Saturday, July 11, 2009
my jogging trail is gone
This happened just a couple of hours ago. Crockett Ave. is a muddy river, all the houses' yards are lakes. I went to go jogging and was stuck in the mud. I am sad and overwhelmed at all the damage. I'm off with a broom and a "shuzzle" to go help clean up.
Update: Saturday at 6:30 They think a woman and her two children were in the house that collapsed. So so sad.
Update: Sunday, the boys joined a volunteer shift and shoveled soupy mud.
Update: Monday, they still have not found the bodies, Darren was allowed to walk near the breach in the canal and survey the damage. He is heartsick.
Wednesday, July 08, 2009
time since... fourteen months
Watched Born into Brothels last night, amazingly beautiful while heart-wrenchingly sad at the same time. Becoming aware of situations that exist in the world rends you unable to turn away and avidly pulls you into action. I did read an update that Avijit actually attended high school in SLC at Rowland Hall. If you have a chance watch the film, it will change you.(photo via here)
Monday, July 06, 2009
at the bird
Darren and I spent the last four days of June at the Cliff at Snowbird. He had meetings for AWRA and I lounged at the pool on the 10th floor, had a massage at the spa and thoroughly relaxed and enjoyed myself. Many people complain about the Cliff being too cold, but the exposed concrete does it for me. It seems extremely Frank Lloyd Wright, quite organic, with the low ceilings giving way to the incredible 10 story glass atrium... "compression and release" is a FLW concept. It fits in and mimics the harsh granite and steep mountains it is nestled into. I also enjoy the Asian rugs and screens and accessories, and it is amazing that they have had "green" roofs since the 70's. It is very retro and very "now" at the same time.
Darren and I were engaged at the top of the tram, so this place has added meaning for us. Maybe it mimics our marriage as well. I think Snowbird's branding is exceptional, simple, geometric and eye-catching. I was hiking up to the top of the tram, but there is still too much snow covering the trails so I eased myself down to the waterfall and decided to throw myself across it. Hmmm, there went all the benefits of the body glow wrap I had had the day before -- I was completely muddy with bloody scraped knees.Thursday, July 02, 2009
take time
Thursday, June 25, 2009
this is old
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
ho hum
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
HOSM?
Hands On Social Media. I decided to attend a free workshop in Salt Lake last night sponsored by Microsoft Office Live and Kirtsy. I am now on Twitter [@anndeo] and am bookmarking with Delicious. Now to sign up with Kirtsy and use Office Live -- wishing I had known about this when I was working with an editor on my paper. The event was at Les Madeleines bakery and their mini cupcakes are as good as in my dreams [funny, I had dreamt of eating loads and loads of cupcakes piled with creamy frosting the night before]. Lots of creative and curious ladies were in attendance and there was a lot of learning going on thanks to our host Liz Stanley. There are more workshops scheduled, check here for one in your town.
Friday, June 12, 2009
independence
Monday, June 08, 2009
time since... thirteen months
Second Sowing by Anne Morrow LindberghFor whomThe milk ungiven in the breastWhen the child is gone?For whomThe love locked up in the heartThat is left alone?That golden yeildSplit sod once, overflowed an August field,Threshed out in pain upon September's floorNow boarded high in barns a sterile store.Break down the bolted door;Rip open, spread and pourThe grain upon the barren groundWherever crack in clod is found.There is no harvest for the heart alone;The seed of love must beEternallyResown.
Wednesday, June 03, 2009
Monday, June 01, 2009
multiball
Anyway, back to the get together. We all came with a presentation of advice for Dusty. I showed him how to fold a t-shirt like they do at the Gap and then we autographed it jr. high style with Sharpies. We had a great dinner and then played a heated round of pinball. I reprimand my son's for participating in "imature" guy talk. Well, it disinegrated into "imature" jokes... mostly about balls. I laughed hard. Good Riddance Dusty (in the good green day time of your life way, "not in a creepy weird way").
Monday, May 25, 2009
memory
Friday, May 22, 2009
it's hard to believe...
This innocent creature, who is useless as a Labrador retriever because she can't swim, could be the cause of this backyard adventure...
Khloee walked on the winter tarp to the pool before we had cleaned it thoroughly. We found her standing on the pool stairs unable to move {let me say again - she is a Lab afraid of water}. I had to climb in and guide her out and Chase and Darren "scubaed" in the unheated skanky leaf water to retrieve all the sticks so they wouldn't clog the pump. Isn't the dog supposed to do that? I love how Chase didn't let the air out of the drysuit -- he's here to "pump, you up." He also didn't wear any insulation under the drysuit therefore counteracted the purpose. He didn't last long. Darren on the other hand, was the hero of the day, he is still complaining, but would not get out of the water for over an hour. What is that Seinfield episode about cold water?
Friday, May 15, 2009
time since... one year
Wednesday, May 06, 2009
sweet & tenacious
Friday, May 01, 2009
biodiversity
Friday, April 24, 2009
what a long strange trip it's been

Title: Interior Ecology: Developing a Design Methodology for Space Planning Using Principles of Sustainability and Ecosystem Models
Dedication: To my mother, Saundra Stephens Toole, I am so sorry I lost you before you could witness the final project. Mom Forever.
Acknowledgments: Completing this degree has been part of a demanding but rewarding journey. There are numerous individuals that I am indebted to. From the beginning Steve Mansfield has provided generous encouragement, competent educational and design skills, a listening ear, and an example of brilliant character. Carol Nicholas has continually forged a path through the impossible that I try to remember to follow. Much appreciation goes to a man of incredible integrity, creativity and enthusiasm, Dusty Wickham, my office partner, for tolerating my many distractions and obsessions, to Darrin Brooks whose limitless energy and passion for design are legendary, and to Sandra Turner for her kind compliments and hard-work making this paper look good. To Robert, Carolyn and Sue: thank you. To Jenny and Angus and the promise of meeting in a pub in Sydney when this endeavor was completed -- I'm privileged to have such great friends.
And most importantly to my family... to my father Doug Toole who never doubted that I could do this, and for time that otherwise would have been yours, my deepest gratitude goes to Chase and Land, and to Darren, the person who supported this adventure more than anyone else; it is you that has sustained me.
Friday, April 10, 2009
time since... eleven months
A familiar view, approaching Henefer; Grandpa's mountain in the background. I remember approaching the town once with my mom. She looking at the mountain and saying, "of all the places in the world, how was I born right here?" And I ask now, "of all the places in the world how did she die right here?" She loved her home. Memories of climbing the hill imprinted thick and solid. Dallen and Kimberly and I rolling boulders off of the train side in the canyon anticipating the split-rock deafening crash. We would also lay under the train bridge as it crossed the slough, tuck up close holding on to each other, wait for the train. As it barrelled over us, the bridge bowing inches away from our faces we would let out this primitive scream still holding tight. For all three of us, even now, lying under the train made us feel most alive. It is Easter this Sunday. We will go visit Grandpa, 91 years old. He hosts an "Easter egg roll" each year, but it is a misnomer as everyone knows in the Stephens clan. We throw the eggs at each other. The oldest cousins decked out in helmets and garbage can lids to defend against the onslaught. Easter was my mother's favorite holiday. Last year was the last family gathering we spent with her. It was a great day. She threw snow at the grandkids while they searched for hidden eggs. I don't know why these festive activities have a hint of aggression, but through it all we learned to hold on tight -- to each other. Oh I miss her. I dream of her helping me with babies. I hear her laugh and her fingernails clicking on the table and running through my hair. I keep repeating a phrase from a Carl Sandburg poem...heavy heavy is love to carry
and light as one rose petal,
light as a bubble, a blossom,
or a finger or a wisp of hair
never forgotten
Happy Easter Mom - Love Nanner
Friday, April 03, 2009
Easter is Approaching...
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Sunday Morning
Morning Poem
Every morning
the world
is created.
Under the orange
sticks of the sun
the heaped
ashes of the night
turn into leaves again
and fasten themselves to the high branches —
and the ponds appear
like black cloth
on which are painted islands
of summer lilies.
If it is your nature
to be happy
you will swim away along the soft trails
for hours, your imagination
alighting everywhere.
And if your spirit
carries within it
the thorn
that is heavier than lead —
if it’s all you can do
to keep on trudging —
there is still
somewhere deep within you
a beast shouting that the earth
is exactly what it wanted —
each pond with its blazing lilies
is a prayer heard and answered
lavishly,
every morning,
whether or not
you have ever dared to be happy,
whether or not
you have ever dared to pray.
–Mary Oliver
(via slowmuse)
Thursday, March 26, 2009
digital immigrant
Can't sleep... but I did have Land talk me through how to email myself a pic from my phone before he went to bed. This is from May 2007... President Obama [well, not quite at the time] spoke at Kimball's Junction in Park City. I bolted out of my parent's house when I thought I might have the opportunity to see the next POTUS. [most of the family gathered were exhibiting puzzled looks and and asking, "who is Barack Obama?"] It was thrilling. I have shook the President's hand. A woman I met on the plane flying home from the inauguration wanted me to email this to her... now I finally can.
Friday, March 20, 2009
let's go aggies
It is half-time and the Aggies are down 8 points. Channel 2 (dorks) didn't get the feed from CBS right - they advertised the game as USU vs. Syracuse and the game we were viewing on the tv was Syracuse vs. Stephen F. Austin. {yeah, you know the guy who was given the awful job of answering the flood of calls at the station got an earful from me} It is finally on (USU vs. Marquette) and the Aggies maybe can come back and win this thing. Aggie basketball has the best fans and student section. They are so quick and brutal with their chants. We have enjoyed going to the games. Gary Wilkinson pictured above always engages the crowd to get them cheering. So show me the "true-blooded Aggie from Utah, that doesn't love the spot where the sage-brush grows!"Update: Aggies are down by only one!
A 6 point lead 4:20 to go.
AAAH! Utah State lost by one.
(photo via: utah statesman)
Odd allegiances: I am an Aggie basketball fan
I am a Ute gymnastics fan
I am a Cougar football fan... can't shake it.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
go green
May the road rise up to meet youMay the wind be always at your backMay the sun shine warm upon your face nowMay the rains fall soft upon your fieldsAnd until we meet againAnd until we meet againMay God hold you in the palm of His handMay God hold you in the palm of His handMay our children and their descendantsBe the ones to find a lasting peaceMay their hopes and dreams become unitedMay the past be left for those who hateAnd until we meet againAnd until we meet againMay love and trust find a way to make a standMay love and trust find a way to make a standMay the road rise up to meet youMay the wind be at your backMay the sun shine warm upon your faceMay the rains fall soft upon your fieldsMay this world and all its wondersBe a home to all humanityMay the people find a common purposeMay we help one another to surviveAnd until we meet againAnd until we meet againMay Mother earth pour her heart into our landMay Mother earth pour her heart into our land
Sunday, March 15, 2009
light at the end of the tunnel

I am going to finish this thesis! I can see light at the end of the tunnel! [queue Starlight Express - ok, that makes me laugh, I'll have to explain one day] Today on my way to campus a young toddler flashed the most incredible springtime bright grin and enthusiastic wave, a gentleman was standing in his apartment doorway and happily signaled my existence while finishing off his Sunday dinner. I take these as good omens and now I am, seriously, not going to be distracted until the Amazing Race starts at seven. Salude!
Sunday, March 08, 2009
time since... ten months
Powell's Bookstore in Portland is my favorite. The first time I went there I couldn't take it all in fast enough. Like going all day without eating and then hoarding the food when you finally get access. I was ecstatic to get lost in all the stories, oh and Powell's holds numberless volumes on its musty shelves. I don't know why, but it felt like home. And so each time we go to Portland, and it seems we are there quite often, I must return to that familiar place and purchase a book. I've made a few in my family quite upset, not to mention late for the airport, but it has become imperative. I now select what story I'm going to purchase before entering and am given a set amount of time to complete the transaction. I make sure a store sticker is included, place it in the inside cover and write the date I purchased it. The last time I was there I brought home Infidel by Ayann Hirsi Ali, recommended by a friend.Saturday, March 07, 2009
sick every day
Saturday, February 28, 2009
walk the dog
Friday, February 27, 2009
truth is stranger than fiction
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Angela Adams & a question...
Angela Adams and her furniture designing husband will be on campus tomorrow for a presentation and critique of a project that she introduced to the students last month. Don't you just love these rugs. Mouth-watering, texturally gorgeous. I would never need furniture, for I would sit always on the floor. If you are interested in attending, the event occurs Monday, February 23rd, at 3:00pm at the Performance Hall at Utah State in Logan.
Now for the question? If you were given the task to "map an ecosystem" as a concept for a design layout what would you include? How would it look? It is using "biomimicry" in a way, to arrange interior space. What would the connections be, what type of "neighborhoods" would you include? Just wondering, as I work on a research question that I haven't quite formulated all the way in my head yet.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Time since... nine months
Monday, February 16, 2009
Whelmed!
Sunday, February 08, 2009
Dispatches from the District {of Columbia}
Dispatch #1: I lost my camera the night before I came home…so the images you see are courtesy of April.
Dispatch #2: The Decision:
It was a last-minute one to go to DC. I had asked my friend Jill if her daughter April would mind a houseguest. (April is a legend… smart… a law school graduate from Yale and an attorney for the Justice Department (Civil Rights… appeals), talented… her undergrad was in medieval history and she knows a lot of stuff, plus she has such an intricate and informed take on everything she is fascinating to listen to, and she has style… like the man I was go to see take office April has a strong sense of herself… she is just plain fun to be around) I had made up my mind not to go and then I spoke to April and she hinted that it would be kind of nice for me to drop-in as she probably wouldn’t venture out into the frozen masses by herself. I booked two one-way tickets 10 minutes later.
Dispatch #3: Arriving:
I flew to Denver and then to Reagan National. There were a myriad of events happening to be pumped about. NFC and AFC playoff games… the We Are One concert happening at the Lincoln Memorial. Side note… April was riding her bike to church and made a detour to the Mall and watched the concert instead. Seeing U2 was a highlight. As the plane descended into Washington and the passengers caught a glimpse of the glowing monuments we could all hardly contain ourselves. Someone shouted over the intercom, “Who are we here to see?” and the reply was a resounding, “Obama, Obama, Obama!” Clapping and cheering ensued as we touched down on the Nation’s Capitol. Oh, I rode the metro into town and even my ticket had a likeness of the soon to be 44th President on it.
Dispatch #4: Martin Luther King Day:
Kudos to Jason Chaffetz, the newly elected congressman from Utah’s 3rd District. You may have seen him on Steven Colbert. Well, I had sources tell me that I was next up on the list for inaugural tickets if there was a cancellation… we’ll call you they said, hmmm, I thought and instead of taking any chances I went and joined the line to the Longworth House Office Building for a few hours. As I slowly got toward the front I saw the Congressman himself exit the building… my gut instinct was to shout, Jason! (of course I went with the gut). He came over and indulged this extremely excitable woman from Utah and invited me to go to his office where he thought Ryan, the office boy, would be able to accommodate my request. Enter the office: Ryan needs to deliver tickets to someone in line and asks if I will watch the office. OK, so I call Darren and tell him that I am in the office alone… should I scrounge for the tickets and take off running? Answer: No. Swarms of people were looking for tickets… it was intense. Ryan returns, and the Congressman, and his Chief of Staff. They say they need to talk. They say I need to have my passport and answer some questions. I enter the Congressman’s office with trepidation… they are so serious. Rep. Chaffetz stands, shakes my hand, offers me two ticket packets and graciously says, “Today is your lucky day, congratulations, enjoy watching history.” I’m all, “Thankyou, thankyou, thankyou so much.” I was shaking, I felt like when I was 7 years old and I got to go to an Osmonds’ concert. I called Darren in Nevada and empathetically state, “I have tickets to the inauguration of Barack Obama.”
Later in the day we go to the National Cathedral and listen to hip-hop poetry and music. Really cool in a cathedral… the dancing and shouting “Peace” against the echoing stone vaults is riveting. April and I also find the gargoyle on the front tower that is a carved likeness of Darth Vader… there is also one of a security camera trained on the Russian Embassy… who says the federal government doesn’t have a sense of humor.
Dispatch #5: Inauguration Day:
3:15 am the alarm sounds. Our goal is to beat the Metro opening at 4. Layer upon layer upon layer, upon layer, I can’t move, but the radio says it is 10 degrees outside we will be in the elements for over 8 hours. We are speed walking to the Mall. I can’t believe how many are already up at this ungodly cold hour… you mean someone else had the idea to get there early? We are about #100 in the silver ticket line. More getting to know each other. Lines transformed into human clusters transformed into running masses.
We finally arrive at our viewing spot. Front row just behind the barricade around the Capitol reflecting pool. April and I are listening to the radio… the mall is already filling up, it has warmed to 16 degrees outside… the sun rises behind the capital, applause for the dawning of a “new day”. The crowd is getting restless, a man is straddling the barricade and when he sees that there is no security looking on he makes a run for it. Tens of thousands of people follow suit. I experience a panic attack against the stampeding crowd. Once we determine that we are safe, the barriers are not going back up and we have lost our front row seat we take off into the pressing throng. There are people in trees and on the statues. The next hours are spent on tippy toes and peeking between shoulders to keep our view. A man remarks, “Damn you’re short”, and pushes me even further toward the front. The music is beginning. On the jumbotron we can see various “players” in the government arriving to take their place. I pick them out on the podium using my binoculars. The crowd roars with approval for most, groaning disproval meets some others. I feel incredibly American.
It is beginning; the prayers, the National Anthem, the oaths of office. There is a moment of weirdness when Joe Biden is sworn in as vice-president… for about seven minutes is it a Bush – Biden administration?
Obama finally takes the oath (after a bit of a stumble from Justice Roberts) and then here, at this moment, I will never forget. The sound of the citizens cheering, it was like aftershock or a swarm of bees traveling the two miles from the Lincoln Memorial right through your shoes and straight to your heart. It shook your soul. I don’t have words to describe it, it was expressed in the faces of those in attendance. As John Lewis said, “it was too much, it was too big.” And then President Obama began his speech and conversely, as the crowd was loud they became hushed, hanging on every word. The occasional “amen”, or “you know it”, or “it is time” was offered. Two African-American women, beautiful and wise, clothed in their Sunday best… long fur coats, hats, brooches, leather gloves, perfectly set lipstick, remarked, “We were here for Martin Luther King when he marched on Washington and we are here today for Barack Obama”. As the speech neared its end emotion grew. Tears streamed down my face, high fives and hugs to virtual strangers. Wow! I was there.
Dispatch #6: Afterwards:
We head to the Hart Senate building where the Utah Congressional Delegation is hosting a reception on the top floor. (So nice) We see an ambulance in the front of the Capital and later realized that it was for Ted Kennedy. Orrin Hatch speaks to the Utah crowd and explains Senator Kennedy’s condition. We watch the parade on the TV’s provided. It is warm and there is good food and company. We learn that many people did not even get in through security. I am disappointed in my congressman, Rob Bishop, he doesn’t even show to the reception, and of course, I am still upset that he was unable to accommodate my request for tickets. Not a Fan.
Around 5:00 we head home. We have been up since 3 and I am floating. I think the senators and the President must be superhuman to still be going strong, all the “galas” and inaugural balls are yet to happen. We pass on the partying and watch on the TV, amazed that all this is taking place right outside the door. Good, good sleep.
Dispatch #7: Wednesday, January 21st (Darren and I have been married 21 Years)
April must go to work, with new bosses, mind you. I head to the Corcoran Gallery and view the Richard Avedon exhibit, “Portraits of Power”. Moving. I also go to the Renwick gallery and then walk by the White House. Code Pink is outside and someone asks me to hold a sign for a moment. They are mellow, just reminding people that this can be an administration of peace. In exchange for holding the sign they take my picture with a President Obama cutout with a pink feather boa. I don't have that photo due to the lost camera, but I noticed I did make their flickr set.
that's April in the pic
Dispatch #8: Going Home:
Thursday, February 05, 2009
Forgiveness takes a lifetime...
I was moved when I read this in the New Yorker... especially the part when he reportedly asked President Obama to sign a photo, and the President accomodated his request with, "because of you John, Barack Obama." And then this happened... hearts and souls can mend and heal.
47 years later, apology accepted
U.S. Rep. John Lewis forgives Elwin Wilson for 1961 beating in a Rock Hill bus station.
By Andrew Dys
(Rock Hill) HeraldPosted: Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2009ROCK HILL Almost 48 years have passed since a mob of white men beat up two civil rights demonstrators at Rock Hill's Greyhound bus station. Called “Freedom Riders,” one white man and one black man protesting segregated transportation tried to go into a waiting room that on May 9, 1961, was for “whites only.”
When asked Monday night if any of the people who beat him in 1961 in Rock Hill – or attacked the Freedom Ride bus days later in Alabama – ever apologized before, U.S. Rep John Lewis, D-Ga. said, “Never. Until now.”
One of the Rock Hill mob has now apologized. And Lewis said Monday that man is forgiven.
In a telephone interview Monday night from his office in Washington, Lewis said he read Monday about the apology of Elwin Wilson for past acts of hate published Saturday in the Observer and The (Rock Hill) Herald.
“I accept that apology, and would love to have the opportunity some day to talk to that man if he wants to,” Lewis said. “I have no ill feelings. No malice. This shows the distance we have come. It shows grace on his part. It shows courage.”
Last year, Lewis received an apology from the current mayor of Rock Hill. But Wilson is the first to admit a role in the Rock Hill beatings.
Wilson, now 72, told black civil rights protesters Friday he apologized for heckling and taunting them in Rock Hill in January 1961. Wilson also told the local protesters, known as the “Friendship Nine” and the “City Girls,” that he was one of that mob that beat up Lewis a few months later. Wilson said he was sorry.
All those Rock Hill people forgave Wilson – and now Lewis, has, too.
In 1961, Lewis was a 21-year-old seminary student. Both he and Al Bigelow, the white protester, were thumped with clouts to the head.
“The two of us got off the bus,” Lewis said. “We tried to go into the white waiting room, and a group of young men attacked us. They left us lying in blood.” Lewis and Bigelow declined to press charges.
“We said no, that was not why we were doing it,” Lewis said Monday.
Lewis said Monday he is “deeply touched,” by Wilson's apology for that awful day 48 years ago.
“This apology now is the essence of what the (civil rights) movement was all about – the ability of people to change and grow,” Lewis said Monday.
Wilson said last week he hoped blacks could forgive all the hatred of his life, including the Lewis beating.
“This is one of the best things I have ever done,” Wilson said of his decision to publicly apologize. “I am sorry. I'm just now trying to do what's right.”
Publicly Stated Reason #1 why I Love Living in Town!
Sunday, January 18, 2009
I WAS THERE...

Tuesday, January 13, 2009
ring in the new year - holiday rewind
Girls with hats (Amy, DeAnn, Ella, Jenny, Jeanette) Angus gets ready to toast to the New Year. Ella participates in the limbo.
Explore Bryce Canyon in the morning. Amy and Ella play in a tree while the others climb up the trail.
Hooray for 2009!
Sunday, January 11, 2009
weekend wonder (I wonder what are we thinking)
What a weekend:1. I drove in a snowstorm to my dad's on Thursday night to meet the Fergussons and watch the National Championship game. I got lost in Croydon, hmmm how does that happen I've been through that town thousands of times.
2. Spend a leisure morning at my dad's with the Fergussons. Amy is my dad's buddy shoveling and scraping snow. My dad was an excellent host and the new home is really nice.
3. Shopping at the outlet mall. I rarely get a chance to shop with "the girls". It was a good time.
4. Meet Darren and the boys at Red Butte Cafe for dinner.
5. Attend the gymnastics meet at U of U. On the list as one of my favorite activities. The girls were awestruck.
6. I take the boys to Bodyworlds at 1:00am (yes you read that right - it is open 24 hours for the final days) - it is sold out, but a kind ticket agent let us through in the wee hours of the morning. We finally finish at 4:00am and return to the hotel to sleep.
7. The Fergussons leave after breakfast. (for San Fran, Figi and then back to Oz) I am so tired that I can't get emotional, but on the inside I so don't want them to leave. We have had such a fantastic holiday with them.
8. Slumdog Millionaire. Don't wait - go and see this movie now. Unbelievable.
9. Dinner at Harry and Amy's. They cook us steaks and perfected potatoes and gingered vegetables and oooo so yummy ice cream. (soy for me). We stay at their house and visit until after 11:00.
That's how to spend the weekend; with great family and close friends. I feel good and exhausted and happy.
eve feast... holiday rewind
We gather, friends and family, open our crackers (or bonbons, as the Australians call them) adorn our party hats and feast on roast beast. This year we especially remembered my mom - she was always here for us on this night, made the gravy. Angus was kind and jumped right in and did it for me. My dad spent the night with us and watched the boys and the Fergusson girls open their gifts on Christmas morning.
Sunday, January 04, 2009
people with mustaches...
Guys with mustaches enjoy the snow - not only guys with white beards. This is Land, Austin and Dallas leaving for snowboarding after adorning stick-on facial hair I received as a white elephant gift at a holiday party.
Cheers
Christmas stresses me out. I can hardly breathe. I think it all happens too fast, too much pressure for one moment and then there is such a drop-off as soon as the moment is over. That is my excuse for posting about Christmas nearly two weeks later. As I was gathering gifts a few days before the big day I saw a supposedly funny card that made me want to upchuck the little bit of holiday spirit I had managed to drum up. It had a beautiful painting of Jesus and a quote bubble that proclaimed, "Happy Birthday to Me". I couldn't purchase a single thing after that, I thought really, He would be disappointed in all this horrid consuming. We went small on gifts - and enjoyed my dad and the Ferguson family staying with us. It turned out to be a magical week.Pictured above are some of the cheerful decorations that helped us be jolly:a. Our scuba santa ornament from St. John. I really felt that I was drowning in the stress.
b. The nativity given to me years ago from my mother. A peace dove from my sister-in-law. Flowers in the frame above the table are from my mom's grave given to us from a woman in Coalville... so beautiful.
c. The living room mantel all dressed in white with a photo of my mother and the ceramic Christmas tree made by Darren's grandma Olsen and given to us when she passed. Our favorite decoration.
d. The dining room with a grosgrain ribbon runner and the nutcracker and Steinbach music box and smoker given to me from my grandma Hazel.
e. The stockings I made years ago when we first moved to Utah and of course the holiday books.
f. The Santa collection, several are from my mother, one is from Russia from my good friends.
g. A colorful wooden nativity... I bought one for my niece as a wedding present - she was married in December and one for myself. The boys and I made trees out of clay and evergreen branches.
h. The felt Santa, reindeer and sleigh I couldn't pass up at ABC Home in New York.
i. The entry of the new home. Christmas cards are hanging up above.
j. Our easy-up, easy-down Christmas tree.
k. The tree that "spoke" to Chase when we went venturing through the woods with friends and neighbors. The boys said they needed to save it from its embarrassment in the forest. I think it is sorta charming.














