The Sabbath Day - A Day of Rest?

"Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy." -Exodus 20:8

I got up Sunday morning and immediately began assembling my funeral potatoes for dinner. I was hosting dinner for Neil's family that night. Because I was teaching primary, there was no option to sneak out of church a little early to make dinner. We had to eat at 5:00 because we had Young Women's In Excellence at 7:00. So I had to try to pre-prepare as much dinner as possible. I called to Sabrina to hop in the shower. We had to get to a rehearsal for a musical number both Sabrina and I were somehow coerced into playing in. It's hard when you visit teach the ward choir director. I pulled my violin out from under the bed and quite literally wiped off two inches of dust. Sabrina and I tried to play through the piece. What a mess! I can't count. This is not a good thing when you are playing with another violinist, a cellist, a pianist, and a choir. Did I mention I haven't even touched my instrument in maybe two years? Perhaps I should have started practicing a little earlier than 20 minutes before our first rehearsal. 

I walked in and complimented our cellist who almost majored in cello performance until he realized there was no money in such a career. He said, "Well, I was good seven years ago." I told him, "Well, I was mediocre twenty years ago." The room was overflowing with confidence as we washed up instrumentalists muddled through an arrangement obviously not written by a string player. What a mess!

I had no more time to practice. I had to get home and finish preparing my lesson on Esther. I couldn't be late because it was the day of the primary program, and I had to sit on the stand with the kiddos. I drove to church. Mind you, you can see our church from my front window. I could throw a baseball into the parking lot from our driveway. Well, I couldn't throw a baseball, but someone with a modicum of athletic skill could. That's lame to drive to church, I know, but I was late! You guessed it. Not a single open parking stall in the entire parking lot. Dang these over-supportive grandparents! My parents didn't even get an invite. It's a good thing too, because Jonah was home with a nasty soar throat. He got my gomboo. And this would have been his last primary program:( He was not heart-broken. So I parked my car in front of the model home in our neighborhood, which is exactly fifty feet from my own driveway, but I was late! I didn't make it into sacrament meeting before Neil started conducting. So I had to go sit on the stand after the sacrament was passed.

The program went well. My primary lesson went well. While I was teaching, Neil ran a ham to his dad's house to warm then put the potatoes in our oven. I got home with exactly 45 minutes to finish preparing dinner and make my house somewhat presentable. Store-bought rolls this day, no time to make homemade. The ham came from Al's house. It was cold. Yeah, I don't know what happened there. Neil walked in the door from bishopric stuff just in time to cut the cold ham and throw it in the microwave. I sat down to eat but had no appetite after such a stressful day. Besides, who likes cold ham and store-bought rolls?

The Howells thanked us for dinner and went home while we got ready for YW in Excellence. I had to hurry and print a picture of Sabrina because I didn't get the memo that we were supposed to bring a framed picture of our daughter. Yes, there is not a single framed photo of my children anywhere in this house, except for maybe in a box in the basement. YW in Excellence was lovely, mostly because I got to sit. Neil and I were trying to keep ourselves awake. Neil, because he was still getting over jet lag and had been up since his 6:00 am bishopric meeting. And me, because...please read the above paragraphs.

We got home at 8:30. I had been going strong for 12 hours. Neil for 14. We left the kids home, then left for Mom's for a quiet visit. We climbed into bed at 11:00.

A wise man once said that we often get confused at what kind of rest to expect on the Sabbath day. On the Sabbath we rest from our own labors so that we can do the Lord's labors. We set aside our regular work so that we can do the Lord's work. Some Sabbath days, I go to bed more tired than I do on a weekday. But the Lord's work is the best kind of work. Sometimes I just have to remind myself of that fact. This is the work that counts. This is the best work.

Single Moms - How Do They Do It?!

" A single mother has a backbone made of steel and a heart of gold." 

I am anxiously waiting for Neil to call me and inform me that he has landed safely in Seattle. I hate when Neil goes to China. It's been a good two years since he's had to go, so I'm out of practice. I'm really hating it this time around. 

The worst thing about when Neil goes to China is that he is 15 hours ahead of me. So when something comes to mind at 11:00 in the morning that I just really need to discuss with him, I have to stop and do the math before I call him. Without fail, calling him that very second would mean waking him up at 2:00 a.m., which is disastrous for someone suffering from jet lag. But when he calls me upon waking up in the morning, it is 4:00 in the afternoon for me, which every mom knows is witching hour. I'm in the middle of getting kids to lessons and assessing the homework situation. No time to talk. Then when I finally get to call him before going to bed, I'm exhausted after failing at single-motherhood all day, and Neil is busy at the factory. Let's just say that communication while Neil is in China is spotty at best.

The other bad thing is that I'm a wreck while he is en route. From the time Neil leaves our front porch until he walks into his hotel in Xiaman, is 24 hours. 24 hours and four different flights. That's a lot of opportunity for catastrophe. The 13 hour flight to Beijing is the worst. No contact for 13 hours. For a fatalist like myself, that's a lot of time to conjure up every worst case scenario multiplied by ten. By the time he finally calls me, I've already planned his funeral and the next ten years of my widowhood. Fortunately, I'm sleeping through much of that long flight. Well, sleeping in theory. I make him promise to send me a text when he lands so that I can wake up and know that all is well.

One thing is for sure. If Neil ever did die on the way to China, the children would never get another home-cooked meal, nor would they graduate high school, due to a lack of homework completion, and the house would be a mess at all times. You see, this is what life looks like while Neil is out of town. I don't know what it is. It's not like he takes care of all of those things when he's here, between work and bishopric stuff. I suppose that it is his very presence in my life that motivates me to take care of this house and children that we have together. I suppose that a simple phone call or lunch date with him is enough to keep me going. I suppose that just having him in the house, living along side me, makes me want to cook dinner, and nurture our children, and do laundry. When he's here, I do more, and I do it better. He brings out the very best in me. 

Which is why the poor kids got the dregs of me these last ten days. Bless their hearts. Jonah summed it up in a conversation with his dad last weekend, "Today has been the most boring, gloomy day ever." To my credit, I did come down with a humdinger virus this week. It was all I could do to pick up a pizza and transport the kids to and fro on a Nyquil-induced hangover. Usually I drown my sorrows in all sorts of costly entertainment, i.e. movies and shopping ventures, much to the kids' delight and Neil's chagrin. But I was no more than a lump on the couch this week.

All I can say is bless you dear single moms. How you do this day in and day out is beyond my comprehension. I salute you and offer you my greatest respect. You deserve all the pamperings that this life offers and all the blessings that the next life does!

The countdown begins until Daddy comes home. 

Ryan and Alicia's Week of Happiness - Part Two

"Two of the vital pillars that sustain Father in Heaven's plan of happiness are marriage and family. Their lofty significance is underscored by Satan's relentless efforts to splinter the family and to undermine the significance of temple ordinances, which bind the family together for eternity. The temple sealing has greater meaning as life unfolds. It will help you draw ever closer together and find greater joy and fulfillment in mortality." -Richard G. Scott

I must not neglect the last half of Ryan and Alicia's Week of Happiness. On October 16th, Ryan and Alicia received their endowments in the Ogden Utah Temple. The next day, they were sealed for time and all eternity in that same temple. This beautiful brand new temple that sits not far from Ryan and Alicia's home. This temple they watched slowly being constructed as they slowly but steadily progressed toward receiving those beautiful blessings. It was a happy chain of circumstances that the Ogden Temple was ready at the same time that Alicia and Ryan were ready.

The very eternal nature of families is felt inside the sealing room of the temple. I don't know that there is any other place on earth where the veil is so thin. 

I know Dad was there. He left Alicia's life when she was far too young. I know that he must have been allowed to witness this blessed event. His joy must have been great. As was ours.

The sealing ceremony is a brief one. The words are few, but the promised blessings are poignant and powerful. I seldom have a dry eye after watching a couple be sealed. And I certainly didn't this particular evening. As we all gathered to congratulate the beaming couple, parents, siblings, aunts and uncles, church leaders, and friends, the happiness in the room was palpable. Here are a few photos of those happy supporters.

Alicia's fellow dance teachers and dear friends.

Two sets of parents who love unconditionally.

Ryan's sweet family.

Alicia's family.

Grandma Fellows and Aunt Robyn, Tami, and Uncle Rocky. We are always so grateful to see Dad's family. It brings a little bit of him back to us.

Once the photos were done, we proceeded over to Alicia and Ryan's church and enjoyed a lovely meal of comfort food. I told you that Alicia knows how to throw a party.

There was soup of every variety. I believe I sampled every one of them. There were pies galore. I might have sampled every one of those as well.

We stayed for several hours and just chatted the night away, enjoying each other's company, reveling in this thing we call family. I believe God values families. I believe He intends for us to enjoy these relationships in this life and beyond the grave. I am grateful He has provided a way for families to be sealed, not just for this life, but for eternity, that these precious relationships might go on forever. 

Now this sweet little baby of Ryan and Alicia's who has been waiting patiently beyond the veil is welcome to join this eternal family of hers at anytime. We are anxiously awaiting her arrival. She has a loving mom and dad who have prepared themselves in every way. Anytime Margot. We can't wait to meet you!

Apple Pie Oatmeal on a Cold Autumn Day

"The oat is the Horatio Alger of cereals, which progressed, if not from rags to riches, at least from weed to health food." -Waverly Root

Apple pie oatmeal is my most favorite thing to eat on a fall day. The recipe is here:

http://ohsheglows.com/2011/01/24/apple-pie-oatmeal/

I go to this website on occasion when I want to feel healthy. I don't generally have the energy to be healthy, but pinning recipes from this very organic vegan blogger makes me feel healthy. I did actually make this recipe because it looked more tasty than healthy. And it is tasty. I don't even have to add three tablespoons of sugar to make it such.

So chop up some Granny Smith's and pull out the cinnamon and a warm blanket and enjoy this healthy tasty breakfast on a cold autumn day.

Sorry, my pictures aren't nearly as appetizing as the food blogger's are. I didn't have time for presentation and lighting. I just needed to eat.

Any Excuse Is a Good Excuse

"Soup is a lot like family. Each ingredient enhances the others; each batch has its own characteristics; & it needs time to simmer to reach full flavor." -Marge Kennedy

Any excuse to have dinner by candlelight is a good excuse at the Watson household. We started having a special Halloween dinner by candlelight probably a decade or so ago. You know how it goes with kids. You do one fun thing once, then it must be tradition forever and always. 

Homemade chicken noodle soup, with homemade noodles is on the menu every year. I fell in love with homemade noodles when Neil's mom introduced them to me when we were living with Neil's parents as newlyweds. She would invite us upstairs for dinner on occasion, and now this is the only way I can eat chicken noodle soup. It took me years and years and many tears to finally master this recipe. Poor Neil ate way too many noodles of rubber tire consistency before he finally got a bite of some that rivaled his mother's noodles.

As you can see, I'm not a clean-as-you-go kind of a cook. I'm more of a drop-a-bomb-in-the-kitchen-and-spend-three-days-cleaning-up-the-aftermath kind of cook. That's why we built this lovely kitchen. More countertops to clutter:)

Most of the children like this soup, but Spencer, Spencer adores it with all of his heart. He averages three bowls in one sitting. This night was no exception. 

I usually make a chocolate cream pie topped with a whipped cream ghost, but this year I felt extra ambitious. You can thank ourbestbites.com for these adorable desserts in a cup! Of course, we were all too full to eat them after dinner, so they made a great after school snack the next day.

Orange sherbet and Sprite for a beverage. The kids saw that I was taking a photo so they all jumped out of the picture. I told them that I actually wanted my cute kids in the background of this shot.

They were happy to oblige. Not quite the background shot I had in mind, but actually probably more authentic. 

Finally, time to eat! The stairs in my house not only provide nice aerial shots of disastrous kitchen counters but also of darling families gathered around the dinner table.

What happens when you wait until 8:30 on a Saturday night to buy candles for your Sunday Halloween dinner? You end up with Christmas colored candles. Oh well. Everyone knows what the secret is to the best tasting chicken noodle soup. TABASCO SAUCE! Yum! Yum! Yum! Just ask Spencer, who puts about a full tablespoon in every bowl. There's not enough Tabasco until your nose starts running.  

Lots of jello, sherbet, whipped cream, and pudding, with a small garnish of actual dinner.

That's our Halloween village in the background. 

This is my favorite Halloween tradition. Time around the table with the children and their amazing father. Conversation winding in and out of the soft glow of candlelight. Good food with my favorite people in warm light. Any excuse is a good excuse.