Booking It

I bought a new bookcase the other day. It's six feet tell and about three feet wide and it is beaoooooutiful. Meaning, I've needed it for about a year and wanted one for about two years and I finally succumbed to the siren song of more shelf space and brought one home. 

All of this, mind you, after looking at no less than twelve furniture stores. It had to be a white bookcase, it had to be a strong and sturdy bookcase and not cost me a mortgage payment (who am I kidding, I don't have a mortgage, but you know what I mean), and it could not exceed 34 inches wide. And I found one that matched all of that criteria and then I had to go look at several more stores just to make sure that the bookcase I found was the only true bookcase for my space.

 

It was. 

We brought it home the other day in my trusty CR-V (have I mentioned how much I love that car?) and it fit perfectly in the space I had for it. Then I got to pull out my three boxes of books that have been stored away and unpack them. 

And then I nearly cried. 

Because it was like I reconnected with old friends and great memories. Each book is a treasure to me and with most of them I can tell you when I purchased or acquired them and how they have impacted me. They make me smile just to look at them. My old friends had returned for a lovely and long visit. 

I now have three big bookcases and I even have some room to add more books when the inspiration hits me. There are several divisions for my books. There are the classics which run from Louisa May Alcott to Eudora Welty with a healthy smattering of Jane Austen, George Eliot, Willa Cather and Chaim Potok in between. The other divisions can't beat my classics in size but they are each and everyone important to me. There are books on:

• art  
• travel 
• finance 
• health and diet
• organization
• herbs and alternative healing
  
• children's and young adult literature
• gospel topics and church manuals
• contemporary novels
• relationships

Of course, within each of those divisions they are alphabetized by author and then title if I have multiple books from one author. You know, that's the only OCD way to go when it comes to knowing where all of your books are all of the time. 

So, I've fired up the old reading chair, turned on a lamp and I'm headed off to book land to hang out with an old favorite. 

What to Do, What to Do

I seem to have a high level of popularity with Miss G recently. Enough that whenever I stop by her house for a moment she either wants to know if I'm staying or if she can come with me wherever I'm going. I'm totally flattered by this four-year-old adoration and she has been my little buddy over the last several days. 

The other day she was with me at my house when I started pulling out the Halloween decorations. I have a scary Halloween door knocker that swells with a spooky crescendo when you push its button and G could not leave it alone. We listened to scary door knocker over and over and over and over and over again while G proclaimed every time she was "not scared of the scary noise." 

As a distraction technique, we started chatting about Halloween night when we use the scary door knocker and what other spooky things you might see or hear on Halloween night. G mentioned witches and I started reciting "Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn, and caldron bubble" in my cackliest witch voice. She stared at me through this little recitation and said "What you doing?" like I had suddenly turned certifiable and ought to be committed. When I told her I was using my witch voice to say a spell just like witches do on Halloween night, she responded with "I not scared of your scary voice" and then proceeded to make me recite the spell over and over and over again. By the end of the afternoon my house looked a bit more Halloween-y and we had doubled and toiled lots of fire and caldrons. 

[Now, heads up. This is where the shameless advertisement comes in.] 

I found this Witches' Spell and other great fall activities on RedRoko, a new blog with ideas for fun ways to spend time with your wee ones. Each activity is broken into 15 minute or 1 hour time segments and they are categorized under Know It, Make It, Play It and Read It headings. In other words, need a great idea for a Halloween book to read to your kids? Or want to make a pumpkin smoothie for family night? Or ever had your kids ask you "Why do the leaves change color?" each fall? Well, on RedRoko you can find answers to kid questions, yummy treats they might like and ideas for doing fun things with kids when you are fresh out of ideas of your own.

And who knows, you might even know some of the authors over there. :)   

Double the Fun

I'm sitting next to four-year-old G the other day just hanging out when she becomes deeply interested in my chin. When we are sitting next to each other that is about where the top of her head meets me--at my chin--so it makes sense that she would want to inspect it, as it is likely the first thing she sees when she turns to look at me. 

She touched my round chin and then touched her own pointy chin and then touched my chin again. Then she said:

"Why do your chin have two parts?"

"Excuse me?"

"Why do your chin have two things?" she said while touching my chin and then my extra-love chin that burgeons out beneath my real chin. 

Why, indeed. 

I could give her some spiel about calories in and calories out, or some sob story about my genetic weakness and the cruel psychological horror inflected on me by this torment, or I could even plead ignorance with a shrug and an "I don't know." None of these would interest someone in her age group, so I gave her the only sincere and truthful answer I could come up with on the fly. 

"Because sometimes God likes to make some of us with extra parts. That just means that I have more parts to squeeze you with. And someday, if you work really, really hard and eat lots of chocolate, maybe you can have extra parts too!"

Yes, indeed. Chocolate just gives me a greater ability to love. 

And I'm sticking to that story.

Sunday Snacking

We've had a little tradition going on around here at Eden's Garden that makes a simple Sunday special. 

It happens after church when some of the n&ns (nieces and nephews) come over to my house for snacks. 

It is usually for only about an hour before our family's big Sunday dinner but they plunder my stock of toys and critique the snacks.  The castle in the background there was one of my favorite toys to play with at my grandmother's house when I was little and it continues its reign as a favorite at my house.

The jockeying for position around the snack bowl is very important. We've found that a circle works best. And some of them take their position in that circle very seriously. 

Hopefully, what we end up with is a few minutes of pleasure and lots of imaginative play. 

And the most make-believe usually comes from my side when I get to pretend for just a few short minutes each week that these little cherubs are all mine. 

RESTAURANT REVIEW: Citris Grill

I have a hard time making a decision. At least when it comes to making a decision in a restaurant on what to order. I love to peruse a menu in detail and go over and over all the possibilities in my mind and narrow my choices down to what I really want. Except what I usually really want is a taste of about four things instead of limiting myself to just one entree and one taste experience. That's why I like going out for Chinese food when we eat family style and everyone orders an entree and then we share and share alike. Then I get to taste lots of things. 

So, in my frustration at not being able to taste everything I want, I often order a couple of appetizers as my entree. Then at least I get to taste two different things. Or even better I order one of those appetizers that is like three in one--you know, like mozarrella sticks, bbq wings, and quesadilla slices. Then my taste buds get to explore several items. That is as close to nirvana as I have come, restaurant-wise. 

Until yesterday. That is right, people, I found something even better than my appetizer-as-an-entree restaurant life and it is called Citris Grill. 

This place is local and purports to serve fresh ingredients only. And let me tell you it all tasted fresh and delicious to me. But that isn't the only reason I love it. It also serves every appetizer, soup, salad and most entrees in either a hearty or petite version. The petite version of each item ranges from about $2.50 to $5.00. Which means my dreams have come true: I can actually go to a restaurant and order the taste of four items I want without breaking the bank or killing my digestive system. I thought I had entered food heaven when I realized this. 

So, Meg and I were in our element. She being my sister experiences similar pangs of indecision. We both hate that awful feeling when you finally decide and order something and when it comes, you wish you had ordered one of the other three things you really wanted because the item in front of you makes your 0h-so-NOT-fabulous list after one bite. Well, we ordered plenty last night and some of the items made our oh-so-NOT-fabulous list but it didn't matter! Because there were other items that made the oh-SO-fabulous list with a gusto. 

We lucked out with a $50 gift certificate so we really went wild ordering several petite versions of things like:

• Rock shrimp and calamari: a little too deep-fried for me. But hey, I got to try squid!
  
• Smoked salmon plate: a definite favorite. Lots of great smoked salmon, decadent cream cheese, red onions, tomatoes and capers and served with fresh-from-the-oven pita wedges. 
• Sweet potato corn chowder: it needed a pinch of salt but once we added that this soup was creamy and full of yummy, earthy goodness. 
• Crab wontons: were okay. I liked them, but once again more crispy and deep-fried than I expected. But definitely worth the try when dipped in the great hot sauce that accompanied them. 
• Cobb salad: very good to me, if it only had a bit more punch to the dressing. It was served with gorgonzola cheese instead of the more typical blue cheese, a substitution I liked,  but as a result it needed a bit more bite or pungency in the dressing that was missing. Still a very good salad. 
• One pizza: a definite keeper with its black beans, bbq sauce and chicken. This dish was a favorite of the night as well. 
• Five pizza: a cheeseburger pizza that was even better the next day. It earned rave reviews at the impromptu taste testing we shared with several family members a day later. 

Then the entree we ordered was a New York Oscar steak, which means it was topped with asparagus, crab and a bearnaise sauce and served over a wild rice. And what a dish this was. It is not on the menu but was the special that night and it was EXACTLY what I want all of my future steak orders to encompass. It was melt-in-your-mouth tender with hot, buttery asparagus. The asparagus were done perfectly--not too chewy and not limp and soft. The steak was sublime. It practically sizzled in my mouth and then dissolved in a fresh, yummy splendor on my tongue. 

Of course, since we were celebrating, we had to wrap up this taste fiesta with their chocolate cake. Hmmmm. It was a dense, almost brownie-like cake with a strong cocoa taste. 

We had a ball. And I've finally found the kind of restaurant that caters to the indecisive crowd. 

The next day we wanted to share our spoils, so we held an impromptu taste test at my parents' house for anyone present. What got rave reviews a day later? The cheeseburger pizza, Cobb salad, smoked salmon plate and the New York Oscar steak. 

So, the big question now is: Anyone want to go to dinner? 

B-E-A-UTIFUL Day

Photo of flowers I received. Love, love, love them.

It wasn't the day I expected after a week spent reckoning my past and figuring my future. This happens to me every year because it is my birthday and always causes me lots of reflections on the good and the bad in my life.


But it has been a lovely day.


It started with a quiet morning, visits from dear, dear people, and a GORGEOUS bunch of flowers. Sometimes beauty just knocks me flat and that is what these flowers have done for me today. They made the whole world around me vibrate with their shimmering beauty.


I've been to the symphony, found a great new restaurant that answers one of the deep desires of my heart (the ability to order multiple items for a small price so I get a taste of everything), and I've even had a long, heartfelt talk.


Then between phone calls, text messages, emails, cards and gifts I've been filled up with your love. Thank you. I feel simply lovely and completely loved.


It has been a B-E-A-UTIFUL day.

Touching

I totally agree with this post from yesterday over at cjanerun.com. It is from Courtney and Nie's sweet brother Andrew and it is all about the importance of touch and how touch is essential to our health, our well-being and our spiritual lives. I couldn't agree more. I think one reason I felt so healthy and well on my mission was because we were always hugging, holding and wrapping our arms around someone. That kind of touch alone is healing. And powerful. And needed.

I would classify my family as pretty touchy lovey. Not necessarily always with each other, but definitely high on the list of essential daily needs. This weekend, Brock and Julie were talking about the book Five Lanugages of Love and we were all telling each other what our language of love is. Meg mentioned that physical touch was high on her list and Brock said, "Yeah, that's easy, 'cause you are one of us" meaning a part of our family. Our clan certainly thrives on wrapping arms around each other and a big kiss on the cheek. And we all recognize that love hunger in each other.

Really it seems important to everyone. So, if you have a moment today don't forget to love on someone today. You both may feel better afterwards.

Racing Fall

These were the excited faces greeting me before we left for our trip. G was so excited about this trip that she kept telling me, "I've never even been to St. George before." Yes, except she was born there and spent her first year of life there. We tried to break it to her gently. B was just happy to be a part of all the excitement. When we were packing up the car, I loaded G's car seat in first and B started wailing immediately. He had been sitting in his car seat in the front room waiting for me to arrive and when I took G's car seat out to the car, he thought he was being left behind. Not to worry, we loaded in his car seat and reassured him. 


The first part of the drive was through the mountains south of us on a drive called the Nebo Loop. I had been wanting to take this drive for a long time and it seemed like the perfect opportunity with the mountains ablaze with color. It was stunningly beautiful. 


We even saw several cows grazing along the roadside. And B loved them and pointed out every cow he saw on the subsequent trip. He even learned how to say "moo." See what we were doing for his educational skills? 

The summit was an ear-popping 9000 feet. Definitely felt a bit woozy at that altitude. But I wouldn't have missed the scenery. 

We stopped at several lookouts just to take pictures. And good thing we did too because the next day this area got the first snow storm of the season. It was the last chance we had to see these views this season. 

Megan even bravely put a smile on her face and tried to enjoy the whole experience. She claims to have a little too much of Dad in her--the concept of plan it, do it, don't waste a moment. I've have been forever changed by a road trip I took to Florida with my aunt when I was just out of high school. We spent a week leisurely traveling across country, stopping to see many points of interest and enjoying our way through each state. I was hooked on that kind of travel from that moment. So, Megan got to enjoy too!

But we did--finally--reach our destination which was Brock and Julie's house. Julie had the big race the next day, so we chatted and ate her yummy sugar cookies and talked about the marathon. 

The next morning Julie left at 4AM for the race. We watched the clock knowing she began running at 6:45AM and that she wanted to run it in under four hours. We got to the very, very busy end of the course and walked in the pouring rain to see her cross the finish line. Yes, it had been pouring in St. George since early that morning so all the runners did the entire marathon in unrelenting rain. It didn't seem to mess up Julie at all though. She said her race went really well. She never felt like she hit a wall and she kept an excellent pace making it to the finish line at 3:55:56! She did her marathon in less than four hours. She looked totally triumphant at the finish line and we couldn't have been more excited for her. Brock and M had watched her months of training and they were her greatest fans that day. 

And Julie was all smiles. It was a great victory for her. 

We were all so enthused after watching her that we smiled as we congratulated her and snapped some pictures and then headed back to the car. Even G and B were great sports despite being soaking wet. 

They were just excited to be involved in all the excitement. 

After lunch and a long, hot bath for the runner, we sang "Happy Birthday" to Julie whose birthday is in a few days. And we kissed Mason and chatted up Brock. It was fun to have them all to ourselves. 



And we took a picture in front of the sign that Brock had posted on the house celebrating his favorite runner. It was a memory-making day. 

Getting Out

Today we are headed to St. George to see Julie run in the St. George marathon tomorrow. Go, Julie!

Meg and two of her wee ones are coming with me. We are going to take a luxurious ride down there through the Nebo Loop. We are going to tell stories, listen to the Wicked soundtrack and entertain G and B. When we get there, we are going to pump Julie for pre-race details and then play with M and tease Brock while Julie goes to bed early--her alarm goes off around 4AM the next day.

Mostly, I am going to enjoy watching someone else do something very hard that she is very well prepared to do. And we are going to cheer her on and congratulate her victory.

I wanted to see Les Miserables and Moonlight and Magnolias while I was down there but both are SOLD OUT. I need to make my ticket purchases at least a month in advance I see now. 

Mostly, I'm just hoping for a chance to get away, breathe some new air and change my perspective. 

We will see if I can manage any of that. 

Polls, Maps and the Complete Chronicles of Denmark

Just to keep the Denmark Chronicles spiced up, I've added a poll to the right side regarding your favorite story on the Danish adventures so far. Here's your chance to rank which stories have made the biggest impression.

Also, to save my sanity and make getting around a bit easier, I've made a list of the daily adventures in the Denmark Chronicles over to the right as well. Now the whole trip so far is right at your fingertips.

Finally, I added a map of Denmark, just to orient you on locations. I know that I love me a good map.

Now, a word to all of you who didn't actually fly to Denmark with me. I like to believe you would have come and you would have enjoyed yourselves. As a result, I've notched up the level of detail to, possibly, a mind-numbing range, just so you really can live the adventure. Now, though, I have frightening dreams that what I'm really doing to you all is forcing you to sit through a slide show presentation of the minutae and entrails of some coma-inducing, personal plod through travel purgatory.

For your sake and mine, let's hope that is not the case.

If it is the case then the only way you or I are going to make it through the next eight days of travel is if you SPEAK UP and Internet-wise scratch your fingernails on the chalkboard and give me a heads up. That fingernail scratching would certainly keep me on my toes.

I'm convinced though that what is getting you through each post now are burning questions such as: "Does Rus ever stop joking?" "Who has the first mental breakdown of the group?" "How many days in a row can Eden wear the same clothes without stabbing herself in the eyes?" and "Is Matt ever awake in a photo?"

To answer those and other feverish formulations, strap yourselves in and hang on to your hats, 'cause folks, this ride ain't over yet.