Riding Bareback

I know I shouldn't. But I am. Because when your feisty two-year-old uses the bathroom, but then streaks through the house before you can help her get her clothes back on, and then you find her in the living room riding the rocking horse butt naked...You just kinda have to take a picture of her. In all her birthday-suit glory.

Be grateful you got the blurry picture... (Actually I did that for you, Marianne, so you won't be completely humiliated when your older siblings show this off to all of your friends when you are a teenager...)

General Conference 2014, IN SLC

My sister in law Katie lives in Anaktuvik pass, Alaska. Don't know where that is? Neither do I, really. But I do know it is super remote and far away and thus we don't see Katie and her family very often. She planned to remedy this by getting all of us gals together for a general conference trip, and while we weren't all able to go (Carla because of her baby and DeAnn because of her pregnancy), those of us that did had a wonderful time.

Emilee and Louise drove up to ABQ on Thursday night. On Friday morning after a hectic run getting the kids off to school (except Bekah), getting the oil changed in my van, and picking up last minute goods, we were off (with Carla's daughter Libby). I was driving and said I didn't know how to get there, but we needed to head in the general direction of Santa Fe, right?
Right, they said.
And then I actually drove to Santa Fe, missing our exit by about 30 miles. So we took a different route to Utah, and it worked out fine, and Louise and Emilee were much better navigators after that.
We drove and drove...I'm not really used to doing 10 hours in one swoop, but I know a lot of families that do it and my hat is off to them. I felt blessed to not have all my kids with me, and to have Emilee's awesome playlist to keep me musically entertained. And to have survived driving Price Canyon at night. Seriously. That road is not safe.
We met up with Katie and her daughter Claire that night at the hotel, and we all were happy to go right to sleep.
We had tickets for the Saturday morning session of GC, so we had to get up bright and early to get ready and catch our Blue Line to Temple Square on the Trax. (I think riding the Trax was one of the girls' favorite things to do!) I had been texting my BFF Lindsey to coordinate where and when we were going to meet at temple square so she could go in with us, and right as we were getting of the train at temple square, I got a text from her that she was at the same intersection. I looked around but couldn't see her, and so, with crowds all around me, I simply yelled, "Lindsey!" as loud as I could several times. I still didn't see her so we all crossed the street and began to walk towards the conference center. The crowds cleared and there she was, saying, "I heard you calling me so I turned around!" Ah, happy reunion! I love my Lindsey!
We happily made through the crowds with none of us tripping up the stairs whatsoever and into the conference center. Our tickets were for the terrace, where all the people on the stage look miniscule and it's easier to just watch the big screen tvs. But it was still awesome. I just kept telling myself that if I were to yell President Monson's name really loud, he would hear me.
Before the speakers spoke, I made a list of questions and concerns that I have. Bekah made a list as well. I was so happy when her concerns were specifically addressed by one of the speakers. We both looked at each other and knew that Heavenly Father had answered her prayer. It was a special experience. I have failed to mention how completely excited Bekah was to go to conference center! She had watched the women's conference with me and had been excited for the whole week to actually be in SLC, at temple square, in the conference center. I gave her a little backpack to hold her pens and notebook and snacks, and she had everything laid out before the first talk - pens, paper, snacks. She kept wonderful notes that she insisted I read after every speaker. She did it for every session and never once said she was bored or tired. She wants so much to be good and choose the right, and I am so grateful for her valiant example. Favorite talk: Jeffrey R. Holland (If he were a Baptist, he'd be pounding the pulpit, and I love that about him!)

After the first session (and working the crowds for lunch and a tiny bit of shopping), we made our way through temple square to try and find a good place to watch the second session. Katie had been teasing that at least one of the girls needed to be photographed in the Ensign - Katie's kids and Carla's kids have been in the Ensign before - and as we were walking towards the tabernacle, we saw a man way across the lawn with a big camera. We told the girls to run over towards him because he was the Ensign guy and maybe they would get their picture in the Ensign. They took off running while Emilee and I made "caw-caw!" sounds to get the guy's attention. He must have heard us because he turned our way, saw the girls running towards him with their umbrellas, and immediately started taking pictures of them...which made them immediately freeze and start posing. It was hilarious how instantaneously they turned on the charm. (That's where the above photo came from.)
It turned out that the guy was planning to submit pictures to the Ensign, and he wasn't just some guy, he was a friend of Lindsey's that she hadn't seen for a long time! I uploaded the three photos here from his blog, you should check out his other amazing conference photos at timhansenphotography.com
We wound up watching the afternoon session in a movie-theater-type-room in the visitor's center - with way comfier seats and a better view than we'd had watching it live. And again the session was wonderful. Favorite talk: Craig W. Zwick about communicating more compassionately
Afterwards we tried to peruse Deseret Book with about 1000 other people, and the best things I found in there were the Richardson's (from SV, AZ), and these heavenly lemon-covered almonds. Mmm...
I had to say my goodbyes to Lindsey at this point because she needed to head home to her sweetheart. I have to tell you, Lindsey is the most insightful person I know - always studying and praying and learning and being taught. I love that about her.
The rest of us ladies headed back to the hotel (yay for Trax again), enjoyed a fun dip in the pool, opened Emilee's eyes to the world of IKEA, and had a super late night dinner at the Cheesecake factory (it was worth it).
Sunday morning was nice and slow - amazingly enough those little girls slept in until 9am - and as the adult staying in the room with them, I was super grateful. (Favorite talk: Elder Bednar) We watched part of conference on the TV and then headed back up to temple square to have a picnic lunch with Katie's inlaws. We had tickets to the afternoon session that day, and so after lunch we made our way to the conference center. We had seats on the balcony this time, the highest level, because the girls really, really wanted to sit up there. I think the spirit dissipates the higher up you sit because I found myself behind a large family that couldn't stop massaging each other's backs and hands and arms...and in front of a group of college kids who really liked to audibly quote the scriptures along with the speaker, and then leave during the closing song (rude). Please, please, if just for me, DON'T spend two hours massaging your companion's back. I don't care how much you like them or how bored you get. The person sitting behind you might not be able to control their puking-reflex as well as I can. Favorite talk: Marcos A Aidukaitis
After that session, we went to dinner at Texas Roadhouse and then went back to the hotel for another dip in the pool. We knew we had an early morning the next day, so we headed to bed before midnight that night.
The drive home (with Katie and Claire now joining us), was long but swift...even swifter because we went the right way that time. I am so grateful that we were able to take this trip. I love Katie and Emilee and Louise and I feel very blessed to have had that time to spend with them! And I am grateful for the time I had with Bekah. She and I have had some rocky times together, and this trip was really good for us.

Rubbing Shoulders With the Stars

"Hey Keri, what are you doing this Wednesday?" my good friend Elise asked me.
Art from the Heart meeting, yoga, meet Kathy at the church to give her tablecloths (forget your key and meet her twice), watch two extra kids in the afternoon, kids have a half day from school, go for a hike with all the kids, make a snack for cub scouts, drop Jacob and friends off for cub scouts, take dinner to a family, Rus has boy scouts, Bekah has Girl's Activity day...
Now, at the time, I didn't know that my Wednesday would be like that. But even if I had, I would have still emphatically, jubilantly said, "I'm IN," when Elise presented me with a wonderful invitation:
"Some friends gave me four tickets to go see the premier of the movie 50 to 1 downtown at the Kimo theater on Wednesday night. Do you think you can come?"
Honestly, my first thought was, "50 to 1? I have no idea what movie that is." But then Elise filled me in: the movie tells the true story of the how the horse Mine That Bird came to be purchased by a super wealthy New Mexico rancher, trained by a down-on-his-luck trainer, and against incredible odds, won the Kentucky Derby in 2009. (Sorry, I just told you how the movie ends.) Because it was filmed mostly in New Mexico, they were holding the official world premier (complete with red carpet), here in Albuquerque. Yay!
I told her I would make it work, that I was in, and then I went home and googled the movie so I could watch the preview. It turns out I knew who a few of the stars were from watching Jericho (Skeet Ulrich), and Leverage (Christian Kane). I found a sitter, a ride for Bekah to her activity, and then sat around to worry about the real problem: What in the world was I going to wear?
Well, in true fashion, I toyed with different clothing options up until the very last minute and then finally at 3:45pm on Wednesday I made my way to target and madly purchased every piece of clothing that I thought might be that elusive "red carpet" material. At 4:20pm as I was leaving Target, Elise called and said that we actually needed to leave at five that night, not 5:30, and I swallowed my panic and tried not to think about my frizzy crazy hair, make-up-less face, and bag of clothing options that I wasn't quite sure how to coordinate.
I know. You're thinking I'm goofy. Perhaps a little too caught up in the details of what was essentially a movie night. But for a Mormon, mom of four, married to a redneck who loves to have "fix-the-VW-bug-Dates," being able to attend a movie premier with a bunch of girlfriends where celebrities would be present was equivalent to Cinderella attending the Ball.
Anyhow, even without a fairy godmother, I was primped and dressed by five and I breezed out the door blowing kisses to my children (whom I had actually made dinner for before I left, mind you), and then sped like crazy to meet up with my girlfriends. We got downtown in plenty of time and I think each of us finally breathed easy when we had made it downtown, found a parking spot, and found ourselves on the barricaded street in front of the Kimo. Mine That Bird was there in a little fenced-in area so everyone could ooh and ahh at him and feed him peppermint candies. The men in the crowd were mostly in blue jeans, boots, sports jackets and cowboy hats, and the women were wearing everything from jeans, boots and button up shirts to tight fitting dresses and big floppy hats.
Here I am with my friends, (from the left), Elise, Brittney, and Christy.

And here we are on the red carpet! A lady standing next to us was from L.A. and she said this is "New Mexico red carpet", dusty and dirty...but it worked for me!

After standing outside for quite a while, waiting in line for our wristbands and enjoying watching different people in the crowd, the 50 to 1 bus pulled up and out came the movie stars. The first one we were able to take a picture with was Christian Kane. We learned from others in the crowd that this guy has quite a following of crazed women who call themselves, "Kane-iacs." Now while it was fun to take a picture with him, and to watch him in the movie (I thought he did a great job), I find the metro style and long hair to be a turn off...but that's just me. And check it out - I know we were all in heels, but he's kind of short!

After the movie, we were able to take a picture with Skeet Ulrich and Chip Wooley - the character he played in the movie. We walked up when Skeet was talking to Chip, saying, "I'm so glad you liked the movie, Chip, really, that just means so much to me, I'm so glad!" (Chip is on the right in a dark shadow, whoops). It turns out that this was the first time Chip had seen the movie. The movie about himself. Played by someone else. How surreal would that be?

And I know our eyes are super red in this picture - seriously let me whine for a moment about how inept random strangers are when you had them a phone and ask them to take a picture. It's like you've given them the remote to a missile launcher and they have no idea how to handle it. Weird. Anyway, the chick in the middle is Maddelyn Deutch and she plays the gal that helps Chip Wooley train Mine That Bird. She was terrific in the movie, really fun and easy to talk with afterward, AND it turns out she's the daughter of Lea Thompson (Lorraine, Back to the Future)

So yes, Maddelyn's mommy Lea was there and we got a picture with her too! Isn't she beautiful? She's like 52 now.

So the jockey that actually raced Mine That Bird in the Kentucky Derby played himself in the movie. I can't remember his name...but he was obvious jockey-material - short, slight. It was hard to understand him talk, I'm not sure why...and he really wanted to get his alcoholic beverage after the show, but we tracked him down and got this picture of him while he was in line. I love that my friend told him he was "inspirational." He was...but all four of us gals will readily admit that we were especially cheesy fans that night. I'm not sure if we'll be allowed around celebrities again.

And here is the last pic we took, in front of the official 50 to 1 bus. The movie was an independent film and they are going on tour to promote the movie. I really wanted to ask the bus driver for a peek inside, but I restrained myself...

Now if you've been waiting for a review of the actual movie, here is my take:

It was a good story line, with all the typical drama and comedy that inspirational movies have. I had three issues with it: You could tell it was low budget. That being said, they really did an awesome job, as Elise pointed out, of seamlessly meshing the footage of the actual 2009 derby and their own shots. Also, it was kind of slow paced.Sometimes Skeet Ulrich's slow drawl was a little tedious and overplayed. And finally, for being a movie about a horse and a trainer, it didn't have a lot of scenes of the trainer actually training the horse. It had two, and I would have liked to see a lot more to believe the connection between the horse and the trainer. 

But I saw the premier! With the stars of the show! And just for that I'm going to buy it and love it. :) Thank you Elise, Brittney and Christy for an unforgettable girls night out!!

Turbo

I can't tell you how many times I have pulled up to a stoplight with Rus at the wheel, next to some teenage kid's junked up car and Rus has said something like this: "If this thing had a v8 and a turbo, we would smoke that guy." And then I remind him, "Rus, this is an Astro van. It's not cool. Or fast." And he inevitably goes on to regale me with his dream of owning a "sleeper car/van," a crazy super fast vehicle with a hot engine that can go faster than anyone else, and no one expects it because it looks like a piece of crap van/vw bug.
Well, the stars aligned and Rus was able to buy his dream engine for his vw bug a couple of months ago. He found it on craigslist, a monster engine with a turbo. For the record, he bought it using part cash and trading the gun I bought him for our first Christmas. Also for the record, he asked me if I minded that he sell the gun I bought him before he ever offered it to the guy selling the engine.
Anyway, I think you can see here just how excited he was about the new engine:

Bekah, stop kissing it!

I made sure the kids new how important that day was. We celebrated by watching the movie Turbo as a family and making colorful swirl cookies (in honor of the star of the show being a snail).
I'm sure Rus' memories of the acquisition are more deep and poignant than my own thoughts...but this account will have to do. Call Rus if you need the juicy details, like what size engine it is an all that...
So here is a shot of the "before." So long, gutless!

 By an amazing turn of luck (actually it was a carefully calculated act of thoughtfulness), Rus' sister Carla took ALL of our kids for an overnight stay at her house. Rus and I went out to dinner, watched a movie at the theater, stayed up late, slept in a little, and then went to work taking the engine out of his bug. This picture was for Jakey. He desperately wanted to see what the bug looked like without the engine.

 And here I am - happy helper. Honorary bearer of the title "Tool Hander," after a long line of great forebears like Clint Mortensen, Dave Hartman, Tom Hartman, Jacob Payne. Rus said I was much better than all of them, but I think at the time he was looking at my butt...

And now after many long nights including a boys' night with his brother Jake and brother in law Doug, the new and improved Turbo Bug is now running. It's not running great, and it's the loudest car ever known to man, but it runs! I can hear Rus coming from miles away...which really helps me to know when to get dinner on the table, or for the kids to stop fighting and do what I asked them...But I'm sure with another zillion tweaks and late night garage sessions, it will be the perfect hot rod Rus dreamed it would be.

James and Carrie

I am fortunate to be on the route my brother James and his wife Carrie take to deliver furniture from Illinois to a client in AZ. And I'm fortunate that James has a client in Arizona at all, who has ordered substantial enough pieces to warrant a delivery...twice. (They delivered furniture to the same client two years ago.) This time James and Carrie's visit was really fun because they stayed for a few days. My mom came up to be here while they visited, and we all had a great time. My favorite part of his visit was - hands-down - finding him here at the kitchen counter early in the morning coloring with Beau on one knee and Marianne on the other. He let them sit there for at least an hour, maybe more, coloring pictures and drawing lions for Marianne and tracing her hand on the paper.

 James is pretty tall, has this deep, deep voice, and dark features (including his great hair - he should thank my parents every day for that hair), and you might think kids would be scared of him a little. But instead they're drawn to him like moths to flame, even when he threatens (and carries out) putting their feet in the fan or sitting on all four of them at once.

 I think it was at this point that Jacob or Beau very kindly turned on the fan so as to make the "foot in the fan" thing more exciting. And he really did put their feet in the fan. And they loved it.

 No one was hurt in the taking of this picture...

 It was also GREAT that the three big kids went to school everyday. While they were away, I was able to play. Marianne is a terrific shopping companion, always eager to look at and touch everything, get carried everywhere, and eat a dozen pieces of gum a day. We looked around old town Abq, went out for lunch to satisfy James and Carrie's chile cravings, went thrift store shopping, and looked around at shops in Nob Hill. I also spoiled them with a coconut cream pie (which they ate for breakfast because the homemade stuffed sopapillas were a little much the night before). And we had to enjoy a white chocolate berry pie when they stayed at my house one night on their return trip. We were all fooded out by then, but that pie was good...
It was really fun to hang out with Carrie. She is a very thorough thrift store shopper with an eye for valuable name brand items. She loves quirky things, has a great sense of humor, and loved Colonel (my dog) so much I think he has an eternal crush on her. And she very graciously endured carrying Marianne all around Abq - Marianne is a solid 26 pounds...and a lazy 26 pounds.

James knows everything. About everything. Art, jewelry making, obviously woodworking, people, styles, history...It was fun to watch him in a little gallery in Nob Hill, looking at turquoise and talking to the worker - an artist herself - about designs and methods and origins of the jewelry. I'd love to hang out with James more - I think mere proximity would make me a smarter person.
On their return trip they stayed just for the night. I think James read to Marianne for thirty minutes, at least. My favorite was hearing him read the Disney Princess book...Such a good uncle...

I'm so glad they came to visit!

If you'd like to check out how awesome James and Carrie are, you can get a small taste at their website: www.pearcepearce.com

SO...What have you been up to lately?

I hate that question. I think it's because every time someone asks me that, my mind goes blank and I have to mentally go over the last few days and weeks and try to remember anything I did that was worth mentioning.
I read a lot of books with Marianne. Drew a lot of lions and cats so she could color them in. Made lots of food. Cleaned so much, I can't look at my house anymore because it accumulates clutter and dirt faster than I can eradicate it. Ran a little bit every few days, mostly to counteract the aforementioned food. Ate, slept, played, yelled, got yelled at, fed, ate, rinse, repeat. Blech. Some days I am drowning in routine. Some days my routine gets hijacked and then I want it back, badly.
Anyway...
Here's proof of a few gems that lie outside the regular cycle: (spanning the last two months)
I did this drawing of a couple for their 50th wedding anniversary, complete with their favorite things and places and quirks and hobbies.

I had a happy find of an adorable hedgehog print fabric (the orange that lines this pillow sham). I bought it instantly, not knowing what I would do with it, only that I had to make something for my sister in law Emily, who actually OWNS a hedgehog. Awesome, right? Her name is Gypsy. I lucked upon a few other hedgehog prints, and then my sister found a book with different pillow designs and thus the hedgehog pillow was born. I even made Gypsy her own tiny pillow. Completely random, but completely gratifying work.

Since I was abuzz with my hedgehog victory, I went to work doing paper piecing. This little heart table-topper was fun and quick, and I made it with my sisters on a spontaneous trip to Flagstaff. I have wonderful sisters. They "carry my heart," as a poem reads...They also make fun of random things I do like this table topper. When I emailed Amy that I had finished it, she said, "It's cute! How does it fly?" To which I'll reply that the employee at the quilt shop was admiring my "tight" piping job, so there.

It must be mentioned that I have spent time enjoying other people's children. A lot of my time, it seems, is spent doing this, and I enjoy it because I like serving other people. Unless I'm in a bad mood, and then, honestly, I'd rather be alone with my one monster or shopping with my one monster. Marianne and cousin Rachel are splendid little dancers.

 If you'll remember, Jacob turned eight in December. Which means we've been inducted into the very elite (and admittedly overwhelming) society of Cub Scouts. Jacob was thrilled to take part in his first Pinewood derby, though I can't really say who was more anxious for victory - Jacob or his dad. LUCKILY, Jacob placed third in his division and now proudly displays his trophy as evidence of his greatness. (P.S. When did Pinewood derbies become so technologically advanced? The number of "degrees" that ran the spreadsheets and tracked the results was staggering...I think their work was resume-worthy for sure.)

 February really wouldn't be complete without an entire weekend devoted to science projects. This year we melted aluminum, made a calorimeter, and tested the dyes in m&ms versus skittles. I think the accumulation and presentation of all of that data on three different science boards is definitely resume-worthy on my part.

 Jacob was devastated when the bottom of his steel can blew out and the molten aluminum it had contained was lost in the coals below. But then he and Rus helped everything cool down and unearthed some really neat pieces of now hardened aluminum. He said he'll make one into a necklace for me. Such a sweetie.

 Marianne is the theme song to my day, everyday. She definitely directs the crescendos, decrescendos, and all the tumultuous and lovely in-betweens. Here she is showing off her "elephant ears," as she calls them. "Pig-tails" are so 1980.

There you go. Now you know what I've been up to. Same ol', same ol'

Christmas 2013

This past Christmas was...a blur. But it was a delightful one, with Amy and Tyler and their families and my parents here to visit. Food, fun, presents, anticipation...One highlight was having two of the kids throw up on Christmas eve (Beau - coughing led to puking, Bekah - her green and red puke spoke for itself...and the volumes of candy canes she must have eaten). But everyone was well the next day...
Here are the pictures of the good parts:
Christmas morning, excited kids...

Marianne's main gift was the Leapfrog phonics set. I can tell you now, two months later (almost), that it's not really her favorite toy. She may enjoy it more when she's just a little bit older. If I had given it to Beau, she might have liked it more, too. It's always more fun to steal your big brother's toys. The Marianne Bug was not super fun this Christmas. I'm hoping next year will be THE year....we'll see.

Jacob was THRILLED to get this remote control helicopter. He had seen us looking at them on the internet and tried to act nonchalant, but he really, really wanted one. Again, the bonus of posting this months after Christmas is the added insight I can offer on how this toy really fared on the scale of "doesn't even remember he received it" to "still sleeps with it every night"...He doesn't play with it very much right now, but that's because it needs a new propeller. I'd suggest ordering the replacement parts kit with the actual toy. That's how I'd do it next time...
(Because you're my friends I know you won't even notice the dirty window behind my Christmas tree...crap, well now you will...don't judge me.)

My Bekah girl is too grown up for toys now it seems...So here we have started down the treacherous road of electronics, starting with a Nook. (Santa got a killer deal at Target on black Friday!)

 Beau's face says it all...He was SO excited to get this remote control car!

 Another gift he got was from Nana, and I have to say it was THE favorite gift, hands down. All of my kids took turns playing with it. He still plays with it! It's this really cool drill set with a battery powered drill, threaded screws in four different colors, a board with holes, and big pattern cards that he can follow to make cool designs and pictures.

Marianne got princess shoes! I'm actually really excited to dive back into the world of princesses. I've been on a boy-driven hiatus, and dress up and high heels sound so much simpler than reassembling disembodied transformers.

I received exactly what I wanted (I made sure of it by picking it up myself)...A Cuisinart food processer. (With 11 cup capacity!!) I talked Santa into okaying this purchase by promising a pie a month, a drastic improvement in my pizza crust, and improved overall kitchen efficiency. I also received another gift from Rus and the kids. He hinted at what it was - "a little skimpy, and mutually beneficial." I was aghast at thinking he had purchased lingerie for me with the kids present! But it turned out that on Christmas morning I received ankle socks ("a little skimpy") and a Pioneer Woman cookbook ("mutually beneficial"). That rascal.

The Pioneer Woman cookbook has proven to be fantastic! It's her "On My Frontier" book, and everything I've made from there has been delicious! I'd highly recommend it, but if you're on a diet, it may not be the safest place to go for a recipe, as she is an artist at incorporating cream and butter into various concoctions.

Rus got what he wanted, too, although if Santa had been more generous, she'd have purchased him a Timney trigger. As it was, he received a scraping plane insert for his hand plane, and bullets from each and every relative who decided to gift him something. If we were to compare Christmas hauls by weight, he would have one.

Every year we rotate who we give gifts to in my family and in Rus'. We gave to my sister Amy's family and Rus' dad, and we received from my sister Amanda and Rus' brother Jacob and his wife DeAnn. DeAnn is a terrific gift giver and she didn't disappoint this year. She looked on Pinterest and found several different projects that she thought our family might do, and then she printed out the tutorials and bought all of the supplies for each project. We had a lot of fun doing the wire-art project, and we are looking forward to doing a concrete planter, canvas night light, and an acid-leaf project.

My sister Amanda gave us money to go see the movie Frozen. It was a big hit with my kids, Bekah especially. And I loved it too - best Disney since Tangled.

Rus decided to make a box for his dad for Christmas. (The man is hard to purchase for because he buys whatever he wants.) He made it out of soft wormy maple with walnut insets in the corners. It was small, just right for Roger's wallet and other pocket items. I don't think I have a picture of it, sadly...

I decided to make terrariums for all of my sister Amy's kids. I knew that they would love the mini ecosystems where plants can thrive without regular watering. I made the terrariums - 12"x12"x15". I purchased all of the plants and dirt and charcoal and rocks, and on Christmas day when Amy's family came over, they were able to put together their terrariums.

They really, really were happy with them!

Later we used sculpey clay to make little figurines that could go in their terrariums. It turns out my sister in law Gina is a sculpey clay genius, just check out her adorable elephant!

Rus also spent a great deal of time making a table for my mom. It is a side table, dimensioned to perfectly sit on the side of her couch. It is made of curly maple; you can see how beautiful the top is. It has a long narrow drawer that houses Rus' first set of hand cut dovetail joints. Not perfect - he would be quick to admit - but still very well done. My mom loved it so much that she has traveled with it on her last two road trips so as to be able to enjoy it in Sierra Vista as well as Los Lunas. She's so proud of Rus turning into a woodworker!

 All in all it was a wonderful Christmas. I feel blessed to have people in my life to love and be loved by.