The Meandering Thoughts of Jan

I hope you all had a very happy Thanksgiving.  We sure did.  We gathered with my family at my parents' house and enjoyed the most delicious meal.  We had the Thanksgiving staples: turkey, stuffing, potatoes, sweet potatoes rolls and pies, oh glorious pies.  My sister-in-law Katie made 6 pies for the whole family.  It was amazing.  I'm making myself rather hungry just thinking about it. Anyway, after the dishes were done and food was put away, I had a crafty evening with my sister Noelle and my Mom.  This is really simple craft and it turned out so cute!  We got the idea from this blog , which has all the needed instructions. Creative juices flowing. Mom, Me and Noelle! The finished product...Sock Snowmen!  Two things I love about this craft: 1:  It involves fabric but no sewing!!  2:  These are filled with rice, making them an emergency food storage option, just sayin...

I have a lot on my mind right now.  I have for the past few days.  I'm not sure how to verbalize my thoughts, to be honest.  Just last week in my last post I was praising the ways of introversion.  My friend Talena and I often joke about our dream of being hermits and living in Bamburgh Castle (we stayed there on our trip to England) , taking walks on the beach, wandering among the rolling green hills and occasionally having interaction with society.  (Don't worry, Danny is invited to be part of this dream.  I think he would be happy as long as he could bring his guitar.)  This dream sounds even more appealing since this past week I received a calling in my church congregation that is already stretching me in many ways.  Being outgoing is needed, teaching and speaking is required and it seems to be a whole lot of busy.  Don't get me wrong, I am excited.  I felt a little giddy when I was asked to fulfill this new role, sin...

#1  I really shouldn't number these, since I don't really love one more than the other, I just like order.  You could say I'm a bit of a proponent for introverts, since I am one.  I remember I took a personality test (Myers-Briggs) in my AP psychology class in high school and I was honestly shocked when I found out I was in the introversion category by a large degree.  This probably came by no surprise to my parents, since all during my youth I treasured my alone time.  However, to my teenage self I think I bought into the idea that the ideal characteristics, especially as a teen girl, were being bubbly, outgoing and fun-loving.  So I was determined to change.  There's nothing wrong in teaching myself to be more outgoing, the mission sure did that for me.  However, I don't think it is wise to try to change one's personality.  Luckily in my years since high school I have gained some wisdom and I'm much more comfortable in my int...

Halloween Halloween Festival at my sister-in-law, Mary's work.  We went with her and her family. Danny as a newsie and me as a witch. I know I've already shown one picture on this blog of my striped socks, but really, they were the best part of my costume. Painting pumpkins with J-Man and Lady Lu. Trick-or-Treating with Mark and JanaRae's kids.  Halloween is so much more fun when you have cute nephews around. Baby D as a monkey.  Doesn't your heart just melt at the sight of this picture.  Mine sure does. The kiddos all dressed up and ready to go. B. Anu showing off his Halloween goods. Bonfire Night English chocolate, mmmm A Fire = Celebration!  PS Making s'mores over the fire is a very American thing to do.  I never saw the British do this on Bonfire night, but I like bringing cultures together. Jared and Noelle came and celebrated with us, yay! Elections Day I don't know if I can count Elections Day as a hol...

I've had my little semi-intelligent phone for work for awhile now, but Danny was the one who talked me into joining Instagram.  I thought, do I really need to be part of another social network?  But what I can I say, sharing pictures with cool filters is pretty fun.  Here are some of my pictures documenting this past month of October. October 1:  In the midst of sister craft night with Noelle. October 1:  Noelle made us an apple pie!  Danny was in heaven. October 7:  Playing tea party with my niece Lady L. October 8:  Day with Talena up in Park City.  We played the pianos on the sidewalk. October 8:  From Talena and my walk around Park City Canyons Resort. October 10:  My half birthday present from Danny :) October 12:  Date night with Danny to the Dollar theater.  The popcorn cost more than my ticket.  We saw "The Amazing Spiderman".   It was pretty good for a comic book movie. Oc...