Winter Solstice and T-4...

The shortest "day" of the year...I find it ironic that it happens to fall on a Monday this year, the start of another long week of work. Thankfully, it's only a 3-day week this week!

It also means that Christmas is only 4 days away!!! I think we're in a good place though. Most of the shopping and even wrapping is done. Of course we still have Christmas cards and packages to send, so it will be a busy evening. Besides that, I lay awake last night trying to figure out how much baking is in store for me this week. We traditionally bake up some goodies and take them to neighbors and friends. Hmm, looks like we'll have to divide and conquer - Eddie on the Christmas cards (well, at least addressing the envelopes) and me baking up a storm in the kitchen!

I love Christmas!

Knitting

This year I had a goal to knit hats and scarves and give them to a shelter. Well, I didn't quite meet my goal but I did make progress. What I mean is that I started the year knowing roughly how to make a scarf. The scarves I was planning to make are not incredibly difficult, but they are definitely time consuming. Sounds simple, right? Have some time when you're watching TV or something and sit down with my knitting to make scarves. Ok, well, not only are they time consuming, but they're really quite boring to make to (back and forth, back and forth, etc.). Anyway, I still want to resurrect my goal and make some hats and scarves to donate.

Here's the cool part, I did learn how to knit a hat. In fact, I finished my very first one last week!!! This is a huge step from knitting dishcloths and scarves. I found the pattern on http://www.knittinghelp.com/. It's not the most intricate pattern, but that was a good thing for my first hat (and first time knitting in a round - meaning, there are no seams on this hat).

My current project is making a hat for Eddie. It's not the same pattern as the last hat and so far it's slow going. Like all things though, it tends to require time. Here's the minimal progress so far...

Seminary

I was asked to substitute for Seminary for 6 days - I forgot how early in the morning Seminary is!!  I really admire these high school students who get up at or around 5AM every day to get to Seminary at 6AM, then it's off to school all day, then sports/music/drama/jobs after school, only to come home to a couple hours of homework every night, go to bed and get up and do it all over again the next day.  Wow! 

Right now, I'm teaching the high school seniors.  On a good day, fourteen of the eighteen show up for class.  We usually start with about 4 students, but the rest tend to trickle in by about 6:15AM.  Some are really attentive and involved, others come in and promptly put their heads down on the table.  Sometimes it feels like we've had a good discussion, other times it feels like I've spent the time talking to myself.  But you know, whatever kind of day it is, however many show up at whatever time and for whatever reasons, I'm so impressed with them! 

I can also honestly say that I do not envy the Seminary teachers' calling!  After three days last week - I was exhausted!  I get up a bit before 5AM, off to Seminary, come home and eat breakfast and log in for work, then when I'm done with work for the day, I spend about 2 hours studying for the lesson the next day!  I do love to teach though and most of all, I've loved the opportunity to really study the scriptures.  This year in Seminary they are studying the Book of Mormon and I've had the opportunity to teach Jacob 2-7 so far (we'll end up at Mosiah by the time I hand things back to their teacher). 

The past couple of days we've been studying Jacob 5 - The Allegory of the Olive Tree.  This is truly the best understanding I've had of that chapter.  Quite honestly, when I read through the Book of Mormon, every time I've approached Jacob 5 I've just kind of groaned and made my way through the 77 verses without really understanding the beauty of the parable.  We learn in Jacob 4 that the gospel is very simple and plain to those who truly seek to understand it.  There are some who would complicate the gospel or think it more difficult than it really is and to them, it is complex and difficult to understand.  Over the past few days though as I've studied this parable, I not only understand it better, but have developed a testimony of the Lord's promise that as we study the gospel, the Spirit will teach us the truths of the gospel, help us understand the scriptures, and help us see real application of those principles in our lives. 

It's been fun, challenging, but fun.  I am looking forward to sleeping in until 7AM on Thursday though... :)

Deception Pass

We live in a beautiful area!  Last week Eddie and I took some time to go visit Deception Pass.  Finally, a day that wasn't raining.  We captured some fantastic pictures:

A view from the bridge looking south

A view of the bridge from the south side

Another one from the bridge looking south

Looking to the southwest

Isn't it just gorgeous!?!

Eddie and I enjoy taking a day and just going for a drive.  Most times, our destination wasn't planned.  We've ended up in E. Washington, Olympic Peninsula, Canada, California, Oregon - wherever!  Lately we've been so busy that these trips have become less and less frequent so we were excited to just take a couple of hours and wander around Deception Pass.  Though it wasn't raining, it was COLD so we bundled up in our winter hats and gloves and enjoyed the day!

We love this area - hate the traffic - not so fond of some of the liberal ideas that come out of Seattle - but what a gift it is to live in a place where God's artistry is so evident!

Sick

I hate being sick!  I even got a flu shot this year so that I wouldn't get sick...didn't work.  Well, maybe it did.  I guess it could have been a whole lot worse.  Woke up Friday morning, not feeling so great, but had to go to a meeting with Eddie.  Later that night though, he was supposed to go shoot (photography) a couple of soccer games in Shoreline so I was going to go with him, at least to drop him off and then I would go shopping for a couple of hours - who can pass up shopping, especially when it's my husband that's endorsing it!?  We had a wicked storm roll through here this last weekend though.  Rain, lightning, thunder - the works.  Now, I love a good storm and this time around, I admit, I was really grateful for that lightning.  You see, they won't call off soccer games for rain, they won't call them off for snow, but for lightning?  You betcha they called off that game!  I was so relieved that I could stay home and feel like a train hit me instead of going out and feeling that icky.

Ok, so then there was Saturday, first, had to call and cancel my voice lesson, then I totally flaked out on a friend's Party Lite party (I love candles!).  I spent the entire day in bed on Saturday!!  Of the 24 hours...I think I slept 20 of them.  I woke up to eat graham crackers, 7-Up, and Top Ramen - that's it!  I totally felt like that part in Monty Python where the guy is walking through the village with the cart ringing the bell yelling, "Bring out your dead!"  A man is brought out to the cart compaining the whole time, "I'm not dead," to the reply of, "You will be."  Yeah, that's how I felt - guess you have to see the movie!

Then Sunday rolled around and the ONLY reason I got out of bed is because I was scheduled to sing a song with my sister at church.  Have to tell you, she did great!!  Me?  Not so great!  Couldn't hold a note to save me, pitch was off, was rushing through parts, and running out of breath so quickly!  I can only hope that the congregation looked past the imperfections and felt the spirit of the song....

I have a wonderful husband.  Have I said this before?  I'm not very nice when I'm sick but Eddie puts up with it and takes care of me anyway.  I get whiney, little things irritate me that otherwise wouldn't...I'm just not a very nice person when I'm sick.  Then, when I think I'm feeling a little bit better, I try to do too much.  Like Saturday night when I thought I was doing better and tried to vacuum.  Yeah, Eddie put a stop to that quickly and sent me back to bed!

I hate being sick!  And what's even more irritating?  Being sick on the weekend!  Yup, feeling just fine this morning - just in time to go back to work for another week!!!  Ugh!

Inherit the Wind

Eddie loves photography!  Recently he's been working with a photographer, Sam, to get more experience around sports and theater photography.  He's gotten to go out with Sam to a couple of games (soccer and football) and most recently, Sam asked Eddie to cover a play at Meadowdale High School while Sam covered a drama festival at Kamiak High School.  What's more is that Sam asked if I would write the review of the play!

So, Eddie and I set out last Thursday night to see the high school production of, "Inherit the Wind."  We got to the high school a bit early, showed our press passes, and proceeded to the "Black Box Theatre" to get set up for the show.  It was kind of a heavy production for a high school - not what I expected.  Eddie got some great shots and I got to do the write up afterwards.  Both the pictures and review are posted to www.nwtnews.org.

I wonder what we'll get to see next...