Giving Thanks 2009

The number one thing I'm thankful for is 25 years of marriage! We went out to eat and Christmas shop together. It's amazing how much we are part of each other and I'm humbled at how much he loves me. The reason for the picture above? When the kids were younger we had a Family Home Evening lesson on serving each other. In the story a little boy named Blaine decided to follow the Savior's example and be of service to others. He would leave little notes of SAJS (serve as Jesus served) around the house when he did something for someone else. For WEEKS I found little notes in empty dishwashers, on my made bed, in clean bathrooms... well, you get the picture. Sometimes months would go by but I'd still have a little SAJS note creep in somewhere. On the morning of my anniversary I woke up and Emily had made a gallon of my favorite Tropical Punch Crystal Light and, yes, there was an SAJS note on it. I still have the flannel board story if anyone wants to borrow it.



I have never been so grateful for my family. I can't imagine my life without my husband and children. While Steve and Chris had to go to work the day before Thanksgiving Allison, Emily and I went to work! I can't express enough the relief it was to have so much help in the kitchen. It was nice to have them home before Thanksgiving and able to help so much! We had a menu on the refrigerator and prioritized our time.



We assembled all the ingredients before we started and were diligent about cleaning and doing dishes as we went along. Later, as the men arrived home to the smell of fresh baked pie and rolls the kitchen was absolutely spotless. I mean no dishes anywhere! Swept floor! Clean counters! We were good! (frankly, I can't do it any other way without going insane!) The refrigerators were full of ready to go yams, green beans, dressing, cranberry relish,...



I made the crusts, Emily prepared the apples and pumpkin filling. Allison mixed the rolls and they even smelled yummy rising on the warm oven.



Emily couldn't resist taking pictures of our beautiful cooling pies.



No holiday dinner would be complete without my Mom's Butterhorn rolls. Allison was the mix master! My paranoia is in the forming of the rolls, but they turned out so beautifully! Only a few came undone. We especially like the "peeps" roll and the one that came totally undone and looked like a slice of pizza. The girls called dibs on those.

There were no complaints even as Alli handled the "icky, slimy" canned yams (no, I didn't take time to cook my own) and Em mixed in the brown sugar, etc. and fought the urge to "yak." We were exhausted but I've never appreciated them more. I think there was a great pride of ownership on their part the next day as we sat down to eat (with NO pictures, drat!).

Footnote: Hopefully no one will stick with the story this far but I have to add this one as the story has been leaked. No, the turkey wasn't done when we sat down to eat. I made a few really amateur mistakes (bleh!). It cooked a little longer, we ate everything else, and we still had enough to be sick of it four days later.

Welcome, Welcome, Sabbath Morning...

When was the last day you can remember having a Snow Day called by your church? Chris and I smiled, quietly, in the hallway... we have 9 o'clock church and the Broncos game starts at 11... and acceptable substitute.

I Wonder How High My Blood Pressure Is?

This morning I answered a call at 6:20 a.m. from Steve's carpool partner, Greg, who was sick and wouldn't be meeting Steve at the Safeway parking lot. My sweet husband takes Allison and Emily to their early morning seminary class every day at 6 and stays about 20 minutes at the adult class before meeting up with Greg.

Because our family is archaic and has one cell phone and I was talking on it I jumped up, pulled on some clothes and rushed off to to let Steve know not to wait. Arriving at the lot I felt relieved Steve wasn't there, feeling sure I had averted a delay for him. He didn't show up. I began to worry, thinking maybe they met across the street at the King Sooper's (yes, that's the name and correct spelling) parking lot. Traversing the annoying intersection and commuter traffic I found he wasn't there either. Oh, no. Maybe he's now arrived back at Safeway. I went back. He wasn't there.

I looked at the clock and realized the girl's seminary class has finished and I needed to get them to school. I rushed to the church and picked them up. Allison floated the idea that maybe Steve and Greg met at the other King Sooper's a few miles west of where I was. I asked the girls if they would mind being late so we could run over there and check on Steve. Allison tells me she has a Chemistry test first thing and can't be late if it can be helped. Then she panics; her teacher allows them to fill one index card with notes and equations to use on their tests and she just discovers that she's left her Chemistry folder at home on the kitchen table.

I called the school attendance line as I sat in the pre-school gridlocked traffic and excused her because she's going to be tardy. We dropped off Emily and rushed to the other store's parking lot. I was thinking "he's not going to still be here..." and he wasn't. We race home, Alli grabs her folder and I get her back to school. By the time I returned home 75 minutes had passed and Chris is in the shower, getting ready for work. I took Chris to work.

People, I had purposely blocked out the day on the sub system because I am worn out and getting sick, again! I am blessed to have worked many days during the weeks since I last posted on this blog, but many of them have been for the special education teachers that have discovered me. Yesterday was, well, pretty awful. Imagine seven hours of tears, snot, saliva, tantrums, kids leaping over and off of furniture and a lovely session of dragging a kicking, screaming child down the hall to the office, finding that the principal and ALL of the support staff are at the same training meeting.

I ate a few pancakes that Mom made for me and she sent me back to bed. I woke up at noon.

I'm sorry I haven't posted. I've heard directly and through the grapevine that some of you are wondering why I haven't posted in so long. Deep sigh. Don't know how to answer that one except to refer you back to the story above, that is if you've stuck with me long enough to read the whole thing and not quit, thinking, "blah, blah, blah..."

I threw on the pictures below for anyone who wants to see what we've been up to.






The week before Halloween. At least it got rid of all our leaves quickly.



My adorable honey, shoveling a path (in his green crocs!) for Charlie so he can get to "his usual spot" in the yard.

Since the snow melted we've been in the 60's and 70's. It's going to snow today.



Allison and Emily were invited to a Halloween party that was the day before Trick or Treat street at the high school. Their theme was Disney movies and Shades of Blue was "Peter Pan." Alli was Wendy and had to have the curled ponytail so she had to wear curlers the night before. I had a brilliant streak that night. I dressed her in one of Mom's old house dresses, stuffed her with a pillow, got out her old doll and doll carrier and she went as a Redneck Wife. Christian went along with it as her Redneck husband.



Emily and I had a little fun. She went as the Evil Tooth Fairy. I took a little heart shaped box and made a shadow box necklace out of it, filling it with Chicklet gum that had been dipped in red food coloring paste; instant bloody teeth! If you look closely in this picture, and the one below, you can see the vise grip pliers she carried with another "bloody tooth" in it's clutches.







Right after the Trick or Treat street the group was having a Halloween party at their teachers home. The girls and I made a "Shades of Boo" cake, with a Nutella spider. The Nutella melted a little too much and it made a mess. We just messed it up more. What's a little more chocolate?



Here are Wendy and Slightly the Lost Boy. Yes, I made the dress and the footed pajamas. My favorite part was the fox hood... I sewed floral wire into the ears so we could shape them!



For their group party Alli added her tiara and a lot of bling to her outfit and became a princess. Emily wore her black clothing again and was a vampire. My favorite part of all the crazy busy madness? Painting their masks. They turned out so cute!!! Yeah, I'm proud of my work.






I included this beautiful shot of our Halloween Night moon because I am excited for nighttime so I can go to bed. Look below. I think Charlie has the right idea. He's curled up in a blanket on Helen's lap, his nose buried in the quilt and he's snoring. Wish I could still fit into a quilt on Mom's lap....



There. I'm still in my pre-dawn thrown on clothes. It's two hours and fifteen minutes since I got out of bed. I have 30 minutes until the girls get out of school and I haven't showered and dressed yet, but, my blog has been updated.

I've Been Sewing, Daily Sewing....

After the jackets for "Shades" you'd think I'd lay low, right? Well... The Seniors at Ralston Valley have their Toga Day at the end of Homecoming Week (while the underclassmen are relegated to school colors). I saw a pattern for togas and thought, "How hard can it be?" Not hard just time consuming! I wanted to do this and, boy, did I? Embarrassing confession: I thought it would be a breeze and ended up finishing at 3:30 a.m. This included a run to a 24 hour Wal Mart. And I'm glad I did it, even if I'm tired!

I thought their hair was adorable!



It's all about the accessories, right? These were fun to make!



This is Allison's "Aphrodite" shot...



... and Emily's "Athena."



Christian and Allison were patient with a Mom and her camera (hey, they were waiting on the other couple... You can't tell in the pictures but the top layer of Alli's dress was an adorable flocked dotted swiss (I love retro!).



Ready to go... my last Homecoming :{


A P.S. Update: I didn't get my sewing "put away" and now have, oh, three or four items laid next to my machine in need of my attention. Shouldn't have cleaned the bathrooms first, dang it!

Gena's Journal

Monday, October 5th

Ran all my errands today. Getting everything in order so I can finish cutting out the shrugs (abbreviated bolero jackets) for the "Shades of Blue" dresses. First concert of the year is on next Tuesday, so, really under a deadline! Planning on taking the shrugs to school on Monday so girls have them on Tuesday.

Tuesday, October 6th

Oh, no! Incomplete list of girls! Where is the other list? Oh, yeah, it's in my van. At the school. With the girls. Maybe I should get them a cell phone?

Wednesday, October 7th

Substituted in Algebra classes all day. Glad it's the beginning of the year so I still knew what I was supposed to teach. Was excited to get home and finish cutting out fabric and start sewing. Found water coming in the basement window. Spent two and a half hours pulling up flooring. Not as bad as it could have been (I LOVE my shop vac!). Sigh. No sewing tonight.

Thursday, October 8th

Spent until about 12:30 with Mom; poor dear had to have a colonoscopy :{ Finished cutting out ALL 13 shrugs.

Friday, October 9th

Started a four day job subbing for a middle school choir teacher with extensive lunch duty. No down time, other teachers were absent and needed coverage. Too much H1N1 going around. District actually ran out of subs that were healthy! Began sewing on a shrug. Became frustrated figuring out how to make it "easier." Took me two hours. Cried.

Saturday, October 10th

Woke up to 20 degrees and snow. Put my shoulder to the wheel and the tile in the sun room. Walking to the TV to put in one of my DVD's I tripped over Chris' shoes. Laid on floor and said the "s" word a few times. Ow! Had the Elders cutting through our yard, FREEZING! Invited them in for Hot Chocolate and ended up having them eat hot soup. Finished SIX shrugs. Pain in right shoulder triggered a nice little migraine. Work made lighter by watching the awesome BYU game (ha! UNLV).

Sunday, October 11th

It's 9:10 p.m. The Rockies are up 2-1 over the Phillies, the Broncos had a terrific game against the Patriots and I'M DONE WITH ALL 13 SHRUGS!!! It only took me nine hours today, but, I'M DONE!!! Told Alli to NOT talk to me about alterations on her Homecoming dress until tomorrow. I guess that means I don't have to clean up all my sewing things tonight!

I actually remembered to get out my camera! I love them all lined up with Alli and Em's dressed flanking them. Now, how am I going to transport them all, unwrinkled and not falling off the hangers, into the school...?

Lessons Learned

It's been a few weeks, again. I'm beginning to think I should just throw in the towel on this blog! I've been so remiss! Too much happens too quickly and I get myself so busy I don't often remember to document my life. So, here I sit in my nightgown at 11 in the morning, when I should be sewing on the 13 bolero jackets for the girls singing group, typing to you all. I'm really good at procrastination as you can tell by my blog and my dedication to my sewing.

Here are a few things I've learned through experience during the last few weeks.


1. IF YOU TAKE YOUR SONS SUITS TO BE DRY CLEANED MAKE SURE YOU GET THEM BACK BEFORE HE HAS TO SPEAK ABOUT HIS MISSION IN SACRAMENT MEETING.

To be fair I did ask a few people to help me remember (and it's not like they aren't adults too!). And I did remember, at 10 o'clock Saturday night.


2. SISTERS REALLY ARE THE BEST.

Not that I didn't know this already but it's nice to know. (she'll love me for this one)


3. DON'T LET HELEN ELLSWORTH WATCH INFOMERCIALS.

We now have in our possession the Time-Life collection titled "Romancing the 70's". Where do my impulse buying tendencies come from?






4. GENERAL CONFERENCE CONTINUES TO BE AWESOME!

I was so uplifted by the talks I can't find words to express it. There were so many powerful testimonies of our Savior! I love how refreshed and comforted I feel the entire weekend (too bad Monday has to come around...)





5. COMPULSIVE EATING HAS A NAME.

We were eating a dessert at Marianne's house and realized we really weren't hungry, but it tasted so good! The Looses can leave their dog food down all day and their dog, Sam, only eats when he finally gets hungry. On the other hand our pup, Charlie, can down the whole bowl in a minute. We decided we'd refer to comfort eating as "Schnauzing" after my adorable, perpetually munchy Miniature Schnauzer.

6. FULL DISCLOSURE IS NOT ALWAYS BEST.

If any member of my family finds a dead mouse (even a tiny baby one) somewhere in my house DON'T TELL ME!!! I've not been able to go to a certain area of my basement for a few weeks.

I'm Spinning My Plates As Fast As I Can

Once upon a time there was a beautiful, if ditzy, woman named Gena. She imagined her life as a frenetic act on an exposed stage, the one where the person has thin poles and keeps plates spinning on top of all of them at once. Each plate had a title; Wife, Mother, Daughter, Cook, Chauffeur, Maid, Handyman, IT tech, the "Can you...?" go to person... you get the idea.

Now, periodically, Gena would get distracted by one plate and a few others would drop. Like when the DSL router died leaving all three computers in the house off the net for over a week. And between teaching and getting her son's bedroom ready for him to reoccupy she forgot about scheduling her twin daughters Senior pictures. And paying a few bills...? Well, I'm sure we can all relate to this.

When the plates start falling, chipping and splintering around her, Gena likes to remind herself of another time her plates all fell. Feeling sad she hid herself away in her Mother's bedroom, quietly shutting the door behind her. She was feeling horrible, as if she'd let everyone down.

At the time Gena REALLY wanted a few minutes to herself. Well, she got it. A very few minutes. About five minutes after stealing away her children found her and quietly arranged themselves around her. Did she feel she'd been invaded? Absolutely. Did she mind? Not so much. You see, as the invasion commenced there was not a sound. Silently they came in and cuddled up.




For the last two weeks Gena has been dropping plates but she's found the Elmer's! I predict that she will be doing pretty well by next Monday or Tuesday.

Chris Came Home

Words rarely fail me. I was so happy to see Chris come up from the subway at DIA all I could do was smile!



A railing separates the people waiting from the arriving passengers. He approached Helen, Allison and Emily as I was circumventing the rail. Can you imagine how I felt when he told them, "I need to hug Momma first"?

I put my arms around him. It felt so good! I whispered in his ear, "I don't think I can let go" and he whispered back "I don't think I can either." Sigh.

Three cameras were going and Chris was disconcerted, not knowing where to look.



Emily, Chris and Allison.



Chris was sharing pictures of his departure from New Hampshire with me because...



...a distraught Steven was stuck on the 225 in horrible traffic! He felt awful for about 2 seconds until Chris ran up to him with big hugs too.



The very next, very important, order of business was to call big brother Michael in Utah. Michael was so jealous and "oh, man" wistful. I think we're going to take a quick weekend trip so they can see each other. I mean it has been THREE YEARS since they've seen each other.



I didn't know this picture was being taken but I like it.



When we got Charlie two years ago Christopher was the first family member he warmed up to. After a brief territorial barking spell puppy warmed right up.



Okay, I have to confess. It wasn't until I started loading photos onto the computer that I realized we didn't get one picture of Chris with Grandma Helen. While Helen isn't in her cute little black and white outfit I don't think she minded the hugs.



Chris is glad to be home but is still in a bit of culture shock. While we've kept the TV quiet this afternoon he has been on the Wii with me and Emily. He's playing computer games while the girls (and I) watch "Glee." His body clock is telling him it's 10:30 p.m. and he's readjusting to the altitude. Still, he assures me he's happy. Me too!

CAUTION: Long Week Ahead

Dear BlogMates,

I'm home after my first day in a true Special Ed. class. There is an extra sub in the school right now (long story) but if she leaves before the end of the week I'm done for. The aide in my class also went to Outdoor Lab (a week long camp for the sixth graders) and aides don't get substitutes. So, if the teacher requires an aide why wouldn't I? Please pray for me that I don't end up alone with these special spirits, please?

Shower Saga Wrap Up: Our last attempt at waterproofing/sealing the grout, once again, appeared not to work The grout, upon have water spritzed on it, turned the dark cement like color. Well, Alli sat down and cried. I was with her. I called the manufacturer of the sealer and was told it was a breathable sealant and it would look wet. I don't know how that's supposed to work, but the girls are showering in their bathroom and are happy. I was so relieved I didn't swear!

ELDER FARIA IS 9 DAYS AWAY FROM HOME! This time, a week from Wednesday, he will be home. Weird and exciting! He will be speaking on the first Sunday he's back in town, Sunday, September 13th, Sac. Mtg. 9 a.m. for those of you who can make it. Let me know! I'll prepare goodies!

I will be in much better form by Saturday morning. I hope I'll have an exciting and wonderful post ready for you all to read.

LOVE, Gena, harried teacher, concerned Mother and Dopey Daughter

Sunday, Part Two

What do you do with boring notebooks and a lazy, warm Sunday evening...?

Sideways Sunday Six

I thought I'd share Six photos this Sunday that sum up my week.


Below is a seemingly innocuous piece of paper, but it's no ordinary printout. This one causes my heart to beat faster. It causes my head to spin. It panics me into knowing I need to prepare. It is Christopher's travel itinerary for COMING HOME. He will arrive at DIA on 9-9-09 at 1:26 p.m.



The new drain line hook up. I didn't get to play with the jack hammer (he had two apprentices with him) but they made quick work of it. This part of the project was expected.




This part wasn't. We found that the entire kitchen assembly was crap. In fact when the plumbing team opened up the basement ceiling to connect the new drain line they found that the kitchen drain pipe WAS NOT CONNECTED. That's right. Open pipe hanging over open pipe. Thank heavens the kitchen sink isn't directly over the basement. We had to cut into the siding from the outside to replace it all. Bleh. It's fixed!



We had our technical "Last First Day of School" on Friday. The girls had a half day. Here's Emily with her "Mother Approved" breakfast; a big piece of homemade chocolate cake and a big glass of milk. Yum!



Seniors Allison and Emily.



My Honey's Saturday morning project was repairing the hole in the siding. I was brilliant in my Home Depot trip and got all the right stuff. While he worked the girls and I cleaned bathrooms and then had to "de-cement dust" the basement. Sigh. LOTS of vacuuming and dusting and wiping and I haven't even started on the bookshelves. It's all good.


PS... hold your breath for me, please! NONE OF THE WATERPROOFING ON THE BASEMENT SHOWER TILE JOB IS WORKING! I'm hoping beyond reason that the grout manufacturers will do more than give me a new box of grout, say, at least a Dremel tool to grind the old stuff out with? I'm so distraught (silent, inside screaming). This is the job that never ends.