Legends of Roundball

Every season we encourage the kids to try some new sports.  Get outside of their comfort zones and experience different things.  Over the winter we've had a ton of fun with Kennedy and Alex both playing basketball.  Sure, we've shot around in the driveway over the years, but the kids have recently wanted to play in organized games.  It was time for more Junior Jazz basketball!

Alex played basketball last year and it was a struggle at times.  The younger boys don't really have any structure to the games and it pretty much rewards the kids who are most aggressive.  Aggressive is not a word I'd use to describe Alex.  He is much more interested in being part of a team, rather than taking over.  I was hoping things would be different this year.  Well, not so much.

Alex was able to score a few times this year, but he was still on a team where the most aggressive kids took all the shots.  He still had fun, but I'm hoping that he'll get on a team that teaches the boys how to play - I know, sounds like I'm volunteering to coach....


My biggest surprise this season was Kennedy.  She's never expressed much of an interest in playing basketball, but she decided to try it with one of her friends from school.  At first it was a bit of a struggle, but by the time the season ended Dede girl was really starting to have fun!  She took advantage of her height and was able to rebound/defend like a pro!

One of our best moments came over the weekend when Kennedy was able to score two baskets in a row!  This was a girl who could barely shoot last year and now she was making it happen.  She may take the scoring title away from Kevin Durrant, but Dede was having fun and making buckets!  What a big deal for our amazing little girl.

Jr. Jazz basketball - You Gotta Love It!

New Year's Resolutions

A couple days ago our family sat down to talk about goals for the new year.  We wanted to let each of the kids set a few personal goals and, as parents, Tara and I wanted to create a few family targets for the year.  Here are some of the highlights:

Family Goals:

1. Run in a 5K together.
2. Go on a family vacation to Canyonlands/Arches National Parks.
3. Start Reading the Book of Mormon together.
4. Update the blog weekly (I already know how long it's been).

Kennedy:

1. Go to AFV and win $100,000.
2. Read the scriptures.
3. Exercise more by riding bike and jogging.

Alex:

1. Get baptized.
2. Run on the treadmill.
3. Go on trips to Park City, Bear Lake, and New Harmony.

Dylan:

1. Limit time playing Wii and watching TV.
2. Eat more apples.
3. Be nice.

We didn't think our talk about goals was sinking in until a few days later when Dylan's teacher sent us a photo of his project at school.  Classic!

TEDx

I present for a living.

Most of the time I present to groups of teachers in a classroom setting.  But I've presented on stage in front of several hundred people.  I won't say I don't get nervous, but I'm used to sharing my ideas with many people present.  So, when I was approached about a presentation for Canyons School District I didn't think much of it.  Then I learned it was a TEDx event.  That changes everything.

If you've never heard of TED - it is a large conference held in California every Spring.  It's a who's who of speakers - former presidents, CEO's, major celebrities.  The conference has gotten so large that they've franchised out their name for groups to create their own startup conferences - TEDx.  This is where I come in.  There's no way to get an invite for the real event, but TEDx is gaining steam in the education world.  Still, this was the first TEDx event for a school district in Utah.

I was as nervous as I've ever been presenting.  Even though I knew what I wanted to say the stakes are definitely raised when you think that TEDx events are recorded and shared as part of the TED YouTube channel.   In the end, I'm so glad I presented.  I don't know if my little talk will change the world, but it helped me feel like I was part of something that's bigger than I am.

Ever since I watched my first TED talk I knew I wanted to participate in someway, shape, or form.  Now I can say - I'm a TED speaker (sort of).

If you want to watch the presentation here it is:

Family Portraits

For the past couple of years Tara and I have avoided doing family pictures.

There isn't a good reason.

Sure, we were waiting for a Groupon or a different deal of the day.

Still - we should have taken our pictures sooner than this.  The last photo shoot was December 2010!

Oh well.  We finally broke down recently and set up an appointment for a Fall morning.

It was more fun than I expected.  The kids were pretty good sports as they posed and smiled for the better part of an hour.  For the first time we used Wheeler Farm as the backdrop for the photos and there are some cool buildings and outdoor shots to be had around the farm.  

My favorite part of the kids' photos are the different approaches they take for their closeup.

Kennedy is such a poser - she loves giving it the all-american girl look.

Alex is all teeth and he kills me with the crossed legs look.

Dylan refuses to smile.  His little smirk is enough to melt your heart and he pulls it off like a champ.

That's enough from me - I know you only want to see the pictures.  Enjoy!

Biker Boy

We've talked with Dylan for quite a while about taking away the training wheels from his bike.  The wheels were so worn that it was impossible to keep them tight on the bike. Like any person with a dependency, Dylan had learned to adapt by putting most of his weight onto one side of his bike.
Still, we knew the wheels day were numbered though so Tara and I bribed, pleaded, and threatened to take the training wheels of the bike.

With Conference weekend upon us - I knew we had a good chance to remove the wheels and practice with Dylan.

At first there were some quick spills.

A few tears.

But then - balance was achieved and Dylan was a bike rider!

Once he figured how to turn it was all over.   It was so cool to see Dylan's new found confidence as he could now keep up with his brother and sister.

Look out world - here comes Big D!