A Time to Hibernate

Come this time of year and this year is no different, I start feeling like a bear who is putting on the pounds in preparation to hibernate. They say the average person gains 7 pounds between Thanksgiving and New Years and though I haven't been on a scale yet my body (especially my tummy and thighs) feels like it's well on its way to becoming a member of the Seven Pound Club. I know it doesn't help that I caved and ate my traditional day after Thanksgiving breakfast--leftover pecan pie-- and then had another piece of apple later that afternoon. I did the same on Saturday. Is anyone else feeling like the pie has a stronger will than you? I guess it's a good thing the pie and ice cream have now officially left the building! That just means I ate it all.

Giving Thanks and Chasing Pie

Just in time for Thanksgiving--SNOW!! Our first of the season. When Carter woke up on Wednesday I told him to look outside the window. He did, his eyes lit up and his first words--"I so excited it snowed. Let's call Dad!" A few hours later, while Anderson napped we ventured out in boots and coat but only stayed for a few minutes. It was too cold!

I've spent the last week really contemplating my blessings, 'tis the season you know! Yesterday while we feasted on a yummy Thanksgiving meal my dad began our annual thankful conversation. I've missed probably the last six or seven Thanksgivings at my house and prior to that I was at the age where these conversations were lost on me, I was too caught up in myself I guess, but yesterday when it came my turn to share my thoughts I was so choked up I had to pass. I just couldn't even get the words out. After everyone else went, I did take my turn but didn't share the depth of it, tears were still too close to the surface. So, I think while I am secluded in my house and no one can see me cry, I'll share the blessings I'm so very grateful for.

1. The words "I'm sorry." I have oh so many weaknesses and I am so glad that when I say these words, I can commit to change myself.

2. Marc. I'm so blessed to have a man in my life whose top priority is to make me happy. Sometimes I turn a blind eye to this, but at the end of the day, I know he works so hard and so many hours (inside and outside of our home) for me and our boys.

3. Carter & Anderson. I have 2 of the most precious children. They are happy and healthy and I could not ask for more.

4. Grandparents. My boys have 2 sets of grandparents who love them and love to spend time with them.

5. The Lord. Ultimately, all of the above blessings are gifts from my Heavenly Father who loves me enough to bless me with a forever family.

On a lighter note, later that evening as we gobbled our pie Anderson became "the pie chaser." First he sat with Marc and nibbled on his. Then he wandered to Grandma and munched until she was done. He came to my bowl next and finally ended up in Grandpa's lap. The yumminess of pie was certainly not lost on him! Oh, and before I forget, holidays seem to hold the magic wand in my house when it comes to toddlers beginning to toddle. Carter started walking on the fourth of July (a few years back, of course) and Thanksgiving proved to be the big day for Anderson. It's official. He's a toddler.

Last weekend we enjoyed a fun weekend with Marc's parents who came to visit us en route to their Thanksgiving destination--California. Carter and Anderson sure love their grandparents! We did a little sight seeing at Garden of the Gods, toured both clinics that Marc works at, read lots of stories, played with toys, made paper chain men, watched Shrek 3, and though a bit early for our weekend after Thanksgiving tradition, decorated our Christmas tree. Marc and I even got to sneak off and check out The Bourne Ultimatum--we're a bit late on the up swing here but remember we do have two kids--it was fantastic!

Quote of the day

As I was washing Carter's face after lunch he shared this information:

Carter: You're my mommy.
Me: I am. What does that make you?
Carter: Happy!

I love this child, even if he is currently torturing his brother. I'd better go put on my referee whistle.

The Healing Power of Running

Did anyone watch Grey's Anatomy last night? Miranda's rant during one of the last scenes resonated with my feelings so much it was almost uncanny!

In my plot to organize my house (you know, all the hidden stuff that most people don't feel the need to organize), on Wednesday night, I ran across written documentation of something a boy from the past said to me that at the time confused me and instead of calling him out on it, I let the statement simply make me feel not good enough. So, when I read about this circumstance from the past, and because I'm afraid my sweet sister might be living this awful portion of my life out in her own life, I conjured up all those dark and sad feelings I had seven years ago and sat and cried as I listened to Miranda go off on Shepherd because guys like him don't see girls like her. Marc thinks I'm nuts!

Fast forward to this morning. (Clap your hands for me, I made it to the gym by 8:30 with two boys in tow!) I was on the treadmill running and thinking, running and thinking when I heard the first notes of You Shouldn't Kiss Me Like This by Toby Keith in my earphones. This is a song that reminds me of said boy from above. And, said boy was also a runner. And six years ago, I wasn't a runner and that is part of what made me imagine I wasn't good enough for him. About half way through the song I had gotten into a great running cadence and I started to feel strong. When the song finished, I replayed it and ran through it again. With each verse and chorus I felt stronger and stronger and by the end I could have shouted, but didn't so as not to embarrass myself, what I've known all along. I am good enough, and I've always been good enough.

This isn't about a boy, though. This is about me. I've always been plagued by the insecurity of not being enough or good enough for this or that or him or her. I don't know why I do this to myself but I do and have for as long as I can remember. I know that tomorrow something might happen to make me feel insecure again, but I also know that for 3 miles today I felt the healing power of running and it felt good!

(BTW--For some reason I still don't consider myself a runner even though I've run 1 marathon and 1 half marathon and continue to run and train for upcoming events. If that doesn't constitute a runner, then what does?)

Autumn

Having been able to slide through the last three winters without running into too much of the white stuff, I have been extremely grateful that our fall weather has extended this far into the season. Our California blood has been spoiled to say the least. I wake up every morning thinking this is going to be the day I have to bundle us all up but that day hasn't really dawned yet. The temperature is still in the high 60's for the most part which means we still go to the park a few times a week, we go jacketless in the afternoons, I haven't purchased mittens for the boys yet. It means a lot of things. It also means that even though we mostly missed out on the fall colors in the mountains because I was sick for almost the whole month of October, we were still able to enjoy a warm family hike to enjoy Autumn a few weekends ago. We had a lot of fun! (I'm not sure why I decided I needed to hold Carter for our family photo, but I did so this is the way it turned out, his feet swinging out and all!)

Quote of the day

Today we went to Old Chicago's (a pizza place) for dinner because when I told Carter we were going out he wanted pizza. The following exchange ensued while deciding our order.

Me (to Marc): I think we should order a calzone. (Marc and I usually share a meal)
Carter: No, I don't want Frozone, I want pizza!

Key information--Frozone is a super hero in Disney/Pixar's Incredibles.

Apple Pie for Everyone!

Since it seemed that no one had a Caramel Apple Pie recipe to help me with my search, on Sunday I decided (and I'm not sure why I didn't think of this before) to try to track down my roommate that had the recipe. Surprisingly, it didn't take long thanks to that nifty BYU Alumni Directory. I couldn't remember my id and password so it took just a moment to find that and reset the password (which I promptly forgot again) and the search was over almost as soon as it started. I found an email address which looked fairly current so I sent her an email. I then stalked my email box for three days until Wednesday when I got a reply! I was so thrilled to get an update from her--I haven't seen her since my wedding 5 1/2 years ago--and to get a copy of the coveted recipe. I thought I'd do my test run for Carter's school Thanksgiving Feast next Thursday, but decided yesterday that I was craving the yumminess so I did my test run yesterday. The pie didn't disappoint. Topped with ice cream and a drizzle of caramel, every bite was gooey and delicious. Marc and I shared some with my mom who dropped by to see the boys and sent some home for my dad, but there is still 1/3 of the pie shouting at me from the refrigerator. I'm trying to hold off until tonight after dinner but I might have to sneak a nibble soon. So, as requested by some, I'm sharing the recipe with you! And everyone say "Thank You" to Kathryn Gurney Manwill! Thanks, Kathryn.

Applescotch Pie

5 cups thinly sliced pared tart apples
1 cup packed brown sugar
¼ cup water
1 T. lemon juice
¼ cup flour
2 T. sugar
¾ tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
3 T. butter
Uncooked pie dough for 2 9” pies

Combine apple slices, brown sugar, water, and lemon juice in a saucepan. Cover and cook over medium heat until apples are just tender, about 5 minutes. Mix flour, sugar, and salt. Stir into apple mixture. Cook stirring constantly, until syrup thickens, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla and butter. Heat oven to 425º. Prepare the pastry. Turn the apple mixture into pastry-lined pie pan. Cover with top crust, and cut slits into it. Seal and flute edge. Cover the edge with a 2-3 inch strip of aluminum foil to prevent excessive browning. Remove foil for the last 15 minutes of baking. Bake 40-45 minutes or until crust is golden brown.

(the only thing I might change is to add a little bit of cinnamon to the filling, or maybe sprinkle the top with a sugar cinnamon mixture!)

Gone Green

Have you ever noticed how when the bagger at the grocery store is bagging your groceries, he/she uses a ridiculous amount of bags? I have been bugged by this for so long, not necessarily because of the environment, but more because the sheer number of bags I have necessitates a "plastic bag closet" in my household. Lets be honest, (for all those still in apartments and quite possibly those in houses, too but I wouldn't know) who has an extra closet to put them in? I certainly do not, so my vacuum has always had to share the space but with the amount of times I go grocery shopping a week (I always forget something or another) my vacuum is pretty much buried. I'm tired of all the waste because even with the 101 uses for plastic bags (did you ever see that Target plastic bag?), I just do not go through them as fast as I seem to accumulate them. And no, I will not simply throw them out because it's bad for the birds and other animals and it simply takes up needed space in the landfills. I'm not that educated on anything in the realm of 'going green' but I do remember that much from some Earth Day Awareness activity way back in elementary school.

This topic has been on my mind for quite some time but I've never found the extra cash (I like my extra cash to go somewhere else like clothes, toys, home decor!) to buy the totes until recently. A few grocery stores around here are now offering them for .99--who can't afford a few extra dollars to go home with significantly less (and reusable) bags? I grabbed a few two weeks ago and have since been using those and have toted my unused plastic ones back to the recycling bins at their stores.

Last Friday after the boys and I met Marc for our weekly lunch date, he took them back to the clinic while I headed over to Safeway to grab a few items. I usually dress up for our lunch dates so I was wearing my black boots, my skinny, dark washed, going out jeans, and a black turtleneck sweater. He's always teasing me when I dress up that Hollywood really rubbed off on me. As we walked out to the car together so I could grab my reusable bags and he could take the boys, he said to me, "You can't be granola and Hollywood at the same time." I'm really not trying to be granola, I just think I'm killing two birds with one stone. I'm making my vacuum closet, my vacuum closet again plus I'm doing what I can do for the environment. (I'd love to also do the organic food thing, but it might stretch my budget too much right now and I'd love to be able to turn down the heat a few degrees but I'm freezing when it's at 70 so that's also a no go.)

BTW--granola is a term used a lot out here for those organic loving, socks with Birkenstock sandal wearing, tree huggers.

Apple Pie, Anyone?

Now that Halloween is over, I'm moving on to the next big holiday. About six years ago I used my roommate's fantastic apple pie recipe to surprise Marc with a treat when he was coming home from a weekend away. I never wrote down the recipe and haven't been able to find one that compares since. It was no ordinary apple pie--it was a caramel apple pie, one in which you cooked the apples in some brown sugar and other stuff on the stove top to make a gooey caramel apple filling, then you filled your shell and baked. The result was absolute mouth watering deliciousness. If any of my readers have a recipe they think might compare to this, will you please post your email address in my comments--I'll email you and promptly delete your comment so no one gets your email address and then you can email me the recipe. THANKS!! For security reasons, I refuse to post my email address here, sorry!

A Pirate's Life for Us

During the month of October, Carter went around telling people he was going to be a "Carrot Boy" for Halloween. We got smiles, funny looks, and laughs. I always had to translate because no, Carter was not going to dress up as a big orange vegetable. He wanted to be a pirate boy! He would also go around singing his version of "Yo ho, Yo ho. A pirate's life for me." His came out in an almost gruff voice and with a swinging arm he'd say, "yo ho, carrot me." It kept us smiling the whole month long.

Tuesday, Carter finally got to don his costume for his school Halloween party. For the 10 minutes drive to school he kept saying that he was going to show Miss Amy his pirate costume. The party was super fun--we did three different crafts one of which was a scary popcorn stuffed plastic hand with the candy corn as finger tips. Miss Amy told the kids to scare their daddies with it and that's exactly what we did when Daddy got home on Tuesday. We also ate a super fun orange jello graveyard snack and exchanged treats. Carter took his friends pretzels we dipped and sprinkled with Halloween sprinkles the day before.

We had a classic Colorado Halloween yesterday. The day was sandwiched with beautiful weather on the other days (I'm talking 70 degree weather!) but Halloween is always cold here and yesterday was no different. Instead of going trick or treating, we participated in our church's Trunk or Treat and it's a good thing everyone including us started running out of candy in half and hour because at that point we couldn't really feel our fingers. Carter was a trooper and hit every trunk and said "trick or treat" and "thank you" at each. Anderson wasn't sure what was going on as he rode along in the stroller, but a few people handed him treats to hold in his cold fingers. Mostly, they just laid in his lap as he shivered. When we got home, we sorted through the candy. I know I might offend someone by saying this, but I think a lot of LDS people are cheap because by this afternoon I had eaten all the good chocolate. Before you think I'm a super oinker, it totalled to be maybe 8 or 9 pieces. 10 max! I guess that's not such a terrible thing though because now I won't gorge myself on Halloween candy until Thanksgiving. I'm through and the rest is for the boys!

Enjoy the slide show.

Our California Adventure

Our California Adventure started out with an evening flight into Vegas and then a long middle of the night drive the rest of the way to LA. I love Marc's family but sometimes the things they do to save money are outrageous. Now, his family had nothing really to do with this crazy crazy crazy plan, but they have been brought up to save money wherever possible. Most of the time it really works. This time, however, I'm not sure the money saved was worth it. Granted our tickets were like $50 a pop and the rental car costs (gas, etc.) weren't too bad, but when we made this plan we didn't take into account the time we'd have to wait to get our luggage at the airport and the shuttle trip to the car rental place so we figured we'd get into LA at midnight or so. WRONG!! It was 2 am. If I could do that part over again, we'd definitely just put the extra money into flying into a local airport! Anyway, we got off to an exhausting start but the rest of the trip was super fun. Rather than bore you and strain my brain on how to verbalize our activities I'll just skip to the highlights:

• We attended Marc's commencement dinner and celebration where he earned two awards. One for graduating with a 3.8 GPA, (about 1/3 of his class received this award) the other was called "Promise to the Profession." He was chosen for this because of the research and presentations he did during the program, the clinic he is currently opening, and because he's done all this while remaining a dedicated husband and father.
  
• We caught up with most of our friends which was important to me, but most important was seeing Carter with the friends he loves and continues to talk about even after being gone for 5 months. One night as they watched Spiderman together the moms, myself included, spied them discussing the movie and running around shooting spider webs at each other. These friends are priceless. And it's just too bad that these boys (all six of them--the older ones all have younger bros the same age, too!) will not grow up together.
  
• Our gracious hosts, Sumi, Ian and Faith had three dogs that my kids adored.
  
• We went to Disneyland! Sumi took Faith and I took the three boys--yes we are brave for going daddy-less--and we had the time of our lives. The Halloween decorations were fantastic and festive and we had so much fun on the rides, especially the mini-coaster and the Buzz ride. We met Mickey and Buzz Lightyear and ate Mickey pretzels and suckers. We went to Tom Sawyer's Pirate Island where I saw Carter the happiest he was all week finding the Pirates Treasure and navigating the wobbly bridge. Oh, I want to go back tomorrow and I'm kicking myself for not going while we still lived only an hour away.

It's was difficult for me to come home to Colorado because yes, we've made friends, but no, they don't yet compare to the dear, dear people we miss in California. I saw the skyscape of LA in a show I was watching last night and told Marc, "I love that city." He looked astounded. Yes I am serious. As far as I'm concerned, Los Angeles will always be home, even if I have a home elsewhere, too. Sending hugs and kisses to all of my friends there!