Rings On Her Fingers

Big rings are "the thing" right now and, of course, Abby is on top of her fads. So, after making this fabric flower, topping it with beads, and locating a paperclip in my desk drawer, her creation was immediately turned into a ring.

Two years ago we turned great grandma's old clip-on earrings into trendy bobby pins? (You can see that post here.)

This year we turned them into rings with bling.

"With rings on her fingers and bells on her toes

She shall have music wherever she goes."

 

A Toy for the Scientist

Brian was absolutely no help in offering up his wish list for Christmas this year so I decided to peruse our local upscale toy store for a creative gift of some sort. I remember reading about Buckyballs on C. Jane's blog so they were on my radar of possibilities. I found Nano dots instead. (I wonder which brand is the original.) They were pricey, but I had to get SOMETHING fun for Brian to accompany the boring shirts and ties I had already purchased.

Source

Ironically, they were the very last present we opened at our house on Christmas day. They had fallen beneath a chair almost lost and forgotten. Brian opened them in the usual cheerful and grateful manner, but I sensed a bit of indifference.

The kids were the ones who found them the most entertaining over the next few weeks. I left them out on our kitchen counter to encourage creativity and to deter the kids from their usual down time activities of TV and computer games. I had a bit of success.

Among other things, Abby made a mouse

and Travis made an elephant.

One evening last week I forced the Nano dots into my husband's hands and told him to "play" while I finished up dinner.

Suddenly, his indifference turned to curiosity and amazement.

"This is really interesting!"

"The minimization of energy is so different than what I expected."

"No wonder the lattices have dislocations."

HUH?

On and on it went. I laughed at him and then wrote it all down. He was hooked. A successful gift--appreciated a few weeks late, but appreciated none the less.

I love that scientist of mine.

Poster Child

We were quite surprised when Travis informed us this poster was hanging in his high school band room advertising BYU's bands and percussion. Do you recognize our daughter, Rachel? I wonder how many other band rooms across the state and country have Rachel posted on their bulletin boards.

Pretty awesome we think.

Nativity by Abby

Abby sketched Mary and baby Jesus one night after she was tucked into bed. I had to share.

Merry Christmas!

Dear Rachel (#5)

Dear Rachel,

Your sister is now officially a teenager. Thanks so much for the book you sent her. She's heard it's a great read. Of course, she also loved the crazy-fun hat from Grandma Stoker. Her friends can't decide if it's a monkey, a giraffe, or a zebra. What do you think?

These cute cupcakes were delivered to our door this week--Reindeer at the North Pole!

I can't believe it was 70 degrees in Atlanta when I called you this week. It's been so cold here in Utah that I'm breaking out all the soup recipes. I made your Stoneless Stone Soup recently--love that one. This time I used spicy sausage and it warmed are bodies from the inside out. (I even posted it on my Salads and Such blog which has been ignored a bit lately.)

Since you weren't able to come to Travis' Christmas Concert this year, I've brought it to you. Enjoy your brother and the rest of the Percussion Ensemble playing Trepak from The Nutcracker. It was my favorite.

Love,
Mom

Popcorn Balls

Making popcorn balls as a family is a tradition we TRY to keep each December.

While the syrup reaches "soft ball" stage, we pop a huge bowl of popcorn with our ancient air popper. It really is a group effort when it's time to pour the hot syrup over the popcorn and stir to coat each piece. Many hands dig in to form the balls. (Cold wet hands work best.)

Of course, the best part of the process is the eating. They are delicious!

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My dad is the one who started this tradition. When he was a boy his family would make popcorn balls, wrap them in red or green cellophane and hang them on their Christmas tree. When friends or neighbors stopped by during the Holidays, they each would receive one of the homemade treats to enjoy.

We miss my dad very very much, but luckily, my kids have sweet memories of making popcorn balls with their grandpa.

Here is his recipe:

Popcorn Balls
2 c. sugar
2/3 c. white corn syrup
2/3 c. water
1/2 lb. butter
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla or maple flavoring (We actually used both.)

Cook all ingredients except the flavorings until the mixture forms a soft ball in cold water. Add vanilla and/or maple and pour over popcorn. (If you only use one type of flavoring, make it maple.)

Coca-Cola Crate Advent Calendar

I acquired this Coca-Cola crate when Brian and I were first married. I really have no idea how old it is--perhaps vintage 1960s or 1970s? The crate was left alone for a couple years until a friend suggested I turn it into an Advent calendar to count down the days until Christmas. I jumped on that idea since I have quite a fascination with Advent calendars.

There were, coincidentally, 24 compartments, which would take us through Christmas Eve. It was quite a fun treasure hunt finding small Christmasy knickknacks that were just right the size for the cubbyholes.  

Each trinket is concealed within a square of red or green tissue paper until it is "opened" on the appropriate day. The fat plaid ribbon has adorned the box for years. I suppose I could change it up, but my kids might rebel at the thought of altering our traditional holiday decor. 

There it is. A snapshot of Christmas at our house. Happy Holidays!

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Linking to:

Dear Rachel (#4)

Dear Rachel,

I can't believe it's been a month since my last blog letter to you. Did you get your Christmas tree all adorned Monday night? If so, I need pictures, please. Most of our decorations are up. Travis will work on setting up the train this weekend.

What do you think of this centerpiece? I already had everything so I was pretty happy.

******************

Now that I am finally starting to feel better, here are the pictures of Thanksgiving I promised:

It was so wonderful having BOTH grandmas with us AND Renee & Haley, AND Kirk & Beverly & kids. A rare Thanksgiving gathering indeed.

(Renee, Kirk, and Beverly)

There was lots of cousin time:

(Haley, Abby, Emmeline, Seth, and Isabelle)

(Haley and Abby straightened Emmeline's hair)

(before church)

(Abby and Isabelle)

We missed you a TON, but SO glad you were able to have Thanksgiving with Harold and Barbara. Have a good rest of the week.

Love,

Mom

Connecting the Freckles

Ever feel so sick that all you can do is lie in bed and stare at the freckles on your arm?

I have. I am.

I started connecting those freckle-dots in childhood during my numerous strep throat infections. The habit reappeared for the first four months of each of my pregnancies. This week the visual exercise returned due to a cold that is perhaps the worst I have had in my 47 years.

You'd think that by now I would have already entertained all the cold viruses out there, but noooooo. This one had to introduce itself on Thanksgiving night. I ignored it the best I could. Family was in town for one thing!

Monday, however, it tackled me hard and once again I lie staring blankly at those freckle-dots feeling like I was going to die.

A few rounds of solitaire is just about the only thing I can muster in between freckle staring.

My sick bed companion doesn't have freckles. Trying to find something to count on him gives me an even greater headache.

Come on antibodies. Do your thing. I'm sick of being sick.

All Tucked In

There is a certain 12-year-old at my house who still insists on treating our cats like her own personal dolls. One morning before she left for school she tucked them in all nice and cozy at the foot of her bed. She must have done a good job because they actually stayed put and snoozed away.

After taking a quick peek to see what I was up to, Lucy resumed her sweet slumber. Linus, of course, wasn't phased in the slightest.

I'm sharing today at