If you give a mouse a cookie

Because it has been so chilly this winter, we have run the fire quite often.
More often than usual.
So often, that when I took a shower and had just gotten my hair perfectly sudsy- the hot water disappeared.
Because the hot water heater runs on propane.
Which is what our fire runs on.
The fire that has been running day and night as to use all the propane...

 and so you see the reason why I am a hot (or cold, rather) mess in waiting for a delivery of propane today- so I can take a (hot) shower...

Cravings

Before I was pregnant with Kate, I was not a fan of chocolate. In fact, I did not like chocolate at all. When I became pregnant, wouldn't you know- that's all I wanted! I could not figure it out! With the years passing and being a mother of that special girl, I understand a little more...

Tuesday, my sister-in-law picked Kate up from school and had her all evening.

I celebrated a day full of productivity.

Laundry- check, Dishes- check, Bedrooms tidied- check!

I was a happy busy little bee keeping the hive in proper working order.

It was right before bed time when my darling daughter stepped through the door. In her hand was a large container brimming with money. I did the sideways head tilt with raised eyebrows for an explanation. In return was a launch from Kate into the story of why she was looking like a banker that day. Apparently, my sweet daughter wanted to raise money for the animal shelter. Awwww... right? In order to raise said funds, my sweet daughter had cleared out her room of many valuables unbeknownst to me and was selling them during recess.

FOR FIFTY CENTS A PIECE!!!

And that, my folks, is when the need for a piece of chocolate kicked in.

I wanted to lock myself in the bathroom and gnaw on a huge chunk of

anything of the chocolate persuasion.

 

I see now that I may be a stress eater....

and those cravings make infinite sense to me now.

Local flair

I don't know about anywhere else, but the moment a normal traffic light turns to a blinking red and 4-way stop, people in Napa turn into complete idiots.

The kitchen is for dancing

Every time I use this:



























I sing this:
http://youtu.be/C7hTAp6KrGY
(I tried to imbed... but blogger is not liking me today, but it is worth watching the video! Make sure you wait until the chorus, this girl is amazing!!!)

Great in 8

I am starting an 8 week program with three other women in my area.

We are competing in a healthy lifestyle challenge. I hope we win!

 Here's today's breakfast, which is worth 4 points!

I am extremely competitive... let the battle begin!

This gets me through...

This is a story of a young piano student. His mother, wishing to encourage him, bought tickets for a performance of the great Polish pianist, Paderewski. The night of the concert arrived and the mother and son found their seats near the front of the concert hall. While the mother visited with friends, the boy slipped quietly away.

Suddenly, it was time for the performance to begin and a single spotlight cut through the darkness of the concert hall to illuminate the grand piano on stage. Only then did the audience notice the little boy on the bench, innocently picking out "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star."

His mother gasped, but before she could move, Paderewski appeared on stage and quickly moved to the keyboard. He whispered to the boy, "Don’t quit. Keep playing." And then, leaning over, the master reached down with his left hand and began filling in the bass part. Soon his right arm reached around the other side, encircling the child, to add a running obbligato. Together, the old master and the young novice held the crowd mesmerized.

In our lives, unpolished though we may be, it is the Master who surrounds us and whispers in our ear, time and time again, "Don’t quit. Keep playing." And as we do, He augments and supplements until a work of amazing beauty is created. He is right there with all of us, telling us over and over, "Keep playing."

 

^{(James E. Faust, 1999 October General Conferene, "What it means to be a Daughter of God")}

Oventi

Jimmy had to go out of town on Thursday night, so Kate, Ashley and I had a girls' night out. We wanted to try the new restaurant located in the old Marie Callender's building called Oventi.

The food was decent. The service was excellent. The prices were high.
I think I would've liked it better if our bill didn't come out to $75...
When I compare it to my favorite local restaurants, the price and quality do not compare.

Onto the exciting part of the night:
My favorite thing in the world is rib eye. My very favorite. If I was on death row- that would be the star player in my last meal. Grilled rib eye, artichokes, corn on the cob and grilled veggies. Maybe some kind of potato, but I don't know how the starch would go with lethal injection. (is that not funny to joke about?)

Anyway.... when our group walked into the restaurant armed with the menu left on the doorstep of my in-laws (they are really, really desperate right now), I KNEW there was rib eye on the menu. Because we knew that this would be the restaurant of choice since Monday, I had been contemplating getting the steak since then. The problem with that is- only ONE restaurant in my history of rib eye hunting has met my expectations. I kind of feel bad for all the other eateries that bit the dust. Because if you can't sell me your rib eye- I ain't coming back.

I keep going on and on about this when really I want to get to the actual part that should be a little entertaining... because it is so embarrassing for me (funny for you).

When the waiter seated us, I had already been nearly hyperventilating about the rib eye in the car and Ashley was a little fed up. She suggest I just ask about it. So, when the server returned to the table, I nearly attacked him with a battery of questions. The poor waiter was stunned silent for a second then assured me it was good. That small moment of his lack in confidence made me blurt out something incredibly stupid, "I'm a chef! I'm really picky!" Now, the face of this poor boy turned sheet white and he clipped a response, "I'll go get the chef" Then the waiter spun as quickly as his scrawny body could manage back to the kitchen. ARGH! Noooo! What is wrong with me?!?!?! I do not want to talk to the chef! When you are labeled as a 'difficult' table, there are one of two outcomes- the staff becomes ultra sensitive, to the point of it being extremely uncomfortable or they spit in your food, to the point of being extremely disgusting. So rather than be labeled the 'difficult' table, I just kind of smiled sheepishly at the chef when he visited our table and asked how thick the steak was. He answered quickly and inquired how I wanted it cooked. I looked at him like a deer caught in the headlights and replied, "I'm not even sure I'm getting the rib eye...." When his face fell, "everything on the menu looks soooo good" I gushed.

Now rather than the overly accommodating staff or compromised food, I became the blubbering idiot. "Oh, this is ah-mazing" I would periodically say to Ashley (really loudly) so the passing bus boy might pass it on to the chef. Apparently, that didn't work because halfway through the meal, the manager stopped by our table. It was another dance of me being overly nice and idiot-like. The comments I made were gushing out of my mouth like a flash flood. I needed to get out of there before the sum of the waiter's tip in my head got any larger. After a so-so meal, we left a 30% tip on the table. If the waiter had refilled my water one more time, he would've pulled in at least 50%. With my voice reaching it's all time high, just STILL trying to not be a 'diffifult' table we headed out to the car. When inside, I looked over at Ashley and said (in an entirely normal, not cheesy or butt-kissing tone), "That place was okay."
Now, this is my question- do you think 30% buys me my dignity?

The best Mac & Cheese EVER

We are having a "Late Night" with Kate's little girlfriends tonight. A "Late Night" is when her friends come over in jim jams and we play games, eat, watch movies- but everyone gets picked up at 10:00 pm. We prefer that over sleepovers for now. I don't feel comfortable with Kate having sleepovers with more than one girl or not a family member.
There was a talk in the October, 2010 General Conference called, "Courageous Parenting" that really stuck with me.
Larry R. Lawerence states: "May I express my personal warning about a practice that is common in many cultures. I am referring to sleepovers, or spending the night at the home of a friend. As a bishop I discovered that too many youth violated the Word of Wisdom or the law of chastity for the first time as part of a sleepover. Too often their first exposure to pornography and even their first encounter with the police occurred when they were spending the night away from home."

It's a great talk, you should give it a look through.

Soooo, anyway, at that "Late Night" we will be having a Mac & Cheese Bar!!!! It's delicious, creamy mac and cheese with all the toppings on the side: bacon, peas, French's crispy onions, bread crumbs, fresh herbs, crumbled blue cheese, fresh tomatoes, chives YUMMY!!! I have a recipe for the best ever macaroni and cheese that is almost as easy as the blue box. The recipe is from "The Perfect Recipe" by Pamela Anderson (not to be confused with Pam Anderson- they put a picture of the cook on the front and they look NOTHING alike)

Here it is, folks:
(This recipe is the doubled version that serves 8 or 16 sides)

1 lb. elbow macaroni

8 Tb. butter

4 eggs

2 cans (12 ounces) evaporated milk

1/2 teaspoon red pepper sauce

2 teaspoons dry mustard dissolved in 2 teaspoons of water

black pepper

24 ounces (6 cups) shredded cheese (always grate your own, the pre-shredded melt terribly) I recommend fontina and sharp cheddar, you can really use whatever kind you like.

Boil macaroni in salted water. Meanwhile, mix eggs, 2 cups of evaporated milk, hot pepper sauce, mustard mixture and some black pepper in a bowl. Drain noodles and then put back in pot to keep warm. Over medium heat, add egg mixture and three fourths of the cheese, stirring constantly until the cheese starts to melt. Gradually stir in remaining milk and cheese; continue to stir constantly until sauce thickens and mixture is hot and creamy- about 5 minutes. Serve immediately.

Does this mean I am dying sooner?

I have a list of life goals I would like to accomplish. Last year, I was able to knock a couple off of the list. Now, I am saddled with the dilemma: If I do more on the list, will I die sooner OR If I don't do them, will I regret living longer?! I know, I know- why even make a list? Because, folks... I am a crazy list person. I have a list for everything. I cannot even function without writing out in long hand what I am doing for the day. I feel less stressed out and don't have to think about it if everything is written out. There have been times when I drive all the way down our hill, only to walk in and out of a store without a single purchase because I forgot the list. That doesn't happen much anymore because I usually write multiples now... Gosh, maybe I am getting a little out of hand.

Well, on the list of things I'd like to cross off the big list of life goals this year are:
Temple Square Christmas Lights
Backpacking Trip with my family
Bake a souffle
Learn how to make Brioche
For just one whole day, have every single dish and article of laundry clean and put away

What I did in 2012 to shorten the list:

Saw live General Conference
Sang a Solo

I might be getting ahead of myself trying to do 5 goals... but I think I can do it!

Aptly named

This morning, I taught seminary. It was fah-reeeeezing at 5:00am!!! For mornings such as these, I received a pair of fabulous leather gloves for Christmas... BUT I keep forgetting them inside. So, I kept thinking in the car, "I just need to keep the fabulous Michael Kors gloves outside in the car. Hmmmm, if only there was a place I could keep them in the car that would protect them from getting lost."

Then, I proceeded to look in and around my car for an appropriate place to put my gloves. After much hunting and pecking, I found the perfect little spot next to random napkins from various drive-thrus and a myriad of hot sauces to stash my gloves. And wouldn't you know it?!?! It's called a GLOVE COMPARTMENT.

Now, by a show of frost bitten hands- who actually keeps gloves in their glove compartment?

Winter just wasn't our season

I’m telling you… Christmas just wasn’t our season this year-. I was talking to my dad on the phone lamenting about the fact that this was the very first year since Jimmy and I met that we didn’t get to go to the movies on Christmas day because the House of Graham was awfully sick. The problem solver that he is, my dad went on wikipedia to figure out when orthodox Catholics celebrate Christmas. It is thirteen days after Christmas- last night!!! So, for family home evening, we had a sweet little lesson and headed off to our “Christmas” movie.

 

During the previews Jimmy complained of an upset stomach.

During the first five minutes of the movie, Jimmy left the theater to hang out in the car.
During the rest of the movie, he was really sick out in the car.

 

And so my sweet husband is lying in bed- and I’m writing here all about how Christmas, even the orthodox Catholic one, was just not our season this year…

Never once as a child...

...did I think I would be thrilled to be home alone all day doing laundry.

Good bye, winter break!

Church Lady

What a wonderful day at church today! Our Bishop started our fast and testimony meeting by bearing powerful witness of the Holy Ghost. He stood and reminded the members of the congregation to follow promptings and speak by the spirit when sharing testimonies today.  What followed was a very sacred and special testimony meeting that ended in an amazing story the Bishop shared regarding following promptings.

Then, today was the first Sunday I taught my new primary class. The kids were more rambunctious than my last class because of the age difference- but I loved it! I am really looking forward to teaching the D&C and church history this year. I have some fantastic resources left over from seminary that I can use this year.

To cap off a wonderful day, primary sharing time was so well prepared and just excellent. The music leader worked really hard to make a "Primary Premiere"! It was so fun! The kids were escorted down a red carpet and brought through the paparazzi to their seats. Then, she had different people in the ward sing or play the new songs the kids would be learning for the year. I really enjoyed it and had a great time. The kids were so quiet, you could hear a pin drop.

I am grateful for the opportunity I get to go to church each week. I am always really buoyed up when I attend. The Sabbath day is a great day to recharge my battery.

Above is one of my favorite pictures of the Savior. The story of the woman touching Christ's hem is so poignant to me. I cannot, however, find a way to get the print without the words- anyone who knows how to do so and lets me know- would be greatly appreciated!

IKEA

We had a successful trip to (HomeGoods, Michaels, Office Max, JoAnn's, Ross &) IKEA! My mother-in-aw was with me, so we made a few stops on the way... Kate was a real trooper in between the SIX bathroom trips and constant complaining. Because all she wanted to do was this: 

Yes, folks... that is Kate ready to jump out of a wardrobe shouting, "For Narnia!"

She did it with an accent and everything. 

 

 

 

I successfully got a new wall set up with the freakishly HUGE frame on the right. Inside of that frame is a picture my brother took blown up to 20x30- with a 4 inch mat. It is big and a little creepy. I have also added a picture with Kate next to the frame for a size reference. Do you see that she is almost life sized in the framed portrait?!  I love the picture... so much so, that I got it really big. I ordered the picture in a 20x30 size because I did not actually measure , I just figured it was a good size... and I almost got a size larger!!!

 When in IKEA, everything looks dwarfish because the store is so ginormous, so the frame looked doable. I put it on our wall and I feel eerily watched by our family portrait. But, I really like who I live with, so I really like the picture. The quality is spectacular and my brother did a fabulous job taking the photo.

p.s.- there's my new table!

I'll accept the apology

The Universe seems to be sending good juju* for all the troubles it sent before (and during) Christmas. I went shopping and in every single store found something on super sale and exactly what I wanted!!! Now when does the Universe ever align to make those two things possible in the same purchase?... when Mr. Universe has some 'splainin to do.

 Let me give a list that will
a) make you agree with me wholeheartedly and
b) make you jealous

Deal One:

I have been eyeing the most beautiful table at Cost Plus World Market that fits in perfectly with our couch, "Collette" (yes, we name inanimate objects in our house- they're my friends!). This table has been on my horizon since before Thanksgiving. I have actually been there just.to.visit.the.table.and.buy.nothing. We had built quite a relationship, me and this table. My sister-in-law works at World Market  and called my to inform our household of a 50% furniture sale and put the last and only model on hold. When I arrived at the store to pick up the table, a stock boy was out there and offered an additional 20% off because it was a floor model. That on top of Michelle's employee discount makes my husband very happy. I walked out of the store with a practically free table!

Deal Two:

When I lose 100 lbs. I plan on a very nice gift for myself- Frye Boots. Frye Boots cost more than I care to write here- but if you're really curious, I'll send you to the website here. Now that you're back you understand why I would choose THOSE as my gift for a job well done. In the meantime, I really needed boots. Like, lining falling out of my favorite flats, wet toes in the rain kind of necessity. Went to Clarks and found BOOTS! Really nice, all leather- no crappy vinyl/faux/nasty boots. You guessed it- on clearance! with an additional 25% off!!!!!!!#

Deal Three:
This week when I went to Target- everything that was on my list was marked down. Everything. The trash bags, laundry soap, salad dressing etc. Everything. How creepy is that?!

I think that the Universe did an amazing job making up for it's end of the year shenanigans. Tomorrow I am going to IKEA to purchase a picture frame. I really hope the Universe still has a smidgen of remorse...

*Freaky Fact: Whilst writing this post, I have been online to find pictures that better render what I purchased than my shaky hand and bad lighting might do. IN ALL CASES, I went on the actual websites and found no proof that these products ever existed. When searching by name and product number for a picture of the table, it was nowhere to be found! Coincidence?! I think not.

#Really, I am not a shopaholic. I do not purchase things often. After the use of so many exclamation points, I thought I might mention that little tidbit.

homonyms

Yesterday, I was shopping at Cost Plus World Market with my Mother-in-law when my brother, Kyle called to talk. We were having a great conversation as I was perusing the store. My mother-in-law needed to get going, so she ushered me up to the front to check out while I was still talking. Because it was my turn to purchase next, I ended my call with my brother with a, "I love you, Kyle." When I looked up from puting my phone away I noticed the sales clerk was tinged pink and awkwardly silent. Then, I glanced down at his name tag and noticed it said "KYLE".

 

Why Resolutions?

I have wondered over the past few days, "why do I do New Year's resolutions and when I did I get started?" I have to admit that the answer to the latter question is quite foggy, I but I do know the answer to the former.

I have learned quite a bit in the past few years about goal setting. It used to be that I would set a lofty goal. One that was attainable...maybe. I would set a goal that gave me no room for mistakes. At all. For example? "I will exercise everyday for at least 60 minutes." Is that an accomplishable goal? Sure. For me? No way. If I had taken that goal and tweaked it just a little, I would have saved myself from failure. Rather than 60 minutes everyday- changing the goal to 30 minutes everyday or 60 minutes every other day would have been more reasonable.

Because I have learned this about myself, I now set goals that have an end point, a finish line.
Plus, I have chosen weaknesses that I would like to make strong.
Julie B. Beck states, "When our best efforts are not quite enough, it is through His grace that we receive the strength to keep trying. The Lord says: 'If men come unto me I will show unto them their weaknesses that they may be made humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them." Having a resolution to change a  small thing about myself each year brings me hope. It sets my gospel roots deeper.

Regardless of the goal set, it builds your spirit. Temporal and spiritual things have no separation. We are a soul and a body in the same experience. I am grateful for my opportunity to change. It brings me great joy to progress. With that growth does bring pain. Growing pains are not a myth. They are not just a term used to explain a child's leg cramps. Those pains are real in the spiritual sense. I feel like the pain is worth the growth. I hope that the weaknesses I have chosen to change this year will become my strengths. I hope that my my reliance on the Lord will be whole. That humility will abound so I can be stronger.

Resolutions are such a innate desire. My hope for us all is that we do not quell the desire; that we feed those righteous desires wholeheartedly. I am excited about the prospect and hope you are too.

New Year's Resolutions

First Resolution: Lose 50 lbs.
I was able to lose 50 last year, hoping to do the same in 2013... As you can see, in our New Year's Eve spread, I ate just enough junk to want to get back on the horse.

Second Resolution: send a card to every family member for their birthday
If you are part of my family, you already know the difficulty I have with this. Sorry. I had the same resolution last year and only got to my brother Jim... his birthday falls in January. Yes folks, his was my first and my last. This year shall be different. Maybe I'll make it to Scott (February 21)

Third and final resolution: write on this here blog everyday.
I know it seems a lofty goal, but I enjoy writing. I love having a record of what I've done and I plan on doing digital scrapbooking this year during our monthly project nights. Having everything in a blog is so easy to just transfer over. Even if it is one word, I would like to post it. Plus (!) my family will want to know what's going on with us- they probably can't wait to hear from me after receiving such a nice birthday card, right?

Good Riddance, 2012!!!!
Welcome, 2013!!!!

You can never be overdressed

Kate opened a savings account today- but not before she put on her Sunday best and sprayed a copious amount of hairspray... On one square inch of her hair.
I love this kid.

Here's to 2013

This past month was a doozy, folks... Just one wrong thing after another. Everything that I had carefully planned and orchestrated had at least one glitch. In fact, this Christmas was probably the worst we've ever had. We had the missionaries at our house for Christmas day. When told of our woes to that point, one of the elders asked what I needed to learn from these experiences. Honestly, I cannot even think about that. It seems that we get hit with something else every time we try to take a breath from the previous issue. It has actually become a bit comical.

There was one point where there was less than a week's turnaround on bleaching nearly every item in our house because of lice (a gift from a cousin) and the flu (that one was a secret Santa). We had just received a bag of groceries from my mother-in-law because we were all down and out. A day later, we got to return the favor when their whole house got sick. Our oven broke in the middle of cooking Christmas dinner, an event client showed up an hour and a half late- resulting in not-to-my-standard-food. And the list continues. Looking back- I suppose it's funny. Funny, because we're all healthy now... fingers crossed.

A wise woman told me this, "You are doing these things on a two way street, but you only have control of your side. Don't get too frustrated when the other side doesn't follow the rules"

The good news is- when we all throwing up, we were together.
When Kate had lice, she sat in my lap for the treatment.
When the food was less than best, they didn't care.

Life is good and boring makes boring stories....

I just hope I learn my lesson before I have to bleach everything again.