2017 year in review

Since I've not blogged a lot this past year, I'm going to do a bit more of a detailed entry for a year in review.

January - I don't remember much about January except for sitting in my recliner and watching it snow while taking lots and lots of meds for my brand new shoulder, the eight inch incision that was healing on my arm and sleeping a whole lot.  A whole lot.  And it snowed a lot.  A whole lot!  It's strange to look back on that now and remember how totally helpless I felt and the fear of not knowing what would lie ahead.  This was, indeed, the most physical pain I'd ever experienced in my life and the most helpless I'd ever felt.  Not being able to lift my own phone, not being able to shower without Doug's assistance, not being able to care for my family, which is what I do, was the worst thing ever.  Thankfully, they cared for me, in ways I didn't know they could.  My love and appreciation for Doug grew more than I could have ever imagined.  It was a phenomenal experience.

The highlight of January for me was when my doorbell rang late on a Sunday night and in walked one of my dearest old friends, Brenda DeMateo, from the Chicago area.  She had flown in to surprise me and was here to care for me for a week.  What a wonderful time we had together. She cared for me, for my family, for my home and was just what the doctor didn't order, but I needed!  Catching up on 20 years since we'd last seen each other was fabulous!  Lots of tears and laughs!

Grace turned 18 on January 2.  I literally don't remember anything about her birthday.  Sadness.  But, she survived.  (Now, I want to ask her what we did???  It had to be pizza or take-out because I did not leave the house, except for once, to go to the doctor and into Hobby Lobby on the way home, just to say that I did something, for thirty-nine days.)

February -  I remember snow, meds, pain, and good food prepared by ZJ every morning and brought in for lunch by many friends and meals brought in by ward members.  Day after day, lunch brought to our home by close friends who would help me get through the afternoon and keep my spirits up.  Did I mention that it snowed? A lot.

I started physical therapy at the end of the month and lifting my phone was huge progress! I can't believe how far I've come since then!

Doug and his childhood and lifelong best friend, Tex, were able to get together for some snowmobiling in late February.  As they have both hit the ripe age of 60 plus, I'm a lot less nervous when they hit the mountains, as I know that they are both trying to stay healthy and safe!  I teased that I couldn't care for him if he got hurt while they were out because I needed him to care for me!  They had such a good time together!  Doug grinned for days before and after!

Oh, the food that was brought in!  AMAZING and wonderful!  We were blessed!

And Zeej became quite the cook herself.  I will say that one of the best things to come from my shoulder injury was that she can make anything I can, and oftentimes, even better than I do, myself!

March - Doug and Zee went to St. George for Edie Ann's baby blessing, leaving Grace and I at home alone. At first, I was totally devastated to not be able to be there with them, but again, a silver lining, I was able to enjoy that Doug was able to have a turn with Liza and not with Liza and her mother!  They never get time alone and it worked out so well.  Grace cared for me at home while Doug was able to bond and have a special time with Liza and her cute little family.  In the end, I was truly thankful to have stayed home.

Honestly, I'm quite confused about a lot of the beginning of the year.  Somehow, Liza ended up in Logan and stayed with us for a bit in March and was here for Zee's birthday, as well.  I truly do not remember how that came together, but it was fun, I do know that!

ZJ turned 16 and started dating right away.  She went to her first dance, had other dates and just seems to be doing great in her Logan High School setting... so much better than the County school district experiences that she had had.

I had physical therapy three times a week and was finally able to start enjoying the hottub after each session in March!  I'd missed that immensely!

April - We enjoyed General Conference ,the first weekend in April, as always, with a few of our favorite YSA friends.  Zeej made cinnamon rolls and I missed Quayd immensely all weekend, but it was wonderful and uplifting and we had lots of laughs because ZJ had been doing my hair since I fell.  She decided to do little pickininny knots and I woke up looking like a wild woman.  The jokes and teasing, I do remember!

In April, my sweet friend, Sally Jones, passed away from a brain tumor that had been a result of breast cancer.  It was a rough last month for Sally and I was unable to drive yet.  I was also quite emotional about this brain tumor, the same glioblastoma that had taken the lives of two of the best men we've ever known, Jon Searle and Robert Whitely.  I chose not to see Sally in her last few weeks of life, but, to remember her singing at her piano with Grace, singing in the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and drinking Diet Cokes together over lunch for the past twenty years.  Our "Lunch Bunch" ladies had a special privilege of being her "sisters" at her funeral and dressing her body before her viewing, a memory that I will cherish forever.  That's Sally in the center of us all, as she always was, about 15 years before.  Rest in peace and sing forever, Sally!  Oh, I love her!

 Zeej decided at the very last moment, on the night before a girl's choice Disney themed dance to go as Pocahontas with our neighbor's son, Kendall.  Layne and Julie were out of town, but Zeej and I ran to town, bought the fabric and materials and made her a darling costume.  She looked stunning!  It was the first time that I saw Kendall look at Zeej as more than a little sister.  They actually began dating for a few months.

May - After months and months of not being able to attend all three meetings on Sunday and not attending Young Womens on Tuesday nights, I was finally able to get back in the saddle.  Ann Burger and I were spending more and more time together every day, but she was planning to leave for a summer in Alaska, which was killing me!  We were together every moment we could be and loved the YW callings together!  I was given the assignments of all of our big events and we held our Young Women in Excellence evening, an evening of recognizing the girls achievements.  It was a bit scaled down for me, but it was so wonderful to be productive again!  Although, I just gave orders and didn't lift a finger.  A lovely evening and Grace received her YW Medallion!  She'd earned it almost a year before but we'd waited until I could be there to see her receive it.

 May is also the month that Mom's get to speak to their missionaries!  It was so fun to see Quayd's smiling face!  And I even remember that!  I barely remember our Christmas phone visit!  It made my mother's day!

June - Grace survived a very rough senior year.  There was much drama.  Her experience as a senior in Bella Voce was anything but pleasant.  She struggled with some serious difficulties but she faced them like a champion and was finally able to graduate and be done with the whole high school drama scene.  Grace smiled through it, where I wanted to let a few people "have it"! but she survived and came away stronger!

 The best part of any celebration in our family is that Liza comes home!  HAPPINESS!!!!  We had so much fun together!

We decided to take a little girls road trip for Grace's graduation and made it to St. George for a few days after Liza had returned home.  The reason that we went so close after her visit to Logan was because Buddy was offered a job as Athletic Director in a High School outside of Phoenix.  Liza has missed AZ more than anything, although she did love St. George.  It was not a hard decision, as the job offer was quite a nice one!  So, they left Dixie and moved back to the hottest place on earth in July.  But, we did love one last quick trip down to play while Buddy was already working in AZ and getting things situated for them to move the next week.  Happiness for them!  Sadness for us!

The rest of my summer was spent working on two major projects!  Again, my shoulder replacement forced me to be the brains behind the effort and, with the help of my amazing daughters and my two strong guys, I was able to be wedding planner/co-ordinator for my cute niece, Lexi, host three bridal showers for three nieces and also to do all of the frills and planning for YW Girls Camp, which was held at the ranch in our family cabin.  Both were huge successes!  We also attended three weddings, multiple family gatherings and lost my Uncle Jerry.  The summer was a blur of events and activities!

Lexi's wedding

Nephew Dillon's wedding in the Ocquer Mountain Temple, west of SLC 

 Annual Fourth of July Fireworks Family Party at Danny's

 Corbridge Reunion at the Ranch

My wonderful Uncle Jerry Simmons passed away.  I was able to write and share my memories with my cousins, his children, in Ohio and they ended up being read at his memorial as a eulogy.  Loved Uncle Jerry!

Girls Camp

 Shortly after we got home from camp, we were informed of some health issues that Quayd was experiencing.  It was one of the most difficult choices we have ever made to decide that Quayd needed to come home to get the medical assistance he needed.  It was also one of the most exciting things ever to know our boy was coming home, honorably released, from his LDS mission after almost 14 months away in Redlands California.  What a thrill for us all and the reunion was wonderful!

We celebrated Quayd's Homecoming with joy and love.  He served an honorable mission.  His mission president could not say enough good about his service.  We did not spend one second being sad that he was home early.  We celebrated that he served a wonderful mission for our Savior and was now able to be home for the care that he needed!

Grace met a boy, Ben, at the YSA, in July.  They were pretty much an instant hit.  Quayd was quite surprised to come home and find that he now had to share his sister with another boy!

 Quayd coming home, meant another visit for Liza and Buddy and the girls!  HAPPINESS!  We enjoyed the homecoming with family and friends and an extra week with Liza and the girls while Buddy went back to work in AZ.  BLESSING!!!

 September - On the night after it was decided that Quayd would come home from his mission, our Bishop dropped by for a visit that we thought would be regarding Quayd.  However, when he sat down and began talking, he brought the biggest surprise of my life.  He asked me to serve as the Relief Society President in our ward.  With Doug's calling on the Stake Young Single Adults High Council, this was even more unexpected.  After many many tears, many many late nights driving slowly through the neighborhood in our ward boundaries, I was sustained as the President of the Lundstrum Park 3rd Ward Relief Society.  The biggest shock of the calling, for me, was that I couldn't name ten women in the ward!  I'd served with Doug in the YSA and then in the Young Women Presidency in our ward, so being in the ward for just two and a half years, I knew very few sisters.  In our Bishop's words, "You will now."  And he was right!  It's been a choice experience so far!  Every second of it!  I have been humbled and greatly blessed with this opportunity to serve.

Quayd returned to Arizona with Liza and Buddy and spent a few weeks, just for fun, which he loved!

And the hardest thing for me in September was saying goodbye to my dear, sweet friend, Annie, as she and her husband, Corey moved to New York.  Corey had been offered a wonderful job opportunity at Cornell University.  Annie's family live two hours away from Cornell.  Who could pass this up.  I spent a week as their house agent, watching their home, as movers packed and loaded everything they owned.  I grieved with every box that was loaded on the truck, yet celebrated this wonderful opportunity for them!

October brought another huge surprise when I received a 5AM phone call telling me that my father had choked the night before and was on life support.  Four hours later, Dad had "graduated" from this life.  It was an eventful few days of bringing Dad's body to Utah for his cremation and then a service here for close friends and family, who'd only met him once or twice and a service in North Carolina for his lifelong friends and family.   It was a sad few days, but not grieving that he was gone.  It was more grieving for what he'd missed in his life.  I love my dad.

October whizzed by.  Oddly enough, we had my step-dad's funeral on Dale's birthday in 1989.  We had Dad's service around Quayd's birthday this year.  On the day that my dad passed away, Ben also proposed marriage to Grace.

November - I began to settle in with my new calling, Quayd worked in Ogden helping with the setting up and merchandising of a new Ace Hardware Store, Grace joined Ben's family on a cruise to Mexico, while Zeej, Doug and I kept busy at home.  Thanksgiving was quite mellow as we hosted only one neighbor for dinner.

The holidays began with a wonderful dinner party for a dozen widows in our neighborhood.  We had several other events throughout the month, but the highlight for me was the opportunity to assist with "Secret Santa" type projects for several families and members in our ward.  Work party, family party, Ward Party, Relief Society Dinner, and friend gatherings... a busy month, but my parts were minimal in planning and doing.  Christmas was sweet with just the five of us, a quiet and beautiful White Christmas!

My annual "owie" happened in mid December, bringing three stitches to my forehead, as well as multiple bruises and sprains, deeming December, according to Buddy, "Lock Mom in a padded room month".  Grace also decided to postpone her wedding for a bit.

 Can you say "ouch"?

 It's ALWAYS the most wonderful time of the year here!

 After Zeej's retainer was gobbled up by the lawnmower, we waited six weeks, hoping that wasn't really the case and her gap returned.  She ended up back in Invisiline braces... starting over completely.  It's okay.  Money is to be spent, right?

 Our dear friends, Layne and Julie, learned that Julie's breast cancer has returned and is not being very kind about it.  She is undergoing treatments and we are blessed to be their friends and serve them through this trying time.

Our annual week off for Doug didn't happen, as he's been working 10-12 hour days, six days a week for the past six weeks.  He did get Christmas weekend and Tuesday off, but was back to work for the rest of Christmas Break.  We loved seeing The Greatest Showman on the morning after Christmas, our only real "activity" for the week. We enjoyed a fun New Years Eve with Jim and Kristy.  Instead of our traditional fondue, we had our first charcuterie board.  It was a fabulous way to welcome in 2018!

The year has been good to us.  With many challenges, many more surprises, but mostly with more blessings than we could begin to count!  My shoulder continues to heal.  It will never be what it was before the fall.  But, I've been blessed with the health and strength to carry on and do what I need to do each and every day, with the help of this wonderful family of mine and even more, with the help of a loving Heavenly Father.  We are tremendously blessed.  2017 was challenging, fun, exciting, happy, sad, heart-wrenching, thrilling but mostly filled with rich blessings and tender mercies from the Lord.  Life is good.

In other news...

A few other December happenings...

• Liza and Buddy are doing well.  Edie celebrated her first birthday and is walking everywhere.  She loves to facetime with Grammie and the minute she hears my voice, she lets everyone know that she wants a turn with the phone too.  I can't wait to see them all in Sunny Arizona soon!  I'd prefer it be here in snowy Utah, but that's not likely to happen... Liza loves her warmth and is not a winter person like her mother!
• One day while Facetiming, Aylabelle told me, very frustrated, that there was no story time this whooooollllllle month because Mrs. Claus was going to be there.  She was not amused.  Mrs. Claus just wants to sing songs.  So, I said, "I'll read you a book."  Liza asked her if I would like her to do Story Time.  I said I would and she told me that this means THREE stories, three songs and a craft!  I had no idea!  So, a week letter, we had an appointment for Story time. 
  
  
  I read Aylabelle "The Mitten" in my most animated voice.  Then, "The Night Before Christmas" and then finally, my favorite Christmas book ever, I didn't read, but told my four year old version of along with the pictures of "The Littlest Angel".  We sang Jingle Bells, and We Wish You a Merry Christmas, then Jingle Bells again while shaking real bells.  Finally, we had our craft, which was cutting out mittens and making a banner of mittens with cottonballs glued onto the wrists of each mitten and threaded on yard.  Story time took us one full hour and at the end, we had a treat, which was Hersheys Kisses that I'd had Liza buy in advance.  I handed them to the camera and Liza took them from her side of her iPad and handed them to the girls.  This was Edie's first Hershey's Kiss and she loved it!
  
  
  
• Aylabelle did a great job cutting out mittens for each person in her family and threaded the yarn too!  She's so dang sweet!
  
  
  
  ZJ looks so cute on her annual trip with the YM and YW to Salt Lake City to see the Temple Lights!  I missed the youth trip last year because I was in the hospital in St. George.  I missed it this year because I'm not a YW leader anymore.  Hmmm.
  
  
  
  
• Here's another great shot of how I looked for the second half of December!  NO makeup except lips!  CRAZY, huh!?  Don't fall in December!  No bueno!
• 

• My heart is breaking.  Our whole ward's hearts are breaking.  Our wonderful friends and neighbors, Layne and Julie, have received the worst news.  Julie's breast cancer is back and with a vengeance.  Julie is my secretary in our Relief Society Presidency, as well.  She is my right arm in my calling.  There are no words for how much we love and adore this family.  Please, if you would, keep Julie Neilson in your prayers. Thank you.  And they are troopers!  Layne posted this awesome post on FB: Well here we go again...traditional selfie at the chemo party with my best friend! #cancersucks #wonderwoman #shesarockstar
  
  
• This is a shot from our cultural hall on the night after my fall.  It was our Relief Society Christmas Dinner.  A beautiful night, in which I realized that I'm not the Homemaking Counselor anymore.  I can show up before it begins and everything is done just as lovely as I would have done it!  I have two amazing counselors who get the job done!  It was beautiful and delicious and I was mostly appreciative of the dimly lit room where everyone wouldn't ask me "WHAT HAPPENED!?"

• Last but not least... Grace decided a few weeks ago that she would like to postpone her January wedding for a few more months.  It's not mine to share the details here on the blog, but I will say this much... Doug and I felt great relief and are praying that she continues to think this through.  She's grown up a lot this past six months, that's for certain.  Time will tell the rest of the story.  Enough said.

I'm certain that I'm leaving out a lot of our December events.  However, I have spent all evening working on this catch-up and I do have other things to do.  It's felt good to put things down again on the screen in front of me!  We are tremendously blessed each and every day. I'm so thankful for all the little miracles in my life that take place each and every day!  Life is good!

Merry, Merry Home!

Some shots of our home this Christmas 2017.  Only four trees this year.  Two in the same room!  Our Bishop was over discussing Relief Society.  We were at the table in our den.  He looked around and said, "You missed a spot!"  I've been teased about the two trees in there, but hey, Christmas only comes once a year!

The front room mantle is always my favorite!

Well, until I walk into the den.  I love the Christmas tree collection that I've built over the years.  Now, I am in search of the perfect Christmas Trees for Sale sign to go with for next year!

 This banister shelf makes me smile no matter what season it is!  You can't see them very well, but, there are two gold glittery trees that were my new tree additions this year!  Love them!

I was so excited last spring, when Doug and ZJ returned from St. George for Edie's baby blessing with two huge boxes from my mother.  This old ceramic handpainted tree was made by my step-dad, Bill's mother, lovingly referred to as Grandma Moors.  She made statues of Elvis and Christmas trees every year!  I now own two of the trees!  (I'll pass on Elvis.)  This one is almost two feet tall!  Love how it lights up!  BUT, Zeej was mortified!  "In what universe have we ever had a colored light in our home at Christmas?!  That has to go!"  (We are white light fans.)  She grew to love it through the month, but never as much as me!  As for the sign, Carol insisted that it was made for me because of the way that I countdown to Christmas!

In the entryway, this black shelf just pesters me.  I don't want to paint it but it's so dark and I sure wish I'd have bought the antique white one.  Until I get the courage to paint it, it will be my Christmas "Believe shelf", this year with lots of glittery goodies!

  The front room one morning at about 6:30 when I woke up and enjoyed a beautiful pink sunrise!

A close up of the tablescape, which gets a bit simpler each time.  I am actually going to not decorate it for the spring and summer months this year and try something new on it!

 This letter board is my new "toy".  I've been enjoying changing quotes every ten days or so.  It's interesting to see who actually reads them.  I'm planning on adding something snarky soon to see if they notice.

 The entry way.  You can see the second tree in the den, as well as the one in the entryway.  This glittery garland on the banister will not be going there next year. We swept up at least two cups of glitter in that few weeks!  It will be a mantle garland next year where it doesn't get touched.  This was actually the most glittery thing I've ever purchased.  Speaking of which, I went back to buy a third one this year on the morning that our Logan Taipan burned!  It caught fire in the office where there was a small refrigerator.  The store is now closed and will not reopen as Taipan.  They hope to open a small decor store in Logan but it will not be Taipan.  Sadness.

I love this corner cabinet and my fun red and white stripes and dots collection that is more fun every year!  This year, I added a few accents of black on each shelf!  This is our Happy Place, and a couple of Believe signs because "We BELIEVE!"

 This beautiful bouquet was delivered to me by our Stake Relief Society President, who happens to be Carol's sister.  I was overwhelmed with how beautiful they were!  They were the prettiest thing in our home for the past week and still look fabulous!

I've decided that since my shoulder injury, my holiday decorating is going to be scaled back.  I have already tossed and donated one bin and have another to take to Liza with decor from her childhood to do what she would like to do with it... it's mostly disney characters and teddy bears.  I hope that she will appreciate them.  She's asked for them, and that's just naturally Liza, to appreciate family treasures.

  ZJ did most of the decorating for me this year.  I've been so grateful for her help!  She's incredible!  She decorated all four trees and actually put most of the decor out where I told her to, other than the tablescape.  It still makes me wonder how it is that I can't stand all the "clutter" the minute that we are done opening gifts, but up until then, I'm all about it!  Merry, Merry!

Christmas 2017

Being Relief Society President has brought a new meaning to Christmas.  WOW!  It was awesome!  We live in a very blessed ward.  Last year, our ward boundaries were changed to include about forty families from USU Married Student Housing, which means college students, some beginning families.  I have witnessed some of the most wonderful kindnesses this December.  It was truly remarkable to be able to assist our Bishop in assisting families who wanted to give anonymously as well as to be the one to deliver, assist, get wish lists from families who would be on the receiving end of the generosity of others!  Oh my!  What a choice gift this was for me this season!

It was a bit time consuming, as is this calling most every day.  Besides this, we have had a lot happening in our own home and lives, which has impacted our own Christmas.  (Another post to come.)  So, for the first time in our lives, I was not prepared for Christmas and did very little shopping before mid-December.  My sister-in-law, said, "Welcome to how the rest of the world lives during the holidays."  And truthfully, aside from the fact that I had no gifts under my trees until Mid-December, adding to the decor, I loved it!  I loved shopping at the end when the kids were more certain of what they wanted and I was more certain of what they truly needed.  I loved buying everything in two or three days and being able to keep mental track more clearly in my bruised and stitched brain!  I did not love wrapping everything all at once.  I normally do that from September on, as I purchase the gifts.   BUT, it a wonderful Christmas experience for me!  And Doug swears that I spent half what we usually do because I don't buy twice or continue to buy once I should have called it done!

I'm still not able to do a lot of chopping, kneading or stirring in the kitchen.  I questioned KJ, my ortho doctor, about this.  It's been a year, for Pete's Sake!  He reminds me that I didn't just get a new shoulder with a nice clean cut bone.  I had "an explosion" in my arm with multiple fractures when that humorus ball snapped off and my arm has lots of healing to do.  "Another year, Sophia, and you'll be doing so fine!"  Okey dokey then.

So, I did very little holiday baking or treat making.  Zeej on the other hand, has become quite the little baker/chef/Martha Stewart!  She's remarkable!  She has made so many wonderful things for us as meals, as treats, as desserts.  She amazes me.  Her latest thing is scones.  She makes fanciful scones from scratch and has made up her own recipes.  My favorite is a cream cheese and apple scone.  OH MY!

I digress!  Christmas was wonderful!  ZJ made most of the Christmas Eve dinner, including ham, pretzel salad, cheese balls, appetizers and a punch that was out of this world.  ZJ and I get along very well.  The only place that we disagree is in the kitchen when I tell her to use my recipe, that is tried and true, and she has found one of her own that she wants to attempt or when she wants to organize a cupboard her own way.  I remind her that it's still my kitchen and she reminds me that she is the one using it currently.  I digress again.  Dinner was fantastic.

We watched the Nativity Story this year for our Eve activity and then opened our jammies.  Only, this year, as always, I didn't put name tags on the gifts.  I did numbers this year, only.  The numbers were recorded in my planner.  Zeej offered to find the jammie boxes, #3, 8 and 10.  However, when Quayd opened his jammie box, what ZJ handed him (because she couldn't see on the wrapping paper) was gift #30, not #3.  She didn't see the 0!  And #30 happened to be Quayd's biggest gift, which is always the last thing opened on Christmas Day!  It was his brand new iPhone!!!  He has been without a phone since he returned from his mission.  And he opened it!  He lifted the lid on the box and his eyes got huge!  He said, "WHAT!!!?!?!?!?!"  He closed it quickly because he knew it was NOT the package that he was supposed to have opened!  Doug, not thinking in the moment of panic said, "Who's is it?" because he knew that all of the kids were getting new phones.  I started to cry.  ZJ started to cry because she felt terrible that she'd handed Quayd the wrong package!

Everyone tried to say, "It's Ok, Mom." but I was sick that Christmas was ruined.  Everyone now knew that they were all getting new phones or else why would Doug have asked "Who's is it?"  After a while, a sad and silent while, I asked them to leave Dad and I alone together.  I asked Doug if we could just tell them that it was his phone/gift.  Doug said, "Babe, we aren't going to lie to them.  We don't lie to our kids."  I said, "It's Christmas!  Christmas doesn't count!"  Doug says, "Every lie counts.  We don't lie."  I was so sad. The kids came back up and we talked a bit, and started getting ready for bed while ZJ and Doug went to our neighbors to care for their dog (they were away for the holiday.)

While Doug was with Zee, I called Quayd and Grace into our bedroom and said, "I have to tell you a secret.  Quayd, I am so sorry that you saw that phone and even more sorry that you thought it was yours.  I got so silent because I didn't know what to do and had to come up with a plan.  BUT, that phone is Dad's surprise!  That's why he asked "Who's is it?"  I've been trying to talk Doug into a new phone for a few years.  He was still using an iPhone 4, so he needed  one and the kids are always saying, "Dad!  Get a new phone!"  So, they totally bought my story.  (I normally would never go against Doug's wishes, but I knew something that he didn't know.  He was, indeed, getting a new iPhone for Christmas as well, so Quayd may or may not have opened his phone instead of jammies.  The kids thought that this was great!  They knew the big Christmas surprise/secret!  When ZJ came back, I filled her in on things, too.  So, everyone, including Doug, went to bed thinking they all knew something that no one else knew.

We woke up at 5:30 and started opening gifts at 6:15.  It was an emotional morning, for some reason.  ZJ has been on a soapbox for the past year that every painting of the Savior has a serious, stoic facial expression that is scary and formidable.  She wants to see the Savior smiling a warm and inviting smile.  I have spent the past year in search of the perfect print and found it!  When she opened the painting of a "smiling Jesus", she started to cry!  She also cried when she opened a large pallet of Naked brand Urban Decay EyeShadow.  She also cried a few other times.

Urban Decay Eye Shadow Pallets matter when you are almost 17!

Zeej sees her print of the Savior smiling.

As we were down to our last two gifts, you could feel the kids excitement for their dad to open his new phone. They wanted him to go first.  I debated back and forth because I wasn't sure who I wanted to figure out that everyone got a new phone first.  Finally, Doug opened his phone and the kids beamed with pleasure!  Doug was shocked!  SHOCKED!  And a little concerned.  I could see that on his face... how did we afford this?  BUT, he looks like that if it's a bag of peanuts too. That's just Doug's conservative nature.  

Quayd was next and he was literally in tears.  I've been teasing him that we were going to get him an old flip phone since he returned from his mission.  He's not really wanted or needed one and he didn't care. but he was so thrilled to see that. Zee squealed and then screamed and then cried. Grace did not get a brand new iPhone because she is moving out soon and I didn't want to have to get a contract for her.  So, I gave her my i-Phone 6 with a new case,since her own phone died about three weeks ago.  She was just thrilled to have a phone.  

New make-up brushes!  About thirty of them!

Grace has been begging for her own copies of Ice Age, so we bought the whole collection.

Quayd saw his new phone and was in tears.

President Uchtdorf's new book.  We love President Uchtdorf!

We'd debated for weeks about what to do for Christmas.  Once you are 18, move away, get married, whatever, you are no longer a kid and we give cash for Christmas.  That's been the rule.  But, it would have been so strange to say, "Here's cash, Quayd and Grace.  Now, sit and watch Zeej open presents for two hours."  So Doug and I decided that we would surprise them with this one last Christmas.  Next year, who knows where anyone will be?  Zeej will still have two more "kid Christmases".  Such a strange situation for Doug and I, as we got the babes the year that Liza was becoming a "grown-up", so we have had 39 years of "kid Christmases".  I hate to see this part of our lives coming to an end.  BUT, we sure make the best of it, regardless!

We spent the rest of the day in our jammies, having a french toast brunch and leftovers were put out for "grazing" the rest of the day.  We watched Victoria and Abdul together, which we loved!  Doug and the kids watched a few other movies while I read and listened to music and planned.  It was a perfect Day!  Grace left for a bit with Ben in the evening, as we insisted that this was our day as a family, possibly our last Christmas with all five of us alone together.

I love this family of ours!  The kids were gracious and expressed gratitude with each and every gift.  They were filled with fun comments and support for each other as they saw the others opening their gifts.  They were thoughtful and generous with gifts to Doug and I.  It was just a special and wonderful holiday.

I waited until Wednesday to take down the decor, but I was mooooore than ready!  I don't know how it is that I can love it so much and absolutely can't stand the clutter the minute that we are done opening the gifts.  Every year, I say, "Let's take it all down today" and every year, I get a resounding, "Nooooooooo!"  As always, I love the fresh and clean feeling after taking it all down!  Life is good!

ouch!

I have become close friends with three of the widows in our ward.  This began before my new calling, and they worried that I might get too busy for them, but I've made time to get together with them at least weekly to play "Hand and Foot".  I adore these three women, Diane, Viola and Frankie.  Oh, we have had a wonderful time getting to know each other.  Diane is the youngest, in her later 70s and Viola and Frankie are in their mid-80s.  I so love them!  They make me laugh, they offer their wisdom, they tease and the show no mercy when we play cards.  Whenever I have a game with them, Doug calls it "Poker Night with the ladies".  These three ladies live so close to the Spirit that they would hardly know what poker is!  Have I mentioned that I love them!?

ANYWAY, we usually play at Diane's and occasionally at Viola's.  For some reason. to Wednesday night, the fourteenth, (five days before the anniversary of my fall and new shoulder)we ended up playing, last minute, at Frankie's.  I've never been inside her home.  Her front door was covered in fresh snow and her garage door was open with lights on, so I went in that way.  We played and had a fun evening together.

At the end of the evening, Viola announced that she would ride home with me, instead of Diane, who she had come with.  Another unusual happening.  Viola usually drives.  I walked Diane out to her car worried that she might fall on the icy driveway.  I also had a few things in my passenger seat and needed to move them.  So, I backed my car off the street and into the driveway althe way up to the garage so that Viola didn't have to walk on the ice.  There was also a small 3" concrete rise on the back third of her garage.  I noticed it and didn't want anyone tripping over it.

Viola had said, "Just honk" and I'll come out.  I thought to myself, "Self, you don't want her walking out here alone.  Go get her."  So, I raced back into the garage, forgetting about the three inch concrete slap!  My foot caught on it and when I woke up, I was face down in a puddle of blood!  I was only out for a second or two, I'm sure, but my first thought was, "My shoulder!  Is it still on!?"  I moved it and it was fine.  Then, I noticed that I was bleeding from the forehead with each pulse.  I'm not being overly dramatic when I say that I reached up for my head to make sure my brain was still inside it and I began calling out, "Help!"  I was in shock and my voice was weak.  I called several times before they heard me.  Finally, they opened the door and were just horrified!

By then, I'd managed to roll over and doublecheck my shoulder.  I was seeing stars and lightheaded and still bleeding.  Frankie got ice and a cloth and I think Viola called Doug?  She's only through the block, so I told them to tell him to just run over since I knew that I should not or probably could not drive.  Doug was there in seconds.  He said, "Good Hell!  That's the biggest goose-egg I've ever seen!"  We sat there for a second and I asked Doug to take a picture so I could see it.  When the bleeding stopped, Doug drove Viola home.  (Diane had no idea that this had happened and was already home.)

I called my friend in the ward, who's husband is my orthopedic doctor for my shoulder. I explained what had happened and said, "I just want him to take a look at it and tell me if I should go in for stitches or x-rays since it's my forehead." She said, "I'll send him right over."  In moments, KJ was at my door and busted out laughing when he saw it!  We held the iPhone flashlight up to it close and he examined me.  "Let's go, get in my truck." and off we went to KJ's office.  It was most humorous because doctors don't know where things are .  They walk into the exam room and the nurses have everything set and ready on the tray for them. He apologized because he had to call his nurses at home a few times to find the things he needed before he could stitch me up.  I did not feel a thing!  He sprayed that numbing stuff on my forehead and I didn't feel anything for hours.  Three stitches and one huge lump on my noggin!

KJ promised me that I would get black eyes before it was over.  I thought, "It's my forehead, not my nose!"  KJ was right!  Imagine that.  Over the next 9 days, here's a few photos of what I mean when I say Keith was right!  For the record, I have NO eyeshadow on at all.  That's bruising above and below my eyes.

During the last two weeks, I've visited and met with over twenty families in the ward, conducted Relief Society, met with the Stake Leadership, gone to eat several times and I could not count how many times people have asked, "Did you get into an accident?"  And my cute little ladies have been so worried.  They've blamed themselves and worried so much.  I keep telling them that this was not their fault!  I'm, apparently, just a klutz!  Buddy has deemed December, "Keep Mom in a padded room in a padded chair Month" and I think that he may be right!  It's looking better finally.  My eyes still are grey underneath but it just looks like I didn't wash yesterday's mascara off.  And I still have a KNOT on mu forehead that throbs.  Quayd calls it my "HUUUUUGE Zit".  He even prayed during our family prayer that "Mom's HUUUUUUGE ZIT would get better."  There were definitely hushed giggles during that prayer!

I'm just so thankful that it was not worse!  It could have been so awful!  I'm also thankful for KJ's kindness and saving us an emergency room expense!  He rocks!

In the meantime, I'm looking down while I walk and checking every step I take, I've invested in a new pair of Uggs and I am thinking of getting bifocals.  It might just be time.  ha!

holiday party

What a lovely holiday we have had!  It was different than ever before, as most things are these days, but it was wonderful!  Lots of family time, not lots of big-time partying, and lots of love and laughs, which we count on! 

Thanksgiving was quiet and peaceful.  It was just the five of us and a neighbor who's family has gone to Canada to care for his mother-in-law while she is very ill.  We enjoyed lots of pie and gab and a movie or two.  The rest of the weekend included lots of downtime with just the five of us, a little black Friday afternoon shopping and lots of leftovers!

We started December off with a bang... a small and quiet one, but a bang just the same.  I had decided last summer, before being called to serve as Relief Society President, that I wanted to get to know the widows in the ward a bit better.  That was one of my favorite things ever in our old home and ward, getting to know the senior singles.  So, I hosted a dinner for a dozen widows.  I did this not as Relief Society President.  It was from Doug and Sophia and Zeej.  We had a such a fun evening.  It's interesting.  This neighborhood, in it's day, was filled with doctors and lawyers, and many of them are still members of the Country Club.  I have to say that I was a little intimidated on the day of this dinner because I thought that these women really know how to entertain and have done so for fifty years! 

That night, if it could go wrong, it did, with my meal.  At the last minute, I realized that I had forgotten to take out two pieces of chicken and prepare them gluten-free for the ladies, so I sent Doug to the store for a rotisserie chicken. I forgot the salt in my rolls, which I've made without a recipe for 40 years.  At 6:25, the chicken cordon bleu was still raw in the middle and the potatoes were not baked yet.  I was horrified!  They arrived on time at 6:30 and we visited until 7, when everything was baked and ready.  Doug and Zeej served the meal in our beautifully tablescaped and decorated den.  Cute friend, Diane, blessed the food and said, "Please bless it that it will be "okay". We all had a good laugh.  I told them that we would order pizza if it wasn't!  This was so not my norm for entertaining!  I'm usually great at it!  I think that I overthought things!  They were gracious and kind and we had the best evening!  In the end, the food was wonderful, albeit a bit later than expected, but it gave us extra time in the front room to enjoy each other's company.

These women were delightful!  I do mean delightful!  Our tabletalk was filled with stories of their childhood Christmases.  Some were raised on farms and dirt poor.  Other's were raised with luxuries in life.  Several were doctors' wives and we discussed their husbands, who have all passed away but they are still well remembered in the valley.  One had delivered the children of several women in the room and was known for his fun ties and matching socks. The stories they told! I learned about chocolates that I've never heard of, traditions that were most unique and we just laughed a lot!

The highlight for me, was hearing them speak of Reed and Betty, who'd built this home sixty years ago, and for whom, many had sat in this very room and played cards with them, at this very table for decades.  I received thank you cards with several comments that said, "I could just feel Reed and Betty's joy at seeing the home that they loved so much filled with such love and beauty." That meant the world to me!  I have loved loving this home and every time that someone tells me they would have been so tickled to see their home being cared for and loved so much, I just want to love and care for it even more!  Have I mentioned that we love this home!?

ANYWAY, that was our December kick-off!  A lovely, quiet, fun holiday party with some absolutely wonderful women who make me laugh everytime we are together!  This was something that we wanted to do to kick off our "Light the World" experience and it was probably the highlight of my month!  Loved it!  Loved it!  Loved it!

blogging

I've had several emails and comments on Social Media about the fact that I've all but stopped blogging.  It's just harder and harder every day.  For many reasons.  Time and busyness are not the only or even the main reason.  I loved TypePad for ten years.  LOVED it.  When TypePad changed, I stuck with them for another year and hated it!  Downloading pix was a nightmare!  Then, finding old posts was impossible.  All the photos that I'd included as my journal for a decade were thumbprints.  I'd paid Typepad $10 a month for ten years and then to have no access to anything anymore was more than frustrating! Changing to blogspot seemed my only option.  And I like free blogging on Blogspot, but it's not the same at all!

Then, there was another situation that changed how I feel about blogging forever.  My blog was used "against me" in a way that just left an ugly taste in my mouth. Ten years of posting a "mommy blog" with tips on homemaking, decorating, recipes, my faith and belief in the gospel of Jesus Christ and life's ups and downs was used to make me feel more hurt than I'd ever been.  That was kind of the end for me.  After ten years of being open book and telling it like it really was... good, bad and ugly... to have it thrown back in my face, in a literal life-changing situation, was hurtful and painful. It's taken a literal leap of faith and courage to post anything ever since this happened.

BUT.  I do miss it.  I miss the fun friendships that I made through the years, little emails and funny comments that would make my day.  And I miss the record of our daily happenings in word and picture.

Doug frequently acknowledges the joy that blogging has brought me and our family for so many years. I am busy.  But, I can find time if I really want to.  I did it every day for ten years with three babes, three bigs, a husband and life, in general.  We always say "You afford what you want to afford", usually referring to money, but it's true of time, as well.

 So, I've decided that I'm going to try to post, at least, each Sunday for 2018.  We'll see how it goes.  Things in life are very different... blogging about cute kids and cute things they say is much different than blogging about five adult kids and one teenager.  Maybe I should blog about my grands, but, Liza is a bit private about her life.  Maybe I should blog about Relief Society.  Who knows? And I've changed.  A lot of life has happened this past three years since I slowed down on my blogging.  I've had a major injury, we've had kids grow up, we've moved and have a completely different life than what we did three years ago.  So so different.  BUT.  So wonderful.  I do love my life, no matter what happens!  Who knows where my blog will go from here on, but I'm going to give it another shot for the year and see what happens.  So, here's to 2018!  Just saying.