Sitting with Santa

Jonathon and Kevin

Matthew

Makenna

Makenna (again)

My sister's dog Esme

Busting My Buttons

My brother Michael just got his GRE results. He scored a perfect 800 on the quantitative section, a 710 (98th percentile) on the verbal test, and is still waiting for the results on the analytical writing portion. I am positively bursting with sisterly pride!!!

Pomegranate Salad

We spent Thanksgiving this year with my family. Most of the foods we eat are the same Thanksgiving dishes eaten by every other family in the country, but we do have a few that are more unique to us. Here is one of the Leavitt family favorites:


Pomegranate Salad:

Mix together apples (peeled and chopped), bananas (sliced), pomegranates, pecans, and cool whip.


Whipped cream was originally used in this salad, but a few years ago we started substituting cool whip in its place. This recipe came from my great-grandmother, Udora Hunt Leavitt. She passed it down to her daughter-in-law, who was my grandmother, Zelma Hollinger Leavitt, who always made it for our family on Thanksgiving. Now that she has passed on, my sister, Tammy Leavitt, has taken over the assignment. My dad called my brother in New York City on Thanksgiving and discovered that he too was making it. I love traditions! Whenever I eat pomegranate salad I think of my grandma and all the wonderful memories I have of her.

25 Things I Adore

1. Hugs from my kids

2. High-heeled shoes

3. Mackinac Island, Michigan

4. Gothic romance novels

5. Huge bathtubs full of bubbles

6. White Chocolate

7. Designer Jeans

8. Murder mystery t.v. shows- Bones, Criminal Minds, The Mentalist etc.

9. Carrot Cake

10. Sunsets

11. My cats

12. E-mails from friends

13. Reuniting with my baby after the endless 2 1/2 hours that he is in kindergarden.

14. Watching my daughter's dance team performances.

15. Japanese hair straightening

16. Lunch dates full of girl talk with friends

17. Cinnamon rolls

18. Shopping

19. Perfume

20. Victorian Homes

21. Primary

22. Baking chocolate chip cookies

23. A clean house

24. Naps

25. English accents

HOORAY!!!!

I often feel frustrated with my brain, wishing it worked faster and better, especially at things like math and physics. But for today (and probably today only)......I am feeling very SMART!I just completed a course on The Psychology of Personality through BYU independent study. I was worried about my grade because the instructor expected a very in-depth knowledge of the subject matter. . I was also pretty stressed because I knew that if I applied to grad school, my course grade would be the only indicator of my current academic abilities. The pressure to do well was intense. I took my final on Wednesday and was concerned by how hard it was. However, I must have done better than I thought since I checked my grade a few minutes ago and discovered that I had scored an 96% on my final and a 97% overall. An A was anything above 84% so I am feeling really good about my grade. HOORAY!!!

The Cutest Kids Ever

I've despaired of ever catching up with my blogging, so I'll just fill you in on some of the things my kids have been up to lately.

Makenna is enjoying seventh grade. She loves being on the middle school dance team, Lyon Locomotion. The picture above was taken after her first performance. She and the other 21 girls did an amazing job! Makenna is also having fun being in YW and had a fabulous time at Girl's Camp last summer. More than anything, I think she is excited about finally being tall enough to wear clothes from Aeropostle.

This picture was taken of Matthew at the school May Day dance back in the spring. He and the other fourth graders were doing a disco dance to the song Staying Alive. He is in Mrs. Hall's fifth grade class this year. He had her last year and is thrilled to be able to have her again this year. His favorite activity is roaming around the neighborhood on his bike with his dog Daisy at his heels. He spent over a month this summer traveling around the U.S. with my parents and had a great time. He went last year as well and is already begging to go again next year.

This picture is of Jonathon performing a Hawaiian dance at the school May Day Dance. Jonathon is in Mrs. Wimer's class this year. Mrs. Wimer and three of his classmates are in our ward at church, so that makes it a lot of fun for him. Jonathon was baptized last month. It was a very special day. Makenna and Matthew gave talks and Kevin led the singing. Jonathon is excited to be in scouts and is very gung ho about completing his requirements.

This is a picture of Kevin with our puggle (half pug/half beagle) Daisy. Kevin LOVES Daisy and our two cats, Alice and Zoe. He can't seem to spend enough time petting and playing with them. He started Mrs.William's morning kindergarden class this year. He seems to enjoy school, though his mom still misses him tremendously. He wants to eat cottage cheese for lunch everyday when he gets home, so I have to make sure the refrigerator is always well stocked.

Just Kidding

I've decided to keep this family blog going a little longer. Let me know if you'd like an invite to my private blog.

New Private Blogs

I've decided to retire this blog. Long story. So...I am going to be starting two new blogs. One will be a family blog and the other a personal (Yes, I'm copying you Andrea) blog. Both will be private. If you'd like an invite, please leave your name and e-mail address in the comment section or e-mail me at christinaoverton@hotmail.com

Patience

I used to be an avid journal writer. In fact my storage area contains a journal for almost every year of my life. Several years ago I came upon a saying that subsequently became my first entry in any new journal. Here it is:
Every New Beginning
Is a Door to Adventure-
A Threshold of Discovery......

I've always loved that saying, but it seems particularly poignant to me at this time. Those of you who know me well, know that over the last few years my life has taken some suprising and unexpected turns. And now I'm faced with many difficult decisions....

Looking back, I realize that I haven't had a lot of tough choices to make. Although I am cautious and indecisive by nature, most of my "big" decisions weren't very difficult ones. Usually I just knew in my heart what the right choice was and made it. Problem solved!

The decisions I'm now facing are much harder and more complicated than ones I've faced before. There are no perfect solutions, at least none that I can come up with. And as I've prayed over the most significant choice, the answer that keeps coming to me is to, "just wait." I hate that answer! I am eager to move forward, eager for closure, eager for change, eager for a "New Beginning." But there are certain choices that I simply CANNOT make unless I KNOW with 100 % certainty that they are right.

I don't know what the future holds for me. I wish I did. In the midst of one recent crisis I counselled with my dad, who said, "I wonder, when you look back at this point in your life will you see it as the end of a good stage of life or as the beginning of one?" His statement gave me pause. Although some windows are closing, others are opening. I am beginning to see cracks of light through doors I thought would be forever closed to me. And that gives me hope. I don't know what tomorrow will bring or even what choices I will make, but I do know that it will all work for my good and that for now I just need to exercise patience.

Christina, The Fix-It Woman

I am horribly behind on my blogging, but before playing catch up I need to brag about my most recent accomplishment.

I was having trouble with my washing machine, but hated the idea of paying a plumber to fix it. The hot water setting seemed to work just fine, but when I switched to the cold water setting the water barely drizzled into the washer. So...I did some googling and concluded that the cold water pipe must be clogged right at the point at which the water entered the machine. The plumber had recently cleaned out the hot water heater, so I surmised that some of the loose debris had clogged the cold water pipe.

I was anxious to get to work, but decided I'd better call my dad to come over and supervise just to make sure that I didn't electrocute myself or flood the house or anything like that. However, I must emphasize that I did ALL the actual work myself.

I don't want to brag or anything (yea right!), but I am proud to say that I now have a working washing machine. Am I good or what? Maybe I should forget applying to an MSW program and go to plumbing school (is there such a thing?) instead. What do you think???? Could I pull off the frighteningly low hanging jeans with the old grubby shirt plumber's uniform?

There was only one downside to the whole experience. Unfortunately in my zeal to test my efforts, I almost electrocuted myself by plugging in the washer with wet hands. My arm still hurts. :-( Still...since I am still alive, I am counting the whole experience as a great success story.

Gratitude

Life has presented many challenges for me lately. It's funny how our greatest challenges sometimes bring to light our greatest blessings. Here are some of the things I am grateful for:

1. A loving Savior who is always there for me.

2. Wonderful parents, siblings, and sister-in-law who love and support me.

3. Four amazing and loveable children.

4. A loving ward family.

5. Fabulous friends.

6. Inspired priesthood leaders.

7. Anti-depressants-I'm not even joking. :-)

8. Greater self-confidence than I have ever experienced before. Ironic, but true.

9. Hugs

10. Knowing that my best days are still ahead of me. Sometimes I have to keep reminding myself of this, but I know it's true.