The "Legend of the Christmas Bows"

Each year on our tree, we put green and red plaid bows.  The tree truly doesn't look complete without them.  They aren't only pretty, they have a deeper meaning.  They are the stars of the "Legend of the Christmas Bows."

Also featured in this picture...A pipe cleaner gingerbread man, made by Kristin; a Star Wars Millenium Falcon ornament; a snow globe ornament, part of an 8-part set, two of which have broken; a picture of Trev and his Sunbeam class, in which his face is scratched off; and a pink glass ball ornament made by swirling paint around in a clear ornament, made by one of the older girls in Acheivement Days.

When John and I were first married, we lived in a very old (circa 1940) 4-plex.  It was heated by two floor grates, and powered by natural gas.  As poor, married students, we couldn't afford/didn't want to pay for the pilot lights to run, so we turned them off and just wore lots of layers (it was Utah after all), and took turns getting into bed first to "warm" up the bed by, for lack of a better description, making snow angels.  You get what I mean, right? 
Anyway, when Christmas came that year, we didn't have money for a tree.  Our little 4-plex was in the middle of some brand new condos where many rich students lived, aka Condo Row.  (Now, I know that Condo Row is not the nicest place in Provo to live anymore, but at the time, it was considered one of the newer places.  Remember, this was 29 years ago). One evening, after finals were over, John found a Christmas tree in the dumpster, no doubt left by one of those rich students who was heading home for the holidays.  We didn't care, we removed it, and gave it a new home in our living room.  Of course, we didn't have any decorations, so I rounded up some lights (green), and found a roll of green and red plaid ribbon, and made bows.  My sister, Dawn, contributed several ornaments, two of which are still hung on the tree every year. 
Two original ornaments plus the bows.  Memories...

The bows have had to be taken apart, ironed and remade, but they are still going strong on tree #29.  The kids expect them every year, and as I already said, the tree isn't complete if they aren't on it.  They have created a Rietz family legend.   

Christmas is coming...

There are many blog posts floating around in my head...

One about me finally joining the 21st century and getting an iPhone last weekend.  My technological world is enlarged and I just hope I can stop accidentally calling people when I am just trying to navigate around the phone.  Sorry Dawn!!  Merry Christmas to me...

One about how excited we are to have Amber, Allison and Ryan all coming home.  See you in 2 days, Amber and 5 days, Alli and Ryan...

One which would be a continuation of this post in which I document the lamentations of the wise men in our Nativity sets this year.  Let me just say that in addition to the decapitated one from the Willow Tree set, Kristin has knocked over no less than 4 other partial or complete Nativities.  The accidents that were the partial take downs, were of, and I'm not even kidding here, Wise men!  We have had a good laugh about it, and when John found one set knocked over the other day, we couldn't help but ask Kristin if she had a part of it.  Apparently they continue to fear for their lives, even though Herod is long dead...

One about how Christmas is coming, and I still have many things to do, and a few things to buy, and a house to clean....

But those little snippets will have to do for now.

I have talked about my friend, Stacy Julian, before.  She is in the middle of a "12 days of Christmas videos" blog project.  Please go to http://stacyjulian.com/ and check it out.  Of course we are only on day 6, but you will want to catch up and then go back everyday so you can see the next one.  Some will make you smile, some are thought provoking, and some entertaining.  At least a few have brought tears to my eyes and a lump to my throat.  Wonderful!!

7 days and counting (backwards that is)

Snowmen - creepy or otherwise

The other day when we were decorating the tree, Kristin wanted to know where the "creepy snowman" was.  This was the ornament she was talking about.  I knew exactly which one she meant, but as a mom, I don't consider it in the creepy category.      

Now, you may have already guessed that one of my children made this ornament, and you would be right.  It is from 1988, and was made out of bread dough and painted by Ashley, who would have been all of 2 1/2 years old.  This was when we lived in Oregon.  Now, you may or may not know, but the house we lived in in Oregon was OLD!!! (read - poorly insulated)  And you also may or may not know that Oregon is known for its dampish climate.  Those two elements combined did not bode well for our little ornament.  Notice how his stovepipe hat and part of his head are missing?  And the blackish tinge at the top of the hat?  The results of the bad combination I described above.  Luckily, we moved inland, and our climate is much more dry and our house is much better insulated, so no more damage has been incurred.  

This snowman napkin holder was a gift from Trev about 5 or 6 years ago.  He and his dad put it together at a Home Depot workshop.  John loved taking Trev to those, and I think was a little sad when Trev got too old to go.  It was some good father/son bonding time. 

I love this!!  As my kids keep growing, I miss their little selves running around getting all excited about the lights, and the tree and all things Christmas.  I cherish these little keepsakes that remind me of times past.  Christmas has a different feel without little kids.  (Although, I don't think there is much Christmas morning sleeping in yet.)

As such, our Christmas anticipation is a little different.  We look forward to whoever is coming to spend Christmas with us.  This year, Amber, Allison and Ryan all will be here!  We can't wait for them to come.  Of course, we would love it if the whole clan were here, but the Down Under bunch will definitely not make it home.  And unless Chelsie has the baby in the next week or so, which is pretty unlikely, they will not be making the trip through the pass as well.  No doubt, we'll be using Facetime and/or Skype to share our Christmas experiences with those two families.  Let's hear it for modern technology!!

So, as I am reminded often, I just need to move on, and while I am grateful for these little reminders of their smallness, recognize my kids for the great "big" people they have grown up to be, or in a few cases, are growing up to be.

a few random things...

Kristin's wallet went missing at the DECA trip last week.  No trace to be found.  Lost - money, her driver's permit, school ID, and library card, as well as at least 2 gift cards.  We don't know for sure that someone stole it, but we don't know for sure that someone didn't steal it.  Disappointing anyway you look at it.

We woke up to a broken heater on Sunday morning, right in the middle of the cold snap we are having.  Last night it was 2 deg. at one point and the high yesterday was only about 18 or so, if that much.  We had the repairman out today, he diagnosed and fixed the problem quickly, and we are back in business.  Luckily, we had one warm side of the house yesterday, and spent a lot of time there!!  And, who knew 3 hours of church would be so welcome??  Needless to say, we are grateful to be warm again!!

Our Rexburg co-ed is also in the middle of an Arctic weather pattern, and all of Rexburg and surrounding areas were without power for most of Wednesday.  She and much of the rest of BYU-I spent the day in the one building on campus with a generator, so was able to stay warm and no doubt, get some serious social time in to boot!

We got our tree on Saturday and started decorating it and the house on Sunday.  This poor wise man lost his head. Maybe this is what would have happened to the real wise men if Herod had gotten a hold of them when they didn't go back to see him after seeing Christ.  My elf who dropped this felt incredibly bad, but as with other Willow Tree statues that I, myself, have broken, it was easily put back together, and none the worse for the wear.  For as many years as we have had that nativity set, its pretty amazing that this is the first broken piece!

John and Trev also put up the lights in the front, which was no small feat, given the weather.  I can't remember the temperature exactly, but I'm pretty sure it was in the teens!!  Yikes! The front of the house looks very festive when you come in the driveway!  Lovely!

Saturday, I also made caramel corn.  It was a thank you for the people who performed at our Ward Christmas party on Friday.  And, yes, now that you ask, the popcorn popper is from the 80's!  John and I got it for a wedding gift, and it dutifully pops corn for me every December so I can make this treat.

It may be old, but like many of us, is still very useful!

Butter, brown sugar and light corn syrup.  Notice that little gem of a rubber scraper, spatula, whatever you call it.  It is from Williams Sonoma.  It came in a set of 3 and I use them ALL the time!  One of the best kitchen purchases I have made in the last few years.

The finished product!  Crunchy and buttery and yummy!!!  See the recipe below...

Oven Caramel Corn

6 quarts popped corn (one of those big tupperware bowls that used to be so popular), old maids removed

2 sticks butter (1 cup)                                         1 tsp salt *

2 cups brown sugar                                             1 tsp baking soda

1/2 cup light corn syrup                                       1 tsp butter flavoring (optional)**

In a large pot (at least 3 quarts) boil butter, brown sugar, corn syrup and salt for 5 minutes, stirring often.  Remove from heat and add 1 tsp baking soda and butter flavoring, if using and mix well.  (The mixture will foam up)

Pour over popped corn and stir to coat.  Place in 2 greased 9 x 13 pans and bake at 200 deg. for 1 hour.  Stir every 15 mins.
Let cool and store in airtight container.  I put mine on large baking sheets to cool.

*I didn't add salt on Saturday and didn't miss it at all.

**I did add butter flavoring, and thought it was a great addition.  I usually don't have any, therefore don't use it.

Our Father's Love

It is cold here!  That is an understatement, and I know it is way colder other places, but today when I walked with my friend, it was around 10 deg.  BRRR!!  Tuesday, when I was walking with the same friend -who by the way is from Minnesota and has lived in Alaska, therefore can handle the cold - down by the river, we came across this lovely fellow.  Of course, I'm not sure he's a fellow, but I'm just going with to keep things simple.  We passed him heading one way, and my friend pointed him out to me, and when we were heading back, I told her I wanted a picture if he was still there, and amazingly, he still was.  We cracked up because his head is tucked so tightly into his shoulders.  You know there is a long neck all folded up in there.  He is all hunkered down to face the cold.  My friend pointed out that maybe its warmer on the ground than flying in the wind.  Who knows??  

I do know that I love moments like this when I come upon something in nature that is a bit of a surprise, as well as a little out of the ordinary, and I feel loved.  Being in nature reminds me of Heavenly Father's love for us.  He directed Jesus to create this world for us, to live in and to enjoy.  It is a beautiful world.  

Two other things this week have reminded me about how much He loves us.  

Our Relief Society lesson on Sunday was about Visiting Teaching.  That program which gives us a chance to minister to and serve our fellow sisters in the Gospel was instituted in the early days of the Church.  Although its methods have changed over the years (check out Chapter 7 of Daughters of My Kingdom), its purpose is the same.  This program gives us a chance to be the Lord's hands in His absence.  To minister and succor as He did when he was on the earth.

The third thing is the Atonement of Christ.  We have been reading this book,

in book club.  Wow!!!  We only read the first half because it is packed with so much information we had to break it up.  Chapter 15 is where we ended and it is titled, Infinite in Love.  Reading that chapter brought home to me how much Heavenly Father does love us.  His willingness to sacrifice His son, to let him suffer incomprehensible pain and suffering for us in mind-boggling.  As a mother, the thought of losing one of my children is unbearable to think about.  Knowing the love that both of them had - Heavenly Father to let it happen, and Christ to suffer and die for us - makes me want to be the best I can so it is not in vain.  Not taking advantage of the Atonement and repentance seems to be the greatest ingratitude I could show.  Now, having said that, I will continue to make stupid mistakes and be the human that I am, but I guess the test of how much I really believe in and am grateful for the Atonement is in the way I use repentance and make those changes to become better little by little, day by day.

Of course, there are other things that show me of His love, but in short, I am grateful for these 3 manifestations just in the last 3 days.

I feel loved!!

Post-Thanksgiving round up and a top ten

We are nothing if not predictable around here, so its no surprise that our Thanksgiving menu doesn't change much from year to year.  I did try Kate's Thanksgiving Turkey last year, and it was a keeper.  I think this year's turkey was even better, despite the fact that the Turkey Bags I always have in the pantry have somehow disappeared.  In the end I used Alton Brown's cooking method, and although it put our dinnertime about an hour later than we wanted, it was worth the wait.  So moist, and VERY flavorful.  Brining seems to be the way to go!  And as a former member of the "Buy the biggest turkey in the store" club, I have revoked that membership and joined the "Around 13 pounds is ideal" club.  

The partially carved turkey

Trev has found his Thanksgiving calling as the Dressing chef.  Notice his vigorous form in the picture below.  His dressing smells and tastes just like the dressing I grew up on, and it makes me smile to sniff or eat it.  YUM!!  The combination of onion, celery, basil, bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, hamburger and Italian sausage is the perfect thing.  Not that I don't love other types of stuffing/dressing, but this is hands down my favorite.

Trev grinding the meat for the dressing.  The trusty Kitchen Aid is ever at the ready.  How does one pull off Thanksgiving without this most important tool on the counter??  

Mmm..the dressing is ready and waiting to be baked.  Notice the cranberries in the background.  I tried a new recipe with them this year also.  Thanks again, Kate at Our Best Bites.  Really yummy!!  Again, a new variation on an old theme.

 On the subject of cranberries - several years ago, I decided to try fresh cranberry sauce instead of the canned sort from years past.  Most of my immediate family doesn't really eat it, but for me, I will never go back.  We do have guests who are with us some Thanksgivings who like them from a can, so I can't give them the boot every year, but for the most part...fresh baby, all the way!!

We also managed to fit in a temple trip and a visit to Coeur d'Alene to visit with Chelsie and Dallin and the Dance clan.  It was great fun to spend a little time with the soon-to-be-new mom and dad!  Chelsie definitely has a baby bump, but not a very big one...

Here are my top ten photos of the day after Thanksgiving.  We did a little project and also participated in the 2nd annual Post-Thanksgiving Hike.  Good times!!

Here are our finished Symbols of Christmas!  We have a plan for them, but can't divulge it yet.  We all liked the candle best!  Oohh! Sparkly!

The kids can't pass up a chance to be a little weird!

Since we live in the land of Lewis and Clark, we had to have an impersonation.  I don't know who is Lewis or who is Clark, but I do know Trev is Seaman, the big, black Newfie who went on the journey.

It was fun to have our college freshman home for the weekend.  She was full of tales of life at BYU-I!  She spends A LOT of time studying, but still manages to have plenty of fun!!

Poor Trev!  Right in their sites!  Lucky for him, neither of them would know what to do with an actual gun if they had one in their hands.  Looking at Amber, I'd say she thought it was bow hunting season.

Stalking any unwary hikers.  Luckily, none came our way.  (Did I mention my kids like to be weird??)

Notice Amber's hat.  She has learned the importance of keeping her head covered now that she lives in Rexburg!  :)

Our hike took us to the river's edge.  Of course, that led to a rock skipping contest.  No winner was declared.

Amber had to prove she could balance on the rock and not get wet.  Kristin didn't fare so well.  She hiked back with one wet foot.

The happy hikers at the end of the trail.  It was a great hike!!

 One final note from this week.  Kristin missed school Monday because she had a vague unsettled pain in her stomach.  She rallied and went to school on Tuesday, but by that night, she was in pain, and if not for the lack of a fever, I was sure she had appendicitis.  I went to bed Tuesday night determined to call the Dr. the next morning if she was still not feeling well, fever or not!  It was all for naught, as she woke up Wednesday feeling much better, and she hasn't looked back!  Whew!!