Christmas greetings!

We were limited in our hard copies this year (maybe a good thing - this is pretty random).



Caroling, caroling now we go
Gongs send Christmas greetings
Caroling, caroling thru the snow
In Michigan still living.
Joyous Genghis's one and a half
Can say 2 letters of the alphabet
Ding, dong, Genghis Gong sends his Christmas greetings

Caroling, caroling thru the town
Gongs send Christmas greetings
Caroling, caroling up and down
Our family keeps growing
Mark ye well child #2
Still has 3 months in utero
Ding, dong, Baby Girl Gong sends her Christmas greetings

Caroling, caroling near and far
Erin goes consulting
For museums and libraries—the non profit sector
But any paycheck’s rewarding
Abe’s teched up with web development,
Cloud computing plus a new hair cut
Ding, dong, Parents Gong send their Christmas greetings.

Happy Holidays!
From the Gongs
2011

friday photos

Getting cozy - two new favorites for Genghis.

remember the time i had a blog

Yeah, I barely do, either.

No Friday photos today because I'm not at my home computer. Instead, I offer a collection of random thoughts for the weekend.

1. I made these bar cookies for a party this week. I don't usually like bar cookies but when Abe took the leftovers in to work I had to call him halfway through the day to request that he go snag a few to bring back home for me tonight. My one Christmas wish is that you try making them yourself before the end of the month.

2. While making said bar cookies and other party goodies on Wednesday night, I think I worked myself into pre-term labor. Not because I was working particularly hard in the kitchen but because I had just stuffed myself with delicious Chinese seafood and couldn't stop eating the cookie dough. I had to give up before everything was done and go to bed. The cramping had stopped by morning. Kublai seems just fine now.

3. I love the rain but have mixed feelings about it in December. It's too early to be complaining about weather, though, so I'll just leave it at that.

4. For a while Genghis had the habit of walking around the house saying "money, money, money, money". We weren't sure what he was really talking about but it was an endless source of amusement for us. About a week ago, he became an almost overnight expert in identifying "Dada" and "Mama". This has been very heartwarming for us. Then a few days ago, he started referring to me as "money mama". Abe encourages this. I don't know what to think.

friday photos

We were apparently too busy making and eating delicious food to take any good Thanksgiving photos. My parents came into town for a few days, and Genghis loved having their undivided attention. We spent Thanksgiving day with them and with some good friends.

Genghis spent most of Thanksgiving dinner chasing this cat.


My dad, the food scientists (specializing in dairy and cheese), trying out some of Zingerman's offerings. Still looking for Parmesan that doesn't have a dirty feet/baby spit up aftertaste.


Mom got sick the last day she was here, but put on a bold face.


We had our first real snow this week. After many tears and kicks, we got Genghis bundled up and headed out for a few minutes. He was wary of the snow, especially after falling hands first in it without gloves. I think I'll put him through a regimen of indoor boot training for the next 2 weeks. He couldn't stay standing in his (let alone walk), so we had to go with regular shoes which soaked through pretty quickly.

Thanksgiving Playlist

I threatened to do it, and 1 hour and 48 minutes before turkey day, it's done. Here is my Thanksgiving playlist, in alphabetical order by song title. On a better day, all of these songs would be linked. Apologies. However, I did put it together using Grooveshark, and if you're interested I can share my playlist with you - it should be easy for you to listen to it in all its glory.

I'm pretty sure this is the most eclectic playlist I have ever put together.

(In the spirit of the holiday) Thanks to all contributed ideas. I'll let you know how this goes over tomorrow.

All Creatures of our God and King - BYU Concert Choir & Philharmonic
Amazing Grace - Susan Boyle
America - Simon & Garfunkle
Appalachian Springs (simple gifts) - Aaron Copland
Autumn Lullaby - Natalie Merchant
Battle Hymn of the Republic - Mormon Tabernacle Choir
Be Still My Heart - Postal Service
California Dreamin - Mamas and the Papas
Cinder and Smoke - Iron & Wine
Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing - Mormon Tabernacle Choir
Don’t Stop Believing - Journey
Down to the river to pray - Alison Krauss, O Brother Where Art Thou
Dust in the wind - Kansas
For the Beauty of the Earth - Mormon Tabernacle Choir
Give Me the Simple Life - Rosemary Clooney
Heartland - Peter Breinholt
Homesick - Kings of Convenience
How Can I Keep From Singing - BYU
If I had a million dollars - Bare Naked Ladies
John Williams Olympic Theme
My Shepherd Will Supply My Need - BYU Concert Choir & Philharmonic
Peace Train - Cat Stevens
Praise to the Lord, the Almighty - Mormon Tabernacle Choir
Prelude 1 - George Gershwin
Shenandoah - Judy Garland
Somewhere over the rainbow, what a wonderful world - Israel K
Sweet Baby James - James Taylor
Swing Low, Sweet Chariot - Lower Lights
Take It To the Limit - Eagles
Take Me Home, Country Roads - John Denver
The Crane Wife 3 - Decemberists
The Fox - Nickelcreek
The Parting Glass - Waking Ned Divine (we have)
We'll Shout and Give him Glory - BYU Men's Chorus
You’ve Got a Friend - Carole King

friday photos - video

Typical evening events at our home.

saturday is not a special day

In recent weeks I have read not 1, not 2, but 3 blog posts from various friends/family about "perfect Saturdays". While I immensely enjoy all of these people's blogs (and the people themselves), I feel obligated to take a official stance against "perfect Saturdays".

Don't worry. It's not you, it's me.

You see, I'm on the road to recovery from Perfect Saturday Syndrome. The syndrome reached its height in Autumn 2011 (I continue to blame at least part of this on pregnancy hormones). During this time, I started every Saturday morning with a vision of what the perfect day would look like. My vision often included a leisurely homemade breakfast, a round of intense but efficient house-cleaning, a day trip to a beautiful new sight, a long afternoon nap for Genghis, delicious dinner (cooked in the wonderfully clean kitchen), and a relaxing evening with good entertainment and dessert.

But the vision never seemed to take shape. Food burned, Genghis screeched, Abe (or I) had overflow work from the week, destinations were lame. Part of the problem was that there are some things that are just out of our control and we have to deal with that uncertainty. Part of the problem was that Abe and I have fundamentally different views on what elements make up a good Saturday. And it turns out that those two problems don't work particularly well together. Abe and I can usually come to a mutually agreed-upon plan for the day through good communication beforehand. But when the unexpected messes with the plan, we are totally out of sync. My instinctual response to the unexpected is usually exactly the opposite of Abe's response. My feelings get hurt, Abe feels unnecessarily blamed for everything, etc, etc, etc.

After too many Saturdays that required therapy sessions, I have decided to give up on perfect Saturdays. Every Saturday is different. Every Saturday has its own set of demands - baggage from the week, scheduled commitments, to-do lists to stay on top of life. And every Saturday has its own set of opportunities - good weather to take advantage of, bad weather perfect for warm drinks, unexpected free time, children sleeping in late.

So I'm going to relegate Saturday back to the ranks of the other days of the week. I will expect Saturdays to be just as perfect as Tuesdays, or Thursdays.

(And I secretly hope this will make for more perfect Saturdays in the long run, but I'm not supposed to think about that too much because it probably would ruin the recovery plan.)