Twas the Day After Christmas

Twas the day after Christmas, and all through the house not a tear was dry, especially the boys. The gifts were all given with thought and with care - and every last soul really tried to be fair.

OK, I suck at this rhyming thing. But really, so much of this week has been so beautiful and special.

First - the Sorensen gathering. There were 70 people in attendance - and that's not all of us! I am constantly amazed by the love and support from these people through everything. The Sorensens have had a rough go for the last 2 years. And it has only made our ties stronger. I laughed so hard at the white elephant exchange that I cried. It was perfect.

Second - the Jones gathering. I loved spending time with my grandparents and my Aunt Cathy's family. Most of those cousins are the same age as my siblings, or really close - so all of us have a buddy. I am grateful for my buddy, Ashley. She took great care in finding things to help me relax and take care of myself - since I don't do it enough. ;) We enjoyed each others' company until Santa was flying over Canada - then it was time to get the kiddos home to feed reindeer and all that jazz. AND.... I forgot to take pictures....

Third - Immediate family Christmas "morning". This was a little different than usual, but it was still wonderful, nonetheless.

My dad had to work at 2, which meant he had to leave at 1:15 at the latest to get there on time. We needed to start a bit late, though, because Jacquelle and Kira had family things (missionary phone calls, etc.) in the morning. JJ really tried to be patient, but it just didn't work. Haha.

When everyone got there, we were able to have our traditional waffles - just like Grandmother Lucy used to make. This selection has homemade whip cream, banana butter, crushed strawberries, and happiness.

And then, we had to hurry and open presents before dad had to leave.

I feel like everything was super successful. It was great to have everyone together.

As we grow older, it feels harder to get wonderful gifts for my siblings. They're like me in that they just find what they need and get it - our mom is the "gift person" and loves giving and receiving thoughtful gifts. But I think that even with that constraint there was a lot of thought put into gifts.

Now, it brings me to the after party - Mom and I ended up canning pears. lots and lots of pears. Pear sauce, pear butter - you name it, we did it. It smelled really great, and looked delicious.

And now.....today. I was lame and cleaned my room. All day. But it was sorely needed. I threw a lot of things out and organized my Pampered Chef stuff. YAY! SO needed.

Then I met a nice guy named Chris for some cocoa. We'll see what happens there. :)

Almost a new year - Trying a new start.

I am trying to keep a better record of what happens in my life. I have realized there are a lot of little memories from my past that are gone for one reason or another. This makes me sad. So, hopefully, this will help. :)

Highlights and lowlights of this last year:

I dated, broke up, dated broke up, and dated some more.
I paid off approximately $6000 of my student loans.
My grandma finished chemotherapy treatments.
Moved into a new place with roommates.
Bought a new car.
Joined the Pampered Chef Team.
Taught marching band at Copper Hills.
An old friend of mine from college tragically and unexpectedly lost his life.
I officially got a full time teacher at American Preparatory Academy.
I lost my cousin Casey - another victim of suicide.
My brother, JJ, was able to move back home.
I missed out on being an auntie...twice.
I saw Kelly Clarkson, Josh Groban, and Michael Buble - live.
I drove to and from St. George with a minion.

Of course, there was so much more. I'm grateful for all of it. I am excited to see what 2014 will bring.

The Great Hot Chocolate Experiment

Some background is required for this post.

First, my best friend [Shayla] and I met our freshman year of college. We ended up being roommates before we had ever met. To make a long story short, we bonded over The Phantom of the Opera and have stayed close ever since.

Something that we did on a fairly regular basis was have what we called "hot chocolate parties". We would make hot chocolate (usually in our matching snow buddy mugs) and talk about our day. We reflected on this recently and decided to recreate this event, but invite girls we went to school with to join the fun!

We are also foodies...and decided to make the hot chocolate from scratch.

Vanilla Cinnamon Hot Chocolate

Ingredients:
1 1/4 C Semi Sweet Chocolate Morsels
1/2 C Vanilla Chips
1/8 C Cinnamon Chips (we had a few more, add more to taste)
1 Tbsp Sweetened Condensed Milk
Vanilla Extract to taste
1/2 C Half and Half
5 C Milk

We combined all the chips and morsels, the condensed milk, and the half and half in a saucepan over medium low heat stirring constantly until melted.

We then added the 5 C milk. You can add more milk if you want to, I liked it this way, but Shayla felt like it might be able to use a bit more. Totally up to you.

We continued to cook it until heated through and then served with marshmallows (optional).

We love making things together! I'm always grateful for the relationship we have and for the fun we have creating beautiful and delicious things together!

My 2 Cents

I REALLY hate it that so soon after the tragedy hit Newtown, Connecticut that it turned into a gun control battle. I don't know who started it and frankly I don't care. There should have been more time to let the families of the victims and the country as a whole grieve for the loss of these Americans.

But if it's going to happen, if we're really going to let our opinions known, I'll throw mine in. After all, it is my constitutional right to share my opinion.

Taking guns away from law abiding citizens will not solve the killings. The people you should worry about are the people who don't care whether what they are doing is legal or not. Criminals do not care if guns are banned. They will find some other way to do their evil deed because criminals do whatever they want. That has been the case since criminals and evildoers began walking the earth and that is how it always will be.

If there are going to be criminals walking the streets, I want the right to keep and bear my own arms. As a citizen of the United States of America I have been given that right and I refuse to have that taken away from me.

If a criminal came into my home armed and I had no way to defend myself, wouldn't that be worse than defending myself with an arm of my choice? It is only logical.

Are there many gun crimes in the world today? YES. Are those the fault of guns? NO. Bad people kill other people, not inanimate objects. Please use your common sense.

There you go.

In loving memory of those whose lives were taken 12.14.12

This beautiful poem was written in memorium of the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting on December 14, 2012. I found it beautiful and inspiring and hope it does the same for you. I heard it on the Rod Arquette show last night and cried.



Written by Camero Smith of Mt. Wolf PA

twas’ 11 days before Christmas, around 9:38
when 20 beautiful children stormed through heaven’s gate.
their smiles were contagious, their laughter filled the air.
they could hardly believe all the beauty they saw there.
they were filled with such joy, they didn’t know what to say.
they remembered nothing of what had happened earlier that day.
“where are we?” asked a little girl, as quiet as a mouse.
“this is heaven.” declared a small boy. “we’re spending Christmas at God’s house.”
when what to their wondering eyes did appear,
but Jesus, their savior, the children gathered near.
He looked at them and smiled, and they smiled just the same.
then He opened His arms and He called them by name.
and in that moment was joy, that only heaven can bring
those children all flew into the arms of their King
and as they lingered in the warmth of His embrace,
one small girl turned and looked at Jesus’ face.
and as if He could read all the questions she had
He gently whispered to her, “I’ll take care of mom and dad.”
then He looked down on earth, the world far below
He saw all of the hurt, the sorrow, and woe
then He closed His eyes and He outstretched His hand,
“Let My power and presence re-enter this land!”
“may this country be delivered from the hands of fools”
“I’m taking back my nation. I’m taking back my schools!”
then He and the children stood up without a sound.
“come now my children, let me show you around.”
excitement filled the space, some skipped and some ran.
all displaying enthusiasm that only a small child can.
and i heard Him proclaim as He walked out of sight,
“in the midst of this darkness, I AM STILL THE LIGHT

Read more: http://www.knrs.com/pages/rod.html#ixzz2FQLlc05j