Of Wizards and a Witch

I am really hoping this post made it in time to be counted for the month of October.  I just opened it up and it was 11:59 as I selected new post.  By the time this window opened up the clock read midnight.  We shall see.  Regardless of the official date stamp of the post the report is for the 31st day of October, 2011.  A day commonly referred to as Halloween. 

I realized earlier today that I had no Halloween candy to hand out.  I made a run to Smith's after work and grabbed the only Halloween candy they had left.  A couple bags of caramels and some plain M&M's.  I like to give out butterfingers and the like because that is what I like to receive.  I happen to believe that the Butterfinger is one of the best candy bars in existence.  Now look, when I am in the mood for something a little classier I can go for a Cadbury Milk Chocolate and Hazelnut bar.  Sure that doesn't sound fancy to many but when I served in Port Elizabeth there was a Cadbury chocolate factory in the area and sometimes you could catch a wiff of the stuff.  I also quite love hazelnuts.  That is my mature person selection of a candy bar whilst the butterfinger is a favorite from my youth/childhood. 

When I came down the street I noticed a very red haired boy running from the house over to Jay and Sara's next door.  It was the back of my favorite Jack's head.  There are moments when you look at your kids and you realize that they are growing at a rapid pace.  He is lengthening out some.  Gosh, I just thought about this little boy who has been such a joy in my life and I got a little choked up as I think about the rapid growth pace.  I have probably written this before that my kids are my best friends and wow, I am going to be one sad dad when they are all grown up.  Sorry for the tangent.  So there was Jack with his crazy red hair, then there was Andy with his big scar and finally Natty dressed as a girl from Slitherin House.  I guess I should mention that Jack went as Ron Weesley and Andy as Harry Potter.  So I had a couple of wizards and a witch.

We had a good time out trick or treating though I tested their patience with a bit of picture taking.  Here are some shots of the bunch.

Oh my goodness they are fun kids.  I do  have to say that I was not all that disappointed when they all wanted to be done after three streets.  I was actually Andy's mode of transportation by that time and needed a break. 

A bit ago I had Jack pop up here.  He is absolutely wired.  He didn't eat much candy after trick or treating but I did let him watch some train videos and that has his mind really working tonight.  I had him back down in bed and he just came up again.  This means that tomorrow morning is going to be fabulous.  In the meantime I have Jack talking into my left ear at this very moment talking about the 3700 series of locomotives.  Sweet.  Anyhow on his first trip up the stairs he said:  "I could hear footsteps".  I assured him that it was me and he replied "dad, you gave me a fright on this Halloween night".  Pretty sweet line tonight. 

Other then that it sounds like we will begin construction on his train sometime in the near future.  First thing - a cattle guard for the front of the train.  Sounds like we are going to be busy.  Now if I can just get him to sleep this Halloween night. 

Holding a Picture

Holding a Picture

Sunday, October 30, 2011

You know there are interesting things that happen in life.  People that you meet, things that you hear, places that you go – there really is a lot to take in all the time.  There is a lot to be grateful for all the time as well.   Last week the lone Deacon in the ward came and asked if I would help pass the Sacrament.  I asked if I could be excused as I had Jack and Andy on the bench and wasn’t so sure they were ready to sit quietly through that ordinance without me there.  Today when we walked in to church mom was walking in at the same time.  She came for the primary program.  As we sat down I looked up and there again was the same lone Deacon inviting me once again to help pass.  Mom was good to watch the kids so I went and helped.  Always enjoy being able to do that and am grateful that the opportunity came again. 

The Primary Program, what an event.  It went very well.  The kids, meaning my kids, all did a fine job with their parts.  Andy was sitting on the front row and was so short you could barely see him.  He did great when his part came up – he just got up there and got it done.   What a good boy.  Jack did quite well for most of it.  He did great on his part and sometimes he would join in singing, a couple of times he even stood up…..and then he was done.  Don’t know who the primary teacher was that was sitting next to him but she did a great job.  He gave her a little run for her money at the end.  I wanted to thank her but didn’t have a chance; next week perhaps.  Natty was up in the back corner.  She seemed a little chatty at times but that is Natty.  Her part was great – she had it memorized but they had a copy at the podium and so she read the paper.  I would have done the same thing.  Shoot, until I was 16 or so I still had mom writing my talks for me and read them word for word. 

We seem to be experiencing some technical difficulties with the internet here the last two days.  Not quite sure what is wrong now as I am showing a strong signal.  It is moving very slow or not at all.  I won’t even bother with posting until I venture in to the Little Brick House.  Actually the kids skyped with their mom so we were there for a bit earlier but I wasn’t going to make wait for me to do my blogging.  

We are back to Natty being terrified.  She went to a Halloween party on Saturday night and there were ghost stories shared.   She was freaked out and now doesn’t want to sleep in her room.  She is afraid to go down stairs by herself.  Last night she was in hysterics at 2 AM.  I don’t think I will be letting her go to anymore party’s or sleep overs.  I know, I know, I am a harsh parent.  Maybe so but I really don’t like dealing with the aftermath.   Fortunately we have not gotten to the stage we were at a year ago when I had to sit in her room with her for 1 to 3 hours a night.  I am not trying to be selfish or anything but that is my time.  It is when I have a chance to relax from kids, work etc and just do what I want to do which basically means I write my blog post for the day and I do a little cleaning.  Pretty dang exciting.  Natty managed to go into her room and go to sleep fairly well tonight.  We had to make a few adjustments to our routine but she didn’t put up too much of a fight.  She did wake up and started yelling for me.  I opened her door to find her standing in the middle of the room holding what I thought was her phone and a picture of Jesus.  It was not her phone as it is up here so I don’t know exactly what it was but she definitely had the picture of Jesus.  I thought that was great. 

I started reading Book of Mormon stories with the boys and they are really into them.  This is in addition to our regular scriptures.  I changed up routine to try and get Natty in bed and the order of scripture reading and Book of Mormon stories reading got switched.  I failed to prepare Jack for the schedule change and he was a little concerned that he was not going to get his story time.  “Dad, you forgot to read me the stories from your phone”.  I downloaded the Gospel Library app and that is where we read from.  He was quite relieved when I told him we were still going to read from the phone.  Well, Natty ended up sitting and listening as well.  Good times.  Good stories.  Good night.

I Said I Love You Guys...

I Said I Love You Guys…

Saturday October 29, 2011

The Little Brick House was on schedule to provide samples at the SUU Thunderbird Football game today.  As a result I had to work.  Went in to work around 9:30 and started making sandwiches.  We made 180 or so little sandwiches and then took them to a booth at the game where we handed them out to fans .  It was a pretty good handout.   A lot of people walked by, took a long look at the sandwiches – they were thinking – and then happily turned and had one as soon as we mentioned they were free.  We hope that it will generate new business.  It did bring in a little something after the game though I am not certain yet how much.  The lady that took the last sample came in with her husband.  Then, one of the first people to take a sample also came in.  I remember because she is on the drill team or whatever it is called these days.  After her sample she showed up again with several other girls from the squad.  They loved it.  She just had to come in.  We like that.

I had other engagements this evening so I left shortly after that.  We were on a record setting pace for a Saturday and I hope we saw more folks come in this evening.  I needed to take the kids somewhere and do something fun.  We got ready and went to Park Discovery.  They seemed to enjoy themselves with a bit of the usual drama that consists of Jack crying because Natty did something.  We all managed to make it.  We also went to Wal-Mart to pick up some goodies for a Halloween Party that we were preparing to go to.  We managed to get home, get dressed and get to the party.  Sure we were a little late but the kids had fun anyway. 

I did get connected with a friend in Florida this evening.  That was nice.  She is a great gal and actually helped out several times during some of the challenges.   It was nice to chat with her and she shared a story with me that I was unaware of.  On her very first Sunday in the LDS church she was able to hold Andy.  Andy fell asleep in her arms and that really helped her to feel welcome on her first Sunday.  That Andy, such a stud.    

As I was walking out the door this morning  Jack and Andy were in the living room.  I said:  “I love you guys”.  I got no response so I said “ I said  I love you guys”.  To this Jack, without moving  said “yeah, we heard you.”  I was dying.  What a kid.  He sure makes me laugh.  I was interrupting his train program.  Duh, I should have known better.

Bustin My Hump

So the boys and I went in to the Little Brick House 30 minutes before it closed and found the lobby full of people.  It was great.  Dave had a great last hour and that was pleasing.  Natty was home sick from school today but miraculously felt better tonight and went to Zumba with Amy and Tara.  She had a great time.  So we had our boys night out and I made them their usual dishes:  hot dog for Andy and a grilled cheese for Jack. 

The lobby cleared out around 8 or so and the promise of a rice crispy treat got the boys bustin their humps.  Hence the title of the post here as Dave quoted the line from the movie Uncle Buck.  It was a good time.  We took out boxes, wiped down tables, swept the floor, did I mention wiped down tables?  The boys did good and it was great to have them helping out. 

We did have a good time out at the dumpster.  It was full when we put in the boxes so I grabbed one rather large box and put it on top - so large that it covered everything.  Anyhow, I climbed up and started jumping.  Jack had gone back inside but Andy was getting a kick out of it.  He wanted to come up and so we hung out in the dumpster together and jumped around in an attempt to compact the trash.  It was good fun.  We ended up doing it again before we took off,  just for fun.  All three of us were in there jumping around.  They loved it.  I am a big fan of cheap entertainment and compacting trash by jumping up and down is pretty cheap.  It is also fun. 

There is nothing wrong with kids learning how to bust their hump.  Knowing how to work is a tremendous assett.  

Mockupy

There is a "spontanious" and "young" movement happening in America and in other parts of the world right now.  It is referred to as Occupy Wall Street.  Well, that is where it originated and now there are several other locations all going with their own specific name.  I just heard today that there is even something happening in St. George.  Seriously?  Yes, Occupy St. George. 

I don't exactly know what the movement is because the movement itself is a bit confused.  The groups are made up of young people that have reached a stage in life where they have reached certain levels of education or whatever but are not doing anything else.  They are waiting for someone to hand them something and have decided to congregate in an effort to try and obtain some sort of hand out.  Again I don't know all the details as I really don't care and don't have a lot of time for this stuff but have picked up that a lot of these kids have simply been given everything and are at a point where they need to now do something for themselves but must not know how. 

Last night I mentioned Helicopter Parents and this may be a direct result of a generation where many parents hovered around there kids and simply gave, gave, gave everytime they needed something, or stepped in and defended ill behavior rather then allowing the lesson of personal responsibilty to be learned.  I am not an expert in these things, just throwing out my own quick assessment.

So I have been joking around about starting our own Occupy movement.  Occupy the Little Brick House.  It would be a mockumentary on the entire thing and we would simply come up with some silly things to do, record them and post them on YouTube.  Just for fun.  We thought maybe we would go and Occupy the red box machine at Wal-Mart.  News came today that they are increasing their overnight rental fee by twenty cents.  That is rediculous.  They should have lowered it by twenty cents.  This is just the top 1% getting wealthier while the rest of us scrape the barrel.  We would sit infront of the red box and not allow anyone else to use them until the prices would either return to original levels or be dropped or until a price increase takes place at the local Burger King and we have to rush over to occupy their place.  Kind of dumb, I know.  Exactly how I feel about the other.

I actually think a serious mockumentary where I discuss starting a business, working your butt off and making hardly any money.  Ultimately take a view of this is where we are starting, this is where we are going and we are not looking for freebies or handouts.  Sure, we would love to have people come and occupy our business, buy our products and invest in our business that way.  We will gladly redistribute wealth from thier account to ours when they invest in what we have to offer.

I think about the generation of now.  Nobody wants to put in the time.  We have to have the nice house now, the fancy cars now, the latest gadget now.  Rather then working and laboring a lifetime to earn and achieve these things we should be able to start out with them immediately.  Sorry, that is not how it works.  By the sweat of thy brow shalt thou eat they bread...  THY BROW.  We have to go and do, we have to put forth the effort.  We have to know that sometimes that means we go without certain luxeries.  Funny enough, true joy in this life is not found in the things you have. 

Well, I have rambled on, It is late and I am not able to articulate things very well.  I don't know that any Mockupy Mockumentary will come out any time soon.  But I may start calling our new Frequent Diner Card our official Occupy The Little Brick House rewards card.  We'll see.    

3 Parent Types

Tonight we hosted a parent training meeting at the little brick house.  I offered the use of the place to my dear friends at South Elementary that work with kids that have special needs.  Last year I attended their meetings at the School and asked them about the training meetings for this year.  They did not have anything scheduled but have had a couple of requests so they put it together.  They offer some great insight to parenting strategies and ways to do things.  I know that I learned a ton from them last year as I attended the meetings and tonight was no exception.  We had three teachers and three parents including me).  Though the numbers were few the discussion was excellent and certainly caused me to reflect on what kind of parent I am.

They introduced three different parenting types.  The first is what is called the helicopter parent.  This is because they are always hovering around and protecting their children from just about everything imaginable.  Rather then allowing their child to make their own decisions and to learn from both good and bad experiences or choices they constantly intervene.  The hovering parent can damage the self esteem of the child as they begin to adopt a mindset of not being able or good enough to do anything themselves. 

There is the drill Sergeant parent.  They bark out commands to their children.  They tell them what they are going to do and what they are going to like. 

The third parent type is that of consultant.  This parent recognizes the need for their child to make their own choices but they do so within a set of boundaries like what is expected and what is unexpected. 

I may have over simplified this but you get the point.  As I look at the different parenting types I see that there are times when I may hover a bit and then there are times when I act more like the Sergeant.  I think there are times when we may need to hover and there are times when we need to make something happen.  Anyhow, that is a little of what was shared.  Probably not real clear but gave me some things to think about and to work on.       
 

The Dreaded Frozen Nostril

I have never really studied the art of getting sick.  I don't know if everyone experiences the same things as I do.  I guess I've always just assumed that it happens the same for everyone.  I am sitting here tonight able to breath just fine but experiencing that menacing feeling that my nasal passage is freezing every time I breathe in.  That is not fun.  The dreaded frozen nostril usually tells me that I am coming down with a cold.  I don't have time for a cold right now.  I am fighting it as best I can.  I've got a little Vick's on the feet - easily a contributing factor of the frozen nostril  as it has cleared the passages,  I've loaded up on a little vitamin C and I have been gargling mouthwash.  I use to gargle hydrogen peroxide when I felt something coming on in the throat and it was perhaps the nastiest thing I have ever done.  It does the same thing in your throat that it does on a wound and the taste of it is horrible.  It will not hurt my feelings if I never endure that frothy feeling in my mouth and throat again.  Terrible.  I was in conversation with someone about doing that and they suggested mouthwash as it is an antiseptic.  That made perfect sense to me and I have been using it ever since to fight sore throat and colds.  Also love the Vick's on the feet.  Works great.  Well, hoping these remedies do the trick and I am not bogged down by this cold.

The kids are all fine at the moment and I am really hoping they stay that way.  I was a little concerned when I got home and Andy was passed out on the bed.  I thought he might be coming down with the same thing but I don't think so - at least not at the moment.  He woke up and is completely wired right now.  That is going to make for a rough morning but we will do our best.  He is beginning to wear down a skosh and just informed me that he is ready to lay down.

Going to call it a night and see if I can't get Andy down and catch a few extra z's myself as fight this cold.   

Licking My Lips

We were kneeling down for family prayer tonight after our FHE and scripture reading activities and I reminded Jack that he had accepted the assignment to give the family prayer.  Jack was busy looking at a holiday catalog and was half paying attention.  I say half because when I gave him the second reminder I actually got a response.  Had he totally tuned me out we would not have had it.  His reply was not quite as blunt as a "hold your horses" and offered a direct reason for the delay in his voicing the prayer.  That reason had nothing to do with the catalog that had his attention.  Not at all.  He said "I have to finish licking my lips first".  I had no response to that other than a big smile on my face and perhaps a light chuckle.  Perhaps it was the catalog that was the distraction.  He must have been drooling over some of the items, thus the need to lick his lips.  What a goof ball.  He is great as is his sister and his brother. 

We had a fun little lesson in FHE discussing Lehi's Vision of the Tree of Life.  We discussed what the items in his vision represented and I think it went fairly well.  One of the things that I personally enjoyed in the lesson was the discussion of what Lehi did when he found himself in a dark and dreary waste.  He prayed.  So we talked about prayer and holding tight to the Iron Rod especially during the hard times.  We will find that we are not alone.  I am grateful for that and testify of its reality.  The Lord does not withdraw from us in our darkest hours.  Rather he is there waiting, hoping, and inviting us to come unto him. 

I am grateful for my sweet children.  I am grateful for the joy they are in my life. It is my hope that I can lead them in the right direction and provide an example of righteousness for them. 

A Spider Parting

We parted ways with the 7 legged tarantula today.  I actually stopped in at the pet store yesterday and discussed it with the owner.  He told me that people find hundreds of them at this time of year.  The one Natty found is a male - it is thinner.  What happens is the males head out at this time of year in search of a female.  Once they have found one and had relations they go off to die.  He said that we should expect this one to die in the next week or so.  Also learned that they cannot take them.  Tarantula's are native to Utah and there must be some law somewhere that prohibits them from taking them.  So, tonight we took a little drive up the hill behind The Home Depot.  We drove up to the water tower there and we let the spider go.  I don't really know if the fella had relations with a female or not.  He doesn't keep a daily blog.  So, if he is still in search we wish him all the best.  On the other hand if he is simply waiting around to die, well, I hope the strange eyeballs and the shaky jar made your last few days adventurous. 

Whatever the case I know this, Andy is quite relieved and much more comfortable going to sleep at night.  I also know that I won't have to endure any more skipped heart beats when I walk into the garage and turn to see that thing staring at me from the jar.  I regularly forgot he was there and not being a big fan of spider's it got me a couple times. 

So as things go Natty has brought home a turtle that she found and we've kept it.  She has brought home a spider and we held on to it for a few days.  If she shows up here with a snake someday I am not going to be real patient.  At some point you have to draw a line and I was lenient on this last house guest but you better believe there will not be such patience with a snake.

I just proof read that last paragraph and it is a good thing that I did because I originally wrote "if she shows up here with a snack someday..."  I didn't catch that one though I typed out the final snake the same way.  I might be loosing my mind. 

The rest of the day was great.  We enjoyed church - got a report that the boys are doing very well on their parts for the primary program.  Good to hear.  I am confident that Natty is also doing very well on her part as well.

Skaryoke

Tonight was the 2nd Annual Skaryoke Party and the first one hosted at the Little Brick House. It actually turned out pretty well.  We had an okay turnout.  There were roughly 35 people that attended almost everyone that attended sang.  It was a good time.  The Brick House actually worked out fairly well for the party.  I need to sit and analyse it a bit to see where we might make some adjustments for next year but all in all I felt good about it. 

I told Dave tonight that next year he will be the M.C. from the start.  He is fantastic on his feet, quick and funny.  He just picked it up and rand with it halfway (or more) through it.  Fun times.  Padre handled the sound system and was great.  My Karaoke machine isn't the best and gave us a few challenges but ultimately we did okay.  Over this next year I've got to get dialed in on the discs and make song searching easier for everyone. 

Everyone looked great.  Everyone did great.  It was a fun time to be had by all.  I was going to sing Sweet Caroline but my friend Gary Taylor mentioned singing it so I held off and told him I was saving it for him.  I went forward with Cracklin' Rose which I happen to like but I don't know how many people know it.  Sweet Caroline is a response generator with the crowd.  Very well done. Amy was rockin it all night long. 

I went as Bob Wiley.  I didn't get a picture of myself but I believe Amy got one.  I may have to get a copy from her.  Gil and I managed to make it though Gil got heavier as the night progressed. 

So Skaryoke - one of my favorite parties.  Thanks everyone for your help and for making the party great. 

Non Stop Talk

This morning Natty showed Jack a video link that Jay shared with me via Facebook.  It is the worlds longest hot wheels track or the mother of all hot wheels tracks.  I knew when I saw it yesterday that Jack would love it.  He was out on his VIP with Grandma last night and Andy and I were doing something else when he got home so we didn't see it.  Anyhow, he watched it with Natty then watched it again.  Not sure exactly how many times to begin with.  All I know is it was about 8:30 in the morning.  He was very much excited about it and came to talk to me.  He started talking and did not stop.  He followed me everywhere I went and talked about all the different things he was going to do to his track.  He talked about starting it in the office, running it throughout the house, running it to the back yard through the doggy door, running it through his cousins play fort, running it through his cousins house, running it on the roof and so on.  His mind was going 90 miles per hour and his mouth was keeping up just fine.  I made them pancakes for breakfast today all the while hearing about how we will do special wall climbs with the track.  There was simply no end.  It was absolutely exhausting.

I did manage to sneak off into the shower and caught a break there.  This was after 10 AM.  Jack found something else to do for a while.  After the shower I was packing up the compluter so I could head in to work.  Jack showed up and excitedly said: Dad, I want to talk to you more about my hot wheels track.  He still had a lot to say.  It was crazy - it is crazy.  He is a fun boy.

When I got home I was expecting more chit chat on the matter and truly Jack did not dissappoint.  He immediately wanted to see the video again and again he watched it repeatedly.  He is a boy with a vision and a mouth to go with it.  Sure do love him   Sure do love Natty and Andy too.  They are wonderful kids.

A Web Would Indicate...

Always nice to meet a colleague - Arachnophobia.  I have to say that I am a fan.  It is a good one. 

So anyway, I had about 2 hours of work left and got a call from Natty reporting that their hike at Chckshani was good. Turns out she found this dead Tarantula.  She thought it would be great to show it to me.  Wonderful.  So she had it in the plastic bag and Jack takes a look at it, touches it and realizes - it isn't dead.  Oooooo -  I'm pretty sure I would have wet my pants.

I am not a fan of spiders.  Just don't like them.  It's the same way i feel about snakes - I definitely don't like them. Well, I am going to have to get used to this spider fast.  It is spending the night at our place.  Sweet.  Not to worry it now lives in a high quality jar that serves as the centerpiece on our table.  I suggested to Jack that I could tuck the spider in bed with him - he wasnt' having any.  Also tried Andy but that was a definite no - especially since he sleeps in my bed.  Yeah, I'll be having none of that. 

This is actually a seven legged spider.  it is missing one of its legs on its right side - second from the back.  It makes it look a little weird.  Though it is spending the night tonight I believe we will be taking it in the  pet store to see if they would like to keep it.  That would be nice.     We shall see.

Heart Beating

We were watching a movie tonight as a family.  It was a pretty intense movie - meaning filled with action and suspense that starts early and just keeps building.  The movie - Unstoppable.  I saw it in the theater almost a year ago.  It was on a date with a most amazing woman.  Anyhow, I have been thinking about it and thinking about Jack and his love for trains and I thought he would really enjoy it.  That was an experience.  In the end I believe he enjoyed it.  During the movie he was nervous, so nervous in fact that there were a couple times he left the room.  At one point in the movie the background noise includes the sound of a beating heart.  Jack was really starting to get concerned and asked "Is that my heart beating?"  I told him it was not and then we laughed and laughed.  More Jack laughing than me.  It was pretty darn funny.  we had an enjoyable time.  

 

Laundry

Mom taught me not too long ago that the secret to laundry is to do a little each day.  With the amount of clothes that the kids seem to go through each day finding a little to do is becoming increasingly difficult.  Actually, I just don't think about it everyday, probably by choice.  It is amazing how quickly it piles up though and before you know it there is a mountain of laundry that needs to be done.  Yesterday I ran three loads and have another one in tonight - Natty's wardrobe.  I've got another load of towels to go in as well.  Dang, that laundry just doesn't quit.  I declare that my least favorite thing about laundry is when I find a clean and neatly folded clothing item in the dirty clothes pile.  I mean really, hell hath no fury as a father scorned... in the Laundry Room.  Actually I do not breath down fire and brimstone on anyone,  It would simply be too messy and I would have to clean it up. 

Little Bed Hog

I have a little 5 year old AndyBoy that seems to think he needs to sleep in my bed.  Wow, calling it my bed is quite a stretch.  Some days I get quite lucky and Andy is only occupying two thirds.  I try to move him over to create a little more space - it is all for not.  Why is that the case?  He is such a little cuddler and when he is not cuddling, WATCH OUT!  He actually gave me a kick to the face the other day and I take hits on a regular basis.  I suppose I need to come up with some sort of incentive to get him to sleep in his own bed.  The challenge - Andy falls asleep with the light on and Jack will not allow that.  I let Andy lay down in my bed while Jack goes to sleep in their room.  I should move the little fella but usually when I lay down I am done and at that point I don't care about the little bed hog.  Besides that I would say a solid 95% of the time I do move him he ends up right back in my bed anyway.  You know, it's a good thing I love that little guy.  He is a sweet boy and such a joy in my life... and sometimes he is a knee in my back or a foot under my shoulder or a hand on my face...

Dinner at the Folks

So tonight we had dinner at the folks house.  It is a new thing set up for the third Sunday of the month.  Those of us living in Cedar gather together for dinner, dessert and a family home evening lesson.  Mother did one of her over the top FHE lessons and everyone left feeling like they were special.  It was a good one and she certainly raised the bar.  When it comes around to my turn for the lesson I am going to end up dropping that bar a great deal.  Oh my goodness gracious.  I'm thinking 5 minutes in a lesson from the Nursery manual - the best manual for quick and simple FHE lessons on the kids level.  I don't think I have the patience that mom has in order to even attempt as involved a lesson as that one.  Way to go mother.  It was a great lesson and it was fun to participate in and hear thoughts about each individual member of the family - I don't think I heard any mention of my extreme talents as a record keeper.  Hmmm, is there some sort of a message in that?  Well, that which we persist in doing becomes easier right?  Perhaps there is hope for my future ramblings and writings.  One thing is for certain - at some point one of these third Sunday affairs needs to include tacos and chocolate pudding cake.  We need more third Sundays. 

  

Testing Fate

Padre, Dave, Jack and I were working on lighting up the signs at the Little Brick House today.  It was a good time.  Jack jumped up on the roof with Dave and I and he had a great time up there.  Well, to a point anyway.  He spotted one of the whirly bird exhaust vents and said to me "this looks like a big Roley Poley".  He is right.  He had fun playing with it and I should have thought about letting him play with it because he sliced his finger pretty good on the metal.  I was down getting some tools and Dave was with him.  Apparently he was pretty tough about it all and climbed down the ladder at a rapid pace with the use of only one hand.  Surprised Dave a bit.  Anyhow, he said something like "I knew I shouldn't have gotten on that roof".  It didn't stop him though.  As soon as he had the band aid on his finger he was right back up that ladder.  He enjoyed himself. 

One funny Jack moment was a bit earlier.  Out of the blue he says:  "I said good morning Gil!"  Amy, Dave and I have been quoting What About Bob all week and so hearing Jack deliver this line was pretty funny.  He pretty much nailed it to. 

Anyhow we are wiring in this sign and whilst looking at everything we decided it would be best to tie it into an existing box that is tied to a switch on the wall inside.  This would allow us to turn on and off the sign easily.  I disconnected the exhaust fan that was hooked up to it and found that I needed to change a box.  Well, not thinking through things very well I made an assumption that the wire was dead because the switch was off downstairs.  Well, one set of wires was dead but the other one was not and I had a small fireworks show up on the roof there for a minute when I cut into a live wire.  Those moments are always so much fun.  It was not real smart on my part.  I was fortunate to only create a light show.  The cutters I was using took a bit of a hit but nothing else. 

Okay, so don't do electrical work the way I do it.  Always cut off the breaker first and don't assume that a wire is dead.  I forgot that this building has a few weird things about it and the live wire happened to be tied to the switch on the wall.  It comes up to the roof and through the box I was changing.  Goes down and back into the building where it feeds the switch on the wall.  A second wire then comes from that switch back up to the same box and into a second switch in that box.  That may be perfectly normal wiring and I may take a simpler approach to things in my mind.  I don't know? 

Anyhow, got it all fixed up and we were ready to switch back on.  Padre flipped the breaker and Dave went down and flipped the switches on the signs.  Both lit.  Excellent.  Padre then tested the wall switch inside.  Worked great.  For fun I said:  "I'll check the switch up here" not that we would ever climb onto the roof to turn on or off the sign but anyway.  Dave replies "Are you sure you want to test fate?" referring to my little fireworks show.  I was fairly confident in my work and new that there would not be a problem.  I flipped the switch and turned it back.  Nothing from Dave.  I asked if it came on and the response "All the lights went off in the store". 

Oh fantastic.  What did I do?  All I did was disconnect a fan and wire the lights in it's place.  There is no reason for us to suddenly have an electrical problem so big that it shuts down the entire panel.  It turns out that during all of this activity there was a fire going on in town directly west of us.  It was pretty smokey.  The fire happened to be on a power pole that had an explosion or something and the power company cut power to parts of the city.  The Little Brick House happened to be included in the part of the grid that got shut down.   It just so happened that the power grid was shut off at the very moment I tested fate by flipping that switch.  Go figure. 

So, in harmony with yesterdays post I took a power nap around the beginning of the third paragraph in this post.   I rather enjoyed it.  I woke up and was ready to go to work again.  Jack was sleeping on the couch tonight.  His turn to camp out.  I heard him start to moan a bit and went in to check on him.  As soon as I hit the hallway I knew we were in trouble.  It stunk something fierce.  Puke all over the couch, Mr. Fluffy, his pillow, the floor.  It was quite stinky.  More puking.  It was nasty.  It smells terrible in the house.  It is now 1:30 in the morning.  See where these power naps I bragged about last night get you? 

Can't forget that Jack got back up on the roof after everything was done.  He was up exploring when we took the ladder down not knowing he was there.  I was trying to locate him and thought he was somewhere in the store.  I heard a noise that sounded like he was stuck in the walk in and couldn't get the door open.  I went to take care of it and realized that the noise was Jack jumping up and down on the roof.  Well, I guess it worked.  I found him and got him down.  He is a crazy coconut who is now puking.  Fun times for all tonight.   

The Power Nap

Sometimes it is the power nap that gets me through.  It is 20 after midnight and I just got into this.  I am actually feeling pretty good.  You see, I've been plugging in numbers, handling accounting needs for the LBH and it puts me to sleep.  I really have a hard time sitting and working on the computer.  Especially when it comes to numbers.  Sheesh.  So I try and try to fight it but it usually doesn't go so well.  I have been at this for hours today.  I stopped twice and had little power naps - just sitting in the chair at the desk and sleeping for a few.  Amazing.  After a short nap I am up and awake, ready to go.  For those who know James Gregory, that last line was written exactly the way the funniest man in America delivers it - the "up and awake, ready to go" part anyway.  Remember to hold the r in ready for a bit when you read it.  Love me some James Gregory. 

I imagine that I probably have a solid 5 hours of accounting to do still but I am thinking a slightly longer nap is in order before I dive into it.  I built a few reports that need to be populated and it is a bit tedious but once I've got each day entered it will allow us to look at daily performance, hourly performance, sandwich performance and a break down of other key performance factors.  We are one quarter into it and I am pleased with the progress we are making.  It has given me a better feel for what to look at as I am not a food guy.  It was hard to guess in the beginning but would have made things a little easier today if I had a model to follow in the beginning.   

Sorry for this most boring blog post.  I guess I just thought the power of a power nap was pretty fantastic and that I should throw my support behind it.  Perhaps it is because I love to sleep and have some pretty incredible talents in that regard.  I power nap behind the wheel on a long drive all the time.  I mean, that's what rumble strips are for right? 

I Broke Down

Life is an interesting thing.  I write a title and suddenly I find myself pondering it and trying to come up with several ways of defining its meaning in my life today.  Actually, there are a couple directly related to today.

I was checking my email this morning and what I typically find in the AM is a bunch of junk mail that comes every night at about 1:30 AM (it's woken me up a couple of times when I have forgotten to turn off the ringer).  Anyhow, there I was preparing to junk it all and a headline stuck out to me "5 Ways to Know That She Isn't Into You".  I need all the help I can get in this arena so I took a look.  It was in the LDS Living email so I wasn't worried about the wold spin on it and thought it would be a good read.  I won't go into all 5 of these but I will say that I found it somewhat humorous that I could identify with all 5 things.  One was that she doesn't return calls or texts.  Ahhh, yes, been there.  It sucks.  I understand now that it is a subtle hint and allows them to keep from telling you straight up that they are not interested.  Another is friend interference.  Then there is the no contact thing or the classic "I don't have time for a relationship right now".  Been there too.  That one can be legit but often times it simply means that they are not interested in and do not have time for a relationship right now or ever with you.  Here's the sad thing.  I can relate to that because it has happened to me and also because I have done it myself.  Why?  Well, you don't want to hurt Antone's feelings.  You don't.  Gosh it is tough.  I don't like dating because of these things.  I subject myself to rejection and I would simply rather not.  My divorce came down to the fact that my spouse rejected me.  I am torn when I think about dating because I so want to have that but I do not want to risk the pain.  Sometimes I do but really, it is easy not to even have to worry about it.  I am really in a sad state of dating limbo and as I thought about it a little deeper I broke down a bit.  I don't want to be that person.  I know that I need to try, sorry, there is no try, do or do not.  I know that I need to do. 

Secondly I have gone without a phone for over a week.  I needed to be readily accessible for the kids in case of an emergency.  I broke down an purchased a phone today and a plan to go with it. It seems a good phone and hope that it will serve me well.  I am trying one of these no contract plans.  I realize that it hasn't even been a day yet but I am happy with what I've experienced so far.   

It's the Horse Sense of the Guy...

I am working on channelling my inner Bob Wiley for Halloween this year.  I have done nothing as far as a costume goes but that is fairly easy.  I mean, I may not splurge for the shirt and just go with a wind breaker, green shorts, light blue socks and my dress shoes.  Naturally I will hang Gill around my neck in a jar.  I might even do an extra large jar just for dramatic effect. 

In my efforts to become more familiar with this incredible character I have been watching What About Bob.  I had Natty and Andy in watching some of it as well and I just kept laughing at little things that Bob does.  It reminds me of Mike.  There was a time back in the mid to late 90's when Mike studied both What About Bob and Groundhogs Day - both are amazing movies.  Mike developed many of Bill Murray's mannerisms based on these two movies.  I remember seeing the Man Who Knew Too Little.  It was great.  I watched Bill Murray's character and there were many things that reminded me of Mike. On one such occasion I called out - That Man Who Knew too Little.  Mike informed me he hadn't seen the movie.  I was fascinated by that.  Mike did Bill Murray so well that I was convinced he was impersonating a line from the movie.  Fantastic. 

That is what I need.  If I am going to sell this at Skaryoke I need to have it dialed in.  We have been running lines in Casebook.  That has been fun.  There are so many highly quotable lines throughout the movie.  Anyhow, we will somehow manage it.  Fun times. 

Anytime you are in the mood for a light hearted laugh, think on Bill Murray.   

Steadfast

I was pondering what to write tonight and the word steadfast came to mind.  I don't know that I have a definition for that word.  I remember a story President Armstrong told of a shipwreck off the South African coast and the order for the officers on board to Stand Fast.  This meant to hold their post, to stand their ground no matter what.  I guess when I think about being steadfast I think of it in that same light.  When the hymn says "press forward saints with steadfast faith in Christ..." I think of it that way.  No matter what challenges arise in life, no matter how difficult that path may seem, stand fast or be steadfast in your faith in the Savior.  Remember that he is the way, he is our Savior, our deliverer, our friend, our brother, our all.

Life is filled with wonderful experiences.  Some of them are blissful for sure, others are wonderful in the sense that we wonder when they will end or if they could possibly get any worse.  In the end, they are for our profit and learning and give us experience.  It can be easy to say that or type it anyway, but when you are in the middle of a trial it isn't always easy to have eternal perspective or to appreciate the profit, the learning and the experience that you are receiving.  Perhaps it is these times when steadfast faith in Christ is the most important.  I can tell you this - you are never alone.  Miracles come.  The Savior knows who you are and will ease your burdens.

Steadfast.  I like that word.     

Shoyu Chicken

The old crock pot is a favorite in the kitchen.  There are a couple of dishes that happen to be my favorites and happen to be Hawaiian dishes - Kalua Pork and Shoyu Chicken.  Both are fabulous and so easy to do.  I love it!

Yesterday I made Shoyu Chicken.  One of the things I certainly enjoy about it is the kids will eat it.  I almost served the left overs for dinner tonight but the kids went over to Jay and Sara's to watch a movie for FHE.  I did have a little rice and chicken for breakfast - move over wheaties, this is the true breakfast of champions.  While enjoying a quick bowl I had one of those flavor flashbacks and was totally reminded of the meatballs they use to serve on rice and shredded cabbage at Kaiser High.  I have to admit, I have no idea what kind of meat those meatballs were actually made of but I have a fairly good idea that they were cooked in a shoyu sauce very similar to the recipe I use for the chicken.  I loved those meatballs.  That flashback was a joyous one and I have decided that I am going to try the meatballs in that same shoyu recipe and throw in a little shredded cabbage as well.  I am fairly certain it is going to be delicious.  It's also going to be done in the crock pot which makes every cooking experience of mine better.  I'm pretty excited about it. 

Ultimately the old shoyu meatballs may be terrible and could very easily be a one and done.  I guess we will just have to see.    

Each Rock Has It's Own Scent

Jay and Sara and fam were down in Vegas overnight and so we were taking care of Nacho - letting her out, playing with her (actually, this was not asked of us, the kids however got a kick out of it and wanted to), putting her in for the night.  It all went just fine.  Jack came with me this morning to let her out for a bit and on the way home he said "Dad, don't you know each rock has it's own scent?"  Actually I had no idea, never thought about it and if it was taught to me in school I most likely did my best not to pay attention.  Details like the scent of a rock bored me about as much as the book it would have been written in.  Now, of course, I find it much more interesting and kick myself for not paying closer attention in certain subjects.  I guess I never considered a need to know certain things for the sake of teaching my children when I could justify slacking in something because where would I actually use this useless information in the future?  Who knew I would have a brilliant son bring up the unique scents of rocks in a quick stroll on a Sunday morning? 

Anyhow, that was the don't you know statement/question of the day by Jack.  Knowing that they have been studying rocks in class I assumed this was taught there and replied "I did not know that, oh, is this something you learned about in school?"  Fully expecting his answer to be yes I was surprised when he said  "No.  I just know that they do."  Personally I don't make a habit out of sniffing rocks.  I don't see Jack out with his nose to a stone.  I do know that when we visited his classroom last Tuesday he could pick up a random rock and tell me what kind it was.  He knew the details.  It would not surprise me a bit if he picked up the scent of each rock and simply made the determination.  I thought about it some and feel that this may be exactly right.  Why wouldn't they?

The Grand Finale

This morning started off without much of a bang.  Actually, the power was off.  The power company distributed information a few days ago saying that the power would be out for the day.  i quickly remembered this and carried. on.  My alarm clock is on my phone so I don't worry a lot about power outages.  So I was up on time and rollin forth.  My biggest challenge was getting Jack and Andy up and ready so that we could get to their games in time.  We managed well enough but my plan was to get out early so I could stop at the store for the treats that we were in charge of. 

Now read here, there is a law that requires children to sleep in on any day in which they are needed to arise early.  What a royal pain in the backside.  I fail to remember this on a regular basis.  The flip side of that law is that any morning in which they can sleep in they somehow manage to wake up earlier then normal.  Why? 

So this morning I was trying to get to boys moving that did not want to wake up.  We did manage to get it together and out the door just in time.  The challenge with that was that it was just in time for the games and not for picking up the treats.  I knew I should have taken care of that last night but did not account for the sleep in law.  Natty took Andy to his practice/game and I then dropped Jack off with his team.  I had to make a run to the store.  I got back with the treats and half time snacks just as halftime started.  Good timing. 

Then the news - Jack scored a goal!  Sweet.  I missed it.  Not sweet. I asked him about it a little later and he told me how it happened.  He gave it two superkicks.  The initial superkick came off of a dead ball so Jack lined up for it.  He was all business and actually went as far back as he could go - in his own goal and backed up in the net.  This was serious.  He was off and on his way when the net tripped him up.  No matter, he got up and backed it up again and again he was off.  No tripping up this time, no, this time his head got caught up in the net.  Well the third time was the charm.  He backed it up again and made a clean take off.  After clearing the goal he managed to super kick the ball and then followed it down the field and super kicked it again.  This time it ended up in the goal.  Way to go Jack! 

It really was quite nice that on the last game of the season Jack pulled out a big one.  He played the entire game and did great.  He actually brought his train to the game to watch him play and he did not disappoint with his classic check himself out in the shadow run accompanied by a few random run ins with the other team.  He played strong and it was a good showing.  Nice to see him at the top of his game and like many great athletes, he knows when to hang em up.  He has officially retired from soccer.   Jack my boy, you will be missed on the Socer field.  Thanks for the memories and congratulations.  Thank you also for the Grand Finale.  Quite a delight. 

The Grandin Conclusion

So I got in to the second half of Temple Grandin this morning.  Incredible movie.  To any parent who has a child that is diagnosed with Autism at any level I recommend watching this movie.  Here is why. 

Your life is going to be filled with unique challenges.  There are going to be times when you will feel like a complete failure.  There will be times when you simply don't know what to do.  There will be times when you weep because you fear for your child and their future.  There will be times when you will not want to continue.  There will be times when you will feel all eyes on you and you may feel embarrassed because your child isn't like other children, your child is strange and it is your fault.  I have been there.  These are feelings that I have experienced.  I guess I shouldn't say will be times, rather there may be times.  As I watched this movie I related to the emotions portrayed by Temple's mother.  There are moments when you feel her pain and certainly some of the emotions I just described.  At the same time there will be times when you may experience her joy as well.  Hold on to that hope and never give up on your child and more importantly on yourself. 

I might suggest taking an approach of learning.  Look at the blessing that your child is in your life and ponder what it is that you are learning and will continue to learn from them.  It might surprise you.  Let go of the worry of other people and what they think.  Know that you will be judged by piers and others and most likely it will be an unfair judgement.  None of that matters.  What matters is that you do the very best that you can.  Know that you will fail but don't ever give up either on yourself or your child. 

I had one of those special experiences today.  I stopped in after dropping the boys off at school to thank Mrs. Coonan for the suggestion of the movie.  We talked about it for a while  It is an excellent movie.  She told me about an aid that was working with Jack a couple of days ago.  She reported that Jack had a terrible day.  He kicked and carried on about something in a not so nice manner.  It took a lot out of the aid and was a big distraction to the other kids.  Mrs. Coonan suggested that the next time Jack act out that way that they just go for a walk.  Well, the aid came back to tell Mrs. Coonan what happened.  Jack went up to the aid and apologized for his poor behavior the day before.  He told her sorry and that it wouldn't happen again.  All done without prodding and completely on his own.  I didn't even know about the tantrum until this morning.  Mrs. Coonan talked, and I agree, about how smart Jack is to be able to recognize the poor behavior and to then apologize for the wrong and commit to not do it again.  I know that this may be simple but alas, it is the hope that you hold on to.  It is the little miracle worth so much. 

It was a good visit with Mrs. Coonan.  She loves Jack and appreciate that.  She did tell me that she is going to ride on Jack's future railroad roller coaster.  She has lunch with Jack most days and if they finish in time she will show him pictures of trains and roller coasters.  He knows so much about both.  It is quite amazing the amount of detail he just has up there.  He absorbs it.  Who knows what his future holds but I believe that he can do anything in this world that he decides to do. 

A last thought on the movie.  Temple Grandin was and is and extraordinary person.  She advanced because her mom and her aunt and her teacher never gave up on her.  She had to do things that were not comfortable.  She has achieved things no one else could have done and it was her autism that allowed that to happen.  She sees things differently.  Really an amazing woman.  Press on.  Don't ever give up.  You will be amazed at what your child can do.  They may not all grow up to be Temple Grandins but that is perfectly okay. 

In other exciting news, it is Jacks last soccer game tomorrow.  I am sure he will enjoy it.  We will do our best to keep him on the field of play.  And the most important part of any game for Jack - the refreshements.  Awesome.     

Temple Grandin

This morning I started a new movie.  Well, here's how life works for me right now.  I get up and get Natty out the door and then I have 30 minutes before I need to start getting the boys ready for school.  This is the perfect amount of time for me to run my daily 5k on the elliptical and keep up on my movie watching.  Depending on the lenght of the film I will go anywhere from three to 5 days.  Today Natty left early and it gave me extra time.  Jay and Sara ordered Temple Grandin for me on their Netflix and it came yesterday.  I was excited to get started with it having seen a clip several months ago at a parent training with the Special Ed teachers at South. 

I usually watch action movies if I can - they just seem easier to run to.  Anyway, Temple Grandin is not exactly an action movie.  It is however one of the best movies I have watched in a long time.  I say this knowing that it will not mean a lot to many people and the fact that I have only watched the first 50 minutes does not really qualify that statement.  I am however a father of a boy that is highly functioning autistic.  I have lived through some very challenging moments and I have witnessed some incredible things in the life of this sweet boy.  I watched as Claire Danes portrays this life of Temple Grandin, an autistic girl and was simply blown away by how excellent she does.  There were things that I related to instantly, things that I have seen in Jack, that we have lived.  It opened my eyes to some things as well and has helped me to perhaps understand better some of the ways that Jack functions. 

I could also relate to the mother in the movie and the emotions that she feels.  Oh my, sometimes it is the most challenging thing in the world and you feel so deeply for you child.  It is hard.  I remember sitting in a meeting in Florida, it was an IEP meeting for Jack and I had to listen to these people give a report on Jack and as a parent I felt the attack.  I felt them attacking Jack and his challenges and it was so hard.  I was given the opportunity to make a statement and so I made it a point to discuss the boy that I knew, this extremely loving boy.  I was a little emotional and I think they knew when I was done that they had struck a nerve with me.  Funny that they tried to explain away the harsher criticism and they quickly agreed with my statements. 

As the parent you go through so much because you want so badly for your child to be accepted and to fit in.  When they don't fit in or are seen as different you feel people looking at you, that it is your fault.  I know that Rachel felt that.  Those are challenging times and all you can do is hang on and keep going.  Funny, I just wanted Jack to fit in on the soccer field.  I knew last year he really wasn't a fan.  He wanted to play this year so we signed up again.  He plays his own game.  It usually has nothing to do with soccer.  I wish I knew what was going through his mind out there.  Anyway my point here is that I really don't care anymore that he isn't playing soccer.  I get a kick out of watching him accidentally run into the ball on occasion, run around the field without a care in the world and a huge smile on his face.  Oh that is a kick because he runs around, not really paying attention to where he is going - usually not towards the ball - and as he runs he catches regular glimpses of his legs and it excites him to see them working.  I don't know, it is weird but that is it.  I don't care much anymore what the other parents think.  I don't care if the team wins or loses.  I just want to see these brief moments of joy - and believe me, on the soccer field they are brief.  There are also moments when he likes to try and wrestle with the other team.  There was the time when he took a ball to the face and was set off.  We work through it as best we can. 

I rambled there some and I have not given Temple Grandin a great run down.  All I will say is that I think it is marvelous.  It is very real to me.  It has opened my eyes to see things a little differently in Jack's perspective.  Well, a desire to better understand what goes on in Jack's mind.  I wept regularly as I watched and ran.  I know that I paint a picture of myself as some sort of wimp when I declare this but I don't really care.  There was so much that I was relating to that it hit me quite hard because of the reminder it is of the challenges experienced, the successes achieved and the unique individual that I have the blessing of knowing. 

I don't know if I will get through the rest of it tomorrow or not.  I hope to.  Regardless, I will share a couple additional thoughts when I get through it.    

I See Salt...

I walked up to a couple of ladies that were eating at the Little Brick House for the first time and asked them how everything was.  One gal looks at me and asks if I've ever seen the movie What About Bob?  Well of course I have.  She then tells me that she said to her friend "Is this hand chucked?"  A line from Bob at the dinner table at the Marvin's.  I laughed and then we both started doing the "mmmm, mmmm, mmmm, mmmm, mmmm" line.  It was pretty fantastic and I had a good laugh.  After a while when they were leaving I said "I see salt, is there a salt substitute?"  She started to laugh pretty good and then came back with another quote: "Where are you Anna?"   Oh, it was rich. 

In the end it has given me an idea for my Halloween costume.  I am thinking pretty seriously about going as Bob Wiley - complete with a gold fish in a jar hanging around my neck.  "He's a city fish, but he's lovin it up here."   Of course with the Skaryoke party it will give me the perfect lead in for a little Neil Diamond -  "there are two types of people in this world, those who like Neil Diamond and those who don't.  My ex-wife loves him."  Should be a lot of fun.  I am going to have to study up on some of his lines.  Not sure how many of the turret's lines I should use.  There are some pretty choice ones. 

In other news, the weather has turned a bit up here this week.  We are experiencing colder temps and we've got some serious rain falling tonight.  There is a winter storm warning in effect until noon tomorrow.  I don't think it will get cold enough for snow tonight.  At least not down in the valley.  The weather report says low 40's.  My goodness, that warm summer just suddenly disappeared.  I am not ready to give up on wearing my shorts and may have to simply go shorts all year.  Sounds like a good game but I'm not so sure I can play it. 

Sure do love the kiddos.  The boys and I had a lot of fun with some reading tonight and Natty went to Zumba with her grandma.  They are good kids and I am blessed to have them. 

Meeting with the Teacher

I believe that back in my day they use to refer to the meeting between the parents and the teachers as Parent Teacher Conferences.  This is not the case today.  Today I had to meet with both Jack's teacher, Mrs. Whetman, and Natty's teacher, Mrs. Demille.  I don't exactly know what these are called; SEP or SEOP - not sure exactly.  I don't have any idea what that stands for either.  Hey, i've got an excellent name for it:  Parent Teacher Conference.  Wow.  Was that really such a bad name that it had to be changed?  Is the meeting something more then that?  Ooohhh, I wonder if SEP stands for Student Education Plan or something like that?  If so, what the heck does the "O" stand for in SEOP?  Let me just say one last time that Parent Teacher Conference seems to fit the bill fairly well. 

So anyway, Jack was first.  At 2:45 we reported to Mrs. Whetman's class and I watched as Jack carried on conversation with Mrs. Whetman.  He was respectful, he was funny, he was excited.  She told me how well he is doing right now.  They have not had any issues in the class room and he is taking himself out of situations that could lead to problems before it ever has a chance to become a problem.  He is a good boy.  He showed me his crystal garden and we also brought home a volcano he launched earlier in the day.  Pretty exiting stuff.  We still have some things to work on for sure but all in all I was quite pleased with how he is doing and how well he gets a long with Mrs. Whetman.  She thanked me for allowing Jack to be in her class.  I couldn't be happier.  Mr. Oldroyd knows his teachers and has my complete trust and confidence that he will place Jack with the right teacher for Jack.  He hit it out of the park last year with Mrs. Robb and Mrs. Whetman has been wonderful.  We did pop in to the 'smile' room after our meeting and Jack went in and chatted with everyone.  Mrs Coonan was there and apparently she plays a character in some of their group settings and goes by the name of Jessie.  Well, Jack knows her as Jessie and that is what he calls her all the time.  It is funny.  She gets a kick out of it.  Sure appreciate "Jessie" and the other special needs teachers there at South.  They are the best of the best. 

I will say this in regards to Jack and his time at South.  We came here not knowing what to expect and simply trusted.  Sometimes all you can do is trust in the Lord and have faith in the promptings that you receive.  I could not have asked for a better situation for Jack then what we have here.  He is doing extremely well and for that I am grateful and humbled.  The Lord is in charge and sometimes all we need to do is trust and follow.

Natty and I went over to visit with Mrs. Demille.  Here again, I couldn't ask for a better teacher for Natalie.  It is apparent in her grades and in her work.  Mrs. Demille is quite a neat lady.  Natty responds to her very well and has done a good job in her studies.  She has all A's and B's at the moment with the exception of 1 class.  She was missing a few assignments in Language Arts.  We should have those ready to go shortly and hopefully get that grade up. 

It is great to have both Natty and Jack doing well in school.  Not to leave Andy out, i stopped over and talked about him with Mrs. Wood.  She loves little Andy.  Shucks, I love little Andy, Natty and Jackson.  They are wonderful children.      

Oh So Sleepy

I know I am in trouble when I sit down to write a post and the only thing I can think about is how tired I am.  I guess there is another thing - I feel a sore throat coming on and I have been trying to thwart its progression with mouth wash.  I know it seems odd but really, that is an antiseptic and I have found that gargling it is quite helpful as the battle looms.  I absolutely recommend it over say Hydrogen Peroxide, which I have done on a couple of occasions.  That is a frothy, nasty method of cleaning around the mouth and throat.  I do not recommend it.  The Vick's on the feet is another great way to fight colds.  That tip from my friend Heidi has been very hopeful over the last year. 

Well, really, I am spent.  I am fighting to stay awake here and it isn't going so well.. I can continue to fight and draw out this comfort.  Well,I am done.  Sorry to cut out early but there I am half asleep and starting to get a bit coherent .  I just woke up.  Now it is time for bed.    

No Matter What the Trial

I had an unexpected occurrence tonight.  Natty was on the phone with her mom and Rachel actually had to discuss a couple of things with me.  We discussed a few things relating to the kids and then out of the blue Rachel tells me how sorry she is for how she treated me.  Tells me that I am a very good person and that I didn't deserve to be treated that way.  I was somewhat speechless, truly I didn't know what to say.  About all I could say was thank you.  It was a little awkward, like I said unexpected. 

Sometimes life can be hard.  There is just no other way to say it.  Circumstances that we find ourselves in can weigh us down and there are times when it is difficult to see light at the end of the tunnel.  We start to think that the balance of our lives will be spent in the turmoil we are wading through at the moment.  I believe that the adversary exercises all at his disposal to destroy our hope. 

So what do we do to combat this?  How do we strengthen our resolve to press on?  How do we overcome the adversary?  I have found strength in daily reading of the scriptures.  There is power there.  Prayer is also key, specific prayer for strength to conquer Satan.  Prayer to have hope.  There is power in the Prophets.  I spent long hours commuting to and from work when living in Florida and many times I filled those hours listening to conference addresses.  The positive messages of hope will lift your spirit and strengthen you in hard times.  One last thought is to serve.  As we lose ourselves in the service of others we will find that suddenly things are not so bad and that we have much to be grateful for. 

I said one last thought there but I am going to share my opinion on one more thing.  Keep a record of your life.   Time spent reflecting on your day and considering blessings that have been received can bring to the front of your mind the blessings that the Lord bestows upon you.  As I have consistently done this I have seen miracles occur in my life.  I have been blessed many times through the actions of others.  As I count those blessings I recognize the hand of Heavenly Father in my life.  I feel his love for me and I know that he knows who I am.  No matter what the trial is, when you feel the love of Heavenly Father for you hope is strengthened.  I am grateful for those blessings and for the love of my Heavenly Father for me.     

Come Listen To...

When I was serving in the Bellville Ward in Capetown for my second time, the ward  was putting together a gift of music for President Ezra Taft Benson.  Let me go back a bit further and the first time I served in the Bellville Ward and my first day in the field actually.  I met my new district leader and was taken out to our house in North Pine where I met my trainer Elder Jason Mayer.  After a couple of hours of unpacking and getting to know my comp I was told that we were going to Ward Choir practice.  My comp asked me what I sang in the choir.  "I don't" came my reply.  I was then told that I am  now.  Having never been in a choir previously I didn't know what section I should be in. I chose bass.  Good choice.  I must also mention my first choir instructor - and my all time favorite Brother C.D. Roode.  What a magnificent man.  He reminds me of the character in Mary Poppins, the uncle that loves to laugh.  Brother Roode had many similar mannerisms and is truly a gem of a man. 

So there we were in the Bellville Ward.  I can't remember the exact date but can say it was between December 1993 and March 1994.  The Ward put together a program for the Prophet that included talks and a lot of music.  As missionaries we were default members of the choir.  We learned many of the hymns that were prophet related.  One of those that I truly love is Come Listen To a Prophets Voice.  The program was recorded and sent off to Salt Lake City for President Benson.  Not too long after this President Benson passed.  It was a great experience and every time I sing those hymns I think about that time.

As today is General Conference I express my gratitude for the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  I am grateful for conference weekends and the opportunity to participate in General Conference and to in fact Come Listen to a Prophets Voice and, as the hymn goes on to declare, Hear the Word of God.  That declaration is true.  What a blessing it is and has been in my life to know this.  I have been strengthened as I have listened to the words of the Prophets.  President Uchtdorf taught that the words of the Prophets spoken in conference will serve as a compass for our lives.  I have experienced that and look forward to that continued direction.  I hope that as I press forward I will do better in knowing and heeding those words.