Remembering Laurel Fullmer

Since I'm still on the RS email list (yes, I can't quite bring myself to unsubscribe), I saw the notice about Laurel Fullmer's recent passing. It's such sobering news. What a wonderful woman! The Berkeley ward won't be the same without Laurel and without so many others of the older women that are now passing on or are leaving the ward due to illness--women who gave the ward such character and vitality. Women who grounded the ward in depth and history making it more than just another young student-family ward. And women with such interesting, remarkable, and admirable personal histories. I think that it is just amazing to to think of how so many of the older women in the ward like Laurel, Mary Wallman, Mary Commendant, Miriam Osmond, Donna Helwig, Charlotte Schulyer, etc.. reached out to us younger women and our families with genuine interest and love. I think that I'm not alone to say that I felt that I felt I had real friendships and relationships with these women. I admire them not only because of the remarkable women that they are, but also for how they easily could have kept to themselves and murmured about how the ward was full of such young families that wanted to fill RS and Enrichment lessons with topics only about motherhood and marriage. They could have been so bitter about the character of the ward and its fluidity. Instead, they treated us like we were their peers. I'm so grateful for this experience and this example.

As for Laurel, to me she was a person that really had sparkle (as cliche as it sounds). Some of us have a countenance that's on the dull side, but Laurel had something in that smile that not everyone is gifted with. And who doesn't love the crochet ball she gave out when you had a baby in the Berkeley ward? I remember after Max was born selfishly hoping that she wouldn't forget to give one to me....of course, she didn't, and we still have it for baby #3 to play with now. I also remember how she made Gospel Doctrine class interesting. I admire her for how, before her health prevented it, she could be counted on to support whatever activities the ward put on. In fact, the first time I ever met Laurel was while Adam and I were living in the Hilltop ward but we went to the Berkeley ward's chili cook off with some friends of ours who lived in the ward at the time. The activity was not only a chili cook off, but some kind of dance night too--like learning country line dancing or something like that. Now, I can think of plenty of women over 65 who would have stayed home on a ward activity night that involved some kind of line dancing event. But the only people I can remember that went out of their way to introduce themselves to Adam and I that night were Angela Wade and that group of older ladies. I still remember Adam commenting on how great it was to talk with such cool older women.


We loved you Laurel. It won't be the same without you. Thank you.

Ethan is 7!

On December 31st we celebrated Ethan's birthday with many family members and young cousins. The party culminated into a parade around the house with children marching to the loud sound of their banging of spoons on metal pans and lids... the new year had arrived into our home a little short of 9pm that night...
Ethan is a great boy! We love him and are so grateful for all the joy he brings into our family.


The chocolate cake here is baked in a bundcake pan in the Fennimore fashion, we filled up the center with frozen berries and iced it with melted chocolate and cream... now here is the recipe and remember to put as much chocolate as you like it!
Ingredients:
1. 1/2 cup of boiling water
8 oz dark cooking chocolate

2. 1 cup butter
2 cups sugar

3. 4 egg yolks

4. 1 t. vanilla

Warm the oven 350. In a bowl you mix all the ingredients in 1. In another bowl mix 2, then add 3 and 4.

5. 2 1/2 cups cake flour
1 t. soda
1/2 t. salt
1 cup buttermilk

Mix all the dry ingredients (5) in yet another bowl. Then add the wet ingredients to the dry ones. Fold in 4 egg whites stiftly beaten.
Bake for 40 to 45 minutes.
This cake is even better the day after! Let me know what you think! I am sorry for the poor write out of the recipe, I hope you can decipher it!
Here are a few cook books I really enjoy right now:
Enchanted Broccoli Forest (Mollie Katzen)
Vegetables Everyday (Jack Bishop)
The Silver Spoon (Also known as the bible of authentic Italian cooking!)
The American Boulangerie (Pascal Rigo)

I wish you a very happy new year!
Lot's of love!