Cemetery Flowers

About a month ago some new neighbors moved in the apartment below us. The family consists of a single mother and two cute little girls. The older daughter is in 4th grade and goes to an elementary school nearby so she rides the Aggie Shuttle home from school at the same time I do!

It has soon become a highlight of my day to ride the bus home with Catherine because she always has the most hilarious things to say. I don't know if you are familiar with the Junie B. Jones books but if I could tell you a person that was a real life form of Junie B...it would be Catherine. Sparing the details, from what she has told me, and what Marshall and I hear through the thin floor boards...Catharine's home life is far from peachy.

One day one of my friends and I made some mini-cheesecakes in little cupcake tins and I thought maybe my new neighbors downstairs would want some. On the bus ride home I told Catherine I would be stopping by that evening with a treat. She was pretty excited when I showed up. She started rambling about how her sister and mom don't like cheesecake so she would eat them all...I told her she better at least offer to them first :)

A few days later my husband came in from school with a bundle of fake flowers that were a little muddy-ish and said "these were on the porch...know where they came from?" I said I thought I had a pretty good idea. The next time I saw Catherine on the bus she asked me how I liked the flowers. I told her I loved them and that they were beautiful!

She seemed pleased with my response and said back to me, "well, it was like totally a coincidence because I was walking home from swimming lessons through the cemetery and I just saw those yellow flowers by a grave and thought, Caitlyn would LOVE those! They were a little muddy from being splashed by they bikes driving by so I just swished them in the gutter and actually they looked great!"

I hope whoever those flowers belonged to won't mind...I'm not in the mood to get haunted!! But I can proudly say the second time flowers have ever been given to me in my life were stolen from a dead person.

Spring Fever

All the best things happen in the spring time. Mothers day, Easter, MY BIRTHDAY, our anniversary, and the ever so awaited END OF WINTER. Don't get me wrong, snow is wonderful for sledding and beautiful around Christmas time, but that's about it. Marshall and I are getting a little bit cooped up in this little apartment of ours, and it's feeling a little less cozy and a little bit more like a jail cell. Especially with the white cinder block wall...

We got a blissful opportunity to play tennis...OUTSIDE yesterday!!! And boy was I grateful we took up the opportunity since it snowed today. I love my husband soooo much!! (just a cheesy side note). He got an Aggie Bike, they let college students rent them for free, and he is like a kid with a new Christmas toy on that thing. I thought about forcing him to wear a helmet since he keeps trying to do tricks, not because of the tricks really...just cause I think it would be hilarious to see him wear a helmet while he tinkers around campus...but then I decided a helmet wasn't worth sleeping on the couch...

Spring time makes me think about my home back in good ole' Rupert, Idaho. There's something about spring time in the country that makes me smile. I hear the birds and smell grass being cut for the first time, and I think of home. I remember when I was a kid, at least more kiddish than I am now...bolting through the fields behind my house, feeling like I had a new life because I didn't have to wear a coat for once in such a long long time. Sometimes I miss those kid days.

I guess in a rambling scrambling way I am just trying to say...I love Spring. I hope it decides to take a seat and stay awhile. Do me a favor and pray for no more snow with me!

Valentines Day Dinner :)

CARDIAC ARREST CARBONARA
3/4 lb bacon
4 eggs
1 lb bow tie pasta
1/4 cup butter
1 cup heavy whipping cream
4 serrano chilies – chopped
3 large cloves of garlic – chopped
1 bunch of green onions – chopped
1 cup Parmesan cheese – shredded
1 tablespoon olive oil
8 oz sautéed shrimp*
*Melt one stick of butter in saucepan; add shrimp with liberal doses of lemon pepper, cracked black pepper and crushed red pepper, and a very generous layer of garlic powder. Stir and simmer until cooked. Set aside.
Cut bacon into small slices and fry until crisp in a deep iron skillet. Remove bacon w/ slotted spoon and place onto paper towel to drain. Add chilies, garlic and onions to bacon fat, sauté for 1 minute and remove w/ slotted spoon, & add to shrimp. Add drained bacon to shrimp. Retain one tbsp of bacon fat in the skillet. Turn burner setting to warm. Melt 1/4 butter in microwave and add to skillet.
Whisk eggs and cream in a bowl until well mixed. Fold in cheese.
***Note: These three items need to be at room temperature; therefore, let them set out for 2 hours prior to preparation.
Cook pasta al dente, having added the olive oil to the cooking water.
Drain pasta and immediately add it to the skillet. Add the egg, cream, cheese mix, and toss the pasta until well coated.
Stir in the shrimp, bacon, onion, garlic, chili mix.
Serve immediately.
Bon appetit!
Submitted by: Dr. Dan
(Original Recipe calls for mushroom instead of...SHRIMP!!)

If No One Sees You...Then Nobody Knows

What is so shameful about being good? Why does it feel like one must throw him/herself out on a line to be friendly? Isn't there a sense of power in being liked, in showing love? Why is it easier to look at the ground as the world passes you by?
Last semester I met an amazing new friend in my biology class. She spent her summers serving at a Lutheran Youth Camp, and was very interested in cultures and exploring new religions. In fact, last Christmas she celebrated Hanukkah (even though she isn't Jewish). I found her to be such an interesting person, and looked forward to becoming her friend.
We often rode the bus home together, because she lived in the dorms on the same route. One bus ride I asked my new friend how she was liking the dorms...she told me she wasn't too happy there. I wasn't surprised, since dorms tend to be a little cramped and lacking personal space, but when she told me her reasoning for disappointment I was heartbroken.
She proceeded to tell me that all her room mates were "Mormon" and that the moment they found out she was not like them, they didn't seem interested in becoming her friend. She told me that they always seemed to be going to such fun activities for their church, but never invited her. She felt so out of place and uncomfortable.
I let her know that I am a Mormon as well. And I promised her, that as I was raised in the church, our teachings are emphasized on love and kindness...that each soul is great in the sight of God, who loves all his children. But I could tell that she would have a bad taste in her mouth because of her negative experience.
I was listening to this song by Josh Groban, and the phrase hit me "If No One Sees You...Then Nobody Knows" and thinking about how much we as members treat our organization as a "club". We have cultured ourselves to feel so tight-knit inside this bubble, interacting only with those who understand our life-style. Forgetting that the very REASON why we are here is to help bring souls unto Christ.
I was caused to wonder...how many people watched me attend institute and church activities. I thought about some of my room mates that I just ASSUMED had better things to do, so I never invited them along. Our activities and meetings aren't a secret. They are a blessing, organized by God to help all of his children grow and learn. So here's to reaching out, sometimes being an example is just not good enough. Sometimes we must get out of our comfort zones, and give people the opportunities we have been blessed with most of our lives.
Don't keep your love hidden away...

Joy In My World

Jenkins Lloyd Jones:

“Anyone who imagines that bliss is normal is going to waste a lot of time running around shouting that he has been robbed.

“[The fact is] most putts don’t drop. Most beef is tough. Most children grow up to be just people. Most successful marriages require a high degree of mutual toleration. Most jobs are more often dull than otherwise. …

“Life is like an old-time rail journey—delays, sidetracks, smoke, dust, cinders and jolts, interspersed only occasionally by beautiful vistas and thrilling bursts of speed.

“The trick is to thank the Lord for letting you have the ride"

I love this quote, because it makes me think about how grateful I am for my journey. I am grateful for the ups and downs of life…because what’s the fun of a roller coaster if it is just a straight, slow, and uneventful track. The anomalies of life keep me sane, keep me happy.

               

                     I love…

• ·         The bus, because that’s where I make all my new friends
• ·         Surprise visits by good friends. They always happen at times that seem most inconvenient til’ you realize you needed it more than ever.
• ·         To smile even when times make it hard, because I know smiles have magic, and they make things feel less heavy.
• ·         The sweet smiles I get in return.
• ·         Thinking of Christmas presents to give when I’m broke, because it forces me to come up with something meaningful.
• ·         Marshall’s cold feet on my  warm feet at night, because then I know his homework is finally done, and he is finally next to me.
• ·         Cold weather because then I get to drink hot chocolate!
• ·         That finals week is almost here, because that means I’m all the closer to seeing my big sister, and dearest friend.
• ·         The knowledge of my Savior and his gospel
• ·         A warm home after a cold walk
• ·         Baking treats instead of doing homework
• ·         A family who knows me inside and out
• ·         Dearest friends
• ·         Marshall’s hugs
• ·         You!

Every season, after Thanksgiving our family endeavors a mountain adventure to find a Christmas tree. This trip  usually ends with a grand finale of the dads getting impatient and trudging off to find a tree suitable to their standards, while the rest of us are left at the trucks to entertain ourselves til' they return. Here's how we do it :)

Camden, and mostly Marshall dug a snow cave...

COLD! Even though he wouldn't wear a coat, I at least got him to wear my gloves...

This snow cave became a tunnel...come in through the top OR bottom of the hill. Their creativity gives a good idea of how long the papa's were taking to find our trees!

Before I forced him to at least wear my gloves. 

We TRIED to sled...notice Marshall's sled left at the top of the hill :)

The hill got boring, so they used their man power to pull each other on the sled instead! I love my cute cousins.

On the day of Thanksgiving, dad taught Marshall the ways of the hunting master. Mom wasn't too happy about their idea of spending the holiday, but dad's success on shooting a deer caused Marshall to say that was definitely one of the more exciting thanksgivings he'd had...and it helped him work off all that grub!

"I think my deer is right down in there"

This pic is from a different hunting trip. I think he loves me ;)

This picture is for the Folkman family. I just think they will be excited about the logo on my hat. It was the only orange cap my dad had to offer...and I didn't want to get shot for Pete's sake!

Chillout

http://www.zefrank.com/chillout/ I learned about this guy's blog in psychology. His name is Ze Frank. It kind of inspired me. He comes up with creative ways to make the world seem a little smaller. The cool thing is, he asks for help by those following his blog to create songs, or to take part in projects to build others up.
Today I have been thinking. Shocker. I have been thinking mostly about how much we need each other, and how grateful I am to be a member of a religion, despite all of its criticism, that is based solely upon a flawless concept: love.
And I want to start applying that concept a lot more throughout my day. It's much easier to show love to my handsome husband than to a complete stranger...and that's half the battle.
So this afternoon I had a lab for life science. I was sitting in a comfy chair on the bottom level of the building when I heard a girl ask a group of people where room 303 was. That was where I was headed, so I announced, "hey that's where I'm going, I'll just take you there." I was surprised to realize the source of that soft, timid voice came from a girl who had black hair, black clothes, piercings and tattoos that were way too exposed for a cold day, and teeth that looked like they were exposed to one too many...let's just call them stimulants.
I feel completely embarrassed to say that my first thought was, "I hope I can come up with enough conversation during these three flights of stairs...doubt we have much in common." I think the girl thought the same thing about me.
Surprisingly enough, the conversation flowed smoothly, and it seemed that we were both equally enjoying each other's company! She gradually felt more comfortable talking to me and was opening up about her interests, family, home-town, and it was pretty interesting! I made a new friend today, and I learned a valuable lesson too. Making friends with only one kind of person is like going your whole life eating rice for every meal.
Variety is good!
Why love selectively when you have an unlimited supply you can give freely?