An Unfortunate Experience at Village Inn

After checking in to our hotel, Nathan and I walked across the parking lot to Village Inn. It was after 8 pm and we were hungry and tired from traveling all day. The restaurant was nearly deserted yet the hostess sat us in the booth between the only other occupied tables in the restaurant. We had a clear view of the kitchen.

Before long I understood why we had been seated there. In the booth next to us sat two men and a toddler. Our waitress was the toddler's baby mama and our seating location allowed for convenient visits with her family.

I watched as our waitress wrote our order on a pad of paper. After a stop at the next booth, she headed to the kitchen and sent the slip of paper around to the cook. Then, she headed back to her family's table.

I watched as our waitress, clutching a pack of cigarettes, asked her husband to take a cigarette break with her. Her husband handed the toddler to the other man in the booth and he headed out the front door with her.

I watched as the second man struggled to keep the toddler from knocking over his coffee, from crawling across the table, from playing with the creamer, from banging the spoon, all while repeatedly sending and receiving text messages.

I watched as the waitress and her husband returned. She headed for the kitchen and her husband came back to the table.

And that's when it happened.

I watched as the waitress, using what I can only assume were the same hands that were just gripping a stinky, dirty, nasty cigarette, peeled back the bun on a chicken sandwich, leaned across and hollered to the cook, "Can I get some avacado on this?"

A minute later, I watched as the waitress dropped a plate in front of me, and I carefully peered at the bun. My worst fears were confirmed by the sight of a slight finger indentation right there in the bread.

I looked across at that cute toddler giggling in the next booth and sighed.

So much for stiffing her on the tip.

Future Blogger?

Quote of the Day

Zach (carefully ranking his family members): "Lindsay is my favorite person. You are my second favorite. Bonya is third, Papa is fourth. Nathan is my fifth favorite person and Uncle Nate is.... ninth!"

The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo

A beautiful china rabbit by the name of Edward Tulane was once owned by a 10-year-old girl named Abilene. Abilene loved Edward very much. However, Edward didn't love anybody but Edward. Then, one day Abilene loses Edward and his life is changed forever.

As Edward's journey takes him from one owner to the next, he learns what it means to be lost and to lose, to be sacrificed and to sacrifice, to be loved and, finally, to love.

Nathan needed a little time alone in the mall just before Christmas so I entertained myself in Borders while I waited for him to finish his shopping. I had read some great reviews of this book so I picked it up and turned to the first page. I was almost halfway through the book when I realized I needed to go. I couldn't help myself. Really. I had to finish the book... so I got in line, paid for it and took it with me. I finished the book later that night.

It is such a wonderful children's book! The whimsical idea of an arrogant china rabbit finding out what it means to love is interwoven with the serious melancholy of Edward's loneliness and longing for home. It's clear message unpretentiously teaches readers that love is boundless and painful, and it's the only thing worth having in this world.

Downtown Boise

Quote of the Day

Nathan and I went to lunch with my dad, mom, and nephew Zach. My dad suggested that we go to a movie later in the afternoon and Zach piped up...

"I have a movie we can watch!" he exclaimed. "It's Scooby-Dooby-Doo Zombie Island!"

It snowed all day again yesterday.

The Most Important Year in a Man's/Woman's Life by Robert & Bobbie Wolgemuth & Mark & Susan DeVries

Nathan and I have long enjoyed reading books together. We have compiled a decent list (see sidebar) of the books we have completed and we finished another one on our long car ride to Boise last Sunday.

We received The Most Important Year in a Man's/Woman's Life as a wedding present from Nathan's college friends, Cass and Sarah, and, in case you were wondering, the most important year in a man or woman's life is the first year of marriage. One half of this book is devoted to the man's perspective during the first year of marriage and the other was written from the woman's perspective. The book is designed to be read at the same time as your spouse (though not necessarily together like we did). After each partner reads the chapters, there are questions to contemplate and a "Crossing Over" activity that is meant to bring you together with your loved one to talk.

While I don't necessarily agree that the single most important year in a man or woman's life is the first year of marriage (I guess it would depend on what else happens in a person's life), I do think the first year has the potential to set the stage for the rest of the marriage and this book might help a couple learn about one another and give them strategies to deal with the unique challenges that can emerge in a committed lifelong relationship. There are chapters in this book that are devoted to families of origin, relational roles, conflict, money, sex, in-laws, communication and probably anything else you can think of that will come up in a marriage relationship. If used as it was designed, this book will help its readers think about some issues that are specific to marriage and hopefully open doors of communication with a spouse. There was a lot of information in this book that was interesting and valuable and it certainly initiated some lively conversations between Nathan and me!

There were two activities that the book recommended its readers participate in that I thought were of special value: creating a genogram and looking at our schedule in terms of 'The Slot System'. A genogram is a small family tree that includes aunts and uncles, cousins, siblings, parents and grandparents. After creating a genogram for each family, the bride and groom are to write a brief description (the first thing that comes to mind) of each person in the genogram. Then, three questions are asked about the parents and grandparents in the genogram:
What can you tell us about their marriage?
What can you tell us about how they dealt with conflict?
What can you tell us about their spiritual life?
The bride and groom are also asked to name models of great marriages in their family systems and spots of tension between the people in their families. This information is used to determine "normals" for each person in the relationship. A person might discover a "normal" in their own family (for example, that men are considered strong and unemotional) that affects the way they relate to their spouse, or vise versa. Identifying these "normals" might make it easier to understand the behavior of a spouse. Through this process, Nathan and I both discovered "normals" in our families of origin that help us better understand the way we act in our relationships now.

The second activity was titled 'The Slot System' which is designed to help a newly married couple set aside time to be together. A couple looks at the upcoming week and divides each day into three distinct slots (morning, afternoon, and evening). Each slot includes a meal and a block of time. For example, the morning slot would begin with waking up and end around noon. The afternoon slot begins with lunch and ends around 5 pm. The evening slot begins after 5 and ends with bedtime. A healthy marriage requires a minimum of six slots together in a normal week. These six slots don't need to be exclusive one-on-one time together but could include running errands, watching tv, taking a nap, hanging out with friends or any other kind of low-pressure activity. The idea is to not let a schedule run the couple, but have a couple rule their own schedule and make their marriage a priority. Even for Nathan and me (with no kids and very few obligations outside work) it can sometimes be difficult to find six "slots" together when life gets busy. It was a great way to look at how we spend our time and figure out if we were making enough time for one another.

On the flip side, there were parts of the book that Nathan and I had a harder time identifying with. For example, the chapter on relational roles had some rather traditional ideas about male/female gender roles that would never work for Nathan or me, given our personalities and families of origin. We just don't fit into the old-fashioned ideas of the man being a "warrior"/leader/breadwinner and the woman being submissive (and that's basically it).

There were some terrific ideas in this book and I would recommend it for any couple, not just those in their first year of marriage. But, it is one of those books where you have to take from the advice what you can use and disregard what you know won't be beneficial to your own marriage.

Quote of the Day (a little late)

On Christmas Eve, Zach opened a gift from "Bonya" and "Papa" (grandma and grandpa). Inside was a new pair of pajamas. Zach tossed them aside and quickly dug into his next Christmas Eve present.

Later, when it was bedtime, Zach retrieved his pjs, held them up and said, "I think I'll look good in these!"

Christmas 2008

Christmas for the Nolt family had a theme this year- homemade. Last year when we drew names for this Christmas, we agreed to make the gifts for the person whose name we drew. It made for some wonderful and truly meaningful gifts!

The handmade theme did not include the gifts for the children (although this year, my gifts for Zach and McKayla were somewhat homemade).

My sister Kate (who had been lucky enough to draw my name this year!) put together a Peace Lily Betta Vase. She found a large vase and filled it with blue marbles, added a beautiful peace lily and a Chinese fighting fish (otherwise known as a betta fish) and made a lovely arrangement. I am hoping that Gil (the fish) makes it back to Colorado Springs safely with us. It should be an interesting trip with a fish to care for!

Zach (opening a present from Andie & Keith): "This is the best thing I ever wanted!"

My father wrote a poem for me when I married Nathan a little over a year ago. Then, when Lindsay got married a few months later, he wrote a poem for them. For Christmas this year, he had the poems mounted with a picture. They are so beautiful!

Kate was the lucky recipient of my grandmother's crocheting skills! She opened her box to find this gorgeous afghan... I really should learn to crochet (or knit).

For my brother-in-law, Nate, and my sister, Andie, Nathan made DVDs. Nate (and Lindsay, by default) received their wedding video, edited to an hour of the highlights from that exciting day. Andie's video featured the best of McKayla from the last three Christmas vacations that we have spent in Boise. Together those videos provided an afternoon of hilarious antics and sparked wonderful memories for all of us.

Andie, Lindsay, and I all took the best pictures from our most recent times together and placed them in frames, made scrapbooks, and/or had snapfish albums made.

My brother-in-law, Keith made for Nathan a wonderfully sturdy guitar stand for the rock 'n' roll guitar he received from his father a few months ago. There's no way Chloey will be able to knock down his guitar when it's perched on this stand! And the colors even match the guitar!

My mother must have been working on her presents for months! We each received cozy crocheted socks perfect for keeping our feet warm on snowy winter days. The girls also received handmade scarves and a homemade hot dish carrier, complete with matching hot pads and a serving spoon.

I was amazed at the hidden talents that emerged and am so glad we had "homemade" Christmas this year! Next year we will go back to giving gifts, store bought or handmade. The vote was unanimous. As much fun as homemade gifts can be, they certainly are time intensive!

A Christmas Memory

The Christmas of 1985, when I was nine, my aunt Vicki and uncle Wes came all the way from Pennsylvania to visit my family in Boise. We didn't know our aunt and uncle very well at the time since we were so young and they lived so far away from us. My aunt Vicki was (and still is) a teacher and she came to Boise prepared in a way that only a teacher can be... she brought a book.

The perfect book.

I still remember clearly the night aunt Vicki started reading The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson to my little sisters and me. It was magical. I was mesmerized by the different voices she used for each character and she read with more emotion than anybody I'd ever heard before. In my kid mind, I was drawn into the experience of putting on a pageant with the disruptive, disrespectful Herdman kids- "absolutely the worst kids in the history of the world." I was enthralled by that story.

There were 7 chapters in that book and Wes and Vicki stayed in Boise for 7 days. Vicki read one chapter every night and even though we pleaded with her each time to read just a little more, she always refused and "hid" the book from us until the next night. So, each day of their visit, we waited in breathless anticipation for bedtime, when we would get to find out what the crazy Herdman kids would do next!

Shortly before Nathan and I left on the drive to Boise for Christmas this year, I was doing a little last minute Christmas shopping. At a local bookstore, I was perusing through the aisle when I stumbled across a copy of The Best Christmas Pageant Ever and all those memories of my aunt and uncle's visit came flooding back.

So, after arriving in Boise I asked my sister if she remembered that experience with the same fondness as I did and her face immediately brightened. She ran upstairs and pulled a book off the shelf in her bedroom. It was the original copy our aunt had read to us that Christmas. The copy has been well-loved over the years.

I love books and I love to read and I have been lucky to grow up in a family of readers. But, having The Best Christmas Pageant Ever read out loud to us by my aunt Vicki is one of the clearest and most wonderful book-related memories that I have. I am so grateful that she took the time to pick out the perfect book, that she knew enough to build our anticipation by reading only one chapter at a time, and that she cared enough to read with us every night.

It's a good reminder to me this Christmas that it's not about the biggest and the best present but about the memories we have with the ones we love. The best present this Christmas could be as simple as finding the perfect book, spending a little bit of your time, and making a wonderful memory.

Thank you and Merry Christmas, aunt Vicki and uncle Wes!

Homemade Christmas Potpourri

Remember my earlier post about gifts for co-workers? Andie's last day of work before the Christmas holiday was yesterday and she received a wonderful homemade gift from a co-worker. It's a great, inexpensive idea for my own co-workers next year!

Homemade Christmas Potpourri

1 bay leaf

1 orange (sliced)

1 lemon (sliced)

1/4 cup cloves

1 cinnamon stick

1. Put all ingredients into a saucepan and cover with water.

2. Simmer on the stove, and add additional water during the day as needed.

Andie has this simmering on the stove today, and her home spells heavenly and festive! Maybe this is an idea that you, too, can use. I can't wait for next Christmas!

Family & Football (Boise State Style)

team spirit


somebody's excited about the carousel!





awww!

the Twilight discussion :)

wacky brothers-in-law

the newlyweds

BSU lost.

(for more fun pictures from the evening, check out my sister's blog!)

Quote of the Day

We are watching Nathan's performance of "Away in a Manger" and are at the part when Nathan sings... "be near me Lord Jesus..." when McKayla gasps.

"Oh, that's a pretty song when you say Jesus!" she says. "I have Jesus!"

"Where?" Nathan asks.

McKayla pauses.

Nathan points to her head and then her heart, "In there.... or there?" he asks. "In your heart?"

"No! Not in my heart! It's upstairs in my room on the bookshelf!"

(On the bookshelf in her room is where she keeps her Bible.)

Quote of the Day

Nathan and McKayla were playing Hide and Seek. It was Nathan's turn to count. McKayla was already in her hiding place giving Nathan his instructions. She told Nathan to count to six and say "Ready or not, here I come!"

Nathan said, "Are you sure you don't want me to count to 10?"

"No, count to six... the one after five!"

The Disobedience of Water: Stories & Novellas by Sena Jeter Naslund

What I love about reading short stories is the variety that you can get. You never know after finishing one story what the next one will hold!

There are eight short stories in this book. Naturally, some were better than others. I Am Born is about a young boy who sneaks into his father's car and unknowingly accompanies him to the home of his teenage patient. The boy develops a new perspective after helping his father give birth to the young lady's baby. Burning Boy tells the story of a six-year-old African American boy in Birmingham in the 1960s who receives a surprising gift of beautiful brown lace-up oxfords from the white man who owns the grocery store where the boy has been working. The Death of Julius Geissler explores a complicated relationship between a world-class violinist, his young new accompanist, and his older envious manager. In my favorite story in the book, The Shape You're In, Sarah travels to Montana to serve as a Visiting Professor at a university. She loves the beautiful cabin where she stays but is haunted by memories of the crazy boyfriend she seems to be running from. Finally, in the title story, The Disobedience of Water, a mother composes an unwritten letter to the man she loved most. In the letter, she recalls her former loves, thinks fondly of her son, and remembers a terrible catastrophe from her childhood.

Each story is unique but Naslund's writing style is ambiguous and hard to follow. It was difficult to completely understand what was happening in these short stories. Each of them seemed to revolve around the characters and their development, yet the disjointed thoughts of those characters, the random insertion of seemingly unrelated memories, and the frequent unexplained change of emotions often left me feeling confused. When I would finish a story I often wondered if I should re-read it, thinking I must have missed something. The stories were often confusing and, as I've discovered by writing this review a week after finishing the book, increasingly forgettable.

Quote of the Day

Nathan picked up McKayla.

She put her hands on his face and said...

"Your cheeks are hairy!"

My Hippopotamus Dream

The night before we left for Boise, I had an interesting dream. I was in a class- one that reminded me of the classes I took in college. There were many other students sitting in desks and standing at the back. The room was very crowded. This was the second time the class had met and for some reason I had missed the first one and felt ashamed. Because the room was so crowded, I knew that I had taken the seat of somebody who had been in attendance for the first class and I also felt badly about that, but I didn't want to give up my seat.

The class seemed to last a long time and it was getting late into the evening. My desk and those closest to mine at some point had turned into a sofa and I was ready to curl up on it when I noticed that there was a hippopotamus in the classroom. I got a little nervous. The hippo was sleepy too and wanted to use my sweatshirt to cover it's eyes while it slept (I have no idea how I knew this) and I cautiously handed it over.

I fell asleep on the sofa and when I woke the next morning, the rest of the students had left the room. I felt embarrassed that I had fallen asleep in class and quickly went to gather my things. I remembered that the hippopotamus had my sweatshirt but looked around and couldn't see him. So I peeked under the sofa and there was the hippo, fast asleep with my sweatshirt covering it's eyes! Feeling apprehensive about it, I quickly snatched my sweatshirt and bolted from the room.

Welcome to the world,

Hailey Jordan Bostwick!

Safe and Sound

The road trip was treacherous and more than a little stressful but, thanks to Nathan's calm and cautious driving (despite my panicky anxiousness) and with the help of the studded snow tires, we finally made it to Boise safe and sound last night. We witnessed a couple of accidents and saw more than a few cars sitting in snowbanks on the side of the road. The scariest moment came when the truck driver who was following too closely behind us moved abruptly into the left lane to pass and instantly did a 180 and ended up in the median facing the opposite direction.

We are thankful to have made it safely and are completely content to spend today indoors!

Travel Quotes

Nathan prepares his defense in case he is pulled over for speeding:

"Well, officer, there is no cruise control and if you take the control away, all you're really left with is... cruise."

Later, after the weather had gotten significantly worse and the roads were caked with snow, Nathan eyes the SUVs that careen past us on the interstate.

"Some people don't let the sight of three emergency tow trucks and an overturned SUV worry them," he comments, ironically.

Christmas Travels

Nathan and I have begun our journey to Boise for Christmas.

We started off this morning (and by morning, I mean afternoon) under clear skies in Colorado Springs. The predicted snow had not yet arrived.

It wasn't too long before our good luck changed.

Just outside of Fort Collins, the snow that was layering the land next to the highway became white streaks whipping across the road. A few miles further down the road the snow was curling into fast, swirly circles across the highway, making us feel like we were driving on a street of powdered sugar. At it's worst the powdered sugar snow rose in small windy hurricanes that circled our tiny Mirage, and created a blanket of white that seemed to cover the windshield. Everywhere I looked, all I saw was white- white road, white sky, white land, white clouds. While beautiful, it was mildly stressful.

Later, we stopped in Middle of Nowhere, Wyoming to take a quick bathroom break. The quick walk into the building gave the piercing wind enough time to whip through my bones and settle into my blood vessels. Running in and out of the building, my hair thrashed across my face like tiny whips and my fingers and nose quickly became numb. My jeans were stiff with cold as I bent to crawl back into the car.

Looking up at the night sky during the following stretch of our trip, I noticed with surprise that the clouds had dispersed (mostly) and the cold, night sky was crisp and clear with tiny stars twinkling down on us. As the car raced forward on the highway, I stared up at that night sky from my little window and thought about the stars and the blackness around them. I thought about that tool belt that is floating around somewhere between all those stars. I thought about the windy, piercing cold and the long stretch of empty interstate in front of us.

And I felt very small in this big world.

Tonight we are safely tucked into a cozy hotel room in Rawlins, Wyoming.

Tomorrow morning, Boise is expected to get 6-12 inches of new snow.

Quote of the Day

I walk up and down between the lunch tables in the cafeteria when a 2nd grader stops me.

"Merry Christmas break!" he tells me.

"Absolutely," I think. "Merry. Christmas. BREAK!"

Gifts for Co-workers

For me, one of the most difficult things about this time of year is deciding what to do for those certain special co-workers in my life. It can be difficult to decide what small token I should buy/create that is within our means, financially (and since I don't bake well, that is never a good option for me). It seems like I'm always waiting for the perfect idea to hit me until I run out of time, and this year was no different. Well, tomorrow is it- our last day of school before winter vacation- and last night I finally shuffled through the half-hearted ideas bouncing around in my brain and put together these...

...and I'm pretty pleased with the way they turned out.

If you have any great ideas for when you need to create/buy many small tokens for co-workers, please share them (either in the comments or on your own blog). Before I know it next Christmas will be here and I will need a new idea! (And maybe somebody else can still use your idea this year).

(If you are like me, and can't seem to bake something quite divine enough to share with others but feel confident they would appreciate a little something, you can download some great gifts in a jar ideas! I came across this last night after I had purchased the supplies for the above gifts. Perhaps these might remind somebody at your job that you appreciate working with them... and what better way is there to spread Christmas cheer?)

Case in Point

today's mail!

I l-o-v-e, love, checking the mail.

When I think about it, I'm not really sure why. Most of the time, the only thing that greets me when I pull open the lid of the mailbox is bills.

Lots and lots of bills.

But, as I walk down the sidewalk to the front of the house and get ready to peek inside the white box, I can't help but allow that hopeful twinge of anticipation to creep into my consciousness.

I must get just enough reinforcement to keep the hope alive because, somehow, it never disappears. Maybe it's the issues of The Mennonite I look forward to. After all, they do keep me updated on the marital status and family size of college friends. Maybe it's my monthly issue of The Reading Teacher that keeps me current on the latest trends and research in my profession. Or it quite possibly is the occasional hand-written card my dad jots during a lull at work that updates me on the life of the Boise Nolts. And, God knows I'm always pleased to spot a gently-used paperback from paperbackswap! They are beginning to make a beautiful pile in the study.

These are all such a joy to find tucked inside that tiny box.

That's one of my favorite things about this time of year- when the lost art of letter writing returns for a short season. I look inside and see a slopey-curvy handwritten return address in the corner of a cute envelope and when I reach into that mailbox and grasp at the contents, that envelope feels just a bit more friendly than all those bills... an envelope accented with red, green, or gold... an envelope a tad more rigid than most.

And I rip it open to find a wonderful greeting from an old friend or distant relative, photos of adorable kuddies, or beautiful seasonal pictures celebrating the wonder of the holiday.

I love it!

Nathan and I spent two evenings writing and folding, signing and addressing, licking, stuffing, and finally mailing our own Christmas cards today. Hopefully, you'll soon peek into your box and see a friendly envelope from us winking at you! We hope it brings you some happiness during this season.

Nathan:

You Are Donner

The most lovable and sweet reindeer, you're also a total dork! Why You're Naughty: You keep (accidentally) tripping the other reindeer while flying. Why You're Nice: You're always smiling, even if you've fallen flat on your horns.

Which of Santa's Reindeer Are You?

Marika:

You Are Vixen

Sexy and sultry, you're the one all the other reindeer dream about. Why You're Naughty: That fur pulling spat you got into with Dancer over Santa. Why You're Nice: Because even when you're nice, you're still delightfully naughty!

Which of Santa's Reindeer Are You?

Ha!

Congratulations,

Anne and Tim!

(I'm still jumping around the living room, but Nathan made me stop squealing!)

A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini

Miriam and Laila live across the street from one another in the city of Kabul during a tumultuous time in the history of Afghanistan. Despite their age difference, an unlikely friendship blossoms when tragedy strikes and fate brings them into the same violent household, binding their futures together permanently.

This book was chosen as November's read for my church book club and I was excited because, like many people, I loved The Kite Runner. I finished this one a while ago and have almost finished another book since. I kept intending to write a review, but knew that it would be difficult to find the words to describe this novel. So, now I'm finally just doing it, and I'm going to do it with some short and simple statements this time.

This book is emotional.

This book is tragic.

This book is exceptional.

And, as one of my friends exclaimed when she heard I was reading it, "It's a book that will make you proud to be a woman!"

You just have to read it for yourself. Really.

Away in a Manger