Thanksgiving with the Jared Cutlers

So, I know that it took me a little while to get this set up, but I couldn't figure out how to do a slide show. I had to get on to Erica's blog to find out how. Thanks Erica! Anyway, Thanksgiving was great. Chris and I drove up to their house on Thursday morning and took our first look at baby Angela. Wow, Jared's kids are cute! We had such a good time playing with Darion, Drizzten, Dominic, and Angela or "The Babies" as they'll always be known, just as Jason Joseph and Jordan will always be known as "the boys". Idella was on top of things with some great Thanksgiving food, including rolls just like mom makes them. Chris and I were also able to go to a sports stake house to watch the Utah BYU football game (so sad, those crazy Utes). The stake house had individual tvs for each table, so we didn't have to bother the other customers with our game. Notice that I wasn't in any of those pictures. I wish I could say that I was behind the camera most of the time, but I only took a few of the pictures. Drizzten and Darion got a hold of the camera and went crazy. I guess they don't think I'm pretty because they didn't take any pictures of me.

I Like A Good Short Story

I recently finished reading a collection of short stories by F. Scott Fitzgerald called Flappers and Philosophers and I found that I really enjoyed it. I find that the more I read short stories, the more I like the format. You can sit down and read one in an hour or less, and feel like you’ve gotten somewhere and usually there isn’t a lot of superfluous writing put in for filling. If it’s going to be a short story, it usually has to be concise and full of action or ideas to work. Chris and I were talking about this the other day, and he likes the short story format as well.
As for Flappers and Philosophers, I really enjoyed these stories. I’ve read a few Fitzgerald books, and found that most of them are rather melancholy, and they don’t usually end very well for the characters. Flappers and Philosophers, however, has a few happy endings. I love a good happy ending. I love knowing that people can end up as happy as I am. I know that not everything ends happy and there are wonderful books that must end tragically, and they do so in a way that leaves you thinking “wow” after you’ve finished reading them, and that’s great. But I love reading about people who get their true love in the end, or strike it rich and do wise things with the money, or are able to save lives. I think that all of my romance has been sunk into books that I’ve read because in my real life, I have never been one who likes someone to put on a show for me. However, in books, I like the flamboyant and sometimes over the top declarations of love and romantic gestures and the very very contrived coincidences. Flappers and Philosophers has a few of those and of course those things are written from Fitzgerald’s unique point of view during an interesting time period. Also, there is a story that has the element of revenge, but is just so funny because it involves cutting off some braids and flinging them at someone’s door. Anyway, this post is already too long, so read the book. It’s good.

If We Were Any More Antisocial, We'd Be Invisible!

A few weeks ago, Chris and I had another couple over to our place for dinner, and it was the first time in months that anyone other than ourselves and our home teacher and visiting teacher had stepped foot in our apartment! I know that this is my fault. As the wife, I should be outgoing and forthcoming with dinner invitations to all of our couple friends and that our aparment should ring with the sound of friendly voices. However, I am not an outgoing person. All of my family members reading this are now scratching their heads in confusion because of course I'm loud and obnoxious when I'm around them. However, out here in DC, I'm quiet and reserved and keep my thoughts to myself most of the time. This makes it a little hard to extend invitations to our friends for dinner and a good time. I think that part of the problem is that I don't really like extending invitations to dinner. They feel too formal and that sort of makes people feel like they have to be a little more formal when they come over to dinner. I like a good pop in. It's nice to have people just come over to your house to see what you are up to and maybe share some cookies and chat and that sort of thing, but it's hard when you live in a building where you have buzz people in. Also, most of our friends live rather far away and have kids, so spontanaity is a little bit harder. That's okay, though. We just seem a little more rude for never having anyone over. I guess until we move or decide to be a little more social, our aparment will remain our inviolate tower. Hmm...I wonder if that's what we should call it(the apartment). The Inviolate Tower. That has a nice ring to it.

My Man

I'm so lucky to have Chris. He is literally the only person in the world who could put up with me for as long as he has and he doesn't even seemed fazed! I've been pretty sick for the last week and and a half and Chris was so helpful and so kind to me the whole time. He went out and bought me four different kinds of medicine because he didn't know which kind I would like. One day after class, he stopped and bought me some soup. He did all the work around the house while I slept or lay on the couch watching tv. He tought our sunbeams all by himself (which is no small feat) last Sunday when I was too sick to go. And he did innumerable other small things for me that made me feel loved and not completely useless as I did feel. Those of you who know me know that I almost never get sick and am quite unpleasent to be around, but Chris was completely patient with me, even through a minor breakdown. I already knew that I was the luckiest girl in the world to have Chris, and now I'm a little scared because I know that he could do a lot better. I love you Chris.