Quick Trip to Idaho

A couple of weeks ago we took a few days and went up to Idaho to see how our family in that neck of the woods is doing. We first visited Andy & Saramarie for a few days, where we did a lot of reading from Andy's fine library and napping on their comfy couch. We also managed to get in some quality time cracking walnuts. Every day we went out for a walk along the greenbelt, which in spite of a little cold (could have been a lot worse) was a very pleasant experience. To explain the video, at one point on the trail the geese has left quite a trail of their own all over the place, so Saramarie didn't want to be looking at the camera.

After a few very relaxing days in Boise, we took off for Rexburg to visit Peter & Leigh-Ann. That was just too short a visit, but we crammed as much fun as we could into 48 hours. We started out at the Rexburg Temple, the temple always being a great place to start. Outside it was plenty cold, windy, and a bit snowy - the only snow we saw the whole trip - but we were cozy inside with full sessions all around.

The weather was mostly suited for indoor activities, so after getting something to eat, we hung around the apartment playing their Wii. Pretty fun, I must say. Although I didn't do so well with a real bowling ball (104 in our game with Andy & Saramarie in Boise), on the Wii I did great - 246 as I recall. As pointed out, Wii bowling is a great game for the older set. ;) I didn't fare so well on the boxing circuit, however, getting my plow cleaned pretty handily by my opponent. And cow racing wasn't my strong suit either, although I did okay at table tennis. Altogether, it was a great time!

Sunday we went to Church with Peter & Leigh-Ann, and were treated to some excellent speakers in all the meetings. After Church we had a great little dinner and unfortunately had to hit the road to get Saramarie back to Boise before she turned into a spud, and so we could be on our way early the next day. But we took time to take some pics before leaving.
Thanks to all for making our road trip a real delight!

Thanksgiving Day

We have gotten a bit behind on our blogging of late, but we will try to do better. Yesterday of course was a great day of feeling and giving thanks to God. We had originally planned to take off and spend some time hiking around the redwoods, but changed our plans as we pondered our blessings and decided instead to spend our time trying to bless the lives of others as a manifestation of our gratitude. It is working out just fine.

One of the things we did was spend some time with family on this truly family-oriented day. We spent the morning preparing a sumptious little repast for mom, Steve, James & Sabrina. But in the process of making those preparations, we spent some really great time with each of our favorite people through the magic of webcamming (except for Peter & Leigh-Ann, who we spoke to later in the day). What a joy it was to both see and talk to our family in Boston, Indianapolis, and Boise. Definitely the highlight of the day.

Although we neglected to bring out the camera once the people showed up, we did get a couple of shots of the preparations, shown below. The meal turned out great, thanks to Joanne's hard work, the yam dishes from mom, and the pies (see below). After dinner we sat around and looked at the picture on Joanne's laptop. They presented quite an entertaining time as there are some from a wide variety of times and places - and people. James & I went out and played horseshoes, which turned out quite well as for the most of the time I was winning. However, his ringer late in the game put him up when it counted. We had fun.

Here are a couple of photos of the table and place settings. We used the good china, etc., which went well with the food.
You all know I love to bake. But I have never baked a pie before. Well, I decided to go for it this year and made a Chocolate Pecan Pie (see the Ottley Family recipe book, 2008). It turned out fabulously, if I do say so myself (although I am endebted to Joanne for the crust - I didn't quite have the nerve to do that). Not at all like those Scottish Shortbread cookies I made (but figured out what I did wrong, and can't wait to try again). Obviously, this pie is super simple to make and really does taste good. Next time I think I will put in more pecans and fewer chocolate chips, however.