Some Days are Snow Days

Will tomorrow be another snow day?  Last Thursday was an early release day, due to a coming winter storm.  The winter storm came through, and Friday was proclaimed a snow day.   Likewise, yesterday was too.  Today?  Today was a regular Tuesday.

Snow days = no school.  Days off of school due to weather still intrigue me, even though I've lived in Kentucky with  school aged children for seven years now.  In all of my growing up years, I only remember one day when we were out of school because of weather.  That was a day in third grade when a hurricane went up through the Gulf of California and brought excessive rain and 80 mph winds to our town [Yuma]. 

Thankfully, at 12 and almost 16, my kids can stay home alone on these unplanned days off.  Jamie, our almost 16 year old, is content to practice drumming and keyboards most of the day.  He's okay with cooking a pot of chili (actually two pots, since we have 2 vegetarians), watching YouTube videos, etc, etc.  

Allie, on the other hand, has a harder time staying busy.  So on Friday, when I made a quick run home during the afternoon to drop something off and check on the kids, I was thrilled to find her baking a batch of brownies.  Allie does like to bake, but she usually only bakes at my suggestion.  And not only did she take the initiative, she mentioned that we didn't have quite enough sugar or cocoa, but she thought it would even out and the brownies would be fine.  Mind you, this is not like Allie.  Generally, she would send me a text, something to the effect of:  "You need to stop by Kroger on the way home and pick up some sugar and some cocoa."  I'd text back, "why?", and she'd respond accordingly.  Getting into a recipe and realizing she doesn't have all the ingredients could really throw Allie off her game.  But, this time, she threw caution to the wind and it worked out. Maybe she embraced the spirit of the snow day.

I've noticed snow days really do bring out the odd behavior in people.  A case in point is the Fayette County Public Schools [our school district] FB page.  Here are a couple excerpts {yes, I interjected my 2 cents following each}.

PLEASE pass this along to the powers that be.... Parents would like for you all to add a Saturday or 2. Summer plans must go on. It may be very costly for school to go into the next week of June. Children are already registered and fees paid for summer programs.

Dear Saturday school parent, I do not desire that.  I have already paid for my child to play a synthesizer all day on Saturdays through the month of April.  So far, he's free the second week of June.  


Here's another:

Reasonable people can disagree with a decision or a policy...and disagreement doesn't mean they are bullies or are raising bullies. I've just about had enough of the talk equating disagreement and debate with incivility, bullying and vitriol. Group think causes just as much problems and "fallout" as disagreement and debate, if not more so. Nazi Germany is a case in point.

Nazi Germany?  What in the world?  And what the heck is vitriol?  Seriously, these people should either be spending the snow day with their kids or else at work.  Please take a step away from Facebook, people!

Even the movie, "Snow Day", which featured almost Academy Award winning actors John Schneider and Chevy Chase, was considered a dud.  

Are there benefits to unplanned days off?  Perhaps. . . if watching Kathie Lee and Hoda is beneficial to Allie's development.  I suppose practicing drumming for three consecutive hours can't hurt Jamie's chances of receiving a music scholarship.   And Allie's brownie did turn out well.  Who can complain about coming home from a day of work to a hot bowl of vegetarian chili and a delicious brownie, prepared by your very own offspring?

words to live by

A week ago Wednesday night I found myself alone in our basement with my journal.  All other family members were upstairs in bed.  I often write in my journal as I pray.  As I wrote and thought, I came to a decision.

This year I need to focus on these words:

Love

Joy

Peace

Patience

Kindness

Goodness

Faithfulness

Gentleness

Self-Control

Yes, I know there's a label for them - the fruit of the Spirit.  But I want to think of them separately, focusing on each one.  So I don't want to think of them as a bowlful of apples or bananas.  That seems to be the way they're often thought of [cutesy Sunday School fodder].  But self-control is much more than keeping your hand out of the cookie jar.  Joy is more than smiling and {acting} like you're alright.  

I began on January 6 with love and I'll cover one word a day, repeating the nine words over and over in the order listed above.  By my calculations [mind you, math is not my forte], I will hit each word 40 times in 2011.  I try to dwell on the word of the day, study related scriptures, etc.  So far it's been good.  Today I wrap up the list with self-control, and I'll start at the beginning tomorrow.  Right back at love.  And since {love hopes all things}, I hope that this time in 2012, I'll be at least a little different. 

[orange new year]

Elvis sang about having a blue Christmas and we dream about having a white one.  So why not have an orange new year? 

I ate an orange with my lunch today.  It wasn't an especially good one.  But oranges are my favorite winter fruit, so I tried to enjoy it AMAP {as much as possible}.  A couple hours later I decided to make myself a cup of tea.  Without much thought, I picked Wild Sweet Orange {part of my winnings from Good Foods [see previous blog]}.  While drinking said tea, I realized I'm drinking out of an orange mug.  And I had a glass of orange juice for breakfast [which probably has nothing to do with the tea, but it fits the theme here]. 

Orange is a vibrant color and it's a step beyond yellow.  Yellow can be happy, bright, sunny.  But orange, orange is unmistakably bold.  Yet oranges, the kind that we eat, are sweet.  So was my orange juice.  And my Wild Sweet Orange tea, once I added honey.  Bold and sweet.  

Doesn't that sound like a good start to the new year?  I want to be bold.  Not pushy, not jerky, not overly assertive, but bold.  Not necessarily bold with people, but bold in my aspirations and bold in my hopes.  Bold in my expectations of myself.  Yet I want this to be a sweet year.  Sweet as in pleasing.  Not sour.  Not bland.  Not sappy either.  Not syrupy and silly.  But I want my priorities in order.  I want to be organized.  I want to have purpose.  Not waste time.  Not be scattered or messy or lost.  

So, I guess all I have left to do is make up a song about having an orange new year.  It can't be that hard to rival Auld Lang Syne.

Sometimes the worst gift becomes the best gift

 

I follow Good Foods Market & Cafe on Facebook.  On 12/23, I came across this in their status:
 

For our eleventh Day of Giving, we have a Celestial Seasonings gift basket! For your chance to win, tell us about your most favorite gift you've ever received for the holidays. We will choose one winner based on our favorite response. Prizes can only be picked up in our store.

 

So, I responded with this:

 

My favorite holiday gift was a Kitchen Aid stand mixer my husband got me. We don't usually buy each other such expensive items, but because we were in the middle of relocating across the country, my husband wanted to give me something special. I'd wanted a KA mixer for years. Our kids & I were staying at my parents while our move was in process. He ended up carrying it (in its box) through I don't know how many airports, as he had to fly from his new job locale to their home. It weighed a BUNCH, but he faithfully got it to me. I've had it 12 years and still love using it.

They came back on 12/24 [aka Christmas Eve] with:

Today's winner is Debbie Glenn Monck for her story about her husband's dedication. Plus, KitchenAids are pretty awesome! Thanks for the great stories, everyone. Check back later today for the last, and best, giveaway.

In between entering my response and finding out I'd won, I had one of those conversations you don't want to have with your husband.  Especially not on Christmas Eve.  While I don't feel I need to go into all the details, I will divulge that I came to realize I am not what I want to be, or what he needs me to be.  

So, when I found out I'd won the gift basket, my first thought was [irony!!!].  If they only knew. . . . . . they most likely would have given the gift basket to another deserving winner.   

But over the last few days, I realize that what I've been given, in receiving this information from my husband, is in some ways a gift.  And maybe it's the best kind of gift.  I won't be so cliche to say "it's the gift of a 2nd chance", because that's just plain corny.  But I will say that I've been slapped in the face [figuratively] with the fact that nothing much matters.  Except the relationships we have.  My house, my new blender and LL Bean tote bag and lap desk.  My occupation.   {These things will all come and go.  And sometimes I'll like them, and sometimes I won't.  And eventually they'll be nothing.}

We like to joke in our family about Bohemian Rhapsody [the song].  Yes, I know it's a classic, but it's SO dramatic.  The lyrics say "nothing really matters".  And that's almost true.   But I really want to learn to concentrate on the bit that does.  So, while I'd like to write an entry that makes me appear somewhat cutesy, or fun, or at least somewhat sane, I forced myself to be honest.  And while my blog title is Once Upon a Sunny Day, not every day is sunny.  And not every Christmas is remembered as merry.  But I want to make it a point to remember the worst gift I received.

ask me what's on sale this week at Kroger

I stopped in at Kroger after work.  Fortunately for me, I now work 1.2 miles from my home.  And. . . there's a Kroger between my workplace and my house.  

Today I visited my local grocer for the ingredients to make King Ranch Bean Casserole [scroll down the page and you'll see it - below the version utilizing tofu].  Previous to my vegetarian days, I enjoyed King Ranch Chicken.  So, I sought a veg version and found this one.  Chip worked late tonight, so it was a good time to try a new recipe containing beans [he's anti legume, anti war, anti . .. ].  It turned out pretty good.  But that's not the point of this entry.

There's a winter storm headed our way.  Snow and ice are predicted.  Which means Kentuckians flood the Kroger stores.  I truly believe if one was a sociology student, the local Kroger would be a great place to compile thesis data.  My neighborhood store was packed.  Shopping carts were hard to come by.  The aisles were full.  The check out lines were long.  And people were buying, you guessed it, white bread and milk [mainly whole].  A few were purchasing Coke products.  One man stood in line to purchase one item only:  an off brand 12 pack of Mountain Dew type soda.  A lady behind me in line dropped her stuff [boxed candy canes, a loaf of bread {yes, white}, and a couple other things].  She mentioned there were no carts available as I helped her pick up her goods.  

All of this begs a question in my mind:  If people truly believe they might be stuck indoors for a few days, why don't they choose more exotic foods?  At least spring for a nice cheese and some Triscuits.  What are people making with all the bread and milk?  Is there some secret I don't know?  Seriously, and I know a power outage is a consideration, but these people were shopping at 5:30 p.m.  The storm wasn't predicted to move through until around midnight.  They had at least 6 hours to prepare a gourmet meal.  I wonder if these folks eat out everyday and have nothing in their pantry?  And now they fear they'll be forced to eat at home.  Or is much more simple?  Maybe bread and milk are snow storm traditions.  Like turkey at Thanksgiving and ham at Easter.  I grew up in the desert, so maybe this info isn't entrenched in my psychi.

On another note, regarding the sociology study, we now have a security guard at our Kroger.  Why?  He usually stands outside the store, but tonight he was inside [too cold for him outdoors, I guess].  Someone honked at me as I backed out of my space at the far end of the lot.  A large white van [I'm thinking plumber].  I suppose hostilities are high.  What if the store runs out of bread?  Oh yeah, they were really low on large bags of potatoes.  It seems to be the white foods that are popular [again, maybe a snow theme?  get it?  white snow/white foods. . . ]

Well, I found my items for the casserole.  Then I headed home.  Only to pull into the driveway and be greeted by my daughter, wearing pajamas and a towel over her freshly washed hair.  She had climbed the side fence, checking if the recycling was full [tomorrow's our pickup].  She walked towards the car, and stated, "We need to go to Kroger."  She then mentioned why - snack needed for tomorrow's FCA party [which, mind you, probably won't happen due to the approaching storm].   I asked why she didn't call me - her brother knew where I was.  She claimed she did call.  My battery was low, so I'll give her the benefit of the doubt.

So, later in the evening, she and I went out.  Yes, we hit a Kroger [not the same one].  It wasn't near as crowded and no one honked at me.  And there was no security guard, and the Salvation Army bell ringer was friendly.  And looking back, I wish I'd picked up some Triscuits and a nice cheese.  We might be iced in for a while.

If I was more like Oscar H.

{My Favorite Things}.  Rodgers & Hammerstein.  Minor chords and a 3/4 time signature.  A true classic.  If I was to write my own version it would include dark chocolate and picnics and hiking Raven Run.  I might choose to keep the line about silver white winters that melt into springs, because today is a silver white [technically late fall] day.  I'd also add sunshine and bike rides and salsa made from homegrown tomatoes.  Note that most of my favorite things have to do with spring time and summer. . . . . 

And in place of when the dog bites, when the bee stings. . . . . . I'd include when drivers are rude, when men don't hold the door, when people are just way too selfish [no, it doesn't have the same effect, but I never claimed to be Oscar Hammerstein].  Oh, and I'd also add when the furnace goes out and it's 19 degrees outside [because that's actually happening right now].

Oh, and why not throw in as favs when the kids don't argue [I haven't heard them be cross today], when the soup turns out well [it did tonight!], when my son has a good audition [he did, on Saturday], 

I'll simply remember my favorite things, 

and then I don't feel. . . . . . . so. . . . . . . . bad 

[all the while counting 1, 2, 3, 1, 2, 3, 1, 2, 3, 1, 2, 3 ♪♪♪♫♫♫].

thanksgiving {why I like it}

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays.  This time of year reminds me of all the things I'm thankful for.  Obviously the biggies, like family, home, enough clothing, the faithfulness of God, etc.  But all the other things, too.

things I'm thankful for:  

my musical children

pumpkin recipes

the car we inherited from my grandma

allrecipes.com

a son that REALLY can cook [we're not talking just boxed mac & cheese, friends]

a hilarious beagle named CJ

a summer time veggie garden in my backyard 

AND participating in a community garden

the magnolia tree Chip gave me one anniversary

my daughter's very accurate Russian accent

books by Lisa Samson

my Starbucks card

my Kitchenaid mixer and the sentimental story that goes with it

the piano in our living room that was old when my folks bought it in the '70s

hearing my son play jazz on said piano

the strong will of my daughter

free summer concerts at Ecton Park

Vineyard Community Church

a husband that makes me laugh

a son that enjoys Mexican food as much as I do

the Bryan Station HS Fine Arts Academy

wood floors

libraries

the internet

a husband that likes grocery shopping

brownies

Goodwill and thrift stores

parents that love me

the tv program Friday Night Lights 

discount theaters

Blue Bell ice cream [okay, ALL ice cream]

my mom's peach jelly and peach cobbler and cherry pie

my 1978 World Series tee shirt [MY dad was there!]

happy hour at Sonic

Allie's artwork

non-chain restaurants 
a sister [Catherine Ann] to name my daughter [Catherine Alexis] after