And so it ends - 2010. It's been a good year for us overall. No major illnesses or financial stress (saying something these days). The kids are all happy and growing. We've managed to do a few things around the house and it's still standing. I guess I could say 2010 was a year were nothing major happened, but changes came everyday. Thanks for the memories twenty-ten, let's see what 2011 has in store....
12/31/10
12/30/10
12/29/10
Portraits of a Family
Back in October we joined the rest of the world and signed up for Groupon. I am not normally someone who invites a lot of ads into my Gmail account, but the deals from this site seemed too good to pass up. One morning the deal was half off on a photo shoot from AMB Photo Company. Can you really get family pictures taken cheaper than $75? We knew we needed some new photos of the kids so we jumped on the deal.
Problem is life kept us away from getting the photos taken. It was a bit too late for anything with fall leaves so we weren't in a big hurry for October. Then, Kennedy's teeth started falling out in November and we weren't sure if we wanted pictures with her "gappy" grin. Finally, we decided to take the pictures in December before the Christmas rush. Of course we chose a day below freezing to pack the kids outside and attempt to smile while not getting frostbite.
Still, everyone did great and we got some terrific shots. We shot the photos downtown near the Rio Grande restaurant. The AMB guys had some cool urban settings that worked great. Take a look:
Problem is life kept us away from getting the photos taken. It was a bit too late for anything with fall leaves so we weren't in a big hurry for October. Then, Kennedy's teeth started falling out in November and we weren't sure if we wanted pictures with her "gappy" grin. Finally, we decided to take the pictures in December before the Christmas rush. Of course we chose a day below freezing to pack the kids outside and attempt to smile while not getting frostbite.
Still, everyone did great and we got some terrific shots. We shot the photos downtown near the Rio Grande restaurant. The AMB guys had some cool urban settings that worked great. Take a look:
12/28/10
12/27/10
Christmas Eve 2010
Christmas Eve at the cabin has become a tradition in my family. Even though our family keeps growing every year and there are three more babies on the way in the coming year (don't worry, none from us!) we still keep the party going in our tiny cabin.
This year was no different. We headed up early to the cabin for some fun sledding. The hill this year was pretty icy and hard, making for some hard landings. Everyone took a few runs down the hill exccpt for Alex. We couldn't talk him into giving it a try. That kid just likes to be warm. After a few minutes outside he said, "can I just go back to the cabin?" We did catch a few pics before he went in. Kennedy and Dylan loved the snow and had fun with their cousins on the sledding hill.
After sledding, we had a yummy lunch, then had the nativity. We have been trying to talk to our kids more this year about remembering Jesus at Christmas time and why we actually celebrate the holiday. The nativity at the cabin is always a good way to do this. Kennedy was an angel to start then decided to be a sheep in the nativity.
Alex and Dylan were wisemen and you can see Dylan was quite happy with this!
The nativity was sweet, even with Dylan wandering around the whole time! My favorite part of the nativity is listening to my dad read the story. He really has such a great way of doing it. As he gets older, it gets harder and harder for him to read it, but it is so special to hear him do it each year.
After the nativity, we opened presents and just relaxed for a few minutes before cleaning up. As we headed home that evening, Jared and I were talking about how we actually enjoy Christmas Eve more than Christmas Day. There is just something about the anticipation and excitement building up to the actual Christmas morning that is so much fun. This year seemed to be the same. The kids were so excited all day and really had fun.
I'm not sure how much longer our family will be able to squeeze into our family cabin for Christmas Eve, but it sure is a great tradition and I hope it lasts forever. Thanks to my cute parents who work so hard to put on such a fun party each year. We love you!
This year was no different. We headed up early to the cabin for some fun sledding. The hill this year was pretty icy and hard, making for some hard landings. Everyone took a few runs down the hill exccpt for Alex. We couldn't talk him into giving it a try. That kid just likes to be warm. After a few minutes outside he said, "can I just go back to the cabin?" We did catch a few pics before he went in. Kennedy and Dylan loved the snow and had fun with their cousins on the sledding hill.
After sledding, we had a yummy lunch, then had the nativity. We have been trying to talk to our kids more this year about remembering Jesus at Christmas time and why we actually celebrate the holiday. The nativity at the cabin is always a good way to do this. Kennedy was an angel to start then decided to be a sheep in the nativity.
Alex and Dylan were wisemen and you can see Dylan was quite happy with this!
After the nativity, we opened presents and just relaxed for a few minutes before cleaning up. As we headed home that evening, Jared and I were talking about how we actually enjoy Christmas Eve more than Christmas Day. There is just something about the anticipation and excitement building up to the actual Christmas morning that is so much fun. This year seemed to be the same. The kids were so excited all day and really had fun.
I'm not sure how much longer our family will be able to squeeze into our family cabin for Christmas Eve, but it sure is a great tradition and I hope it lasts forever. Thanks to my cute parents who work so hard to put on such a fun party each year. We love you!
12/25/10
12/23/10
Christmas Traditions: Holiday Lights
We've wanted to take the kids downtown to check out the lights at Temple Square all month long. So, we decided this morning that today was the best chance to make that happen. Too bad the weather decided not to cooperate. Around 5:30 it started raining again. I mean, come on, when does it rain on the 23rd of December? Still, the showers put an end to our trip to Temple Square to walk around the illuminated grounds. Fortunately for us, it didn't put an end to us looking at lights.My sister had some discount tickets to Thanksgiving Point's light show. Rather than walking, this was a driving tour of holiday lights. We packed up the van and headed south to Lehi. The only problem was everyone else apparently made the same decision. I've never seen so many cars! They were backed up to the frontage road running in front of Thanksgiving Point. It didn't matter though. With some good Christmas music on the stereo, everyone was happy to creep along into the park.
The lights were amazing. There were so many different holiday elements to look at. From polar bears in the arctic, to elves at Santa's workshop this place had it all. Take a look:
As incredible as the light displays were, I think most would agree the best part of the tour came at the end. As you were leaving the festivities Thanksgiving Point told of the birth of the Savior with some beautiful illustrations. It was a fantastic reminder for the kids (and us) about the true meaning of Christmas.
Holiday Lights at Thanksgiving Point - 5 stars from our family!
12/22/10
Diary of a Utah Fan
The Streak is over.
Going into the Vegas Bowl against Boise State I knew it was going to be tough. Boise St. had everything going for it this year. Outside of a couple botched field goals they could have been playing for the BCS Championship. Instead they were playing the Utes. Lucky us...
When the game started there was a weird vibe. The Utes D was fired up and quickly caused a fumble giving us the ball in the red zone to start the game. It was just the break the Utes needed. A chance to take an early lead. Then the offense sputtered. The FG was missed and the opportunity to start on top was gone.
The next series the Utes had another chance to score. But this time Brooks dropped the ball. He was wide open and he dropped the ball. It could have been 10-0, but no such luck. Our missed chances were mounting.
After an INT the Utes were again poised to head into the end zone. But after a huge penalty (another theme for the game) we could only settle for a field goal and a 3-0 lead. When you should be up by at least 13 or more and you're only on top by 3 that's a problem. Just like that the game changed.
Boise got on track and never looked back as the Utes turned the ball over repeatedly. When we finally made a good play, it was brought back with a holding penalty. In the end we couldn't hang with the Broncos and the final was 26-3. An ugly way to end a pretty good year.
And so it ends. The 2010 season had some tremendous highs, and some ridiculous lows. I never thought this team could reach number 5 in the polls. Now I'm sure they'll finish just out of the top 25. I guess where they're ranked doesn't really matter at this point.
This season was all about preparation. Getting ready for the Pac 12. There are some big questions going forward into the new league. Questions about Jordan Wynn. Is he a leader? Can he perform in the big game? Question abou the offense. Will our conservative play calling work about the big boys (don't think so)? What about running back? Will we have the athletes to compete with the likes of Arizona, USC, Oregon, Stanford?
It's been a great year and it will be fun to see how things change as we move into the big time of college football. GO UTES!
Going into the Vegas Bowl against Boise State I knew it was going to be tough. Boise St. had everything going for it this year. Outside of a couple botched field goals they could have been playing for the BCS Championship. Instead they were playing the Utes. Lucky us...
When the game started there was a weird vibe. The Utes D was fired up and quickly caused a fumble giving us the ball in the red zone to start the game. It was just the break the Utes needed. A chance to take an early lead. Then the offense sputtered. The FG was missed and the opportunity to start on top was gone.
The next series the Utes had another chance to score. But this time Brooks dropped the ball. He was wide open and he dropped the ball. It could have been 10-0, but no such luck. Our missed chances were mounting.
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| From Yahoo! |
Boise got on track and never looked back as the Utes turned the ball over repeatedly. When we finally made a good play, it was brought back with a holding penalty. In the end we couldn't hang with the Broncos and the final was 26-3. An ugly way to end a pretty good year.
And so it ends. The 2010 season had some tremendous highs, and some ridiculous lows. I never thought this team could reach number 5 in the polls. Now I'm sure they'll finish just out of the top 25. I guess where they're ranked doesn't really matter at this point.
This season was all about preparation. Getting ready for the Pac 12. There are some big questions going forward into the new league. Questions about Jordan Wynn. Is he a leader? Can he perform in the big game? Question abou the offense. Will our conservative play calling work about the big boys (don't think so)? What about running back? Will we have the athletes to compete with the likes of Arizona, USC, Oregon, Stanford?
It's been a great year and it will be fun to see how things change as we move into the big time of college football. GO UTES!
12/19/10
Kennedy is Six!
Kennedy couldn't wait to turn six, since she is younger (and taller) than most of her friends. We weren't sure how to celebrate this year and she kept changing her mind on what she wanted to do. We finally decided to go to Classic Skating with her cousins, since she's been into roller skating lately. She had lots of fun skating around with Chloe and even Jared laced up some fancy skates and hit the rink.
We played some games, I chased Dylan around and Alex and Quinn jumped on the bounce toys for awhile.
Everyone seemed to have fun, then we headed back home for some takeout Chinese food and some cake and ice cream. Kennedy was spoiled with her presents and she was very excited for her salon kit and jewelry box.
Kennedy actually had two more parties for her birthday. We had a little get together with my family on Sunday and celebrated Jessica's birthday and Kennedy's. Then, the next Sunday, when Nana and papa were in town, we had another party with Jared's family. This one included nana's famous cakes and this year Kennedy picked a Rudolph cake. He turned out pretty cute, didn't he?
Kennedy, I want you to know how much I love you. You are a great daughter, sister and friend. I love your energy and fun personality. You definitely have a mind of your own, but you are such a sweetheart. I love your zest for life and hope you will always be spunky! I love you, Dede and hope the next six years are as interesting and fun as the last six!
Everyone seemed to have fun, then we headed back home for some takeout Chinese food and some cake and ice cream. Kennedy was spoiled with her presents and she was very excited for her salon kit and jewelry box.
Kennedy actually had two more parties for her birthday. We had a little get together with my family on Sunday and celebrated Jessica's birthday and Kennedy's. Then, the next Sunday, when Nana and papa were in town, we had another party with Jared's family. This one included nana's famous cakes and this year Kennedy picked a Rudolph cake. He turned out pretty cute, didn't he?
Kennedy, I want you to know how much I love you. You are a great daughter, sister and friend. I love your energy and fun personality. You definitely have a mind of your own, but you are such a sweetheart. I love your zest for life and hope you will always be spunky! I love you, Dede and hope the next six years are as interesting and fun as the last six!
12/16/10
For Your Birthday
Kennedy,
Another year has passed and now it's your birthday again Dede girl. You're turning into such a big girl. No longer in pre-school. All grown up in elementary. I know the year started out pretty rough for you as you adjusted to the new school and new experiences. As frustrated as you were to begin the school year, I am so proud of you for sticking with it and getting past the tough times. It was great to see your smile return as you starting enjoying school again.
Your mom and I love you so much Kennedy. You have such a terrific personality that truly spreads throughout each member of our family. At times, your strong will can seem a bit much, but I wouldn't trade your independence for anything. You are becoming a beautiful, intelligent, and spiritual girl that touches other people lives for good.
Thank you for loving me unconditionally. I know there are times when I do and say the wrong things. I am still learning on the job with this parenting thing. I want you to know that we're in this together. I will try and take it easy on you, if you'll promise to do this same with me. I love you Dede girl. Happy Birthday.
Daddy
Another year has passed and now it's your birthday again Dede girl. You're turning into such a big girl. No longer in pre-school. All grown up in elementary. I know the year started out pretty rough for you as you adjusted to the new school and new experiences. As frustrated as you were to begin the school year, I am so proud of you for sticking with it and getting past the tough times. It was great to see your smile return as you starting enjoying school again.
Your mom and I love you so much Kennedy. You have such a terrific personality that truly spreads throughout each member of our family. At times, your strong will can seem a bit much, but I wouldn't trade your independence for anything. You are becoming a beautiful, intelligent, and spiritual girl that touches other people lives for good.
Thank you for loving me unconditionally. I know there are times when I do and say the wrong things. I am still learning on the job with this parenting thing. I want you to know that we're in this together. I will try and take it easy on you, if you'll promise to do this same with me. I love you Dede girl. Happy Birthday.
Daddy
12/13/10
Meeting the Big Guy
Over the weekend we had our annual Christmas party at the Ward. I have to say it was a great party. There was tons of good food. We enjoyed talking with our friends. There was even some fun singing. Of course I say all this and neglect to mention the two hours we spent chasing Dylan around the church. Oh well, you can't a party without chasing kids up and down the halls, right?
At the end of the party the anticipation was high as the bells started to jingle. The curtains opened and there he was, Santa. Alex, Kennedy, and Dylan were so excited and it totally made the night. This is the perfect age to see the kids interact with Santa. They aren't intimidated by him. They understand their role in talking with him. And they certainly know what he can do for them. Take a look at a few of the pics:
At the end of the party the anticipation was high as the bells started to jingle. The curtains opened and there he was, Santa. Alex, Kennedy, and Dylan were so excited and it totally made the night. This is the perfect age to see the kids interact with Santa. They aren't intimidated by him. They understand their role in talking with him. And they certainly know what he can do for them. Take a look at a few of the pics:
12/9/10
University of Scouting
When I was a teenager I wasn't very into scouting. I was like a lot of boys. Sure, When I was 12 I was "gung ho". I loved getting merit badges. Rank advancements were my thing. Scout camp was a right of passage. Then I turned 14. I didn't have an Eagle, in fact I wasn't even close. By the time I was 16 scouting was a distant memory and it seemed as though I would be a "Life for life".
Something happened when I was 17. We got a new scout leader. One who was willing to work with us on our schedule. He encouraged us to keep at it. Even though we were pretty reluctant, requirements kept getting checked off the list. The day I turned 18 I completed my packet for Eagle. I was done. I though I was done forever.
Fast forward a couple decades and I'm back in a scouting uniform (I rarely even wore the uniform as a kid). This time as a leader. I think I've attended more scout meetings in the past year than I ever did as a kid. Take last weekend for example. I drove out to Stansbury High School to attend the University of Scouting. It was an all-day seminar in which we learned about the scouting program and how it's supposed to work. I can't believe I'm saying this, but it actually pretty fun.
I have learned a ton this year about how to make a difference in the life of a boy. Scouting isn't the only way to accomplish this, but there are a lot of positive aspects to getting boys outdoors to learn and grow. For me, all this training is for the future. I just know I'm going to be the Scoutmaster when Alex and Dylan are part of the troop. I want to make sure I know how to provide a positive experience by being properly trained. I'm not asking for the calling, but I have a strong feeling it's coming my way eventually.
So, I've officially attended the University of Scouting. I don't know if it's something I can add to my resume, but I'll hang my diploma up on the wall (or on my shirt).
Something happened when I was 17. We got a new scout leader. One who was willing to work with us on our schedule. He encouraged us to keep at it. Even though we were pretty reluctant, requirements kept getting checked off the list. The day I turned 18 I completed my packet for Eagle. I was done. I though I was done forever.
Fast forward a couple decades and I'm back in a scouting uniform (I rarely even wore the uniform as a kid). This time as a leader. I think I've attended more scout meetings in the past year than I ever did as a kid. Take last weekend for example. I drove out to Stansbury High School to attend the University of Scouting. It was an all-day seminar in which we learned about the scouting program and how it's supposed to work. I can't believe I'm saying this, but it actually pretty fun.
I have learned a ton this year about how to make a difference in the life of a boy. Scouting isn't the only way to accomplish this, but there are a lot of positive aspects to getting boys outdoors to learn and grow. For me, all this training is for the future. I just know I'm going to be the Scoutmaster when Alex and Dylan are part of the troop. I want to make sure I know how to provide a positive experience by being properly trained. I'm not asking for the calling, but I have a strong feeling it's coming my way eventually.
So, I've officially attended the University of Scouting. I don't know if it's something I can add to my resume, but I'll hang my diploma up on the wall (or on my shirt).
12/6/10
Dad's Night In
Tara's out for her annual Christmas shopping trip with her sisters so it's my chance to stay home with the kids. In spite of their endless cries for Mommy, I think I've won them over for the evening. All it takes is one quick stop by Little Caesar's and it's time for:
PIZZA!!!
12/1/10
Christmas Traditions: Advent Calendars
The kids are ready for the Christmas season. Today it kicked off in full swing as we cracked out the advent calendars. Now, in years past, the chocolate was eaten within a couple of days. We'll have to wait and see if we can curb their excitement and keep them to one treat per day.
11/30/10
So Long NaBloPoMo
- Fall turned into Winter
- Halloween turned into Thanksgiving
- My mom turned 70
- I turned the scale the wrong direction by eating too much
- The Utes turned from contender to pretender and settled into victor
- Our floors turned from old into new
- The kids turned our house upside down on a daily basis
- This blog turned from a "must read" to a "can miss"
If any of you read all our posts this month, I apologize for some of the trivial and boring posts. I can't say the month turned out the way I had hoped. Still, I guess there's something to the fact that I finished what I started. 30 posts in 30 days.
11/29/10
Full Plate
I think I'm starting to realize that I've put a little too much on my plate for the rest of the year and the early part of 2011. I found out last week that the book I've been working on has been picked up for publication. That's great news for sure, but it means my time is very limited over the next six months. The publisher had originally asked for a summer completion, now they feel that spring would make more sense so they can have a fall release. Wow, this is coming very quickly and I hope I can deliver!
Besides the book, my spring teaching load increased this year as I'll be the instructor for one of the sections of the Foundations of Technology class for undergraduates in the Education program. I'm super excited to get back in front of the college kids again, online teaching just isn't the same. The problem is my day job doesn't get any easier and I keep heaping more and more on my plate. If I can make it to June 2011 I'm definitely going to take a long vacation - maybe an entire weekend!
11/28/10
Til we are 80
Every once in awhile you make friends that you know you will always stay in contact with. Some of those friends for me are my Snow College softball friends. I played softball for Snow College over fifteen years ago and some of my best friends came from those two years at Snow. We spent lots of time together playing ball, but also just hanging out. One of our favorite places to hang out was at my family cabin. Over the years, we haven't made it up there as much as we used to, but we finally made it up there again, just the girls.
We made the date two months in advance because it was the only day we could all make it. Of course, stuff came up, but we all made it work and we finally had our girls night at the cabin. Angee, Patty, Mary and I were the ones that made it, but we've always been the regulars anyway! We played games, watched movies, laughed alot and of course, ate alot, just like old times. At one point we were talking about how we were trying to get our kids to eat healthy and we looked down at our loads of junk food we were pigging out on and all burst into laughter. We are such good examples!
We stayed up late (almost all night), slept in, had breakfast, went for a walk and packed up and went on with our lives. It was night to get a night away from kids and life for awhile. Thanks, friends, for an awesome cabin get together. Like we keep saying, we will keep doing this until we are 80, right!
We made the date two months in advance because it was the only day we could all make it. Of course, stuff came up, but we all made it work and we finally had our girls night at the cabin. Angee, Patty, Mary and I were the ones that made it, but we've always been the regulars anyway! We played games, watched movies, laughed alot and of course, ate alot, just like old times. At one point we were talking about how we were trying to get our kids to eat healthy and we looked down at our loads of junk food we were pigging out on and all burst into laughter. We are such good examples!
We stayed up late (almost all night), slept in, had breakfast, went for a walk and packed up and went on with our lives. It was night to get a night away from kids and life for awhile. Thanks, friends, for an awesome cabin get together. Like we keep saying, we will keep doing this until we are 80, right!
Flashback - 1993
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