On being local

We are from Provo, Utah. Happy Valley. I have not always been from Provo.
We are transplants. Currently, I have still lived more years outside of the state of Utah than inside.
I like Utah. I do not always love Provo.
Mostly, I think this year for the holidays I have been wishing to be somewhere else. I think I am bored. I want to go somewhere warm. Maybe somewhere exotic. Okay, actually maybe I want to go somewhere back East. Maybe somewhere cold. I am just wishing to be somewhere else.

"oh Dandelions...Yum-o."

I tried my hand at homemade quiche. Well, mostly homemade as I am still afraid of pie crust. Pie crust and cinnamon rolls go hand in hand for me. Oh the multitude of things that could go wrong!


Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Begin with two 9 inch frozen pie crusts. Set at room temp for just about 15 min.
Bake in oven for 12-15 min, just so the crust has a bit of color

This is what I threw together:
8 eggs
1 pint half and half (I think whole milk would be great too)
>1/2 tsp. pepper
>1/2 tsp. salt

Quiche 1:
Cover bottom of crust with mix of shredded Italian blend cheese, roughly 1/2 cup
Add 1/4 of a large onion, diced
1/2 to 1 cup fresh baby spinach leaves.

Pour half of the above egg custard over the ingredients and cover with another 1/2 cup Italian blend cheese.

Quiche 2:
Cover bottom of crust with shredded sharp cheddar cheese, roughly 1/2 cup
Add 1/2 cup broccoli florets, cut small...add enough so that it's pretty against the cheese
Add 4-6 slices of deli style ham ( I used black forest ham for a smokey taste, in which case I only used 4 slices so as not to overwhelm the rest of the flavors), diced
Pour half of the egg custard over the ingredients and cover with more cheese!

Bake both pies for roughly 50 minutes to an hour. Till a fork/toothpick comes out clean.
Eat warm.

Falling in Love with Love

I do believe in love.

I believe in love
for
Mr. Thornton and Miss Hale.
I believe in love
for
Captain Wentworth and Anne.
I believe in love
for
Ella and Prince Char.
I believe in love
for
Shrek and Fiona.
I believe in love
for
Queen Victoria and Prince Albert,
I believe in love
for
Nala and Simba.
I believe in love
for
Katniss and Peeta.
I believe in love
for
Maid Marion and Robin Hood.

Oh what love stories!
...Sigh...
I could stay in that sigh forever.

But I will not.
Those are not my love stories.
I have not fallen in love
with a
childhood sweetheart.
I will not marry out of
social expectation
or
because of royal
obligation.
I hope never to have to decide between
my life and a dear friend.

As of late,
I have not seen any dashing young men
on horseback(and to be honest,
I am quite relieved-high speeds, large animal, and
one clumsy girl are not my idea of romance).
As of late,
I do not look in the mirror and label myself
"Damsel in distress."
Okay, maybe I can see, "in distress."
Life is like that once in a while.

But,
as of late,
I have been a recipient of a multitude
of kindnesses.

An impromptu Birthday dinner.
Frosted birthday cookies.
A thoughtful and homemade
Halloween costume
excursion.
Brain tumor education, a snuggle,
and a few good hugs.
A treat at a gas station when my car
broke down.
A beautifully accented voice at the Temple
recommend desk reminding me that
the gospel is good and He knows my name.
Random drop ins.
Joshua Radin's love songs.
Watching "Sense and Sensibility" with a mixed audience.
Teaching and talking C. S. Lewis.
Recipe swap.
Tribe membership at Earthfruits and a pound
of frozen yogurt(and popping bobbas).
A sincere prayer offered up on behalf of friend,
food and family.
One boys confession of nervousness over
a fantastic girl-we role played and she said yes
to another date.
Assurance that we are to be vulnerable
and if I chose to fall apart every once in a while,
he would not even bat an eye.
Thai food and mutual friends-one friend
who served well, gave his heart and whose company
others wished to be in.
Laughter.

Perhaps I do fall in love.
Everyday.
Not that I am proposing!
But if I learn to be accustomed to these niceties.
If I learn to give them in return,
who knows,
I may just become unsuspecting and
one day be swept off of my feet.

Who knows,
I may just take a running leap and choose to
fall.
With any luck, I will fall into the arms
of a likewise unsuspecting
hero.

Maybe one day someone will comment on my absence,
"I have not seen Rani lately;
where has she run off to?"
And with a gust of cheesy wind and muted pastels,
you will catch just a glimpse of me
riding off toward the horizon.
Do not look too closely,
I do not want you to see the white of my knuckles
(I will be hanging on for dear life)
or my matted hair(I have never been one to do it anyway).
I would rather you see that I did indeed
choose to jump and I did it in
anticipation of
a
HAPPILY EVER AFTER.
I do believe in love.
For me. And him.


Ahemm...in the meanwhile, I will love but not be in love.

Thank-you my friends!
I really do mean it when I say,
"Love you all."

Lil' Taste of the past few days

We learned about manners in pre-school

and *Jane commented,

"There are a lot of colors in my nose"
when we spoke of what we do with stuff
that comes out of our noses.

Psalms 139.
Heavenly Father knows my
"downsitting"
and my
"uprising"
and
"my thought afar off."
Still,
"The Lord will perfect me in the knowledge,
concerning his kingdom..."
and
"...wilt not forsake the works of [his] own
hands."

A text from a dear friend...
k. The context is dating.
"Hahahha! Food for thought:
'A person well satisfied with themselves
is seldom satisfied with others, and others,
rarely are with them.'

I live with Laurie
who was trained by Sarah.
Sarah and Stephanie
were MTC companions.
Stephanie and I were companions
in Fairfield, CA.
Sarah, Laurie and I
are friends with
Bryce who is Stephanie's brother.
Today Bryce turned 22.
We celebrated at Stephanie
and Austin's house.
Austin is from Fairfield.
Needless to say,
when other guests started
to follow the connections, laughs
and smiles abounded.

I am alive.
I bled.
I cut my finger on a Cutco knife
while wailing on broccoli.
Brocoli is super food.
Women especially should eat it.
It is a good source of calcium.

And I am loving again.

Just something beautiful

A friend recommended this Joshua Radin artist. The following is among my faves.
I also love, "Paperweight," and "I'd rather be with you."

Jenna Baker

Jenna is leaving on Saturday.
I thought I was okay until Wednesday
and then I didn't know if I was okay.
She said she wanted video of
everyone who visited her in the hospital.
Though I had been warned that the light
signifying that the tape was rolling was super bright,
when it turned on,
I froze.
I usually have words but when it comes
down to the people I love,
I frequently find myself absolutely without.
Again,
I thought I was okay until Wednesday
and then I didn't know if I was okay.

Jenna,
I brought my sister to you because
I know that you love her
and
because she loves you.
I brought you that flower material because
I thought I really
just needed to keep MY hands busy.
I ate your hot tamales because
I had to eat my feelings.
I speak infrequently
and
stay only briefly
because then I would have to
eat pounds of Hot Tamales
I brought you Braden (and talked to him)
because
I needed him to speak
for me
and because
he can look at you
with both love and a medical eye
and then I feel safe.


When I ramble I eventually get to the point
and the point is just that I love you
and so does Heavenly Father.
You are so good and I think in a lot of ways you know that.
I think that most particularly because you know
my heart,
as ancient and as protected as it is.
You called me out in such a fantastic way.
Remember that.
Remember you have much to do and be.