Chinese Lantern Festival at the Allans

As mentioned in today's post for countdown to love, today is Chinese Lantern Festival. I thought it would be fun if we did a little lanterning for Family Home Evening. After a lesson about how Jesus Christ is the Light of the world and how we are supposed to be a light too, we did a lil crafting.

Gwen went to town with her new Fancy Nancy stickers (thanks Mama and Papa! She loves em!)

and Eric turned his into a puzzle-math-quandary. I love seeing how this man's brain works. I was perfectly content with the average lantern, but not Eric. He wanted to do something challenging.

the idea is for a spiral lantern...

you'll see how it turned out in a minute...

Gwen wanted to see the candles

and then when she realized I was taking pictures of her, she started posing... lol!...

the lantern lineup

with candles

my favorite: Eric's 'spiral' masterpiece! LOL!!!!

(I should add that the prettiest one, featured at the top, was also one of Eric's creations. But this one is still my favorite)

Caroline just wanted to play with the lanterns

what I mean is, she wanted to eat them. Surprise, surprise.

Happy Lantern Day!

#9 Exploring International Cuisines

I LOVE delving in to international cuisines because food can be such a beautiful window to culture.

This has been a great weekend for international flair. Friday was Japanese Setsubun, a festival celebrating the halfway point between winter and spring. My great friend, who knows a thing or two about Japanese traditions, hosted a fabulous lil get together. Since the girls were sick, Eric held down the fort and I represented the Allans (and our elk-antelope steak teriyaki, which was delish!). They got a plate of awesome food, which is Eric's favorite part anyway, but they missed out on the other fun activities.

Like eating an entire roll of sushi without stopping for good luck (I succeeded, in case you wondered)

the best part was being the demon, getting candy and peanuts thrown at me, and being chased outside. I had a blast!

Today (Monday) was also Chinese Lantern Festival, so we had a need for another chopstick meal. Can I just tell you that Gwen is pretty good at this? I was really impressed!

There is just something about exotic food that transports me: like a vacation. Only I never leave my house and I save a ton of money and I get to have fun in the kitchen.

I am in love.

ps. at Heather's suggestion, I've gone back and added the recipe for the garlic-butternut soup. so take another look if you'd like.

#10 Honest Compliments

What I mean by honest is, I don't want obligatory compliments. But when someone acknowledges something good just because they SAW it and thought it worth mentioning, well. That makes me feel like a million bucks.

I had several people comment on my weightloss

(which is a blessed boon for those days when I am tired of the work and want to take the easy route)

and others comment on my cupcakes

(the only reason that is significant is because I literally told Eric the night before that they were ugly, I felt so bad, and I was embarrassed to bring them to the baby shower... I'll admit it seems so silly now)

thank you for your sincere compliments, because you know,

they really just make me feel like I could do anything.

And who doesn't love THAT feeling?

#11 Lil Girls Playing Together

I LOVE when my girls make happy noises, whether it be Gwen's made up songs in a sweet airy soprano or Caroline's shrieks and giggles. I have beautiful children. They are sisters, for sure, with all that that entails: they get on each other's nerves, try to take each other's stuff, sometimes maybe even hurt each other (Caroline scratches and pulls hair, Gwen is consistently unaware of things that Caroline is holding on to to support her standing position)... but it is clear that they love each other too.Take a close look at this series of photos above. Notice Gwen starts off with the spoon, Caroline licks her lips with a plaintive expression, Gwen feeds her some, and then Caroline give a big ole grin for the camera. So funny!

Nothing makes me feel warm and content like watching them enjoy each other's company.

I am so in love with my girls.

#12 Everything Checked Off on the To-Do List

I LOVE it when the to-do list gets completed! Early enough in the day to enjoy the afternoon and evening without any guilt about things I should be doing instead... it just feels awesome! Today was one of those days (paper mailed off, bills paid, laundry done, dishes done, exercise done, scripture study done, dinner done, cupcakes done...EVERYTHING done!!!) when it all came together. And that basically just means that I can feel peaceful and free. and that, my friends, is something I love.

#13 Soup in Winter

#13 I love soup on a cold day.

Perfect because it is warm and comforting, makes the entire house smell delicious, and fills you up.

ps. not my pic, just one I got off the internet. Basically what it looked like, though. Enjoy!

My current faves are pureed veggie soups, mostly because they are super healthy and filling without extra calories. They help me feel satisfied and confident that my 'indulgence' isn't going to destroy my goal. If anything, it will help it. Since we got back from vaca, I've instituted Wednesday night as soup night. We've had some awesome ones and more awesome ones scheduled... but the best was our soup last night:

Roasted Garlic and Butternut Squash

(from Soups, Starters, and Salads edited by Felicity Forster)

serves 4-5

• 2 garlic bulbs, outer papery skin removed
• 5 T olive oil (I used 2 and it was still awesome!)
• a few thyme sprigs
• 1 large butternut squash, halved and seeded
• 2 onions, chopped
• 1t ground coriander
• 2 pints/5 C chicken stock
• 1-2 T fresh oregano (or t if using dried)
• salt and ground black pepper

1. preheat oven to 425
2. place garlic bulbs on a piece of foil and pour over half the olive oil. add the thyme sprigs, fold foil around garlic so enclosed completely.
3. place foil parcel on a baking sheet with the butternut squash and brush squash with the a T olive oil.
4. roast the veggies for 25 minutes. reduce temp to 375 and cook 20-25 min more, or until the squash is tender.
5. heat remaining oil in a pan, cook the onions and ground coriander gently for about 10 min, until softened.
6. squeeze roasted garlic out of its papery skin into the onions and scoop the squash out of its skin, adding it to the pan. add the stock, 1 t salt and plenty of black pepper. Bring to a boil and simmer gently for 10 minutes.
7. stir in the oregano, cool soup slightly, then puree in food processor or blender.
8. reheat the soup without allowing it to boil. serve in bowls with salsa and oregano garnish if desired (but we didn't and I didn't miss them. the soup is plenty flavorful by itself!)

a smooth, creamy soup (without cream-- just the great creamy texture of veggies), the deep, nutty flavor of roasted garlic, the sweet subtlety of butternut squash-- absolutely amazing! Caroline thougth this was the best dinner ever!

I am in love!

Countdown to Love

Inspired by a friend's blog, I'm going to share a lil somethin somethin that I love every day leading up to Valentine's Day. I am not going to limit this to 'romantic' love alone, though I'm sure there will be some of that too. And to keep the scope narrow, I'm going to shoot for things

relevant to my day, not just something I adore in general.

#14 I love Chinese ink landscapes and nature paintings

I love the composition, the beautiful forms, the skilled portrayal of nature, and especially the provocative use of negative space. Gorgeous.

The current section of my class right now is on Chinese art... and even though I am positive I will not be able to remember names and dates of even the most famous Chinese artists (despite having to write a paper... due in 2 days, I might add), I am truly inspired. I've got some great ideas for my own versions of Chinese-inspired paintings that I want to do. Something with color, but still muted and subtle. Not quite as bold as this:

but with that same gorgeous use of line and silhouette.

For those of you artistically minded who might care: I'm planning a triptych of square paintings that together depict an entire plum blossom branch. I'll paint in oil for more texture and depth, but try to capture those gorgeous lines and perfect composition. My future dining room will thank me, I'm sure.

I am in love.