Here are what Geoff's family members said of Ceci on her birthday (all over text)...
Brittany
Happy happy happy birthday to my darling Ceci! Ce, you are a contagious light that offers goodness everywhere you go and to everyone you see. I admire your care for the world around you, your sensitive spirit, your incredible smile and laugh, your show-stopping dance moves and overall I'm grateful to have a friend like you! Your'e a real gem, Ce. Happy freakin' birthday!
Erica
Happy Birthday Cecer!!!!!! I love how true you are to yourself and how cool that inner self is. You are purely good and kind and thoughtful, and also a riot and totally creative and end less fun for everyone around you. I love you tons.
Nikki
Happy birthday Ce-bo-bee!! I love your amazingly spunky and fun personality, your fearless attitude, your willingness to try anything, your ability to conquer/rock at everything you try, your easy-going way of doing life, your brilliant mind, your giant heart, and your strong work ethic. Love you so much and hope you have a phenomenal day!!!
Ingrid
Happy birthday, little C!!! You are such a treasure of a person. You are fierce and determined and full of strenth; you are smart and wise; you are crazy and spunky and full of beautiful Ceci-ness. I love you to pieces, and am so grateful to be related to you forever!!!
Lucie (age 8)
Happy b-day Ceci! I'm so glad you're my cousin! You are so nice to everyone! You make everything so fun! Love Lucie
Poppop
Ceci!!! Life of the party! Dancing queen. Actress extraordinaire. Natalie to those who know...(an acting job she was in)...you're a right maniac when it's time to be! Happy birthday, your wonderful person! I love you!
Emily
Happy birthday sweet C. You're hilarious. And strong and brave and valiant. And beautiful and creative and just a knock out human bean 😛. You bring any costume box to life. It's hard not to smile when you are around. Keeping being you, just 15! Love ya!
Ian
C, you are amazing. One of a kind. So hilarious and full of character. And also smart and considerate and energetic and creative. You connect with people on a deep level. Your love of life is contagious. We need to do another road trip! Happy Birthday, girl!
Christian
Ce to the ci! I absolutely adore you in so many ways! You are so stinking hilarious and my face hurts right now just thinking about how much I laugh when I'm around you. Your heart is so incredibly huge and you care deeply for all of those around you and for all of those that you bring into your circle. You effortlessly light up a room with your dynamic personality and charismatic self. You are beautiful inside and out. You carry a valiant and radiant light. You have an admirable passion for life. You have an unmatched love of adventure. Your love of family makes me grateful I'm in it! Your ambitions and dreams are commendable and will be met as they are followed with a disciplined and focused approach toward what you want out of life. I'm so excited to watch you flourish and grow in life and obtain everything that your heart desires. I love being around you and that you laugh at my silly voices and jokes. I love that I get to be with you forever and I can't wait to see you to celebrate YOU. Happy happy birthday!!
How is that tradition for making a birthday? Ceci is one of a kind. And a good kind!
Monday, September 30, 2019
Friday, September 27, 2019
Snapshot of Ceci - Part 1
How does one capture Ceci? She is a force and a light. That's it in a nutshell. But I'll try to delve deeper, particularly into her 15-year-old self.
Ceci is energy and sunlight and goodness wrapped up into a human being. She is one of the most generous-of-self people I have ever met. She is gifted at sensing what people need around her, and she is more than willing to give it. She'll include the outsider, she'll encourage and cheer on the doubtful and fearful, she'll listen to the down and out, she'll pass up something she wants and give you her savings, she'll massage tired feet, she'll walk with you if it will help fill your dreams/goals...you get the idea. She is a builder and cheerleader and a loyal friend.
Over the summer when we went to the Olympic Park and I challenged myself to face my fear of heights by doing the ropes course, I knew that I was doing something big for myself. It took all of my courage. Ceci intuitively understood how big it was for me. She watched me intently and cheered me on. When I finished she looked me in the eye, deep into my own soul, and understood the personal victory I had just accomplished. She kept saying, "Good job, mom!" It wasn't a trite congratulations, she was very sincere. This is a small example of her deep loyalty, friendship and goodness.
Ceci is affectionate and loves to cuddle on the couch or hold hands or express her love in anyway possible through her physical touch. She receives love in this way too. She also receives love in doing fun things together. It is not uncommon for her to say, as she is heading out the door to school, "Mom, want to hang out and do something with me today?"
She is not demanding or high maintenance. At all. You give something (whether gifts, time, compliments, etc.) and Ceci is very grateful. She is easy to celebrate, she is easy to be with and she is easy to please. While she has a particular style, she isn't really into clothes or shopping. While she appreciates good food, she'll be happy if it is a quesadilla for dinner. While she has an opinion of what she would like to do on a trip, she'll be flexible with the plans, often foregoing what she wants. As a family we have to be aware of this, and Ceci is learning that this flexibility and generosity-of-self can be taken advantage of. It will be good for her to learn boundaries to care for herself, but isn't it beautiful to err on the side of giving too much?
Ceci is her own person. She doesn't like to go along with a crowd. She protects her individuality carefully. Now that she is in a large public school she is aware that if not careful she can become numbed to her own voice and passions. She doesn't want to be typical. She knows deep down that she is unique and powerful. She is fighting to not be dimmed by a conformist culture. She thinks deeply. She is a quick thinker and processes information rapidly, but she is also on-guard, knowing that all information coming in is not truth. I really appreciate her constant radar. Her desire to seek truth is admirable, and the ability to not conform while doing it shows great courage and strength. For example, she wears pants to church. She recognizes this as a cultural expectation, and not a sign of discipleship. She is more comfortable in pants. She feels it allows her to worship more as herself. She is courageous, true and strong.
She is smart. She doesn't think like the average person, which causes some challenge in a typical, public school classroom, but she is wonderfully creative and imaginative. Her writing is magnificent. She is a strong problem solver. She is discovering this semester that she loves Earth Science. She loves nature, astronomy, plants, animals, mental puzzles, art and anything to do with being in her body. Her three choices of future paths right now are working at NASA (do you have to be good at math to be an astronaut?), being a creative writer of fiction, or being an actress. Like, a red carpet actress. This last one is her big dream right now. She wants to be in a movie. And she could be! She is really talented at acting. She is so observant and imaginative that she can get into any character and nail it. Her childhood play was delightful because of it.
Ceci is athletic and fearless when it comes to trying new things. When learning to surf she would go out again and again until she got the hang of it. She went on a black diamond run the first time skiing. (Her competitiveness helps in this. She wants to be the best of whatever she does.) Her next focus is rock climbing. She is joining a team to fine tune her skills and work toward a competitive team. But from climb one she was strong and focused and scaled easily from level to harder level. She has a lot of drive and determination. Again, being in her body is one of her favorite things. She is definitely body smart!
Ceci is incredibly gifted with people. She talks easily to adults, she makes friends easily and kids are attracted to her good naturedness and fun. She is genuinely interested in people of all ages. She is a good conversationalist. She is a natural leader. People can trust her goodness, her integrity and all the while know they'll have a great time if she is around. She is fun and crazy and hilarious. She is likable from day one.
None of our kids have been excited to grow up, and Ceci is no exception. She is a kid at heart. She loves to play and be free, but growing up is happening, and she's adapting and becoming just as remarkable as a young adult as she has been as a child. A force and a light.
( Flats photo credit: Tennie's friend Lindsay, 2018)
Ceci is energy and sunlight and goodness wrapped up into a human being. She is one of the most generous-of-self people I have ever met. She is gifted at sensing what people need around her, and she is more than willing to give it. She'll include the outsider, she'll encourage and cheer on the doubtful and fearful, she'll listen to the down and out, she'll pass up something she wants and give you her savings, she'll massage tired feet, she'll walk with you if it will help fill your dreams/goals...you get the idea. She is a builder and cheerleader and a loyal friend.
Over the summer when we went to the Olympic Park and I challenged myself to face my fear of heights by doing the ropes course, I knew that I was doing something big for myself. It took all of my courage. Ceci intuitively understood how big it was for me. She watched me intently and cheered me on. When I finished she looked me in the eye, deep into my own soul, and understood the personal victory I had just accomplished. She kept saying, "Good job, mom!" It wasn't a trite congratulations, she was very sincere. This is a small example of her deep loyalty, friendship and goodness.
Ceci is affectionate and loves to cuddle on the couch or hold hands or express her love in anyway possible through her physical touch. She receives love in this way too. She also receives love in doing fun things together. It is not uncommon for her to say, as she is heading out the door to school, "Mom, want to hang out and do something with me today?"
She is not demanding or high maintenance. At all. You give something (whether gifts, time, compliments, etc.) and Ceci is very grateful. She is easy to celebrate, she is easy to be with and she is easy to please. While she has a particular style, she isn't really into clothes or shopping. While she appreciates good food, she'll be happy if it is a quesadilla for dinner. While she has an opinion of what she would like to do on a trip, she'll be flexible with the plans, often foregoing what she wants. As a family we have to be aware of this, and Ceci is learning that this flexibility and generosity-of-self can be taken advantage of. It will be good for her to learn boundaries to care for herself, but isn't it beautiful to err on the side of giving too much?
Ceci is her own person. She doesn't like to go along with a crowd. She protects her individuality carefully. Now that she is in a large public school she is aware that if not careful she can become numbed to her own voice and passions. She doesn't want to be typical. She knows deep down that she is unique and powerful. She is fighting to not be dimmed by a conformist culture. She thinks deeply. She is a quick thinker and processes information rapidly, but she is also on-guard, knowing that all information coming in is not truth. I really appreciate her constant radar. Her desire to seek truth is admirable, and the ability to not conform while doing it shows great courage and strength. For example, she wears pants to church. She recognizes this as a cultural expectation, and not a sign of discipleship. She is more comfortable in pants. She feels it allows her to worship more as herself. She is courageous, true and strong.
She is smart. She doesn't think like the average person, which causes some challenge in a typical, public school classroom, but she is wonderfully creative and imaginative. Her writing is magnificent. She is a strong problem solver. She is discovering this semester that she loves Earth Science. She loves nature, astronomy, plants, animals, mental puzzles, art and anything to do with being in her body. Her three choices of future paths right now are working at NASA (do you have to be good at math to be an astronaut?), being a creative writer of fiction, or being an actress. Like, a red carpet actress. This last one is her big dream right now. She wants to be in a movie. And she could be! She is really talented at acting. She is so observant and imaginative that she can get into any character and nail it. Her childhood play was delightful because of it.
Ceci is athletic and fearless when it comes to trying new things. When learning to surf she would go out again and again until she got the hang of it. She went on a black diamond run the first time skiing. (Her competitiveness helps in this. She wants to be the best of whatever she does.) Her next focus is rock climbing. She is joining a team to fine tune her skills and work toward a competitive team. But from climb one she was strong and focused and scaled easily from level to harder level. She has a lot of drive and determination. Again, being in her body is one of her favorite things. She is definitely body smart!
Ceci is incredibly gifted with people. She talks easily to adults, she makes friends easily and kids are attracted to her good naturedness and fun. She is genuinely interested in people of all ages. She is a good conversationalist. She is a natural leader. People can trust her goodness, her integrity and all the while know they'll have a great time if she is around. She is fun and crazy and hilarious. She is likable from day one.
None of our kids have been excited to grow up, and Ceci is no exception. She is a kid at heart. She loves to play and be free, but growing up is happening, and she's adapting and becoming just as remarkable as a young adult as she has been as a child. A force and a light.
( Flats photo credit: Tennie's friend Lindsay, 2018)
Thursday, September 26, 2019
Ceci is 15!
Ceci's birthday was squished in with a lot of other goings on this year. Geoff's company had their annual management retreat where employees and their spouses spend three days in Park City, and C's birthday fell right in the middle. Geoff felt obligated to be there this year, so I didn't join him, and he came home for a couple hours in the afternoon when he could get away.
And then Ceci woke up really sick with a fever and no energy. Super big bummer for all she had planned that day. But she wasn't about to miss out on her plans. Tennie had come home the night before, and after a birthday breakfast of crepes with strawberries, cream and nutella (Ceci's choice), the three of them were off on the climate march. I'll write more about this later, but it was really fun to follow along and see the commitment of this generation to call attention to this issue. It was rainy and chilly and Ceci dragged herself along, but she marched for this beautiful earth and her future despite her feeling horrible.
She came home, crawled in her bed and shivered in her covers for a couple hours, and then was off with Tennie and Adele and five of her new school friends to an escape room birthday adventure. It was on Groupon and turned out to be such a terrible experience that is was full of outrageous stories, so luckily that was memorable which made it sort of funnish. All came back for pizza and a movie afterward.
We didn't even get to her presents. The following day we had her treasure hunt and she got her one big present from us, as well as cards and gifts from family. Her big gift from us was an electric drum set! Yes, they make them electric so she can hear it with headphones. Perfect for our apartment living!
So this didn't go down as one of the most perfect birthdays, but it was a good birthday despite the not perfect parts. Ceci was grateful and made the most of it. Very typical of this remarkable 15-year-old.
And then Ceci woke up really sick with a fever and no energy. Super big bummer for all she had planned that day. But she wasn't about to miss out on her plans. Tennie had come home the night before, and after a birthday breakfast of crepes with strawberries, cream and nutella (Ceci's choice), the three of them were off on the climate march. I'll write more about this later, but it was really fun to follow along and see the commitment of this generation to call attention to this issue. It was rainy and chilly and Ceci dragged herself along, but she marched for this beautiful earth and her future despite her feeling horrible.
She came home, crawled in her bed and shivered in her covers for a couple hours, and then was off with Tennie and Adele and five of her new school friends to an escape room birthday adventure. It was on Groupon and turned out to be such a terrible experience that is was full of outrageous stories, so luckily that was memorable which made it sort of funnish. All came back for pizza and a movie afterward.
We didn't even get to her presents. The following day we had her treasure hunt and she got her one big present from us, as well as cards and gifts from family. Her big gift from us was an electric drum set! Yes, they make them electric so she can hear it with headphones. Perfect for our apartment living!
So this didn't go down as one of the most perfect birthdays, but it was a good birthday despite the not perfect parts. Ceci was grateful and made the most of it. Very typical of this remarkable 15-year-old.
Thursday, September 12, 2019
Whatcha Got Cooking
The idea came as a last ditch effort to prepare Tennie to nourish herself before moving into her first apartment. I set a summer goal to have the girls take turns making dinner with ingredients I had prepped in the fridge. Well, I got around to prepping those ingredients ONCE before Adele and I left for Hawaii at the beginning of summer and never quite got organized enough to do it again. And the girls didn't make one single meal, except maybe warming some chicken nuggets. Not one of my best goal-achieving summers...
But I did get around to creating a cookbook for Tennie with all of our favorite family recipes, and at the beginning I included this concept of prepping ingredients once a week and making quick whatcha-got meals during the week. It also includes how to divide and freeze ingredients so nothing goes to waste, and some basic recipes using the ingredients. Will she do it? TBD. But I thought I would share it here for future reference.
We bought Tennie the essential tools for enjoyable cooking, filled up her pantry to get her started, and left her armed with everything necessary to eat well. Here's hoping!
But I did get around to creating a cookbook for Tennie with all of our favorite family recipes, and at the beginning I included this concept of prepping ingredients once a week and making quick whatcha-got meals during the week. It also includes how to divide and freeze ingredients so nothing goes to waste, and some basic recipes using the ingredients. Will she do it? TBD. But I thought I would share it here for future reference.
INGREDIENTS TO HAVE PREPPED
IN THE FRIDGE/FREEZER:
Corn tortillas*
Regular tortillas*
Bread*
Bagels*
Pizza crusts*
Costco frozen, cubed potatoes*
Sweet potatoes, cubed*
Cooked rice
Cooked noodles
Chicken, cooked and cubed or shredded*
Ground sausage, cooked*
Bacon, cooked and chopped*
Pepperoni*
Eggs
Cheese, cheddar and mozzarella* (NOTE: Vegan brand Violife is delish!)
Romaine lettuce, washed and chopped (NOTE: to keep fresh once washed and chopped,
place a damp paper towel in the Ziplock or container with the lettuce.)
Cabbage (NOTE:
buy packed coleslaw)
Red cabbage, washed and chopped (NOTE: a produce person will often cut a
cabbage and give you only ½ or even less. Just ask.)
Garlic and Onions, scallions, shallots and/or leeks,
chopped (NOTE: buy pre-chopped onions and
garlic when available)*
Bell peppers, washed and chopped*
Broccoli, washed and chopped*
Asparagus, washed and broken and chopped*
Zucchini, washed and quartered*
Sugar snap peas, washed and chopped*
Cilantro
Limes
Baby carrots
Celery
You get the idea…
*
Divide and freeze in smaller batches. Make sure veggies are dry before cutting
and freezing so they don’t freeze in a big clump.
INGREDIENTS & TOOLS TO HAVE IN THE PANTRY/FRIDGE:
Olive oil
Butter
Balsamic vinegar
Red wine vinegar
Pizza sauce
Pesto sauce
OrganicVille BBQ sauce (sugar-free)
Tamari sauce or coconut liquid
aminos (soy free)
Salsa
Rapunzel vegetable bouillon
Black beans, garbanzo beans, pinto
beans
Amy’s refried black beans
Canned lentils
Thai Kitchen Thin Rice Noodles
Pasta
Coconut milk
Mayo or Veganaise
Dijon mustard
Ketchup
Curry powder, garlic powder, onion powder, Mexican
seasoning, oregano, cinnamon
Vanilla
Cashews
Honey
Maple Syrup
Peanut butter
Tortilla chips
GF flour
Oats
Baking powder
Baking soda
Salt & pepper
Parchment paper
Tinfoil
Saran wrap
Ziplock freezer bags, small and medium
Ziplock regular storage bags, all sizes
Kitchen scissors
Can opener
Peeler
Lemon juicer
BREAKFAST IDEAS
Protein
smoothie
Sour
cream pancakes
Blender
waffles
French
toast
German
pancakes
Fried
and ham on toast
Scrambled
eggs with sausage and veggies
Mexican
scramble or burrito
Quiche
Frittata
Japanese
pizza
Kale,
egg and wild rice
Veggies
and sausage with hash browns
Yogurt,
granola and berries
Oatmeal
DINNER IDEAS
Veggie
& meat pizza
BBQ
Chicken pizza
Asian
stir-fry bowl, salad or soup
Fried
rice
Curry
Mexican
bowl, salad or soup
Tacos
Nachos
Veggie
quesadilla
Pasta
salad
Bacon,
egg & spinach salad
Chicken
soup
Lentil
soup
LUNCH IDEAS
Nachos
Quesadilla
with refried beans and/or chicken
Bagel
pizza
Tuna
melt
Grilled
cheese with tomato soup
Veggies
with hummus and Ranch
Salami
or ham with cheese and crackers
Pesto
chicken sandwich
Ham
and Swiss on a croissant
Bagel
and cream cheese
Turkey
& veggie wrap
We bought Tennie the essential tools for enjoyable cooking, filled up her pantry to get her started, and left her armed with everything necessary to eat well. Here's hoping!
Friday, September 6, 2019
Labor Day Weekend
Geoff and Tennie took off Friday morning-ish for Zion National Park, taking a scenic route through Cedar Breaks and arriving in time to enjoy the spectacular Zion scenery at sunset.
When Adele and Ceci finished up school on Friday we headed south and stayed the night at my mom's in St. George, then Adele and Ceci took off for Zion Saturday morning and I stayed for a relaxing and rejuvenating weekend at with my mom.
Their first Zion adventure was a long hike up the Narrows (a walk in water through mostly narrow walls). They rented good shoes, which made all the difference, and marveled at the beauty.
As you can see from Ceci's shirt below, sometimes the water is waist deep and wading is the only way through!
The second adventure was a 4-hour canyoneering trip with a guide. I cut out about 300 pictures, as every turn has an amazing view you want to capture when in that majestic place, but there are still a lot of photos in this post!
Ceci The Climber got herself to this little spot.
Sunday night they happened to get a cabin inside the park, so Monday morning they started the Angel's Landing hike at dawn, beating the crowds the buses would soon be shuttling in.
This hike is strenuous and not for the weak of heart. The beauty in every direction along the way is well worth it, though. I did this hike often as a teenager, but I don't think I would have the guts anymore!
After 2-miles of switchbacks there is a resting spot, a destination for those who don't want to continue on to the more hairy part of the hike.
But these four pressed on. Everyone but Adele had done the hike before, but Adele had the courage this time around, and she LOVED it.
There are chains where the trail is narrow. No fall on this part of the hike is really a safe fall.
Because they rested for awhile before this last part, a lot of other people were on the trail at the same time, as you can see below. Now follow that trail along that narrow incline with the sheer cliff to the side. The other side is the same way.
The views from the top are breathtaking.
And then, after trying to look hard enough at God's magnificent creations, they made their way down.
These four packed a lot in to one weekend!
It was originally a weekend to rock climb in Zion. I'm not sure why that didn't happen, but in the end I missed out on some really fun and memorable adventures! It was really nice to spend so much uninterrupted time with my mom, though. And I went on some bike rides through St. George's own red rock gorgeousness, and we had dinner and played cards with my brother and his wife Sunday night. It was a good weekend.
And it sort of feels like an official end to summer. Onward!
When Adele and Ceci finished up school on Friday we headed south and stayed the night at my mom's in St. George, then Adele and Ceci took off for Zion Saturday morning and I stayed for a relaxing and rejuvenating weekend at with my mom.
Their first Zion adventure was a long hike up the Narrows (a walk in water through mostly narrow walls). They rented good shoes, which made all the difference, and marveled at the beauty.
As you can see from Ceci's shirt below, sometimes the water is waist deep and wading is the only way through!
The second adventure was a 4-hour canyoneering trip with a guide. I cut out about 300 pictures, as every turn has an amazing view you want to capture when in that majestic place, but there are still a lot of photos in this post!
Ceci The Climber got herself to this little spot.
Sunday night they happened to get a cabin inside the park, so Monday morning they started the Angel's Landing hike at dawn, beating the crowds the buses would soon be shuttling in.
This hike is strenuous and not for the weak of heart. The beauty in every direction along the way is well worth it, though. I did this hike often as a teenager, but I don't think I would have the guts anymore!
After 2-miles of switchbacks there is a resting spot, a destination for those who don't want to continue on to the more hairy part of the hike.
But these four pressed on. Everyone but Adele had done the hike before, but Adele had the courage this time around, and she LOVED it.
There are chains where the trail is narrow. No fall on this part of the hike is really a safe fall.
Because they rested for awhile before this last part, a lot of other people were on the trail at the same time, as you can see below. Now follow that trail along that narrow incline with the sheer cliff to the side. The other side is the same way.
The views from the top are breathtaking.
And then, after trying to look hard enough at God's magnificent creations, they made their way down.
These four packed a lot in to one weekend!
It was originally a weekend to rock climb in Zion. I'm not sure why that didn't happen, but in the end I missed out on some really fun and memorable adventures! It was really nice to spend so much uninterrupted time with my mom, though. And I went on some bike rides through St. George's own red rock gorgeousness, and we had dinner and played cards with my brother and his wife Sunday night. It was a good weekend.
And it sort of feels like an official end to summer. Onward!
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