My girls are so punk-rock

Taken on Christmas morning...

Grandma's not here

This is my Mom on Christmas morning not last year but the year before. She wouldn't like me posting this picture, but she'd hate me for posting the one I had from last year and so would Maggie. I think she looks really cute in this picture.

It was hard without her. Just like I thought it would be. It's not something I really want to write about apparently, since I started this post nearly a week ago and just can't seem to finish. But I also didn't want to just ignore it here on my blog.

Franny noticed she wasn't around often and made sure we were aware of it, too. Every now and then I'd hear her say, "Grandma's not here." I'm so glad she misses her grandma. My mom loves her so much. Once I even heard her pick up Sophie's toy cell phone and say, "Hi Grandma. I miss you."

I am so glad we went to California to be with the family though. It was definitely the best decision. It felt good to be together, and we laughed and enjoyed each other and played guitar hero and saw Juno and ate strawberry waffles and did the things we all used to do together. My Dad is amazing. I don't know how he managed to find the strength to decorate the house with all 9 boxes of Christmas decorations and buy everyone thoughtful and generous gifts and just be there for us all. One of my sisters was having a hard time and I was trying to comfort her when my Dad walked in and saw her crying. I was so touched by the look on his face. He walked right up and gave her a big hug. I was so glad I got to witness this small and simple thing. We are so blessed to have him as our father. I think my mom must be really pleased with how well he's handling their family. Man, my kids have it bad for their grandpa. They just love him.

I miss her.

Here's some pictures of Christmas this year.

I mean I've had men love me before, but not for six months in a row.

My sister Julia is engaged! To Grant Holmes. She is so in love and I'm so happy for them both. Julia Holmes. We're so grateful it's not going to be Julia Goolia.

Lame joke.

The big day is March 22 and Julia is up to her ears in wedding preparations and handling it like a pro, and with the help of our aunts, her future mother-in-law, and our close family friends the Linfords, I think this is going to be a great wedding. I feel like a piece of crap because I'm not there to help out! I did offer to be Julia's AV guy. I'm going to make a slide show of pictures of them growing up put to music. That should be fun. I so wish I could be there to help her pick out a wedding dress and register for gifts. I loved registering for gifts. Julia called last night and asked me a very important question. From now on, you can call me Katherine, or...

I'll answer to both.

Thanks Julia. I love you and I'm so excited.

I try really hard actually

Have you guys seen this movie yet? It is the bomb.com!

I wish I was as cool as Juno.

Great soundtrack, too.

When I was searching for a picture to post I saw that Roger Ebert called this the best film of the year. Which is weird, because I didn't really think he ever had anything nice to say about any movies besides Citizen Kane.

Most Embarassing Moment #13 - The Legend of Zelda

When I was nearly thirty years old I printed off 2 sets of FAQ's/walkthroughs of the Legend of Zelda for the archaic NES gaming system and beat the game, something I've been trying to accomplish since I was ten years old. (Well, on a completely sporadic schedule. I get the urge every few years, pull it out and eventually give up.) I'm just glad I got it done before I turned 30. Instead of the kudos I was expecting from my husband for my achievements, he suggested I post this story on my blog as one of my most embarassing moments. Although I feel slightly nerdier than usual tonight, I am satisfied and rejoice at last in the defeat of the evil Gannon!

I found the description below of the Zelda saga somewhere on the internet and it cracked me up and of course made me feel even more nerdy.

THE LEGEND OF ZELDA
A long, long time ago the World was in an age of Chaos. In the middle of this chaos, in a little kingdom in the land of Hyrule, a legend was being handed down from generation to generation, the legend of the "Triforce"; golden triangles possessing mystical powers.

One day, an evil army attacked this peaceful little kingdom and stole the Triforce of Power. This army was led by Gannon, the powerful Prince of Darkness who sought to plunge the World into fear and darkness under his rule. Fearing his wicked rule, Zelda, the princess of this kingdom, split up the Triforce of Wisdom into eight fragments and hid them throughout the realm to save the last remaining Triforce from the clutches of the evil Gannon. At the same time, she commanded her most trustworthy nursemaid, Impa, to secretly escape into the land and go find a man with enough courage to destroy the evil Gannon. Upon hearing this, Gannon grew angry, imprisoned the princess, and sent out a party in search of Impa.

Braving forests and mountains, Impa fled for her life from her pursuers. As she reached the very limit of her energy she found herself surrounded by Gannon's evil henchmen. Cornered! What could she do? ... But wait!

All was not lost. A young lad appeared. He skillfully drove off Gannon's henchmen, and saved Impa from a fate worse than death. His name was Link. During his travels he had come across Impa and Gannon's henchmen. Impa told Link the whole story of the princess Zelda and the evil Gannon. Burning with a sense of justice, Link resolved to save Zelda, but Gannon was a powerful opponent. He held the Triforce of Power. And so, in order to fight off Gannon, Link had to bring the scattered eight fragments of the Triforce of Wisdom together to rebuild the mystical Triangle.

If he couldn't do this, there would be no chance Link could fight his way into Death Mountain where Gannon lived. Can Link really destroy Gannon and save the Princess Zelda? Only your skill can answer that question. Good luck. Use the Triforce wisely.

Most Embarassing Moment- Honorable Mentions

These are all stories about times I've fallen due to snow or just plain tripping. Or trippin'. (Why you always trippin'?)

None of them are really embarrassing enough to make it into the "hall of fame" of my embarassing moments, but are still worth mentioning, hence the "honorable mentions" category.

Fall #1- High School. I'm late to class, walking very quickly, through the open courtyard of Marina school. There are very few people out walking with me- five or 6, and I am in the middle of the courtyard, in full view of everyone outside, when I trip over... well, nothing at all, and fall flat on my face. I recognize how funny it is even then and stand up to may eye contact with someone and laugh it off, but I see no kind and familiar faces at all, and am forced to keep walking in my trippin' shame.

Fall #2- Ricks College. I never really spent a lot of time in snow before I started school in Rexburg, ID in the fall of 1996. My Mom was really freaked out about the cold weather and she took me shopping for a coat and a pair of snowboots. We found a pair of Sorels but I couldn't find a decent coat. We figured that she could send me a coat later since I wouldn't need it right away. Just as she promised, she sent a large box soon after I arrived. When I was opening the box however, I thought, "how weird that mom sent me a sleeping bag?" This coat was huge. She sent me a size 14 even though I was a size 6 at the time. I guess she thought since it was bigger it would provide more coverage and more warmth? Not only was it way too big, but it was ankle-length! So anyway, it snowed for the first time in November or something. Very little snow, and we knew it was coming thanks to the weather man. I was nervous about walking in it, but my friends told me not to worry, that it was only difficult to walk when the paths got icy and slick and that wouldn't be a problem with such a small amount of snow. So the next morning I'm walking to class, in one of the busiest areas of campus, ready for anything in my steel-toed Doc Martens (don't tell my Mom but I have still never used the Sorels) and "large and in charge" in my sleeping bag coat. Walking to class, feeling like a pro at this whole snow-walking thing, when one of my adequately-treaded boots slips out from underneath me inexplicably and I fall hard on my rear. What the ??!? It was totally hilarious.

Fall #3- Target in Orem. One night after I moved to Utah and moved in with my friends Janelle and Manna, we went to Target to pick up a few things. I was standing in the front of the store, looking at make-up right across from where the cash registers are. Janelle and Manna were close by, looking at another area of the store, but still in my line of sight. As I was perusing this Target's selection of Maybelline or L'Oreal or whatever, I slipped on some spilled shampoo or hand soap and fell hard. The contents of my purse spilled all over the floor in the soapy, slippery mess and I was frantically trying to clean it up before anyone noticed (which was useless- I was in full view of all the cashiers and all of the customers who were checking out. I looked up to see Janelle and Manna totally laughing at me, and a few frightened onlookers watching me with concern. At first I couldn't understand why they were laughing at me and not rushing to my aid until I realized how funny it must be to see someone slip and fall for apparently no reason at all!

Christmas Eve

We've been spending Christmas Eve with my Mom's brothers and sisters for as long as I can remember. It's a long-standing tradition that I really look forward to and enjoy. It's usually held at either my aunt Gayle's or aunt Cindy's house. Since Cindy and Gayle worked so hard hosting the Sant Christmas Party (a party that my Mom has been hosting since the 80's), I offered to host Christmas Eve with my Dad at his house.

It's a pretty laid-back party. A nice dinner is served and we have a gift exchange and just hang out and visit into the night. I decided to serve a roasted pork loin with my Mom's Swiss cheese potatoes, homemade rolls, and a raspberry cheesecake. Gayle brought artichoke dip and her famous creamed corn. Cindy brought one of her fabulous salads. (She really makes the greatest salads.) And my Dad made his signature Christmas dessert, rice pudding, which he whipped together in record time as the party was starting. It all came together nicely and my sister Annie and I had a fun time getting everything ready together. She basically cleaned the whole house for the party while I cooked. Here's some pictures of the food.



I was really happy with the cheesecake. Cheesecakes often give me trouble. I always end up with huge unsightly cracks in the top from baking too long- which is why I always serve it with this raspberry topping. This time I made sure that the top still jiggled just a little bit in the middle when I took it out. Worked like a charm.

Here's some more pics from Christmas Eve.
Here I am with my aunt Gayle and aunt Cindy. I love both these women so much.
Here's Julia dipping into the rice pudding. Oh yeah.
And here's the kids table. My Uncle Lauren has four small kids all very close in age and Franny was in heaven! She can't stop talking about them even now.

Roast Loin of Pork with Fennel

2 garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbs kosher salt
1 Tbs fresh thyme leaves
1/4 cup dijon mustard
1 3 lb boneless pork loin, trimmed and tied
3 small fennel bulbs, tops removed
10 carrots, peeled and thickly sliced diagonally
10 small potatoes, quartered
2 onions, thickly sliced
4 Tbs good olive oil
4 Tbs butter, melted
salt and freshly ground pepper

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

With a mortar and pestle or in the bowl of the food processor fitted with a steel blade, grind together the garlic, salt, and thyme leaves. Add the mustard and combine. Spread the mixture over the loin of pork and allow it to sit at room temp for at least 30 minutes.

MEanwhile, cut the fennel bulbs into thick wedges, slicing through the core. Toss the fennel, carrots, potatoes, and onions in a bowl with the olive oil, melted butter, salt, and pepper.

Tranfer the vegetables to a large roasting pan and cook for 30 minutes. Add the pork loin to the pan and continue to cook for another 30 to 50 minutes, or until a meat thermometer inserted in to the middle of the pork reads exactly 138 degrees. Remove the meat from the pan and return the vegetables to the oven to keep cooking. Cover the meat with aluminum foil and allow it to rest for 15 minutes. Remove the strings from the meat and slice it thickly. Arrange the meat and vegetables on a platter. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

(I didn't take the time to tie up the roast and I thought it was great. I also left all the vegetables out this time.)

Cheesecake
This is my FAVORITE cheesecake recipe. Any flavored cheesecake I make is a variation on this. It tastes delicious and I wouldn't think about trying any other recipe! I took 1 1/2 baskets of fresh raspberries and tossed it with about 1 cup of heated raspberry preserves. I also made a raspberry coulis to go with it.

Crust
5 Tbs butter, melted, plus 1 Tbs melted butter for the pan
8 whole graham crackers (4 oz), broken into rough pieces and processed in a food processor to fine, even crumbs
1 Tbs sugar

Filling
2 1/2 lbs (5 8oz packages) cream cheese, cut into rough 1 inch chunks, at room temperature
1/8 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/3 cup sour cream
2 tsp juice from 1 lemon
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 large egg yolks, plus 6 lare eggs, at room temp

1. For the crust: Adjust an oven rack to the lower middle position and heat the oven to 325 degrees. Brush the bottom and sides of a 9 inch spring form pan with 1/2 Tbs of melted butter. Combine the graham cracker crumbs and sugar in a medium bowl; add 5 Tbs of the melted butter and toss with a fork until evenly moistened. Empty the crumbs into the springform pan and press evenly into the pan bottom. Bake until fragrant and beginning to brown around the edges, about 13 minutes. Cool on a wire rack while making the filling.

2. For the filling: Increase the oven temp to 500 degrees. In the bowl of a standing mixer, beat the cream cheese at medium-low speed to break up and soften it slightly, about 1 minute. Scrape the beater and the bottom and sides of the bowl well with a rubber spatula; add the salt and about half the sugarand beat at medium low speed until combined, about 1 minute. Scrape the bowl; beat in the remaning sugar until combined; about 1 minute. Scrape the bowl; add the sour cream, lemon juice, and vainlla, and beat at low speed until combined, about 1 minute. Scrape the bowl; add the egg yoks and beat at medium-low speed until throughly combined, about 1 minute. Scrape the bowl; add the remaining eggs, two at a time, beating until thoroughly combined, about 1 minute, scraping the bowl between additions.

3. Brush the sides of the springform pan with the remaing 1/2 Tbs of melted butter. Set the springform pan on a rimmed baking sheet. Pour the filling into the cooled crust and bake 10 minutes; without opening the oven door, reduce the oven temp to 200 degrees and continue to bake until the cheesecake registers about 150 degrees on an instant-read thermometer inserted in the center, about 1 1/2 hours. (Might take longer) Transfer the cake to a wire rack and cool until barely warm, 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Run a paring knife between the cake and the pan sides. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate until cold, at least 3 hours.

4. To unmold the cheesecake, remove the sides of the pan. Slide a thin metal spatula between the crust and the bottom of the pan to loosen, then slide the cake onto a serving plate. Let the cheesecake stand at room teperature about 30 minutes, then cut into wedges.

Swiss Cheese Potatoes

This is my Mom's favorite potato recipe for Christmas dinners. I totally blame this dish alone for the eighteen pounds I gained in one month when I was pregnant with Franny. I was home for Christmas and there was plentiful amounts of this leftover in the fridge. It's good stuff.

2 c. milk
1/2 c butter
salt and pepper
3 lbs. baking potatoes
6 cloves garlic
1 c heavy cream
1 c grated Swiss cheese

Combine first four ingredients in large pan and bring to a boil. Peel potatoes and slice them really thin. Drop into hot milk. Blend in garlic and cream. Return to boil, simmer for 15 minutes. Potatoes should be 1/2 done. Pour liquid and potatoes into a buttered baking dish. Sprinkle with cheese and bake at 325 for 30 minutes.