Chocolate Mousse on the Loose

Last year at this time, it was all about red velvet cupcakes. But this year, it's chocolate mousse and chocolate dipped strawberries, heart-shaped cherry chocolate chip cookies, cinnamon rolls, cheese zombies, chicken rolls with cranberry filling, twice baked potatoes, a yet-to-be-determined salad and vegetables, and dodge ball that are on my mind. You can tell I'm slightly carb deprived, huh. But it's been worth it, because I'm down about 30 pounds in the last couple of months. Yay me! A wedding is a great motivator. We started a new tradition in January, something my sister Julie's done for years, getting together for an extended family dinner once a month. That doesn't meanit lasts a long time, it just means that Brianna and Jason, and Colin and Macey join us for a special meal so that we can catch up on what's going on in each other's lives. We had Thanksgiving dinner together, and Christmas dinner (Greg and the kids were here for that one). Then Brianna and Jason hosted the four of us for dinner at their cute house, which led us to setting up our shiny new tradition. I love searching out new recipes to try, and I love our special guests, so it's a win win. I made the chocolate mousse last June when we had everyone over for an after-cruise dinner (everyone except Macey, she wasn't on the scene then). It was a success, so it's making another appearance for our Valentine dinner, but this time I'm serving it in some cute little heart-shaped teacups found on Amazon.com. Teacup-sized servings will leave plenty to share with my good friend,, Pam, who's just now beginning a grueling journey to defeat a very aggressive form of breast cancer. Surgery was last Friday, first chemo is this Friday. Sending lots of prayers and love out for Pam and Ally, her 11-year-old niece she's raised since infancy, who's in my Primary class.
Speaking of Primary class, that's where the heart-shaped cherry chocolate chip cookies and dodge ball come in to play. I'll see if my new cookie cutters permit me to shape the cookies like I'm hoping they will, to hand out as one of our rare treats in Primary. I don't think it's wise to give treats on a regular basis. But for Valentine's Day, yes, it's a go! Before treats though, we'll be talking about the 40 days Christ spent in the wilderness, fasting and communing with Heavenly Father, and then how Satan came and tried to tempt Him multiple times, and how He recognized and resisted every one of them. . There's nothing like a nice reverent game of dodge ball to simulate the barrage of temptations the adversary constantly throws at us, and to show how necessary it is to be on guard against his wiles at all times, with a strong defense in place to dodge them. Three generations on earth have taught me how very important it is to have a clear understanding of these things, and how hard it is when that understanding is lacking. I am praying the Holy Ghost teaches each child how to resist Satan's temptations, and permanently impresses it in their hearts and minds, this very Sunday.