half truths and mild tales

Head to the Hills

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 21 Aug 2016 22:32:00 -0600

“The mountains are calling and I must go.”
― John Muir

We recently returned from our annual pilgrimage to the Uintah mountains to camp at the West Fork of Blacks Fork. It was great to return to a spot so familiar to enjoy the wonders of nature. It doesn't seem to matter how many years it has been, time stands still in this part of our beautiful state. These mountains are part of my earliest memories and part of my family's history. I'm so happy that I get to share this beautiful place with my children as we build our own memories.

Here are a few of the highs and lows -

Lows:

Rain - For some reason we can't seem to avoid a monsoon for at least one night while we are camping. This time it started raining, right after we got out of the xTerra. It made for a long first night, but we survived....

Wind - A single gust of wind took the new canopy we purchased for the trip and tore a big hole in it. Argh!

Hobo Stew - Unlike our experience a decade ago, there were effects from a campfire favorite. Perhaps the same cannot be said for the tent of Big Al.

Highs:

Family - We love going camping with my dad and Jason's family. This time we were lucky enough to bring Alicia's boys along as well. Quinn enjoyed his first time camping - even if he wasn't sure he was going to make it the first night.

Cool Drink - For the past few years the road to a natural spring we visit has been closed and barricaded. This year, it was open again. Better yet the road had actually been developed somewhat making for a "good" ride.

Ford F150 - My dad decided to rent a truck for the trip. And what a truck it was. We've had our xTerra for over 12 years now and I have to say - a truck may be in our future. It was AWESOME!

Dylan and Alex Update

noreply@blogger.com (Tara) — Thu, 12 Feb 2015 23:25:00 -0700

I'll start with Dylan since his birthday is today. I'll start with his birthday, which honestly has been a crazy, busy day. We started at school with the Valentines Day parties for all the kids. I helped in both Dylan and Alex's class today with their parties. They had a great time, but the teacher actually wanted to celebrate Dylan's birthday next week, since they had so many treats with Valentines Day. Anyway, then one of Dylans friends from school has the same birthday, so he invited Dylan to his friend party at Jump Around Utah. They let Alex go with him, so they all had a blast. When they got home, we went to see a movie that Dylan wanted to see with his cousins, then went to dinner, and now we are having a sleepover with the cousins. So it could be a crazy night! The kids don't have school tomorrow, so I figured they could stay up late and have some fun.

Dylan got some fun toys, Wii games and accessories to other Wii games he has. Yet to come for him is his family party on Sunday, and his friend party next week. We decided to avoid the holiday weekend for his friend party since some of his friends will be out of town and Jared has to work on Saturday. He wants to go to a trampoline park. That should be fun with a bunch of 5 and 6 year old kids!

So I'm amazed at how much Dylan has grown this year. Even since school started his jeans are starting to get short on him. He is really thinning out, not so chubby anymore. He's pretty tall for his age and just keeps getting taller. His baby face look is almost gone. Although he still has little stubby, chubby fingers! They are so cute!

It's been a fun year for Dylan. He's graduated from preschool and now is halfway through kindergarten. He is really smart. We just had parent teacher conferences yesterday and he is at or above grade level in every subject. He is really good with number, like Alex and is a good reader for his age. He is just a bright kid. He is also well-behaved which I was a little nervous about him because he can be pretty stubborn at home. He definitely knows what he wants and is hard to convince otherwise. But at school, he is very good to listen and do what the teacher asks. He likes Kindergarten.

We had a fun summer last year. We spent some time with Jared's parents which the kids love. We do lots of swimming, ride the four wheelers, and play lots of games. It's always nice to go down and visit. We also went to our annual trip to Bear Lake which is also a family favorite trip. The kids love playing on the beach and swimming in the pool. They love playing lawn games with their cousins and just hanging out. It is always a fun trip. We went camping several times over the summer. It's always nice to get to the mountains. We also spent the summer swimming at the pools, going to lots of playgrounds and just hanging out with friends. All the kids are getting to the age where they want to play with friends all the time. It's nice that they have friends in the neighborhood and I can just send them out on their bikes, looking for friends to play with. We ended the fun with a trip to St. George with my family for a family reunion in the fall. It was very nice to get away for a few days and enjoy the sun (and a little rain) during the school year. We are actually going back to the same house this May with the family again. We also spent a few days in Albuquerque for the hot air ballon fiesta in October. We have some friends that moved there a few years ago and we've been trying to get out there to visit them for the past couple of years and finally made it. It was a fun trip, but long! We stopped at the 4 corners which was fun. It was nice to see our friends and the balloon fiesta was awesome! There isn't much to see in Albuquerque, but that was cool.

Dylan played soccer this past spring and seems to be getting better at it. He still doesn't love it and I'm pretty sure the only reason he plays is to get the treat after the game, but I think he will start liking it better. I know it took Alex a few years to get the hang of it and now he loves it. Dylan tried baseball this past fall and that was about the same as soccer! He liked it ok but was more excited for the treat! I was his coach, so that was fun. Then Dylan played basketball this winter. Same as all the sports...there for the treat! I'm hoping he will like sports a little better. He's still pretty young so I'm not worried.

Dylan is a great kid. I love his spunk and his strong yet loving personality. The kid loves to play games of any sort, board games, wii games, Ipad games, and outside games. He loves to cuddle and will ask me everyday after school if I will cuddle with him for a few minutes...my favorite time of day! He is very loving. He loves to play outside and ride bikes. He likes to read books every night and is getting good at reading himself. He is just a great kid! We love him so much!

Now for Alex. I'm pretty sure I didn't give you an update on his last birthday so I'll try to catch you up. He's also growing like a weed. He is getting really tall, although he still is about the same size as most of the kids in his class and he is older than most of them. He is doing great in second grade. Like Dylan, he is very smart. He is above grade level in most subjects. His big problem...handwriting! He has the sloppiest handwriting and it's just because he wants to get everything done so quick. When he takes his time, he is much better at it. I'm sure he will get better as he gets older. He also has a very good behavior at school. His teacher is always very complimentary on how nice he is and what good manners he has. He really is a great kid and is so sweet. He is always the first one of my kids to want to help and is a hard worker. I love watching Alex grow and develop into a strong, young man.

Alex is way into sports. It's been fun to watch him develop because he blossomed this past year. He really discovered that he's pretty athletic and figured how to be aggressive and it's fun to see him get better every game. He played soccer in both spring and fall and really loved it. He figured out how to score and also be a team player. Alex also played basketball this winter and loved it. He's played for three years and this is the first year that he finally got it. He made his first basket this season and then he went crazy, making 4 or 5 baskets a game. He absolutely loves sports. I'm trying to talk him into playing baseball this spring, but I'm not sure if he's sold on that sport. He's really good, but baseball is kind of slow so maybe that's why he doesn't want to play. Anyway, I guess we will see what he wants to do.

Alex loves playing with friends and is very social. He is always out riding around the neighborhood hitting up friends to play. His new thing is to shoot hoops with his friends in the driveway. He's been playing a lot this winter, making good use of the warm weather.

Alex was baptized this past summer. It was a very special day for him and for us. He was so excited to get baptized, but I think that might be because he knew he was going to get presents! The kid loves presents. On his birthday and Christmas, he cannot wait to open presents. He rips through them so fast he doesn't even know who gives him what. I have to hide his presents to keep him from peeping! Anyway, back to the baptism, it was a very nice day. Lots a family and friends came to see his big day and it was great. We had a party in the backyard after, feeding about 50 people, waffles, his choice! I'll just say that it was kind of a pain to make waffles for that many people! But it worked and it was fun. Alex really is a good kid. He actually tries to like church, even though you can tell that it is long for him.

The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 28 Aug 2014 13:28:00 -0600

I have to say I don't think I've ever seen anything like this before.

A few weeks ago I first heard about Pete Frates and the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. I was watching ESPN and they did a profile on this former Boston College baseball player who was trying to raise awareness on ALS, the disease he contracted a while earlier. If you haven't seen the original story, it's a must watch.

I was overwhelmed by the power of one man. Still, it seemed like Pete's challenge would be like so many others. A heart warming story that came and went with the news cycle.

But it didn't go away.

For whatever reason the challenge has truly gone viral. Athletes, politicians, actors all jumped on board.

Then it spread.

Moms, Dads, teachers, and even kids all wanted to jump into the act.

Well, long story short.- even my family has gotten into the act. Last night Kennedy did the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. Take a look:

Dede may not fully understand the destructiveness of ALS, but I'm still proud of her for taking the challenge. I know Tara and I will support the cause of fighting ALS, even if we don't dump buckets of water over our heads. We both saw how this disease affects families with the death of Tara's Uncle Sterling last year. Sterling was an amazing man and it was so hard to see him lose his battle with ALS. The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge is a powerful movement and I'm glad we've become part of it.

Photo of the Day

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 11 Aug 2014 23:03:00 -0600

What are they learning about in Primary?

Baptism Photo Shoot

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 3 Aug 2014 22:51:00 -0600

Final preparations for Alex's baptism continued over the weekend. His new suit arrived and it was time for a photo shoot. Only one problem - we don't have a photographer. Not to worry. Give me a willing model, some good light, and a few selected areas in our yard.

Alex turns 8!

noreply@blogger.com (Tara) — Sun, 27 Jul 2014 09:35:00 -0600

Alex has been so excited for his birthday. He has been planning and getting ready for this day for months. He loves opening presents and loves having parties! So, of course we had several! We started with a family party on the Sunday before his birthday. We had a "How to Train a Dragon" cake, a barbecue and of course presents. He got spoiled with lots of fun presents from the family, including lots of Legos!

The next day was his actual birthday. Alex wanted to spend some time with his cousins, so we invited them to go to the splash pad by our house. Later that night, we went to dinner and Alex opened his presents from us. More presents!

That next weekend, Alex had his friend party. He wanted to swim, so we went to our neighbors pool with lots of boys and a few girls and had a fun swim party. After swimming, we came back to our house for cupcakes and ice cream, presents and of course a pinata.

Alex, I am so proud of you! I can't believe you are 8 years old. You are such a good kid, with a sweet personality who cares for everyone around you. I love you!

Hiking through the Wild Flowers

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 13 Jul 2014 22:59:00 -0600

We spent the week down in New Harmony. While I was teaching all week at the Rural Schools Conference in Cedar City Tara and the kids took advantage of the down time to do all kinds of fun stuff - riding the 4 wheeler, swimming at the rec center, project time at the library. It was non stop adventure.

On Saturday we packed up all the kids and headed to the hills. It was the annual Wild Flower Festival up near Cedar Breaks and we wanted to get out of the heat. It was awesome! The kids loved getting out and seeing all the amazing colors as we hiked around Alpine Pond. Take a look:

Hotlanta

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 3 Jul 2014 18:26:00 -0600

The summer marked my first trip to the South. I was able to go to Atlanta for the ISTE conference and it was an amazing trip to a different part of the country. Some of the cool things I was able to see while down in Atlanta:

The CNN building. This place is awesome! I am a huge news junkie and CNN has always been one of my favorite stations. It was incredible to see some of the different things that they do from international news to Headline News and more.
The World of Coke. I really didn't want to go to the World of Coke, thinking it would be just a touist trap but this place was amazing! They had tons of interactive exhibits and really got you excited about Coke (one of my least favorite drinks). My favorite part of the tour was to taste Coke drinks from around the world - everyone's favorite has to be the Beverly from Italy!
Turner Field. As everyone knows I am a huge baseball junkie and the chance to go to a Braves game was tops on my list. The game wasn't very exciting, until after we left. The Braves won the game 4-3. I guess we were the good luck charm for Atlanta, as the Braves scored all of their runs after we left the game during the eighth inning. Oh well, it was still fun to see another professional baseball game.
Foodie. I would say my favorite meal was going to be Gladys Knight's Chicken and Waffle House. I absolutely love chicken and waffles. This southern delicacy was one of my favorite parts of the trip.

Overall I'd say my trip to Atlanta was very successful. One thing I'll also say is I'm never going back to Atlanta in June! The temperature was constantly over 90° and humidity was over 90%. I looked like I just stepped out of the shower throughout most of the trip. If I go to Atlanta again, it'll have to be during the winter. Still cool city, cool people, cool time in Hotlanta!

Camping-Just the Girls!

noreply@blogger.com (Tara) — Mon, 30 Jun 2014 10:00:00 -0600

So my friends and I have a somewhat new tradition that I hope continues for awhile. Last summer we went camping for a night, no hubbies, just the girls and all the kids. We had so much fun that we decided to do it again this year. And I hope it continues for a long time...

All of us had a good time. We went for a fun hike, had a snowball fight, ate lots of treats, rode lots of scooters, built lots of forts and enjoyed some quiet time around the fire.

Here are a few pics of our night away.

Father's Day 2014

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 15 Jun 2014 23:20:00 -0600

Today was a good day!

I was able to enjoy a nice breakfast. The kids and Tara served a delicious assortment of my favorite morning treats. Then it was time for presents - as you can see from the pic it was quite the haul.

Thanks for making my day so special! It's great to be a dad!

Big Graduate!

noreply@blogger.com (Tara) — Mon, 9 Jun 2014 10:21:00 -0600

Dylan graduated from preschool. I was pretty worried he might not make it, but he pulled through in the end! All of my kids have been in preschool with Miss Fidge and she is amazing! I love the graduation program that they put on. They prepare all year long for the program and it is so fun! They sing tons of fun songs and they each have their own speaking part that they memorize. It really is so amazing.

Good job on making it through preschool, Dylan! Now, on to Kindergarten!

Easter 2014: The Weekend in Photos

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 21 Apr 2014 12:35:00 -0600

Dylan's 5th Birthday

noreply@blogger.com (Tara) — Mon, 17 Feb 2014 08:49:00 -0700

Dylan's birthday is always around President's Day. We almost named him Lincoln. We usually spend President's Day with Jared's parents in New Harmony. Which means Dylan usually celebrates his birthday in New Harmony. This year was no different. We celebrated Dylan's birthday with a fun Sunday dinner and an awesome bad piggy and angry bird cake.

But as always, there can never be just one party! We also celebrated his actual birthday at home with dinner and a trip to the "Lego Movie" with the family. Dylan ended the day with opening his presents, and immediately ignoring his toys and playing his new Wii game. The kid is addicted!

I really am in shock that my baby is 5. I can't believe how fast he is growing up. He is such a fun kid with a fun personality. I love him so much! Happy 5th Birthday, Dylan!

Legends of Roundball

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 8 Feb 2014 11:51:00 -0700

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

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 9 Jan 2014 10:52:00 -0700

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:

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

Kennedy:

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

Alex:

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

Dylan:

Limit time playing Wii and watching TV.
Eat more apples.
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

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 9 Nov 2013 15:47:00 -0700

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

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 16 Oct 2013 12:51:00 -0600

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

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 8 Oct 2013 14:24:00 -0600

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!

Alex's Big Day

noreply@blogger.com (Tara) — Sat, 27 Jul 2013 11:32:00 -0600

Alex loves his birthday. He has been so excited to turn 7 and we had a big day planned for him. Alex is our only child to have a summer birthday, so we usually like to celebrate with outdoor activities.

This year included a very large blow-up bounce house and lots of kids to play on it. Alex had a fun birthday party, with water balloons, snow cones, cupcakes, ice cream bars, a pinata and lots of fun presents from his friends.

After the party, we figured since we had the bounce house all night, we might as well keep the party going. So we had neighbors, family and anyone who wanted to jump, come on over. We played all night on the bounce house!

Alex's party continued on Sunday with a family party with yummy food, a fun skateboard cake and even more presents. Alex got spoiled with a longboard and a new bike this year. He loves both but promptly wrecked on his longboard on his first try down the hill. Luckily he had his helmet on. I figure he will get better with practice!

I can't believe my Alex is 7 years old! He is already talking about getting baptized next year and is so excited to take that big step. I am so proud of my little Alex. He really is such a sweet, nice boy. Alex loves to cuddle and gives awesome hugs. He is such a thoughtful boy and is my best kid to help around the house. He is always willing to help with chores and loves to help his daddy with projects, especially if there are tools involved.

I am so thankful that we were blessed with such a sweet, loving boy! I love you, Alex! Happy 7th birthday!

Happy 4th

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 5 Jul 2013 11:03:00 -0600

With all of our recent travels it was nice to have a day off - at home. That doesn't mean we weren't on the go a lot of the day, but much of the 4th was spent around the house.

One of our favorite 4th traditions is to go over to Alicia's ward for their annual breakfast. Lots of food for us, lots of fun for the kids. They always have games for the kids with many little prizes for the winners.

I think Alex and Dylan's favorite part of the breakfast is the "train" ride. One of the guys creates a train and pulls it behind his lawnmower every year. The boys can't get enough of this thrill ride around the parking lot.

A little later in the day we had a fun visit with Jeff and Jeni Wright and their cute little family. Since they live in Virginia it isn't often we can get together. It was a short visit, but great to catch up and hear what they've been doing for the past couple of years.

The real party came after the sun started setting. My kids are way into fireworks - ok, I am too. This year's show didn't disappoint. We went over to the fireworks stand earlier in the afternoon and hooked up with some pretty cool stuff. Add that to a package our neighbor Hal gave and we were ready to light up the night.

After our show ended, we laid out in the front yard and watched the big stuff from the country club. One of the best parts of the 4th from our house is the view we get of the fireworks from across the street. They really go all out. It must have lasted 20-25 minutes and we enjoyed the entire show. A great end to a fun day.

Photo of the Day

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 2 Jul 2013 11:05:00 -0600

Love this picture that Alex took of Dylan. What a fun kid!

Capitol Reef - Stand in Holy Places

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 30 Jun 2013 11:31:00 -0600

A few months ago I decided I wasn't going to attend Youth Conference this year. It was scheduled at a terrible time for me to go. We had a family vacation scheduled for the day the conference ended and I knew it would be a lot of driving, for a pretty short trip.

Then, I started looking into the hike they were going on in Capitol Reef. I really wanted to go. I haven't really hiked much in that part of the state and it looked amazing. I decided I would attend so I could go on the hike.

Conference started on Thursday and we drove, and drove, and drove. The Boulder Mountains aren't exactly close to Salt Lake. Still, it was a fun trip and I got a kick out of listening the Deacons' conversations. These guys can really get going on all things soccer, school, and Taylor Swift.

On Friday we woke up early and set out for Sulphur Creek. It was a beautiful walk through the towering red rock. The hike was about 5 miles, but most of it was pretty flat and after the first mile you were inside the canyon walls. I had a great time walking and talking with the kids. You can really learn a lot about someone while on a hike. It was nice to hear about what's important to our YM/YW.

When we stopped for lunch the fun kicked in. One of the best parts of Sulphur Creek is some of the waterfalls you encounter along the trail. We had a great time sliding down the rock into a pool at the bottom. Of course I couldn't resist and went down a couple of times. It's what I love about hiking in canyons!

We went back to camp and everyone settled into to fun games and good competitions. There were some marathon games of Mafia and a few intense card games. The kids had a great time hanging out with one another.

I think the highlight of the trip was the evening devotional and testimony meeting. I've been to Youth Conference pretty much every year since I've been married and this testimony meeting took the cake. Every testimony meeting is special, but this was one of the five most spiritual meetings I've attended in my entire life. The kids really poured out their souls to one another and to our Heavenly Father. It was something I'll never forget.

After everything was over the hike was merely an afterthought. The conference was all about the kids and the great leaders I work with. I can't say enough about the incredible people in my ward. In the church we like to use the term ward family and that couldn't fit this group any better. I may have gone to Youth Conference for a hike in Capitol Reef, but I left with a deeper love for our Youth, our leaders, and the Lord.

Father's Day

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 16 Jun 2013 22:41:00 -0600

Today was a great day.

At church the kids sang.

I got a treat.

We had presents (including a new tool set for the shed).

I took a nap.

Nothing beats Father's Day.

Sidewalk Art and More

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 21:00:00 -0600

We needed to break out of the summer blues today. After a full morning of working in the yard, Tara and I decided it was time for a break. After a full morning of watching tv, Dylan needed a break as well. So, we grabbed Quinn and Coleton and headed downtown. Today was the Foster Care Foundation annual Chalk Art Festival. It was great. Cool artwork was everywhere. It was amazing to see the ground transformed into some incredible artwork - Toy Story, Oz, Minions, and more - oh my!

After seeing the artwork, we walked over to the plaza at the Gateway and the kids played in the splashpad til they dropped. A great break from a busy day!

Photo of the Day

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 10:38:00 -0600

Is this Alex or Papa?