For family members on Grandma Belcher's side

Beth Mitchell (August 14, 1927 - December 12, 2008)

Beth W. Mitchell, age 80, passed away on December 12, 2008 at the Orchard Park Care Center in Orem, Utah. She was born to Samuel LeRoy and Annie Margaret Gillen Williams on August 14, 1927 in Murray, Utah.
She married Albert Wilford Mitchell on March 19, 1947 in Sandy, Utah and they were later sealed in the Salt Lake Temple on March 19, 1957. They are the parents of four children; Dale, Dean, David and Joyce.
Beth was a devoted loving wife and mother and she enjoyed spending time with her family. She was active in the LDS Church and served as a Relief Society teacher, Secretary, on the Old Folks Committee, ward baptism coordinator and was a great ward greeter.
She is survived by her husband of 62 years, the love of her life, Albert and three sons; Dale (Karren), Dean (Gaylene), David (Renee), daughter; Joyce ( Russell) Baum, 15 grandchildren, 27 great-grandchildren, brother; Don (Elaine) Williams. Preceded in death by her parents, brothers; Elmo Williams, Rex Williams, Roy Williams, sisters; Eva Belcher, Ella Broadhurst, and Elda Johnson and daughter-in-law Susan Mitchell.
Funeral services will be held Tuesday, December 16, 2008 at 11:00 a.m. in the Lehi Stake Center, 200 North Center. Friends and family may call Monday evening from 6-8:00 p.m. at Wing Mortuary, 118 East Main, Lehi, Ut. and one hour prior to services at the Stake Center on Tuesday. Interment, Lehi City Cemetery. Online guest book at wingmortuary. com.
The family would like to thank the wonderful staff at Orchard Park Care Center for all their loving care.

Help! My 14 month old has surpassed me in technology!

Tell me if I'm going crazy, or do the kids pick up on technology at much younger ages these days?

I'm still in shock after witnessing Baby Monkey walk over to my DVD collection, pull out a DVD, then carry it over to the DVD player where he pushes the button to open it. After that, he deposits the DVD in the open tray, surveys it to make sure it's in correctly, and then oh-so-carefully pushes the button to close it. Then he looks at me as if to say "Yay, we're going to watch a movie!"

Leo is a witness to this, so I know I'm not hallucinating.

Next thing I know, he'll be using a handheld GPS system to find me if he ever gets lost in a store. Forget about ME using one to keep track of HIM, I'm sure he'll be much more proficient in using it, so it'll be him trying to keep track of me.

Favorite Christmas Tradition

Every year during Relief Society or other social gathering, the question is inevitably asked:

What is your favorite Christmas tradition?

In past years, I had never really been able to come up with an answer that was completely satisfying to me. Yes, my family has abelskeivers every Christmas morning. Abelskeivers are Swedish fried pancake balls (basically), which requires the use of a special cast-iron pan specifically made for this purose. A Norwegian friend of mine says that they are not actually Swedish, but from another Scandanavian country. Anyhow. Yes it is yummy, but it's not particularly something that I look back upon with nostalgia...especially not in past years when I can just feel the vegetable oil that the pancakes are fried in cruising through my veins and clogging my arteries. Yeah, I'm a romantic.

Another tradition I would mention was the filling of the Dutch wooden shoes with candy by Santa Claus....although again, no nostalgia for this one, it just meant more candy! We're not even Dutch, for goodness' sake!

Or something that I would mention was the placing of straw in a manger for every act of service performed during the month of December and then placing the baby Jesus (one of my sisters' dolls) in the manger on Christmas Eve. This one came the closest of the past three of being a tradition I could look back upon with fondness since it encouraged selflessness, service and charity, plus it focused on spiritual matters rather than our stomaches.

But while I was decorating the Christmas tree, I finally came up with MY answer to the question, "What is your favorite Christmas tradition?"

Christmas ornaments.

I have a Christmas ornament from every single year of my life from my mom and my Grandma Belcher (until she passed away, que en paz descansa), usually signifying something that I started that year, or accomplished or had an interest in. Of course I have the obligatory "Baby's First Christmas" (one of the few ornaments that rats in our attic didn't destroy about 15 years ago). For several years I have mostly penguin ornaments as I was completely obsessed with penguins. When I started to play the flute, I have ornaments of angels playing the flute. Same with the tuba. I got an ornament of a car (a classic cadillac to be exact) the year I got my driver's license. When I turned 16, I got an ornament of a mouse sitting on a makeup bag, signifying me getting ready for my dates (although admittedly, I did not do well in the makeup department OR the dates department, but I was finally allowed to!).

When Leo came for his first Christmas, he got an ornament from my Grandma. We started getting joint ornaments once we got married, usually with Mexican themes since we were living in Mexico. Let's see what we get this year!

It makes putting up the Christmas tree a fun and nostalgic ride. It also refreshes my memory as to when certain events happened, since I have a notoriously bad memory when it comes to past events in my own life (but ask me the year that the cartoon Steamboat Willie featuring Micky Mouse was released? No problem! 1928)

In the meantime, I just wanted to share this with you, and I must get back to shopping for Tiago's ornament for this year! What shall it be?

My quote of the day :)

I myself am made entirely of flaws, stitched together with good intentions.
- Augusten Burroughs

Hallelujah!

After spending many frustrated hours at my laptop, cursing it and wishing it would run faster, Leo and I decided to get a new laptop! I spent many hours researching and comparing, and finally settling on a Toshiba that I bought through the Costco.com website.

So what does that mean to all of you, my non-loyal followers? :) I can blog again, or, I feel that the time invested in updating my blog is finally less than or equal to the benefits of you all knowing the latest ins and outs of my life. Woo hoo!

Perhaps I shall do as my friend Janelle does, she has a set time twice a week to sit down and update her blog with the latest of the last few days. Or do you still do that? I haven't found that it was worth turning on my laptop and screaming at it to do anything other than pay my bills and occasionally check my email. I would also occasionally check my voicemail, too, (we have Vonage which allows for my voicemail to be sent to me via email), so if you have called me recently and I didn't call you back, that's why.

Anyhow, with this new laptop has also come ample opportunity to waste time playing the new games (Bejeweled, anyone?) and checking out the cool features (oooh look! An integrated webcam, I can put my makeup on while checking my email!)

With that said, I had better go and be busy so I can have something to show for my 8 hours at home with the baby. That's easier said than done, I know....but Leo already thinks I have it easy being at home with the baby (before you all attack him, he DOES realize how much work I have to do around here, picking up suit coats and ties...), but sometimes I wish I could trade in the monooooootoooony and repetition for something that actually SHOWS that I am making progress! What's the point of doing laundry if it's all going to get dirty again....oh, right...clean clothes to wear and we don't like to smell dirty...

Hasta la vista, baby!