Santa's Workshop

Hmm . . .

Looking around this mess and thinkin'
it looks seriously like Santa's workshop . . .

Must be quite the untidy place at this time of year :)

Thank you dear husband for the newappliance you brought home from work with you last night!
It was awfully hard to make Christmas goodies withoutan oven or stove top!  


















Then what to our wondering eyes did appear!
It's plenty of snow!  Just minus the reindeer . . .





















Now I'm off in a Christmas blizzard -
And after this - I'm hybernating for the next week :)
No more stores for me ;)


Merry Christmas - to all - I'll see ya on the flip side

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Simply Having a Wonderful Christmas Time . . .

One of these days I'm going to create
a
worthy
blog post again . . .


But,
I'm pretty sure . . .

Not until after the holidays.

I'm simply having a WONDERFUL Christmas time . . .
sewing, baking, wrapping
(and I have simplified by the way - just haven't figured how NOT to bake and wrap . . .)

Meanwhile . . .
This
will make you laugh OUT loud!

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. . . this Christmas . . .

 

 

“This Christmas, mend a quarrel.   

Seek out a forgotten friend.  

 Dismiss suspicion and replace it with trust.   

 Write a letter.  

 

 

 

 

 

  

Give a soft answer.   

Encourage youth.   

Manifest your loyalty in word and deed.   

Keep a promise.   

Forgo a grudge.   

Forgive an enemy.   

Apologize. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Try to understand.  

 Examine your demands on others.   

Think first of someone else. 

Be kind.   

Be gentle. 

 

 

 

 

Laugh a little more. 

Express your gratitude.   

Welcome a stranger.   

Gladden the heart of a child.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Take pleasure in the beauty and wonder of the earth.   

Speak your love and then speak it again. "

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

- Howard W. Hunter

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What Shall we Give?

Learn from President Monson 

and the Tabernacle Choir 

about the true gifts of Christmas.

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Whatcha ma call it! ~~ Benign Deprivation ~~

Sooooo . . .
That's what you call it!

My husband and I have always had this deep and abiding principle
down deep in our hearts
that we've tried to adhere to throughout our years
of child raising

We never could quite put  words to it,
and sometimes we were VERY tempted
to stray . . .

Like when my daughter was graduating from high school
and all the OTHER friends were getting new cars
full rides to college . . .

Like when the boys wanted the lastest and greatest
new gaming systems . . .

Yesterday I learned a NEW principle
the principle of
Benign Deprivation(try saying that 3 times fast:)for the complete principlesee my Wool Gathering sidebar

and I can honestly say that over the years
it's a principle
"that has made all the difference"

there is much to be learned through
hard work and obedience
through
"doing it on their own"

overcoming difficulty at school,
with peers,
financial problems . . .

It's a good thought
to remember . . .

at Christmas time . . .

(I just had to throw some chocolate in there somewhere!)

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My Challenge . . .

To simplify Christmas this year . . .

I'm really going to do it.

I am.

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Slow Down ya Move too Fast . . . Festive Holiday Cookies

"Slow down 
and everything you are chasing 
will come around and catch you"

 -- John de Paola

Winter's here and Christmas

is coming.

I just want to stop for a minute and wait for life to catch up a little bit . . .

(Emmy out on a walk . . .

I thought the photo was so perfect with the accidental capture of the speed limit sign ;)

. . .and remember

the colors just outside my window
last week . . .

 

. . . and the grateful feeling of

Thanksgiving . . .

 (Klein family Thanksgiving - we missed ALL of you who were unable to join us!

This is after the turkey trypophan has kicked in and were all playing a game of Sixes and 

lounging about)

(even Cleo, the dog, is worn out from the events of the day!)

 . . . and the festive holiday cookies I made!

Sooooo yummy!

Pumpkin Pecan Chocolate Chunk Cookies with Maple Brown Sugar Frosting

(that's REALLY what they're called!)

Pumpkin Pecan Chocolate Chunk Cookies

2 1/4 cup self-rising flour
3 tsp pumpkin pie spice
3/4 cup butter, room temperature
1 1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 cup chopped pecans
1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chunks

• Whisk together flour and pumpkin pie spice. Set aside.
• In a large mixing bowl, cream butter.
• Add both sugars and beat until light and fluffy.
• Add vanilla.
• Add eggs one at a time and beat until combined.
• Add flour/spice mixture to sugar mixture in three additions. Alternate with pumpkin in two additions, ending with flour mixture.
• Stir in chopped pecans and chocolate chunks.
• Drop on cookie tray lined with parchment paper.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Makes about four dozen cookies.
• Let cool.

Maple Brown Butter Frosting
3 cups sifted confectioners sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup milk
2 tsp maple flavoring

• Sift sugar and set aside.
• Melt butter over medium heat until golden brown. Watch closely so it does not burn.
• Add butter to sugar, scraping all the butter into the bowl.
• Add milk and maple flavoring. Stir until smooth.

Spread on top of cookies with an knife or offset spatula.

Okay - I'm ready to start unpacking the Christmas stuff! 

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~~~ Happy Thanksgiving ~~~

Ooops!

After jumping ahead to the "12 Days of Christmas" . . .

I have the perfect thing to bring the focus back to Thanksgiving . . .

~~ I'm thankful for a warm home, a loving husband, each of my children, fantastic son & daughters who married into our family, my blackberry!! (otherwise I'd be wandering aimlessly), to have the gospel in my life, the opportunities to serve, that the sun shines most the time, the many things I've learned this past year, electricity (otherwise I'd just be continually in the dark), a job I love, a black perpetual puppy (otherwise I'd have no one to play with . . . .), friends and neighbors who surround me, a warm bath, a good book, and the opportunity to be a grandmommy soon :)

Mostly I'm just  . . . . thankful . . .

WHAT are YOU thankful FOR?

(It's 4:49 minutes that will change your day!)

and finally -

I wish I was this creative!

Click on the Turkey and watch - hee!

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12 Days of Christmas

THIS . . .

just made my day :)

(hope it does something for you too!






BTW - lots of SNOW here in Utah today!

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It all Starts and ends with Family . . .

“Other things may change us, but we start and
end with family.”
–Anthony Brandt

One of my favorite quotes!

So it's not surprising that I was ecstatic to be invited to Dustin and Cami's home
in Raleigh NC for a long weekend!

Not only was it  w.o.n.d.e.r.f.u.l
to visit with them

But the Fall colors were just coming on in Raleigh!

You'll get a glimpse in these photos I managed to capture







Dustin & Cami(after lunch at a cute little Mexican food restaurantin Wake Forest) 


Love this photo!Gonna be my new notecards for this season :) 
This one too!  Can I just take these gorgeous trees back to Utahwith me?? 

I didn't run into any wild animals in the forest,but I did spy this little thing keeping a close eye on me.



Oh wait . . .Do squirrels count as 'wild creatures'?I'm sure people think I'm nuts taking a million photos of all the squirrels . . . 
 Please . . . please . . .pretty please . . . Come back to Utah with me! I promise to feed and take care of you!!  

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Attitude of Gratitude

"Our realization of what is most important in life goes hand in hand with gratitude for our blessings"-- Thomas S. Monson Nov '08

It's in the air . . .

I'm feeling itan "Attitude of Gratitude"

I open my eyes and look around each day and I'm grateful.

For the patter of rain, pouring off the roof and overflowing the gutters
for sunny crisp gold of autumn leaves I see outside each window
for answered prayers
for the warmth of hearth and home
for children with testimonies
a husband who leads
parents who taught
neighbors who care
for a whole month to focus on just being grateful
 . . . and I am . . .


Last year I shared many of our family Thanksgiving favorites.  Check it out to see how our favorites compare to yours.  I always love to discover YOUR tried and true Thanksgiving dishes! I always look forward to the years we host the annual Thanksgiving Feast because I get to plan the menu and love to include all my families favorites.  Since I've been in the Thanksgiving mood this week I couldn't wait until Turkey Day to try out our homemade Orange/Lemon Cranberry Sauce.  My leftover chicken in the fridge was just crying out for it. 

It's easy - you'll love it  . . . Give it a try :)

(and besides - it is gorgeous!)



Lemon - Cranberry Sauce

Ingredients:
1 bag of fresh cranberries
1 lemon - zest and juice
1/2 C. sugar
1/4 t salt
1/2 C. water

Grate zest from lemon, add zest and juice of lemon to a medium pot with the sugar and water.  Heat over medium heat until sugar is disolved.  Add the cranberries, bring to a boil then simmer 30 min or until cranberries split, begin to soften and sauce begins to thicken.

Can be made ahead of time and stored in the fridge.
(You can use either a lemon or and orange - I like either one)

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My Take on the Election . . .

I appreciate the political comments of many of the posts shared my lots of my readers.  I've found them informative, helpful and even very humorous at times.

Still it's unlike me to make a political comment . . .

But I couldn't resist this one :)

"President Barack Obama said yesterday’s midterm congressional elections, in which Republicans won a majority in the U.S. House, was more evidence that the American people are “deeply frustrated” by the pace of the economic recovery."

  YA THINK?

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It's That Time of Year Again!

Don't really want to repeat myself - 

But this kinda says it all :)

Just Get the Shot Already

More "Beckstrom Buzz" available here.

Hee!  Sooo funny I love em all :)

**** FLU UPDATE
The U.S. 2010-2011 seasonal influenza vaccine will protect against an H3N2 virus, an influenza B virus, and the 2009 H1N1 virus that emerged last year to cause the first global pandemic in more than 40 years and resulted in substantial illness, hospitalizations and deaths. Seasonal 2010-11 vaccine has begun shipping from manufacturers and CDC recommends that everyone 6 months and older get a 2010-2011 flu vaccine for the upcoming season as vaccine is available.

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Stuck like Glue . . .

and it's called . . .

soooooo good . . .

I totally feel a new favorite will
be added to the list soon.

See you in about week, meanwhile I'll be 

cuddled up with a good book :)

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'Twas Brillig and the Slithy Toves . . .

did Gyre and Gimble in the wabe:

I'm always reminded of this my favorite poem
(the Jabberwocky - by Lewis Carroll)
as the weather turns to Fall, and one begins to hear the storms a brewin'
outside the window. The strong rustle of the leaves blowing on the trees
as they trickle past the window in a steady flow with the oncoming thoughts of
winter approaching.

The changing of the seasons here in Utah is spectacular with the amazing color
presentation we're surrounded by here in our little mountainous corner. Being surrounded on
three sides by Autumn foliage is an amazing sightand I'm grateful for every day that it lingers . . .
But I hear winter storms a brewin' outside my window . . .
It recalls to mind some of my favorite memories of summerand I have to relive them just one more time . . .



This was a favorite treat from the summer - Pineapple BBQ's on the grill . . .


This summer, Norm and the kids perfected the artof the shish - kabob
Thank you Dustin for the inspiration - it is our new favorite . . .






We all couldn't help but laugh the day the kids took out "Christine"
It totally lends itself to silly antics . . .



One of the last gatherings of summerfamily, friends, sisters, cousinsand dogs . . .




and newlyweds(at least the most recent ones ;)

of summer biking adventures

to Bridal Veil Falls

It's hard to tell whoseholding onto who here . . .(and the other newlyweds)

and finally from us all . . .that currently live here atThe Alpine Klein Bunch
We'll miss you summer . . .

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