Love One Another

Tonight I received a beautiful note of appreciation and friendship from a ward member.  It was so unexpected and yet so needed.  We are all in need of validation and support from others and yet how often we forget to express our thoughts of admiration and appreciation.

I immediately thought of two other women in 7th Ward who would write a nice note whenever they thought you had said or done something well.  What a kind thing we can do for others. 

Richard was good about that.  Even silly little things like, "I love how you have Christmas in our house from October to January."  or "Let's count how many dolls and stuffed animals Janet has in the house."  He could have made fun of my collections and traditions but he never did.  In fact, I remember so well when he insisted on buying the blue velvet bunny I had admired at the Craft Fair. I still love it.

I have probably said this before but if anyone would want to know how to show love to their partner, they should read the book about David and Emma McKay written by a son.  Their expressive love was legend and many couples learned from their example.

Through the Years with Mitch!

Mitch with his little cousin Jimmy.

Mitch with his Mom.

Mitch with his cousins.

    

Mitch in college and now he is 20!!!

Mitch, you are a sweetheart, and I like those curls.

My Sister Carole has a Birthday.

Today my sister Carole is turning 72 (I think). She is such a special person, I just want to pay tribute to her (again possibly.

She was always the sparkler of the family, the one everyone always enjoyed being with, listening to, or being heard by. She is a great Mom, teacher, speaker, and just a wonderful human being.

One of Carole’s best qualities is her ability to listen. She is not only a good listener but then she always has something positive to say. She Is a nurturer, one who cares, I don’t think she likes to let anyone feel badly. When I need a kind and sympathetic ear, I always call Carole.

She can also be very wise and speak up when a sane voice needs to be heard.

Carole always had lots of friends, like Marilyn, she acquires friends easily.

I can’t remember a time when Carole hasn’t been there for me. During high school, she was a lot younger so I mostly remember her as being cute and funny and always having a pet that she loved. She was always tender to the animals.

I can’t remember why we were at college one time together. Maybe it was the summer before I went to teach in San Diego. Anyway I just remember coming home too late to get in the dorm and her hand was waving out the window to let me know she would let me in.  No scolding, just being there.

When I had my first baby, she was teaching in San Diego, and was always there for me as a baby sitter, companion, listener, helper.

Carole also likes to decorate and move things around to make them more interesting. I tend to get things one way and leave it there forever. A funny story is when they were staying with us for awhile in the 1980’s. Richard and I had gone out and when we came back she had rearranged all the living room furniture, and that was not easy. It was a big room with lots of heavy furniture. Richard was incredulous, that she would have the nerve to do that. I didn’t think too much about it, just glad she was interested in making it better.

She was always the creative one, the one who could do things with flowers and such, talent I never inherited.

Of course, she was not for paper work. How well I remember when she worked a day in our loan office for one day and as she sat there there and looked at the paperwork, she looked at me and just said, “I can’t do this, I’ll go crazy.” Or something like that.

Oh, yes, she and I are very different, very different in deed. But I am so glad she has always been there for me, to make me feel loved and capable, and share in my grief and joy. 

She and Len are at Lolo, Mt with son Hunter and his new bride Toni.

Carole, a wonderful sister. How blessed to have sisters in my life.

Easter Dresses

I told Maria we always had new dresses for Easter. This is Mom, my sister-in-law Mary, me, Marilyn and Carole one Easter. I know I made my dress, not sure about the others. Everybody liked new dresses for Easter, and often hats...

Fun

Fun? Yesterday in the video Maria had on Facebook, it said to have Fun. So I have been thinking about what is Fun for me? Not going back to the Montana years but just from my adult years in San Diego, what has been fun for me?

I know what it is not—not fishing, not golf, not hiking, not clubs.

When I was a young, single, school teacher in San Diego it was going to the beach or bay every Saturday, just being lazy in the sun and chatting, body surfing, walking, eating, any kind of beach activity, day or night. That was fun.

Also when I was single the years of sailing every weekend. That was fun, really fun, I loved it. Never could get into the motor boating and water skiing but I loved the sailing. That was fun.

Though I wasn’t young, I loved the walking on the beach in Guam in 2002, 2003. You could go for about a mile in back of all the hotels. It was after work but still warm and light. There were so many interesting people to watch, music streaming from the hotels, beautiful sunset. I was sometimes with a friend and talking, but most often alone. The air was intoxicating, the view breathtaking. And then sitting on a chaise for awhile when the stars came out. That was fun. Really fun.

Also as a single, the dancing, the stake dances and then the officer clubs and hotels. After I married, same thing, stake dances, hotels. Richard was a great dancer and I always loved topping off a date night with dancing.

Of course, eating out is always fun, no matter what age...

The music, after Richard died, the music became such an important ‘me’ time…over 200 cds and 100 vcrs and dvds later I still love to turn off the tv and just hear the music, all my favorites, over and over…and if I have a really great book to escape into, yes, that is fun for me.

Also after Richard died, beach and bay biking with Nadine, yes, that was fun.
You can bike from the bay to the beach and it is all flat.
Very nice. 
When the children were little, here again, I think the beach and bay trips were always the must fun for me. I liked it much more than camping.

And then the skiing, loved the skiing years, that was very, very fun. The whole scene. Especially a sunny day and a rhythmic ski with family or friends and the eating in the lodge at the bottom. Yes, loved the skiing years. That was fun.

But all those years in the sun were not good for my fair skin—and I don’t have the body anymore that does well lolling on the beach. I also don’t have a friend with a sail boat and no skiing anymore so except for casual walks on the beach  or beach family gatherings when I am in San Diego—

So where is my fun now? Still enjoy a great book, still enjoy my music, I dance alone, not quite the same. I love the solitude and beauty of the mountains.  When I am in San Diego I enjoy the grandchildren, the family get-togethers, the eating out. That is fun.

But I am alone here…really not much opportunity for the kind of fun I once enjoyed…and no, I don't enjoy the golfing though I live in a Country Club with great golfing facilities and  I don't enjoy clubbing at the clubhouse.

Yes, I need to find new fun besides walking, blogging, family history, organizing my life, and yard work...

"I'll think about it tomorrow!"

Cute Great Grandchildren...

Halloween Fun!

 

Kristi has such cute pix of the darling great granchildren Kate and Ryan it is hard to choose, but I must have some for my annual book even though there are lots on her blog.

Kate turns 4!!!  So hard to believe.  And she gets a bicycle...

She is really a big girl now--with her auntie Sarah.

Happiness is a new bicycle with all the trimmings...

What a cutie amoungst the pumpkins--Ryan, Just turning 2 this week.

Kate can choose her own...

Double birthday party, double the fun, double dipper Birthday Cake...

Kristi, your children are living the life all children should have...

Meanwhile...

It has not been above 30 degrees all day and last week it was hot!  And the snow is sticking to the ground.  Should be a winter wonderland by morning, So glad I am cozy in here by the fire.





"There's a Horse in the House"

I have in my bedside table a speech that has been there since 1992.  It was given at a Women's Conference in the same year it was published in BYU TODAY, an alumnus magazine.  The Ph.D speaking was Maren M. Mouritsen and the story is one that resonates with me so strongly I like to read and reread it.

It is called "There's a Horse in the House".  And the whole story is delightful but the meat of the story is when the pony that she had been anticipating being born is finally born and then in a terrible accident the mother mare rolled over on the pony and the pony stopped breathing.

The father says to her, "It's over, sweetheart--it's over.  I'll care for the mare. I'll give you a few more minutes.  We'll have another foal." 

She says, "I was used to the ebb and flow of life on the ranch, but I don't remember a time when I've ever been sadder because this was to have been my pony.  As I held that little thing in my arms, those little childhood phrases were echoing in my mind".  "If you have faith, anything can happen.  if you just ask, you can receive."  " I probably didn't do it consciously, but with the simple faith that only a chld can have, I thought, "It's time to try.  I've got to try."  With every ounce of my being, I prayed that it wasn't so.  It just couldn't be so." 

Then suddenly those little eyes, with the longest eyelashes i had ever seen, fluttered and opened.  There was tension in the body, there was warmth.  The next thing I knew it was standing.  When my father came  back, he was amazed.  I  was amazed.  My pony was standing, my pony was alive and he was mine...

That night, I slept in a little tiny nook by the mare and my pony.  As my father lifted me into the manger, he whispered in my ear, "When you are good, and you have done all you can do, and you have faith, and you ask for help, then miracles can happen."  And this had been, for me, a miracle.

This is my testimony, too, I have memorized the above phrase, I believe it totally as I have seen it in my own life.  But every once in awhile when I become gloomy and sad and sorry for myself, I get out this beautiful story and read again of the miracle in a little girl's life, a little girl who grew to be an Assistant Vice President and Dean of Student Life at BYU and I am sure a great influence on all the students and others whose lives she touched.

Fall Colors

This is my contribution to the fall colors. It is a crab apple tree which has beautiful pink blossoms in the spring and these colors in the fall.

Driving into Chester this week was a real delight. There are so many tall trees all arrayed in gold and many shorter but fuller trees of different hues of red.

This is a really beautiful time in the Lake Almanor area--and we actually had snow on Sunday and Mt Lassen is fully covered--so beautiful.

Even my entrance up the hill to my home had snow frosted tall pines all the way--just the way I first saw it when I knew this is where I wanted to be.

A Surpassing Gift? What is it? How do we obtain it?

Yesterday I was having one of my really gloomy days.  This time of year especially I tend to reflect on my losses as well as my blessings.  Richard passed away at Thanksgiving time in 1996 and real Christmas for Richard was gathering the family together at Park City and enjoying family within the confines of two rooms plus lots of skiing, and sharing snacks and chili together on the decks at the bottom of the hills. Then playing games and just having fun being together--no work, no leaving, just family for a whole week.  So I tend to just want to zoom to the New Year and bypass Thanksgiving and Christmas and get past the sadness of being alone now.

So as I was feeling sorry for myself I happened to read an article about the plight of Afghan women and I really grieved for them, the sadness of their plight just consumed me.  Their plight in life is so devastating that one by one they continually try to burn themselves to death, to escape their miserable life.  I, who never cry, just can't stop crying as I think about them.  I swear to myself I will never feel sorry for myself again. 

It reminded me of an interesting article I read this past week.  It is called A Surpassing Gift.  
I quote from the Editorial page of the Church News, October 23, 2010 (my wedding anniversary, actually)

"Though it costs nothing, it will save us money.

It will add to our friendships and perhaps retrieve lost friends and family members.

It will lower our anxiety levels and allow us to concentrate more fully.

With it, we become more teachable, more easily entreated, more open to change and improvement.

It helps us forgive those who have wronged us, intentionally or accidentally. 

It makes us more Godlike, for why should we remember to our detriment things we have forgiven?

It will strengthen us immeasurably.

We will seek to overcome our own flesh instead of dwelling on the weaknesses of those around us.

It will allow us to seek excellence with more dedication as we compete against ourselves instead of others.

In the broadest sense, it flattens our horizons; we see a broader view of reality that we will "know the truth, and the truth shall make you free" (John 8:32)

With all these attributes, this most valuable fare is available in such huge servings that it might be hard to swallow.

So what is it we speak of? 

 It is humility, a surpassing gift of God.  Sometimes called "humble pie," it is a diet without calories that can be eaten for spiritual nutrition at breakfast, lunch and dinner.  A decision to be more humble takes but an instant but opens a new lifetime path.

We can, as Alma 7:23 suggests; "be humble, and be submissive and gentle; easy to be entreated; full of patience and long-suffering; being diligent in keeping the commandments of God at all times; asking for whatsoever things ye stand in need, both spiritual and temporal; always returning thanks unto God for whatsoever things ye do receive."

And then the article goes into all the unpleasantness that the opposite of humility, pride, brings into out life.  When I am feeling sorry for myself, I am being full of pride and selfishness.  I am not reflecting on my many blessings and feeling gratitude.  No wonder I bring sadness to my life with such thoughts.

"Pride fills the crevices of the heart, dividing husbands and wives, families, neighbors, countries, states and nations.  It creates glass ceilings that prevent spiritual and emotional maturity and nurses revenge and addiction.  Pride can recruit those who have more to believe they are better.  It taints some who have less to feel resentment; sometimes the poor are more prideful than the rich.  Pride nurses the roots of racism and class and counterfeits self-esteem to our hurt...It seeks attention and recognition...Humility includes others; pride excludes others.  In its ultimate manifestations, pride leads to slavery while humility leads to added confidence and freedom.

 The conclusion of the article is:

Shall we not anticipate the Judgment Day by humbling ourselves now?  During our morning prayers, let us indeed discipline our diet by swallowing our daily pride.  Let us guard all day against letting it lurk into the silent fractures of our hearts, which should rather be filled by the healing love of our Savior, Jesus Christ. 

The Twins First Halloween

Scenes from Raina (in pink) and Sage (in yellow) having the Halloween Experience.  Auntie Stephie took lots of picture of them with  Mom, Dad and another Auntie.

Chef Michael and Assistant Matt

Mike picked up Matt from Tahoe on Friday night and this is Saturday's bake project. Chef Michael is making another cheesecake and Barbeque Chicken Pizza from scratch. Matt is assisting with the cooking of the pizza toppings. I really enjoyed having the boys here.

Another plus--with Bruce the dog here Bandido did not bark!!!

He seemed contented to just have Bruce to hang out with. And the pizza and cheesecake were very delicious.

Sunshine and Drugs

Today as the sun poured in my dining room window I thought how happy I am that somebody built a house next door.  The trees were so high and so thick that not only did the sun not come in, they couldn't even get satellite coverage.  Need my daily dose of sun.

I really enjoyed watching the MLB video about Josh Hamilton today.  He is on the Texas Rangers team and doing well now but almost died from his addictions.  It was very sad to see what a hold his addictions had on him.  It appears he knows he can never relax, the addiction is always there but he has been clean for 5 years.  He was such a remarkable player as a child he couldn't play with the boys his own age but his dream of the majors all came crashing down when he was injured, got into tattoos, drugs and everything else bad for you.  It was almost an impossible road back.  His book is called "Beyond Belief".  I do want to read it.

Makes me think of Whitney Houston and how she keeps going back to drugs.  So sad, so very sad. 

Last night I had one of those terrible nightmares.  I was wandering with some family members (not sure who) looking for a place to live.  We finally ended sleeping in a vacant lot.  I awoke very sad but what was that all about?

Mike made some fabulous fajitas again last night, so delicious.

Mike and Cheesecake

Mike loves cheesecake and each one gets better. (I swear I will not eat more than the one piece I already had and it is very good, our family recipe.) However, since he is so into cooking I will find a recipe that will produce the kind of cheesecake I had in Maryland. It was the Original New York cheesecake--very dense and will use about twice the cheesecake for the same size tin. He has four weeks to perfect it for Thanksgiving!

Sisters Sharing Medical Advice?

I felt so lousy and tired yesterday, I had decided I needed to go back to my Doctor.  But then I talked to my sister Carole and realized we both had the same complaint about our swallowing problem.  She had recently been to the doctor and was following his advice.  It was the advice I had been given  before but was somehow neglecting to do.  And I still had the pills advised in my cupboard.

So I will follow her Doctor's advice, save myself a trip, and in the meantime, use up the pills I have.  We will see if I feel better by next week.  Surely sisters are a lot alike, right?

Scorpios in The Family

I have always enjoyed reading about our SIGNS and seeing how an individual matches up to his sign.  After reading about Kristi's children's antics I had to remind myself of the Scorpio sign again, those born from October 24 to November 22.  According to those who know, these are some of the more interesting and exciting people in our life.

In our family, that would be Kate and Ryan, little Jimmy, college age Mitch, my daughter, Maria and my sister Carole.  Supposedly the Scorpio are the most passionate, who can go from one extreme to the other,  and who always will keep your life interesting. 

'Sorting It Out'

Saturday when we stopped at Wal Mart, I bought four pair of dark blue sox to wear with my jeans.  Now why did I need more sox?  Because I hadn't sorted out my sox for some time, that is why.  I had a drawer full of sox and couldn't find any to wear.  (I do tend to wear them out because I am always wearing my sox with no shoes, even sometimes out to the mail across the street, the bottoms do wear out).  This morning I sorted and matched and found I had over 22 pair of black or blue sox, over 20 pair of white, seven pair of odd colors, and about 10 pair of nylon knee highs.  This is not counting my drawer full of panty hose.

I feel so good when I sort out a drawer or sort out a closet, even if I don't find anything to throw away, at least I know what I have and what I really do not need.  When we lived in La Jolla we had a Friday cleaning lady who not only cleaned my 3500 sq ft home from stem to stern, she also did my wash and dry.  When we would come home in the late night after our Friday night date, the house would be clean and Richard 's and my underwear and sox would all be neatly folded, matched and in our drawers.  What a wonder woman that Maria was.  She kept my home life in order.  Richard loved having his sox matched.  His mother had probably always done the same thing. 

One of my favorite authors from Ireland is always using the term "sorting it out" in reference to thoughts and making decisions.  This is so important to sort out our thoughts and opinions once in awhile.  What is refreshing about living with someone over 50 years younger than me is that we rarely agree on too much except what is good to eat.  And yet, I do not feel any animosity about it.  That is just the way it is.  A product from the 30's and a product from the 80's is  going to have  very different points of view about life.  Mike knows about things I know nothing about and I have experienced a life he will never know.

We both need to 'sort it out' from time to time and share.

Flannel Pajamas

Linda said Kristi was making Christmas Flannel pajama bottoms. Reminded me of how much I always wanted a Lanz Christmas flannel nightgown or pajamas.  I don't think I ever got them.  It was not a brand we carried at Anderson's Store and they were very expensive.

However, since I have been on my own I do always try and buy a flannel pair of pajamas each year.  Last year I bought two and I have a few that are well worn out and need throwing away.  The best source for pajamas I have always found to be Macys but if someone knows a better place, I would like to know.

As I said before, I love flannel.  When I was in junior high we tried to make pajamas.  They did not turn out as well as our corduroy jackets and ballerina skirts.  It was those seams!!!  I never tried to make pajamas again.  Except, after I was married I had one pair of silky pajamas I loved so much, I did buy material to replace them.  I think I still have the material!!!

Just in Time, A Sauce for Pork Tenderloin, and Christmas Plans

Michael cleaned out the gutters just in time.  The rains came and came.  Saturday I went to the Temple with Mary Anne and there was even a little snow between here and Susanville, but mostly rain and though there was no rain in Reno it was very windy and cool.  They were planting bulbs on the Temple grounds.

When I came home Michael prepared some delicious Nachos, always a favorite of mine.  So today, though I wasn't feeling too perky I cooked the dinner.  It was easy, pork tenderloin, but for a little variety it was roasted with bacon strips on it and there was a tangy sauce--not sweet but very interesting.

Here's the recipe so I will try it again some day:

1/3 cup chopped onion cooked till tender in 1 T butter, Add 1 8 oz can of tomato sauce, 3 T of sweet pickle relish (or just sweet pickle), 2 T vinegar, 1 t sugar and 1 t dried parsley flakes (I didn't have any of those) and simmer uncovered for 10 minutes.  Good!

Today we watched "Invictus" about Nelson Mandela and I kept telling Mike we needed some background information so I finally looked up in Wikepedia about his life.  What an amazing person--inprisoned for 27 years and still accomplished so very much in his life.  We are all indebted to such dedicated people, who are continually learning and trying to give others a better life. 

I also made some of the Family Hot Fudge Sauce and didn't have any light corn syrup but the dark corn syrup works just as well.  Always a good thing to know.

Again this week I stretched the butter by whipping about 3/4 cup of water into 1 cup of butter.  Just don't use it for cooking, it is for spread only.  And I keep it refrigerated.  Better to use a little butter than margarine any day.

And yesterday I did buy Jan Karon's new book "In the Company of Others".  It was hard to choose between that and Nicholas Sparks new book--oh well, it will soon come out in paper back.  So happy to have time in my life for reading.  That hasn't always been so.

Linda invited me to come and stay with them for awhile at Christmas.  So I think I will take my Bear Paw Quilt, sewing machine and finish it off at Linda's.  At least Jimmy and Camber won't have to put up with me for so long this next year!

Another Jan Karon Book Due Out--Yea!

When I was in Maryland after Hurricane Isabel, my FEMA friend and I found a delightful bookstore and she started me on my Mitford Series.  I have read them all and loved all of the following except the last one which is due out  this month.  Her books make the simple things in life interesting and make you feel so very satisfied with this wonderful world and your family.  I love her writing.


The Mitford Years Series: In publication order they are:

At Home in Mitford, published 1994

A Light in the Window, published 1995

These High, Green Hills, published 1996

Out to Canaan, published 1997

A New Song (novel), published 1999

A Common Life: the Wedding Story, published 2001

In This Mountain, published 2002

Shepherds Abiding, published 2003

Light from Heaven, published 2005. This is the last of the nine books in this series.

The Father Tim Novels:


Home to Holly Springs, published October 30, 2007.

In the Company of Others, release date October 2010.

How Disappointing!

I tried to make scones with gluten free flour (rice flour).  The texture is not the same and I threw the whole batch out.  Although they say you can use it in your own recipes I have decided it will never be the same, so don't try, you will be disappointed.

Use 'their' recipes but not ones you have previously loved with wheat flour.  My favorite cookies were just not my favorite cookies... and now this...weird scones...yuck.

Mike Cleans Up

I saw my neighbor from Reno using a ladder today so I quickly asked if we could borrow it. No problem. Mike was able to get on the roof and clean off the pods and clean out the gutters. Yea!!

My neighbor also said he had more cedar logs we could have so Mike hauled those over and chopped up the branches that had accumulated and filled the wood bin. So we accomplished a lot today.

When I was working in the yard I speculated that I never see any other women around here doing what I do. Then I remembered when I was a freshman at the Y and doing the whitewashing of the Y on the mountain, we had a bucket brigade and I was with my Wyoming girl friend and I guess we were putting a little bit more effort into it than the California girls because someone remarked, "There is sure a lot of difference between the Montana and Wyoming girls and the California girls. I doubt it was meant as a compliment to us but that is the way it was, we used our muscles.

The Fence

In the early morning mist you can see the two unfinished sections of my neighbors fence. They are just finishing them now. The sections are a problem because of a tree stump. Why they didn't just cut the tree stump lower, I don't know. Anyway they have spent over three hours trying to make the fence look right. It will be interesting when the neighbor returns this weekend if he approves of how they did it.

It all started about a month ago when I noticed these men measuring and remeasuring with a cord between our properties. Upon inquiry I found the neighbor was building a new fence. Actually one of my trees damaged his old fence this winter. There was a severe wind storm while I was in San Diego. My neighbors wanted me to pay for the damage but fortunately I had called my insurance company and they told me NO--The rule is if a Natural Disaster knocks over a tree the insurance company of the damaged property pays for the damage, not the owner of the tree. My insurance company said if my neighbors inquired of me (which they did) tell them to call them and if they sued, my insurance company would handle it. I was out of it. OK, no problem.

Except when I returned from town there was a new property stake about 8 ft within my front property line. I wondered why. AHA. I could see that if the fence company used the new property line to measure from they would avoid having the fence go through or in back of a large rock, a stump, and a tree. Unfortunately, the fence would not look good going in front of the big rock on my side and it would be too close to my woodshed and make it appear that I was not conforming to the boundary line rules.

I sought out my former neighbor for advice. He is a fireman and one of those good guys who know about things and likes to help other people. He ran off a map of my property and told me to measure from my lot stake on the other side 80 ft. He also told me to check and see if they had filed a architectual plan to be reviewed.

The following Sunday I had Mary Anne follow me home and help me measure. Sure enough the stake that had been planted was about 8 feet inside my lot line. The property owner came out and wondered why I was measuring and if I had questions why didn't I just ask. Mary Anne and I assured him, I was asking. After a lot of choice words and accusations both directions he said he would make sure that the fence complied with the proper lot line measurements. He would not admit to knowing who put the stake there.

I did call LACC and they assured me no one from the club had put the stake there and so I should move it to it's proper place. Unfortunately I could not budge it. Last week when Mike and I returned from a walk the stake had been mysteriously moved back to where it was supposed to be. The only ones in the area was the fence company working on another yard nearby.

This Saturday my neighbor asked me to come out and see if where the stake was, was now ok. I asked him who moved it. He said he didn't know. I asked him who put it there in the first place, he said he didn't want to talk about it.

Long story short--the fence looks a lot better on my side than if they had come in front of that huge rock and been on my property. And it looks like they are putting the bottom of the fence on either side of the huge stump??? I ask again, why not just chain saw the stump down???

They must not own a chain saw. Matt could have done it easily.

Talent!

I am forever amazed and perplexed by the fact that people who appear to have one talent, also have multiple talents.  How is that?  They can act...and they can also sing...and dance.  They can paint...and also write...etc. etc.

How is it that some are gifted with these artistic talents and then some of us have none???  Did we not develop the one talent we were given and not recognize and so we get none?  Do we hide whatever talent we might have had behind our fears and lack of confidence?

I wish I knew.  I wish I could sing.  I wish I could dance.  I wish I could draw.  I wish I could write.  I wish I was artistic with vision and ability to be able to create something wonderful.

I wish, I wish, I wish.

The Montana Years is a Book!

It finally happened. The Montana Years is published. Some of the pictures I enlarged too much but for the most part I am happy to have my memoirs of my first 23 years in print. Now to finish the San Diego Scene before my memory is gone.

Ciao Bella, yes!

Did I mention I have a new crush?  Not Ben and Jerry's "Cherry Garcia" anymore.  It is Ciao Bella Gelato--Dulce de Leche.  Oh my goodness--$5.19 a pint here, a real luxury.  So far I have only tried the Dulce de Leche flavor but I am keeping the Chocolate in my freezer to try soon.  You will love it.  And you can eat a little and be satisfied...or you can eat the whole pint and commit one of the Seven Deadly Sins...

I finished the greatest novel "Cutting for Stone" by Abraham Verghese.  It is amazing.  It takes place mostly in Ethiopia and you will come away with an awesome respect for surgeons but...  The story line is so unusual and the description of everything so intricate but easy to read and keeps you turning those pages.  The author is a professor at Stanford with an impressive medical background but also a writer.
Very interesting!  Random House gives a teaser:

"Marion and Shiva Stone are twin brothers born of a secret union between a beautiful Indian nun and a brash British surgeon. Orphaned by their mother’s death and their father’s disappearance, bound together by a preternatural connection and a shared fascination with medicine, the twins come of age as Ethiopia hovers on the brink of revolution. Moving from Addis Ababa to New York City and back again, Cutting for Stone is an unforgettable story of love and betrayal, medicine and ordinary miracles—and two brothers whose fates are forever intertwined. "

(One of ) The Best Things in Life is Flannel!!

This week I changed from my summer cool, silky feeling sheets to my winter flannel sheets.  I hate to get out of bed in the morning I am so comfy in my flannel!  I love good flannel.  A few years ago I made myself a flannel comforter out of some flannel from Anderson's Store in Glendive.  I had rescued it from Mary's stash in her house.  It was made years ago and is so solid and soft.  It was such good flannel--not thin like so much of the flannel made today is.  It is my favorite comforter for napping and I won't give it away.  Anyway as I was struggling to get out of bed this morning from my "flannel haven" I thought I must run to the store today and find some flannel for receiving blankets for Meagan's new baby girl due in February.

One of my pet peeves is to see new born babies with clothes on and no blanket between them and their carrier--Mom, Dad, Grandma or whatever.  Hellloooo--that baby needs swaddling and protection and being comfy and cuddled in a nice soft blanket!  Anyway, Meagan, today is the day I shop for flannel.  Hope I find some good flannel, I am not going to Walmart for it...there is a great shop in town, if it hasn't closed down yet.  So many of the stores have closed...signs of the times.

So another project--this weekend while I have no car (Mike is going to Sacramento) I will try and make some comfy receiving blankets.

NewFamilySearch

The last couple of days I have been working in the church Family History program seeing what needs to be done on my father's genealogy line.  I was very discouraged last night because his great great grandfather was attached to a Danish family which would send us back along a Jensen line in Denmark---wrong, wrong, wrong.  I couldn't figure out how to undo it.

Jeanne's oldest son Steven

But today my nephew Steven was online the same time I was and he straightened everything out and taught me a lot through umpteen emails.  So much easier than reading all the directions myself.  I feel very good about everything!!! Yea.  Hope it isn't all undone tomorrow.

Steven was a toddler when I was at BYU so I was his babysitter quite often.  I will never forget the time I was riding with Jeanne and holding the new baby Dougie in my arms.  Stevie was standing between us (this was before carseats).  Looking very nonchalant and staring straight ahead he casually lifted his right foot and brought it back forcefully right on baby Dougie's head.  Still not sure how he did it so well.  Except for Dougie crying, it was almost funny.  Jealousy begins at a very young age.

Anyway I surely appreciated his help today.

Another Baking Success for Mike!

Marjorie came to visit yesterday and in honor of her visit Mike made some quiche--Marjorie loved it and had two pieces and another today before she left. I loved it, too, and did the same and I made some of Carole's Spinach Strawberry salad to go with it. Very good.

Tonight Mike made guacamole, taquitos and chips. Yummy. Mike is spoiling me with all his cooking, since it is the one thing I do not like to do. I should have taken Marjorie's picture. She is very slim and fit. It was fun having her to talk to--and we did talk nonstop. She went back to her son's home and leaves for Washington tomorrow.

OK, how do you spell taquitos?????

Pizza Time!

Best pizza I ever had. I am not kidding! Mike is a great chef. This was crisp gluten free crust with barbecued chicken, bacon, green pepper, onion, mushroom and cheese topping with garlic butter on the crust. It was really great. He made a regular crust one for himself. Just what I have always wanted around, a man who does the cooking!!!

We had an interesting day in Susanville, first to Mike's dentist.  He was so kind as to fix a small filling au gratis--most appreciated.  Then on to Lassen College to drop off a transcript request--immediately someone popped up to see Maria's Mom and she graciously took our picture.

Whenever I run into one of Maria's friends they always make comments as to how beautiful I am, or "now I see why Maria is so beautiful"--very nice friends.  This was Laurel who is going on an Ensenada Cruise with Maria at the end of the month.  I was telling her about the one I went on with Meagan and tried to reassure her that Ensenada was not dangerous, how good the night shows were and the food was great...plenty of it.

Then we went on to Safeway where we looked all over for UDI's products but could find none.  We talked to the manager and told him UDI's listed Safeway as a store that carried their products.  He said he does not determine what comes but their freezer space is so small, he doesn't have room to carry it anyway--their loss!

Anyway we bought our food there and then stopped at Jack in the Box--problem, no electricty.  Then we stopped at a gas sation--sorry but no electricity.  We went north and same problem, everywhere we went except Port A Sub--however, they were crowded with high school lunchers because Burger King had no electricty.  So we went back to see if Wal Mart had their own generator--evidently it was a power outtage all over town but before we got there we found Jack in the Box would be opening shortly so we stopped there for lunch because the Pumpkin shakes are back  And on the way back toward home the gas station was working (gas is 26 cents cheaper a gallon than in Chester.)

Finally, back up the mountain to Lake Almanor.  Big day in Susanville, yea!

Just in Time!

The back deck just had time to dry before the rains came!  It was a mini miracle we had dry weather just long enough to get that chore completed.  Yea!

Wow, it is so fun to have a cook in the house.  Mike makes super guacamole among other things.  Yea!

And since he has the scanner set up and updated I am having fun digitalizing pictures--old pictures.  When I get into our family slides, I will really feel I have completed something.

Since Linda started her "We Walk In Their Shoes" (link on the right) I have been busy seeking out the family histories.  One grey briefcase I cannot find????  Probably left it sitting in a Family Center in San Diego or Salt Lake.

It has been fun reacquainting myself with my ancestors and Linda has been busy with Richard's ancestors.  I especially enjoyed looking at the fantastic monument and park dedicated to Sarah Sturdevant.  Supposedly she has more descendants than any other woman in this dispensation!!!  You must see that.

We have a rich heritage and the one thing I know is that we do not know what poor is, what sacrifice is, what dedication is.  Those ancestors who embraced the Gospel through all odds, came to America, and never faltered in their faith have us forever in their debt.

Thanks, Linda, for starting the website.  I hope many will enjoy it and perhaps contribute to it.  I have learned so much in just the last few days and so much more to read.

Both Decks Are Stained!!!

Front Deck

Today Michael sanded the whole back deck and I cleaned out all the slats!  The squirrels had about a 20 minute activity in the morning and were quiet the rest of the day with nothing else dropped on the deck as of now.  Amazing.

Back Deck

Anyway then we stained the whole deck.  I am so glad the weather stayed warm and dry and we could complete this.  I never could have done it alone.  My neighbor had told me about this new way of doing it and it worked great.  Yea!

Aunt Ellen's Scones

When I was a child and we visited Mom's sisters in Ogden, Utah, her sister Ellen always made scones for us.  They always tasted so yummy.

Also in a Larson Newsletter from 1982 I came across her recipe entitled:

GRANDMA ELLEN'S SCONE RECIPE

Dissolve 1 yeast cube in 1/4 cup warm water.

Mix 1 C milk, 2 T sugar, 1 t salt, 2 T shortening or oil and 1 beaten egg.  (I would imagine she scalded the milk and added the yeast when all was lukewarm)

Add 2 C flour.  Beat by hand with a wooden spoon to form firm dough.  Let rise.  Punch down and rise again.  Roll thin on floured board.  Cut into squares or strips.  Let rise 1/2 inch.  Cut dashes in the squares.  Deep fry in oil or shortening.  Brown on both sides.  Remove to dish covered with paper towel.  Serve with butter, jam or honey.
(We used sugar and butter as well.)

I have never used this method where we let the strips rise again.  Now I know her secret as to why they were so light and airy!

A Sad Christmas for my sister Carole!

While looking for Family Histories to add to Linda's new Blog I found an article in a Larson Family newsletter from 1982. My sister Carole, who is six years younger than I, had written about "A Christmas I Remember". If I had known about this, I had certainly forgotten, and it could be that since I was a teenager at the time whose life revolved around my friends and current new boyfriend I may not have even been aware of it.

This is the story. I was a junior in high school. Carole would have been in 5th or 6th grade. While she was doing her early Christmas snooping she found a beautiful doll hidden underneath Mom's bed. She said, "It had real hair, eyes that open and shut and a very "fussy" white dress and bonnet. I was so excited as I knew it had to be for me, even though I was getting a little old myself.  Indeed it made for a memorable Christmas when the doll went to Janet (as "her last doll to sit upon her bed").

I always liked dolls and I remember this one well. I named her Becky Ann (after my boyfriend whose last name was Becker and my last name Anderson). On Christmas Eve I remember taking her with me to show my friends as my boyfriend and I went to meet them for Midnight Mass. She was a beautiful "last doll".

I called my sister Carole yesterday to ask her about this. I remember very well asking my mother for a doll that year as my "last doll" but Carole must have been unaware of this. She said when she saw it and just "knew" it was hers she began to ask for a doll from Mom just so Mom would know she really wanted it. Alas, we lived in a small town and when Mother realized she needed to get another doll, there was just "left overs" on the shelves and she could not replicate the beautiful doll she had purchased for me.

So here Carole was remembering that disappointing Christmas 30 years later!!! Not unlike my not getting the Shirley Temple doll I wanted for Christmas. I wonder if Mom knew about our Christmas disappointments???? It is hard to forget those kind of moments. So sorry, Carole, I never knew!

Grandson Plus...

I can't believe a whole week has gone by.  Last Saturday I went to Chico and met Melissa and Mike and Mike came home with me, and Melissa and a friend stayed in Chico to meet with friends. 

It has been good having Mike here, I have an in-house computer guru, interesting conversationalist, handy man with muscles, cook, painter, shopper, driver, as well as a great grandson who is a friend!! 

We have been busy organizing our lives, visiting the library and bookstore, staining the deck, cleaning up after the squirrels, viewing movies, reading books, organizing my computer, playing video games (Mike) and cooking and eating...Bandido misses his favorite sleeping place but other than that all is well...till Mike gets bored and moves on.  Such is the life of grandmas.

Saturday was Temple Day in Reno for our Branch so Mary Anne and I went down and had a very nice day.  Picked up some good walking shoes as well.

Oh, yes, and now Linda has started websites of the Family Histories of all our families and that will occupy plenty of my time.  Life is sunny and warm in Lake Almanor.  Fall is on hold until we finish staining the front deck, stairs, and lattice.  Glad I have Mike here to help me.

The Subject was Roses

When I left home 3 years ago I blamed him for everything that was wrong here. . .when I came home I blamed you. . .now I see that no one is to blame. . .not even me.—Timmy

Timmy was a soldier who left three years ago a boy and comes home a man to a home that is filled with rancor and an undercurrent of disdain and blame for all their unhappiness.

"The Subject was Roses" is an earful of everything that no one should say in a marriage or to their children.  How sad tht a marriage could be so filled with wrong communication or no communication.  It was disturbing but enlightening to see what all the wrong words and misunderstandings could do to cause such sadness.

It was a 1968 play and a 1970 movie with Martin Sheen, Patricial Neal and Jack Albertson.

It really made me think again how smart David and Emma Ray Mc Kay were about relationships and making a happy home together and how the wrong words and attitudes can destroy relationships.

My Favorite Cookie

Tonight I tried making my favorite cookie with the Gluten Free flour I bought from UDI's.  They say you can use the same amount in your recipes but actually it didn't work too well.  It needs more flour and the texture is not as good.  Bummer...

Tomorrow I pick Michael up in Chico for a little visit here.  Yea, I won't be so lonely anymore and maybe we can take a few adventures together.  Hope he won't be too bored!!