their piano recital. It was nice; it would have been even better if everyone had practiced their songs in the days before the recital but our being away from the piano made that impossible. I am grateful for the efforts that they all make in practicing. It's nice to have music around.

Now I have to make good on my promise to get a summer membership at the rec center so we can go swimming.

Some Things a Mother Doesn't Know

Goose is very interested in death lately. Her curiosity runs the gamut from what happens to our skeletons as they decompose to what happens to our bones when they're resurrected. Today she asked me if there were toothbrushes in Heaven. Umm. I have no idea. We'll have perfect teeth, right, and we'll be able to eat, right? Will there not be bacteria to form plaque and bad breath or will our mouths be be impervious to said bacteria? These are things that I don't know. I also don't know if there will be potties in Heaven, another question Goose had for me last week.

Beulah questioned me about evolution today, telling me that her teacher told her there was more evidence for evolution than there was about the Holocaust. First of all, I told her that the term "evolution" was inadequate. Obviously, we see evidence of biological genetic change all over the place. But as for Evolution meaning humans descending from apes, I challenge any scientist to produce a homo erectus that can tell us about his daily life in a cave with his clan versus finding a survivor from a concentration camp who can tell about living under the Nazis.

Spring Break with a Sick Goose

A week after I returned from Hawaii, Goose got sick. She had a fairly high fever for three or four days and all I got get her to eat was popsicles. It was the first time she was sick for more than 24 hours. And she got way too much attention and lost a little bit of weight.

Two weeks after that (the night before Easter), Goose got sick again. This time she was vomiting. And instead of getting better after 24 hours, which always seems to happen, she developed a high fever and kept throwing up. I brought her to the doctor Monday morning hoping he would tell me she had some bacterial infection that we could treat but instead he told me that she needed to be in the hospital. I'm such a baby that I called my mom and cried and kept bawling all the way to the hospital (in clothes that Goose had thrown up on). We were checked in and they put an IV in (which she hated). Husband joined us shortly. He kept asking the nurses and he called the doctor with his concerns about the cost of everything (we do have a very high deductible health insurance plan). No one could tell him what anything cost until he met with the financial office to pay the bill the next day. It was interesting how un-consumer driven health care really is.

Goose was in the hospital for about 27 hours. She got hydrated and her fever went down and she was so miserable with her IV that we were all begging to leave. Her recovery at home was very slow but she's doing well now. Our fun for spring break was filled with bowing to Goose's wishes in all things, going to Hee Haw and celebrating Goose's 4th birthday.

Aloha!

My trip to Hawaii was wonderful, all the more so because so many people helped me and my family out during our 10 day separation.

A list of some of my experiences:

Standing on the street in Honolulu (Waikiki) in my pajamas at 4:30 am because someone pulled the fire alarm. "Alert! There is a fire in the building! Please exit now!"

Being blasted by wind at the Pali Outlook, Waimea Canyon, on the ship, and just about everywhere else.

Watching a Samoan make fire from a stick and a coconut

Snorkeling in Hanauma Bay and seeing yellow, blue, pink, and green tropical fish

Eating warm banana bread and fresh coconut and pineapple on the road to Hana.

Loving the black rock beach the the stone church in Maui

Eating yummy pineapple whip at the Dole plantation

Hiking the half mile of fern rainforest on the way to the lava tube

Walking through the lava tube

Watching chickens fly across the road

Looking at steaming craters

Being just about last on board in Hilo and Kauai

Eating yummy hashbrowns from the buffet for breakfast

Singing happy birthday to Donna with the family at our table

Spying the sea turtle in Hilo

Seeing the whale off of Maui! I caught an itty-bitty picture of its tail.

Almost swimming near a sewage treatment plant out of desperation.

Taking a taxi with Tenesa to be brought to a more acceptable beach.

Being repeatedly knocked over by powerful aqua waves that were so heavy with coarse sand that I got exfoliated from head to toe.

Finding a tooth of unknown origin in my swimming suit

Meeting Mr. Photographer

Loving the beautiful umbrella trees all over Oahu and Kauai

Walking with the sea urchins on the pahoehoe shore near Kona

Listening to Darcy and Reed's tales of Lyman

Sailing past the magnificent NaPoli coast

Seeing the whale through the window right when someone talked about seeing a whale the previous day!

Looking at the names at the Arizona memorial

Watching the gray-haired ladies dancing the hulu beautifully

Seeing: Spouting Horn, Kauai lighthouse, blowhole in Oahu, crazy parasailing windsurfers, amazing banyan trees and rainbows and sea creatures.

Getting reaquainted with my brilliant, beautiful, fun and talented cousins and aunts and uncles and hanging out with my generous and fabulous parents.

But the best part of all was getting off the plane, walking to the baggage claim, and seeing Husband and the twinkies waiting for me, the three youngest holding a big banner that said, "Welcome Home Mom." My family is more beautiful than anything in the world to me and I'm so grateful to be with them again and feel their love.

My Lovesong to Eliot

Having just read my sister-in-law's blog about her favorite poem, I find that I have to copy her. Initially, I tend to be a fairly lazy reader--it takes a really compelling story or very interesting characters to get me to read "lyrical" prose. And poetry? I don't think I've read much since I graduated from college 15 years ago. But there is one poem that I do remember. And return to again and again. It is very famous; I studied it in high school, and in both my American and English Literature classes (those darn expatriots).
"The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock"
It has lines like:

And I have known the eyes already, known them all--
The eyes that fix you in a formulated phrase,
And when I am formulated, sprawling on a pin,
When I am pinned, and wriggling on the wall,
Then how should I begin
To spit out all the butt-end of my days and ways?
And how should I presume?

and

And would it have been worth it, after all,
After all the cups, the marmalade, the tea,
Among the porcelain, among some talk of you and me,
Would it have been worth while,
To have bitten off the matter with a smile,
To have squeezed the universe into a ball
To roll it toward some overwhelming question,
To say, "I am Lazarus, come from the dead,
Come back to tell you all, I shall tell you all"
If one, settling a pillow by her head,
Should say, "That is not what I meant at all,
That is not it, at all."

I don't mean to be melodramatic, but I have occasionally sensed this emptiness and uselessness and impotence in my life. (I think it's called being human.) In general, I am happy and feel great, but there are times when I feel so misunderstood and incapable of articulation and simply invisible. This poem just seems to capture all those sentiments and the absurdities that accompany them.

Horseshoes, Hand Grenades and Nuclear War

I had to make some Emeril's Essence today to put on our ribeye steaks for Valentine's Day. All was going well, till I had to put in 1 tablespoon of black pepper. I have a magic pepper mill, you see. It's doesn't take too terribly long to grind a quarter teaspoon. But when you try to work up to a whole teaspoon, it seems like no matter how hard or long you turn it, you never reach the teaspoon. It's as if it knows that an important milestone is coming up and it doesn't want to reach it. So I had husband twist the mill for a while. And we went in spurts, dumping it out every quarter teaspoon or so and measuring the pepper. And I'm not kidding you, by ten minutes later we had increased the size of the pepper granules but we still hadn't reached the tablespoon mark. However, I decided that in the matter of measuring pepper, almost is good enough.

Last Friday was the sixth-grade dance. I have a bruise on my arm from pinching myself so I wouldn't CRY when the music started and Janey ran off to do the line dance with all the other kids. It was the same song that Beulah had danced with her class to three years ago. And I tend to get emotional when I watch performances anyway, but I was just overwhelmed with feeling like my little girl is growing up. She was one of the few girls who wasn't wearing makeup but she had a good time.

Being Random

So last night I dreamnt I was taking a walk down the southbound freeway entrance onto University Parkway. The former first lady of Utah, Mary Kaye Huntsmen walked passed me. As soon as she was in front of me, she got hit by a magic spell and was turned into a really cute little pig. I picked her up to bring her home and hoped that no one would butcher her when she got older.

In real life, I have seen MKH once, walking in a parade with her very photogenic family. It was on Center Street, though, and she definitely was not hit with a magic spell or turned into any farm animal.

By the way, you will find some fairly disturbing pictures if you enter "piglet" into Google's image search.

Goose and I made brownies today. Earlier she had been scribbling with markers and then came into my bedroom with a folded piece of paper, saying, "Look, I made a recipe for brownies!" (Or, because it is Goose, "Wook! I made a wecipe fow bwownies!") So this afternoon we got everything out and baked the brownies according to her recipe (and the one in my head). She continues to be demanding of attention but she is so cute and fun lately. She loves to play Candyland and she came with Husband and me to the library, so excited whenever she saw a book she was familiar with.

My only news is that I'm doing part time work for my dad and Uncle Reed's IPPFBE endeavor. Husband designed their website a couple of years ago, and my dad wanted me to help update the site and work on a newsletter. Their goal is to produce superior trees and other perennial plants that will flourish in regions that have poor conditions for traditional grain crops. They also want to explore using nuts for bioenergy and transforming trees at the end of their lifespan to biochar. It's a very worthwhile project; I hope I can be helpful. We're trying to think of my title still, so I can put it on my emails that I'm sending out.

Ever Wonder . . .

what a seven-year old would do with a camera he got for Christmas?

The hermit crabs are his new pets, and he *loves* them.

Thanks for the memories, Cheeseball!