sure i know. everybody’s doing it. only mine will be a little different. i’m a gonna recap my year with new words i learned in 2009:

January

partial maxillectomy

obturator

February

fibromyxoma

thank you. not actually a new word, but after being so blessed in oh so many wonderful ways–even seriously so–we learned to say it with a new depth of feeling than ever before.

March

drain auger

April

pullet

cat lover

May

ruth reichl

June

laying mash

July

mccall

ncis

medicine ball

ouch

August

rows

rdls

planks

carpal tunnel release

magnesium citrate

colonoscopy

September

fresh eggs

libero tracker

cymbales

October

brilliant

November

victory

December

women of steel – i still blame ~j

maaco bowl

trader joe’s

2010 is looking good already:

we’re expecting…

another mission call.

i’ll be training…

for my first triathlon.

we’ll be counting down the days…

for the return of this guy.

Happy New Year!

I’m mixing it up over at Segullah today. Join me? (But please play nice. The only other thing I get all mother-bear about besides my children are my good friends.)

Today I applaud the courage of three of my favorite friends who are helping build bridges by bravely sharing their very personal stories about a rather controversial subject…

Hey there Delilah
So you pulled your kids from Crosspoint
Because you’re horrified by Steve Covey
But girl, Mormons are Christians too
Yes through and through
We read the very same bible that you do
I swear it’s true

Hey there Delilah
You say it’s not about intolerance
It’s about being true to your faith
Give this song another listen
You say Catholics wouldn’t teach at BYU
But yes they do
And yoga is taught there, too
At BYU

Oh intolerance is what it is
(Maybe a little hypocrisy, too)
Oh intolerance is what it is
Oh intolerance is what it is
Intolerance is what it is

I would like to say that I am merely ‘deeply concerned’ about a recent addition to the school’s teaching philosophy, but instead, I am forced to admit I am actually HORRIFIED by the recent addition of a book by Mormon author Steven (sic) Covey,” she wrote in a Nov. 24 open letter to Crosspoint parents.

Further, she wrote that she believes in freedom of religion and does not object to Mormon beliefs or the yoga-type, Eastern religion activities Covey advocates. She said in a recent interview, however, that the materials don’t belong in a Christian school.

“It’s not about being intolerant. It’s about being true to my faith,” she said. “I don’t have a problem with Stephen Covey and businesses that use it. I don’t have any problem with people who want to sign up for yoga classes or attend the church of Satan if they want to. That’s their right. But I can’t imagine someone paying money to send their kids to Brigham Young University so they can get a good basis in Mormon faith and then having their kid come home and saying his new teacher was a Catholic priest teaching the Apocrypha.”

Hey there Delilah
I know to hear this may be hard
But just believe me, girl
Some classes even teach the Apocrypha
Bhagavad Gita and Hindu
We pay good tuition for that too
Oh yes we do

Oh intolerance is what it is
(Maybe a little hypocrisy, too)
Oh intolerance is what it is
Intolerance is what it is

for my friend Suedonym, who writes:

C-dub,

I need some good Christmas morning recipes. I know you’ll have some fabulous ones. (She knows flattery will get her anywhere with me.)

P.S. If you are too busy right now, no worries. just sometime before next Christmas. (Hmmm. Wonder if she knows how many quilts I have started downstairs for “sometime before next Christmas” or just how very long they’ve been waiting down there?)

Merry Ho Ho Ho! (Inside joke. ya’ll really ought to be on twitter)

My response:

Quiche is good:
from my Belgian mission cookbook

8-inch pie shell
3 eggs
1 c. heavy cream
1 c. grated Gruyere (or Swiss)
1 tsp. butter
8 strips bacon cooked and crumbled or several slices baked ham, diced
dash of salt
dash of freshly ground nutmeg

Beat eggs with a fork. Add cream and beat again. Add salt and grate nutmeg into the mix. Sprinkle cheese in the bottom of the pie crust. Spread meat over the cheese. Pour egg mixture over the top. Dot with butter. Put the quiche or pie pan on a cookie sheet. Bake in a preheated oven @ 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until golden brown and firm. Cool and serve warm or cold.

But this is what I’ve been doing in recent years because I can whip it up the night before and leave it in the fridge (or in your case, the new fridge! yay!) overnight. I pop it in the oven as the kids get ready to come in to the living room and see their presents and it’s ready by the time they realize they’re hungry.

Breakfast Strata
from my friend Donnette, who also makes chain mail as a hobby

10 slices good white bread (this year I’m using homemade)
butter
3/4 lb. shredded cheddar
3/4 lb. shredded Monterey Jack Cheese (Shane came back from the grocery store w/ Colby Jack. I use whatever I’ve got on hand.)
Diced ham bacon or sausage (optional)
8 eggs, lightly beaten
3 c. light cream or milk (I generally go about half and half)
1 tsp brown sugar
1/4 tsp. paprika
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. onion powder (which I never have on hand)
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/8 tsp. cayenne
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce (Carina was right about anchovies)
1 tsp. dry mustard

Butter bread on one side, then cube. Butter 9×13 baking dish. Layer half the bread cubes; sprinkle with half the cheeses; lather. rinse. repeat. Combine remaining ingredients and pour over top. Refrigerate overnight. Bake @ 325 degrees for 1 hour or till done (whenever that is).

Now I’ve got to get back to my Chex Mix and my Pulla.

Happy Christmas to all and to all a Good Happy New Year!

slc jan 2009

just over a week ago as shane and i were preparing for a little anniversary getaway in midway we couldn’t stop ourselves from saying from time to time, “a year ago today…” and “this time last year…”

it was just around midnight on the eve of our 21st anniversary when a very patient shane broke the terrible news he’d been carrying around heavy in his heart for most of the afternoon–he’d been diagnosed with cancer. after a sleepless night and despite second thoughts, we headed south the next day for a surprise he had already planned–a return to a bed & breakfast we’d stayed at years ago in manti, which is where we were married in 1987.

words fail to sufficiently describe those days. that trip. or how we felt. but

shocked
heavy
stricken
grieving
terrified

may give you a small glimpse.

***********

midway dec 2009

this year we headed north. we spent a quiet and cozy dinner right next to the fireplace at the homestead. and our hearts were both full of gratitude and yet oh so much lighter than they had been just a dozen months before.

on the morning of the 12th i woke up early and flung open the curtains of the condo where we were staying. as i took in the wonder of the freshly fallen snow and sent up yet another simple prayer of gratitude for being blessed to live in such a beautiful world, i recalled staring out the window at the snowy vistas visible from shane’s hospital room just after his surgery at huntsman.

what a difference a year makes.

the once-again inadequate words written on my heart this day were

brightness
hope
faith
blessed
thankful

at formerly phread

i’ll see your:

and raise you:

May your days be merry and bright…

i’ve been doing everything right to welcome the spirit of christmas.

skipped the frenzy that can be found on black friday.

waited until after thanksgiving for the christmas music–but played it most sincerely ever since.

tried to be thoughtful and mindful of each recipient as i have gone about my month of simple service and also as i have considered everyone’s christmas wish lists.

but i still wasn’t feelin’ it.

in fact i was starting to wonder if my who heart had hardened or my old ears grown too deaf to hear the jingle of that magic bell.

i believe!

sure, there is the obvious answer. the true meaning of christmas isn’t really found in any of that. it’s all about the one for whom the holiday is named.

but honestly, we should be Christ-centered, mindful of and grateful for that every month of the year.

because really, i believe!

what i was searching for is something far less profound and sacred than that and yet still real enough and necessary for the festivity and tradition to resume its rightful place in my heart.

i was still waiting.

this morning i discovered what was missing.

it was the snow.

since moving from my childhood home in the pacific northwest where rain was plentiful but snow was so rare we canceled school for a mere skiff, i have become accustomed to the sparkle of crystallized water reflected in the sun. the magic of the dreary winter grey transformed into white. dull turned bright.

like pavlov’s dogs, i have become conditioned to only fully turn on the warmth of christmas in my heart when the cold of snow arrives.

and now i know that as much as i love to visit there, i could never move further south. and as much as i would love to see so many wonderful places in the southern hemisphere, i could never live somewhere where christmas is celebrated in the middle of the summer.

because the world in my snowglobe is not truly christmas-y without a little snow.

so tell me, what does it for you? a log in the fire? the scent of a freshly cut pine? sipping cider through a straw? presents scattered underneath the christmas tree? jingling bells? your favorite carol? the nutcracker ballet? dicken’s a christmas carol? eggnog? gingerbread?

what puts you in the mood for christmas?

i don’t really know what a decemberist is–i’ve heard it in terms of a russian revolt and a rock band from the pacific northwest. but i was born in december and i liked the sound of it for a post about the month of december.

last month i blogged every day of the month. yay me.

in the spirit of the season, i’m want to do something different during the month of december. i realize i spend a good part of my days working, cooking and sometimes even cleaning for my family. it mostly goes unnoticed. and such is life. it’s all good.

but this morning as i was cleaning the downstairs bathroom (which is also where we keep the bird–because where else are we going to keep it…in the kitchen?) that is mostly used by my son i decided what i want for christmas this year.

i want to dedicate each day of december to doing some small (ok or large–trust me, cleaning that bathroom is no small thing) task or act of service for a member of my immediate family. i will decide each day what it will be. it won’t be part of the regular daily grind. it will be something deliberate and specific for that particular person in my family.

my gift may be so small, so simple, that the recipient of that gift may not even notice it.

but no worries.

no strings.

in order to accomplish my goal (and to compensate for filling your google reader list every single day during the month of november), i’m taking (ok so maybe most of) the rest of december off.

may your chocolate be hot, your days be merry and your children be bright.

happy holidays!

best–

p.s. pray for snow!!!