Highlights and Not-so-highlights

I am alive...barely. Just kidding. But it is hard to recover from a two week vacation, especially a vacation like the one I just had. It was a bit rough for a while. To save time (mine and yours) and to go easy on my frazzled brain, I will just jot down the most memorable moments.

HIGHLIGHTS:

- I got to see my entire family, all of us together for the first time in years. It was a beautiful thing. I finally got to meet my nephew, Faces, and Buddha had a blast playing with his cousin, Beatbox, whenever he came over. In fact, Buddha attached himself to Beatbox in such a way that when Beatbox had to go home, Buddha would cry and cry and carry on as if the world had ended (his probably had).


- Taking tons of pictures.

- I told Buddha that Ratchet makes legs for people whose legs have been cut off. He asked me, "Does he make them hairy like their other legs?"

- Following Faces around snapping pictures incessantly and finally winning the competition to get "the face" on camera. I WIN! I RULE! I'M AWESOME! Where's my $50, Unkey Dino? :) j/k!


- When leaving to run errands, Buddha said to me, "I just want Uncle Ratchet to come in our car because I love him and his cut off leg."


- Playing games with the family after the kids went to bed at night. Okay, if I'm being honest, this really only happened twice. Most nights we intended to play, but everyone was exhausted by the time all the kids had zonked.

- Receiving a wonderful surprise in the mail from my extremely thoughtful husband. He bought me a new 50mm lens and had it sent to my parents' house. I love it! It is an amazing lens. Check out the crazy depth-of-field capabilities:


- While sitting on Ratchet's shoulders, Auntie asked Buddha if he missed his daddy. He responded while hugging Ratchet's head, "Yes, but I love this daddy, too."

- Sunday dinner. I've missed Sunday dinner at my parents' house. Pot roast, mashed potatoes, strawberry shortcake. Mmmm.... Good food, crazy company, random conversation. It doesn't get any better.

- Watching the popcorn popping on the neighbor's apricot tree...and getting lots of pictures of said popcorn.


- I got to witness my parents' transformations each morning from Utahan to Eskimo as they dressed for their morning walks.



- Taking tons of pictures.

- Visiting Jacqui, Jonathan, and Katelyn. Anytime anyone asks Buddha who we saw in Utah, he says, "Granny and Grandpa...and Jonathan!" I also got some great maternity pictures of Jacqui. She's beautiful!

*Incidentally, Bugga is just one week older than Katelyn here, but he outweighs her by tons and is more than a full head taller than her! She's only 17 lbs. and he weighs 27 lbs. already! Ahhhh! I have brutes for children. :)

- Unkey Dino playing with the boys, taking care of them, changing their diapers, feeding them. It was priceless...truly. He's a gem. There is one lucky girl out there just waiting to find him and when she does, I hope she realizes just how lucky she really is.





- Hanging out with Lisa F., Lisa I., and Kathleen up in Eagle Mountain. Unkey Dino came along and was great at entertaining the kids while I, yep, you guessed it, took pictures and chatted away. Typical me.


- I quizzed Buddha with this random question and was tickled with his spot-on response: "When Mommy says she's hungry, what does Daddy always say?" Answer: "Starving." So true.

- Swimming at the Lehi Legacy Center. That was awesome. I love that place. Bugga has no fear. It was hilarious to watch him flopping all around in the water, coming up spluttering and laughing at the same time. Buddha was cautious, but enjoyed himself. Every time the huge bucket would spill its contents, Buddha would cover his ears and watch, fascinated, until the last of the water trickled out.

Photo courtesy of Ratchet

- Seeing my friends, Lisa, Jacqui, Kari, and Evelyn, even if it was just for a few minutes. Sorry friends!

- Taking Nate and Emily's engagement pictures at the "castle" behind Utah State Hospital. They are a really fun couple and I had a great time. I hope they did, too.


- Picking up The Chief from the airport and watching the boys climb all over him with joy the next morning. They love, love, love their daddy! Bugga couldn't get enough of him and Buddha wanted to go with him wherever he went.


- Did I mention that taking tons of pictures was a MAJOR highlight of this trip?! :)

- Going to the Provo Temple with my mom and sister. It had been a while, a long while, since I had been to the Temple. It was wonderful and emotional. I've been needing that.

- Checking in with Unkey Dino after each of his dates.

- Playing with my cousins Zack and Brooke and Jake and Ember and their kids. They adopted The Chief and me into their family and invited us to all their family get-togethers when we had no family in Utah. We love them! Thanks for a great time you guys!



- Unkey Dino and I spent the entire vacation trying to figure out what a "fox car" is. According to Buddha, it's a car with a black stick in the back (an antennae), but he must discriminate further because sometimes when I see a black stick on the back of a car I'll ask him if it's a "fox car" and he'll say "no."**

*Since first writing this, we have discovered what a "fox car" is. Apparently the "stick" Buddha is talking about is the stripe that runs horizontally across the back of the car underneath the license plate. It can also be found on the front of the car...or so he says. :) Here is a picture for you:


- Getting a family picture with our entire family.



- Unkey Dino making crepes and me eating waaaaaay too many. So good!




- Playing with the neighbor girls, Faith, Charity, Grace, and Hope, and taking their pictures. Very photogenic, very wild, very fun!




NOT-SO-HIGHLIGHTS:

- I drove into Utah County only to be greeted by a raging blizzard. I left my sunny, 70 degree weather for this???

- Getting a family picture with our entire family. Yep, that's right, all Hell breaks loose when we try to work toward a common goal and cooperate with each other. Don't think I'll try that again any time soon. :)

- Cafe Rio. After discovering Cotijas here in San Diego, Cafe Rio just doesn't stack up anymore.

- Cleaning up vomit. Changing runny diapers. Waking up all hours of the night with sad, sick little men. Infecting the entire household with the 24-hour flu and having to cancel play dates.









- Getting stuck in massive traffic once through Vegas on our way home. Let's just say that it tacked another two, maybe three hours onto our already insanely long drive! Note to self, do not drive back from Utah on a Sunday again.

**For those of you who don't know, Buddha has this little quirk about him that has been around for a while now. As we drive along having conversations with him, Buddha will often be interrupting his own train of thought with a muttered, "Down car, I'm just kidding," or "Down truck, I'm just kidding," or "Fox car, I'm just kidding." I have no idea how it started or where it came from, but he does it all the time. I've worked out what a "down car" is as well as the "down truck," but I'm still working on the "fox car." He's very good at slipping it into the normal flow of a conversation without even breaking stride. He can pick up right where he left off talking. It's hilarious!

In Spite of the Toilet Seat...

...we managed to make it to five years. And I must say they've been five happy years. Today The Chief and I celebrated our fifth wedding anniversary...in style. Thanks to my sister, Auntie, being willing to watch our boys all day long, and thanks to The Chief's fabulous planning, we were able to have a wonderful day full of relaxation and together time. We started off the day with an amazing couples massage at Spa Tiki in downtown San Diego. It was amazing. I felt like a wet noodle afterward. I hadn't realized how much tension I was carrying around in my body until it was gone. After the massage we spent 1/2 an hour in the steam room sweating and detoxing. That was a beautiful thing, too. After the spa we headed to lunch at a small French bistro called St. Tropez that The Chief frequents at lunch time during the work week. We got to sit outside and the weather was perfect for it with the warm breeze carrying the smell of the ocean. After lunch we headed home to rest and give Auntie a bit of a break from the boys. In the evening we set out for dinner at The Marine Room at La Jolla Shores. While the food was beautiful and tasty, it wasn't spectacular and it was definitely outshined by the ocean views and sunset that we were fortunate enough to witness. All in all, for people who haven't yet really celebrated an anniversary, I think we did pretty good for our fifth. What do you think? I love you soooooooo much, Chief...a lot! :) Thank you for the perfect day and a wonderful five years. I hope to have at least 60 more with you. :)

Pictures at The Marine Room

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY TO US!
(Thanks again, Auntie!)

Utah

I have not managed to post any updates or pictures about our trip here to Utah, mainly because I'm busy cleaning up vomit and diarrhea blowouts. We are home to the flu right now...big time. And worst of all, my little family started it. I'm not sure if we brought it with us from California or if we caught it here. Aside from this little hiccup, we're still managing to have fun visiting with family and playing games. Oh, and Unkey Dino has updated his blog for the first time since he started it a year ago. It has lots of pictures and funny videos from our time here. If you are a mother, you'll appreciate his appreciation. Check it out here.

Predictable

Take the Quiz here!

I knew this is who I would be even before I started the quiz. I'm just not passionate like Marianne Dashwood or hot-headed and opinionated like Lizzie. I don't like to meddle the way Emma Woodhouse does and I'm definitely not the prig that Fanny Price is. Anyway, I like Elinor. I think she's the most level-headed of the lot. Maybe not the most exciting, but practical nonetheless. I hope it works for me in my life. Take the quiz. It was fun. Thanks Laurie!

Goodreads

I keep sending emails to random people about this website. So, in an effort to save time, I'm just going to write my laud and praise for the website here on our blog and hope that you are all reading diligently. :)

Goodreads is a website where you can add, rate, review, and store books online. Let me see if I can clarify that. I signed up, then I added any books I could remember I'd read, I rated them, and I wrote reviews for some of them. Then I added friends and I got to see their books: what they'd read, what they were reading, what they wanted to read. I can add whatever books from their lists I want to my own lists. This ensures that I never again will forget which books I've heard great things about and want to read.

Now, if that paragraph with multiple "reads" in it didn't sink in, go back and read it again. :) At first I was not here or there about the website. I got invited and I signed up thinking it would be another website that had my information but that I didn't use. Not so. I'm addicted. I'll never run out of good titles to read thanks to my friends who've already joined. So, please join up so that I can see what you're reading and what books you've loved!

www.goodreads.com

Happy Reading!

Meeeeee!

I love this.

Oh Duh

Well, in an effort to be honest, I am not going to just delete my shamefully embarrassing post about the fake "gmail custom time." The Chief was quick to remind me today that it was April Fool's Day. He asked me if I had even read what they wrote. I said yes. He asked me if I'd read the equation they used. I said yes. But if you know me, you know that math is not just not my forte, it's my hell. He told me that he was tipped off by their explanation for how they managed to "fix" this time issue: "Gmail utilizes an e-flux capacitor to resolve issues of causality." Apparently the flux capacitor is from the Back to the Future car. So sue me for not being a huge Back to the Future fan. Oh well, they got me. They got me good. I'm embarrassed at how incensed I sounded. You hear that, G-mail? Good one! I've been had. Now you all know who you can play April Fool's Day tricks on. I can't remember for two consecutive minutes what day it is. Blah!

Sad

Does anyone else find this to be extremely sad? Google is promoting blantant dishonesty and calling it funny, productive, and brilliant. And listen to one of their testimonials which, though I think they are trying to be funny, is quite depressing:

"I used to be an honest person; but now I don't have to be. It's just so much easier this way. I've gained a lot of productivity by not having to think about doing the 'right' thing."

Todd J., Investment Banker

Ummmm..............................

Melts My Heart

Token Easter Post...

...FINALLY! Geez, I can't seem to stay on top of everything right now. It's probably because I've got so many good books I want to read and when I start one, I can't be bothered to put it down for anything (i.e. returning phone calls, cooking meals, folding all the clean laundry that's piling up, getting out of bed, etc.). :)

Anyway, Easter was fun. It was really low-key. We just stuck around here all day and had an Easter egg hunt and dyed Easter eggs. Because it was so warm and because we had filled the Easter eggs with chocolate candy, The Chief had to keep the boys occupied while I ran out and hid all the eggs in any shady spots I could find in our backyard. Then I darted back inside, collected the boys, and herded them quickly toward the melting treasure.

Dying Easter eggs was hilarious. There's a video record of that event. I had seen somewhere (blog, website, newspaper article....) that every Easter a couple would put their stripped-down kids into a bathtub to dye eggs. We tried it and the cleanup was so simple I think I'll do that every year! The boys had a great time.

On Wednesday we had our CTR 5 class come over for an Easter cookie decorating party. With my kids participating as well, we managed to cover all our bases this Easter, even though we only started preparing on Saturday night! Hooray for procrastinators! :)

I have thoroughly enjoyed reading all your Easter posts/updates and I'm excited to finally add my own to the mix. Now that Easter is over, we are eagerly looking forward to General Conference (hoping to keep the kids occupied enough that we can watch more than the one talk we managed last year) and our big two-week trip to Utah. I have found myself calling my Utah family more often because I'm so excited to go that my heart is already there.

Oh, which reminds me, WELCOME HOME UNKEY DINO!! My brother, Unkey Dino, came home from Iraq just this week. And from what I understand (though this is subject to change depending on the availability of cute girls here in the States), he's home for good. My boys are especially excited to see Unkey Dino. I can't wait!

Okay, peace out (I haven't said that in a long time...brings back memories). :)

Photo by The Chief

Photo by The Chief

The Hunt


Eating the Booty


Dying the Eggs


For a few more fun Easter images, click here.

Crazy, Sexy Cancer Blog

This blog is amazing. And I wish I could eat the way this post outlines. I think I'll work on it. This is the way my mom eats. It's always been amazing to me that she can do this in the world we live in - a world of packaged, processed foods. I've tried this before and it's simply not easy. I want to try again and do it slowly. Anyway, I just love this blog. It's full of positive, uplifting messages and conversations. Some things don't apply to me, but I like gleaning whatever I can from her. She is an amazing person.

For Heather and Jacoby

Hi guys! We hope you're having fun in Europe and we thought you might like a little peek at the boys. We're having a great time with them. Buddha loves having a "built-in" friend that's here when he wakes up every morning. He's going to be sad when you guys come back to take the boys home. :)

Rett has been kind of clingy. He's definitely missing his Mommy and Daddy. So, we opened the special books you made for the boys. Those are awesome, Heather! Rett has been carrying his around and plopping down in random places to look at it several times a day. I hear him softly saying, "Mommy, Daddy, Rett." He's so cute! We've been having fun getting to know him better. He's a riot. We think it's so hilarious and adorable that he hums his way through every meal. And every day as he plays I hear him saying, "Ee Ah Ee Ah Yo!" He says it really fast, over and over again. He's a little character, and very cuddly. We've been giving him lots of hugs and kisses, but he'll be glad when you're back, I'm sure.

Coby is a lot of fun, too. He and Buddha pal around all day like they're twins. And they often fight like they're siblings, too. :) I finally confiscated the two ride-on cars that we have in the house. They were the source of so much strife between all the boys, so they are currently residing in the back of your van. :) Coby is full of lots of fun suggestions. We've been to the park on his recommendation and we've read countless books. He amazes me with his potty skills. Buddha doesn't even dress himself yet and Coby can do everything by himself! It's made me realize I need to foster more independence in Buddha. :)

Well, like I said, we're having a great time. Our ward is having a talent show tonight that we're hauling all the boys to. I think it'll be fun. There's a little video at the bottom of this post. Enjoy! You are loved by your little men. :)

Trust Issues

When we give Buddha a sippy cup with water at bedtime, he always shakes it before taking the first sip. I guess he wants to make sure there's actually something in there. I think he might also be testing how much is in the cup. It's all very practical and scientific. His deliberate personality cracks me up.

I'm all over the place today!

Here's some funny, sad, amusing, productive, cool things that I have on my mind today.

1-

This morning I got a text message on my phone:
"Happy 40th Birthday! Loves and hugs. Julie."

I felt so bad that I just had to reply:
"Wrong number. Sorry."

And she returned my message:
"Real funny."

I'm thinking, "Wow, this lady really believes that I'm a mid-life crisis, in-denial, "black" birthday avoider. So, I called her. This is how she answered:

"Still in my 30's, how can I help you?" Oh I laughed and she laughed and we laughed together...until she finally accepted that I wasn't her precious, over-the-hill, Marianne. Then she was all-too quickly hanging up. I wish she was younger. We could be good friends. I could use her sense of humor in my life. :)

2 -

I've lost all my beach pictures that I took of the boys and The Chief at Torrey Pines. They are no longer on my computer or my external hard drive. I'm devastated. So devastated, in fact, that after my fruitless search on the computer, I headed for the backyard with my gloves, shovel, and angst. I now have two huge piles of succulents to put in the green waste bins and a lovely, bare cement wall for my vegetable garden. No more choking plants for my veggies! Moral: anxiety and grief breed productivity. At least in this instance.

3 -

We have the coolest landlords ever. Our garage door broke, so not only do they fix it, but they install a brand new, top-of-the-line garage door with windows and a new opener too. And, they've just had the whole exterior of the house repainted. And, they scheduled an entire home termite inspection. Maybe these are things that all landlords do, but I maintain that ours are the coolest.

4 -

We are now watching our good friends, the Larsen's, boys for a week until they get back from Europe. On our way to pick them up from another family, Buddha was holding the last wedge of his quesadilla. He said he would eat it in the car, but after 15 minutes or so, I asked him if he'd like me to hold it for him. He hesitated then said, "Be careful that you don't eat it." Ha ha ha! He cracks me up. Probably only me, but that's enough. I need more laughter. Especially today.

More videos...

...because lately, I'm too lazy to write. Okay, the truth is that there really isn't anything exciting to write about. Besides the fact that spring has arrived in San Diego and I've been taking full advantage. I can't even begin to tell you how amazing it is to be able to head out to my backyard wearing my bathing suit and carrying a large beach towel, feeling the warm cement under my strangled, winterized feet. When I lie down and start the timer, the sun is immediately drawn to my black bathing suit and before two minutes have passed I'm feeling the heat...and I love it. I love the blazing light of the sun as I see it through my eyelids. I love the sounds and smells of spring represented by thousands of tree blossoms and fresh grass clippings, lawn mowers and neighborhood kids playing in a distant backyard, cocky teenage boys washing the family cars, chlorine and coconut sun block permeating the warm, tropical air. I love the low, steady hum of the bees that feast at our hilly wildflower mecca. I love the quiet that is peaceful, but not silent. I love the joy I can't contain as my body reawakens with the warmth of the sun. I love spring. And, yes, I love a good tan as well. I won't lie.

Mumbo-jumbo aside...here's the really good stuff:

This is Buddha and Bugga helping Daddy read them their bedtime story.



This is Buddha and Bugga brushing their teeth. Very entertaining...seriously. :)

Book Tag From Lauren

RULES:

Find the book closest to you with at least 123 pages.

Turn to page 123.

Find the fifth sentence.

Post the next 3 sentences.

Also make a plug about a book you are reading.

Tag 5 people.

The book closest to me is I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith. It says, "But it startled mother badly the other night. I think I'll just ask them not to, if I can catch them." Simon went to the door and opened it.

Here's my plug:

I am currently reading The Writing on the Wall by Dean Hughes. It continues the story of the Thomas family from his original World War II era series called Children of the Promise. I like his books because they are very well-researched historical fiction novels. Sometimes history is a little boring to me by itself, but if I can imagine an every-day, regular old Joe like me as part of that history, then I become more interested and engaged. That is what Dean Hughes as a writer offers to me as a reader.

I tag Laurie, Wendy, Brooke, Lisa F. and Megan.

My 10 Seconds....

...of fame, that is. Here is my television debut in all it's glory. Blah, blah, blah. It's more comical than exciting. Whoever spliced and merged the footage got it all wrong for me. I don't actually use Snapfish...ever. If I ever print my photos (which is really once in a blue moon), I use Costco online, which just happens to be powered by Snapfish. It's a twisted world, working in television. I think I'll quit my acting career and go back to photography. :) Oh well, it was fun. And that old adage about the camera adding 10 lbs? It's not true. It added 20 lbs to my already apple-shaped face. I don't think it helped that Noe, the happy camera man, was so zoomed in on me. Well, enough of my griping. You may have to turn up your volume. I don't think I had the TV volume up loud enough. Didn't want to wake the kiddos.

Iraqi Lions' Den

Buddha gave his talk in Primary today. He talked about the story of Daniel in the lions' den and how it teaches us to be obedient and have faith. First, though, he opened with a few words about how reading the scriptures can help us return to Heavenly Father (since that's the Primary theme this month). Then I started to read what we'd written so that he could repeat after me. Here's how it went:

Me: "I love the story of Daniel in the lions' den."

Buddha: "I love the story of Unkey Dino in the lions' den."

Me: "No, Buddha, not Unkey Dino, just Daniel."

Buddha: "I love the story of Unkey Dino in the lions' den." (stubborn little bugger)

I love him. He's always making me laugh. Later on, I found out that on their way to church, he told The Chief he was giving a talk in Primary about Unkey Dino in the lions' den. Well, I guess being in Iraq could be considered its own type of lions' den. :) We can't wait for you to get out of that lions' den and come home next month, Unkey Dino! We love you.

Oops

My videos apparently didn't work. So, I've made them public instead of private. See if that works. Thanks for letting me know Laurie and Lauren! I hope they work now.

Shameless

Having been caught up in my recent photography obsession, I've neglected videos. So, here's a couple of random videos of the boys taken within the last couple of weeks. Be forewarned, the last video is five minutes of shameless, blatant showing off from both Mommy and Buddha. I couldn't help it. He's my three-year-old genius child. I think it's going to be a struggle keeping him challenged and not bored as he goes throughout his life. Enjoy!

Buddha and Bugga at the driving range:



Mommy quizzing Buddha:

Our Valentine's Day...

...wasn't really on Valentine's Day after all. We actually didn't do anything for Valentine's Day. Nothing. We're not big holiday celebrators. But, we did get to go on a pre-Valentine's Day date the Saturday before thanks to the Larson family. They came to watch the boys at our house and The Chief surprised me with an impromptu shopping trip at Old Navy, followed by a delicious full rack of ribs at Pat & Oscar's (which we shared). Then, we were going to head to the movie theatre, but we didn't want to watch the really late show that started just after 9pm, so we somehow ended up at Barnes & Noble instead. We spent two hours sitting on the hard floor in the middle of the aisle reading photography books. I'll tell you what, nothing says I love you more than your spouse expressing interest in your passion. It endeared him to me. I'm still telling anybody who will listen to me (that's you) about it. I love The Chief. He's my better half.


The second celebration we got was actually post-Valentine's Day. On Friday The Chief woke up late and let me convince him to take us all up to Disneyland instead of going into work. He complied and we had a perfect day at the DL, taking in Tomorrow Land rides and, of course, the ever-popular Nemo submarine ride (which is totally awesome, by the way). I got to go on the fast roller coaster in Toon Town with Buddha. Lines were long (probably for the holiday weekend) so we only made it onto about 5 or 6 rides, but it was definitely worth it. We had a much better experience this time than we did the last time we went in near-100-degree weather! Oh, and Buddha got his own pass for which he had to have his picture taken. He was very excited about that.



The Chief also purchased a brand new flash and UV filter for my camera...not on Valentine's Day, but I'll count it as a Valentine's gift. :)


Thanks for making my non-Valentine's Day perfect, Papa! I am the luckiest woman alive. I love you.

Note

For some reason, if you have a Hotmail account, I can no longer send you mass emails, even if I cut down the number of recipients. It thinks I'm spam. So, well, I don't know what to do. I guess just keep checking the blog every now and then. For anyone who'd care to hear my opinion, just know that I love my gmail account! It's amazingly wonderful, simple, beautiful, efficient, and I could go on and on and on (hint, hint...get one!). Well, I'll miss sending you reminders, but know that I'm thinking of you guys...my Hotmail buddies. Don't be strangers.

My Television Debut

Well, the events of the last couple of days have been random, to say the least. Last night I got a call from my visiting teacher's husband, Bob Hansen. He said, "Hi Liz, I'm not sure if you know this about me, but I'm a television reporter and I'd like to interview you." What?! Me?! What could I possibly know that you'd want to hear from me? No, I did not know that about him. I knew that he was our ward's bishop a while ago. I knew about his interest in photography. But I did NOT know that he was a reporter. In fact, after I got off the phone with him, I had to look him up online because I couldn't remember if he'd said he was a television reporter or a newspaper reporter. Once I found him on NBC 7/39 News' website, I started to feel nervous about the whole thing. What if I didn't know what he wanted me to know? I didn't want him to feel like coming to my house was a waste of time.

He's doing a segment on photo sharing and Internet photo hosting websites (Shutterfly, Snapfish, Flickr, Picasa, Kodak, Photobucket, etc.). Since I've gotten into photography and I'm a mom at the same time (we mom's are notorious picture-takers), he wanted my opinion on which sites I liked and for what purposes (i.e. photo sharing, photo storage, printing, etc.). He and his camera man, Noé, came by today at 11am. They set up in the backyard and then filmed me taking pictures of my kids for a while. After that we went inside and Bob interviewed me at our kitchen table. Then we went into the living room and I got to show them my photo blog and some of my photography while they kept the camera pointed at the computer screen. I also showed them some of the photo hosting websites that I use. Anyway, while I first mentioned that this was random, I also had a blast. It's the first chance I've had to get to know Bob as Bob instead of Lorraine's husband and it was fun to show another photographer my pictures. Plus, if you really know me, you know that I'm more than ready and willing to share my opinions about things. I'm just not so sure I like doing that on television.

If you're here in San Diego, the segment will air this Saturday (Feb. 16th) on channel 7, NBC 7/39 News, at 11:00pm. Don't expect much. I think he said he'd probably interview me for all of 30 seconds and then use maybe 10 seconds of it during his segment. Woo hoo! I'll be famous after 10 seconds! :-) Just kidding.

Happy Birthday Ween!

Don't Buddha and Bugga have the cutest cousins!?! :)

Clarification

Ratchet is my sister's husband.

My Letter to Oprah

You know, since we're talking about him and this website he wants to create, I figured this would be a good time for me to tell the world what an inspiring person Jarem Frye is. I don't know why I haven't done this long ago. I've had this letter to Oprah written in my head since I met Jarem. The whole world should know about him, but I guess my own blog would be a good starting place for my letter.

When he was just 14 years old, Jarem was diagnosed with bone cancer. He had nine months of chemotherapy treatments during which doctors informed him that he would need a bone transplant in order to preserve his leg. With this transplant, a metal rod would be inserted into the length of his leg, leaving him unable to bend his knee. Jarem asked for other options. He was given two: he could have an artificial knee joint inserted, which, at that time, would severely limit his activity to walking only; or, he could have his leg amputated and get a prosthetic, allowing him an almost-full range of motion. Armed with that knowledge and knowing he didn't want to live with limitations all his life, he became a 14-year-old, above-knee (AK) amputee. After his amputation, he endured another nine or ten months of chemotherapy before his cancer was officially pronounced in remission.

When he was fitted with his first prosthetic leg at age 15, Jarem says, "I didn't like the look of it because they tried to make it look real. So I stripped it down to the aluminum, the mechanical stuff, and put a band aid on it along with a sticker stating 'mothers worry.'" His sense of humor never left him. Neither did Jarem let the fact that he only had one leg stop him from pursuing an active lifestyle. In fact, he used it to motivate him above and beyond what the average biped does in his lifetime. He puts me and my two healthy legs to shame with what he can do with his one leg. At just 15 years old he was skiing for a US National Junior Ski Team (AJET - Alpine Junior Elite Team) in the Slalom and Downhill events. At 16, he moved into the open class and was ranked anywhere from 14th in the world to 27th in the world in a variety of events including Slalom, Giant Slalom, Super G, and Downhill. He could have gone on to Olympic competitions, but instead he chose to serve a full-time, two-year mission to England for the LDS Church.

When he returned from his missionary service, he says, "My priorities shifted from becoming the best in the world to being the first in world," and as his passion grew for extreme sports like wakeboarding, rock climbing, snowboarding, skateboarding, and downhill skiing, he became more and more frustrated with the lack of extreme sports compatible prosthetics. So, he did the only thing left to do, he created the XT9, "the only prosthetic knee device designed to mimic the functions of the quadriceps during intense athletic and extreme sports use by highly active amputees." With his ground-breaking knee, he became the first AK amputee in the world to telemark ski, wake board, and rock climb on a professional level. Not only is he the proud owner of these lofty distinctions, he is also an accomplished competitor around the globe. In the summer of 2006, he competed in a world wide rock climbing competition in Florida called the eXtremity Games (equivalent to the X-Games, but for amputees), and walked away with the gold medal, $5,000, and some much needed advertising for his innovative and revolutionary prosthetic knee. He has also been extended an invitation to compete with the US Paralympic Cross-Country Ski Team at the 2010 Paralympic Games in Vancouver, Canada. He is still considering this option at this point. As often as business and family permit, Jarem competes for worthy causes like the 100 mile cycling event he entered in Connecticut that gave all its proceeds to cancer research and the 70 mile Live Strong Challenge held in Portland, Oregon. In March he will be traveling to Norway to provide an educational clinic on the XT9 for a group of amputee, extreme-sport hopefuls wanting to learn more and try out his ground-breaking knee.

With the XT9, Jarem's enabling prosthetic knee, other amputees have also captured the title of "first" in the world. One example, Nicole Roundy (21), a native of Utah, became the first AK amputee snowboarder to board on a professional level using the XT9, and won a silver medal in the adaptive slope style competition at the 2006 United States of America Snowboard Association (USASA) National Championship. Also noteworthy are the many military personnel that are back on active duty thanks, in part, to Jarem's XT9.

Jarem has now turned his full attention and dedication to the manufacture and distribution of his prosthetic knee and, by so doing, has touched the lives of many well-known and not-so-well known leg amputees. They are now doing things with their lives that they never thought would be possible again. He is an angel and a godsend to these people because he gives them hope to replace tragedy and loss. He is deeply religious, has a great sense of humor, and never stops moving forward.

If you want to see some awesome video of just what Jarem can do with his knee, check out his website, Symbiotechs USA, and click on the videos link. There are a few videos, but one of my favorites is the third entitled, "Man Builds Machine Builds Man." In addition to amazing footage of Jarem telemark skiing, skateboarding, snowboarding, and rock climbing, you get to see his kooky side as he goofs off with his prosthetic leg. It's amazing that with all he's been through he still has such a great sense of humor. For all this and more, I am inspired by and have much admiration for my brother-in-law, Jarem.

Rest in Peace

Today we spent the better part of the day watching President Hinckley's funeral service on The Chief's laptop. It was held in the conference center in Salt Lake City. The conference center was full and the program was also broadcast over the church satellite system to wards and stakes all over the world, not to mention the Internet streaming available. It's overwhelming to think of the millions who tuned in to bid farewell to our beloved prophet. He was so loved. The service was so beautiful. The choir sang hymns throughout the program that were actually written by President Hinckley. I was surprised at some of them. I had no idea he was the author of the text in many of those hymns. I loved the tribute from his daughter and I cried and cried during the documentary of President Hinckley that aired as the procession drove from the conference center to the cemetery. I think what set me off the most was whenever they would show President Hinckley with his wife. I bet they had a lovely reunion. I loved that everyone who talked about him brought up his great sense of humor and then gave us examples of that humor. Funny stories are the best. At the graveside service they had a bagpipe soloist perform a haunting medley of Amazing Grace, Danny Boy, and Praise to the Man, as he walked toward and then away from the interment site - the music fading out slowly to the background as though carrying the soul away with it on the melody. President Hinckley loved England so much (it's where he served his mission) that he arranged for a box of English soil to be placed beneath his casket so that his body could rest on American and English soil until the resurrection.

I marvel at how little I knew about church development during President Hinckley's service. It was said that 1/3 of the church's current membership was baptized during his service as prophet of the church. And it's hard for me to fathom that at the beginning of his calling in 1995, there were only 47 functioning temples. Now, at his death just 13 years later, there are 124 operating temples with 6 under construction and 6 announced. That's phenomenal. Also in the documentary, his children talked about how little fear he had of the media. He did something that no other church president had done before him by interacting freely and willingly with the media. He was scrutinized by some for his agreement to appear on 60 Minutes with Mike Wallace, but he spoke with quiet conviction and was so graceful and loving that soon other TV icons like Larry King were inviting him to be interviewed on their shows.

Well kiddos, there's so much more I could say about President Hinckley. If you didn't get a chance to watch the funeral services or at the very least, the documentary, I highly recommend it. You can watch them here (pick the top one, 11am) or listen to them here. Enjoy. I sure did.