Turmeric Dreams and Family News

Husband and I have been taking turmeric capsules every night for some weeks, and we both noticed that turmeric seems to bring on very vivid dreams. Last night, for instance, I dreamed that I had a lovely large kitchen with acres of counter space. Unfortunately, all the counters were covered in stacks and stacks of dirty dishes. When my alarm went off this morning, I was running along beside the counters, horrified that my huge kitchen was so dirty and frustrated that no one was willing to help me clean it. 

Photo: Wallace Chuck, Pexels free-use images

I'm sure that has very deep psychological meaning, but I'm just too tired to figure it out. Thanks, Daylight Saving Time! 

The good news is that I'll get to ruminate on my weird dreams a little more for the next week as we head into Spring Break, which I am using to recover from losing an hour of sleep last Sunday. I'm very excited about not having to set my alarm.

In more interesting news, Little Gary just landed his first job. He is a student sweeper at the elementary school he attended, which is exciting both for the financial aspect and also for the nostalgia he has for his elementary school. "If I had known how great elementary school really was, I wouldn't have been so excited to go to junior high," he frequently laments. All of us were horribly shocked and stunned by junior high, kid. I'm sure the nostalgia will wear off as he spends hours vacuuming and sweeping the rooms and hallways that suddenly seem so much smaller than they used to be, but having a steady stream of income will make up for that and the weird building smell he never noticed before.

He had to fill out an application and go through an interview (for which his sister, Sophia, kindly helped him practice; but which--happily, I guess--ended up lasting exactly three minutes and did not include any of the questions Sophia helped him with). His best friend also applied, as there were two student sweeper positions available, but the best friend was sadly only hired as a substitute. I'm hoping there are no lasting resentments that arise from this situation. 

I am going to drop the "Little" from Gary's name. When I started calling him that in this blog, he was, indeed, little. He's almost taller than I am now, and he shot up over three inches in the last six months alone. Keeping him outfitted with trousers that are both long enough for his legs and skinny enough for his waist is a constant struggle. At nearly 15, he's also got a shadow of a mustache and argues with me a lot less when I insist he bathe regularly.

Joseph, my 17-year-old, finally got his drivers license and now I can send him on all the errands I don't want to run. Joseph has a Saturday job at the local bakery, but now he can get himself to work early in the morning. Yay! 

My second daughter, Gabrielle, and her husband, Raine, will be moving from their condo into a town home a couple doors down from my oldest daughter, Siân, and her husband and kids. Their rent will be lower, they will have a lot more room, and Gabrielle thinks she can start planning on getting pregnant with their first child. She has an excellent job with Adobe, and Raine has an Army scholarship that is paying for his schooling, so they're doing fine for money. Siân and Nathan and Gabrielle and Raine love getting together (Siân and Gabrielle have always been very close), so living near each other will be a huge blessing for all of them, and I'm very happy that my grandsons will have a close relationship with their aunty and uncle.

Joseph is cooking dinner tonight. He asked if he could, which is thrilling. He had a stew recipe he wanted to try, and he just got back from the grocery store, where he went to pick up a loaf of good bread to go with the stew (the bakery he works at only serves doughnuts and bagels). The last time he cooked us dinner, it was excellent. I'm so excited to not have to make dinner and yet enjoy a delicious home-cooked meal. Now, if I could only get more willing help when it came to dishes!

Adorably Clueless

 In my new capacity as one of the Young Women leaders, I attend the youth Sunday School class. It's good because I can attend with my youngest son, who sometimes needs some kicking in the butt encouragement to go to his class. We accidentally went to the younger class yesterday, which has kids from 11-14, but I wasn't about to let him out of the classroom at that point, having managed to get him in.

The lesson was on the story of Joseph of Egypt. I was sitting next to one of my favorite young women, a very bright girl of twelve whose family obviously spends a lot of time learning and discussing the scriptures. The teacher asked someone to talk about what happened to Joseph in Potiphar's house, and she raised her hand and said, "Well, I'm not sure exactly how it happened, but I think Potiphar's wife was jealous that Potiphar and Joseph were good friends, and she tried to lie about him, and that made Potiphar angry, and he sent Joseph to prison." 

The teacher and I exchanged a glance during which each of us fought very hard to keep straight faces. There was also the very real temptation to exclaim, "You are so adorable!" to this adorable child.

"...Yes, Potiphar's wife was very angry with Joseph, that is correct," the teacher finally said, his lips twitching slightly. When none of the other equally clueless young kids raised their hands to offer the more adult explanation as to the reason Potiphar's wife was angry with Joseph, he said, "Let's talk about Joseph's time in the prison," and moved on. 

Sometimes you want them to never grow up and face the harsh realities of adulthood.  

Reflections

One of the most satisfying aspects of my job is the interaction I have with the students. 

This year, the kids suddenly saw me. They didn't see me very clearly last year--as if I was constantly under a cloak of invisibility even when I was attempting to interact with them--but this year I am suddenly visible to them, and I've made a huge effort to learn their names (as I have almost 700 names to put to faces, I'm still working on that). I have a whole little crowd of students who come and talk to me every day, a few of whom have used me as a bit of a sounding board/therapist on gospel topics or about life situations. I really enjoy their bright smiles and personalities, and I very much value the trust they have placed in me as an adult to whom they can share their thoughts and worries (though I always encourage them to talk to their parents as well). 

Obviously, when dealing with the students, I and the faculty are extremely careful to keep everything above-board. No teacher is ever left alone in the building with a student or students, and office doors are usually kept open; if a student needs some privacy during a discussion, the office doors all have windows that are kept clear and uncovered. Some of the students rely on the teachers as trusted counselors as they navigate depression and anxiety, questions or concerns about Church doctrine and policies, family dysfunction, and general teenage angst. Some of them just love chatting with their favorite teachers about anything and everything, and each of the faculty members is so good at the easy camaraderie that makes teens feel like they have a friend. Laughter is one of the most common sounds that I hear in the building's hallways and drifting out from offices.

A kid told me the other day that he had been told by an older sibling that one of the teachers, Skyler, has a fan page on Instagram. That didn't surprise me. Skyler is a dynamic teacher and very popular with the students. He is also good-looking and looks younger than he is (which is not even 30 yet), and all this causes some quiet swooning amongst the female students from time to time. Of course I wanted to see that page so I could tease Skyler about it, so I resurrected my Instagram account that I haven't used since my content writing days years ago, when I sometimes needed Instagram to do research, and looked for it. Alas, I couldn't find the one the student was talking about (it's probably since been taken down), but I did find a page dedicated to our seminary that some past student had used to create his own memes with seminary and church themes. They are innocent, clean memes, and a few of them made me laugh. 

(For the record, Skyler, while aware of his occasional effect on the girl students, is entirely pragmatic about it, his head unturned and his soul incorruptible. His wife is a knockout anyway. She was in the building a couple weeks ago and I looked right past her while I bustled into my office to finish a task. It wasn't until she came up to my window that I suddenly realized who she was. "Oh, hi!" I exclaimed in surprise. "I thought you were a student!" According to Skyler, that made her day.)

Just as senior students are graduating and leaving high school and the seminary, the members of my faculty will be changing come next school year. Skyler has decided to pursue an MBA (which will be in addition to his current Masters degree and his PhD, for which he is finishing his thesis) and leave the religious education career behind. He's moving his gorgeous wife and their adorable kids to another state so he can attend school and will, by my prediction, become as wildly successful in business as he is as a religious educator--and far more wealthy. Kim, who mistakenly thinks I'm hilarious, might be offered a regional position working with the adaptive/special needs aspect of Church religious education. Ryan will be retiring in the next few years, though I think he does plan to stay at our seminary until then. Griff seems to have an itch to take a coordinator position somewhere else in the country. Tanner seems content to stay put, thank goodness. 

Changes are also coming in the Seminaries & Institutes Department of the Church, so I think I will be seeing a lot more of the things people thought were pretty permanent in this industry become more fluid. It will be interesting. But the students will always be the number one priority.

Say Hello to My New Grandson!

He's here!

Dear reader, I present another most precious treasure in my life: my perfect grandson Nicholas.

 Is he not a most adorable, sweet little guy? He clocked in at a little over eight pounds and at nineteen inches long, which is very respectable. My daughter, Sian, who had never carried a baby to term before, was thrilled that everything went smoothly with Nick's delivery. The only minor complication Nicholas suffered was a slightly elevated bilirubin count, and after we kept him wrapped in an ultraviolet light blanket (that's a thing!) for a day and he started chugging down on milk and getting his digestive tract working, he was just fine. 

I stayed the night at Sian's and Nathan's house the night before Sian was scheduled for the C-section just so I didn't have to make the long drive to their house in the dark of the wee hours of the morning. The hospital didn't allow any visitors except for Nathan, so my three-year-old grandson, Tyler, and I hung out together for a few days. We had a great time. He's such a great kid, and I loved snuggling with him when he wasn't bouncing around like toddlers do. I bought some wooden beads, paint, and plastic cord our first day hanging out together. Tyler helped me paint the beads (though he enjoyed "accidentally" painting my fingers more), and then I tied a knot in the cord and showed him how to string the beads, which he called "plugging it in" every time he managed to string the cord through the hole in the bead. He spent two hours playing with those that first day.

Tyler would not pose nicely for a picture with his brother, but I love his silly little self.

Tyler didn't really grasp the concept of having a little brother at first, but he welcomed the addition of a tiny baby into the household with remarkable aplomb. There were a few near-misses as Tyler is still getting used to being careful around a fragile baby, but no damage has been done. What made my heart melt was when Tyler, sitting happily wedged in between his parents, whom he had missed a great deal, said, "Now we're four buddies, not three buddies!" If you don't believe a three-year-old can say something like that, keep in mind that this kid can already read thanks to his mother's patient teaching. The first night I was there, he and I counted to 150 (I was merely trying to help him relax and get sleepy because it was bedtime, but he just kept counting). He's a very, very intelligent child, but he also has a gentle and tender heart. I love it when I say, "How are you, Tyler?" and he responds, "I'm happy!" while wearing a big smile.

I stayed with my loves for a week and tried to ease their transition from one child to two as much as possible, though I don't think the shock wears off for a few weeks at least. They're tired, and Sian is recovering from a C-section, but they'll survive. Nathan's mother is coming to stay with them for a couple weeks, as well, and I'm sure they'll be very grateful for her help, as well. She's a lovely woman.

To be able to hold such a dear little infant boy for hours on end was a delight, and I'll get to do it again when I take Husband down to meet his new grandson this weekend. Husband bought a bunch of new books for Tyler, as well--books our kids loved when they were little--so it will be double the fun. 

How am I? I'm happy.

Bumblebee K-Pop Fries Dupe

 I was down with a bad cold for five days--fever on Day 3, but it was a small one and only lasted a day--and my worst symptoms were a seriously stuffy head and lots of coughing and sneezing. I sound like a croaky toad when I talk, as well. I could sing bass in the choir right now if I could sing at all. I'm still a little stuffy and I have a lingering cough, but I could tell when I turned the corner and started feeling my energy return.

I was back to work today after missing all of last week. If there were moments that I worried that my faculty would figure out they could do just fine without me and I'd be out of a job, those worries were laid to rest as soon as I walked in the door this morning. Each of the faculty members immediately told me how much they'd missed me and how relieved they were that I was back to take care of the things that I take care of. I spent the day attempting to unravel the chaos that had ensued while I wasn't there, and I'm happy to report that I've made serious inroads into restoring order and sense.

Husband has now succumbed to The Crud (is it Omicron? a flu? a cold? Who cares? Neither of us were required to get tested, and since getting tested just opens up a can of worms, we both decided to just stay home until we got better) and is on Day 3. He is also stuffy-headed and coughing, but no fever so far. Little Gary got sick when I did, and he had quite a fever, but he bounced back far more quickly than I did and now has only the smallest of lingering coughs.

To make Husband happy, I made my version of Bumblebee's K-Pop fries last night. 

Bumblebee is a Korean-American fusion fast food restaurant. It was started in Utah, and I believe it still only has locations in Utah (only three locations, I think), but it's seriously yummy. Our favorite dish is the K-Pop fries, which are seasoned fries smothered in bulgogi beef shreds, cheese, and sliced green onions and then covered in fry sauce (a Utah invention that, once you've had it, means you can never go back to mere ketchup) and eel sauce. 

My Version of Bumblebee K-Pop Fries:

Yield: 4 servings

2 pounds ground beef or thinly sliced beef steak

1 bag frozen seasoned french fries 

2 or 3 green onions, green parts sliced (save white parts for another use)

Shredded cheddar cheese

Fry sauce (homemade recipe below, or buy a commercial fry sauce such as Some Dude's Fry Sauce or Heinz's Mayochup Saucy Sauce)

Eel sauce (optional. You can find this at Asian grocery stores. It doesn't actually have any eels in it.)

Bulgogi marinade:

1/2 cup soy sauce

4 Tbsp brown sugar

4 tsp sesame oil

6 cloves garlic, minced 

2 tsp powdered ginger

1/2 - 1 tsp red pepper flakes, depending on how spicy you like it

1. If using ground beef, brown beef in a skillet until no longer pink. Drain fat. While the beef is cooking, mix the marinade ingredients in a separate bowl and pour over the beef when it is done, mixing it well into the beef. Lower heat to med-low and allow beef mixture to simmer while you prepare the rest of the ingredients. Skip to Step 3.

2. If using sliced steak, marinate the beef in the bulgogi marinade for at least an hour, though overnight is better. Brown beef on the stove or under the broiler, slice into bite-sized pieces, and keep warm until ready to serve.

3. Cook frozen seasoned fries according to package directions. When fries are done, divide them among four plates. Spread 1/2 cup or so of the meat over each mound of fries, top with shredded cheese, sprinkle with green onions, and then squirt fry sauce and eel sauce generously over the top. Serve piping hot (if you are using oven-safe plates, you can slide them under the broiler for a minute to melt the cheese).

Basic Fry Sauce

1 cup mayonnaise

1 cup ketchup

2 Tbsp pickle brine from the pickle jar (or more, to taste, and to get a squirtable consistency)

Salt and pepper, to taste

1. Mix all ingredients thoroughly and then spoon into a squirt bottle. Generously squirt the fry sauce over the fries in a criss-cross fashion, first going horizontally and then vertically. 

I Suddenly Feel Old

 I work with guys, a couple of them young enough to be my sons. This fact was once again brought to my attention last week.

After the students had mostly left the building at the end of the day on Thursday, Skyler was in my office telling me a story from his life. Tanner came in, grabbed my Sharpie marker, and said, "Dude, if you let me throw this at your back as hard as I can, I'll let you do it to me," and both of them immediately ran out of my office into the hall. I heard the thwack of Sharpie against dress shirt and flesh, a laughing exclamation of pain, and then the same thing again. Then I heard them decide to repeat the experiment.

Thwack. Laughter. Thwack. Laughter.

In explanation, Tanner stated that he just needed to wake up so he could focus on the work he had to do for the next few hours. I guess that's one way to shake off the sleepies, though it's not an idea that would have occurred to me--but I am not a guy in my mid-to-late-twenties.

 

We Survived Christmas

 We had an eventful Christmas, and I'm not even listing all the things that happened. I'm sure they'll come up later, as some of the events are having long-lasting consequences.

For one thing, Elannah came home early from her mission the Monday before Christmas. It was the right thing for her, as she had been struggling terribly with depression. She learned so much and was even able to teach and baptize a family in the short time she was in Nashville, but her mental health was going south so fast that I was getting really worried. Long story short (and there's quite a bit to that story), she made the decision to come home, and she made the right decision. I selfishly love having her home again, and now she's being a missionary to her sister, Sophia, and brother, Joseph. Her mental health has greatly improved.

And no, if you were wondering, there are no wedding bells ringing yet. As I keep telling her when she worries about not yet being ready to get married while her boyfriend is, she's only twenty! Don't take the plunge until you're sure, girl, and you've got plenty of time!

Another thing that happened was the prolonged attempt by my in-laws to get home to Indiana. It took them three days because of the constant flight delays and cancellations, and I will spare you all the exhausting, horrible details, but they finally made it home. Their dogs and cats were ecstatic. I'm sure the neighbor who had been taking care of the animals was also relieved, though she has been an angel to care for them for so long.

MIL has suffered through so many ups and downs with this cancer. She received good news that her live cancer cell count has dropped very significantly, so there's a great deal of hope. She also survived the long, horrible trip home, and that, I think, will give her more faith in her inner strength, though she has no intentions of traveling for a very long time.

We didn't get together to celebrate Christmas as a family until Boxing Day (Dec. 26th), but we had a lot of fun together. I made the traditional British roast dinner for Husband's sake, my mother brought the red jello salad that has been a staple holiday food since I was a baby, the kids all played games together and laughed loudly, and I got to hug my grandson frequently. 

Sian has now beaten her pregnancy record by remaining pregnant this long. Tyler came very early because of severe preeclampsia, and she suffered a couple miscarriages before this pregnancy, but she's had no problems with this pregnancy, and the baby is growing perfectly. She's exhausted and feels like a cow right now, but we are all very grateful for an uneventful pregnancy. I get to meet my new grandson in February, all going well.

Husband bought a rain shower shower head with his Christmas money. I love it. I live in the shower now.

I'm keeping this rather brief because I'm exhausted and want to go to sleep. I've started eating low carb/high fat again, and I'm still suffering a little of the "keto flu," though that has improved dramatically in the last twenty-four hours. I'm six pounds down in two days, though that is all water weight. We'll see how I need to adjust things as I go on. Be patient: I'm sure I'll bore you with details in the very near future.

Okay. I'm showered, blissfully tired, and going to bed now. Good night.