Seek freedom and become captive to your

desires.  Seek discipline and find your liberty.

from: Dune

by: Frank Herbert

 Its amazing what one can find in the dumpsters in an apartment complex! I think this may be a treasure...depending on what I can do with it to make it mine...creatively speaking that is...any ideas?! Bri has a great one..Im just wondering what anyone thinks I could or should do with this!!? I think it cool!!!

 Sweet Anna fixed her dad his favorite meal for his birthday...Lasagna!! And this is even better..'cause its make with squash instead of noodles! We have squash coming out of our ears here in the garden, and there is no better way to eat it than to smother it with cheese and tomato sauce!! Yum!!! (notice her cute table that she and David and My Builder helped her to create too!! darling!!!)

 Anna also somehow tempted her brothers and Jenna up to Logan to help celebrate My Builders birthday! It was so fun to have them for  24 hours and to go to church together!!  Love these people!! So very much!

 And yes..this is real! This is indeed a tomato grown in our garden! We are going to be canning tomatoes this weekend I think!! Plus..they are as delicious as they are big and beautiful!! We are lucky!! We are grateful!!

Baby Benjamin is almost 7 months old...and this weekend he's experiencing his first bout with the common cold! And Im here to tell you its much harder on his parents than it is on him!  He's a trooper!

And...this is where I have spent the vast majority of my time this week...and will be from here on out. Its not red rock, and Im not gathering coral dust...instead I come home covered in dishwater stains and ketchup smears. My feet ache...but its not the same as that fabulous pain after a hike.  Im meeting good people, and I love being busy and working.

I feel sometimes as if I were a child who opens its eyes on the world

once and sees amazing things it will never know any names for and then

has to close its eyes again.  I know this is all mere apparition compared

to what awaits us, but it is only lovelier for that.  There is a human beauty

in it.  And I cant believe that, when we have all been changed and put on

incorruptibility, we will forget our fantastic condition of mortality and

impermanence, the great bright dream of procreating and perishing that

meant the whole world to us.  In eternity this world will be Troy, I believe,

and all that has passed here will be epic of the universe, the ballad they

sing in the streets.  Because I dont imagine any reality  putting this one

in the shade entirely, and I think piety forbids me to try.

from: Gilead

by: Marilynne Robinson

In The Kitchen

“All my life I’ve tried to pluck a thistle and plant a flower

 wherever that flower would grow in thought and mind.”

 Abraham Lincoln

Artichokes

 art by Katherine Sandoz

I scored BIG time at Market Fresh!!

Today Artichokes were on sale 10 for $10.00

They were actually all out...except for one, but they generously gave me a raincheck and Im going back for 10 more in the morning!! Artichokes and Avocados...some of my most favorite foods!  Did I ever mention that My Builder and I went on our honeymoon to the Artichoke capital of the world...which just happens to be located next to some of the most wonderful beaches on the California coastline!!  Good times!!! Did you know that artichokes are considered an aphrodisac? Interesting.  It seems that much of the cuisine I enjoy are found on the list of foods that supposedly provoke sexual desire.  Interesting.

Chicken Curry Shepherd's Pie  YUM!!!!  here

Unstuffed Cabbage Rolls

In Poland, it's Golumpki.  In Russia, it's Golubtsy.  In Lithuania, it's Golabki.  In Utah, we just call it stuffed cabbage.

Traditionally stuffed with beef, lamb or pork, this dish usually includes a grain, such as rice or barley. Carrots, celery, or other vegetables round out the filling.  This week I used pork and beef.

Cabbage, a good-for-you cruciferous vegetable, contains phytochemicals, vitamins and minerals, and is believed to lower the risk of cancer.  Other cruciferous veggies (aka super-veggies) are kale, brussels sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, radishes, and kholrabi. 

I cheated a bit...for I dont have the patience that Martha does for the long prep time...so I found THIS version, with MARTHA"S  ingredients....YUM!!! Dont skimp on the yummy granny smith apple...and surprisingly...sour cream was the 'a la mode' to the cabbage!


Peace, Joy and Good Eating!!




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Our hands often revel what we really think but do not say.

They can show a range of feelings and emotions from confusion

and frustration to joy, understanding, love and compassion.

When we honestly ask ourselves which person in our lives means the most to us,

we often find that it is those who, instead of giving advice, solutions, or cures,

have chosen rather to share our pain and touch our wounds with  a warm tender hand.

-Henri Nouwen

One of my New Year Resolutions was to be more creative.
My grandmother on my mothers side was an artist...
I had a grandfather that was a talented photographer.
When my brother has time and the inclination...he is an artist.
All my boys are clandestine artists....hiding their talents under a bushel.
My daughter is in the throes of creativity at this very moment....please come soon dear Ben!!!
My Builder is very artistic too...but no one would ever know it....for he doesnt take the time....
I wish to be artistic..I have a closet full of various medium in hopes it would instigate some creative outlet.
I wont give up.

Years ago..when I was first married, my talented mother taught me to knit. It was then that I created a few darling sweaters for my toddlers. I knitted cute booties for gifts. And then for some reason I set it aside and havent picked up knitting needles since. 
Until last week.  
Pinterest, babies arriving, and having nothing better to do while we wait for Ben caused me to give it a try once more.  I have found it very satisfying.  I can watch Downton Abbey while knitting. I can sip tea and converse with those around me and knit.  Yarn is like fabric these days...down right beautiful and inspiring!!!  I whipped up this little sweater for Ben, right before Anna's eyes...which was fun.  We went to Walmart to pick the buttons  for it (and to walk the isles for exercise.)  It turned out ok....for a first attempt after all these years.  But I think I'll enjoy getting better  with practice.  Now Im working on a sweater for baby Beckham!  (even though sweater season in St George is shorter lived than
 my patience.)  Olive will be my next guinea pig...something cute and girlish will be fun to try.
So... the silver lining to waiting for Ben....
hang'in with my daughter
knitting
sewing
reading 
watching movies
All things I probably wouldnt be doing if I were home!!  At least not on this grand scale.






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