Weekly Review December 26 '09

I'll start this week with some photos from last Saturday. Here's a cardinal sitting in a tree in back of our house in the middle of our big snow storm:

Our deck buried in snow:

Seth, "helping" with the snow removal:

A neighbor's car, buried in snow (and the snow was still coming down):

Winter wonderland (taken from our front walk):

Now, here are this week's photos:

Making paintbrush cookies on Christmas Eve day

Seth helping with the cookies

Tanner's turn to cut out

Seth painting

Tanner painting

Scott adds detail before starting to paint his tray

Jared with his tray

Ready for Christmas Eve dinner!

Quilts made by Grandma Pew

Playing with blocks from Grandma & Grandpa Pew

Playing with the Wii

Now they are playing Mario Cart

Well, I was right…church was cancelled on Sunday for the second week in a row. When all was said and done, I think we got about 19 inches of snow. I know that doesn’t sound like much to you Utahns, but for poor little Maryland where they get paralyzed over 1 or 2 inches, that is a lot! It’s the second biggest storm we’ve had in the almost 10 years that we’ve been here.

At least this Sunday was a lot more relaxing than the one before. We listened to some Motab Christmas music, played games (Life, Master Mind, Mancala…) and had family night, where Frank gave a lesson on the meaning of different Christmas symbols. That afternoon we found out that school was cancelled for Monday—not surprising.

I was busy on Monday working on all the new binders for the Primary teachers. The older two boys went to play with their friend Ryan for most of the day. By afternoon, we learned that school had been cancelled for Tuesday and Wednesday as well…which means no school until January. Talk about a kid’s dream—getting out for Christmas break 3 days early!!! The boys were wild with excitement and promptly planned a sleep over for that evening. (Not at our house, thankfully!) Although the roads really weren’t too bad by then, I can’t argue a whole lot with the decision to cancel school. Although they said that the reason was “hazardous conditions along bus routes and at bus stops” (ie: poor visibility and maneuverability because of huge banks of snow) I think there was probably some economics involved. Why go to all the expense of plowing all the school parking lots for only a couple of days of school? I have to agree with that one, especially since I doubt much quality learning was going to be going on those last few days.

So Monday night was quiet with just Seth, Frank and I at home—the other three boys were spending the night with Ryan and Bryson at their house. They all went to see the lights at the temple, also. Frank had a very busy day at work and came home late and exhausted, so it was nice to have a quiet house!

Tuesday morning was quiet also with just Seth and me here. That changed around noon, when the older three boys arrived back home, bringing Ryan and Bryson with them. Seth and I escaped to Costco to get some unavoidable shopping done—it was very crowded! (But lots of yummy samples!) We brought home a huge package of hot dogs which we made for all those boys for lunch. That evening I took dinner over to a family in our ward who had a new baby—a beautiful redheaded little girl! (I got to see her.) I had a pretty bad headache by then, so I was glad to go to bed that night! Scott and Tanner got invited to spend the night with another friend in the ward—Brian—so they were gone again.

I still didn’t feel too great on Wednesday, but not any worse. Frank was off work starting that day, which was nice. Frank and I went to Wal-Mart in the morning and I went to the grocery store in the afternoon; both very crowded. After shopping, we picked up Scott and Tanner and then got the car washed (badly needed after all the snow!) The boys played at their friend Joey’s house a lot of the afternoon. Frank and I made double batches of Jingle Bell fudge (butterscotch / peanut butter fudge) and Fantasy Fudge (traditional chocolate fudge). There was not any scouts that night at the church, but Scott had a Teacher’s Quorum activity at his advisor’s house that evening.

Thursday Frank and I were on our feet all day, making two batches of cookies, a cake, and the rest of our Christmas Eve dinner. It all turned out delicious, but we were pretty tired! (Next year I am going to remember to make the cookies a day early!) After dinner, which we ate by candlelight with a tablecloth and our nice dishes, we watched Joy to the World—the church’s Christmas video which includes music and reading the Christmas story from the Bible and the Book of Mormon. Seth, who hadn’t had a nap that day, was very unhappy because he wanted to watch a different movie, and periodically told me so the whole time we were watching the movie (until he fell asleep on my lap)! After the movie, the older boys (we had put Seth down, and he was out for the night) each got to open a present from under the tree. They chose to open the presents from Grandma & Grandpa Pew, since they were pretty sure the contents were blankets, and they wanted to snuggle up in them that night. They were right—they each got a quilt made my Grandma, and they were thrilled to see pieces of their old shirts included in the quilts! After presents, Frank took Jared and Tanner to deliver some treats secretly but I think they got caught!

So Christmas morning came, and (for once) Frank and I were the first ones awake!! We both woke up shortly after 6:00. Seth woke up around 7:00, so then we woke the older three boys up. In the spirit of trying to simplify as well as spend less, we decided to get one big present for the whole family—a Wii. Seth can’t use it much yet, so he also get some Lego blocks and some puzzles. The older three boys each got sweat pants, a book, and a hydro pack (small back pack with built in water bottles for day hikes, bike rides, etc.). Frank got some kitchen gadgets and a gift card to buy some books, and I got a couple of shirts, a small CD player, and some cool aloe infused “spa socks”. It did make the shopping a whole lot easier this year, but I don’t think we spent less in the end—games and all the things that go with them start to add up!! The boys did get some presents for each other, also—movies that they got on “Black Friday” for $2-3 each, so we ended up with quite a few movies! Anyway, we did have a fun day, watching a couple of the movies and mostly playing with the Wii all day. The games that help teach balance (and improve posture) are a hoot! All the boys (including Frank) did a round of golf, and I played a round of bowling with the older three boys. We are hoping that we will all get in better shape, as well as have fun! For dinner, we stole Tim & Rachelle’s idea—we had flat bread, olives, cheese, nuts, and dried fruit, because those are the kinds of things Jesus ate when He was on the earth. Frank and I both enjoyed talking to our moms on the phone, also. We are very excited about coming to Utah next summer and getting to stay in cabins for a couple of nights with the whole family!!

Today Frank and I are back to work, getting caught up on things we need to do around the house. Frank has some work to do for some clients, also. We got packages from Amy and Shellie today. We are excited to try out the new games Shellie sent us (thanks!) and I will be working on Seth’s quiet book again with the Pellon Amy sent me (thanks again!) Yesterday it started to rain and it is still raining, so a lot of the snow has melted and the river is VERY full! We are glad for the rain, though—that means church won’t get cancelled again! I know I’ve been feeling pretty spiritually deprived these last couple of weeks. We will be having our belated Christmas program, also, which I’m sure will be wonderful.

Seth has been a busy boy. He’s managed to break two Christmas tree ornaments and he also destroyed one of the strings of lights we had wrapped around the bannisters on the stairs. It’s a good thing he’s so cute! He really likes the movie “The Parent Trap” and has asked to watch it a lot lately. He calls it “the two girls”. One day this week I was watching our Pew Family Movies and when the one of Amy & I opening up our presents on our 10^th birthday was on, he said “Hey! It’s the two girls!” That cracked me up! One thing that is funny about his transition from crib to bed: although he knows he can get out of bed, and climbs in and out of it frequently during the day, when he is having trouble going to sleep or wakes up in the night, he stays in bed and calls for me. When I go in to get him, he is always standing up on the edge of the bed, as if there were a crib rail there, in the same spot he used to stand in the crib! Usually when he wakes up from a nap, he gets out of bed himself, but any other time he still calls for me. This week I have stopped putting “onesies” on him because, as he puts it, “they squish me”. I’ve been noticing how small they were getting on him, but I haven’t bought him any undershirts yet, so I was still using them until he let me know that they are too uncomfortable!

We hope all of you had a wonderful Christmas! We always think of our families at Christmas and we are so grateful for all of you!!

Christmas Joy

There is something about Christmas that takes my mind back to my childhood. Maybe because smells and music are both powerful memory triggers, and those two things are in abundance this time of year? The sight of Christmas lights always takes me back, too.

I told Frank the other day that I always get kind of nostalgic this time of year, and I miss my family more because I have memories of Christmases "at home" coming back to me all the time. I asked him if he feels the same way, and he said he does.

Lately I've been awash in memories of paintbrush cookies, the excitement of getting to put the star on the tree (when it was my turn), homemade fudge, new dolls and paint sets, and those wonderful homemade dresses my mom made for me every year. Christmas was so exciting for me as a child; it was magic! That is the kind of excitement that you lose as you get older, and that you never get back. (But the excitement of being a parent at Christmas totally compensates!)

I've been pondering lately about what made Christmas so joyful in those days. Mostly, it was the excitement of the unknown--getting new toys, but not knowing what exactly I was getting! There was also all the yummy treats that we didn't get at any other time of year. Underneath all the surface excitement, there was the warm, contented feeling of being with family--of being loved, and knowing it. Then there was the music--I always loved the music, even as a small child. Even then, I felt something special when I sang or listened to Christmas music, although I didn't really understand then what that special feeling was.

So what makes Christmas joyful to me now? I still love the treats, I love getting surprises for my husband and children, I love being with my family, and I still love the music. I feel a different kind of joy these days, though. Although of course I was taught well, and I knew what "the true meaning" of Christmas was as a child, I didn't truly comprehend what that meaning meant for me, personally. I've discovered that knowing about something and really feeling and experiencing it for yourself are completely different. As the years have gone by, I've grown in my experience and understanding of the greatest gift ever given, which we remember at Christmas.

Part of that understanding came to me when I held my 1 week old son, and felt completely overwhelmed with love for him. It was a wonderful feeling, but a frightening feeling, too. I knew I would do absolutely anything to protect him from harm of any kind. I caught a glimpse--just a glimpse--of the terrible sacrifice our Father made for all of us when he allowed His most beloved son to die.

In more recent years, I have come to see the power of the atonement to heal all things--not just to help us overcome sin, which is incredible enough by itself--but to right all wrongs, to heal all hurts, disappointments, and pains. Not just the pain caused by our own actions, but the pain that sometimes comes from the choices others around us make, as well. I've come to see that the atonement is available to help me every single day, not just the days when everything goes wrong.

I feel that joy throughout the year now, but at Christmas time, I feel it even stronger. Now as I sing those songs that I loved as a child, I feel the words resonate in my soul, as I'm sure those who wrote the words felt them. What else can I say except "Joy to the World" and "Glory to God"? for all that He has given us.

Weekly Review December 19 '09

The Christmas tree is finally up & decorated!

Snow on the back deck, about 8:30 this morning



Snow on the deck, around noon.

The wintery Monocacy River (from our back door)

Presents piled under the tree!

Snickers looking fine with a new haircut!

Another haircut photo

A very cute Santa! (The scratch is from falling into the Christmas tree!)

We didn’t have church on Sunday because of the weather. It really wasn’t so bad—mostly rainy and cold, but apparently the roads were a little icy and quite slippery that morning. By mid morning, the roads were just wet. Most of us think we should have had church, but I guess it’s always hard to predict these things! You would think with church cancelled that we would have a quiet day with lots of extra time to just relax, but it didn’t work out that way. Mainly that was because of all the things I was supposed to do at church, such as pass out all the plates with cookies to the teachers. All of us in the Primary presidency ended up driving around to the teachers’ houses to deliver the plates instead, since we didn’t want to give the teachers plates of stale cookies and we also didn’t want to make all those cookies all over again! Other things that got messed up: choir practice (my last chance to practice since Ward Council is held at the same time as choir), a special presentation that I had prepared to give to each of the older classes (one of my counselors is going to be gone the next two Sundays so I wanted to get it done before she left, knowing I would be a lot busier the weeks she’s gone), and a visiting teaching appointment that I had right after church. There were lots of phone calls going back and forth that morning, but I think we got it all worked out!

One of my counselors and I had an appointment that afternoon to visit a family with Primary kids—we were able to go ahead and do that as planned. In addition, my other counselor and my secretary came to visit Jared & Seth. We also had family night and decorated the Christmas tree. It turned out to be a pretty full day! We did get a chance to play a few games, which we don’t usually have time to do on Sunday, so that was nice. After we got the tree decorated, we were all admiring it. Tanner said “I like it, but I’d like it better if there were presents under it!” Well, there are presents under it now—thanks to the package we got from Mom & Dad on Wednesday and a little “wrapping party” I had on Thursday evening. It’s hard for me to believe that Christmas is so soon!

I didn’t have quite as long “to do” lists as last week, but it was still a full week with book club on Monday (we had a huge amount of food!), my visiting teachers stopping by on Tuesday, a Primary presidency meeting on Wednesday night, a doctor appointment for Tanner after school on Thursday (check up on his medicine; he is 5’ 7 ½ “and weighs 110 ½ pounds now), and Snickers going to the groomer (also on Thursday; he looks great!). The laundry didn’t do itself, the house didn’t clean itself, and food did not appear in the cabinets either, so I took care of all that, too!

By Thursday evening / Friday morning, they were predicting significant snow for this week end. Frank always jokes that whenever snow is predicted around here, everyone runs to the store and stocks up on milk, bread, and toilet paper. I ended up going to Wal-Mart yesterday morning to get a few things I realized I’d forgotten on an earlier trip this week, and there were indeed a ton of people there, and I saw a lot of milk, bread, and toilet paper in shopping carts, which made me giggle. There were a lot of other things in carts, also, though.

Yesterday was enlivened a bit by the power going out a couple of times—there was work on the power lines being done nearby. Thankfully, the power was off for only a few minutes each time it went out. Frank and I went to the temple last night. We left as soon as the boys got home from school so that we would be sure to get back home before the storm hit. (It wasn’t supposed to hit until around midnight, but we wanted to be on the safe side!) We got stuck in pretty bad traffic, so we missed the 4:00 session we were shooting for. Instead of waiting for the 5:00 session, we did initiatories instead, which I always enjoy. We left the temple by about 5:45, but didn’t get home until about 8:30 because Frank had to stop on the way home to buy a computer for a client, we stopped for dinner, and we ran into some more traffic (but not too bad this time). We found everything was well at home—the older boys do a good job babysitting (although they could work on cleaning up the kitchen after meals).

We woke up this morning to about 6 inches of snow, and it is still coming down. Now, at noon, we have a full foot of snow. The weather reports say that the snow is going to get heavy this afternoon, with an additional 8-12 inches expected and another 2-4 inches expected this evening! The ward Christmas party, which was scheduled for this evening, has already been cancelled. Frank and I were not going to be able to go to that anyway because the Griffin party was also supposed to be tonight, at a restaurant here in Frederick. (We had already committed to go to his work party when they decided to move the ward party to the same night. Originally, the ward party was scheduled for December 5^th.) Now the ward party is going to take place in January, so I guess we’ll get to go! The Griffin party has also been cancelled (I’m not sure when it’s gong to be rescheduled). I planned dinner for just the boys tonight, so dinner is going to be interesting! We’re thinking church is probably going to be cancelled tomorrow, also.

Frank was supposed to be helping cook the ward dinner all day today, but now he doesn’t have to go so he has some unexpected free time. He is still trying to think of excuses to go outside, because he loves driving in the snow! (Yes, he’s crazy.) Maybe all of us will venture out later to sled or build a snowman! The boys and I did some scouts and wrapped some more presents (wrapping paper roll fights were popular.) Now they are all playing video games.

It looks like we’re going to have a white Christmas this year!

Weekly Review December 12 '09

It appears that winter has finally arrived in Maryland, and I think it’s here to stay. The snow we got last Saturday didn’t last very long, but we got a little more on Tuesday evening and wow, is it cold! Thursday and Friday were particularly cold, as well as windy. Brrrrrr! Most people thought we were going to have a delayed opening (if not school closed entirely) on Wednesday because we were supposed to get rain / freezing rain Tuesday night. It did rain with a little bit of ice mixed in earlier in the evening and then not long before Frank and I went to bed it started snowing very hard and everything was covered with at least a half inch of snow before we went to bed. However, some time in the night it warmed up enough that the snow turned to rain and washed away all the snow and ice on the roads, so school was held as usual.

It was a busy week for all of us, but I don’t think I’ll have a lot to write about. I had all the usual work to do, plus several extra things like mailing packages and Christmas cards, giving the dog a bath, ordering photos, scheduling visits and preparing a special presentation for Primary, going through all the coats in the closet to weed out old ones and figure out who might need a new one, and taking Scott & Tanner to buy boots, gloves, long johns, etc. for a camp out they had this week end. Since it is so cold, I wanted to make sure they had adequate warm clothes! All of that added up to long lists of things to do each day and a lot of running around. I feel like I got a lot accomplished, though.

Frank was gone Tuesday evening until pretty late because he was working on his MCNE class with his boss. On Thursday evening he was even later because he had volunteered to help with the Festival of Lights down at the temple grounds. They always ask the local stakes to provide male volunteers to help with directing traffic and so forth. Frank was at work by 6:00 that morning and he went straight from work to volunteer from 4:30-9:30, so it was a really long day for him. He was also out in the freezing cold with the wind blowing most of that time, so it wasn’t pleasant but he was happy to help. He saw Scott that morning before he left for work, but the other boys were still asleep when he left, and in bed before he got home, so he didn’t see any of them at all that day.

Wednesday evening was my night to be out—we had our Relief Society Christmas program and dinner. It was very nice. The program was focused on what Christmas was like in Joseph Smith’s day. A couple in our ward dressed up like Joseph & Emma and they shared stories and read journal entries from that time. The dinner was fabulous—we actually had prime rib, along with creamy mashed potatoes, steamed vegetables, rolls, fruit salad, and corn casserole. All of it was delicious! After I got home we stayed up a little late to watch a show called Top Chef. We haven’t been watching all season, but we’ve been hearing about the show a lot on the local radio station because two of the final three contestants are brothers who grew up in Frederick (both graduated from the same high school that Scott attends now) so we were interested to see who won. It did get down to the two brothers as the last two contestants, but the younger brother, who doesn’t live in Frederick anymore, was the one who won top honors. The older brother still lives in Frederick and actually owns a restaurant downtown, so maybe we will have to go check it out sometime. (Although I’m sure it’s pretty expensive!) Anyway, it was fun to see a couple of people from Frederick do so well.

Friday evening was quieter than usual, with Scott and Tanner gone. After we got the boys to bed, Frank and I watched the movie “Julie & Julia” which we really enjoyed. I also finished a book I was reading all week called Perilous Gard by Elizabeth Marie Pope. It’s more of a young adult book, but a friend offered to loan it to me when I told her I’d read another book by the same author (The Sherwood Ring) and loved that book. I liked Perilous Gard also, although I liked the Sherwood Ring better. Both books are historical with a bit of fantasy thrown in, which is a fun combination.

Today has been a busy day. I spent all morning making 2 batches of brownies and 2 batches of cookies, and putting them on the plates for the Primary teachers that the kids made a few weeks ago. Frank made a run to the store and also put up the Christmas tree (it’s not decorated yet). When I was done with the cookies, I got Seth down for a nap and then took Jared to a couple of places for Museums by Candlelight, which is an annual event here in Frederick every year. (Many local museums & historic places open up free of charge and usually have activities for kids as well. After dark, they all light up their buildings & grounds with candles.) We went to a place called Rose Hill Manor as well as the Roger Brooke Taney house (he was a resident of Frederick who was also a Supreme Court Justice in Lincoln’s time). I think the part we enjoyed most about Rose Hill Manor was the carriage museum. They had probably about 25 old buggies, wagons, carriages, and sleighs—very interesting! At the Roger Brooke Taney house, they had a lady singing songs in one room, a couple of crafts in two other rooms, hearth cooking, and (Jared’s favorite part) cookies and hot chocolate. Unfortunately, I forgot to take the camera with us, so we didn’t get any pictures.

After Jared and I got home, we made dinner; the missionaries came for dinner also which is always nice. Scott and Tanner arrived home while we were gone to the museums. They were very tired, but they said they stayed warm, so all the effort to make sure they had warm clothes was worth it! Scott was really crabby, though, and ended up going to bed before dinner. Frank was able to get Seth’s new bed set up; he is very excited about it. Frank had Seth help him take down the crib. When they were done, Seth came running down the stairs and said (very excited!): “Guys, guys! Come look! Daddy broke my crib!” We all got a laugh out of that. After dinner, we cleaned all the floors and then watched a Christmas movie on the Disney Channel (Eloise at Christmastime). It was a cute movie. Now we are going to bed!

Weekly Review December 5 '09

There's still something messed up with my computer--I still can't move photographs around. Last week I got a virus; Frank was able to get rid of it, but he had to reset my computer and ever since a bunch of things haven't been working the way they used to. So, until he figures out what's going on, I guess all my photos will be at the beginning of my posts.

The stockings are hung!

First snowfall of the year--we got about 1 1/2 inches.

Welcoming wreath

Mistletoe--Frank & I tested it out. It works!

Christmas knick knacks--nearly everything on the shelf was given to us!

Earlier today, when the snow first started to stick.

Snow just starting to come down.

This Sunday was kind of crazy, as they usually are. Frank was still feeling terrible, so he stayed home from church. I had a busy sharing time that day, but it all turned out great. I picked gratitude for the topic, and focused on being grateful for our teachers. I had purchased plain white plates at the dollar store—one for each teacher—and we had the kids sign their names around the edges of the plates with some special pens. (Once they dry, you bake the plates and it makes the writing permanent.) There were a lot of plates to do (22) because I also got plates for the pianist and music leader, as well as for several teachers who were just recently released. We managed to get it all done, though, and the plates look really cute. I asked a member of our ward who is artistic and has beautiful handwriting to write “Thank You for Feeding Our Souls” in the middle of each plate. We are going to make treats to put on the plates and give them to all the teachers next Sunday.

This week has not been quite as busy as some, although I can’t say I found myself at a loss of things to do! There’s just not a lot to write about. On Tuesday I locked Seth and I out of the house—Frank had to come rescue us! Luckily, we were able to sit in the car while we waited for him because it was really pretty chilly that day. He had gone to work at 4:00 am and he had to go back after he let us into the house, so it was a long day for him. Wednesday evening I had a Primary presidency meeting while the boys were at scouts and on Thursday I took Scott to the orthodontist and interviewed one of the Primary girls who just turned twelve. That’s about it! I’ve been busy with other Primary stuff and the usual household chores. I’ve also been trying to finish the book for book chat. It’s called Gilead, and I’m really enjoying it, but I haven’t had a lot of free moments to read.

Seth has not been feeling his best this week which means he hasn’t always slept very well. He’s had a bit of a runny nose, has felt warm, and has been a lot crabbier than usual. It could be worse, though—I’m grateful it’s not! I’m also grateful that Frank started feeling better on Monday so he’s been able to work all week.

Today it is snowing!! Whenever I’ve heard the song “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas” this last week, I’ve said “No it’s not.” But now it is! It started out as “slushy rain” before we woke up this morning, but by 9:00 it had turned to snow. Now it’s about 2:30, and we have an inch or two and it’s still coming down hard. I am not a huge fan of snow, as you all know, but I have to admit it’s pretty. Everyone else is THRILLED to get snow, especially the boys who are hoping they’ll get out of school on Monday (I doubt it)!

With the snow coming down outside, it’s been the perfect day to get out the boxes and start putting up all the Christmas decorations. We may even manage to get the tree up before the day is over. We also drew names this morning for our “secret service” which we do for each other during the month of December. This is a tradition we started a couple of years ago and it has become a favorite. The idea is to try to do small acts of service for and to be especially nice to the person whose name you draw. We also give each person a few dollars to buy a few treats for their person, so we made a trip to the store to pick out treats. The kids get a kick out of smuggling treats onto each other’s pillows or into stockings. We decided to do something different this year instead of our usual “Twelve Days of Christmas” secret service. Because there are many people in our ward in need (but we’re not sure who all of them are) we asked the kids if it would be ok with them if we used the money we normally would spend on 12 Days of Christmas gifts and donate it to our ward’s Christmas fund. They were all ok with doing that, so that’s what we are going to do. We still plan to pick one or two families and leave a plate of goodies on their doorstep, so they will still have the fun of ringing the doorbell and running!!

Frank did some more shopping this afternoon (he loves going out in the snow) and now he is replacing the doorknobs on our front and back doors. They were getting old and not turning very easily any more, so it will be nice to have new ones. I am going to get an extra key made to keep in the car, in case I lock myself out of the house again!

Well, this one is short but I’m sure you are all relieved that I kept it down to a few words for once!