December Daily: Finished in February

One project I tried out this past year was a December Daily Album. The idea is to do a daily journal of a photo and/or story each day of December in order to capture the flow of everyday life during a magical time of the year. It's an incentive to capture the everyday and to stop and enjoy what's happening now during a time that can be buried under a flurry of busyness.

What does it say that it's finally finished on the fourth day of February?

To be fair, it has been almost finished (just lacking two days) since my scrapbooking retreat and I was just waiting on a few photos from friends, a program from my husband and a photo I forgot to print.

People do all sorts of fabulous things with this idea, some more elaborate than others. I chose a mini-book (the pages are about six inches tall), which is in some ways easier than a full size book. I could plan just a little something, no pressure. I could tuck some memorabilia into the pages with a single punch. On the other hand, when I take a bunch of pictures it's hard to narrow down to one; fitting in a few photos on a small page can be difficult. I made all the little pages plus the little journaling cards (space to write, with the date) in the fall before the holiday craziness started so that did make it easier.

I really like how it turned out. It's a fun little book that I now have sitting with another mini-book in a large pottery bowl on my sofa so that anybody can pick it up and flip through it. I did have some mixed feelings about this project, though. I realized after I got started that people usually do this by printing out single prints daily from their home printer so that they can really do it daily. I don't like the look of home prints so I was picking up a few prints at a time at the photo shop at my local Costco (well at least that was convenient - I am there ridiculously often). This meant that I could think about it daily but not actually do it daily, which seemed a little backwards. Later, it was hard to finish it when I've mentally moved on from December.

It is fun looking at it now, though so although I don't know if I'll do this again, I do like the final product.

Artisan Bread in Progress

I'm trying a new bread thing! I had seen a few people post about Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day and was curious, so I requested it at the library. I picked it up today and look what is started!

The idea is that you make up a big batch of dough for the fridge and then each day you can hack off a chunck and bake it. The dough is much more wet than traditional dough so it keeps well and you don't have to knead it. The five minutes is actual hands-on time, so we'll see how it goes. I'll report on the results!

Scrapbooking

(I have been trying all week to make this item to share! Real life keeps getting in the way with the recording of life. Sheesh!)

In addition to the retreat, a while ago (I think last summer) some of the scrapbooking blogs and websites were taking turns posting layouts that addressed the topic "Why I Scrapbook". (I can't seem to find what was inspiring me then, but I did find a gallery of layouts on the subject at Write.Click.Scrapbook.) After being on such a good scrapbooking roll, I've been thinking about why I love it so. It's a little funny that I'm so into scrapbooking, though I should have seen it coming. After all, I hoarded paint chips from Home Depot as a child just because I love bits of colored paper!

But when I started scrapbooking, I really just wanted to make a baby book for Zack. I specifically did not want to get "into" scrapbooking, as it sounded like a time and money sink. I also though it was a rather laborious way of doing the simple job of showing someone a few photos.

But as I started actually doing it, I fell in love with it. All the prettiness really helps. Who can resist the beautiful colors and textures, the brads and tags, the velvet flourish paper, oh my! I definitely enjoy the artistic aspect of the hobby. But the real heart of it is in the story. As I've talked about before, I love story. This is a way to capture the stories that really make the pictures meaningful. It records the history of the moment - the traditions, the events and the everyday life that are so quickly forgotten.

Really, it's the same reason that I like blogging. The story of life is captured best in the bits of everyday stuff, the stuff I won't remember this time next year unless I write it down. And the connections possible when we share those bits are what is so compelling to me about reading blogs. So, yeah, scrapbooking is more involved than sliding photos into an album (and sometimes I do that too) but it is richer in story and sharing too, and that's worth so much to me.

The image above is a "digital layout", meaning I made it all on the computer using Photoshop Elements. More on that soon!

Scrapbooking Retreat

I'm pretty hyped up on creative topics right now, particularly scrapbooking, which is why I'm happy to be writing about creative stuff the next few posts! I just got back from a two-night scrapbooking retreat and ooooooh was it fabulous!

What does one do at a scrapbooking retreat? A friend asked me if there were activities. Yep, there sure are: there's scrapbooking. In between the scrapbooking? Um, we did pause to eat regularly and sleep briefly. But that's about it, which is the best thing about the retreat: you can just keep working and working. You can leave your stuff set up when you go to bed and come back to it without packing up in between. Is the opposite of that constant feeling I have as a mom, "I can't form a complete thought!" Instead, I could actually focus on a project, work on something without interruption and have a lot of pleasant mental space to be creative!

Notice those great girls I got to hang with? They were really fun. We packed up all our STUFF, filling up the space in the minivan even with the backseat folded down. Two years ago when we went we didn't have near as much paraphanalia as many of the other attendees, but this year we were right up there. Can you get a good sense of the room from the pictures? It was FULL of scrapbooking EVERYTHING!

Having dedicated an entire weekend to scrapbooking has me thinking about what is so satisfying to me about this hobby. Some of it is the fun company, as you can see. More on the other motivations tomorrow!

Firstfruits

The lettuce is finally ready to thin! And lucky me, I get to eat the thinnings. So tender and delicious!

I think the sprouting has been really slow this year, probably because we had the garden locked down the whole time we were gone on our Christmas trip, since temperatures were very cold here. Now James has sown a second crop too, so as this batch matures, the others should start sprouting. It's a short season before it is hot here, so I'm going to enjoy every leaf!

Cook's Confession

I am addicted to Ramen Noodles. As a somewhat foodie type, I guess I'm not supposed to... but I don't care, I really love them. I have Ramen for lunch (or dinner if James is working late) multiple times a week. I crave them (hm, should that worry me?).

Now, I do fix 'em up - more or less depending on how energetic I'm feeling. I start with the Lime Shrimp flavor, add the juice of half a lime, dried parsley, lots of paprika, a few dashes of cayenne pepper, some turmeric, a small dallop of sour cream and a sprinkling of chopped scallions. Just to class up the joint, you know?

New Toys

Ah, what retrospective of December photos would be complete without one of the baby of the family loving his new toys?

Ok! As much as I enjoyed looking back over December's pictures, I'm on to creative-type topics next week. Whoo hoo!

Pima Canyon

Isn't this a gorgeous canyon? These photos are by my hubby and father, so I haven't seen it myself, but I was impressed with just how BIG the country is. On the last day of our Christmas trip, Dad and James decided to hike a 12.3 mile loop in the mountains just outside Tucson.

The starting point point and ending point didn't quite make a full circle, and they didn't want to leave a vehicle there all day, so the plan was for my mom to drive them to one side then come pick them up at the end of the day on the other side. The hike had a lot of elevation change, taking them up into the mountains, across a saddle and back down; when they chose which side to start at, they chose the uphill side, knowing there would be plenty of up and down to complete the hike. Also, since the days were short, they knew they needed to start early and keep moving to make it back by dark.

When my mom dropped them off at the trailhead, there were a few law enforcement people around but they didn't realize until after she was gone that the trail was closed due to a tracking operation they had going. Dad and James quickly realized that they weren't going to get on the trail anytime soon, so my mom went back and picked them up and took them to the other end of the route. It was a later start than they intended but off they went.

By the time they were close to the saddle, it was already 3pm. The last little bit before the saddle was the most elevation change and the route down the other side was unfamiliar to both of them. They had started from the opposite end from what they intended, making the elevations even more challenging. So... they turned around. They had to almost-jog to make it down before dark and it took the last bit of the light to get back to the trailhead. It was over 11 miles - still a great hike!

The pictures are so beautiful that it makes me want to go too. We're thinking about a hiking challenge to have all of the family that feels up to it make the 12.3 mile loop next Christmas. Considering there were 13 of us (yes, all staying in my sister's house) this year, we could really have a fun hiking contingent next year!

Check out that stance

I love this picture. It really makes me smile to see my nephew with his feet planted in this wide-legged stance and his baggy bottom jeans. That boy is all boy! The light sabers were courtesy of my parents and, as you can imagine, the boys were obsessed with them - thank goodness those particular toys will be residing in Tucson! And the weather! We see why all the snowbirds love Yuma. It was really sunny, pleasantly cool and beautiful.

Southern Arizona Transportation Museum

When we were in Tucson we visited the Southern Arizona Transportation Museum. This is a really small museum but it is fun for little and medium ones. Zack liked the telephone style recorded information on all the displays and Sammy liked the train table at the entrance. We all loved the huge engine outside! This is in the downtown historic area and we also walked around a little looking at some nearby historic hotels. I recommend it for a light outing. And, with the beautiful weather, I wish I'd gotten some really great shots of the kids in front of these green doors!

The Road Goes On Forever and the Party Never Ends

I've been looking back through the mini-album I made journaling our days in December and now I want to share some of my favorite pics. I'll post on a few more throughout this week and hopefully get to show some pics of my album too.

It was apparently important that Zack's Froggy got the best seat, looking out the window into the blinding sun.

You see our choice of roadtrip beverages is Sonic drinks.

There was no sight sweeter than Sammy finally asleep.

And yes, I did do some light scrapbooking on my lap in the car. What? It was a long time!

Carlsbad Caverns

(click on the image to see it full-size!)

We decided to add a couple of days to the beginning of our Christmas trip in order to visit Carlsbad Caverns in southern New Mexico. It was very beautiful and a lot of fun, though I think it will be better for us when our kids are older. The formations were so impressive and we loved seeing them, but in case you are planning a trip, let me just make a couple of notes in case it's of help to someone.

If you do the full walk, which is really worth doing after going all that way, it is two and a half miles. It's really very steep. There were these signs warning you that it was steep as we walked it but I guess I didn't take it very seriously! It was fine for James and I (with sensible shoes), but it was enough to make us tired afterward. Zack walked all of it but I was coaxing and bribing by the end to stave off whining: "there are snacks up here, should we walk on and see about a snack?"

We figured Sammy would love riding in the backpack with Daddy, but for some reason he did NOT. It's true he was sick, and also that because of being sick or in a hotel, he didn't sleep well the night before, but he was VERY cranky about being in the backpack. Maybe it was just too similar to being in a carseat. Whatever the cause, he wanted to be down and walking. We tried that, but it was totally impossible. The guardrails were above his eyeline so they weren't much of a deterrent. Instead, many of the precious and sensitive rock formation were at his eye level and well within reach (yikes). The dropoffs were right at the edge of the path and steep in many places. There was just no way a 21-month-old could walk it, even just long enough to tire and want to ride.

Also, we thought we could ply Sammy with snacks, forgetting that no snacks at all were allowed in the caverns (duh). And we forgot his pacifier. That was just a dumb move on our part. He cried a LOT. I spent many a switchback running along side James, holding Sammy's hand in the backpack and trying to sing to him in the lowest possible voice.

Which brings me to another point. You aren't supposed to speak above a whisper level in the cavern because everything echoes and sound carries. I can barely keep Zack from shouting everything he says, much less get him to keep his voice to a whisper (sometimes I notice my own volume and think me must take after his mom in this respect). And explaining to Sammy that he needed to keep his crying to a whisper? Well, you can guess how successful we were with that!

In the end, I gave Sammy my wrap and to hold like a lovey and he fell asleep, Zack was a trooper, and we got to see everything. One thing I loved was that because of the winter season the crowd was extremely light. We didn't get to see the bats, but there wasn't any guano smell and there weren't any crowds. There were many times when we were totally alone, not able to see or hear anyone in either direction.

Also, we rented some self-guided tour audio units that gave interesting details about more than forty stations along the route. There was a kid version and an adult version; we got one of each. They were both fun and Zack liked punching in the numbers and hearing the ongoing "story" of the cave. I recommend taking advantage of that feature when you go!

p.s. Don't forget a sweatshirt!

Fridge Sitter

Thanksgiving to Christmas, Texas to Arizona, Grandma's or Granny's... this boy is a fridge sitter. You can't even get the milk out before he's in there lounging.

Customer Service

Remember my favorite Starbucks vat-o-coffee mug? Here I am, not apart from my mug even while opening presents on Christmas morning. Sadly, it broke! The threading inside the lid that closes it for leak-free travel broke off so that it wouldn't close anymore. I took it in to Starbucks and just showed it to them and I was so pleased at the cheerfulness with which they replaced it. Sometimes it seems to me that good customer service is disappearing, so I'm glad to report that Starbucks is still great!

Views over 2400 miles (2009/10 version)

We had a great Christmas! We were gone for 17 days and drove over 2440 miles. There was lots of beauty, lots of family and lots of fun!

Christmas Cowboy

Sammy's favorite activities all at once: running around wearing Zack's cowboy hat, saying "Ow-boy!"; stealing his pacifier out of the diaper bag (it's supposed to be limited to use during sleeping times and desperate times); and messing with the Christmas tree while saying gaily, "tree-No! tree-No!".

36 Degrees?

Overcast, 36 degrees, misty and generally dreary? It's perfect outdoor playing weather to somebody! I was never an outdoor person as a child, but I guess this is what the natural outdoor lovers among us do - get out there, no matter what the weather! I stepped out with the camera and then made a quick escape back indoors!

A follow-up item from this week's Storytime reading lineup - check out this cute book, A Pirate's Night Before Christmas! The author is one of the librarians at our local branch. Zack told him we loved it and it seems to make his day.

Last week one of the ladies at our church showed us her collection of Night Before Christmas books - she probably has 40 different editions. It was so neat that it made all of us want to run out and start a collection. Zack already loves the traditional words, and this one was so cute too. Looks like it's in stock at some of our local bookstores- I hope to get a chance to pick it up.

Storytime

Wednesdays are Storytime days at the library. We go almost every week that they have it. There have been a variety of storytellers of the the past couple of years. Sometimes it's really well done and sometimes it's a little flat, but it really doesn't matter to the kids. I think they like the routine of it as much as the content of it. They know the Children's Librarian at our local branch and are happy to see her bring out her Clifford the Big Red Dog puppet.

Until this past week, I'd been keeping Sammy in his stroller for the Storytime. It's the preschool storytime (as opposed to the younger-focused toddler time), and he was a bit disruptive walking around. Sammy was mostly happy in the stroller, still watching the story. But the previous visit, when I let him get down to play after the little program was over, I discovered he was doing some of the motions to the songs that had been in the program. Last week, I finally let him sit on the floor with Zack and boy were they cute together.

Afterwards, we head to the children's section and I let the kids pick out books to their hearts' content (which is how we ended out with 63 items checked out earlier in the fall). I pick books for them too, trying to pull some theme-related items, some non-fiction, and some surprises.

Oh, and I always have a few items on hold waiting for me too. I pick up television shows a season at a time, books for book club, and non-fiction so that I can read and still be a pleasant member of my family!

This will definitely remain a staple of our weekly routine.

Kale Chips

I finally tried something that I've been meaning to make for a while - kale chips. I've had mixed success with kale in the past, so I was really glad that this recipe turned out well!

This is about half a bunch of kale, stripped from stems and torn into 2" pieces. Then I tossed it with 1 tsp. cider vinegar, 2 tsp. olive oil and coarse salt. I baked it at 375 for 5 minutes, flipped the pieces with my tongs, and baked for 7 more minutes.

It does have the characteristic dark, leafy greens flavor, but it also is salty and crip, sort of disintegrating in a satisfying way when you crunch down on it. We ate the whole batch in no time - I definitely recommend it!

Advent

Does your family have an Advent tradition? Ours didn't really, but my sister and I found these cute houses after Christmas last year and we decided to start something. Any guesses as to when I set mine up? Yes, that's right, on the afternoon of December 1, in a race to get it ready before Zack's bedtime.

I thought about candies or little toys, but decided there is a lot of candy and toys already flooding the season. These little doors would be exciting just by their novelty, so I decided I wanted to use scriptures, repeating the story so that it would become ever more familiar. Zack is at that age that kids are such sponges, able to remember and repeat everything they hear. Why waste it on his just repeating the text of television comercials, eh? I thought I'd be able to google around and find a sequence of scriptures that I thought was just right but I didn't. I ended up taking from several lists and splitting it up so that we talk about the whole story over the course of the month. The hardest part was getting the printouts folded and rolled up tiny enough to get them into those tiny doors!

After almost a week, Zack is still really excited about it and James and I are enjoying it too. I've put a tiny treat in every two or three days, but I'm trying to emphasize that our focus is on the story. We open a door at dinner, if possible, or if not, at bedtime. We missed one day and did two the next day. It's pretty easy. I'm hoping he'll start noticing that some of what we're reading is repeated in Chritsmas hymns and in church services.

They're multiplying.

Coffee talk, in honor of Black Friday.

I do love my recycle-themed Starbucks mug, but I'm not sure I really need a whole family of them.

I started with the little one. I was looking for something with a lid that really seals, even for hot beverages, had no handle to get in the way of my car's cupholders, and was pretty. This one has been great for all those requirements. It was the only size they had at the time, though, and it was just so small. Eventually, they added larger sizes and I decided to spring for a larger one - the medium sized one above. That one was really perfect, but in a string of pigeon-brained item losses, I misplaced it. I finally gave it up for lost and bought a new one (then, as you see, I eventually found the lost one). When I bought the third one, I was in the drive-thru and just told them to give me "the large one", thinking I would get another of the same size. Apparently they've added yet another size. Large indeed.

I have to confess that the large one is ridiculously large. It's a vat of coffee. It's laughable to call it "a cup" of coffee.

That's why it's my favorite one.

Happy Thanksgiving

Card front made by me based on design by Cheryl.

Minor Emergencies

Don't things change in just an instant?

A few weeks ago we were happily enjoying a birthday party in Zilker park. It was a hot day and the bees were everywhere, but we were having a great time. The kids ran off to play on the playscape. If you have been to Zilker park, you know how hard it is to supervise kids there with the playscape spanning the mini-train tracks and the multiple areas. But, it wouldn't have mattered if we had been standing two feet away when Zack fell - it was just one of those falls that lands wrong. He was playing on the Firetruck and slipped, landing on his mouth on a part of the metal. Two teeth were bashed in, sitting at a 45 degree angle to his other teeth, towards the inside of his mouth. His lips and gums were bleeding and he was screaming bloody murder.

It was a Sunday (of course) so we called through the chain of doctors, nurses and dentists on call for the weekend, reaching a very flippant dentist and then finally giving up and taking him directly to the house of a friend who is a dentist and oral surgeon. Our friend was unbelievably kind and gracious and was able to show him how to gently move the teeth forward (over the course of the next 24 hours) far enough for him to close his mouth. We saw the dentist the next morning, and there was no damage (that we can see) to the adult teeth, but we really can't tell what will happen to the injured baby teeth. They might survive, might turn gray, might abscess and require a root canal, might die and have to be extracted, etc. And they could survive for now and then any of this could happen later.

I was very calm when it happened, but I've thought about it a lot. It's hard not to worry. Zack was a late teether and probably won't get his adult teeth for about two years, so we would love to have him keep his current teeth as long as possible. A root canal or extraction requires anesthesia, which always has the potential for problems. The difference in his appearance is very slight but it reminds me that I just never appreciated his perfect little teeth when he had them.

And now, after hearing the spectrum of reactions (most of them extremely caring and compassionate) from all sorts of people, something from the tiny minority of reactions stands out clearly to me right now: Something may not be a big deal in the grand scheme of life, but when its my family, and my children, and happening now, it's a big deal to me. And when it is your child, it's a big deal to you. I hope this experience can help me remember to be compassionate to others, even (or maybe especially) in the very minor emergencies.

Game Day

As the college football season approaches the home stretch, I'm thinking about all the fun we had getting to go to a home game this season.

A couple of Saturdays ago I took Zack to his first ever University of Texas Longhorn Football game at Darrell K Royal Memorial Stadium! A momentous event, to be sure. His daddy was playing in the Alumni band, which gave us an opportunity to buy tickets. Our seats were separate from his, but we ended up getting to sit with him after all.

It was not only Alumni Band day, but also the day chosen to honor Veterans. It was also my first time to be in the stadium now that it seats over 100,000 people. I found the traditions of the game, the pregame show, and all the honoring done surprisingly emotional. It meant a lot to me that every time uniformed military personnel were shown on the jumbo-tron (even just candid shots), people cheered.

I think one reason I'm just a strident convert to UT Football (people are often surprised to learn that I didn't go to school at UT, but University of Arizona - though I'll never waver in my allegiance to U of A basketball!) is the richness and intensity of the football tradition. I love the songs, the band, the flips, the cannon shots, everything. We had a great time. Zack said his favorite thing was getting to play Daddy's trumpet at the game, but I think his first taste of cotton candy had to have been a close second!

It's Good to Have Friends

The scale on this photo is not coming through. See that spoon? Its a very large buffet spoon. Meaning that even though it doesn't show, that Turkey Pot Pie is gigantic.

A few days ago a gentleman from church called and said that his business had been so so he'd been doing a lot of cooking and would like to give us a Turkey Pot Pie. He even brought it over. We aren't ill and we don't have a newborn and things are just normal right now, but it was still so nice to recieve a homemade dinner. The portion missing is what all four of us ate for dinner, so we have lots of leftovers for lunches and probably one more dinner!

It's times like this that make me so grateful for the extended family formed by a shared faith, and for the kindness of others.

My First Risotto

I'm so proud (*little tear*).

I was thrilled that my first attempt at risotto came out well! I used Ina Garten's recipe for Saffron Risotto with Butternut Squash from Barefoot Contessa Family Style. It was easy to follow, so maybe that's where things went right. I even sprung for the saffron (I had prepared myself, expecting it to be pricey, but I was still a little taken aback. Although, I have enough for four recipes, so if I continue to use it, it's not that bad). I had chosen not to buy chicken stock, remembering that I had a large container of homemade stock in the freezer, but when I went to thaw it, no stock at all. I had forgotten that I had used that for a giant vat of tortilla soup my mom and I made when she was here. So James had to make an emergency stop on the way home for stock-in-a-box, which I'm sure doesn't have as much flavor as real stock, but it all turned out beautifully. My family was given very clear signals that they should be enthusiastic on the result, and they seemed happy to comply.

Kentuky Wonders

We got to harvest green beans from the garden this week. Picturesque scene, yes? Just to keep it real, let me share James' words:

"We got to harvest over a POUND of the toughest green beans I've ever eaten!"

I think we got busy and neglected them on the vine too long because they didn't quite live up to our high hopes for the homegrown produce! (Or, it could have been the cook. No, no, surely not...)

Sammy

Just sharing a photo today! Back with more another day.

Basil

My fingernails are stained black, but I'm not complaining! Well, I was complaining. It took forever.

We pulled the basil plants out of the garden this weekend and I pulled off all the leaves, blanched them, pureed them with oil, and put them in the freezer. Most of the steps went very quickly, but taking the leaves off all the tough, overgrown stems was very time-consuming, just because there were so many. The sink was completely full of basil - in the picture they are covered in water but not floating: it's solid packed basil leaves all the way through. They pureed way (way) down so there isn't a crazy amount to store.

I'm excited that we'll have this base for pesto or seasonings in the chillier months to come!

Halloween at our house

I'm loving looking at the Halloween pictures at your houses; I had to share these from ours.

Sammy was a train engineer with overalls and an engineer hat and a coal bucket to put his treats in. It was a nice costume because it was easy to wear and didn't have any parts to cover his face or trip him up. He looked cute, though not very costumed, I guess.

Zack was a cowboy. He had a perfectly adorable fireman costume already but he really, really, really wanted to be a cowboy. I felt like a big sucker giving in, especially since I have always been uncomfortable with the idea of toy guns (our family hunts- I am not anti-gun, I'm just not sure guns need to be toys). Everything besides the guns and the hat was stuff we already had (including the vest, which is a dress vest turned inside out). He has loved this costume so much that I really can't be sorry about it.

Both boys wore their costumes to storytime at the library on Wednesday, then Zack wore his to school on Thursday, then we did the Trick or Treating thing on Saturday. Each day we ended up running errands to which they wore their costumes. And in between, Zack has still been wearing his costume and playing cowboy. He showed up first thing in his morning with his guns shoved in the waistband of his pajama shorts, and didn't let them go all day long. I tried to redeem the gun thing a little by getting a bunch of cowboy books at the library so that we could have a thematically educational experience, but that didn't change that I let my son go to multiple stores with his toy guns. I really had to wonder what alien had taken over my body as he sat in the big part of the basket at Costco and shot elderly men as they snacked on samples (the elderly men were generally amused).

Why is he so crazy about guns? James and I have talked about this a lot. It's not easily explainable from our activities or habits. But then, as far as we can tell, all the little boys are crazy about guns. And look at the really cool movies for adults - they all have guns or something like them. I guess kids have a keen sense of the same thing that everyone else has about what's cool.

Whatever the reason, this cowboy costume was a big hit at our house, and I don't think the fun will pass as quickly as Halloween did!

Mmmmmmmmmmmmm

Let the holiday season begin!

(You knew it was already November, right? I'm not sure how it happened, but apparently it did.)

My mom made my three-pound bag of fresh cranberries into one of my favorites: cranberry cookies! These babies are so tasty. And now I have a fabulous supply.