Nothing in Particular.\par
\par
A few family album type bits of information:\par
- \par
- We went to my parents in Tri-Cities, WA for Thanksgiving this year! We drove up on Wednesday, without incident. I brought rolls – 60-minute rolls from the old Kitchen Aid cookbook, and poppy-seed sourdough rolls from my bread-machine cookbook \’e2\’80\ldblquote although not prepared in the bread machine. That is, the 60-minute rolls were actually prepared \’e2\’80\ldblquote the sourdough rolls were just in the dough stage and subsequently went on rising at my parents until mid-afternoon, when I shaped them, let them rise all night, and baked them in the morning before church. You know something\’e2\’80\’99s a hobby when you\’e2\’80\’99ll do something that ridiculous. But they were good. Not as sour as I was hoping, but still good. J All of the rest of the food (prepared by my mom, dad, sister & sister-in-law) was wonderful. While we were there my brother Ben and his wife and kids came over on Thanksgiving as well as the day after, so Judah and Ezra and Monica got lots of face-time with their only cousins, Rinah and Valor. It was a joyful, fun family gathering, hopefully to be repeated many times!
- On December 6th we had our Parish Christmas Party. It was notable for the fact that I was so prepared ahead of time that I was NOT running around like a chicken with my head cut off just before the party started. I even moseyed on over to the grocery store for some half-and-half I\’e2\’80\’99d forgotten two hours before the party without even an elevated heart-rate! As parties go, it wasn\’e2\’80\’99t the most exciting, but the kids had a good time and the cookie exchange and singing Christmas carols was fun.
- Judah\’e2\’80\’99s birthday party was scheduled for December 14th and as bad weather approached, we were apprehensive that we were going to have to cancel it! The snow fell that morning, and things were looking pretty grim, especially as church was cancelled due road conditions. But Michael\’e2\’80\’99s parents wanted to come anyway, so we called the other two families and told them to come if they could. One of them lived too far away and couldn\’e2\’80\’99t come, but the other family did, plus a few extras, so it was a nice sized party and Judah had a good time with his two good friends, John and Zane (I call them the Three Amigos) and all of John\’e2\’80\’99s siblings. His Aunt Abigail made him a “Zurg cake” as he requested, “Aunt Abigail, do you have a recipe for a Zurg cake?” (A Zurg, in case you were wondering, is a character from Toy Story 2 and the Buzz Lightyear TV show, which Judah was introduced to at my in-laws. Apparently it made a big impression!)
- Due to the snow, every single social event I had planned on attending or hosting this week was cancelled! I like snow-days, but snow-weeks? Well, that\’e2\’80\’99s what you get for living in a temperate climate where winter weather mostly consists of drizzle. People just don\’e2\’80\’99t drive in the snow, and our cities don\’e2\’80\’99t salt the roads. Michael\’e2\’80\’99s gone to work both days this week though, but if more snow falls tonight and tomorrow, as expected, then he might get a day off as well. All of that\’e2\’80\’99s fine, I just hope my parents make it OK on Saturday. They\’e2\’80\’99re flying out of Portland on Monday and will bunk with us Saturday and Sunday night.
- If you\’e2\’80\’99re wondering how my routines and good habits are doing in the midst of all of these parties and holiday events, they aren\’e2\’80\’99t. Mystie and I discontinued our morning calling until January, figuring that this time of year is not the time to try to start and nourish new habits. When the January and February doldrums hit (tax season for me) \’e2\’80\ldblquote that\’e2\’80\’99s the time to get back to work trying to get up early, exercize, get organized, etc. For now, we\’e2\’80\’99re on holiday.
\tab
\par
\tab
\par
\tab
\par
\tab
\par
\tab
\par
\par