ATTENTION PLEASE:

I have discovered the greatest homemaking tip of the decade! This celery has been in my refrigerator for 2 weeks and is as fresh and crisp as the day I bought it. I hate limp celery and have been known to soak it in ice water for an hour, just to plop it into boiling soup. A little compulsive, I know. So I heard that if you wrap your celery tightly in aluminum foil it will keep forever. It's true! It works! I don't know about forever, but I've kept it for 3 weeks and it is nice and crisp and crunchy. I'm a happy homemaker.

I'm trying to be a good blogger but I'm such a ditz! This morning I invited my good friend Shara, over to celebrate her birthday. I also invited Mother, Beth, and Mary. All the kids came too. All 8 of them between the ages of 2 and 8! The hash brown quiche was warming in the oven and Beth was bringing the orange rolls. The table was set in the kitchen for the little ones. I took this picture before everyone came. My camera was handy for lots of picture taking during the brunch. HA! Never thought about the camera again until everyone except Shara was gone. Well, we had a great time. She loved her gifts. The kids behaved nicely. The food was yummy. It would have made great picture taking, so just imagine it if you will. Here is a parting shot of the 2 of us. Her girls were waiting in the car and Gar had just arrived home for lunch to take the picture. It really was a nice morning for an extra special friend.

Today was a busy day. Julie and I went to the temple this morning. It was a full session for a Thursday morning; then on to the church book store. Several birthdays are coming up and who doesn't want a book? My favorite thing to get. There is a new Taco Time nearby. They have a sweet pork burrito with rice and black beans, that is enough for 2 and delicious. I recommend it if you have to have fast food. The next few hours were spent running errands and then back home.

Ry, his dad, and Preston went to the high school wrestling match tonight, so Hailey thought she NEEDED SOME WHERE TO GO! Where better than to Monna's house. Papa was to high council. Sooooooooooooooo we opened a brand new box of orange sticks..... Tanner ate 4..... we read "There was an Old Lady that Swallowed a Fly", and then we spent some time frolicking on lamby. I must have a picture of every grandchild on lamby. She had a bath after Christmas and was ready to rock and roll, bless her heart.

I was instant messaging with Andy tonight and told him how having a blog has made me think my life looked very ordinary, but that was ok. He said no life was ordinary. I've
been thinking about that and he's absolutely right. Every
life is unique. Most folks find some kind of peace and
contentment. Some don't. I think that peace and contentment comes from being loved and learning how to love. Surrounding ourselves with meaningful relationships brings happiness that makes us less and less ordinary. Perhaps that is because we learn tolerance by being tolerant. We learn patience by being patient. We learn compassion by being compassionate.

I love my unique life tonight because I was the "somewhere to go" for my sweet, sweet, grand kids. I love my life tonight because I had a friend to spend a day with. And I love my life tonight because I'm "GOOD" tired at the end of an un-ordinary day.

LAUNDRY DAY. . . WHAT ELSE ARE GUEST ROOMS FOR?

Today reminded me of title of one of Christina Rossetti's poems, "In the bleak Midwinter", one of my favorite poems. The first verse is:

In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan,
Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone;
Snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow,
In the bleak midwinter, long ago.

Although it's not snowy (it has melted away), it is gray, gray, gray, and we needed soup and bread. So I pulled a chicken out of the freezer and let it simmer most of the day with lots of garlic and onion. When superman came home for lunch he
knew what was coming for supper. Happy man!

Around 3:30 I started the bread. Jill has the best whole wheat recipe and Gar had ground a bunch of wheat on Saturday - that's his job. The kitchen was toasty from the simmering soup so it rose nice and easy. I added carrots we are still harvesting from our garden, plus celery, cabbage, broccoli, and squares of homemade noodles.

At 6:30 we ate our feast finished off with bowls of canned peaches from Mom & Dad's trees, done up last summer.

Christina Rossetti wrote this poem when requested to write a Christmas poem in 1872. The final verse of the poem is:

What can I give Him, poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb;
If I were a Wise Man, I would do my part;
Yet what I can I give Him: give my heart.

At times, bleak days make us feel poor in spirit. I am very thankful that I can put a chicken in a pot, mix some bread in my 30-some year old Bosch mixer, and be reminded of a poignant poem that leads me to thoughts of my Savior. The soup and bread warm my sometimes cold and achy body, but He warms and gladdens my heart and makes bleak days bright, even through soup and bread.

I'm new to blogging and am feeling my way, so bear with my errors. This is the 2nd time tonight that I have posted music. Both of the same group. "The Priests" closed their performance in Ireland with this beautiful song called "Irish Blessing". I wanted to include the words too. I hope you enjoy this as much as I did.

May the road rise to meet you,
May the wind be ever at your back.
May the sunshine warm upon your face,
And the rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again.
May God hold you, May God hold you
Ever in the palm of his hand.

Tonight I was introduced to "The Three Priests" on Oregon Public Broadcasting. They are 3 Catholic priests that have known each other since boyhood and have sung together for a long time. The were singing in a very ancient Irish cathedral. The setting with the orchestra was spectacular as were their voices. It was the perfect end to a sabbath day. Enjoy Ava Maria.