Resolution

The snow is melting. It is raining outside. The bridge pictured above is no longer covered with ice and snow. The green grass is peeking through. I tell you, it feels like Spring! It's like we've been stuck in Narnia, and now Father Christmas has come and gone and the spring is breaking through...

Now really, I know that Spring is not coming. Not yet. We still must endure the harsh, cold, wet months of January, February, and March. But today, as I reflect on the past year and the new one to come, Spring feels like a fitting season.

Resolution: a resolve or determination; the act of determining upon an action or course of action
Resolved: Fixed or set in purpose; determined

Do you make New Years Resolutions? It seems that I've made them in the past, but I've never really stuck to them. For a while, I didn't want to make them because I knew that I wouldn't be able to really accomplish whatever crazy goal I had. But this year, I'm excited for a fresh start. I'm excited to build on habits I've formed over this past year. I'm excited to grow as a woman...a wife, friend, and teacher.


Ideas (AKA goals and resolutions) for 2009:
*Exercise! In 2008 I've exercised more deliberately than ever before. But I want to get even better this year. I'm not sure how to accomplish this...but to start, I will at least Wii-Fit-it-up three times each week. I'm thinking I need to use an MP3 player and hit the machines at the Y...

*Fun! I really believe that in order to be the best I can be (That's my Junior Miss talking) I have to make time for myself. Recently I've enjoyed a lot of working with my hands...stamping and crafting type activities. I'd like to do more of it. I'm thinking about joining a stamping club that meets once a month...Also, I'd like to learn how to sew.

*Health! I will take my vitamin every day! I also want to increase the amounts of fruits and veggies that I eat. Hopefully that will itself improve my eating habits...but I'm not making any other kind of goal in that arena. It's too easy to fail...

*Housekeeping! Oh...the many, many, many resolutions I could make to improve this aspect of my life. But here it is...nice and simple...I will keep my bedroom clean! For me, the bedroom has always been the last room to be cleaned because, well, no one else sees it. I never thought I was the kind of gal who needed her bedroom to be a relaxing place. We just sleep in it! But after hauling all the junk out to paint, we are LOVING the feel of a clean, calm bedroom. And it will never be chaotic again. It will stay this way forever and ever. Amen.

Obviously, some of these goals will be more easily accomplished than others. Some are fun, while others will require work on my part. But I guess that's what Resolution is all about. I've got to be determined in purpose. And now I will go pray.

What about you? Do you make resolutions? What are they this year?

Happy New Year!

My mother-in-law has posted about our Christmas Day adventure. If you'd like to read about it, click here. I don't really want to relive it again, so I'll let you read her story!

Today I'm taking care of my sick hubby. (Sorry to you two who hate that word...I like it every once in a while;). El Maestro woke up at 9 this morning (after ten hours of sleep), took a long shower, and then promptly went back to bed and slept until noon! The cold he was starting to feel yesterday has really gotten him! So I have chicken soup simmering on the stove (homemade, of course!) and he's resting on the couch watching CSI to his heart's content.

I found a fun recipe for chicken broth, so I ran to Safeway for the ingredients while my honey was napping. You should check this out, it is fun to read, and I love her apron! Since I don't have a cute, retro apron, I'm wearing one that students made for me after my student teaching...

And guess what we did yesterday!?! I'll give you a hint...

This is what my bedroom looked like yesterday...that salmon pink is more than I can handle anymore! The WHOLE apartment is painted this color, and we decided that we needed a non-pink oasis.

Hmmm...what color do you prefer? We finished painting the room at about 5:00 yesterday evening. Since we didn't want to sleep with the paint fumes, we had a sleepover on the couch! Good thing we have a sectional...Here's a glimpse from our beautiful room this morning...

Ok, its not a totally beautiful room yet, we still have lots to do! But the walls look sooo much better! Here's a picture of our "inspiration room."

Ahhh...it's so calm and soothing. We have a couple of big black and white engagement pictures that guests signed at our wedding...they'll look perfect over our bed. And I'm hoping to find some luxurious looking bedding in that silver/gray color scheme. I'm totally living my HGTV dream right now! I'll keep you updated in the next few days/weeks as we make more progress. Does anyone have any secrets on how to find inexpensive bedding?

Grandma, thanks for the Home Depot gift card! Your Christmas present to us is lovely blue walls!

The Festivities Continue...

On Saturday, we attended the 3rd annual Christmas Sweater Party.

My husband and brother-in-law have grown up with 3 other sets of brothers. All of the older brothers were born within the same year, as were the younger brothers. Each year we have a Sweater Party. Everyone wears the most Christmasy sweater they can find. This year, my brother-in-law hosted at his newly remodeled house!

For the past 2.5 years, I've been the only wife in this club. But things are looking up! A and T will each be marrying one of the boys this summer! (*Not pictured is E. who is another wife to be*)Hurray! Oh, and the little dog is Lola. Isn't she cute? My husband and I got her a Christmas gift...

Every little girl needs a Christmas dress, right? Even better when they're sold at the Dollar Store...

Saturday night was a great time to catch up with old friends, sing carols, and generally have a grand old time!

Smalltown, WA

Before Christmas, el maestro and I went to visit my family in the small town where I grew up. We picked my grandma up on our way over and squeaked through the winter storms to make it safe and sound. It was such a fun and relaxing time with family!

I gave my baby sister (who's almost 17?!?) this game for Christmas. We spent hours playing Apples to Apples. Even Grandma joined in, even though she "doesn't like games." Uh-huh. I believe she tied for first place.

Dad took a quick break during the game to make us the infamous eggnog lattes! (They've already been referenced twice on my blog...I think he was feeling a little pressure!) But let me tell you, that latte was the best I've ever had! Seriously!

Cheers! After everyone had their lattes, we let him come back to the game;)

He did pretty well...talented guy. Delicious drinks, mad game skills, beautiful daughters...oh, did I say that out loud? Ahem...Seriously though. He's great.

Anyway.... as I said before, we had a wonderful time!

The official New Years card picture.

I love my family.

Christmas Eve, la noche buena.

I've always loved the Spanish translation of Christmas Eve. It means literally, "the good night." I have wonderful memories of beautiful candlelight services on December 24th each year.

This year I'm making new memories as I'll spend my first Christmas away from my immediate family. My husband and I will wake up tomorrow in our own place by ourselves and create some new traditions!

Meanwhile this year we've been participating in traditions from each of our childhoods. One important activity being Sugar Cookies.

In each household, sugar cookie dough is rolled out and Christmas-y shapes are cut out with the traditional family cookie cutters.

For my husband's family, the raw dough is then painted with fun colors and sprinkles. Once decorated, the cookies go into the oven.

In my family's house, the cookies are baked all plain and naked, cooled, and then frosted the next day! Mmm...with mom's homemade frosting!

In each household, the cookies are delicious. Not to mention lovely! What a fun way to add extra calories to our delightful Christmas celebrations!

Yum!

Buried!

Another snow day! And it's no surprise...take a look at this winter wonderland!

NINE INCHES AND COUNTING!

Tasty Lunch for a Snow Day!

We were awakened this morning at 5 AM by a phone call...hurray! School is cancelled because of the snow!

If you're looking for a yummy soup to make to stay warm in this freezing weather I have just the thing! Taco Soup...one of those great, easy, simple recipes that you can't really mess up. Here's the version I made the other night.....


Here's what you'll need: two cans of corn, some tomato sauce, a couple cans of beans, taco seasoning, a pound of ground beef, and some tortilla chips.

Start browning the beef while you open the cans and dump stuff in...

Here's the corn (not drained), and three cans of beans (the recipe only calls for two)...pinto, black, and kidney....the beans I did drain and rinse...supposedly that gets rid of extra sodium...

Oh, I forgot to mention the secret ingredients...stewed tomatoes! (Don't tell your husband, he might not even try the soup if he knew you put stewed tomatoes in it! But don't worry...they're big enough to pick out if he's really that picky...)

What I happened to have in the cupboard was a can of Italian stewed tomatoes and a can of more Mexican diced tomatoes. Whatever works...

Dump in the tomatoes and your browned, drained beef.


It doesn't look that appetizing at this point...but trust me! Add about 15 ounces of tomato sauce (or some tomato paste with a little water) and also the seasonings. Stir it all together and heat it over medium or medium-high heat.

While the soup is heating up, grate some cheese, pull out the tortilla chips and the sour cream. And remember to get the Naturally Yours Fat Free Sour Cream. It's the only stuff your husband believes in. And yes, I did buy the family size bag of chips for the two of us....

Mmmm...by now the soup should be piping hot! See that lovely ladle? I bought it over two years ago, the first winter we were married. My In-laws were coming to our house for dinner and I was making this very soup! I had to buy a ladle because we didn't have anything to serve soup with!!


Now it's time to dish up the soup! Sprinkle some cheese and a dollop of sour cream on top. And don't be shy with those dairy products, they really make the soup creamy. Unless, of course, you're serving this bowl to your lactose-intolerant husband. Then be shy. Be very, very shy.


Yum...you can eat the soup with a spoon, or dish it up with tortilla chips (my preferred method). This meal has just the right amount of spice, crunch, warmth and flavor. It will be an instant hit! I think...


Here's the official recipe from my dear friend back home:


Place in Crock-Pot:
1 pound ground beef (browned)
2 cans corn
2 cans Mexican stewed tomatoes
2 cans kidney beans
2 cans tomato sauce
4 Tablespoons taco seasoning


Cook until hot.


Easy Peasy, my friends. You can have fun changing the ingredients a little bit. Add more of what you like, and less of what you don't. Also, I'd like to point out that I took the first picture at 5:49, as witnessed by the first photo...and I dished up the bowl of soup at 6:19 as witnessed by another photo that was too dark to post. This entire meal (and the photo documentation) took exactly 30 minutes to complete. If you ask me, this recipe is a keeper.

Ahhh...The Late Start

School is delayed for two hours today. It's so nice...we won't have to make up for it in the summer, but the school day will be over in a flash!

Because we live so close to school, we don't really get to sleep in for two hours...we can safely get to work pretty quickly...but we do get to relax a little more in the morning because if we show up right at our contracted time, we'll still have over two hours before kids get there.

So the question is....Should we walk or drive to work today?

Deck the Halls!

But first you have to clean them...

I've got BIG plans today. Such as staying at home and doing laundry...Due to a case of the sniffles I cancelled a trip to Portland with friends and I'm nestling in here at home. My goal is to end the day with a clean and festive home to enjoy for the rest of the year!

Other random tasks include:

Writing Christmas cards

Going to Costco (need anything, mom?)

Wrapping some presents

Baking

I plan to alternate between HGTV and Christmas music while keeping the Christmas lights on and the blinds open...there are rumors of snow! All the lovely hills around us are dusted with sparkly white...its just a matter of time before it gets to me!

Oooohhhh...I love it when my husband brings me coffee in the morning...with my peppermint mocha creamer in it! Yum! It's going to be a good day!

This is the kitty's favorite ornament to steal. I put it back on the tree every day and then find it on the floor somewhere in no time!

Friday!?!

It seems like Friday has snuck up on us this week! Although...when I think about Monday, it feels so very long ago.

My goal for this weekend is to rest so that my immune system will be able to make it through the next week. And then we'll be on Christmas break!

Here's a picture of my little gingerbread house. I think we were a little too ambitious with the size of our houses. Right now, both gingerbread mansions have collapsed into a pile of sugary rubble. It's sad. But a fun activity while it lasted. We'll have to try something a little different next year.

Maybe this weekend I'll make one of my favorite Christmas cookies to share with y'all!

Oh, Christmas Tree!

All my Christmas dreams came true yesterday when my husband got me a Christmas tree! Just as I had hoped, I came home from a meeting and a sweet smelling Noble Fir was standing tall in our office. K came over to help me decorate it...and it looks beautiful!

The lights don't sparkle much in this photo...but you can imagine, right? I'm also on the hunt for more garland. The craft store doesn't carry the little red wooden beaded stuff. I think Target does. Anyway, I went to bed content last night knowing that my beautiful tree was safely tucked behind the closed door of the office.

I woke up this morning and went to open the door and plug in the lights. The tree smells amazing...but there was a surprise waiting for me. A HUGE puddle of water all around the tree. Apparently my tree stand has a leak? Just what I was wishing for! Oh no...wait....just kidding.

I wouldn't want to have a normal Christmas tree experience. I will appreciate the tree more now right?

Did I mention it smells good?

A Project

My husband went to the store last night and came home with a project. Can you guess what it was?

We started making gingerbread houses! Er...graham cracker houses? And we may have bitten off more than we can chew. We spent 2.5 hours building last night, and we still have far to go. But here is a sneak preview of what we've accomplished so far...

Hecho por el maestro

Gingerbread by Beth

More updates to come after another evening of work, sweat, and a sugar-induced coma....

A Poem

On Friday, my students and I wrote holiday poems. We brainstormed holiday words and then wrote an acrostic. Here's mine.

Happy

Holly

Ornaments

Laughter

Ice Skating

Dad's eggnog lattes

Advent

Yummy treats

Snowflakes

From my home to yours!

A Merry Little Christmas

Our first Christmas tree

Mamapua tagged me. Well, I was tagged by default...I'm a reader of her blog. But this looks like fun! If you are reading this...YOU are tagged as well! I can't wait to see your answers!

Wrapping paper or gift bag?

Wrapping paper! I love wrapping presents and adding unique touches to each package...I usually do a lot of wrapping for other people as well because I enjoy it so much! Gift bags are fine if you're running late or if it's an awkwardly shaped gift!

Real tree or artificial?

By artificial do you mean FAKE?! I always prefer a real tree. The smell and the charming natural imperfections make a real tree hard to beat. I might be getting mine tonight! If we can figure out a way to keep the cat from eating it...

Do you like eggnog?

Yup. Especially when dad breaks out the espresso machine. Yum.

Who is easiest to shop for?

I think probably my sister, Em. Or at least this year it was. I found something that had her name written all over it.

Do you email or mail Christmas cards?

Um...neither? I have yet to send out a Christmas card. Ever. But I made some beautiful cards yesterday, so maybe this will be the year.

Favorite tradition?

Frosting sugar cookies! No...opening one present on Christmas Eve! No....Reading Miracle on 34th Street with my husband! (Ok, we only did that one year and he wasn't my husband at the time. I'm hoping to revive that tradition...) Really, I love a candlelight service on Christmas Eve.

When do you begin shopping?

Around October, usually.

Favorite Christmas Food?

White bean chili on Christmas Eve. I married into that tradition. It was one of my top 5 reasons to marry my husband.

Clear or colored lights?

Definitely!

(You're not really going to make me choose, are you??)

Favorite song?

Yeah right...like I could pick one song! Some of my favorite Christmas albums are by Raffi, Alabama, and Barry Manilow. They're basically the soundtrack of my life.

Angel or Star on your treetop?

Well, technically it has been a snowflake...I'm not sure what we'll do this year.

Happy Sunday! And God bless us, every one. Especially Tiny Tim.

Holidays Upon Us...for real!

A few months ago, my husband snuck onto my blog to leave a post titled Holidays Upon Us. It is a social commentary that deals with many of the harsh realities we have to live with as U.S. Americans....excuse my giggle...

But today I thought, "Hey! The holidays really are upon us now!" And therefore I titled my post.

Anyway...after school yesterday el maestro had a meeting. So I was left with 45 minutes to myself at home. And it was amazing.

First, I BLARED the Christmas music. My husband is not so much into it...heresy, I know....so when he's not around I take advantage of enjoying it fully! My CD of choice was by Point of Grace, A Christmas Story. It is a great sing along in you enjoy good lyrics, interesting arrangements and amazing harmonies.

Once the music was going I threw a load of laundry in the dryer and then set about to decorate my windows. Over Thanksgiving we made some window cling snowflakes out of fabric paint. Once you peel them off the waxed paper they will stick to your window!

The fun thing to wrap up my evening (pun intended...you'll see...) was to wrap a Christmas gift! Our work Christmas party is tonight...so we've been doing the "Secret Santa" thing at work. Today's the final day when you give a bigger gift ($10 or less) to end the week! I drew my principal's name...I hope she likes the cute holiday decoration I got her. You know those blocks that spell something like Merry Christmas or Noel depending on how you arrange them? This set can make 5 different sayings...and I thought blocks would be cute for an elementary principal.

What are you doing to celebrate the holidays?

More Love

I think it's high time for more pictures of my sweet little O. Don't you? I know you've been obsessively checking my blog to see if there are more pictures posted yet! Or not...

Anyway...here we go!

Awwww....see his cute little teeth?! And those piercing blue eyes...And look how he likes the baseball toy that his Auntie Beth bought him!

Ok...yes, he did really like the box. So did the kitten.

Hee hee...NAKER BABY!!! And he's playing with a golf ball that is one of the cat's toys. Apparently many cat toys are exciting for 11 month old humans.

Look! He's walking! And giggling! And take a look at those legs! I didn't let his mom dress him for a while. Those baby thighs need an audience.

Sorry, O. I meant that thighs-comment as a compliment. Really.

Oh cute. He's crying! His mom remembers that when we visited the hospital right after he was born, I liked listening to him cry. Not in a mean way...I didn't want him to keep crying. But infant cries are so sweet. No, I'm not crazy. I get it from my dad I think.

This little guy really likes buttons. He turned our TV volume all the way up when he got ahold of the remote. So el maestro taught him how to open up a Microsoft Word document.

I hope I get to see him again soon.

Post Script

We had a wonderful time this Thanksgiving. The only sad part was that my side of the family wasn't there. Sigh...phone conversations will have to suffice for a couple more weeks.

Of course I didn't take any pictures with my own camera, so check out my mother-in-law's blog for our Thanksgiving in pictures.
Thanksgiving 1:
http://squirrlyscribblings.blogspot.com/2008/11/thankful-for.html
Thanksgiving 2:
http://squirrlyscribblings.blogspot.com/2008/11/thanksgiving-weekend-completed.html

Love

My husband and I have some friends. (That's a seemingly general statement.) What I mean is that we have two friends in particular. S and my husband met their freshman year in college and became like brothers. Then I met both of them the next year when I came along. For the whole year we spent just about every waking moment together. Never before had I met boys that were so fun and crazy and yet full of integrity and spirit.

The next year, S went to college far, far away from us. We missed him dearly. There was much weeping and gnashing of teeth. But we survived. And it was a good thing too. In his far away college S met his...you guessed it...wife, J.

A couple of years later S and J moved back to the town where we were living. For a sweet nine months both of us couples lived within twenty minutes of each other. J and I became fast friends. We have so much in common...especially regarding our marriages. Our husbands are so unique and yet soooo similar that we really understand each other. Ahhh, what bliss to live so close to dear friends. Sadly, last summer, my husband and I moved for our new jobs. S and J moved as well. So for the past year, we have been separated by a long 7 hour drive.

The last time we saw S and J was December 25th, 2007. We saw them at the hospital with their brand new, one day old baby boy. It was a short and sweet time to reconnect with our friends, shower their little one with kisses, and be reminded that distance does nothing to weaken friendships like ours.

All of this to say that this past weekend, S and J were on our side of the state! And they visited! We got to hang out, play nintendo, watch movies, and see baby O! It was such a wonderful, wonderful time to reconnect. Also, it was amazing for me to realize how much I can love a baby I've never really known. The minute I saw little O, I was gone...totally and completely in love with that precious little boy! And that is the most important point of this post. There's a new love in my life.

I think the feeling was pretty mutual.

What a wonderful, refreshing blessing!