This day will be luck

I invited a few friends over last night for a Chinese New Year's Celebration. I'm not traditionally a die-hard Chinese New Year-celebrator, but it seemed like a good enough reason to have a dinner party. I had way more fun setting the table than making the food. Don't get me wrong, I love tasty food, but there's more joy in making things lovely for me. We had wonton soup, chicken stir fry lettuce wraps, egg rolls and fried rice (or "flied lice" as my Dad likes to say). My friend MaryAnn brought over some more traditional Chinese food--moon cakes, this sticky rice-banana stuff, and a sweet sesame cracker thing. Hmm...acquired taste is all I will say.

We ended our meal with fortune cookies, which brings me to my musings of the day. (Or rather my complaints?). I really think that fortune cookies should live up to their names and give, well...fortunes. Not advice, not some wise ole proverb, not some hard to understand riddle, but a FORTUNE. Here are some from last night that did not fit the bill:

"The gift is not as precious as the thought." Nice sentiment but NOT a fortune.

"Your patience will pay off sooner or later." Frankly, anyone who can get away with writing a fortune with the words, "sooner or later" needs to face some serious job-performance consequences.

"Promise only when you can deliver." Huh? Really? This was in a cookie?

This one I liked merely because it sounded like Chinese-English:

"This day will be luck."

I kept cracking the cookies open until I found one worthy of the name. This one is definitely a keeper and will be posted on my fridge:

"There's a secret romance blooming! Go for it, in spite of your hesitation." oh cross my fingers and hope, hope, hope

Grandpa Hanson's Funeral

My Grandpa Hanson passed away a few weeks ago, so last weekend I was in UT for his funeral. I was a little bit weepy during the service, but they were sad/happy tears. I know he has missed my Grandma so much since she passed away about a year ago, and I'm happy to know that they are together again. His funeral was really touching. The bishop and my Uncle Gary both shared stories about Grandpa that were funny, tender and heartwarming. From his road trip to Detroit to buy a new car, to stories of him getting thrown into jail on his mission to Germany, to a life-changing experience in the Logan tabernacle as a boy, my Grandpa was a good, good man. I feel so blessed to have known and loved him. And I know because of his testimony of the gospel and his quiet faith, I have a spiritual heritage that I will forever be grateful for.

Because he was a veteran of World War II, he had military honors at the funeral as well. I haven't ever witnessed that in person. It was really amazing--patriotic, and comforting, and humbling. The American Legion gave Uncle Gary an American flag, presented a 21 gun salute, and played "Taps."

As they seem to do, the funeral brought us together as a family, and I was grateful for the chance to see my Hanson cousins and my sister Ashley's family. More photos of the funeral are here.

Some of my favorite Grandpa Hanson memories:

• fishing in Colorado (ok, so I hated the fishing part because I was never any good at it, but I sure loved being with Grandpa)
• making a snow slide/bobsled track from the house down into the valley
• going on walks in the evenings up in the mountains
• watching Jeopardy with him (he always knew all the answers)
• watching him work in his garden
  

Happy, Happy Birthday Ashley dear

Happy birthday Ashley! Today is my little sister's big day...she hasn't been "little" for a long time now and in many ways, I think she's more "grown-up" than me! My niece told me that the kids gave their mom a jar of green olives as a gift...just one of the many things I love about my sister. Here are some more:

• her amazing memory--without her, I wouldn't remember half the things we did as kids
• her fearless, try-anything attitude
• her patience
• her beautiful voice
• her goofy, likes to pull pranks side
• our many hours as kids of playing house, airplane, store, office, detectives, school, Barbies, Strawberry Shortcake, Cabbage Patch Kids
  
• her stubborn streak
• her crepes
  
• her willingness to be cruise director for all of our family vacations
• her listening ear and sympathetic heart

She is the best roommate, friend, advisor, listener, and sister a girl could ask for. May all your b-day wishes come true little sis!

What would Jack do?

Ah...24 is back. Tell me, who hasn't missed Jack's steely gaze, Chloe's awkward comments, and world crisis? As I was watching the premier this week, I remembered one of the best b-day gifts ever--my very own "What Would Jack Do?" spinner to help me manage the ins and outs of working in a museum. My friend Jane made it (who BTW is one of the most talented and witty people I know. She'll someday be a famous YA author...I'll keep you posted), and we found it to be perfect for managing job stress. Budget cuts? Simply spin the spinner. Copier not working again? Spin. Crazy co-worker-who-will-not-be-named making "power to the farmers" comments during staff meeting? (purely hypothetical). Spin. Some of my favorites of "What Would Jack Do?":

• Clench jaw
• Call the President
• Say "You're going to have to trust me."
• Go rogue

I really do think it's the perfect way to solve all your job woes. Maybe we can convince Jane to mass market it? Anyway, I'm glad Jack's back. Although, if CTU is disbanded, does that mean no more CTU phones ringing? Here's a little reminder if you've forgotten that sweet sound.

Crafty Christmas

In the past few years, I've usually tried to do something handmade for Christmas gifts. There has been the year of the quilts, the year of the beaded bracelets, the year of aprons, the year of magnets. Unfortunately, it seems like I don't usually get my inspiration until the last minute, so I'm up crafting away late at night madly trying to get gifts done. This year was no different (after all, if the formula works, why deviate??). I made these little Christmasy wall hangings. I was trying to go for an Anthropolgie/Martha Stewart look. It involved a lot of Mod Podge, stamping, cutting and experimenting along the way. I think they turned out pretty cute (but of course I'm biased!).

Mom for the weekend!

My brother and sister-in-law went to Arizona for the weekend, and I got to play mom for my three nephews. Lessons learned:

• Six year-old basketball has got to be almost as entertaining as the NBA. Favorite moment was probably when a kid head-butted the ball instead of taking the pass. I think I'd do much better with their system for scoring--one point if you hit the rim, two if it actually goes in.
  
• Never underestimate when a three year-old will feel the need to drop his pants for no particular reason. There I was waiting in line to buy movie tickets when all of a sudden, there's a bare bum that I am responsible for. Yikes!
  
• 4 main food groups are: corn dogs, chicken nuggets, cheese & crackers, cereal. Bon appetit!
• Little kid prayers are the best. Three year-old Jake prayed this morning that his brothers would have fun in Primary, he would have fun in Nursery, and I would have fun in the "girls room" at church. hee, hee

I loved getting to hang out with my nephews, and we all managed to be happy and in one piece when mom and dad came home. Victory!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

I've finally unpacked most of my boxes, and while I was at it, I decided to just go ahead and decorate for the holidays! Oh how I love this time of year. Seriously, it just warms my heart. So I figure I can do a two-for-one post here, and show pictures of my moved-in apartment and my decorating for the holidays. I still don't have a lot on the walls yet, but all in good time.

The dining room (really just a corner of the living room).


The living room...my favorite part is the mantle above the fireplace. Oh and all my lovely bookcases.




The kitchen...(notice my pride & joy--the apron corner!).


And finally...ta da! My bedroom with a big girl bed. No more twin for me (after how many years??). As my friend Heather says, now I can "sleep like an X" whenever I want. Loving it.


It's no accident that I have two full storage bins of Christmas things. I can't help myself! My new find this year was adorable felt decorations from Crate & Barrel. I probably should have been able to make these myself, but it's so much quicker to let C&B do it for me. My favorite addition is this super cute floppy felt Christmas tree. So darling!




Now I'm debating...lights on the balcony or not? :) Happy holidays!!