Fondue Failures

So, I finally tried my hand at fondue. About 3 years ago Kannon suggested we make fondue on Christmas Eve as a new family tradition. I never got around to doing it then and wanted to make it for New Years Eve this year - but we were all sick. So I decided to make it work for Valentine's Day. I hadn't been feeling well and when it came time to make dinner I really didn't want to. That probably had an affect on the whole family. When we sat down to eat my negative attitude continued - I didn't know how to feed it to our 1 1/2 year-old - the fondue was burning (too much heat, I guess) or hardening (I'd take it off the heat and then put it back on). Sarah choked on the broccoli and Benjamin didn't like the "cheese stuff". So they were just eating bread and li'l smokies. What a nutritious dinner, huh? Kannon just ate and never said anything, so I automatically decided he didn't like it either (a continuation of my bad attitude). I was also going to make chocolate fondue for dessert, but I didn't feel well enough to eat it so we didn't have it then. (I'd been feeling fluish all day - I feel a little better the next day and then I was fine after that.) So, we had friends over Monday night and I was going to do the chocolate then. But....I just felt like it was a hassle. I knew we'd have the same children problem - how do you feed under-4's fondue without a huge mess? And I hadn't ironed out the heating problem. So, I just took the pound cake and sliced it. Put sliced strawberries on top of that with whip cream. I tried to melt the chocolate to drizzle over the top and totally burned it. But, no one complained and for the most part tasted good. I might need some pointers if I'm ever going to try again. Or maybe we'll have to save that tradition for when the kids are older. For now I'll stick to what I know works!

Janet and Levi!

I keep thinking about what I should write in my blog - but keep procrastinating the actual doing of it. My sister and her husband have officially moved to Fallon. We've enjoyed having them stop by and play. On Saturday we helped them empty their final load into storage and had hotdogs with them for lunch. They brought "sequence" (a game) over on Sunday night and we enjoyed playing with them. They won 2 out of 3 - but in our defense (it's a team game, Kannon and I played against them) we had never played before. For Family Home Evening on Monday we had them and our (and their) friends Matt and Kiersten over. We had a lesson on attitude and played "poor pussy". And enjoyed some dessert and visiting afterward. It's so exciting to me to have more family so close. My youngest sister and her husband say they're moving back to the area, too. FAMILY. That's what it's all about!

-knots-

It's been a week since I drove over the Donner Pass to help my sister move and my shoulders haven't relaxed yet. Going over wasn't too bad. I was just nervous that they wouldn't let me through - they were requiring chains, but let the 4-wheel drive through. Coming home was so much more stress. I was trying to get back in time for a funeral Saturday morning so I left at about 7 am. 30 miles into the drive it started snowing and traffic completely stopped for over an hour. They let me through again, but it was very slow going. The tires on the burb aren't that great and I felt like I was sliding around the whole time. I stopped in Reno, after 5 1/2 hours on the road, for a little break before heading home. Since the kids were asleep (Kannon did a great job taking care of them and the house for a whole day!) I took a nap. When I woke up my body ached and hasn't stopped since. Kannon is really great about rubbing my feet and shoulders. He lost a bet with me last night and so I got a nice 10-minute massage. I bet him that Ben would through a fit when I told him time was up on the nintendo. He wanted a 20-minute bet and I broke him down to 10. In retrospect I should have gone with the 20. I was pretty sure I'd be right.
So, I started a new deal with myself today. I am starting a food log, which I know will help me. If I eat anything that I know is just too much I am going to pay change into a jar - out of my own spending money. For example: This morning I had oatmeal for breakfast, popcorn and a clementine for a snack and was still craving something sweet. So I ate 1 hershey kiss. I still wanted more. I ended up eating 2 spoonfuls of cake mix (dry). So for me the kiss was okay, the cake mix over the top - I will put in 2 quarters for that. I know that is enough of a deterrant for me, I like my spending money. Each time I think about getting something to eat I think about if it's worth the money. It's going pretty well so far. But then, I'm only halfway through the first day!