How do you make sourdough? Let me share my secret!

Suddenly (it feels like), sourdough is a thing. I'm sure people made sourdough bread throughout history. 

But now it's a thing. It's trending. 

Is that the result of COVID? People were stuck home, so they learned how to make sourdough? Then they gave starter to all their friends? And now everyone makes it? Possible.

At least that's how it happened in our family. Shulamith's husband Mathew learned to make sourdough during COVID when he was working remotely from home. Of course, Matt's a culinary god, so it probably wasn't quite as hard for him as it would be for others to hone his skills and process, one loaf at a time, to utter perfection. And yes, he does make perfect sourdough.

If you're wondering when I'm going to get to the point here, the part about the secret to making sourdough, wait no longer.

What is my secret to making sourdough?

This girl....

Her name is Amanda, and she is one of my best friends. She is also Eli's very cool wife. Amanda is one of several recipients of Matt's sourdough starter, and she has worked diligently the past few months to perfect her own sourdough. If you haven't tried making sourdough, you may not know that it's a l-o-n-g process; for both Amanda and Matt, it takes two whole days! You have to worry about "proofing" (which, I think, means leaving the dough to rise just the right amount, at just the right temperature). You do this at least twice, maybe even more? Then you also have go through the "stretching and folding" process several times. I saw a meme that compared this to a "grownup's slime play," and yes, that's what it looks like.

How would a terrible cook like me ever do all this? She wouldn't. Not a chance. My secret to making delicious sourdough is beautifully simple. Get Amanda to make it for me. I know you're all shaking your heads while looking at your flour-covered hands and flour-covered kitchens and wondering. "Why didn't I think of this?"

I know, right? But too late. She's already taken. She's mine. Every few days, I get a fresh loaf of yummy sourdough. Made at home, it's about the healthiest bread you could eat. The ingredients are flour, water, and salt. That's it. I read that the fermentation process actually serves to stabilize blood sugar, which has proven true, as Shulamith's T1 diabetic son, Swen, experiences no spike at all after eating his dad's sourdough.

Eli and Amanda celebrated their 8th wedding anniversary a couple days ago. There is a long list of reasons why I'm grateful these two found each other and now I get to hang out with Amanda, but this sourdough is pretty dang high on that list.

I almost missed church!

Of all the church services of the year, it seems Easter would be the one not to miss. I mean isn't Easter the highest, most holy day on the Christian calendar? 

And yet......I almost missed it.

I woke up at 5:30 a.m. Sunday morning and glanced at my phone. "No. Nooooo! I am NOT getting up at 5:30 a.m." I turned over and pulled the warm covers over my head, adjusted my pillow just right, and closed my eyes. But sleep did not come. Instead, the long list of tasks I still needed to complete in preparation for our Easter celebration ruminated through my brain. Anxiety? Perhaps. Or maybe just normal "mom brain" on a major holiday. Either way, it was clear I wasn't going back to sleep. 

I got up and threw on my big Montana coat over my pajamas and took Waffles out to go to the bathroom. Back inside, I scrolled briefly through my favorite workout videos and selected one of the 30-minutes, full body ones with trainers Toya and Juice. I have several go-to videos with various trainers, but I love these two for a couple reasons: She (Toya) always demonstrates the more challenging options, while he (Juice) shows the easier modifications. She is so strong! Ooooh! But more importantly, neither of them chatters at me through the workout. I hate it when these trainers decide to be motivational inspirers. Stay in your own lane. If I want a life coach, I'll find me one. All I want from you is to model the strength training.

I planned to shower and get ready after working out, but it was so much earlier than I anticipated, you know, because it was never my plan to get up at 5:30 a.m. (Grrrrrrr!). So instead, I hid 63 candy-filled, plastic eggs all over the house and put finishing touches on baskets. Then I made green bean casserole, stuffing, and brownies. Finally, I put on sweats and a coat and headed out to walk. It had been overcast earlier when I took Waffles out, but now it was full on raining! What a perfect Easter morning! Rain, beautiful rain. I felt like I was home in the Pacific Northwest. I put in my AirPods and continued listening to my audiobook, as I walked. And walked. And walked. And totally lost track of time. 

Drenched, but happy, I glanced at my watch. Eeeek, it was 9:20 a.m., and I was supposed to be at Eli's church at 10:00 to attend sacrament meeting with him and Amanda and watch Amanda lead the music. I power-walked home, took the quickest shower of my life, got dressed, and did makeup and hair, all in about 20 minutes. By 9:50, I was in my car driving way too fast to Herriman. I arrived about 15 seconds before the meeting began. It was a good meeting. Their ward is huge, and with all the extra "Easter" people (like me!) the congregational hymns were lively and inspiring. We sang the standard "Christ the Lord is Risen Today" and "He is Risen," and the Primary kids sang "The Miracle," one of my favorites.

After church, I went to Eli and Amanda's house to eat crepes and watch Jane find eggs and open her Easter basket. 

Then I left the three of them to take naps, and returned home to finish my own Easter prep. At around 5:30, Seth and Isaiah arrived, followed by Shulamith and family, then Eli, Amanda, and Jane. Our home was filled to the brim with so many of my favorite people, so much noise, and so much scrambling to find the 63 plastic eggs the "Easter Bunny" had hidden. I'm so grateful my big kids still love to hunt for eggs; I'm pretty sure I'll cry if the day ever comes when they decide they're too old.

We decided to have "Thanksgiving dinner" for Easter, and Mathew smoked two turkeys on his amazing Traeger grill. All the food seemed extra good for some reason, and dessert was no exception. We had ice cream brownie sundaes, with toppings that included Thin Mint and Samoa Girl Scout cookies; Reese's Peanut Butter Cups; Kit Kat bars; fresh strawberries and raspberries and bananas (healthy, right?); hot fudge and caramel sauce; rainbow sprinkles; and whipped cream!

After eating all this food, I rolled myself upstairs and into bed, exhausted from the very early start to a very busy day. But grateful. So grateful to have the coolest family ever and that they all love to be together. And grateful for the risen Lord, whose selfless sacrifice offers us grace, redemption, and life eternal.

"Death is conquered; we are free. Christ has won the victory."

Speechless

It is rare for me to be at a loss for words. But it happened.

In fact, so speechless was I that it's been a few days since this incident occurred, and I'm only now putting words to it. 

I sat at my desk in my home office, feeling great after grading the last of 62 annotated bibliographies. I should have just walked downstairs and cracked open a fresh can of Diet Coke. Or wandered down the hall to my bedroom and climbed in bed to watch a show. Or picked up my Kindle and continued reading about Phil Knight, the creator or Nike, in his memoir, Shoe Dog.

I should have done anything but what I did: open Outlook for my three schools. As I scrolled through a dozen emails, one stood out because I didn't recognize the student's name. Then I noticed that it came from a student in my hybrid class, which meets on Mondays only. Because of all the Monday holidays this semester, this class has only met nine times. Maybe that's why I didn't recognize the student's name?

I clicked on the email. It was pure ChatCPT start to finish. Eight paragraphs of annoyingly bland sentences, pablum really, with that nauseating cadence unique to robotic writing. Blah. And what did these eight paragraphs say, you may be wondering? An apology for the student's "recent lack of participation" and an understanding that "consistent attendance and engagement are essential components of a successful academic experience." Next, it explains that the student has been facing significant challenges due to a "heavy workload from other classes." After eight paragraphs of this, the robot email concludes by expressing gratitude for my "understanding and patience" and that my "support and guidance are greatly appreciated."

After throwing up (okay, not really, but almost), I flipped over to Canvas to check this student's progress and grades. Turns out the student has never, even once, attended class. The attendance record shows Present, 0 days; Tardy, 0 days; Absent, 9 days. No wonder I didn't recognize the name; I've never met this person! Then I checked grades. The student currently has 0%, having submitted not a single assignment. Then I checked email history. No prior emails. So in Week #11 of a 15-week semester, this student contacts me for the first time ever, asking for help. And the worst part of all?????

They do it using that awful ChatGPT! 

Zero genuine voice. Zero captivating tone. Zero rhetorical style. This, along with zero attendance and zero grade percentage left me with....uh....

Zero words. Speechless. (And sad. Also sad. Because I really do want all my students to succeed.)

Leapin' through February!

In my experience, January lasts about a year, February lasts about an hour, and suddenly it's March. Yes, I realize February is the shortest month; still it's not that much shorter, and every four years it's not that much shorter at all. This is one of those years, yet here we are, at the end of February, and I barely remember anything about it. What exactly happened? What did I even do? I have a vague memory of the dredges of January and its never-ending cold but no Christmas and the feeling that it would never end. But suddenly, tomorrow is March. 

I guess a few things happened worth noting, so here goes.

Of course the very best thing that happened in February was our NYC trip, fully documented here. At least once a day, I say to myself "I'd really rather be in New York." This feeling will fade with time but never fully vanish. Until my next visit. I do love it there.

Valentine's Day passed without much frivolity; someone brought me two chocolate cupcakes, which I couldn't eat because of the 4 lbs. I gained in NYC that I was still working to lose. Eli and Amanda's daughter, Jane, made Valentines for everyone. Look how hard she worked:

The day after V. day, Shulamith's daughter Kennedy's had her dance company fireside, where she danced magnificently. Kennedy is so dedicated to her art, and it shows. 

And last week, Seth told me he was feeling like he hadn't seen anyone in a long time. He's only 20 minutes away, but he works lots, along with finishing his final semester at UVU. He'll graduate May 2nd, and I couldn't be any more excited than to celebrate our fifth and final college graduate! 

I told Seth that if he picked a night to drive up for dinner, I'd invite everyone, and hopefully at least a couple of the sibs would be able to come. But as it turned out, they all came, all the locals that is! It was such a fun evening to have all four of them together for no special reason other than to hang out and catch up. We stayed a long time. I felt extra blessed these people belong to me.

I just looked back at my post from Leap Day four years ago. It was so innocent. I taught a class. Walked two dogs. Met Shulamith for lunch at Cafe Rio. Ran an errand in Lehi. Took another walk. Bought groceries. 

Nothing out of the ordinary. 

Little did I know that the following month the world would shut down. A virus would cause a pandemic the proportions of which none of had ever experienced or expected. We would learn a new term: "social distance." We would stay home almost all the time. We would fear contact with others. We would worry about every cough, sneeze, or fever. We would worry especially over our elderly friends and family members. We would watch in horror as people died.

We would also learn a lot. We would learn to be grateful and to trust more. We would learn how resilient we are. We would learn how much our faith means to us, wherever it is centered. And though every one of us felt the trauma of that time, we also found our way through the trauma and began to heal. I expect we will never be quite the same as we were before COVID; hopefully what we learned will serve us and others well.

Happy Leap Day, everyone!

"You'll be back!"

My favorite song from the four shows we saw this past weekend was this one, sung by King George in the award-winning Hamilton. On our trip to NYC nearly two years ago, Hamilton was still way too expensive, at least for the seats I like, where I can see their sweat. This time, we were able to get tickets, and Oh. My. Goodness. There is a reason this show won so many awards. How does one person write the entire script, along with all the amazing song lyrics AND the music to create this incredible of piece of art, and then star as the lead when the show first opens? You would have to ask Lin-Manuel Miranda. I'm baffled by the degree of talent it would take to do all that, but grateful to Miranda for sharing that talent, so I could experience the story of Alexander Hamilton in such a genre as the Broadway stage. The show was pure delight from start to finish, especially the first time King George took the state to remind the American colonists how much he loves them:

You'll be back like before

I will fight the fight and win the war...

'Cause when push comes to shove,

I will kill your friends and family to remind you of my love!

Second place goes to the song "One Day I'll Carry You Home" from The Notebook. Guys, we were literally there the second day of the show's Preview performances! Can you even believe that? It was so good, far better than the movie (and I loved the movie)! Three couples played the leads: younger Allie and Noah, middle Allie and Noah, and older Allie and Noah, and the way the director staged all of them to move fluidly among the years was nothing short of brilliant!

I've got a secret to tell

I'm falling in love with you.

And I know, nothing else matters

'Cause one day I'll carry you home.

The whole world might think we're crazy,

But one day I'll carry you to our home,

And one day you'll be my home.

Third place song is in the second act when Sweeny sings the reprise of "Johanna" to honor his daughter, who was taken from him as a baby, when he was unjustly exiled to Australia fifteen years earlier. We saw Sweeny Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street between its Josh Groban/Annaleigh Ashford run and before the new cast to include Aaron Tveit and Sutton Foster. But be very clear: I can't imagine better performances than we witnessed from Nicholas Christopher (Sweeny) and Jeanna de Waal (Mrs. Leavitt) last weekend. They had been Groban's and Ashford's understudies up to that point, but they took that stage and owned it. I loved every second. 

I feel you, Johanna

I feel you

Do they think that vaults can hide you?

Even now I'm at your window.

I am in the dark beside you

Very sweetly in your yellow hair,

Johanna, Johanna.

Finally, fourth place song goes to "Shape of My Heart" from &Juliet. We bought tickets to the first three shows (above) before we left home, but decided to take a chance on last-minute bargains for our fourth and final show. As I stood in an enormous line at the Cheap Broadway Tickets booth, Shulamith decided to run around to various theatres to see if she could find us discounted tickets. She did (!) for the show &Juliet. We decided to chance it, and it turned out to be a great choice. Alongside three shows with serious themes, &Juliet was just pure fun! In a retelling of Shakespeare's original, Juliet decides not to kill herself over a boy she's known only a few days, and goes on to live her own life, following her own rules. Gotta love Shakespeare with a feminist twist. The show features covers from a variety of pop music, and "Shape of My Heart" was my favorite.

We were so excited to have Isaiah with us this time, and I believe we've successfully converted him to Broadway musicals. I'm shocked how much he likes them. In his words, "I can't stay here much longer. I have to drop $200 every day I'm here to see another show." He went with us to Hamilton, Sweeny, and &Juliet; then he had the nerve to stay one more day after we left and go see Merrily We Roll Along. We're very jealous.

We mostly ate bagels and watched shows the entire four days, though we did manage to work out at the hotel gym...

...and take a lovely walk in Central Park...(photo on top)

As always, both Shulamith and I grieved leaving NYC and the Broadway stage. It's just so hard to say goodbye. But I'm certain when King George sang "You'll Be Back," he was singing right to us. 

Yes, King George. We will indeed be back.

The best (healthy) muffins on the planet. Really.

It was around 3:00 p.m. Saturday, in the middle of my temple shift. I serve in the Oquirrh Mountain Temple once a week as an ordinance worker, which just means that I go there each week for six hours and assist the patrons. I stopped by the break room to pick up my Stanley, which I keep there so I can grab sips of Diet Coke throughout the afternoon. Gathered around one of the tables were like a dozen workers raving over these muffins that Sister Graham brought to share, but by the time I got there, they were gone! 

When I asked her about them, she said they are both delicious and healthy. Tell me more! Except she couldn't because she needed to leave for her next post assignment, and I needed to get upstairs to start the next session. But about an hour later, Sister Graham found me up on the 2nd floor and handed me a small piece of paper with the recipe for these muffins. She must carry recipes around with her wherever she goes? Anyway, it was nice of her, and the recipe looked interesting. It only has 1/4 C. oil in 30 muffins and only 1.5 C. sugar. Everything else is pretty good for you.

So the next day I bought all the ingredients to make them. The process wasn't especially hard, though I did cut my finger while grating carrots. Next time I'll for sure buy pre-grated ones; I struggle mightily with sharp objects. You probably aren't as klutzy as me, but be careful nonetheless.

But here's the thing. These muffins turned out so much better than I ever imagined. They are SO good! I can't even explain why they're so good, but I suspect it has something to do with the combination of flavors: pineapple and coconut and walnuts and carrots and raisins. Yummmm!

I barely ever share recipes on this blog. I'm a terrible cook. Why should I show y'all how to make bad food too? This is my 884th post (say what?) in the15 years of itslegs, and I think I've only included three other recipes. There's our family favorite: egg casserole. And this amazing black bean salsa. And, surprisingly, another muffin, which though good, is not quite as good as this one.

I won't hold out any longer. Drive to the store. Buy this stuff. Make these muffins. Thank me later.

The best (healthy) muffins on the planet - aka Morning Glory Muffins:

2 1/2 C. white or whole wheat flour

1 1/4 C. sugar

3 tsp. cinnamon

2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

2 tbsp. flax seed (or crushed bran flakes)

Mix all of the above in one bowl. Set aside.

3 eggs

1 C. applesauce 

1/4 C. oil

1 tsp. vanilla

Mix these four things in a bowl.

Combine both bowls.

2 carrots (grated)

1 apple (grated)

1 8-oz. can crushed pineapple

1/2 C. coconut flakes

1/2 C. raisins

1/2 C. chopped walnuts

Stir the above six things into the other mix, and fill muffin cups.

Bake 20-24 minutes at 350 degrees. Makes around 30 muffins.

2023 Favorites (and a few least favorites)!

If Oprah can have favorites, so can I. Here are my 2023 picks:

Favorite Book:  Burial Rights by Hannah Kent

Beautiful story. Beautiful writing. That’s all I’m gonna say about it. (But prepare to cry yourself to sleep). Honorable mentions to Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garums, which is hilarious and quirky and all the good things, and Lovely War by Julie Berry. Disclaimer: This one’s classified as a “young adult romance,” which I didn’t know before I read it, and had I known, most likely wouldn’t have picked it up. I am no fan of young adult literature, yet here it is, earning an honorable mention this year. Set during WWI, it includes the agony of war, but also the redeeming power of true love, all narrated by Aphrodite, adding a touch of Greek Mythology, which is always a plus. Loved it.

Least Favorite Book: None. 

I don’t read books I don’t like. Capture me in 20 pages or I’m out. 

Favorite Purchase: Barely making the 2023 deadline, on New Year’s Eve I bought a new entryway table on FB Marketplace! It is exactly what I’ve been looking for and in “like new” condition. It even has a lower shelf to display my 15 years of blog books. So, so happy with it!

Least Favorite Purchase: New AC unit.

Seth’s dumb dog, Waffles, used our previous AC unit as his private bathroom, successfully corroding all the internal and external hardware. He did this on purpose. Rather than going out back in the small gated area, he wanted us to take him on six walks every day, where he could roam the neighborhood, smell all the smells, and bark at other dogs. And he got his wish! Replacing the AC unit was horribly expensive, and I’m still grieving that decision and feeling foolish for spending so much. We could survive without it. And we should have.

Favorite Movie: Waitress. 

I saw so few movies in theaters this past year that choosing wasn’t difficult. I was sad I missed the Broadway production of Waitress when we were in NYC, so I was excited to see the movie, which was a live stage recording of the show. It did not disappoint! Honorable mentions to A Man Called Otto (based on the book A Man Called Ove) and Barbie.

Least Favorite Movie: Wonka. 

I didn’t think anything could be more boring than the Frozen franchise, but I was wrong. Have I mentioned how much I detest kids’ movies? Even more than young adult literature?

Favorite Travel Experience: Ten-day Mediterranean cruise in May with Shulamith. 

We visited Barcelona, Cannes, Pisa, Florence, and Rome, and it was all incredible. Runner up… a quick weekend trip to Phoenix in November, where Shulamith, Kennedy, and I attended my niece Carley’s wedding. Of course weddings are always the best, but getting to spend time with my Oregon family, extended family, and relatives of my extended family was the icing on the proverbial cake. So fun!

Least Favorite Travel Experience: None. No such thing.

Favorite TV show: The Chosen. 

Like so many people, I was captivated from the start. It is the best representation of Jesus I’ve ever seen, perfectly nuanced between His humanity and divinity. 

Favorite TV mini-series based on a book: All the Light We Cannot See. 

Simultaneously tragic and heroic like so many WWII stories, the TV mini-series is nearly as powerful as the book. Honorable mentions to Lessons in Chemistry and The Last Thing He Told Me. I read both these before watching the two mini-series and thoroughly enjoyed both genres.

Favorite Blog Post: “Cuz I really like being right.”

This year I’m going with the post that got the most page views. (Also, because I really like being right.) Nod goes to “‘Were you consistent?’ Mr. Gay wanted to know,” which placed second for the year in page views. The former is the story of Shulamith’s transition back to teaching half-day kindergarten after a 10-year break. The latter is about my 25+ year journey as an adjunct college instructor and our family's commitment to education. Interesting that the top two posts are both related to our careers.

Favorite email correspondent: Hermana Emma Mecham.

My friend Lindsey’s daughter is serving in the Minnesota Minneapolis Mission, Spanish speaking, out there every day sharing the good news of the Savior Jesus Christ with the people of Minnesota. It is joyful to receive her emails and hear about all the people she is serving. I know her beautiful smile is a light to everyone she meets! (Lindsey, wasn’t it just last week that she and Seth were sitting at your dining room table in Billings playing Candy Land?)

Favorite meal: Shrimp pasta in a lovely little restaurant in Pisa.

It was so delicious, and working to get the shrimp out of the shells was nuts!

Least favorite meal: Everything we ate on the cruise ship. Blah!

Favorite Bible story: Matthew 3. This past year our church Sunday School curriculum focused on the New Testament, which includes the incredible stories of Jesus and His ministry. It’s hard to pick a favorite, but the story of Jesus’ baptism, in Matthew 3:13-17 teaches us so much. I especially love the significance of verse 15. When John the Baptist questions his own worthiness to baptize Jesus, Jesus explains, “Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousness.” Consider the word “us” in that sentence. Jesus says “it becometh us” not “it becometh me.” This is kingdom language; this speaks of the covenant relationship that is needed. It’s like He’s saying, “Now we, together, will build the kingdom.” I wonder how a fuller understanding of this principle might affect our individual lives and journeys.

Favorite song: “O Come, All You Unfaithful.”

Released in 2020, this is not a brand new Christmas song, but it was new to me! I’ve listened to probably a half dozen covers, but my favorite is this one by the BYU Young Ambassadors. We can be deniers like Peter, doubters like Thomas, runners like Jonah, persecutors like Paul, idolaters like Solomon, unfaithful like David. Our Savior is always there with open arms to cleanse, redeem, welcome, and love. As the song lyrics invite: “Come, see what your God has done.”

And that's a wrap on my 2023 favorites. Happy New Year, everyone!