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Monday, January 30, 2023

(1934-2023)

Last week my grandma passed away. Over the weekend, we had a private graveside service in her honor. She was my last grandparent. 

Grandma

I’m not sad. She’s been waiting for this for a long time. I’ll miss her, of course, but she had Alzheimer’s, so she’s already been gone - in that tragic way that diseases of the mind steal a person away - for many years. I’m grateful that she has been released and reunited with my grandpa. 

My grandma at my grandpa’s interment in 2015
Seeing her stand there alone holding the flag
broke my heart

I was my grandma’s first granddaughter. For a while, it was just a bunch of boys and me. My cousin, Jess, and I were born in the same day - New Year’s Day 1984. I was late, he was early. We were also blessed and baptized on the same days. 

My grandma holding me on my blessing day 

Grandma & Grandpa holding me & Jess

My mom with me and all my boy cousins
(She was also pregnant… with a boy)

My line was the only one with four generations of women from the family living at the same time: my grandma, my mom, me, and my daughters. 

Four generations when I only had Daisy

Four generations with all my girls 

When I was eight years old, we moved across the street from my grandma. I loved my grandma’s house. I usually spent at least two weekdays there, and I would often end up there on Sundays. I would always watch out the window to see if any cousins would arrive, and I would head over to play. I used any excuse I could to go to my grandma’s.

My grandma’s house was a historical gem. As a child, it was just “Grandma’s house,” but as I got older, I started realizing that my grandma’s house was really unique (check out my grandma’s house in this post).

There are some distinct things I’ll always remember about my grandmas’s house. There was a hook in a door frame to hang a swing from. There was a tiny table for children under the bar. There was a toy drawer in the kitchen, a small rocking chair in the living room that played music as you rocked in it, a grandfather clock that chimed every quarter hour, and a basket of hotel toiletries on the draining board (my grandparents traveled a lot for my grandpa’s career, so my grandma was always bringing home hotel toiletries and conference swag to hand out to us like party favors) (also, “the draining board” is what my grandma called a particular counter in her kitchen. No one really knows where “draining board” came from). The house had a laundry chute accessible from a drawer in my grandma’s bedroom. In the basement there was a phone booth, a satellite chair, and a copy machine. A copy machine! (Just one more thing I didn’t know was unusual about my grandma’s house until I got older). 

My grandma’s house was a sanctuary for me as a child. It was a place where I always felt safe and happy… unless I was going to the bathroom. I hated going to the bathroom at my grandma’s house. The main bathroom had two doors, and neither of them locked. I was constantly walked in on, so I would go to great lengths to not have to pee at her house. There was also a toilet in the laundry room in the basement, but again, two entrances and no locks. The uppermost level of the house had a bathroom that I would always sneak and use until one day my grandma found me walking down the stairs and said, “I hope you didn’t use the toilet up there. It’s been having problems.” I don’t think that bathroom ever worked again.

For many of my growing years, my grandpa was the stake Patriarch (I wrote a post about that here). My grandma was in charge of typing up the transcripts of the blessings my grandpa gave. I used to go to her house to play the piano while she would type blessings in my grandpa’s office. The clickety clack of the typewriter while my grandpa’s voice played on the tape recorder was a huge part of the soundtrack of my childhood. 

My grandma loved to feed people. Whenever I went to her house, I would sit on a bar stool at the counter and watch TV (there was always a swiveling TV on the bar that could turn toward the cooking area or the dining area), and my grandma would serve up all sorts of snacks. Some of the food you could always find at my grandma’s house were Boston baked beans, canned peaches (my grandpa loved canned peaches, so there were always some in the fridge), popsicles, ice cream, chocolate crinkle cookies, Lay’s potato chips with ranch dip, dill pickles (another favorite of my grandpa’s), Banquet chicken pot pies, and soda pop. My grandma always had a dresser full of soda pop in the “back bedroom.”  There were cold sodas in the fridge, but she’d always keep half-drank cans in the refrigerator door and would make us drink those before we could open a new one. I would always try to sneak a fresh one instead of drinking a flat, five-day-old leftover can from one of my cousins. Some of her signature dishes for family parties were meatballs, baked beans, sloppy joes, finger jello, and crescent rolls. Whenever we refused to try a food, Grandma would say, “If it kills you, you’ll never have to eat it again!”

While looking through some old photos I found these pictures  I took several years ago of my grandma’s finger jello and meatballs. At the time, we knew her days of preparing servable food were growing short. 

My grandma was an avid knitter of two particular items: slippers and dishcloths. She would always have us trace our feet on a piece of paper so she could make us slippers. She would make dishcloths to hand out for every holiday - usually in corresponding holiday colors. She always had a stash of dishcloths and slippers stowed away. She taught me how to knit the dishcloths (though I don’t remember, I’d have to relearn a few things like casting on and casting off), and she explained to me that the reason her dishcloths were so good was because she had a “tight knit.” 

Grandma’s wash cloths

My grandma’s kitchen was the center of her home. We never knocked when we went over - we just barged through the kitchen door. Most of the time, that’s where Grandma would be - washing dishes, talking on the phone, or sitting at the table watching people walk down the street. 

There was always a stack of my grandparents’ most recently developed photos sitting on the end of the counter in the kitchen, and I always loved looking through them. There were also always obituaries hanging on my grandma’s fridge, so I routinely checked to see if there were any new ones every time I went over. 

My grandma took care of a lot of pets. She always had at least one cat and a dog around. Others included a chinchilla named Chick, a parakeet named Charlotte, and a chicken with a broken beak named Lucy. Lucy was actually my uncle Tim’s (who lived next door), but Grandma babied Lucy, so Lucy would make her way over to Grandma’s house for treats every day. 

My grandma always called me Matilda. I have no idea why.

“Matilda” & Marlene

She walked a lot and had a standing walking date with her friend, a man named Deel, at the church across the street where they would do laps around the parking lot. When I would walk to school in the mornings, I would always see my grandma and Deel. She and Deel both loved to grow flowers and would often talk about gardening. When Scotty and I first bought our house, my grandma and Deel came over to plant some flowers for me… which I then killed (I always thought my grandma’s friendship with Deel was kind of weird).

Grandma was always convinced that babies had red hair. You could pretty much guarantee that any time she saw a baby for the first time, she would comment, “Well, he’s got a little bit of red in his hair, doesn’t he?” You couldn’t argue with her on this. She would just end up parading the baby around in all the different lighting trying to show you the red hair.

My grandparents and Daisy with no red in her hair

My grandma’s calendar was an iconic feature in her life. Every year the McDougal funeral home sent out a free calendar in the mail, and that was always the calendar my grandma would use. On birthdays, she wrote the person’s name with their age circled next to it. She also did the same for various other things. If you wanted to know how old her TV was, you could find it in the calendar. How long had great-grandpa been dead? Calendar. How long had she had Puglsey the cat? Calendar. My grandma was so loyal to her McDougal calendar that it’s only fitting that McDougal did her services. 

With the loss of my grandma, I’ve been combing through my memories of her, especially from my childhood. Oh, how I loved my grandma! Her house was truly the best place on earth to me. I’m full of gratitude for her life and the person she was. 

Saturday, January 28, 2023

A Day of Celebration


January 29th is National Puzzle Day. There’s nothing quite like a fake holiday to give me an excuse to eat good food and do nerdy things I love. I’m all for it if it’s something I like. If it’s celebrating something I think is stupid, though, like January 25 which is National Opposite Day (please don’t tell the elementary school kids that this day actually exists), then I roll my eyes and psshaw at its existence. Why do we need a stupid day for everything? Oh, but puzzles? Yay!

Now I have to wonder, what does one eat on National Puzzle Day? I’m sure I can come up with something! (After all, I’m writing this on January 24 - Beer Can Appreciation Day- so I still have time to work out my National Puzzle Day menu).

In honor of this ridiculous amazing day, here are the puzzles I have done so far in 2023:


Oh these mischievous cats! I got this puzzle from the DI, and it had all the pieces!


More cats but a little less mischief. This puzzle was great until I had to get all the cat fur pieces in place. It took me several days! This is another complete puzzle I found at DI (high five!)


This is an Aimee Stewart puzzle by Buffalo Games. I love Aimee Stewart puzzles because they are bright and colorful, and I really like Buffalo’s quality of puzzles. Of course, this one came from the DI, and once again, had all the pieces (yesss!!!)


Some friends from church gave me this Utah-themed Dowdle puzzle. I love the details in Dowdle’s art. This was a 500 piece, so it was nice and relaxing. 


My friend Sara and I have been swapping puzzles, and her son showed up at my door a few weeks ago with a box full! I’ve almost bought the Wizard of Oz Thomas Kinkaid puzzle a few times when I’ve seen it on sale, but I’m glad I never did because it was in Sara’s stash!

I’m currently working on a horrible double-sided puzzle. I’m not sure I’m going to make it. I tried a similar one last week and gave up, so I’m not sure what drove me to try another one. Oh wait, yes I do. I found it at DI, and it was brand new in the box, and it’s a Disney Parks exclusive. One side is Disney dogs. The other side is Disney cats. I’m working on the dog side since my puzzle life has been over saturated with cats lately. 


Update: I gave up on the two-sides puzzle. It was making me mental. It doesn’t look that hard, but after about a week, this is all I had done:


Oh, how it hurts my ego to not finish a puzzle, but I couldn’t endure this one. I’m just glad I got it for $1.25 at DI instead of $24.99 at Disneyland (same with the Up two-sided puzzle which I almost bought from Disney World, but my friend Sara gave me hers, and I couldn’t do that one either!)

I wish you a happy National Puzzle Day! Unless you think puzzles are stupid, in which case, you’re in luck because January 29th is also Curmudgeons Day! If you don’t want to do a puzzle, you can always go find a cantankerous, old man to hug! 

                 (The puzzle fair has been out delivering)



Tuesday, January 24, 2023

January Reading

January has been a pretty good reading month. I've been able to finish several books. One of my 40x40 goals is to read at least one "spiritual" book per month... and let's just say... I technically have 7 days left. I actually have two spiritual books underway (one of which is feeling especially looooong), and there's a chance I will finish them both in February. I'm not picky about the timeline as long as I get through 12 of them by the end of the year. 

A conversation I often find myself in with other readers is one where the other person expresses their dislike for "sad" books. I never know what to do in those conversations. This happened the other night at book club while we were making our list of books for the year. Someone always brings up the fact that they don't want to read sad books. I wouldn't say I intentionally seek out sad books, but I prefer to feel something when I read. Strong emotion is part of what draws me to books. This reminded me of something my friend, Amy, wrote in my copy of The Book Thief in 2011 (which happens to be what my book club read this month):

"I want books to disturb me. Make me think, sob, ache, remember. Help me to understand the nature of my own sorrows... Books that don't disturb don't CHANGE..."

Spot on, Amy. Twelve years later. 

Here are some of the books that disturbed me this month:

The Magnificent Lives of Marjorie Post 

by Allison Pataki

(Historical fiction, chick-lit)

Audiobook

My rating: ****


This novel is based on the life of Marjorie Post - the heiress of the Post cereal company. It's a bit of a coming of age tale, as it begins with Marjorie as a young teen and follows her through life. The story is a bit slow-moving in a way that feels painful through the journey, but you're glad you went through it at the end. 

The Last House on the Street by Diane Chamberlain

(Historical fiction, mystery thriller, civil rights)
My rating: ****


The Last House on the Street features a dual timeline - one being 1965 where Ellie Hockley defies her parents wishes by fighting for civil rights and volunteering to help resister black voters, the other in 2010 where Kayla, after experiencing the loss of her husband in a tragic accident, moves into the new home they were building together to be met with harassment from people in the community. 

I wasn't sure how the two stories would finally come together, as it felt like two very different genres were trying to mesh, but it worked in the end!

Dry by Neal and Jarrod Shusterman

(young adult, survival)
My rating: 3.5 stars


Forget serial killers and ghosts. This is the kind of book that truly scares me. In this story, Southern California loses running water during a drought, and society wreaks havoc on itself. 

I'm now fighting off every impulse to hoard water and ammo in an underground bunker (or am I?) Just take a moment right now to be grateful for water and the ease at which we get it! 

The Book of Cold Cases by Simone St. James

(mystery, paranormal)
My rating: ****


This book has been on my "to read" list for a long time, and I finally got around to it this month. Shea is a true crime blogger, and one day, she meets a woman who was acquitted of two cold case slayings in the 70's. Shea ends up digging into the murders and trying to figure out what really happened. 

There were some aspects of this book that didn't work so well for me (it includes some paranormal activity that I feel doesn't fit well with "true crime") but it was an entertaining read overall. 

For Your Own Good by Samantha Downing

(thriller)
My rating: 3.5 stars


Teddy is a creepy teacher who does weird things and people end up dead. I am still processing this book. Did I like it? Or was it utterly ridiculous? I just finished it this morning, and I honestly can't decide. Teddy is just really twisted and awful, and I had to push through because I needed to see what would happen to him. 

Other than really bad behavior and a few swear words, this book was relatively clean for a thriller. 

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

(Historical, humor, feminism)
My rating: ****


You all know I'm not a fan of cartoony book covers, right? I was assured by multiple sources that this book doesn't fit the standard cartoony book cover stereotype. I want to call this book "cute," but that's not really the right word for it. While it has a certain element of cuteness, the main character, Elizabeth, is pretty bad ass. Excuse my word choice, but there's no better way to put it. 

Elizabeth is trying to make her way in the field of science in the 1960's and is met with a whole lot of misogyny. She can't gain the education, nor the career she wants, but she knows that no matter what anyone else says, she is a chemist. 

The story has some Big Bang Theory vibes while being a little less silly. It's actually quite a sad book (heaven forbid), although humorous. There is some sex and a lot of language as well as sexual assault. 

Take My Hand by Dolen Perkins-Valdez

(historical fiction, social justice)
My rating: ****


Civil Townsend works for a family planning clinic in post-segregation Alabama. One day she is assigned to administer birth control injections to two young girls, and she starts to consider the ethics of some of the things her clinic is taking part in. 

This book opened my eyes to a part of history I didn't know much about - including the Tuskagee syphilis study and the forced sterilization of minorities throughout the 20th century. 

The second half of the book dragged a little since it delved into a lengthy court battle, but it was a really good book on a hard topic. It definitely gave me some things to think about. The book was pretty clean, but it discusses a lot of sex ed content in depth, so that's just something to be mindful of. 

The Lovely and the Lost by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

(Young adult, search and rescue, mystery thriller)
Audiobook
My rating: ****


As a child, Kira was found living alone and wild in the woods. Years later, after being adopted by Cady Bennett, Kira works with dogs to do search and rescue. Cady and Kira are called out to help find a young missing girl, where they discover that several people have gone missing over the years in the same area. 

I had a really hard time focusing on this book because I tried listening to it while my mind was occupied with other things. As a result, I missed a lot. I wish I would have read a hard copy instead of listening to the audiobook. It was a good book, though... I think.

Sunday, January 22, 2023

Sunday Prompts

I started this post yesterday by stating how rare and beautiful my Saturday was because I had some extra time in my schedule to just… be. 

That changed quickly, and this post rolled into Sunday. So here I lay in my bed at 10:08 pm on Sunday night, taking some time to just… be. 

I was in the mood to write, but I didn’t have any brain power to draw from, so here’s another writing prompt from my Pinterest board. This one is called “August,” which means nothing at all. 

1. Describe a moment from today that you want to remember.

I want to remember my friend, Jill’s talk in sacrament meeting about music. She pointed out that in the hymnal, in the introductory pages, it lists some of the blessings of incorporating the hymns into our meetings and our home. Jill is a profoundly gifted musician, and I loved her thoughts on the topic. 

I always wished that while I was the primary music leader that I could have had the chance to speak or teach on the topic of music. Jill is the primary music leader now, so I just have to live vicariously through her.

2. What are 5 things you do every day without fail?

1. Wake up

2. Eat

3. Read

4. Go to the bathroom

5. Sleep

3. Would you prefer to live by the ocean or in the mountains?

Mountains. 

4. What games did you play with your siblings when you were growing up?

The only game I remember playing with my siblings is Parcheesi. 

5. When was the last time you and your partner went on a date?

January 14 - we went to see A Man Called Otto with some friends, and then we ate at The Habit on the way home so I could redeem my free birthday burger!

6. Do you have any fond memories of camping with your family? 

Probably, but for some reason I can only recall horror stories. Like when I stepped in human feces (courtesy of one of my family members) in the woods or when my nose bled for two days straight, and we had to drive down the mountain to go to a small town ER where they stuck a tampon in my nose.

7. If you had an empty room, what are ten things you would add to it?

A comfy couch, a blanket, a good pillow, a TV, a puzzle table, a wreath, a clock, an outlet, a phone charger, and a stocked mini fridge.

8. Where’s your favorite place to write?

I honestly don’t care. I’ll write anywhere! But it’s always nice to have a good surface area to work on.

9. Do you prefer going out to eat alone or with other people?

Either way. Unless it’s a sit-down restaurant with a server - then I prefer to go with other people. 

10. What are your ten favorite movies?

I’m not prepared to answer this. I feel like it’s a huge commitment, so I’m just going to list ten movies I love in no particular order:

All the Harry Potters

Top Gun: Maverick

The Green Mile

The Count of Monte Cristo

The Giver

A Quiet Place

Benny and Joon

The Truman Show

Back to the Future

Lord of the Rings

11. How do you cope with stress and anxiety?

Stress: Procrastination and overeating.

Anxiety: Box breathing and 5-senses grounding (I also walk my kids through these often).

12. What do you usually have with toast?

A runny egg.

13. Write about one of your childhood friends.

I had a friend, let’s call her Bridget, whose mom was super strict. I always felt really uncomfortable at her house because of all the rules and routines they lived by. Everything was ridiculously clean, and there were rooms we weren’t allowed to go in. I felt like I was walking on egg shells there. 

Bridget and I haven’t been in touch in years (Facebook friendship aside), and I always wonder what kind of parent she ended up becoming. Is she like her mom? Or is she much more chill because of her mom?

14. What are some of the things you do when you procrastinate?

Freeze. I do nothing. I can’t get going.

15. Describe a typical Thursday.

Thursdays, for the past few years, have usually been pretty nice because we haven’t had any commitments on Thursdays. It feels like a recovery day after having all of our Monday through Wednesday chaos. 

16. What are three things you are thankful for right now?

My van, my dishwasher, and my bed.

17. Is there anywhere in particular you would like to go with your family?

I’d like to go to some Church history sites, but I’m really fine going anywhere! I just love to go! 

18. What currently inspires you?

Right now, I’m very inspired by this being the last year of my thirties. You might have picked up on this since I never shut up about it.

19. How did your grandparents make a living?

My grandmas were both homemakers. One of my grandpas worked for Union Pacific and the other worked for the water company. But both of them retired when I was young, so I never really knew them as employed workers. 

20. What is your favorite hour of the day and why?

Probably the first hour after my kids go to school because the day is still new, and I still ignorantly believe I’m going to carpe diem. 

21. How do you comfort your children when they are sad?

It depends on the child and the situation. Sometimes having a nice talk helps. If they don’t want to talk, I will sit by them and tickle their backs. Sometimes I give them space. I just try to do what’s needful for each situation. I suck at comforting people.

22. Has someone been kind to you recently?

Of course! 

Not too long ago, it was snowing, and I couldn’t see out my car window very well, and I pulled away from the curb at the school not realizing there was a truck coming, and I totally cut them off, and they didn’t even honk at me! I was so grateful for their mercy. Because I would have honked at me!

23. What happened at 1:00 pm today?

I made twelve people cram in the mothers’ room at church so we could have an object lesson in the dark. It smelled like diapers.

24. What are some things weighing on your heart right now?

Family things, my own weaknesses, and my worries about my children. 

25. Are there any habits you would like to develop?

I could really use some sort of exercise habit. I exercise… never. Like seriously never.

26. What do you like to snack on in the evenings?

Cereal or toast.

27. How are you feeling right now? 

Excited for a new week but bummed that my kids have dentist appointments tomorrow. I don’t want to check them out of school and back in again.

28. What is your favorite thing about Saturday afternoons right now?

Playing board games with Chad and Carlie at 4:00.

29. What are three things from this past month that have been challenging?

Scotty’s and my last living grandmas both died. 

I had a teacher give me negative feedback about one of my children that has left me very unsettled.

I keep making mistakes in the new board game we’ve been learning after we’re already two hours in.

30. What are you looking forward to next month?

Going to see Bluey Live! Hahahahaha!

Thursday, January 19, 2023

All the Ways My Life Has Changed This Week

This has been a big week (technically week and a half) in the Brittish household. 

First of all, as you know from this post, we bought a Jeep for Nicky to drive. Investing in a third vehicle is a big deal to me. Not only do we need to figure out insurance, gas, and maintenance expenses, we’ve also had to reconfigure all of our parking routines at the house. 

In addition to that, Nicky ended up snagging an appointment for his driver's test a few days ago, and it's official! He got his license! He told his sisters that on the day he got his driver's license, he would take them to McDonald's, so we sent them off on their own to binge Happy Meals and McFlurries. 

On Wednesday, Nicky drove himself to school, and it was wonderful! This morning he dropped Daisy off for early morning dance rehearsal, and I stayed home and stared blankly at the wall because I wasn't sure what I was supposed to do! That just bought me 40 extra minutes in my morning!

A few days after we bought the Jeep, we bought a new dishwasher. I saved all the money I made from selling pumpkin rolls in the fall plus the money I got for Christmas and my birthday, and I went marching into Lowe’s like I owned the places and declared, “I want that one!”

You guys! My dishes are CLEAN and DRY. I've heard that life could be like this, but I never experienced it until now. Our previous dishwasher couldn't even get butter off a plate! (Shouldn't it just melt off? I feel like the darn thing defied science!) The new dishwasher tackled a Pyrex bowl coated in dried up mashed potato residue like it was nothing. 

Over the weekend, someone offered us a gently used mattress. We've needed a new mattress for years but A) there's never any money for a mattress (we accidentally spend it on vacations instead), and B) I have mattress buying phobia (seriously, how do you commit to a mattress? How???) For nearly twenty years, Scotty and I have been sleeping on a mattress we bought from a Marriott hotel for $20 when we first got married. I've seen better mattresses on the side of the road than the one we've been sleeping on. So we took that free mattress, gave it a good shampoo, and put it on our bed. Now our bed is 8" higher, and everything about life is totally different. I can no longer simply sit down on my bed. I have to hop up onto it since it's above butt level. My feet can no longer touch the ground which means, as I discovered on Sunday, I need to come up with a new way to put my tights on.

Another big change to our house from this past weekend is the installation of a new toilet handle. For the past two months, we've had to hold the toilet handle down for 8 seconds to flush the toilet (I counted). Now we get to flush like normal people, and I have at least 12 more minutes available each day!

And if that isn’t enough change for one week, here’s more!

Yesterday I got rid of all our little kid hangers. I swapped out the last of Zoe and Eva’s itty bitty hangers for regular sized ones. We have big kids now with big head holes in their clothes. If moms wore scout shirts and gained patches for various milestones in parenthood, I feel like there would be a patch for this. No more baby hangers. It’s bitter sweet. 

Last but not least, Nicky got a job. Or at least a job offer. He needs to pass his drug test before it’s officially official, which brings us to some more milestones: first job interview, first job, first drug test, and first time peeing in a cup! I hope there’s no backsplash. I found that I didn’t have time to coach him about interviewing for a job, but I spent about five minutes last night before bed talking to him about peeing in a cup.

It’s a special brand of mothering I do.

A lot of big things have happened all at once, and while it’s very exciting and good, I’m not sure this is the pace I prefer! But if it means I get to have clean pots and pans and spend less time being an unpaid Uber, I’ll make it work!

Wednesday, January 18, 2023

Cheers to Healthy Eating (now pass me a croissant)

Yesterday I wrote about how I’m trying to complete 40 goals before I turn 40. One of those goals is to add ten “healthy” recipes to our meal rotation. This means I need to find eligible recipes to test run until I find ten keepers. Healthy or not, a new recipe rarely makes it into our regular meal schedule. Nine out of ten recipes I try are flops. That means I could potentially test run 100 healthy recipes this year in order to find ten worth repeating (clearly I didn't think this through).

So for the past few weeks, I’ve been scouring Pinterest and various blogs and recipe books looking for ideas, and I’ve reaffirmed something:

Healthy food sucks.

Okay, not really. But kind of.

Now, everyone’s interpretation of “healthy” is different. What I’m looking for are meals that offer some variety in nutrients and are low(er) in sugars, refined carbs, and processed ingredients. I don’t have a list of food rules I’m trying to obey, nor do I have a list of foods or ingredients I'm fully avoiding. I just want to expand our meal options with things I feel good about eating.

What I’ve found is that there’s not much out there for me in the way of healthy recipes beyond what I already have in my recipe binder. In other words, if it’s a healthy meal, and I’m willing to eat it, I already have a recipe for it. 

Also, I am continually baffled by the things bloggers think kids will eat. I’ve spent 16 years looking at things that say, “15 Healthy Meals Even Your Pickiest Kids Will Love!” And, trust me, ain’t nothin there my kids will eat. And my kids are a lot less picky than others out there!

(Some of my kids’ friends? I don’t know how they haven’t starved to death).

(And what’s with wrapping everything in a wheat tortilla? Why do bloggers always think kids will eat anything you put in a wheat tortilla? And who wants PB&J in a tortilla anyway? Ew). 

Here are some of my observations from the hunt so far:

Blogs with “healthy” recipes basically use the same recipes over and over but change the veggies or the seasoning. “Lemon Chicken with Asparagus” in 2014 was reposted as “Lemon Chicken with Brussels Sprouts” in 2016 and again as "Fiesta Chicken with Zucchini” in 2018, and someone is making money off that.

Alternatively, they swap the cooking method. So "Sheet Pan Lemon Chicken with Asparagus" becomes "Skillet Lemon Chicken with Asparagus" and then "Air Fryer Lemon Chicken with Asparagus."

I made this sheet pan breakfast the other day and then thought, wait a minute! I already make this but in a skillet! Reiterating that if there's a healthy recipe I'm willing to eat, I already have it in my binder!

Pinterest acts like we can all afford salmon, as if they’re just swimming up the ditches of our middle-class neighborhoods, and we can catch them by hand and slap a honey Dijon sauce on them any day of the week.

The propaganda suggesting that quinoa actually tastes good is still in full force.

Everyone's trying to trick us into believing that there's an acceptable substitution for bread. You can’t call it a “bowl,” stuff it in a pepper, or wrap it in lettuce and pretend there's still joy in it. Because of this, I try to avoid any recipe that stems from something originally robed in carbs. 

So with my stubbornness, this is obviously a lofty goal! I'll keep you well-informed along the way. 

Tuesday, January 17, 2023

40x40


I turn 40 in 348 days. The clock is ticking, and the math is easy when your birthday is New Year’s Day, and it’s still January (don’t ask me how many days until my birthday after January 31st. I’ll have to think too hard). 

I’ve mentioned a few times that I want to do something “fun” for my 40th birthday. My interpretation of “fun” has evolved over the years, so here’s what I decided to do - I’ve set 40 goals that I want to accomplish by my 40th birthday. 

(This is the kind of stuff I consider “fun.” I also think it’s fun to make grocery lists and update my budget every week. I’m a hoot and a half. Admit it, you’re dying to hang out with me! Imagine us scouring the grocery ad together and googling new ways to use leftover baked potatoes). 

Posting a list of my 40 goals seems like something I would typically do, but I’m not going to. Some of the things I’m working on are, I’ll admit, just too darn embarrassing. However, I’ll probably post every now and then when I have finished a goal. Some of my goals are one and done and easy to check off the list, like making deviled eggs. Until a few weeks ago, I’d never made deviled eggs before, but I made it one of my goals, and mission accomplished!

(They were gross, by the way. Now I need to make them again with a different recipe).

Other goals will take all year, such as keeping track of my gospel study (I decided rather than setting a specific goal for how often I study the scriptures, I just want to keep track of days I do it. I write a heart on my calendar for each day I engage in some form of intentional gospel study, and guess what! I haven’t missed a day so far this year - albeit we’re still  only a few days into the year - but it feels nice to simplify my expectations and just be consistent). 

Maybe by the time I turn 40, I’ll be a slightly better version of myself. At minimum, I’ll have a decent deviled egg recipe added to my cookbook and 17 days of hearts in my day planner.

Monday, January 16, 2023

The Catalog of Hot Dates

This year Scotty and I will celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary. Assuming we can hang in there until May 9th. Our lives have changed a lot in 20 years. For example, when we got married (at ages 19 and 21) we both still watched Saturday morning cartoons. Now we just exist simultaneously in rooms with cartoons while our children watch them. 

Such growth.

One significant way we have changed is in how we date. I no longer have any need to do things like go bowling or do a scavenger hunt. Thus, I have compiled a list of date ideas for old, boring people. I would prefer these options over anything I did to date in high school:

Go to a movie at 3:00 p.m. Sneak in some pizza. Wear stretchy pants and slippers.

Get a babysitter. Go buy a new dishwasher. Bring it home to an empty house. Install it. Play Wingspan on your phones while the dishes wash. Then marvel at your shiny Pyrex together.

Go to all the local fast food establishments and cash in your points for a free food smorgasbord. 

Sit in your garage recliner, watch your neighbors come home, and see if you can guess what they picked up for dinner (alternatively, you can listen to the other neighbor mowing his lawn with his airpods in and try to guess what song he's singing).

Put on some fresh sheets then lay in bed and watch Lost while sipping ice water from your insulated cups.

Take two vehicles to Smith’s early on a Saturday morning. Shop for discounted meat, bakery, and dairy products. Then take both your vehicles to the gas station to use your fuel points for 60 cents off per gallon. 

Clean out the garage.

Sit in your plastic adirondack chairs in the backyard and watch your chickens fight over worms. 

Leave your kids home, go get ice cream, and eat it in the Ross parking lot while playing Wingspan on your phones (pretty much any time you're playing Wingspan together on your phones, you are on a date).

Accidentally plan a vacation while eating Thai food.

Fold laundry and watch Hamilton.

Sit at the kitchen table together while he answers work emails and you look for new recipes to try.

This is what it's all about, folks. The romance is not dead after twenty years. It's just packaged differently. 

Sunday, January 15, 2023

Miles of Milestones


It’s coming!!! A huge milestone for our family. Nicky is getting his driver’s license! 

We don’t know when, for sure. The testing schedule at the DLD was a month out when we first looked, putting him at February 7th. We’ve since checked back and scheduled sooner. And then sooner. And then we saw a SAME DAY appointment and missed it by a few seconds! But we’ve managed to keep our eye out for cancellations, and if things work out, he might be driving himself to church next week! 

I’m excited, and so is he. I’m also afraid. But more so excited. I think. 

Last week we bought a third vehicle. A very used Jeep Liberty. That should allow us a little more freedom. Having kids in three different schools and having to drive to all of those schools twice every day has been intense. Especially with how often I need to be two places at once. I feel like I live in the van, but now I might be able to spend a little less time in there. 

We’ve spent the past week doing some repairs and cleaning the Jeep. We’ve also done a lot of test driving. 

It has a tape deck. Only a tape deck. So we went to the DI and found a big case of cassettes for $5. 

(I love when you go looking for something specific and actually find it!)

(We also bought a guitar, three puzzles, and a miniature ping pong table - none of which has anything to do with the car - but wow! We were big spenders this week!). 

Now we need to figure out how to navigate insurance, gas money, and car repairs with a teenager. I admit, I’ve been procrastinating deciding how we will deal with those things in our family. Suddenly it’s game time. 

One day you’re birthing a kid and the next you’re negotiating how much gas money you’re going to provide him to run all your errands with.

(Yesss!!! This is what I’ve waited for!)

Monday, January 9, 2023

Things the Kids Say: Episode 20



After a conversation about dairy products…

Zoe: Can my body make milk?

Me: Yes. When you have a baby, your body can make milk to feed the baby.

Zoe: Is that why babies suck on nipples?

Me: Yes.

Zoe: So I have udders? OHMYGOSH! Eva! We have udders!

————————————-

“I’m not good with these old-fashioned vacuums!”

-Zoe while using a broom

————————————-

Nicky: When I grow up, I sure hope I don’t have your gas problems!

Me: I know! Gas is so expensive right now!

————————————-

“This family is full of drama queens!”

-Zoe while watching Bluey

—————————————

While playing a board game…

Nicky: I’m going to lose no matter what.

Zoe: Did you try cheating?

—————————————-

Me: I need to buy some toilet wand refills.

Daisy: What’s a toilet wand?

Me: You know those scrubby things we clean the toilets with?

Daisy: Oh, so it’s not something from Harry Potter?

——————————————

“My mustache looks so much better with my braces off!”

-Nicky

——————————————

“Is that Jesus?”

-Eva

————————————

“This guy needs a therapist.”

“Is it supposed to sound like this?

“This is the stupidest thing ever!”

-Daisy while listening to Bohemian Rhapsody


Sunday, January 8, 2023

Jesus the Christ


This year, our Church is focusing on the New Testament (we rotate every year between the Old Testament, New Testament, Book of Mormon, and Doctrine and Covenants).

My goals for my gospel learning this year are to:

1) Simplify my expectations for my personal study and

2) Concentrate on the character of Christ

In 2020, I set (and met) the goal to read Jesus the Christ by James E. Talmage. 

Since we are studying the New Testament again, I went back through my notes and highlights from Jesus the Christ to see what stood out to me about Christ’s character during that reading; specifically His attributes, His behavior, and the way He treated* others.

(Let me just interject a plug here for the digital resources on the Gospel Library app. There are definitely some kinks (I submit feedback all the time), but I really love the ease of marking and adding notes as I study. I enjoy going back and reading the thoughts and ideas I jotted down during previous study sessions, and I often copy and paste quotes from Conferences and other teachings into my scriptures. It's just a whole lot of fun! Plus, you can use all sorts of colors and make things pretty!)

Here are some of the things I marked in the book (I’ll include the chapters where the quotes are from. Unfortunately, the digital copy doesn’t show the page numbers - I'll submit feedback):

Christ had the attributes of God and man and met the qualifications to be the Redeemer. 

Jesus Christ was the only Being suited to the requirements of the great sacrifice:

1—As the one and only sinless Man;

2—As the Only Begotten of the Father and therefore the only Being born to earth possessing in their fulness the attributes of both Godhood and manhood;

3—As the One who had been chosen in the heavens and foreordained to this service… (chapter 3)

These attributes are what made Him eligible to provide the Atonement for us. 

He gave His life for us willingly. 

It’s important to understand that Jesus Christ had a choice. Our omniscient God knew the choice that Christ would make, but God’s knowledge of that choice doesn’t diminish the agency that was involved. The Savior willingly died for our sins. 

…He voluntarily surrendered His life, and permitted His own decease through an act of will. Born of a mortal mother He inherited the capacity to die; begotten by an immortal Sire He possessed as a heritage the power to withstand death indefinitely (chapter 3).

Christ had to come to earth to obtain a physical body. As a resurrected being, He now has all the essential characteristics of the Father.

During that antemortal period there was essential difference between the Father and the Son, in that the former had already passed through the experiences of mortal life, including death and resurrection, and was therefore a Being possessed of a perfect, immortalized body of flesh and bones, while the Son was yet unembodied. Through His death and subsequent resurrection Jesus the Christ is today a Being like unto the Father in all essential characteristics (chapter 4).

I don’t know if we realize that having a body makes us more like God. It’s no wonder Satan would have us abuse our bodies, neglect them, and hate them. Even our Savior had to take this step of receiving a body to become more like the Father. We are truly blessed to have mortal tabernacles.

Jesus Christ learned line upon line, precept upon precept. 

I think we sometimes assume that Christ knew all during His mortal existence, but He experienced gradual knowledge and understanding over time just as we do. Even His comprehension of His mortal mission was developed throughout His lifetime.

Christ’s realization that He was the chosen and foreordained Messiah came to Him gradually. As shown by His words to His mother on the occasion of the memorable interview with the doctors in the temple courts, He knew, when but a Boy of twelve years, that in a particular and personal sense He was the Son of God; yet it is evident that a comprehension of the full purport of His earthly mission developed within Him only as He progressed step by step in wisdom. His acknowledgment by the Father, and the continued companionship of the Holy Ghost, opened His soul to the glorious fact of His divinity (chapter 10).

He was capable of sin. 

It wasn’t an inability to sin that kept Him sinless. He had every bit of agency God’s children are entitled to. 

Our Lord was sinless yet peccable; He had the capacity, the ability to sin had He willed so to do… The writer of the epistle to the Hebrews expressly taught that Christ was peccable, in that He was tempted “in all points” as are the rest of mankind (chapter 10). 

(Side note: my digital copy of Jesus the Christ is full of word definitions I had to look up. While reading it, I would sometimes think, “Okay, Brother Talmage, did you really use these words in 1908, or were you just showing off?”)

Christ’s body was subject to mortal conditions, but He cared for His body and was healthy.

In recounting Christ’s calming of the sea, Talmage wrote:

Jesus found a resting place near the stern of the ship and soon fell asleep. A great storm arose; and still He slept. The circumstance is instructive as it evidences at once the reality of the physical attributes of Christ, and the healthy, normal condition of His body. He was subject to fatigue and bodily exhaustion from other causes, as are all men; without food He grew hungry; without drink He thirsted; by labor He became weary. The fact that after a day of strenuous effort He could calmly sleep, even amidst the turmoil of a tempest, indicates an unimpaired nervous system and a good state of health. Nowhere do we find record of Jesus having been ill. He lived according to the laws of health, yet never allowed the body to rule the spirit; and His daily activities, which were of a kind to make heavy demands on both physical and mental energy, were met with no symptoms of nervous collapse nor of functional disturbance. Sleep after toil is natural and necessary. The day’s work done, Jesus slept (chapter 20).


The Savior heals in phases. 

This is something I noticed about the story of the ten lepers. Traditionally that story is taught as a tale of ingratitude, for only one of the ten returned to Christ to thank Him for the healing. But in addition to that, the story illustrates how Christ doesn’t necessarily heal all at once. The lepers were offered physical healing, but the one who returned to thank the Lord was given additional spiritual healing as Jesus pronounced, “Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole” (Luke 17:19).

Talmage shared another example: 

A blind man was brought, and Jesus was asked to touch him. He took the sightless one by the hand, led him outside the town, applied saliva to his eyes, laid hands upon him in a ministration, and asked him if he could see. The man answered that he saw dimly, but was unable to distinguish men from trees. Applying His hands to the man’s eyes, Jesus told him to look up; the man did so and saw clearly… This miracle presents the unique feature of Jesus healing a person by stages; the result of the first ministration was but a partial recovery (chapter 22).

 Christ was truly selfless.

After Jesus fasted for 40 days and 40 nights, Satan tempted Him to use His power to obtain food, but He would not. In fact:

… we find no instance of a miracle wrought by the Lord for personal gain or relief of His own need, however pressing (chapter 24).

 

I confess I have a very imperfect relationship with Jesus Christ. There's a lot I don't understand about His sacrifice and the necessity for a Savior. But I am ever learning and striving for greater knowledge of spiritual things. I look forward to studying more about our Redeemer this year.

*I’ve really struggled with tense in this post. I’ve gone back and forth between present tense and past tense. Mortality and eternity make for difficult grammar choices! Haha!

 

 

 

Saturday, January 7, 2023

An Incomplete List of Awkward Situations (Part XI)


When you see men out in public who look like Santa Claus, and they want to be treated like they are Santa Claus (creepy) or maybe they don’t want to be treated like Santa Claus (in which case, shave the beard and stop wearing red, Fella!), and you’re never really sure, so you act like you can’t see them.

When your neighbor texts you that your garage is open, and there’s a strange truck in your driveway, but it’s your truck and you’re sitting in it. 

When you wave to a teenage boy at the gym because you think he’s your Aunt Lori.

When someone asks you to write them a check, and you didn’t know people still wrote checks.

When your van smells like iceberg lettuce, and you can’t find the source, so you just have to drive everyone around for a week listening to them talk about how it smells like rotten salad. 

When you make your kids some microwaveable mini pancakes, and they look like this:



Tuesday, January 3, 2023

Currently {January 2023 Edition}

Reading:




Wearing: jeans and a black and white striped shirt. 

Annoyed by: my kids constantly being bored but also refusing to do anything. 

Struggling with: energy. I'm tired, ya'll.

Laughing about: the other day our Alexa would make fart noises any time we talked to her, and then she would describe the fart. She wouldn't do anything else, so we had to unplug her. I keep asking the kids what they did to Alexa, and they all claim innocence.

Sad about: tWitch.

Watching:

I turned on Lost yesterday and made Nicky watch the first two episodes. 

Dreaming: of what it would be like to have a dishwasher that actually washes dishes! 

Singing: "Way Less Sad" by AJR

Building:


I haven't finished a puzzle since November, and this one has been underway for far too long. 

Looking forward to: getting back to a normal routine after the holidays. 

Cooking: taco meat. We've hosted two taco bars in the past week, and we have a lot of taco stuff leftover, so I'm making a fresh batch of taco meat so my kids can have tacos for lunch while I go out with my friend Lynsie for my birthday. 

Eating: Chinese food with Lynsie. 

Listening to: sounds not of my choosing. Daisy is watching a show on Netflix with the sound turned up way too loud, Zoe is in the kitchen coughing and sniffling, and Nicky is talking my ear off and making me watch videos his friends keep sending him. 

Tired of: vanity. I'm tired of seeing it around me, and I'm tired of feeling like I need to participate in it. 

Playing:



Scotty and I got the game Ark Nova for ourselves for Christmas this year. It's way more complex than I thought it would be. 

Frustrated by: messes. The holiday aftermath is intense. 

Needing: a new laptop. Mine has been on it's last leg for about three years now. It's literally falling apart, but I really don't want to buy a new one. 

Buying: not a laptop! 

I'm not actively buying anything currently, but I've been researching dishwashers and ovens. 

Feeling: trapped. I feel like I can't ever leave my kids because of how bad they fight. I can't leave them home unsupervised, and I feel like it's cruel to ask someone to watch them. 

Missing: a gelato shop that Lynsie and I used to go to all the time. It went out of business several years ago and left a hole in my heart.

Procrastinating: paying Daisy's school fees. I can't remember the login for our account. I have until February before I get sent to collections. 

Grateful for: snow blowers.