Gearing up for the Year of the Tiger, banana bread, orthodontia, and more (7 Quick Takes)

~1~

My favorite holiday is Chinese New Year, and I’ve been so sorry to miss throwing big parties during this pandemic time. This year, I have found tiger plates and napkins so we can have some fun with the Year of the Tiger. Remembering my marriage vows, I didn’t buy a $50 life-size tiger cut-out.

But I have been scoping out chocolate tiger molds, the way one does. And I was thrilled when we opened a surprise package and found Year of the Tiger candies from our friends Nick and Quinn, who know what Chinese New Year means to our family.

If you’re looking to celebrate, the Year of the Tiger starts Feb. 1, and you still have time to get ready. I order red envelopes for the children in our lives, and we put money in some and Year of the Tiger fortune scratch-off cards in the others.

You are a Tiger if you were born in 2010, 1998, 1986, 1974, 1962, 1950, or 1938. The Year of the Tiger was the first year we celebrated as parents, so it feels special to be celebrating it with a 14-year-old who was 2 back then.

~2~

The other day I noticed that we had four very brown bananas on our kitchen counter.

“I should make banana bread,” I thought, as I have so many times before. “But I’m sure I don’t have the right ingredients.”

Miraculously, I had everything, so I had no excuse. So, I mixed up the batter, cooked it, and we enjoyed a delicious loaf of banana bread. I used this recipe from Sally’s Baking Addiction because she’s a graduate of Loyola University Maryland (where I work), and because her recipes have always served me well.

~3~

Our Christmas tree is officially down, along with all our Christmas decorations, except for the nativity scene, which will probably be packed up soon, too.

But my husband keeps a string of colorful lights up on our back deck through the winter.

They make me smile every time I look at them. And they looked so beautiful in the snow this week.

~4~

“What fictional death affected you the most?” One of my friends shared a tweet asking this question, and I’ve been thinking about how much the deaths of fictional characters have affected me.

The two that came to mind immediately for me were Charlotte from Charlotte’s Web and Professor Dumbledore from Harry Potter, but I keep thinking of more and more examples. I can’t pick one that affected me the most.

I really hope that I didn’t just spoil those books for you.

~5~

When I cut hair, I always cut it in the backyard so we don’t have to clean up hair that gets in every corner of the house. Also, after we finish, the birds come and take the hair away for their nests.

It has been so cold, though. I managed to get a haircut in for my husband this week where the wind blew a snowflake onto his head while I was working. Today, I cut my older son’s hair and realized I could barely move my fingers when we finished. It was so frigid.

Still, our pandemic tradition of outdoor haircutting continues. And, these cuts should last us a few weeks. Maybe we’ll get a warmer day to do the next round.

~6~

Sometimes I wonder why there aren’t more hours in the day, and then I remember that one of my part-time jobs is going to the orthodontist. Both our sons are dealing with orthodontia right now, and it’s never as simple as “Do they have braces?” because there are appliances and work that has to be underway before the braces are fully in place.

I cannot keep track of all the appointments, and which ones are 10 minutes long and which are 90 minutes long. All I know is no, you can’t have Swedish fish or popcorn or anything hard or delicious for the next two years. Oh, fine. Eat it anyway.

The other day I took my children to the orthodontist—to a gorgeous shared 4:30 p.m. appointment, the kind of appointment you dream of and so rarely can snag. An hour after we got home, as I was still congratulating myself on my good fortune, the spacers that one child received popped out of his mouth. The next day, some of his brother’s spacers came out, too.

So, now we have to go back. Of course. And that’s all to prepare for the next appointment, which will prepare us for the next one. But one day in 2024, the children will have gorgeous teeth. And I’ll wonder what to do with all the time I’m not spending at the orthodontist.

~7~

Sometimes I wonder how we’re doing nutritionally as a family. Then I find a bag of expired cookies in the pantry, and I smirk and think we must be doing something right. You don’t see the bags of broccoli expiring around here, do you?

Of course, it’s probably just that the pantry was too disorganized to find anything. But let’s take our wins as they come.

So many people seem to be in need of prayers right now, and my intention list is long.
Would you please join me in praying for my intentions, and I’ll pray for yours?

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