Month of Gratitude

Nov 1-  I’m able to tend my sick Tayla, Lady and Elsie so Lexi and Money can get away for a bit to Celebrate their 7th anniversary 

2nd- sang the girls to sleep with old songs my mom sang to me. All of my “kids” songs  and primary songs. Sang for a 1/2 hour. 

Nov 3.  Wayne’s secret Santa efforts to get whole fam in a cruise in April. We are celebrating our 60th birthdays. 

Nov 4- Road trips. Heading to St George to spend weekend with Belnaps, Lakes and Farleys 

 NOv 5:  Grateful to be outside riding my bike 

Nov 6:   Hiking turtle wall. 5 miles with my peeps. 

Nov 7:  Sunday “dirt devotional.”  Talking gospel and spiritual things…listening to Zoom testimony meeting.

Nov. 8: Grateful for Laila and her ability to work hard, and be so responsible and make a life for herself.  She’s positive and happy and just a lovely soul.

Nov 9:  WIN reading time. New this year in school - I love teaching reading to kids. 

Nov. 10:  able to get PJ’s for the grands.  IT will work out and I will find Andrews.   Glad to get them on sale and save a bit of money.  

Nov. 11:  Veterans… my dad and Tom and Markus and all those who choose service over comfort and safety

Nov 12.  Lunch with friends.  Birthday lunch with sunseekers and Paula and Myken lunch. 

Nov 13. Grandma Butters. It’s her birthday. So grateful for all my ancestors. 

Nov 14.  Church. Ward family. Importance of gathering. 

Nov 15.  Grateful Holly is home. And Wayne checked on her and found penicillin rash. 

Nov 16.  Grateful to be a life coach. Love helping people with their thoughts.   

Nov 17.  Ward members help with Christmas party 

Nov 18. Fights/ disagreements with Laila and ability to laugh and make up.  This one was around her wedding venue. 

Nov 19.  Walking friends.  Si, Kathleen, Erin.  Great therapy and gospel discussions. 

Nov 20.  Being a Choir kid at BHS. Lasting friendships and magical music memories.  

Nov. 21.  Family grateful dinner. Sibling dynamic.  Grandkids running around like crazy… making a grateful tree.

Nov.22. Online school…Love my job and it’s flexibility..

Nov. 23.  Grateful that Michelley cleans my house twice a month

Nov 24.  Pie party at Calls.  Or better yet a bread pudding g party. It’s truly delish with rum sauce. 

Nov 25. Thanksgiving dinner at Buzelli’s. They had 31 people in attendance. Set up 4 tables.  Looked gorgeous. 

Nov 26. Two days in SLC with my lover

Nov 27  Put up my Rainbow Christmas tree in living room 

Nov 28:  Christmas decorations

Nov. 29: Quiet house… Running water, electricity, a furnace and appliances, Christmas music playing in the background.  Feeling safe and loved.

Nov. 30: grateful for my body. I love how strong and soft it is. I’m grateful I have no aches or pains. 

Thanksgiving weekend with my Sweetie

 This is our 5th annual escape to Salt Lake City for Thanksgiving weekend.  We love this tradition of ours.   It's usually around this time of year that Wayne gets free hotel coupons that need to be used before the end of the year, so it's a perfect excuse to get away.  

We  had MEXICAN food- my favorite at Blue Iguana

We walked all over the city... These are the lights at the Gallivan Center.

We were also there for the opening lights at Temple square.  With Covid last year, we didn't have any lights to see as we walked around the city.  We also had the candy windows at MACY's again this year.

We went to see Pickleville Playhouse's new show at Rose Wagner.  It was a pretty good show... the first act felt pushed, but the second act they settled in.  The best things they do is tight harmony singing, funny characters and TJ Davis is an incredible rapper and song writer.. I'm always amazed at how he moves his 6'5" frame as he dances. 

We ate GERMAN food at Siegfried's deli... we love the brats and sauerkrat there.  ANd it's cheap and old school.

We shopped at City Creek Center and also the huge Costco in SLC.  that's an amazing store!

The Gateway movie theatres are so nice now.  They have updated all of the theatres with luxury, recliner seating.  We saw Ghostbusters...it was really good and sentimental.  When Dan Ackroyd and Bill Murray, the original ghostbusters show up at the end I cried.  IT was sweet. 

I love spending time with my boyfriend.  Wayne is such a good man.  He's loving and kind and works hard for me and my family. He is involved in our kids lives and adores his grands.  I just feel so blessed to go through this life with him.  

Simple Christmas

My boys all love Christmas..they have good memories surrounding it and it’s one of their favorite holidays.  Laila on the other hand does not. Her favorite holiday is Halloween, followed by more Halloween. 

When the boys were little I was over the top for  Christmas.  I had to have a big “ta-dah” as they raced in to see what Santa brought…I wanted lots of delighted squeals, then the reading of the Santa letter and finally present, after present after present to be unwrapped under the tree with lots of candy and cookies and treats everywhere!  

It got to be too much.  With our money situation up and down each year, I couldn’t keep it up or make it bigger and better each year so….I simplified.

A smaller “ta da” by their stockings and then 3 presents to open under the tree.  I figured if Jesus only got 3 presents, then why do I think I’m better than Jesus?  So that was my reasoning…and I stuck to it.

Simplifying Christmas has only been a blessing to me… 

Simple is more memorable- because you can remember what presents you got and from whom…?

Simple is manageable - it takes the shopping frenzy out of the holiday

Simple leaves space for tender moments not filled with things and stuff.

Simple feels right

But….

Is Simple magical?

Laila has only known smallish  Christmas’s and until her Jr. High years, she looked forward to and loved Christmas but since then, she's gotten caught up in what others were getting and what she wasn’t getting. She fell into compare and despair mode with the social media trap.  She became a Grinch and went to the dark side.      

BUT…….

She assures me Markus, her fiancé LOVES Christmas…so hopefully she’s on her way back to the bright side.

Thanksgiving 2021

Pie Party at Call’s home.  Megan out did herself again… making 17 pies and a huge Bread pudding!!  We could start calling this the Bread Pudding party since we love it so much. Maybe it’s the rum sauce we love? I could drink it.     We had a good turn out of family and friends. The 20 people I invited all came:  The Edgars and Bob and Kimi Farley, the Tim and Linda, Add and Bre family and Landon and Alex.    So happy to be doing this again after the no nothing events of 2020

Bread pudding with Rum sauce

Melinda, Linda and Kimi

Linda loves the bread pudding so much she's obsessed. 

Alex, Landon and Wayne peeling potatoes

THANKSGIVING dinner at Landon and Alex’s.  They set up 4 tables of 8 to seat us all..and the tables were decorated beautifully.   We had my side of the family there… Ang, Guy and Preston, Liz and Al, Adam, Christine, Jenna, Aaron, and Kas Cole, Me and Wayne, Monson, Lexi, Tayla, Lady, Elsie, Laila, Tru, Wayne and I...and Gary, Megan, Hayden,- girlfriend Laura, Nelson, and Andrea Call.  Alex and Landon...Alex’s parents Sonia and Alan and best friends, Paula and Eric. It was quite a crew.  We ate all of the basics…. Had the dog show on in the background and then silent football ( just like Dad always watched it) with the Raiders vs. Cowboys... Liz and Adam’s teams playing.  It was fun.  We all ate too much… and probably won’t feel hungry again till February.    Everyone hung out from noon til after 5 ...then clean up and off to movies etc.

My sibs!

Liz and Landon 

Elsie Playing Drive through through the windows

Lady is selling tacos

Gary's plate has banana cream pie and brussel sprouts with bacon

Monson and Lexi fam met up with Add and Bre fam and went to Kaysville theatre and saw "Rons Gone Wrong. " … They said it was darling, about friendship and connecting.

Grateful Dinner- End of Year of Awesome

We had our family grateful dinner - and I was grateful all could attend - 18 of us...just missing Laila’s Markus.   

We had a makeshift Thanksgiving meal, but we added roast beast for the anti turkey people.    Potatoes, gravy, Roast and Instant pot turkey breast, stuffing, cream corn, peas, hot rolls, peas, salad… pumpkin and cran-apple pie, chocolate cupcakes for the anti-pie people and cheese cake.   

We talked about our year of awesome.  I gave everyone a black globe to remind them of Hope for a better World…. And we wrote and colored on leaves what we are thankful for to make grateful tree.  “Gratitude turns what you have into enough.”  

Plus I got to hold baby George and see him smile…. IT was a good night.

This was our final Year of Awesome activity. As we reminisced through the year and the service and activities that we did, I was pleased and I think my kids liked it too.

Towel-giving

 

We did our final Year of Awesome service.  We collected towels for the Salt Lake Rescue Mission...they always need bath towels and Andrew, Sophia and I took in 4 giant garbage bags filled with 100 towels!!  

Besides family, I had a lot of friends and ward members donate.

We walked through quite a bunch of homeless street people to get to the doors of the mission.  WE said, "Hi" to some, and some people said,  "Hi" to us.    

It's a blessing to serve and bonus... I had a good talk with Andrew and Sophia about what they felt and what they saw and how we can learn so much by this experience.

Lessons: 

1.  These are people just like me. As we look at others who look so different than us it's good to put it in perspective.  This is a person who likes food just like me.  This is a person who takes showers and needs a towel, just like me.  This is a person who wants to stay warm, just like me....

2.  That "ooo" feeling you get walking among and helping these people is interesting.  Andrew describes it as I'm sad for you and I'm happy for me and I feel bad about that....it's hard... it's dissonance.  Some of it doesn't make sense. 

3.  Addiction is sad and it can really take over your life and add to some bad decision making.

4.  Some people on the streets have mental illness and some have really bad luck.

5.  Family is important...having people around to help and support you.

Mr. A.

 

We had our old Bountiful High choir teacher come to town....Monte Atkinson.  He only taught at BHS for 2 years before going on to be a College professor.  We loved Mr. A.  so it was fun to get together with a few of us choir kids to reminisce and sing.

Tim Johnson, Scott Wright, Clarke Maybe, Grant Jex and Mr. A.

Josh Bissinger, Larry Hansen and Wayne

Melinda, Debbie Bennet Muhlman, RoseMarie Peterson Murray, Denise Duggar Putnam and Shelley Allen Senior.  

Oh... BHS Choir days were amazing..... I loved being in the choir then and I love being in choirs now.

Cookie Makers

 Making chocolate chip cookies with Lady and I'm having Monson flashbacks of doing this same thing.  Monson LOVED to help me make chocolate chip cookies and Lady does too.  

St. George Friend time

AHHH .... it's good to be back doing fun things in St. George with our Belnap, Farley and Lake friends.  Covid time has been interesting.

The Belnap's have a new St. George home and it's fabulous...they have their own backyard pool and backyard play room now!   ANd they are so gracious to share it.   We Biked and Hiked and talked and talked some more and swam and walked and played games and ate a lot of great food and watched the U of U football games.  It was a great weekend.