Sisters and Egg Cups

My sister Jen lives in town. We don't always see each other or call each other too often. However, she moved into a new place and adopted a dog about two months ago, and since then we have seen more of her, which has been great. She will often stop by on a weekend to get out of the house and to let her dog play with our dog. She stopped by fairly early last weekend. The boys had already eaten cold cereal, but I had not had breakfast and neither had Jen (a coffee doesn't count!), so I offered to make her an egg and toast soldiers. Soft-boiled eggs don't seem to be a popular breakfast anymore, if they ever were. I first tried one less than five years ago, and I think my sister had never tried a soft-boiled egg before today. She was a fan. One reason I enjoy eating them is because I find egg cups to be such adorable dishes. I do not intend to start a collection of egg cups, but I do have my fair share, including these five Polish Pottery egg cups (three of which my mom gave me last month when she was in town).

Brett saw me hesitating as I selected an egg cup for myself and for Jen. He asked me what was going on, and I told him that I was trying to pick out the perfect one for Jen. I was thrilled when Jen told me I had picked out the one she had her eye on! It was such a small and insignificant thing, but it felt good. Maybe I really know her better than I think I do.

In case you were wondering, I selected the green-patterned egg cup second from the left for Jen, and the middle one for myself.

Also, if you make boiled eggs (frequently or ever) consider this musical egg timer. I received mine from Brett's cousin from Germany. It works beautifully and is so fun to use. Yes, fun. It plays three different tunes: one for a soft-boiled, medium, and hard-boiled. I lucked out--my timer features three great classic rock songs: "Killing Me Softly", "House of the Rising Sun", and "The Final Countdown". Seriously, boiling eggs has never been so fun!

My Ash Wednesday Sacrifice

I do not observe Mardi Gras, Ash Wednesday, or Lent. I saw a meme last week that said something to the effect of "I'm Mormon. We do Lent 365 days a year." It made me laugh. And while it is true that we generally avoid the major vices, there is always something we could improve on. I admire those of my friends who make an effort to work on doing something meaningful for Lent. In December I set a goal to get up a few minutes early each day to take time for personal scripture study. I have been successful about 50% of the time (maybe a little less). That's the only goal I have set for myself recently. I didn't even bother with New Year's resolutions.

So I was pleased with myself when I made an unplanned sacrifice last Wednesday. While I was running some errands, I noticed a blood donation truck along my route.

Over the past few years I have felt a desire to donate. I have O- blood, and as a "universal donor" I feel some guilt or pressure to donate. But I don't go out of my way to find a donation site, and it is always an inconvenient time when I happen upon one. Plus, the past three times I have attempted, I was deferred because my iron levels were not high enough.

On a whim I decided to try again. I called home and said I would be a little late. I walked in and got checked out. I passed the iron test with flying colors and was able to donate. It made me feel so good! As I lay there, I decided that it was completely appropriate to be giving up a pint of my blood for someone whose life may depend on it on the first day of Lent, and just a few days before Valentine's Day!