One Year in Salt Lake City

Monday we celebrated our one-year anniversary in Salt Lake.  The experience is so easy to remember because all of our boxes were delayed for at least a week and we slept on the empty floor of this apartment overlooking the Capitol and glorious Temple Square lights.  While it wasn't convenient, especially right before Christmas, it was a special time.  We were on the brink of a new adventure in a new city.

To celebrate the girls slept on the floor in the same place they did when we arrived, although their set-up is far more elaborate and cozy than that first week!

It has been quite a year!  We have made great attempts at exploring our surroundings and making new friends.  We have loved living so close to family.  We love seeing old friends who have moved to Utah, or visit family here, from our BYU, Washington, D.C. and Harvard days.  We love living so close to the temple.  We love the many canyons, one withing walking distance.  And we love the work Geoff is doing.  We wish we could travel with him more and meet the great people he meets, but by letting him go and do his great work we feel we are making a difference too.

One year strong and and looking forward to great years ahead!

The True Spirit of Christmas

With our advent challenges this year I tried to work smarter (instead of harder!) by combining some Christmas-related activities with finishing the last few Faith in God goals for Adele.  Last week a challenge was to invite our elderly neighbors, the Kings, over for a Family Night.  They are so young in mind, but their bodies aren't so spry, and as a result they don't get out much and are quite lonely.  Adele had created this idea months ago (and was waiting for the right time to do it) and was in charge of the invitation, the planning and presenting of our short Christmas message.  We ended the evening playing some competitive games of Old Maid and Gold Fish (in our family those simple games are quite a contest!)  It was a lovely evening.  Thanks, Adele!

Adele showed this little Christmas video that is too cute, and full of the true Spirit of Christmas, not to share.  Enjoy!

Santa's Workshop

One day our Advent Challenge was to volunteer in Santa's Workshop: the Baking Department.  Tennie was busy with a Latin final, but Adele and Ceci and I cranked out three large batches of granola, assembly line-style.  We measured, mixed, baked, packaged up and delivered this scrumptious granola to our neighbors and various teachers.  

I love Adele's stirring stance...

Here is the recipe:

GRANOLA

 3 cups rolled oats

½ cup sesame seeds

½ cup sunflower seeds

½ cup pumpkin seeds

½ cup almonds, chopped

½ cup whole-wheat pastry flour (or Gluten-free flour blend)

½ teaspoon cinnamon

Pinch of sea salt

½ cup melted butter

½ cup maple syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

¼ teaspoon almond extract

Preheat oven to 300° F.  In a large mixing bowl, combine oats, seeds, almonds, flour, cinnamon, and salt; mix well.  In a separate bowl, combine butter, syrup, and extracts.  Slowly pour wet ingredients over dry ingredients, using a spatula to fold and evenly coat the dry mixture with the wet.  Spread on a cookie sheet or in a shallow pan and bake.  Turn granola every 15-20 minutes so it toasts evenly.  Bake until granola is dry and golden (45-60 minutes).  Store in airtight container.  Makes 8 cups.  Delish!

Mothering Magazine

On another day Adele was in the mood to be in the kitchen so she made some peppermint bark.  Oh my.  We intended to package up and give some of it away but it never quite made it out...

PEPPERMINT BARK
Parchment paper or non-stick cooking spray
1 pound white chocolate, chopped (don't use chips)
2 cups puffed rice cereal
1 package hard peppermint candies, unwrapped

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, or spray with non-stick cooking spray.  Break up some peppermint candies however you can do it!  We put them in doubled-up Ziploc bags and broke them with a hammer.  Place white chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over (not in) a saucepan of simmering water.  Heat, stirring occasionally, 4-6 minutes.  Remove from heat and stir in rice cereal.  Transfer mixture to prepared pan: with a spatula, spread to edges of pan.  Sprinkle with crushed candy; with a piece of wax paper covering the entire surface, press in gently (paper prevents hands from sticking to candy and chocolate).  Chill until firm, 20-30 minutes (no longer or candy will begin to soften).  Peel waxed paper off.  Break bark into pieces.  Store at room temperature in an airtight container, up to 1 week.  Yum!

Adele and Ceci loved their Santa Workshop volunteering so much they are now scheming up a baking business to launch in the new year.  I'll post about it as it develops.

Cotillion

Tennie and Adele are taking a monthly etiquette class called Cotillion.  They're held every month at the Salt Lake Country Club (the final one is a dinner at another location).  There are exactly enough boys and girls for each one to have a partner.  They all dress up fancy and learn the skills via partner dances.  Here is Adele's age group's class description:

Club Cotillion builds upon students' basic understanding of the social skills that contribute to character, improve communication and develop successful relationships. Developing a sense of social awareness in this interactive atmosphere allows students to apply their knowledge in everyday life.

Curriculum includes:  The Power of Social Skills, Conversation Skills, Demonstrating Courtesy & Respect, Cell Phone Savvy and Dining Etiquette & Table Manners.

Dances include basic and intermediate patterns of the fox trot, waltz and swing hustle plus an introduction to cha cha, merengue and tango.

	The Power of Social Skills & First Impressions
	Conversation, Courtesy & Respect
	Holiday Party / Toy Drive
	Dining Etiquette & Manners
	Teamwork & Leadership / Dinner Dance
	Final Party & Parents Night Held at the Grand America

Adele's first Cotillion

and her second...

Tennie's first (overall she has one or two less classes than Adele)

 Here is Tennie's age group description:

Social Skills Essentials is an advanced course designed to help our older students bridge the gap between basic social skills and social intelligence. This education is not only instrumental in developing positive relationships, defining character, and facing personal challenges - it will play a primary role in opening doors of opportunity in high school, college and beyond.

Curriculum includes:  Developing Social Intelligence, First Impressions & Introductions, Communication - Verbal & Non-verbal, High-tech Etiquette, Appearance & Dress, Character Development, Codes of Conduct, and Advanced Dining Etiquette.

Dances include basic through advanced patterns of the fox trot, waltz, jitterbug, tango, salsa and samba.

Course Subjects Include:
* How to Make a Positive First Impression
* Appearance & Dress * Courtesies to Change Your Life
* Ethics & Character Development
* Leadership Skills
* Communication & High-Tech Etiquette
* Advanced Dining Etiquette & Table Manners
* Community Involvement & Volunteerism
* Dinner Dance

They both LOVE these classes.  I love these classes because they are learning with boys about how boys should treat them...in a respectful way.  They are at their holiday party now.  (One class is right after the other.)  I almost hated to carpool tonight because I didn't get any pictures, and I have to wait all the longer to hear about their night!

Gingerbread House Making

Last night we had Geoff's sister Emily and her family, and his other sister Brittany and her husband, over for some gingerbread decorating and dinner, and then we watched the Christmas Devotional together.  It was so festive and fun.  Something about the total mess of candy and frosting, and the general hoopla of lots of family together, makes for a perfect holiday evening.

Geoff was in charge of frosting

Britt was (gladly) in charge of the twins (the girls think she hogs them...)

A break from family to capture our German Christmas Market treasures...

Those make me so happy.  So do these very serious gingerbread house decorators...

How Ceci feels to be on Zoey duty...

Merry in the Making

We have had a fun week "taking advantage of Christmas-time", as Adele would say.

Geoff was in the Dominican Republic and Haiti all week missing the 20 degree weather and all of the Merry-making, so the girls and I went and picked out a tree; Tennie strung on the lights (bless her soul!) and we hung all of our treasured ornaments.  Our little apartment feels so merry and bright.

We kicked off our elf hunting and advent traditions.  

Our Advent Elf has a daily Christmas challenge (i.e. visit someone who is lonely or sick, do something for someone without them knowing or decorate the house and finish off the day with hot cocoa, read the nativity story by candlelight).  The girls are really taking the challenges seriously this year on their own.  It is fun having them take more initiative!

While our Advent Elf was in storage for five years we hid a small, substitute elf with the Christmas challenge.  The girls still wanted to hunt for him every morning and decided that from now on the small elf must be found before one can go to the Advent Elf and read the challenge. 

I love the excitement of children this time of year.  It is magical; full of imagination and wonder.  This is the first Christmas in a long time that I feel I am fully present with their excitement.  I've been missing out...

Hope your days are Merry!

Thanksgiving

With the Christmas holiday nearly plowing over Thanksgiving this year it seems like that delightful, and relaxing day of gratitude is long past, but I want to post about it anyway.

We went to St. George to have Thanksgiving with my mom, my brother Mitch and his wife, Joann, and their adorable boys, Tag and Pack.  My aunt Laurie and cousin Alexis joined our feast, as well as Joann's parents.  We ate like kings.  Seriously, our abundant table left me wondering at how blessed we are to not only eat when we are hungry, but have a life that provides such bounty.  My thoughts often turn to those in the world, and in our own downtown community, who don't eat when they are hungry.  I feel overwhelmed at any kind of prospect of making a dent in the issue of poverty, but then I think of Geoff's work and feel that in a small way I am contributing something...my husband!  But still, every homeless person I pass tugs at my soul.

The weather in St. George was perfect.  We spent a lot of time outside hiking, playing soccer, climbing rocks and going on walks.  It was a last autumn hoorah before the frigid winter temperatures hit us this past week, moving in as quickly as the Christmas season.  It was everything I hope for in a good Thanksgiving weekend: family, good food, and plenty of down time.

Geoff and I also celebrated our FIFTEENTH wedding anniversary on Thanksgiving day!  These have, by far, been the most exciting and happy fifteen years of my life!  I made a very good choice fifteen years ago!

Geoff's brother, Christian, and his wife, Heather, were in St. George with her family so we saw them a few times too.

 
It was a perfect weekend.

Anne of Green Gables

We knew Tennie was a natural on stage, that she could act, and that she had some natural voice talent, but she absolutely knocked our socks off when we saw her perform as Anne in Anne of Green Gables.  WOWOW!  We still marvel at the enormous amount of lines she memorized, how well she got in to character, and how that small little body of hers can project!  Lookout Broadway!  (While the rest of us are recovering from the vigorous and demanding weeks in November, Tennie is searching for her next audition...)

We didn't get very many good pictures of her in action, but Geoff did get a few sound bytes.  It doesn't compare to hearing her in person, but it will give you a little taste.  (I can't figure out how to get the videos/sound to load so I'll add those in later.)  It was a very fun play to watch.

November's Odds and Ends

I'm behind.  It has been a very busy month, but nothing like three weeks of dress rehearsals and performances to throw a family completely out of whack!  And then sickness, and speaking in church and being asked to lead the youth organization (12-18 year-old-girls) in the stake (a group of congregations) and all that entails.  My head has been spinning a bit, but spinning with thoughts of wonder about a daughter who wowed us with her star performance (more on that later), service, reflection of all that I've learned over the years, gratitude galore, family, and the upcoming celebration of the Savior.  While a crazy month, it was also spectacular.

I only have a handful of random photos, poor quality ones at that, but it will capture the odds and ends of November.

The girls don't put on many plays these days, but this story had time travel, spells, and rescue.  It was very clever.

Geoff's Chia seed experiment on a wet sponge

Mexican dancing at the Church History Museum

Ceci, Adele and friends playing the Wii

We had a three-day contest to see who could come up with the most expensive word.  Adele won a pair of holiday earrings with 'ophthalmologists'.

Geoff and I have been making fresh juice every morning which consists of four carrots, three stalks of celery, and apple or two and whatever else we have on hand: a beet, spinach, fennel, a head of romaine, etc.

We forced some paperwhite bulbs and they are beautiful!

The girls had a doorbell ditching "war" with the grandkids of some neighbors upstairs, the Englunds.  This is a note the girls left.

Ceci, all ready for her last soccer game of the fall season

Adele's team after one of their last games

Geoff took Adele and Ceci to several BYU women's soccer games, including the first championship game.

After one game they went bowling at the BYU Student Center

Geoff and Tennie took a four-day Daddy Daughter trip to see Geoff's parents in Auburn, CA.  Their rental car was upgraded to a convertible Corvette.

The Hidden Art of Homemaking

Several years ago my mother-in-law told me about a book by Edith Schaeffer called The Hidden Art of Homemaking.  The book is about how all of us are children of God, the creator of this beautiful world, and have inherited his creative abilities.  It encourages the use of these creative abilities in making our homes and neighborhoods beautiful; adding a touch of art to everything you do.  She assures those who don't feel they have artistic ability to consider the variety of artistic expression found in the home - from flower arranging, gardening, and a beautiful meal to reading stories aloud, theatrical production with costumes, and singing together.

Geoff's parents spent time and were married at L'Abri in the Swiss Alps, a Christian commune run by Francis and Edith Schaeffer. There was a touch of beauty and art in everything Edith Schaeffer did in this naturally beautiful setting, and Geoff's mother was a ready student.  After reading The Hidden Art of Homemaking I understood why every table in Geoff's parent's home was set with a little beauty, every room laced with warmth and love, every gathering having elements of creativity, every view of the window filled with flowers or a focal point, and she, herself is always dressed as a lady.  I'm not talking Martha Stewart-no-one-has-time-for-that-kind-of-creativity.  Just small touches of beauty.

I don't have a lot of spare time for projects, displays or elaborate creativity but Geoff's mom's artistic beauty rubbed off on me - it is worth expressing our creativity, even in small ways, because it feels good to use our divine gifts.  It brings us joy to see beauty and art in our own little 'world'.

I must say that I really like living in an apartment because everything is about the scale I can handle at this stage in my life.  Geoff and I planted flowers and bulbs for Spring blooming in our manageable, patio flower boxes.  I can actually keep them up!  We love using natural elements to bring beauty inside: flowers, seeds, gourds and pumpkins, branches and leaves, etc. 

Geoff's mom rotates things each season, and sometimes more often, to keep the home alive.  We don't have a lot of space to store things right now, but the seasons themselves offer so many options for displays, and we try to have a few new things out to spark interest and wonder.  We put out new books from the shelves on the coffee table to encourage browsing, occasionally the globe is a prominent feature in the room, other times it is a display of natural treasures collected on a hike, or field guides and binoculars.

Art supplies are like snacks: if you set them out the little people will partake.  Sometimes I try to set out unusual things that they might not choose, like supplies to cross stitch, or felting materials.  If a game is set out it will get played, if writing supplies like paper, envelopes, sticker letters and fancy pens/markers are left out in a basket they will draw attention and get explored.

I'm far from having this down like my mother-in-law.  I still feel lucky to get a nourishing meal prepared, and usually we eat it right out of the pot, grabbing a plate straight from the cupboard instead of a beautifully set table, but I'm a ready student!  And whenever I look at our planted flowers or our plate of collected seeds or the open music on the piano I really do feel joy.  Maybe it is from discovering the hidden art of homemaking.

Halloween

Last Monday we carved pumpkins.  

Geoff and Ceci played a little soccer scrimmage against each other out at the park one evening this week and Ceci came in looking a little Halloweenish (so I'll include the photo in this post) reporting, "Dad elbowed me."  Geoff calls that "soccer tough".

 

A traditional Halloween breakfast.

Emily and Mike had all of Geoff's Utah siblings over for Halloween night.

Equally exciting as getting candy is passing it out!  Look how diligent Ceci is at holding her post!

Nikki was a backpacker through India and Britt a witch

Em was also a witch, and Mike a Ute (University of Utah) fan

Zoey and Tate were gnomes

This photo is blurry but it was the only one of me in my Chinese costume, and little Zoey crawling over and popping up in the background was too cute not to share...

A few days before Halloween Tennie whipped up this Alice in Wonderland costume for a ward party...

It fell apart on Halloween night so she whipped up this costume from Em's costume box (and that is her cute friend Sunny)

I only got the backside of Bailey's cute fairy costume (and I missed Geoff's renegade superhero costume, darnit!)

Inspecting the goods

We left our home at 7:45AM on Halloween morning and got home around 9:30PM on Halloween night.  It was a long, full day!  But on our doorstep was this adorable Halloween basket from some neighbors, the Oaks.  One last BOO to thrill and delight our girls.