Decking the Halls

"I can decorate the house for Christmas in two hours flat." That's what I tell everyone, but that doesn't take into account finding the tree and stringing the lights. First step in decking the halls is searching for the perfect tree and a wreath for the door.

We then drag the tree home...

(with a stop to enjoy Herb Flindt's Christmas blow-ups).

Next step is decorating the tree with brass ornaments, photo ornaments, ribbons, and (this year) chocolate balls wrapped in foil. It was like an archeology dig, layered with decorations from the different eras of my life.

And, finally, Dave arranges the outside lights. "Just eight this year," he explained, "because I'm not as religious."

Once we were all decorated, we relaxed and settled into the festive season at the ward party. The theme was "Home for the Holidays," with everyone's huge Christmas decorations (Pam and Wynn Johnsons' life-size reindeer, a giant nutcracker, and a huge lighted Santa). We needed Kyle and Lisa's lighted polar bears, bought in Florida during Christmas 2004! There were Norman Rockwell prints decorating the entryway (not completely installed in this picture)...

ward members' Christmas stockings, quilts, and wreaths strung around the cultural center...

and centerpieces (edifices) from the sisters' collections. I thought of the enormous red reindeer that Grandma Calder erected on her dining room table each year.

Holly Young showed a video of ward families celebrating Christmas, and "I'll Be Home for Christmas" played on the boom box. Robin Kimball and Bill were the Big Bosses, and Dave and I were delighted, this year, to just be sub-bosses.

My 91-year-old friend, Dorothy Spackman (who used to date Uncle Roley) told stories of her early Christmases during the 1920s.

Dave got to be an elf. He helped Kim Wilson, as Santa, hand out goodies.

One amazing thing about Mormon ward parties is the split-second clean-up as soon as the party ends!

Russ McSweeney is the master of both the "putting up" and "taking down."

Off the Grid

Sometimes Dave and I just want to get away. The perfect retreat in early December is our cabin in the Uintahs. When we arrived on Saturday, December 2, 2011, the road to the cabin was blocked off and lightly covered with snow. We rode in on our snowmobile past one vacant cabin after another.

We got right to work. Our job was to clean and organize our new furnishings, including bunk beds upstairs.

and tile floor downstairs.

We also installed some new items, such as cushions for the upstairs rocking chair...

seat cushions for the upstairs chairs and a tablecloth for the game table...

new mirrors...

new curtains over the living room couch...

new fabric inserts in the kitchen cabinets...

and even a new curtain to hide the shelf of cleaning products in the bathroom.

We are now ready for visitors! After the work was done, there was time to make a fire, bundle up, watch some movies, and relax.

There were different shades of light outside--blue and gray and almost purple.

On Sunday morning, we dragged our belongings out to the road where the snowmobile was waiting...and headed home.

Lincoln, the Turkey Trot, and a Tuareg Rock Band--Thanksgiving Weekend in Chicago

The turkey was incidental. Dave, Michael, and I visited Chicago over Thanksgiving to see Jonny and Jenny and to have an adventure. We did both. Thursday morning, we got on our racing gear and headed for Lincoln Park for the Turkey Trot.

Some contestants dressed for the Turkey Trot more elaborately than we did.

Jonny and Dave ran, while Jenny and I walked. When it was all over, we ate bananas, drank Gatorade, and enjoyed the ambience of the race.

David and Jonny changed from their wet running clothes and treated us to a bit of skin.

On our way back to the car, we toured a favorite haunt, the Lincoln Park Zoo cat house. Only a few of the cats were up and about. The rest lay like fur rugs about their cages. Michael forgot to bring his running shoes, so we found him also snoozing, like a sleepy tiger, on Jonny's and Jenny's couch when we got home.

Jenny's friend and visiting teachee, Kim Hopkins, invited us to Thanksgiving dinner at her South Side Chicago home.

She also invited the missionaries...

and her family, including her beautiful niece and grandniece.

We loved the traditional turkey and dressing, but also special touches--macaroni and cheese, mixed greens simmered in ham broth, and homemade mincemeat pie.

We were touched by Kim's generosity.

We ate breakfast on Friday morning at Valois.

"This is where the neighborhood comes," Jenny said, gesturing around at the crowd of University of Chicago students and staff, mixed with residents of Hyde Park and the South Side.

A poster of President Obama's favorite Valois specialties was taped up near the cafeteria line, and I found an online photo of President Obama visiting Valois.

We then visited two beloved places--the Bean sculpture in Millennial Park and the Art Institute of Chicago.

The special exhibit at the Art Institute was photographs from the Thomas Sullivan surveys of the West during the 1870s.

There were many photographs of Utah sites, including lakes in the High Uintahs (Mirror Lake?) and Cottonwood Canyon.

We also enjoyed the interactive works of an artist who piled candies in a corner (we took some) and draped gold beads in a curtain for museum patrons to walk through.

I enjoy modern art more when I'm experiencing it with my children and grandchildren. They relate to it as enthusiastically as I do to classic works by Rembrandt or Corot, two of my favorites. Dave, Jonny, and I posed in front of a mirror that included us in the artist's "painting."

Jonny showed us the sculpture Jono Ebert had picked as a favorite when Jonny and Jenny had visited the Art Institute with Camille and her family. We scratched our heads.

The gorgeous skyline of Chicago was right outside the windows.

We love Chicago's diverse neighborhoods. We drove along Michigan Avenue and noticed a policeman on horseback chatting with a group of shoppers.

We continued to Wrigleyville, where we passsed Wrigley Field, home of the Chicago Cubs, and stopped at Wiggly Field.

That is a dog park where we met delightful new friends.

We drove on to Southport, where we wandered through quaint shops. At Candyville, we chose baggies of old-fashioned candies like Bazooka bubble gum, gummi worms, and, yes, that chicken-shaped marshmallow confection, Peeps.

We were back at Jenny and Jonny's apartment in time for the University of Utah football game. Jenny, who is at the top of her nurse practitioner class, got in a little studying as the game wound on.

Jonny introduced us to Big Star, a fabulous Mexican restaurant. Dave and I tried a flavorful fish stew similar to cioppino, but with Mexican spices.

Jenny tried a churro.

Jonny tried the soft vanilla ice cream with salted caramel sauce. He accepted our praises for his topnotch picks of Chicago's many excellent restaurants.

We then attended a truly exotic performance of the Tuareg rock band, Tinariwen, at the Metro.

Dave has read book after book about Abraham Lincoln. On Saturday, Jonny, Jenny, Mike, Dave, and I drove to Springfield, Illinois, a 2 1/2 hour drive southeast of Chicago, to see Lincoln's presidential library, home, and tomb. Lincoln lived in Springfield for 25 years, working as a lawyer, before being elected President of the United States. The library/museum was a delight. It was filled with films about Lincoln, artifacts from his life and times, and interactive experiences that helped us to understand Lincoln's challenges. For instance, we walked through a tunnel in which we heard the critical things people said about Lincoln when he came to Washington. There were also lifelike statues of young Abe...

Lincoln's family...

Civil War Union officers...

abolitionist Frederick Douglas...

and Lincoln's murderer, John Wilkes Booth.

The museum shop had some serious books, and some fun toys, too, such as this green yo-yo

Lincoln's tomb was grandiose. It had a turbulent history, including counterfeiters trying to steal Lincoln's body during the 1870s.

By contrast, his home was no mansion, although ample for a properous lawyer and tastefully decorated by Victorian standards (black horsehair sofas, red and green and blue patterned carpet). "Through visiting Springfield, I could better understand who Lincoln was as a man," Michael said.

On Saturday night, we ate barbecue at Smoque, back in Chicago.

Jenny went back to work on Sunday, so Dave, Mike, Jonny, and I went alone to Church. I was amazed at how good we all looked. I was particularly impressed with Michael's spiffy white shirt, since he travels with one carry-on backpack, stuffed so full it weighs as much as a black hole!

After Church, we ate brunch at Bonga. The pumpkin pancakes with vanilla sauce were the best!

We also relaxed by wandering through the Garfield Conservatory. "We haven't had enough nature during this trip," Jonny sighed. Michael, who traveled to Morocco several years ago, especially enjoyed the Moroccan fountain.

We'd had a lot of everything, I decided, as we reluctantly arrived at O'Hara Airport for our flight home. I love Chicago!