Pepper

I had mini-peppers for lunch today. Hopefully, you've seen them in the grocery store. They are both convenient and tasty.  While eating them, I remembered my very first "pepper" experience. My parents (probably mostly just my dad) don't like peppers. When I was about 14 years old, my church group went to a big buffet place, I think it was called "Chuck-a-Rama" and believe me, my teenage friends had all kinds of names for that place. Anyway, when I went through one of the lines, I saw a green pepper on display. I took it and took a bite out of it (not sure if I took a bite while still walking through the line -- let's just hope I didn't). My good friend Kim, couldn't stop laughing at me eating that pepper. She told me it was for decoration and not for eating whole. I've always liked peppers, so I'm thankful for my odd introduction. :-)

Where's Baby Jesus

This could be in one of those magazines or book of story compilations at Christmastime, but here goes:

A few years ago, I bought my first nativity set, a fairly child-proof resin-made grouping of the familiar pieces. I guess when the company said, "child-proof", they weren't considering hard-wood floors but that is for another day :-).

My little girls have loved playing with the nativity (as I hoped they would) and it came as no suprise to find pieces missing. I looked and looked. Baby Jesus was missing as well as a three-legged, one-eared lamb (thank the hardwood floors and excitable children).

Since this is my "happy" blog, I might as well mention another decoration that makes me very happy, that is my wooden beads that you can see in the top of the picture. I love them.

I had just about given up hope when I was packing up some other things. Wouldn't you know it, Baby Jesus was hidden in a candy dish.

This is where you come up with your own ending or moral to the story. Something like, "don't let the real reason for the season get hidden in the candy dish."

I found Winter

It is January.

You'd never know it though, I barely need my jacket during the day. So, some friends and I found winter. We had to go way up on the mountaintop, but we found it. The snow was gorgeous. The scenery breathtaking. Ahhh, I love skiing (cross-country, of course; downhill is fun too, but for me, for now x-country is the way to go).

Of course, I didn't take any pictures. But, I will post some pictures of me in the past since I ALWAYS wear the exact same thing when I ski. And, skiing ALWAYS makes me happy. My husband proposed to me while cross-country skiing at Mesa Falls, near Yellowstone. I wonder if I can scan a quick picture of that blessed day :-).

I didn't go with my little boy today (this was taken years ago) and there was definitely snow on the ground everywhere this time.

Also taken forever ago - but this picture really makes me smile

Chocolate + M&Ms = Happy

Nothing makes a Sunday better than a good treat.

 In fact, once both girls had "earned"

this yummy treat, I heard the older explain to the younger, "I told Mom that when I am a grown-up, she has got to give me this recipe." This was then followed by, "Chocolate and M&Ms make a good cookie."

What a goof!

Spontaneous funny is always the best kind. My husband has been shopping too much these past few weeks and must have come across some costumes. He found a little kit with about 5 mustaches in it.

The first morning he came out with a mustache that was believeable (in the grossest way). It was the same color as his skin, so at first I saw it and wondered how in the world he was able to grow a mustache so thick, so fast. It disturbed me. I figured he'd shaved it that way on purpose. Then, when he tried to kiss me, I wanted to gag at the thought of all that hair. It was a very thick mustache.

My girls' reactions were so funny. They kept running around him, studying him and asking him about his mustache. The next day he put one on that had a curl on each end. We were all laughing about that one (and it wasn't so bad to be kissed by a thin mustache).

Good laughs for sure and I am glad I didn't marry a mustached man for reals. Not that having a mustache is bad . . .