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Apparently the March winds are bringing change to our little world. Note, I didn't say the changes were bad - just new and most likely exciting.
After working with the Young Women in our ward for 3 1/2 years, I was released last week and put in the Cub Scout program. I am the new Bear Den Leader. I guess I'll be trading Girl's Camp for Day Camp and Personal Progress for Bear Advancement. Never fear though - after 5 hours of training in the last 3 days, I am ready for the den. I'm told its like planning a birthday party every week without having to make cupcakes! Party on!!! (I think I can safely say this will be the change which will bring much excitement to my life) Coming soon - a picture of Trevor and me in our uniforms! Too cool!
Grandma Hughes is coming to town!!! We are excited to have her come stay for a while and be a part of our madness. She'll probably have no trouble sleeping at night after spending all day keeping up with our family! We can't wait for her smiling face to get here.
And just in case you're wondering, Talmage (on the quilt made by great-grandma Sollenbarger) is still #1 on our list for the cutest baby in the world. John and I had a great time down in Dallas for his blessing. What a great thing for him to have all 3 grandpas in the circle and his dad give him a name and a blessing. It was a very special weekend. We hated to get on the plane but for the fact we had 5 wonderful kids waiting for us at home! Kudos to Chelsie and Allison for holding down the fort! They did an awesome job!
Always looking out for his kids and their interests, John took a very messy problem in hand and solved it for Ashley and Brandon. Imagine a few pigeons very comfortable in a roosting place right above a nice Honda Accord. Now imagine what the side of that very nice Accord looks like after the pigeons have been there awhile. I think you get the picture. Enter John. After mulling over the problem, he came up with the solution, bought the necessary supplies, and in no time, those pigeons were finding a new place to roost. Now, imagine that nice Honda all clean and shiny and staying that way! Very, very good!!! (John's solution? A long board with nails sticking up from the bottom. Clever.) Actually, if the pigeons just looked at the scary face, I'm not sure they would have stuck around long enough to walk on the nails. :-)
This month is full - Jr. Miss for Allison, Tennis for Allison, a visit from the gang from Texas, piano recital for Trevor and Kristin, soccer for Trevor, Kristin and Amber and work, work, work for Chelsie. (Spring break for a few of her friends means a little social life in her future! Yay!) This will be a good month for blogging!
Being a grandma is very hard work. (Talmage says hi! Here he is at one month.) You may have figured this out since I haven't posted anything for about a month. I'm sure that like any other new job, once I get the hang of it, I'll be right on top of things, just like I usually am!! :-)
But for now, here are a few of the latest happenings around here.
Basketball fever is going strong in our house right now. Trevor and Kristin are both playing on a team for the first time and both are loving it!! Kristin has decided being a point guard is a very important thing to be, and Trevor is the shortest on the team, but he can mix it up with the big guys and many times come out with the ball. With a few more weeks in the season, we are assured several more entertaining and exciting games.
All in the name of fun, our Mutual had a lip-sync night a few weeks ago, and I thought we needed a record of Allison and Amber participating on the blog. I love that Mutual gives my kids a place to go and have a lot of crazy fun with kids their own age and with the same standards. By the way, Allison is one of the muses from Hercules, singing "I Won't Say I'm in Love" and Amber is singing "Money, Money, Money" from Momma Mia. I actually missed the activity that night because I was in Texas, but can't wait to see the DVD.
Kristin, our girl who loves many things - books, soccer, basketball, television, candy, showers right after dinner - is growing up. Last week marked her 11th birthday and she shows no signs of slowing down on her race to 12. Not one to love cake and ice cream she opted for Chocolate Sundaes with her very favorite cherry on top. She is becoming quite a lovely young lady and can light up a room with her smile. We love her so!!!
And in other family news, our European traveler has returned home safe and sound. I can't post any pictures as I have not seen one yet from her trip, but the yummy chocolates and cool souvenirs Chelsie brought home prove that she was in another part of the world for a month. How did she get that replica of a bull fighters knife through all the metal detectors she had to go through? She is nothing if not resourceful. And she is nothing if not gainfully employed at two jobs and anxiously waiting for fall semester to start and get back into the college swing of things.
And here is a thought for all of you who know you should back up your digital pictures that are on your computer, but just can't quite find the time or inclination or whatever... Just do it! Last week I thought I had a virus on my computer. After spending a few stress-filled, anxious hours doing the very thing I've been putting off, even after many feelings that I really, really need to do it, it turned out to be a false alarm and all was well. But the thing that kept running through my head and made me the maddest at myself was that I had been prompted many times over the last few months and finally got a wake up call! I didn't lose a picture and yes, now those pesky pictures are backed up. The real question is "Will I take this lesson to heart and not let the same thing happen again?" Well, of course, time will tell and history isn't necessarily in my favor, but a girl's got to have faith in herself and who knows, maybe next time I'll get it right.
Sunset pictures keep showing up on my camera, and this one was exceptionally pretty, so I thought I'd share it. A perfect way to end my post.
Meet the newest member of the family.
Talmage Jackson Peay made his grand entrance on December 29, 2008. Weighing in at 8 lbs. 10 oz. and 21 1/2 inches long, he left no doubt he is a hearty boy, who is ready to take on the world. Ashley did great and is feeling good. She is a natural mom. Brandon stayed in the game, and contributed his support and even cut the cord. Good work!
Talmage and I formally met on Jan. 6th. After a maddening mix up by the airlines, I was just glad to be there. I feel very blessed I could spend a little over a week with them. It was incredible to hold him, rock him, feed him, change him and get to know him firsthand. and it was a real treat to help Ashley and Brandon get used to having a new member of the family. I'm not sure I would be happy just seeing a picture of Talmage's monkey hair - I'm glad I saw it in person! Way cute.
My own family really stepped up to the plate and kept things running smoothly at home. I think we all like their new-found ability to take care of themselves and kudos to Allison for taking the lion's share of dinner detail. Many kudos to John for being mom and dad while I was gone. Although I was sad to leave the Peays in Texas behind, I was glad my Idaho family was happy to see me when I got home.
It wasn't all work in Texas, and Ashley and Brandon made sure I got a taste of the town they love living in. A few highlights include -
- the famous Los Colinas Mustangs (I couldn't resist taking a cheesy tourist photo there)
- the beautiful Dallas Temple
- Sprinkles cupcake factory (orange was pretty yummy)
- Brandon's really tall office building
- Sam Moon (if you've ever been there, you'll appreciate that I'm still getting over the overwhelming experience of stepping in the door)
- Costa Vida and gelato on the same day (yum)
- seeing my friend Lauralea. I've known her since before I can remember and haven't seen her for 22 years. Catching up and sharing photos was great fun.
All in all, I think this grandma thing is going to suit me just fine. I know there are a few responsibilities that go along with it, but I think I'm up to the task. I don't see any problem with complete adoration and unabashed love for this new little one and those who will follow some day. Wow - life is good!
Wow! I should say Christmas is here, but I do have a few more days before I could actually say that. It really seems like I was just stuffing myself with turkey and all the trimmings, and now I'm wondering just how the next few days will go until the "big day".
We've made it through the Christmas concerts - Trevor and Kristin - School, singing and trumpet respectively; Amber, Kristin and Allison - Christmas Music Fireside, all singing, Allison playing on her harp.
The gingerbread houses - Trevor - school; Allison and Amber - Young Woman Daddy-daughter; everyone - home. You may notice that one of the big gingerbread houses looks like it could cave in at any moment. Apparently there was an engineering problem with that one. Luckily that frosting dries about as hard as cement, so I'm pretty sure its not falling down, but really, who knows?
The Christmas shopping - I'm pretty sure we've never been done this early before.
Allison's birthday - she was 16 going on 17, now she's just 17.
And we got our BYU freshman home safe and sound. I hope she learned a little more about making jello!!
The decorations are up - although, the remodeling really messed up my bannister/garland plan - Hmm, I think I'll get over it. :-) Trevor once again took the proverbial reindeer by the horns and got us started. Who knows when we would have actually gotten down all those boxes without his leadership!!! Our tree top angel recently underwent her own personal makeover and I must say, she is looking mighty fine. I think she definitely has many more Christmases in her future. She was looking pretty shabby and not very angelic.
We've listened to The Chipmunks Christmas just enough times to satisfy those crazy Chipmunks fans among us
We've done the Christmas Baking to make the house really smell yummy and...
The Christmas sewing is all wrapped up. Really, you'd think I'd get it done in October since I know I'm going to do it. I'll have to put that on my to do list next year!!!
Mother Nature even provided us with a few inches of snow - yes, you read it right - SNOW!!! and with very chilly temperatures, I predict a very good chance we'll have a WHITE CHRISTMAS! Now that's something for our neck of the woods. I feel pretty safe playing weatherman here, since I have about the same chance as a professional at getting it right!!!
I am using my "Christmas greetings can be late" card (similar to the "Get out of Jail free" card) this year which means I don't have to do anything about the Christmas letter until our new little bit of heaven makes his grand(son) entrance into the world. 7 days and counting! We are excited, but not quite as excited as Ashley and Brandon, which only seems right I guess. (Although Ashley makes a very cute momma-to-be.) You will be happy to know dreams do not always come true which is so good, since I dreamed the baby's name was Joe Keener Peay the other night. Where in the heck did that come from? I am not a late-night eater, so I can't blame it on something I ate!!!
Well Christmas greetings to all - both near and far! Wouldn't it be fun to get together for Christmas - everyone, and eat and laugh and play games and just enjoy each other? Well, of course we can't do that, but we can be together in spirit, and know that I'm spending Christmas with each of you in my heart.
Each year as I learn more, and my testimony of the Savior grows, Christmas, to me, becomes more genuine and less worldly. I cannot fathom the love that Heavenly Father has for us that He sent His son to earth for us. That although He knew the ending before the beginning even started, He was willing to do that for me and for you! My Christmas wish for each of you is that you will feel the love of the Savior in your lives throughout this Christmas season and always.
My grateful list for this post is as follows...
-Christmas lights - preferably clear
-The snow - Trevor is in heaven
-Karissa's mom's chocolates (YUM)
-My Savior
MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!
Prepare one large turkey; mashed potatoes; gravy; sweet potatoes; stuffing (2 kinds); rolls; broccoli salad; jello; green bean casserole; cranberry sauce (2 kinds- we like variety); a relish plate and of course, pies - pumpkin, pecan, apple streusel, chocolate pecan caramel, banana cream, and finally pumpkin pie cake.
Assign out individual foods and have volunteers prepare according to directions then serve to the following:
6 children under ten (5 girls and 1 boy was our mix this year), 3 teen age girls (one of ours was a BYU freshman), 4 parents and 2 grandparents. Make sure everyone eats until their buttons threaten to pop and they are just this side of miserable. (Remind them it is a good kind of miserable. ;-)
Add a Turkey Bowl football game (Paige made a touchdown, and Trevor shows his QB technique above), a trip to Locomotive Park to look at the Christmas lights, and a little apple cider pressing.
At the end of the day, just sit back and ENJOY the fruits of your labors.
Variations: Just to add a little diversity to the usual Thanksgiving dinner you could do the following
- burn the chestnuts for the stuffing, discard when you realize they are totally unusable.
- dump the graham cracker crust all the way out of the pan so it too is totally useless for the caramel pecan chocolate pie.
- split the end out of the bag you cook the turkey in just as you are putting it in the roasting pan. This will be an even better thing if you don't have an extra bag and have to figure out how to use the broken one.
- decide at the last minute to make the green bean casserole and as you are moving it around to make more room in the oven for other side dishes, dump it out in the oven. Just scoop it back into the baking dish and continue heating.
- when you are checking to see if the pecan pie (also a last minute entry) is done, dump half of the warm sugar/egg/corn syrup mixture out of the flimsy pie pan you used and make sure it goes all over the bottom and all 3 racks of your oven. This is guaranteed to make the head cook dissolve into uncontrollable laughter even though she is trying to talk to her daughter in Texas and in the end has to hang up because she can't get a hold of herself. (Heather, if you are reading this, I burst into laughter again every time I think about this. It is truly one of my favorite Thanksgiving memories! You can check a pecan pie at my house anytime! :-)
All of the above variations were employed during this Thanksgiving, and it was one of the best!
We were lucky to have Chelsie home from college and grateful that Heather, Eric and their 4 very cute girls could bring her up. You can see she is demonstrating her new technique for fixing jello. She must have learned that at BYU.
Rudy, the dachshund puppy also came and although he still has a little bit to learn, he did a good job supplying us with a puppy fix and we are glad he came too. (Sorry we ended on a bad note, Rudy. Things just kept piling up! :-) We'll make up next time we see each other.) Grandma and Grandpa Rietz rounded out the guest list.
The weekend was great and also included various DVDs, a really corny dog movie at the dollar theater, a home improvement project (Thanks Eric), and lots of cousin playing time. Chelsie was able to hang out with Allison and a few other High School friends and they finally got to see "Twilight". Heather and I made lists of books to read and DVDs to watch, Amber was amazing with the younger kids, and the cider pressing was fast and sticky but enjoyed by all who helped. Hayley and Kristin test the fruits of their labors below.
Dana displays her Apple Turkey and Charlotte concentrates to get just the right combo of marshmallows and raisins for the feathers.
Mom and daughter ping pong was fun, and making cookies with Chelsie gave us a little one on one time. The rain dampened Eric's hopes for some r & r time on a mountain bike, but he muddled through and got a little time in on my bike which he was a very good sport about.
Now the company is all gone and we are left here to just wish they hadn't left, but know we have to get ready for our week and all the things that are in store for us in the coming weeks - not the least which include Christmas and a NEW BABY! Here's to a Christmas season in which we celebrate the birth of the Savior and don't get overwhelmed by the hype and hullabaloo of the commercial side of things. I wish the same to each of you.
On a personal note - it seems appropriate that a person who is on the brink of Grandma hood should have to keep celebrating birthdays, and such was the case with me this month. You can't see the number the candles made on my brownies so if you don't know, you don't need to know. Just know this, my arms are too short, and my hair appts. are not close enough together. I have a great life none the less. Come on Grand baby! Your quilt is almost done, I can't wait for you to get here!!!
No big news to report this week. But I think blogging has gotten into my psyche. Last night I had a very vivid dream and after the action was over, I dreamed I could put it in my blog!!! And I dreamed about what kind of pictures I could take that would look good on the blog! (That explains the madness part) That has this 40-something techno-rookie a bit worried. Maybe I better take a little break from this blogging thing. Maybe I shouldn't have signed up for Facebook. Maybe I'm finally figuring out this computer stuff because I actually changed my background from one that is not on the regular blogging website and was something I had to cut and paste, and it worked!!! (This is the success part!)
Well, whatever is happening, it is what it is, and even if I do decide to take a break it will be temporary because you can bet your bottom dollar that when our grand baby comes into the world, this blog will be back up and running!!!
There's something to look forward to!
Grateful thoughts
- the final two doors are painted
- 9 days until Chelsie comes home (Its not too late to make your Thanksgiving reservations, Brandon and Ashley)
- a little Christmas shopping done thanks to a spontaneous mall trip with John (that really should have made the blog. It was his idea to go shopping!!!)
- the new blog background!!
Now that we've fallen back, I've got an extra hour to update this blog.:-) Can't we leave it as is? (The time I mean)
Allison was "Pretty in Pink" when she was all dressed up for Homecoming. Her date, Taylor, in the white suspenders, and she got together with 4 other couples and ate pizza, danced (a little), played games (lots of laughs) and watched "Prom Date" (scary!). A great time was had by all.
October means Halloween and Halloween means carving pumpkins. We invited our friends, the Papworths for dinner and pumpkin fun. They were good sports and got their hands slimy and gooey along with the rest of us. They were rewarded with a jack-o-lantern of their own to set on their porch for Halloween night.
Of course, Halloween also means costumes and trunk-or-treating. Kristin decided to try her hand at crutches and was a poor accident victim. Trevor was in heaven dressed like an army man ready for action. Amber was a super-hero girl, just along for the fun.
Thanks to friends who are moving, we are now able to play ping pong just like the Chinese Olympians. (Okay, so by that I mean, we have a place to hit the ball over the net and return it. Not necessarily as fast as the Chinese do it, but we have the capability should we so desire. :-) They didn't want to move their ping pong table, and we had a spot for it, so after much maneuvering and a few scratches on the new walls and ceiling (darn) we have a ping pong table in the game room. Very fun!!! We challenge you to a match, or better yet to get an aerobic workout playing "Around the World". Whoo, that will get you winded!
Finally, my grateful list for the past few weeks -
-Indian summer days when I can go on long bike rides with friends.
-good medical care available to those who need it
-my sewing machine
-my washing machine (I was reminded several times last week that wash used to be done on
wringer washing machines)
-Beautiful sunsets
