wonderful weekend

It started with Creative Friday. Jill came over, and as soon as she walked in the door, Eva exclaimed "I want a treat!" -- what? Apparently now that Whitney is in school, Eva has seamlessly taken over her position as official treat-monger. (Sure enough, Jill had brought a bag of m&ms -- that Eva's no dummy.)

Jill helped me hang up some things in my studio, then we chatted, we ate my grandma's enchiladas for lunch (comfort food from my childhood), we watched the American Idol results show, we brainstormed ideas for her Etsy banner. Jill indulged me by letting me work on her apron in front of her again. I know it's not exactly kosher to work on a gift in front of the recipient, but I so wanted to finish it and give it back to her. Success!


When she left, she gave me the copy of Becoming Jane that she had gotten from Netflix, as it was my last night before Marc returned. (It's really best not to watch these movies with your husband, at least in my book!)
She even brought me some Homestyle microwave popcorn (the best kind!), along with instructions to relax, toss some m&ms in, and enjoy the movie. I followed her instructions exactly.

I'm telling you, that Jill's a gem, and she's proven it a hundred times over.

On Saturday, Marc's parents came to take the boys on a grandparents date, and here's the kicker: they took Eva too! It was such an unexpected treat. They took them to lunch at The Brick Oven, then bowling, and finally ice cream at the Creamery. I had nearly five hours to myself! I could hardly believe my good fortune.

I worked on cleaning/organizing my studio the entire time they were gone, and I made some great progress. (I'll post pictures when I'm finished.) I got to a point where I just wanted to give up and go lie down and read instead. But that had happened before, and I knew that if I pushed through the pain, it would be worth it, and of course it was. I'm so excited about this project! Now that I'm getting close to finishing, I'm realizing that I was previously so overwhelmed, I must not have truly thought I would ever get it done.

On Saturday night, the boys and I made popcorn and watched some of Planet Earth (Marc's dad just sent us the DVDs.) I had only seen snippets of it before, and I am amazed by how compelling it is. Just as the boys were going off to bed, Marc got home from his trip to D.C.

Yesterday I felt like my emotions were very close to the surface, as it was our last week of church with our ward intact. (Next week we find out what all the changes will be.) Every prayer, every talk mentioned what everyone was feeling: how grateful and blessed we feel to have been a part of this loving, united congregation. As one woman put it, "Change is often very good, and we'll probably look back on this in 3 years and know it was a good thing, but right now I just feel sick to my stomach." Yes! That's it exactly. The primary children all had a huge group hug and sang I Am a Child of God to their leaders, and there weren't many dry eyes.

Because Marc was home and it was Oscar night, I decided I needed to make a fabulous dinner. (When I make those decisions, I always forget that it involves spending hours in the kitchen.)

Limpa rye bread (a little rye, a little molasses), fresh out of the oven. Probably my favorite kind.

A new soup I tried (Sweet Potato Corn Chowder), recipe here. It's not for the faint-hearted, but man was it good.

I also tried a new chocolate pie, from Pioneer Woman. Oh, baby! It was so rich, Marc couldn't even finish a piece, and he is the most confirmed chocoholic I know.

The kids were anxious to try making chocolate curls.

pie crust cookies -- do they hold the same fond childhood memories for everyone?

So, as weekends go, I'd say this one was just about perfect!