MEMORY MONDAY--wide open spaces

Lake Powell near Glen Canyon Dam. That's my 7th grade band shirt, so I'm guessing this is Junior High-ish era.

Isn't that incredible scenery? My family made this trip between Arizona and Utah probably a hundred times. Idaho has a beauty all of its own that is just as stunning in its own way. But sometimes I forget how much I miss the desert. No matter how long I've been away, this landscape still feels apart of my soul. Just stick some Saguaro cacti in there to make it complete.


What is it that would make me long for the desert now? Could it be the three feet of snow out my living room window? Hmm. 

GRAMPS

{I did NOT take this picture. It was taken by the fabulous FIFE PHOTOGRAPHY. I borrowed it from my cousin's wedding album HERE.}

Grandpa Brown turned 80 this week. As a surprise, it was arranged for him to sing with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. How cool is that?

The next night, was a hopping shindig with cake. And cookies. And like, six hundred cousins.

Okay, I exaggerate. Not quite that many.

But there were tributes rendered, poetry read, memories shared, and tears shed. And then we all laughed and talked the night away.




Gramps has had a darn, interesting life. He took Grandma Jennie, my mom, and her five brothers on quite the lifelong adventure. He worked for American embassies around the world, pioneering the LDS church in remote areas as he went.
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As a result, my mom's growing up years were spent in places like:

• Baghdad, Iraq
• Tehran, Iran
• Bogotá, Columbia
• Jakarta, Indonesia
• Brasilia, Brazil

I think that's cool.



We lived with him after Grandma died, from the time I was 12 until I was 16 (...my snottiest of years, now that I think about it...it's a wonder he still likes me) Here are a few things I remember from that time:

*Grandpa hates cats. Once, when a stray kept hanging around, he grabbed it by the scruff of the neck, tossed it in the trunk, and released it in the middle of the Mexican desert. No joke.


*We had all just moved into a new house. Around the dinner table, Grandpa told us about his first experience with his new shower. Not realizing there was a step down, he stumbled in and landed on the tile floor. After getting back on his feet, he went to turn the water on only to have the unexpected power of the water pressure send him right back down to the bottom.
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I probably shouldn't laugh so hard at this memory. But I do.


*Grandpa is staunchly against wasted food. So, most days, I came home from school to a pot on the stove of what we eventually dubbed: "goulash". It was a mixture of all the leftovers he could find in the kitchen, heated together, with raisins and salsa thrown in for good measure.


I love that guy.

TOP 3 CHRISTMAS COUNTDOWN

Some good things happened at our house on Christmas. Let me fill you in on the top three favorites of the holiday...

#3.) The  family game we opened on Christmas Eve this year was Ticket to Ride. Many hours of cross-country train adventuring followed. 

#2.) Chocolate. Fondue. Enough said. 

Except for one thing. You can't go wrong with chocolate. We dipped bananas, pretzels, brownie bites, strawberries, marshmallows, and dried pomegranates! And the verdict?

All good. All favorites.

And while we're on the topic, just let me add: it only took whipping cream and a bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips melted on the stove. I found the recipe HERE and simplified it.

Oh, and I would recommend halving it. Even after the exorbitant amounts of chocolate we ate, there was still a LOT left over.

On a side note--for all those out there who raised their eyebrows at the mention of dried pomegranates--it was just our attempt at recreating this insane sweet (insane meaning TOTALLY FREAKIN AWESOME) shared by some certain fine family members of ours.

Really hard to keep on the fondue forks...but otherwise, delicious.

I think we found a new Christmas Eve tradition. 

And finally...#1) The top favorite holiday moment was opening this most treasured of gifts. Wrapped in tissue paper and mailed from Washington...a necklace and bracelet set handcrafted by my nephew Braxton.

This is Braxton. 
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Five years old and already in tune with what the ladies love. 

Funky, sparkly, made out of pipe cleaners, and completely fabulous. You can't go wrong with jewelry. Thanks, Brax.

GOT SNOW?

No Problem. For us anyway. Andrew clears our little driveway off in style. 

(Andrew's job holds certain perks.)

BECCA'S BIRTHDAY

She came over to celebrate, and we gave her that hat. I hope she enjoys it, because I'm going to steal it the first chance I get.

Unconventional as always, she asked for peanut butter cookies instead of cake. We made it work.
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By the way, she turned 21...or 23...or 12...
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Heck, I can't even remember how old I am anymore. (But that's what I have Andrew for. He keeps track of stuff like that.) Happy mnphth birthday, Becca. Last month...

TEACHING SCENE TUESDAY--dear scrooge,

The final day before Christmas vacation (a Monday), was going to be a total bust. And then I got a substitute to cover my class on top of that because Andrew and I wanted to celebrate graduation/anniversary in style. SO, my lesson plans basically consisted of watching holiday movies...one being A Muppet Christmas Carol. The kids wrote letters after the show and this one made me laugh out loud:

Dear Scrooge,

You were not very nice. We were glad the ghosts came to see you and help you be nice. That was nice of you to bring the turkey to Bob's family. That was sad you didn't get married but we hope you fall in love someday.

Love,

*Mary and Suzie

*Names have been changed to protect the innocent. =)

MELT MY HEART.

My baby sister wandered into the bathroom and climbed onto the toilet to watch me brush my teeth. After quickly losing interest, she clamored down to examine the bathroom scale. Andrew, who was sitting on the edge of the tub, brushing his own teeth, showed her how to step on and read the numbers.

My heart melted into a puddle on the floor when her weight was announced:

"Twenty-nine pounds."

holy cuteness.

DECOR TOUR 2010

I consider myself to be fairly wise with my money--budgeting and saving and frugality--but I have two big weaknesses...used books being one of  them...that I will lay money down for just as fast as it takes to get the debit card out of my wallet.  My other weakness, I would have to admit, is Christmas decorations. 

Christmas seemed to come and go with a wild, whirlwind-y bang this year. December was insanely busy. I was so excited to get out my holiday decorations, and yet, I feel like I was hardly able to enjoy them before it was time to put them away again.  

It has all been rather heartbreaking. 

And so, as part of the mourning process, I am going to relish in their festiveness one last time before next year: all the trinkets, trees, nativities, Christmas pillows, and stockings...Ah, how I love them. 

Remember my new Christmas wreath? She looked scrumptious hanging on our living room mirror. 

We received these stockings as a wedding present. They are pretty, and we like to hang them up to make the room look Christmas-y.

But these are the stockings that we use and love. Andrew's mom made one for each of the Ashmores. 

And I am happy to announce that I became an official member of the family this year, when I received my very own stocking in the mail! Check out the beautiful details...

I. LOVE. IT.

Okay. Now take note of the wooden reindeer stocking holders. 

When I packed them away last year, I wrote this on the box partly to make Andrew laugh, and partly in effort to keep him from roughly pulling them out and causing damage. 

But guess who ended up breaking THIS delicate antler? I'll give you one clue.

It wasn't Andrew. 

And finally, our lovely nativity. It was joined this year by a stand and star (thanks to Grandma Johnson) and a mini bale of hay (thanks to me). I think it looks complete now, don't you?

Well, I guess that concludes Christmas Decor Tour 2010. Until next year...

BUSY HOUSEWIFE TIPS

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My home is not always clean. The laundry baskets are usually full. And I am not an expert housekeeper. But we try so hard, despite our insane schedules to keep up on things. Over the years, we have figured out a few secrets (or just common sense things) that work for us.

1.) Make the bed. Every single day. It takes just a minute and it makes a world of difference as to the feel of the room...even if the rest of it is a disaster area.

2.) Set a timer. For twenty minutes to be exact. Then clean like mad until the buzzer rings. It's amazing what you can accomplish in such a short time. So often, we arrive home exhausted, to a messy house, with still so many more obligations to meet that night. But messy house = frazzled Rachel. So we just set the timer, clean for our allotted time, and then move on to the next thing without the housework weighing on my mind.

3.) Do some laundry every day. This might have to be modified after our family grows, but by doing SOMETHING everyday...even if it is just washing one load, or simply matching the socks up...it doesn't ever become an overwhelming task.

4.) Clean up after dinner. Don't be tempted to lay down, log in to Netflix, or get started on any other project before the food and dishes are put away. Otherwise, it won't get done. And after a few days, it is an unmanageable stack.

5.) Create a dinner schedule. It saves time, eliminates the pain of having to come up with something to make every night, and I'm wiser about using the food we have before it spoils.

6.) Anti-bacterial wipes. If you're in a hurry, these guys are the best. With one extra little minute, I can have the entire bathroom wiped down.

7.) Invite people over for fun once in awhile. Prideful or not, theres no motivation to clean up like the thought of others seeing how messy you are. You suddenly have a great desire to dust the base boards, mop the floor, and fold that pile of laundry you've been ignoring in the corner the past week. Invite friends over for dinner or games or family home evening. I guarantee you, the house will look great before they arrive.

TEACHING SCENE TUESDAY--cool kids

The number of children's books I own probably reaches the thousands. No exaggeration. It allows me to keep the class library well stocked and the books fresh and rotated through the year. 

But, of all those books that I have to offer, the most popular book...the one that never stays on the shelf more than a day...that has exchanged hands continually since September...and has undergone the most wear of any other...is all about how to be "cool" in the third grade. 
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They don't ever talk about it though. It rotates around the room quietly, as if in secret. 
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This strikes me as so...funny/precious/kinda pathetic. 
Who knew 8-year-olds had this dilemma so heavily on the brain?

CAR RIDE

It was our third trip down to Utah last month, and all the hours on the road were beginning to drive us crazy. (Word.) How 'bout I let you in on a couple minutes of our insanity...

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After half an hour of silence through barren flat lands, Andrew, without taking his eyes off the road, asked:

"Do you wanna have a tickle fight?"

His tone was way too serious for comfort.

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"Don't you dare touch me."

His hand inched in my direction, resting stiffly on the center consul. We sat there for a minute before the suspense became too much for me. I punched him in the arm as hard as I could.

This only caused him to laugh delightedly, so I glared at him.

"Andrew, if you cross this line, I will punch your frickin' lights out." (We have a very honest, open relationship.)

After more hysterical laughter, he inched his hand towards me again, resting it ever so gently between us.

"You're walking a thin line, Mr."

"I'm not going to tickle you. I'm just going to show you affection. Don't you love me?"

"Yes, I love you. But my love for you lessens every time you tickle me."

"I thought you said your love was unconditional ."

"It is...until you tickle me."

"Then it's not unconditional!"

"Okay, fine. My love ISN'T unconditional. So you had better stop!"

These events cycled for some time, but I won't bore you with the particulars. Let's just say there was screaming, punching, karate chopping, and evil hysterical laughter involved. And let me add that it's a miracle we didn't crash and burn on that lonely Idaho highway.

When it comes to being tickled, I don't mess around. Just consider this a warning for all those anxious to take multiple road trips in one month...or drive with us in a car for hours at a time...or TRY and tickle Rachel Ashmore. And that's my story, the end. 

Hi-YA,

Rachel

THANKFUL THURSDAY--I am thankful today...

1.For my new mittens. They complete me. I bought them and then informed Andrew he would be gifting them in my Christmas stocking.Yes, I acted surprised.

2. That even when it's cold enough outside, to freeze our windows on the inside...our little house still keeps us cozy and warm and dry. I am thankful for heaters.

3. That Andrew reads to me at night. I adore falling asleep this way. It helps me escape my exhausting review of the day and stressing about tomorrow that inevitably occurs before I can will myself to sleep. We are reading the Percy Jackson series right now...and for the parts I've been awake for...it's a really fun read.

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4. And most of all...

That tomorrow is Friday. Returning to work after Christmas break kind of put my whole system into shock. I need the weekend to regroup and recover.

GRADUATION ALBUM

Hello, Andrew. That is certainly a weird hat you've got on there.

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After years of hard work an sacrifice...

Andrew is the first college graduate in his family!

I cried through the entire thing. This was the result of several factors:

1.) I was proud beyond words.

2.)I was miserably feverish.

3.)I had insomnia from 1-4 that morning and was horribly sleep deprived.

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All of these contributed to one very emotional me.

This was the first graduating class to hold commencement in the newly built BYU-Idaho Center. In case this picture doesn't illustrate it, the place is HUGE.

Its size is comparable to the Conference Center in Salt Lake City, which seats 21,000 people. The BYU-Idaho Center is the same design on a slightly smaller scale. It only seats 15,000.

The other half of Andrew's waving, screaming fan club.

After commencement, the College of Physical Science and Mathematics moved to the Taylor Chapel for convocation.

Beforehand, Andrew chats with his good friend, Dave.

"...Andrew Dee Ashmore...Bachelor's in Construction Management..."

Hooray!

This professor ("Mort") came to shake Andrew's hand afterward, and they both bawled like babies. As such, I figured this would be an important picture to take. Andrew always seems to make best buds with the old guys.

The graduate.

And the proud wife.

...I apologize. This couldn't be helped.

Congrats, Andrew! Now, on to the future, our business, and home building for new professors moving in to teach at the growing University.

That's right. We are both graduated and yet, we are sticking around our small-town Rexburg, Idaho. Who'da thunk we'd settle here? But we are excited for what the future will bring!