Blog list title update

So, blog list titles, as they now stand, are Blogs I Like to Visit for family; More Blogs I Like to Visit for Friends & Acquaintances; and, Still More Blogs, which may change to Even More Blogs …

Blog list title

I laid in bed this morning before I got up, trying to think of new, clever names for my blog lists - hmmm, not many thoughts. So, I got up & decided to look through some blogs for some inspiration. I found some of my friends haven't updated their blogs for months &/or years!!! I found a couple of blogs I am no longer welcome at, either they've closed their blog or went private & forgot to invite me. I also found most people only have ONE blog list, then there's me! I have 5 blog lists & even thought of making one more!! Not only do I have 5 blog lists, I have 5 blogs!

Why FIVE blog lists? Well, 5 is my favorite number. I like things divisible by 5 too. But, why 5 blog lists? I also like to keep things organized. It's like filing things. If everything is thrown in one file (or pile), you can't find what you want. One is for the missionaries I follow, thus Called to Serve. That was a no-brainer. There is a hymn "Called to Serve."

Another one is for blogs powered by Caring Bridge, another no-brainer, Caring Bridge. One for miscellaneous blogs was titled Other Blogs I Like to Read, but in my quest this morning, someone had titled a list, Blogs I Like to Visit - ah ha - perfect. I immediately snagged it. This is the list I was contemplating dividing one more time - crafts & cooking figure heavily in this list, along with mental illness & just some fun blogs I like to visit. But … there is such a thing as having too many file folders too, umm, I mean blog lists.

Now what about Family & Friends, the 2 blog lists I was having grief over this morning? In my search I found there are LOTS of blogs out there for extended family. Wow! I spend a lot of time reading blogs as it is, I could spend a LOT more time! Family, hmmm, nice, but boring. Friends, another nice, but boring choice.

So, I guess I'll leave the dilemma & ponder on it.

Words like feathers

Ralph Waldo Emerson's words

"Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; begin it well and serenely and with too high a spirit to be cumbered with your old nonsense."

are good advice. But we need to be careful what we say. The person you are talking about may be down the hall in your bosses office.

Today, Nancy Dent & I were talking about death & I was telling her about Angelica's funeral. I told her what a spiritual feast it was & then I preceded to tell her what Brad Wall, a ward member and neighbor, had said. It was nothing bad. Brad & I had talked at church about how spiritual the funeral was & what a good job the family had done.

I looked in Kelly's office & even though I had my computer glasses on, which makes looking in the distance very blurry, the man sitting on his couch looked like Brad. It WAS!! He waved at me. I went in, sat down by him & said I had been talking about him. I told him we were talking about Angelica's funeral.

Even though it was nothing bad, I was embarrassed. I would have said the same thing in front of him, but I felt like I'd been caught gossiping. He told me about a time when he was going to say something about a man. The man he was talking to stopped him & told him the other man was his cousin.

I went in later & said to Kelly how embarrassed I was. He said Brad had said to him while we were in the hall. "They're talking about me."

Words, like feathers, fly in the wind. Careless words, tossed about, cannot again be swallowed up

~ Traditional Eastern European Folktale

Angel

Angel

There once was an Angel
Who was so sweet and fair
She brought great happiness to all
Even though her stature was small
In the ways that count
She was so very tall
She was sweet and innocent and fair
She was even born with beautiful hair
She was a miracle come from God
And where she was
Only angels dare to trod
She was sweet and loving and fair
She taught us all to share
Except when she was being good
Then we all turned into hoods
Because we all wanted her for ourselves
But we were not really selfish
Just wanting that generous love
She portioned in each of our hearts
Now better we are more loving
More kind
For in heaven we someday want to be
With Angel; Angelica Dawn.

Love, Daddy*

 

 

*Cleve Esplin

Angelica's funeral

Today was Angelica's funeral. It was wonderful. All three of her sisters spoke, her dad & her grandma Luana. LuAnn accompanied the girls & their families in their songs. The spirit was sooo strong. She was buried in the Preston Cemetery, on the same end of the cemetery as my family, but a road further on.

Ramen noodles was Angelica's favorite food. We had ramen noodles for supper tonight in memory of Angelica.

Update on the white chili

Kim asked if I really put cinnamon sugar in it. I really did, but … the cinnamon sugar was sitting there on the cupboard by the stove. I usually just sprinkle some salt in, but I had already painstakingly measured the salt in. My family is always accusing me of not salting the food. I thought cloves was an interesting spice to use. In my mind cloves & cinnamon go together, so I picked up the cinnamon sugar shaker & sprinkled some on. The original recipe didn't call for salsa either, but I thought it sounded good, so I added some.

For lunch today I had a bowl of leftover chili. It had gotten stronger over night. I choked almost from the first bite. Nick told me he added salsa to it last night. I told him I had put a whole cup in it. He said it needed more. So, in telling Don tonight, he said he added more salsa, too.

Angelica

I am sitting here in shock. I want to cry, but I'm just numb. This is what I found when I logged into Facebook this morning on her sister Mary's status:

Thank you everyone who prayed on my family's behalf. Our beautiful Angelica died this morning. She fought for 49 days at Primary Children's Medical Center, but Heavenly Father must have needed her more than we do. We know we will see her again someday. Now we have extra motivation to live our lives the right way.

Now Cleve & Sylvia need our prayers. Luana has expressed many times she thinks the only reason Cleve is still here is because of Angelica.

I'm going to let Luana tell Mother. Luana said yesterday she could tell it was a bad day as soon as she heard Sylvia's voice. Yesterday I was wondering where they would bury her. The cemetery here in Preston is full.

So, what is it?

A common question when I cook. Don makes the old familiar favorites. But when I cook, the fam comes out, looks at my concoction & asks, "So, what is it?" Tonight it is from cooks.com

WHITE CHILI

2 med. onions 1 small onion, coarsely chopped

1 1/2 tsp. minced garlic (I didn't bother with the garlic, I was in a hurry & didn't want to peel it & I don't have the dry stuff)
1 tsp. oil (a dollop, enough to cover the bottom of the Dutch oven)
4 c. cooked chopped chicken (3 chicken breasts, already crockpotted from the last bag of chicken breasts I bought on sale)
6 c. chicken broth (only used 4 cups water, which was PLENTY!! & 4 chicken bouillon cubes which I had to send Don to the store for)
2 cans white great northern beans (Don picked up while he was at the store)
2 (4 oz.) cans chopped green chilies
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
2 tbsp. ground cumin (we have cumin seeds, I only used 1/4 tsp. I had the 1/4 tsp spoon out, why dirty another?)
1 1/2 tsp. oregano (4 scoops of 1/4 tsp spoon)
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper
1/2 tsp. salt and pepper to taste

Saute onions and garlic in oil. Add remaining ingredients (plus cinnamon sugar sprinkled on top, 1 cup salsa & 1 can cream of chicken soup) and simmer until heated through. Serve with sour cream and Monterey Jack cheese (shredded).


I work half a day on Tuesday. This morning, knowing it was DUP day, I got out a 1 lb. package of dry Northern beans, the crockpot & water. I dumped the beans in, turned the crockpot on high for 45 minutes, turned it off & hurried out into my day.

Tonight the beans were as hard as when I dumped them in this morning. It was going to take hours to cook them soft enough to eat, so I sent Don off to the store.

Nick gave it an OK, Don said it was good & I LOVED it! I kept helping myself to a little bit more.

Nine months later

On June 30, 2010, I started reading the Old Testament. It was the course of study for 2010 for the auxiliaries of the LDS Church. It has taken me all this time to finish it. There were very few nights when I missed reading. I set a goal to read it by Dec. 31, 2010. I obviously missed my original deadline. I reset my goal a couple of times. I wanted to be certain to be finished by the beginning of Lent, or Ash Wednesday. And I made it!! I read the Book of Mormon for Lent. Don't worry, I won't be using this blog to document my reading this year. I started a scripture journal.

It took me almost 9 months, minus 3 weeks, to read the Old Testament. I could've had a baby in that time. My babies were both born 3 weeks early.

I read the Old Testament in the Old Testament Seminary class I took as a senior in high school, but as I read through it this time, I'm shaking my head in disbelief. I wondered many times where my mind was in seminary. (Of course, I also realize that was over 40 years ago.) I read the LDS Institute of Religion's Old Testament Student Manual 1 Kings–Malachi - Religion 302 along with the Old Testament this time. I still have a couple of chapters left in it.

I chose to read Isaiah last & I'm glad I made that decision. Now, as I read the Book of Mormon, I will read parts of Isaiah again; only this time it will be the pure scripture because it was taken from the Brass Plates of Laban & will not have gone through all of the translations. I can't wait to see how the Institute of Religion's Book of Mormon manual will treat Isaiah.