Things that made me happy this week....Cooking Lesson Edition

My eyes were still closed when I felt a soft plop on the blankets above my abdomen.  "Breakfast in bed, guys," ordered Ansel in an authoritative way.  Whenever he does something really sweet, he uses a tone of voice that negates the act of kindness.  I think he has philanthropic boundaries which allow him to be "cool" and a really nice kid at the same time.

Ansel usually wakes before I do and rarely wakes up before Corey.   Before you label me as slothful, I need to qualify this by saying that I am almost always up by 7:15.  It's just that I live with three earlier risers (thanks for still making me look good, Savanna).

Last Sunday, Corey was still in bed at 7:30 am (I can hear you gasping in horror!).  Lucky for him, otherwise he would have missed out on this divine in-bed serving of.............pop tarts.   I appreciated the thoughtfulness and thus couldn't admit to Ansel that my mind wants to, but my throat refuses (gag response) when I try to swallow these things which have obviously been manufactured by terrorists who would wish us to die a slow death....or at least put our brain cells in a sugar induced, comatose state.  Don't get me wrong,  I love my sugar.  But pop tarts.......they are crossing the line.

Not to change the subject before I justify why I have pop tarts in my cupboard in the first place, but when I forced the pop tart down my throat, I had the sick realization that I need to teach this kid to cook if I am ever going to get a proper breakfast in bed.

We started with the basic, life sustaining items.....scrambled eggs and quesadillas.  One hour later, he had opened his own restaurant, in which he used a smidgen of creative thought to name, "Restaurant," and began taking orders:

And then he said, "Mom, I think I need to learn to cook a few more things."

I have created a monster.

Other things that made me happy:  


   

1.  Savanna going barefoot in the snow.

2.  PODCASTS!  I now almost look forward to(ok, not looking forward to....but at least not dreading) those mundane things in life that used to bring me dread, such as cooking, cleaning, and driving...... all the things that SAHM are supposed to do.   My life has Cha Cha Cha Changed now that I can do these mindless things whilst listening to thought-provoking, emotion-stirring, loud-laughter inducing PODCASTS.

3.   This conversation that Ansel overheard and interrupted:

Me on the phone, "I wish that I could just be frank with them"
Ansel, "Mom, you want to be named, FRANK.  That is so weird.  Who would do that?"

Because celebrating is better than not celebrating.

Corey doesn't care that I believe Valentines Day to be a holiday of the most shameless treacle.  I love this about him.  

 A homemade card and treats from Dad is a given:

sucking the marrow out of winter

It hasn't been a full-bodied, fleshy winter.  I would say it has been almost skeletal.  We have only needed to pull our snow-blower out once? (Corey will correct me if I am wrong).   Although the snow hasn't been knocking on our door, there is life lingering in the marrow of it's bones.   We have just had to work a little harder to get to it.  And when we have found it, we glean every bit of nourishment that we can harvest before we return to our sleeping, malnourished yard.  Yes, we will remember this year as the year that we were winter scavengers.

 A School-free Monday in which we had "all you can eat" snow in Kellogg, Idaho.   And we were almost the only customers.

Emmy is so snow-stuffed that she can barely sit up. 

 Savanna, trying desperately to hide the possibility that she may actually be having a good time.

 A workless Friday when Corey and I can feast gluttonously on the back side of Mt. Spokane.

 The backside of ME

savanna is 14.....a self conducted birthday party

Are you wondering why I don't have any pictures from Savanna's birthday party with her friends??  Because. I. didn't. have.to.be.there.

And I didn't want to.  

Is that horrible?  

I am close to certain that I didn't want to because I knew that I was not wanted.  

She's 14 

And six teenaged girls in a house with too much sugar is LOUD in a high-pitched, health risk sort of way.

We provided the pizza and cake and then checked in on them every once in a while to make sure they weren't burning anything (I only say that because it was something that I may or may not have done when I was her age).   

I think it went well because one of her friends asked if we could do it again next month.   

I said, "Fine, as soon as I get some more earplugs."

 We were able to celebrate her birthday, family style, a few days later.   There was fire, but our ear-drums were in no danger.

I was even provided with a  detailed, double-sided, two paged wish list, complete with photographs, websites, and brands.   She basically did all the work.  If only she didn't kind of hate me, I could almost like this teenager phase.  

a little trip to Utah

Because sometimes you need to go where everybody knows your LAME....

meaning a place where your weaknesses and vulnerabilities are known and embraced.  
where empathy is expressed without even one uttered syllable.
where you don't feel impossibly crazy for being crazy
where you can talk or not talk
where no one needs you to feed them
where you can mute all of your "adult" burdens and put adolescence on speakerphone

I was fortunate enough to have 5 days in Utah on my own.  Thank you to all of you that made this journey memorable.

It was like having hours of therapy and fun at the same time.

Things that I am now able to cross off my bucket list:


1.  conduct a freeze mob in honor of Martin Luther King
2.  see a psychic
3.  get chased by the Police at Trolley Square Mall over a small misunderstanding involving bouncy balls being dropped from the 2nd floor.  I will never fool around at the Trolley Square Mall.  It is NOT a Jolly Mall.
4.  Go Wolf Hunting on BYU campus and get police beat record.
5.  Sing "American Pie" with a group of strangers.

new years eve 2011

Corey bought tickets to Beethoven's 9th Symphony months ago.   It inspired him in the past and I think he was hoping that it would ignite the tiny spark of interest that Savanna has in orchestra.   Savanna was invited to a New Year's Eve party this week.  There was very little discussion as to whether or not we should let our 14 yr. old go to a party with her peers or force her to attend the symphony with her parents.   We have enough resentment seeping from under her door at night.
And I wasn't really in the mood.....again.  I really have been the Grinch who steals all the fun from the Holiday Season.   Luckily, I have an amazingly annoying husband, meant in the best possible way.  He knows just how to push me out of my cocoon, initially causing unfathomable infuriation, but always leaving me ultimately grateful for the push.
How can you be in a bad mood when you have front row seats to Beethoven's Ninth Symphony?  We were sitting so close that I was drinking the sweat of the brow of the conductor.   Maybe a little too close.
It was fantastic but I was ready to go home.  So was Emmy.  Not Corey.  Utilizing his infinite and finely tuned coercion abilities, he convinced us to stay for the remainder of the First Night Spokane Activities.  Or maybe it was because he had the keys to the car.   Either way, by the end of the night, I was grateful that we had stayed.

We got to see the dinosaur creation that Emmy helped create in one of her classes.

Ansel had the opportunity to slide down an ice slide.

We saw a few comedians, musicians, and jump ropers.

Ansel dug deep into his reservoir of high hoped resolutions............

and wrote, "I resolve to a great day"  

Way to dream, Ansel.  

He put his resolution into mouth of the resolution dinosaur.

Emmy wiped her teary eyes to watch the midnight fireworks.  She really does cry when she is forced to stay up late.

Happy New Year.

christmas

Is it weird that my favorite part of Christmas this year was our eagle watching hike in Coeur d'lane on Christmas eve?

The camera battery died at this point and I didn't even care.  Sorry, kids. Not much Christmas Spirit coming from the mom section of the couch.  I took a three hour nap while Corey cooked a divine roast beast for dinner that I won't forget anytime soon.