The Mix-Up

I have great admiration for the culinary industry. I admire those who are fabulous chefs, modify recipes, and sometimes use their own ingenuity when cooking food.

A great friend of mine, who I will refer to only as E, has superb culinary skills. She has been accepted and participates in an elite cooking club; she blogs about her culinary skills and her predecessors; and she has a renowned library of cookbooks.

She is not only a fabulous cook, but a great gift giver as well. Many times the gifts I receive from her are distinctive cookbooks which I have loved. One year for my birthday she gave me a cookbook titled Favorites. This cookbook is a collection of favorite Ivory Family recipes. It is an excellent compilation of tasty and fairly easy recipes (my kind of cookbook). It is one I have shared with many of my friends.

Upon opening the front cover of my gift, I found a heart-felt, hand written note to my friend’s mother. As I thumbed through the pages, I also noticed food platters from a recipe well used. It brought a big smile to my face. Not only because of the tender note to her mother; but also being recipient of re-gifting. For months I said nothing, enjoying my hard-to-come-by gift.

A few months later my friend E called and said, “I have a strange question.” She asked me if I had her mother’s cookbook. I began to laugh as I told her I thought I had been re-gifted, but loved my gift anyway. She told me she had accidentally given me the cookbook she had borrowed from her mother, instead of the new one she had purchased for me. When she went to return her mother's book, she realized the mix-up.

Saturday night we exchange birthday gifts for this year. I thought I had purchased the perfect gift for my friend. It was a sequel to The Favorites cookbook. What a surprise, when she had the same gift for me.

We laughed, and laughed, while we enjoyed dinner and a movie together.

Boxed In

Today was my nephew's farewell. He has been called to serve in the Fort Launderdale, Flordia, spanish speaking mission. When we arrived at church, the parking lot was quite crowded (as they usually are for mission farewells). I was amazed to find people who thought they had “cool” cars or trucks, taking two spaces to avoid door dings or scratches to their precious vehicles. I think they should have put me in charge of parking so that I could determine which cars were worthy of two spaces. The very average truck taking two spaces, was a one space vehicle. While on the other hand, the porche', might have been a two space automobile.

I finally found a perfect space to park in the North West corner of the lot. The only disadvantage was the mounds of snow in front and to the side. Of course if someone parked in the space behind me, I wouldn’t be able to get out. The snow made these two spaces incompatible. I was positive that no one would park behind me, and if they did they would only stay for one meeting.

The farewell was fabulous! I love to watch these young boys grow into young men. They are so valiant and ready to serve the Lord.

After the farewell concluded, we were walking out to our car when Mike said, “I think you are boxed in,” and I definitely was. The two big boys’ (Jordan and Mike) tried to guide me out of my position, but it was not to be.

Jordan and I both went inside, interrupted the meetings in progress to announce our predicament. No one fessed up, except for the adorable little 3 year old primary children. We just grinned and moved on. I finally asked the librarians to take the license plate number and car make and model around to other meeting to find its owner, and I returned to the car.

I asked a kind relative of ours to shuttle my kids and our food contribution over to the farewell festivities. I stayed with the car knowing that the librarians wouldn’t let me down, and someone would be out in no time at all to claim their car. I waited, and waited, and finally called my chauffeur to pick me up.

There were many inquiries as to whether or not I left a note on the car that boxed me in. I felt like I wouldn’t be able to write a note that was “church appropriate”, so took the high road and decided not to leave one at all.

The suburban has a new bump on the fender from 4 wheeling on the icy snow banks, and had a difficult time adjusting back to two wheel drive. I can say however, that we are a one parking space family.

Joy Riding

Bella doesn’t get to go on many excursions. Her life is quite boring; she is usually in the house, laying in her favorite spots, or running wildly around the backyard. In the backyard she can chat (dog talk that is) with her friends Lucy and Sam across the fence, or chase peanut our undomesticated pet squirrel. On occasion she will escape out the front door, run to her furry friends house (Lucy and Sam), and relish in a fun play date. When the weather is pleasant, she may enjoy a scenic walk with me or the kids.

Bella has learned the word “ride”. Whenever I taxi the kids to and from activities, Bella wants to come. I usually let her come with me every now and again, for some doggie enjoyment, and diversion from her mundane day. Bella insists on sitting on my lap and watching out the window. If you ever notice the driver’s window you will see it blotted with little paw and nose prints from her.

I have begun to wonder if I am becoming like my Grandma. Grandma Wagstaff had a small fluffy white poodle. She loved her little dog. It provided her with companionship, love, and entertainment. Each day Grandma would take her little dog on a ride. They would usually end there joyride with a visit to the drive through window at McDonalds to purchase a hamburger for her little furry friend. We used to laugh and think how spoiled her dog was.

I have not yet begun taking my dog to fast food establishments, but I’m wondering if I’m following in Grandma’s footsteps just a tad.

More College Options

What’s a girl to do? As I mentioned before, Katelyn’s two top choices for college are BYU, and UVU. She has already been accepted to UVU with a full ride scholarship. Yesterday,she got accepted to BYU as well.

Her options are wide open. I’m just not sure what a cougar in red would look like, but hey, I’m good with either choice.

Literacy Night

Tonight was Literacy Night at Valley View Elementary School. The PTA does an outstanding job planning, preparing, and presenting such a night. As a past PTA President I know by experience how much time and effort is involved with such a night.

The main attraction for me was the Greek Plays presented by Mrs. Ferrarie’s 6th Grade Class. Of course I might be a little partial since Lizzy’s was performing.

These are some pictures from the Greek plays:

Play Number 2 I think Ben's favorite part was the food, the funny glasses, and the ice-cream. My favorite part was letting the kids run loose, and hiding out in the library with a wonderful friend, with the doors locked. Yes... some R & R!

Asking To The Senate Dance

Tonight Mike got asked to the Girl's choice Senate Dance. The Dance is in March, which means he will be 16 and able to go. I am always amused by the ingenuity of the invitee. A happy meal was delivered to our house, with a note on it that said: "I'd be happy if you would go to the Senate Dance with me."

The difficult part was finding the name of the girl. I dumped out the soda and looked all over the cup, scoured the box, rummage through the wrappers, and found nothing. Finally, Mike looked inside the hamburger and found a small crumpled up name. Good thing he wasn't hungry! I think the invitee was hoping he would take a big bite out of the burger before he found her name.

Spiffing Things Up A Bit

The past couple of years I have been trying to complete the renovation on the main level that started about 4 years or more ago. I have been purchasing furniture on occasion at the 50% off sales at a local furniture store.

While I have found some beautiful furniture, I just haven’t been able to put it all together. Recently, I had assistance finishing the project. Here are a few of the finished rooms:

College Options

Katelyn will be graduating from Bountiful High School this year. I can't believe how quickly time has gone by. Most kids (well most of mine), seem to take a lighter load in high school their senior year. Not Kate, she has been taking classed such as AP Calculus, Sports Med, CE English, and Honors Physics to name a few.

Applications to the colleges she was interested in were due February 1st. Most applications require essays, some ecclesiastical endorsements, etc. This is not a small feat. She applied to at least 5 colleges, although she was mainly interested in BYU, and UVU. She started the application process the evening of January 31st, and submitted the last college application at 11:58 that evening. There is nothing like a lot of pressure, and a little procrastination in submitting her college apps.

The U of U (her parents' alma mater) was a top choice; however she wanted the experiencing of living away from home for awhile. We haven't heard from BYU yet, but UVU has not only sent her an acceptance letter to their school; but has given her an Outstanding Merit R Scholar Award. It is a full ride scholarship to their school.

I am so proud of her. Her emphasis on academics in high school has benefited her college options. Way to go Kate!

Helpers

I greatly appreciate the extra help my older kids that live at home give me. I have learned that each child is unique and individual, and that ALL my children have positive attributes to accentuate.

For instance, Sarah is my gift shopper. She is adept at shopping for holiday gifts, birthday gifts, just about any gift at all. She enjoys shopping, as long as she isn’t paying. She is a great bargain shopper, and loves to shop with coupons or other discount tickets. I enjoy someone finding the perfect gift for the special someone on my list.

Mike is my handyman/grounds keeper. He is always puttering around in the garage, re-organizing gear, finding lost treasures, and cleaning up our messes. He has the snow removed before dawn in the winter; and weeds pulled before we begin to garden in the summer.

Kate, is proficient at grocery shopping. She does not like to shop for apparel, but is a whiz with the grocery shopping. On occasion, an elderly woman in our neighborhood also entrusts Kate to do her grocery shopping for her as well. We both send her with a list, but sometimes she tends to deviate from mine just a bit.

Today I sent her to the store with a very small list. I had just shopped at Costco on Friday and only need two things; lettuce, and a fresh vegetable for tomorrow. This is the extras she came home with:
I'm not complaining, I'm just beginning to understand why she really enjoys grocery shopping for me.

Concussion

Tuesday afternoon The Bountiful Braves basketball team battled their rivals the Woods Cross Wild Cats. Mike got clocked by one of his good friends on the opposing team. At first glance it didn’t look like anything substantial, but when he hit the floor and didn’t move for a minute one had to wonder.

He doesn’t remember anything that happened. He only remembers waking up on the floor and not being able to see. He doesn’t remember making his free throws, sitting on the bench, talking to team mates (repeating the same questions over and over again), or walking into the locker room.

Fortunately, his doctor’s wife who is our good friend, was sitting with me as a fan, so we were able to get him examined quickly. He has a mild concussion.

The High School Athletic Association has a 5 day moratorium for anyone that sustains a concussion while participating in high school sports. Unfortunately, this means that Mike will not be able to play in the Olympus game today. He’ll dress and sit on the bench for the sophomore, JV, and Varsity games, but will not play. Fortunately, it will give him time to get healthy again.

Young Women Basketball

Preparing for her basketball debut. Dance pose or basketball pose?Tonight was Lizzy's first Young Women basketball game. Lizzy is a dynamite dancer, and a tremendous tumbler, but has never taken an interest in sports such as basketball. I was quite surprised when she wanted to play basketball with the Young Women.

I had no idea how fun it would be. Girl's ward ball is so much different than boys. There were no angry words; nothing but smiles, giggles, and blushes when they would get a foul called on them. There wasn't even any hair pulling. What no hair pulling? I thought all girl's basketball games had a little of that:). They even had refreshments at the end of their rigorous game.

I'm not sure that any of the girls will get drafted in the WNBA, but they definitely know how to have a good time.

Puppy Love

When Mike was in elementary school he used to have school girl crushes. Each Valentine’s Day he would have a special someone that he wanted to purchase a Valentine gift for.

No young boy wants to ask a parent for help in obtaining the perfect Valentine’s gift for their adolescent love. So Mike would requisition, or maybe even bribe, one of his older sister’s, (who had a driver’s license and good taste), to pick him up a few Valentine gifts.

Why a few gifts one might ask? Well, Mike was an entrepreneur at a very young age. He would take these gifts to school and sell them to his friends who didn’t have older sisters. His friends would put in their requests for Valentine gifts; Mike would mark up the price, and sell them to these desperate love sick boys.

I pretended not to know about his scheme, and Mike continued to quietly pursue his puppy love.

Valentines Day 2011

The kids’ Valentine’s Day consisted of school parties, treats, valentines, valagrams, and heart shaped pizza for dinner.

I enjoyed listening to the recap of their day. Lizzy had a 50’s dancing party. The girl’s all dressed in poodle skirts, and enjoyed a variety of dance techniques. The waltz, the swing, and two-step were among the favorites. They also line-danced, as well as danced with BOYS!

Ben couldn't wait to tell me that he received 14 valagrams; eight of which he claims are from “mysteries”. I think he may have over exaggerated a bit. He also mentioned the anonymous conversation heart that was placed on his desk and said, “hottie” on it. He makes me laugh.

The doorbell has been ringing a lot, and that is ALL I can say about the older kids. They won't let me divulge anymore. Let's just say, it's been a very eventful day.

I was invited to dinner with Becky and Craig Parry. We spent the evening dining at the Thaifoon Restaurant, on tasty Asian food.

There was speculation at our table about couples dining at the restaurant,and what their relationship may or may not be. I am sure others in the restaurant were conjecturing about the relationships at our table as well.

Missing Him

Valentine’s Day, is a day that couples spend time together, and express their love, and devotion to one another. Today, I am missing being a couple. I am missing having Steve here.

Grief seems to ebb and flow, and today it is flowing. I asked the kids on Sunday if it would be okay for me to go alone to the cemetery on Valentine’s Day; they obliged.

On the way to the cemetery, my mind was full of sadness and thoughts such as, “I am only in my 40’s, I have 6 kids, and I’m going to visit my husband on Valentine’s Day at the cemetery; this is crazy.” I never would have imagined that life would have taken such a turn.

My emotions are running high today, and buckets of tears have been shed. I’ll wipe them away before my kids get home from school. They don’t like to see me sad, and why should they; it should be a Happy Valentine’s Day for them.

Pre-Valentines Day Celebration.

Valentines Day is a day we focus on and pay particular attention to those we love. It is a time to do something extra special for the important people in our lives.

On Sunday, we had a Pre-Valentines Day celebration. Meg and Quinn were in town from Las Vegas, and Sarah and Jordan were visiting from Provo. I invited some guests for dinner, made them a special dinner, opened gifts, and of course had heart shaped sugar cookies for desert.

My family keeps growing, which has been such a blessing. I love them ALL!