Day 1 trek back to Maine

Oh, What do you do in the Winter time when all the ground is WHITE?

Well you can:

Shovel the snow.

Make snow angels with your little sister.

Get swept away in BMT (Big Metal Thing) Avalanche...

... or just pout because you have sunk into the deep dark depths of the deep snow drifts.

Other Things you do in the Winter time

Believe it or not, when I have a little time I like to do crafts. This is my latest indoor adventure. I made my sisters coasters for their apartments for Christmas. These are fun. It is as simple as finding a tile you like, a few calendar pictures the right size, pasting them and then painting a matte or a shiny glaze over the top. I also did small ones that were refridgerator magnet size. Those are fun because you can get the pictures easy off the back of the calendars. Elise, since I believe you are one of the people who occationaly checks on my blogging efforts, this is what we are going to do for your birthday, so be thinking about what you would like.

Another thing to do in the winter time is BAKE!

Contrary to popular belief I can actually cook. I may have lost the art somewhat because of my absence from a kitchen for over 6 months. However, when I have some real extra time I do like to fiddle. (At Kieve I was always saying I would make bread, cake, or cookies but never really did.) Well here it is GLUTENOUS FREEOUS SUGAR COOKIES!!! It has been over a year since I have enjoyed the taste of sugar cookie dough as I clear away the edges of the cut outs. It was sweet!!! I had a sugar cookie a few weeks ago, that was not gluten free, but lets not go there.

Baking

Cooling, look how many there are. Yum yum.

The waiting place, just a pit stop before the cream chese icing is made.

Cream chese icing in multi colors. All the family enjoyed this delectible treat and they said they tasted as good as regular NON-GLUTENOUS sugar cookies. I guess life aint so bad gluten free!!!

Elise, this random picture is for you. You will know what it is all about!

Christmas Day in Arizona

Today was a wonderful day in the White Mountains of Arizona. It truely was a white Christmas in the high mountains where my grandparents live. I love it here and am glad to be where it feels like Christmas. The thing that I loved most about this Christmas was that there was not much money to give presents this year. I spent a great deal of time in the Home-depot researching remodeling skills and supplies and in my basement crafting presents for peopl. I love that my gifts had a great deal of me in them. I gave a lot of my heart this year. It has been fun!!! This will be short, but I hope to write a list tomorrow about all the many things which I am so grateful for because they have been on my mind.

Grandpa and Christmas dinner preparation

This is a magnet I created as a gift. It was my favorite

Picture and it reflects what I have to say in the next paragraph.

For now I am just so grateful for my Savior Jesus Christ and that he gave me the most monetarilly inexpensive gift, but yet the most valuable gift one could recieve. He suffered for my sins, pains, and sorrows; and he gave me the hope that I will be resurrected as he was. Not something that could be bought or purchased from a store shelf, even though those things have their place. I love Christmas and it's true meaning!!!

These are just pictures of the fun I had with te culinary arts of Christmas dinner. Most moms teach their children not to play with their food, but I quite enjoy it so I do play with my food on occation.

It's the "little" Things

Today I went to a 4th grade classroom. They were so fun. It amazes me how easily they show appreciation. I was only a part of their lives for a day. I do everything I can in that day to help them feel they are loved and important, but I just never would expect to make much of an impact in a days time.

Well, it turns out that they just melted my heart today!!! It just goes to show that the little things in life really do have a great impact. "By small and simple things are great things brought to pass."

One Door closes and another door opens

Today I am beginning a new chapter. I have arrived home after a long late ride. I am extremely grateful that I made it safe after being so exhausted from such a great weekend in Rexburg. One of the disappointments of the weekends was that I seriously attempted wheat again with a most delightful sugar cookie. After loosing conciousness and hitting my head on the bathroom door I came to the conclusion that my gluten intolerance is here to stay. I find it a tender mercy to have been staying with friends while testing it out. It would have been scary to have been home alone, seeing as I have not lost conciousness from Gluten since before Badger Creek (1 1/2 years ago). I am okay with who I am, Glutenous Intolerance and all. Heavenly Father Knows what he is doing with me and how this will help me to be more compassionate and like him.
I also left a portion of my heart behind me today. It is not always easy to move in a new direction. I don't know that I have ever felt that way before, a deep sorrow but an incredible hope all at the same time. A moment of surprise came and brought joy to my heart and I knew everything will work out as it should. I wouldn't change anything major from my life thus far. Maybe I would change some of the words I used or the little punky actions I ought not to have, but for the most part I am super grateful for the experiences of my life thus far!!!

Thanksgiving Croquet Bowl

I have been a bit of a slacker in my blog, but where I am supposed to be in other parts of my life. It has been busy since returning home to Utah. I am grateful be busy and to be cradled once again by the tall mountains, and to be under a wide open sky. Below are some of the post Thanksgiving dinner events. Loser was the theme of thanksgiving for me. Now don't suppose that I am all depressed and knocking myself. I was just glad to be. I was happy with being. This day I just was peachy-keen to be there with my family and to get to know the new family that was there. I lost at crochet and then I lost severely at Bunko (This was actually one I was glad to be loosing at because I almost got the most losses and therefore could have claimed a prize for the most losses). It's all well. I am usually terribly competitive and bummed to not be the top dog. Today I was just happy with me.

Another sore looser, J/k that is my ultra amazing cousin who has a fond love for Maine along with me because he served his mission there.

We had no idea this was being filmed and so we posed for a picture using sound affects because sound affects always help for the perfect Kodak moment.