The New Year

Instead of doing New Year's Resolutions, I only have 2 things that involve goals after the new year. I got this crazy idea that I am going to nix the sweets in January. I have a sweet tooth, so I figure I can handle a month without my beloved goodies. I've been preparing by gorging on the Christmas sweets. You know, gotta be prepared. My exceptions are Lucy's birthday, and if my dear friend chooses a birthdy shin-dig for her 30th.

My second is a list of things I'd like to do before I turn 40. I finally reached a place in my life where the list includes just things I want to do, not things I feel like I should want to do. You know, like read the Brothers Karamazov. (I would kind of like to read that some day, but it sounds like a chore just now. I'll stick with slow speeds like Little House on the Prairie.) Some things included are: take a few oboe lessons, just to see what it's like; go see the Nutcracker; take a cooking class. I have a few items related to my spiritual growth. I'm hoping that this will be a fluid list that will adjust as I grow older.

So there you go. No over-the-top resolutions, like, "Lose 15 pounds" or "Read the whole Bible in 2 months." I'll let you know how it goes.

End of the Season

Well, it's official. I lost at the semi-finals. It stinks that I lost on a technicality, too. One of my guys wasn't playing, and they're supposed to tell you when your guy is out, but it must've been too late to tell me. I got no points from him, and Reggie Bush, who scored something like 20 points last week scored only 2 this week. So there it is. But the cool thing is I beat one of the guys two weeks in a row. He was expecting to sweep me and I totally blew him out of the water. That feels nice. Ah, butt kicking.

I mentioned that I was to sing in the women's choir at church on the 12th, but didn't update due to some family fun in the E.R. (no worries, everyone is fine!). The evening really was amazing, and the program that was put together was really a worship service. It was loosely based on "Lessons and Carols" which is done every year at Cambridge on Christmas morning. The lessons are read, followed (logically) by the carols. There were some amazing moments, and I felt so privileged to be singing with some really fine musicians. My whole Bible Study group was there, which touched me deeply.

Well, end of this week it's off to do the Central Valley Loop. Lots of driving this year, as we do Fresno, San Luis Obispo, San Jose, and possibly Tracy. Ugh. I love seeing the people. We're so fortunate that we both love both families, but we wonder sometimes why we live so far away. Poor Jennifer can't come at all, as she will be working on Christmas Eve and Christmas.

I've finished my home-made hot chocolate topped with my home-made marshmallows, and it's off to bed for me. I can tell by my bland writing that I'm tired. =)

Mean Mommy

I think she'll laugh when she's 20.

I mean really. Who thought of that??

I was baking today with baking chocolate. Long ingrained instinct inspired me to lick up that little glob on the side of the bowl where I'd melted it. It brought the question up yet again... How the heck did someone figure out that we should eat this stuff?? I mean, when you think of all the process chocolate has to go through you can't help but wonder how people originally figured that out. Coffee, too. Okay, let's eat the inside bean, but let's soak it, and dry it out, and then put it over fire, and then grind it up, and then put some water in it, then strain it all out. Huh? For reals, someone just figured that out one day??

I was listening to one of my favorite chefs on NPR, the editor of Cook's Illustrated, Christopher Kimball. He was talking about tricks to get Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners finished without so much stress by preparing things early. I loved what he said... "About 80% of what we do is make bad food." I thought that was a great reminder. That's life. We make so many mistakes so that we can learn from them, and even help others learn from them too. So to celebrate, I made some bloody-good chocolate crinkles for the church Christmas program tomorrow night. More on the Christmas program later. I'm singing in a women's choir for the program, so I'll give the update on that tomorrow.

Pork Noodle Slop

Well, I am 0 for dozens on the Chinese food. I seem to have some sort of anti-Chinese food curse. It keeps looking do-able, and keeps coming out yucky. Ah well. I am undaunted. I am thinking of asking te owner of our Chinese restaurant in Selma (I have yet to find as god a place here) to teach me their Pork Noodle Soup. It is etting to be a challenge with me. But I will make good chinese one day. Oh yes. It will be done. And now to get a lick of leftover frosting from Steve's birthday cake! Happy Borthday!!

Menu for the first week of December

Monday - Morrocan Beef patties w/ cous cous and zucchini. I got a solid 4!
Tuesday - Chicken/Thanksgiving dinner! Apple crisp for dessert!
Wednesday - Chicken Enchilladas w/ yelow Mexican rice. Great with wheat tortillas, believe it or not!
Thursday - My attempt at Chinese Pork Noodles
Friday - Birthday Steak for Steve!

Poor Lucy is up. I think she's teething. I think I might actually give in and feed her, since it's alread 4:15, and we've been up for an hour. She doesn't usually do this anymore, so I"m feeling like maybe I can just feed the poor kid (since we'd be up soon for it anyway). Comfort food, you know.

Someone tried to evangelize to me today. I was early to the park, and was pushing Lucy in the swing, and this lady next to me obviously tried to sing Jesus-y songs. Then as we talked a little about the kids (her grandkids), she said I ought to come on Tuesdays because a bunch of moms come ad sing Bible songs. I said, "I've actualy been wanting to get involved in my own church group on Tuesdays, but Lucy's naps were so unpredictable. She asked where I went to churc, and then mentioned she didn't go to church anymore. Her husband isn't a Christian, her kids are grown, so she didn't see the point. I told her a little about what I liked in our church, and said if she was thinking about coming sometime, she was very welcome to come. So who was doing the evangelizing? I'm not exactly sure.

O Magnum Mysterium

I was listening to "O Magnum Mysterium" by Morton Lauridsen tonight (yes, click and listen to it... it is so beautiful!). Probably the most beautiful Christmas piece ever written in my opinion. Concurrently I was working on some communication with a person who consistently gets under my skin, and I was struggling with my two selves as I replied. My one self wants to be nasty in reply, as the original communication was passive agressive and unfair. My other self knows better and is desparately struggling to deny myself the "pleasure" of being nasty. After all, I was justified, wasn't I? I haven't won the battle yet, but I'm at least witholding a reply until I can get my instincts under control. So I'm listening to this amazing music about how Christ came as a human, this amazing mystery! I'm marveling at the beauty of God becoming man, and it just strikes me that God became man to save me from the reply I really want to send to this person. I grew up in a Christian home, and I was always one of the "good kids." I never even got a detention for heaven's sake (I got called in a few times to get talked to about my snotty attitude, but that's a story for another day.)! So I've often fallen into the trap of being numb to my sin. And even now, I am not really pained by what I know is sin, but rather I'm proud of myself for calling it what it is. But I know that Christ came to save me from the consequenses of that mess, and that any improvement in my character that I want to be proud of is really of the Spirit, whose coming was made possible by God-became-man.

O Magnum Mysterium

O magnum mysterium et admirabile sacramentum
ut animalia viderent Dominum natum
jacentem in praesepio.

Beata virgo cujus viscera
meruent partare Dominum Christum.
Alleluia.

Translation:
O great mystery and admirable [wonderful] sacrament
That animals see the Lord born
Lying in a manger.

Blessed virgin whose womb
Was worthy to bear Lord Christ.
Allelujah.