A Day in the Life of Smith

February 13th, 2012 - Asher's Birthday

2012-02-13T09:20:00.001-07:00

Last night I went to my son and told him how proud I was of him. He's 18. We went to dinner and I recounted his birth to him in the hospital. We talked about our triumphs and a struggles, the ups and downs. I love that kid.

2nd Day home from School

2012-02-08T11:03:00.002-07:00

Ame home from school again today. Got her some sprite and soup. She's bundled watching TV. Also, according to agreement, Riley's grades have fallen below Bs and he lost his phone. He's working on rebuilding them back up.

Jennie and I went to the Angry Bull last night and had a Turkey Burger. Their turkey burgers are amazing.

Super Bowl Pictures

2012-02-07T10:13:00.002-07:00

I promised super bowl pictures and so here they are:

CLICK HERE!

Some of them are goofy, but they show my friends over for the day.

Ame Sick

2012-02-07T10:12:00.000-07:00

Ame is home sick. Asher was home sick last week, and so now she's down.

Christmas 2012 Photos

2012-02-07T10:11:00.000-07:00

Here are the photos for Christmas 2012 finally!

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150600382733257.403325.683213256&type=3&l=3676c62917

Super Bowl

2012-02-05T11:24:00.000-07:00

Last year we were in Ojai and missed watching the Packers beat the Steelers. This year we are home and having a little party. I'm making Jambalaya, and friends are bringing a pot luck of food for us to enjoy. Jennie is making her PASTA salad. This year it is the Giants Vs. the Patriots. I have a feeling the Giants are going to win, though I don't really much care about either team.

I'll post some photos after the game!

January 25th, 2012 - Wednesday - Knight of Disks

2012-01-25T11:12:00.002-07:00

Steady. Stable. Consider your goals, and take the first step toward them. Today is a steady stable, day of progress toward your solid foundational goals. You are trustworthy, and don't forget to thank those around you for their help!

January 24th, 2012 - Tuesday - Abundance

2012-01-24T11:17:00.001-07:00

The Abundance card tells you that you are ripe. In a good way. Ripe with love. With energy. With emotoins. And so today, is the day to give this away. Share it NOW. If you keep it, stagnation will occur. 100% guaranteed. Even if you only feel the slightest bit of goodness today, give that away. Be generous with whatever abundance you have, small or large. Another thing to consider... expanding your ability to love. The abundance card is telling you that you have more love to give than you think you have. How can you stretch and give more?

Photos of the Children

2012-01-23T11:37:00.009-07:00

Ame was digging around in the basement last night and found these photos! It looks like they are about 6 years ago, maybe 2005, 2006. My mom took the photos of Ame around her house, except for the school photos.

Playing with the world.

My Mom's grand piano

Cool photo...

Ame's big grin on my Mom's Mom's rocking chair!

The reason for the short hair is that Ame took a pair of scissors to her head, and so we had to cut it short to fix it.

The smile!

Great photo

Jason's Ratatouille Recipe

2012-01-23T09:57:00.000-07:00

Jason’s Ratatouille

This recipe was taken from a couple French cookbooks and altered by me in the test kitchen. The results were absolutely fantastic, enough so that my friend Parker Gartliz tried it and loved it as well. It’s hard not to keep eating it. You wouldn’t think it is that good until you try it, and then it just blows you away. I can’t say enough about this recipe.

Ingredients

1 Package of Bacon
2 Red or Green Bell Peppers (roasted over the fire – see below)
1 Good sized eggplant (Chopped into cubes. Some people peel it... I don't.)
2 lbs of Zuchini/Squash. This equates to about 2 good sized green Zuchini and 2 good sized yellow squash.
1 lb of Onion (a large onion qualifies)
1 Can of Tomato Sauce
1 Can of diced crushed tomatoes (You can alternately use 2 lbs of fresh tomatoes but... they don't taste too good this time of year, and cutting them up is a bitch, so used my cans and it worked perfectly)
Olive Oil
Butter
1 Bay Leaf
2-3 sprigs of fresh thyme
1 to 1.5 tablespoons of Garlic (You can use fresh garlic but... I used a garlic paste instead)
Salt & Pepper to taste
Sugar
Fresh Basil

Roast the bell peppers, by either holding them over an open flame with tongs, or broiling them till they are black in the oven. Peel off the burnt skin, cut them up, take the seeds out.

Cut the bacon into dices, and in a big 5-7 quart pot, cook the back until it’s done. Take the bacon and put into a bowl and munch on it as you cook, throwing the remaining pieces back into the recipe at the very end. Pour the bacon fat off into a bowl, leaving the bits in the pan.

Then pour a little bacon fat, a little olive oil, and a dab of butter to the pot. Cook the chopped and roasted bell peppers for a few minutes, until they are soft. When they are done… take peppers out and put into a colander over a bowl, so the fat drips off the peppers.

Then... more bacon fat, more olive oil, more butter, and quickly cook the onions for 3-5 minutes. Then remove them to the colander with the peppers.

Then… more fat, oil, butter, and cook the zuchini and squash for a few minutes, then remove to colander

You guessed it, more fat, oil, butter, and now I brown the eggplant, which soaks up most of the oil real quick, so I had to add quite a bit more, mostly olive oil. I was out of bacon fat by this time. When it's done it all goes into the colander.

Now... In the pot I pour in some more oil, heat very hot, then I add the garlic. This oil butter garlic smell is incredible. You can add as much garlic as you want depending on how much garlic flavor you like. Once that is mixed in for a few seconds, I pour in the can of tomato sauce and the can of dices/crushed tomatoes. Then I add the sprigs of fresh Thyme (fresh is the key here) and the bay leaf. Sprinkle with a little sugar to defeat the acid in the tomatoes. Salt and pepper to taste. Then... pour in the vegetables from the colander (free of the oil that has drained out), and any remaining bacon bits.

Cook for as long as you want, but at least 30 minutes. If you cook a long time, it gets mushy, but that's okay, it will get mushy anyway.

When you are finished, take 6 or more fresh leaves of basil, chop them up, and add them in. I think I might have added quite a bit more, because I LOVE fresh basil. The basil is the last thing you add. Then it's ready to go. And as amazing as it tastes... it's even BETTER the next day.

Riley's Reading Levels

2011-12-13T09:18:00.003-07:00

Riley took a reading level test in high school, and the results came back. A score of 1300 or above is ADVANCED COLLEGE LEVEL, as they label it, and the highest bracket they have. Riley scored a 1530.... The highest in his entire grade!

Ame's Midterm Report Card

2011-10-04T10:52:00.004-06:00

Ame's starting off Middle School in the right direction!

Sunday Pictures

2011-09-25T13:43:00.002-06:00

Beginning a long needed and long awaited period of rest! Here are some pictures from the house (cranes) and from Ame's Soccer game!

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150343289553257.364216.683213256&l=4303f14887&type=1

Pictures

Ame Ran

2011-09-23T15:02:00.001-06:00

Ame ran an 8:54 second mile in school today! Fastest 7th grader in the school!

The Day is HERE!

2011-09-10T09:21:00.001-06:00

Wedding day is here. Bride is in Silver Lake getting her hair done, I'm with the boys contemplating all that is before us and what is to come and what is right now before me. Moment by moment. Pictures will be taken, so look for them soon! Love to all!

Wedding Prep

2011-09-08T09:08:00.000-06:00

We are really coming down to the wire here! And it is exciting. 6 months of work for a beautiful weekend. I got my wedding band and everything is looking good. Ah.... it's really happening!

School!

2011-08-31T06:36:00.002-06:00

The kids are back in school! Asher is a Senior, Riley a Sophomore. Ame is in 7th grade at Rocky Mountain Middle School! Asher has college classes he's taking, psychology and art.

Wedding Engagement Photos

2011-08-25T22:16:00.000-06:00

Click HERE for wedding engagement photos

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2170882843829.112862.1599498417&l=38d5a1617f&type=1

Ame's Artwork

2011-08-09T07:20:00.001-06:00

Ame spent the day yesterday (August 8th) painting with her friend Phoebe. Here is a link to her art for the day!

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150293544873257.351640.683213256&l=1482da2b18&type=1

Soccer Camp & Driving

2011-07-21T14:29:00.001-06:00

Ame, even though she has a broken arm, has been attending soccer camp all week. The coach gave us some feedback today that I thought I would share with everyone:

Ame's doing great. She is in the group of good players on our team. She would make a great full back because she is fast and aggressive and doesn't like to get beat! Her area to work on is she needs to get her head in the game, she tends to be a little in la la land or have mice in her brain :))

Next item is Driving. Riley got his Driver's Permit so me and Papa have been driving around with him a lot, and he's driving very well. I'm impressed.

It is Quiet

2011-06-22T09:41:00.001-06:00

Ame is at Girls Camp. It's quiet around the house....

Pictures Around the House

2011-06-14T08:41:00.004-06:00

If you enter this link on your computer internet browser, it should take you to a string of new photos I just put up on Facebook.

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150232334363257.335215.683213256&l=4d84400ed6

Here is a link to click as well: NEW PHOTOS

I've tested this and it works for me, so I hope it works for everyone else as well. This set includes pictures of animals, rainbows, Asher, Riley, and Jennie.

Riley's Grades - Asher's Grades

2011-06-13T19:36:00.003-06:00

Finally, Riley's grades:

Beginning Theater: B-

Geometry: C-

Woodworking: A-

Guided Study: A-

Foundation: B-

Biology: A

PE: B-

English: A

GPA: 3.13

And here are Asher's Grades:

Physics: B

Economics: B

Us History: B+

Guided Study: A

Body: B+

General Financial: B

ACT Math: B+

English: A

GPA: 3.37

June 12th, 2011 - Sunday - The Chariot

2011-06-12T12:07:00.002-06:00

Gus the Lion

2011-06-11T13:50:00.000-06:00

I was ten years old, May 1979. We had just moved to Heber, Utah from Hidden Hills, California. This is me with our lion Gus.

Ame's Grades

2011-06-09T08:55:00.002-06:00

Ame's Grades went DOWN.... she isn't happy about it, but they are still very good. She is a very active young lady, so I think some of her activities caught up with her. No excuses though, she knows she can do better:

Math: B+ (this was the grade that dropped from an A)

Keyboarding: A

Language Arts: A

Library Media: A (What is this? I have no idea)

PE: A

Reading: A

Science: A

Social Studies: A

Spelling: B (this was the second grade that dropped from an A. This is weird because she's a great speller, but she missed a few assignments which dropped the grade. She did get an A on the final test).

Music: A

We need to watch the Math. If she follows the path of the boys, who were both STRAIGHT A Math students at this time, then slowly fell down and away from it. I know it gets harder and is a real challenge. Riley started taking some tutoring and I think we need to consider getting Ame some regular Math tutoring next year right from the start to keep her Math skills and confidence high.

Right now if you ask Asher he will tell you: "I'm just not good at Math." So his confidence is in the toilet. And he used to be a Math WHIZ.

Okay, next will be Asher.

Pictures

2011-06-08T07:15:00.003-06:00

If you click on this link you can see a set of pictures I just uploaded to facebook. That makes it a lot easier than uploading them here one by one.

Included are pictures of Jennie in her Black Swan costume. One of me, one of the two cats, and one of Asher and Boo with the flower pots full of herbs.

If this link works, let me know. If it doesn't, let me know. I don't think you need to be on Facebook to make this work:

FACEBOOK

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150227327838257.333368.683213256&l=0fd7be7c90

June 8th, 2011

2011-06-08T06:35:00.002-06:00

Well, this is the first week the kids are out of school. We have grades, and by and large they were good. I have them at the office, so I will put them into the blog toady, hopefully. Ame made the A steam in Soccer, meaning she's in the upper division. Her team was split and half the girls are in the B team with some newcomers. I bought her new shows, shin guards, and a new soccer ball. Her first practice of the new season is this morning, at 8:00 AM.

Susie stopped by the office to say hello yesterday, surprising us all.

Lots of wedding planning going on, balanced with yoga, and work. Summer seems to have finally arrived and my 17 year old son wakes early every morning for a meditative walk.

I cooked an Indian food dish with a Kidney Beans that was really good, in a reduced tomato sauce.

New Video

2011-03-31T13:51:00.002-06:00

A little video of Churchill, Figgy, and Ame!

Even MORE pictures

2011-03-21T19:31:00.012-06:00

Another selection of Photos scanned tonight. Most of these my Dad took of the kids, though there are a couple that are school photos.

Another Picture of the Boys

2011-03-21T19:19:00.001-06:00

At some B-Day Party

Monday, March 21st, 2011

2011-03-21T19:12:00.003-06:00

So what is going on? That beautiful spring weather we were having has turned sour and cold. Long walks are now bitter cold affairs, and not entirely enjoyed. The crisis in Japan has caused Disasterorders to go up. This weekend we watched Megamind with the kids, and went down to Josh's house for dinner with he and Nicki. Indian food was great, and long talks into the evening. It was a great time. Cleaning my office this even as Jennie went to Yoga without be because I had to work late due to increased orders. We put a few videos up on Youtube if you can believe it, for the game store. More of a hobby thing than anything serious, but it sure was fun. I wish there was more to say, but when you try to sum things up like this instead of writing them down every day, they lose their punch and I forget most of the details.

A few More Pictures

2011-03-21T19:10:00.002-06:00

Some of these might be repeats, but worth seeing again!

Wallet Pictures

2011-03-21T18:57:00.007-06:00

I found these old wallet pictures of my kids! I scanned them. The quality isn't great, but it is fun to see them.

Riley with BLOND hair... Riley Age 4, September 2000

All three kids in 2001. So that makes Ame 3, Riley 6, Asher 8

Riley

Asher Unknown Time

Asher 1999

Riley's ACT Test Scores

2011-03-10T22:22:00.003-07:00

9th Graders take a test ACT to see how they will do. Meanwhile Asher took the REAL ACT a week ago, but we won't learn his results for a while. These are Riley's results, even though his test of course doesn't count, he's still two years away from taking the real one . His Composite Score is a 21. I think I got a 24 on my ACT (but hey, that was like 23-24 years ago, so don't quote my memory). He got a 19 in English, 22 in Math, 23 in reading, and a 18 in science. So he knews where to improve. his scores were actually high in comparison to the rest of the school. He scored better than 93% of the other students in the school, so he's in the top 10% of his class. And he has two years to work hard on this.

We talked today about going to school, and what he wants to do with his life. I'll have to tell you more about that next time I write! :)

Ame's New Clothes

2011-02-16T20:26:00.002-07:00

For getting straight As again, Brandy sent Ame a set of soccer pants shirt and jacket. Ame was busting excitement to wear them tonight so I decided it would be a good idea to take a picture of her in them and put it on the blog!

Sick

2011-01-25T06:45:00.002-07:00

Jennie has the Gombu. As she calls it. Upper head and respiratory infection. I put her down last night early. (Which means putting her to bed early). :)

Grades are coming this week. Preliminary look at grades was all As and Bs for the boys, but we'll see how it all shakes out.

Last night Riley and I spent an hour building a model with Ame yapping at us. Before that all three kids and I did 30 minutes of Tai Chi (I'm teaching them this martial arts). It was really fun. We have to stand still and breath and take poses of balance for minutes at at time. Riley is by far the worst and most fidgety of the kids. He's got to get that under control, but his body is growing crazy so he's really uncoordinated. Ame is the best.

That's it for last night's report, though we all did eat Jennie's fabulous chicken as leftovers for dinner.

January 25th, 2011 - Tuesday - The Hermit

2011-01-25T06:20:00.002-07:00

Today we got The Hermit card, the 9th Trump. It is ruled by the Angel of Inner Wisdom and Introspection. Right off the bat this tells you what? You are going to go on a journey today, and which direct is the journey? Inside. Go INSIDE. See that little three headed dog on the bottom right corner of the card? Those are the Hounds of Hell, the Demon Dogs. And that is what you need to go face today! Go inside and face your shadow.

Shadow is such a strong theme in the Tarot for a good reason. We are all filled with shadows, and ego. When we let the ego run rampant in fear of the shadow, we usually are shriveled little zombie dolls. Shadow exists. It's part of the Duelistic Universe. Two. Opposition. It's just the COURSE of this universe.

If you think of it, why would it be that way? We can't even picture a world where it isn't TWO. The eastern traditions often think of God as ONE. The universe is ONE but has been shattered into this big duelistic thing.

For what it's worth, such questions are interesting, and perhaps worth pursuing some day, but while we play in THIS realm, we have Shadow to balance our light, and so the way to play is to face it, play with it, and not let fear run you.

One bit of advice today is to practice being still and quiet. Today is a good day to meditate. You should be doing breath work and meditating a bit every day just as a matter of course, but if you aren't, start today.

Be quiet. Be still. Look inward. Write. Sit.

Weekend of the 21, 22, 23

2011-01-24T06:28:00.002-07:00

This this weekend we took it pretty easy. Friday we came home, didn't go out to date night, and just relaxed and did some practice (that means breathing eye contact practices, along with meditation, etc).

Saturday morning I surprised Jennie and woke her up early and took her to play racquetball! We had a lot of fun. Then we went to Yoga, then to Cafe Galleria for bagels and tea. Then we came back, Jennie took a nap, I read, and we ended up having a quiet evening together. We did some more practice, meditation, and so forth.

Then Sunday Jennie got up early and dragged the Creature out of bed (the Creature is our name for Ame, who is always a 'creature' in the morning. Tangled hair and sour attitude). She dragged her to Yoga. For me it was cleaning day. And I mean cleaning! We rented a rug doctor and went to work, kitchen, couches, carpets, bathrooms, you name it.

Then... THEN... we watched the Green Bay Packers vs. the Chicago Bears playoff game for the NFL. Jennie's family is from Wisconsin, so they are big Packer's fans. We had a fun time watching the game. I rode the bike for an hour during the game to exercise.

PACKERS WON.

So then we went down and Jennie cooked us her famous malibu chicken dinner, of tender breaded chicken with ham and swiss cheese. I made the salad and cleaned up afterwards. My Dad came by for dinner and we just had a nice time eating and watching the second football playoff game, Steelers vs. the Jets. Steelers won.

Then it was off to bed! Relaxing weekend.

Stuff

2011-01-18T06:50:00.004-07:00

Happy Martin Luther King Day! Above we have three items. Two are skill certificates Riley earned in school, and another is a piece of artwork from Ame. All three kids are skiing today at Park City!

Monday

2011-01-10T07:50:00.002-07:00

Here is a picture of Churchill!

Monday, we are all getting back to our daily schedule, sinking into the new year. Asher took Ame out for a movie and lunch yesterday, and it was good to see them hang out as Brother and Sister. Riley worked at the shop all day (on a Sunday!) That was cool. He had customers come up from Salt Lake which was awesome. While we sell most of all our products across both ranges online, it's nice to see the kids develop a few in state customers who come all the way from Salt Lake even to buy stuff.

Anyway, I hadn't posted in a long time, so I wanted to say hello to everyone!

Happy Birthday AME!!!

2010-12-01T11:45:00.001-07:00

She turns 12 today!!!!

December is coming

2010-11-29T06:43:00.002-07:00

Thanksgiving was great, and this is just a short post to tell everyone hello and that we are getting ready for December, which on the first includes Ame's 12th birthday, and the into December preparations.

I always intend to have a good Christmas. I always intend to take the entire month off and make it an event filled relaxing open time of love and authenticity. And yet I work so hard in December, that year after year it whisks by. There is something not right about this.

Not right at all, and I intend to change it. I intend to change it now.

We need to relax in December, not be crazy.

That is what I'm going to do. Relax into Joy and Love and AUTHENTICITY.

Jason

Blizzard

2010-11-23T19:24:00.001-07:00

Massive blizzard moving into Utah tonight.

Grades are Coming!

2010-11-09T10:37:00.001-07:00

It is the end of the term and we should be getting some grades right quick, which we will post here!

New Car!

2010-11-07T20:59:00.003-07:00

Jennie got a new car on Saturday! Here it is!

Halloween Pictures

2010-11-04T11:19:00.007-06:00

Now with Facebook we upload all our Halloween photos there so much easier than here on Blogger, that I forgot to put up some Halloween photos for those of you not on Facebook. Here you go:

This is Jennie and Me. I'm the Mad Hatter!

This is Riley (on the left) and his friend Jeremiah (who is pinhead)

And this is Jordie (Ame's friend on the left) and Ame, a Zombie Prom Queen!

And here is Jennie doing Ame's hair!

Children's Pictures

2010-11-04T11:08:00.006-06:00

This morning Ame slept in and missed school, so we spent a few minutes together and put up these pictures before I drove her to school! Here is a composite picture of the three kids that my Dad put together.

Who is this below? Who? That's Ame, probably around 3-4 years old!

And here are the three kids at a young age. I'm guessing Ame around 2, Riley 4, Asher 6-7.

Sick & Watchman and Karate Kid Reviews

2010-10-26T16:33:00.004-06:00

Jennie was sick yesterday. Had to come home from work. When I came home we watched the rest of Watchmen, which we've been watching for about a month now (yes it took us that long to get through the movie) and we watched all of the new Karate Kid.

My thoughts on Watchmen, considering I read the comic book? There was something missing. Not sure what. But in the end it just didn't hit me like I was hit in the comic book. Just powerful. But the movie wasn't. Visually stunning, all that stuff... but... just lacked the emotional impact of the comic book. Not sure I can say anything else about it.

On the Karate Kid. I had read a review on this movie by Orson Scott Card, which was, in my opinion, an odd review. He seemed to really like it. I'll include a link HERE. So I was influenced by his review, but MY review came to a different conclusion.

I could not escape nostalgia. This movie was good, but it wasn't the first one, and there isn't much more I can say than that. Card was able to separate the two, and I think that he watched the first Karate Kid when he was older than I was, enabled him to overlook it's flaws. For me it's still a great movie that brought me back to that time when I was a kid and really FELT the movie. I was blind to it's shortcomings.

So I just couldn't escape nostalgia watching this new one. Sure Jaden Smith was good, great vehicle for the child star, etc, but in the end he didn't convince me. I just didn't feel the same angst from him or from the setting. Poor Ralph Macchio just got my sympathy way more than little Jaden. When he cried to his Mom, I HATE IT HERE (meaning in China) I just didn't feel it. He didn't convince me in that scene that it was really that bad. I'm sure it was, but it didn't really get me.

And when he convinced Mr. Han (played by Jackie Chan, who did a great job) to heal his leg so he could go back out and fight, I didn't believe it either.

Oh well, the movie was good. It just had the first movie to compare it too, and in that battle, at least for me, it didn't win. It did have some good parts, but it's not better than the first one. Sorry.

Halloween Cupcakes

2010-10-24T19:27:00.006-06:00

Jennie and Ame made Spider Cupcakes today for Halloween! These are some of the pictures! Ame got into the black frosting as you can see on the final picture!

Been Down and OUT

2010-10-23T19:41:00.004-06:00

Modem crapped out on us the other night. So no internet at home. Went to Best Buy today and got a new Modem and Router, and if you are reading this, then YES.... indeed things are working again.

Lazy Day? SURE!

We took Figgy and Boo into the vet this morning along with Houdini and Philo. Did the vaccinations update. Everyone looks good, but Figgy is definitely going blind, in BOTH eyes. Plus the vet said she was FAT.

We had some coffee at a new place in Midway, which was really good, but I can't remember the name of the place, so no free promotion for them. Then went to Best Buy, TWICE, the first modem didn't work right, watched the Ute game, got a sad letter from Jim (Jennie's brother) and a sad letter from Brandy (Jennie's friend).

At least the Utes one 59-6.

After all that you want a picture, don't you? Well I aim to deliver! Here you go:

Oh you wanted a DIFFERENT photo? Okay, here is an old one (can you tell I found my old photo albums?) of me and my nephew Sean (who is now like 26 with 2 kids) and my brother Rick, down in California! I think I'm like 20 or so here.

Another note. Ame's soccer season concluded the other night with a tie, which put them in third place for the season, which means they do NOT move up to Division 1. If they had won, and the other team scored to tie it with less than a minute left, they would move up to Division 1. As it stands, they will stay in Division 2. They started in 3, so that's not too bad.

Thursday we had pot luck dinner with the team and families. I brought 3 pizzas from Dominos, and that was a hit.

Now we just signed Ame up for INDOOR soccer! Sounds exciting, but it will keep her going through the winter as we prepare for Spring Season!

Oh, and we had Bagi and Brian and Tom and Jennette over for dinner last night. My fish monger crapped out on me so we had my beef stew, and it was warmly received as very good. That and some great steaks Bagi did! Jennie gave us all a lot of energy, but the night was cut short by the unfortunate news that Keith (Tom's 6 year old son) was puking his guts out and the babysitters didn't want to deal with it!

Seventeen

2010-10-20T06:31:00.002-06:00

Do you all remember what it was like to be Seventeen? Here is a picture of Ben Larsen, me, and Menges C. Parker Garlitz loading up his old subaru for the 26 hour journey to Gen Con, Madison Wisconsin. Josh Hansen, not pictured, is taking the picture.

Seventeen. Asher will be Seventeen in 4 months. Wow....

Ame in 4th Grade

2010-10-18T20:08:00.002-06:00

So I just posted a picture of Ame in 6th Grade (this year, 2010) and now I'm going to post a picture of her from 4th Grade.

Where is 5th Grade you ask? I don't know!

Ame's School Picture

2010-10-18T10:26:00.002-06:00

Here is Ame's school picture. 6th grade this year. She's starting to look like a teenager, isn't she? And the blond hair has stayed. Her brother's were blond once, and now they are dark brown.

Happy Birthday!

2010-10-18T10:14:00.002-06:00

To Dr. Stanchfield. We took him to see Thriller on Friday and they came up for Steak Dinner on Sunday! AWESOME!

And Ame's Pumpkin she carved:

Dad & Soup

2010-10-14T12:01:00.000-06:00

Dad & Soup

Okay, so Asher and I went to Moab yesterday and picked up my Dad. He’s okay, having surgery on his elbow for a hematoma. No broken bones amazingly… just really badly bruised and in pain. Asher drove him home in his car following me. We got home at 1:00. Jennie held down the fort for us while we were gone. Of course, luckily, the kids are out of school today (Thursday) and Friday for UEA.

So he’s home resting and will need us to take care of him for a few days. No driving.

Okay, so this morning Jennie got up at like 4:45 to go to work early for a seminar and I got up with her (yep, on about 3 hours of sleep) and started the Split Pea Soup. So here is the recipe. As I type this it is simmering and will simmer all day long, so we don’t have a clue how it will turn out. It could taste horrible…

Okay… after trying to remember my Mom’s recipe (which we have written down somewhere but can’t find) I consulted with Jennie and Ame 5 different Cookbooks. Here they are:

· The America’s Test Kitchen Family Cookbook – Revised Edition (This is a book I got at Costco and I have to say, I’m impressed with it. I think it’s a great starter place for cooking and I have given it to Ame today as she wants to learn to cook something and do it all herself. So I told her to pick out a recipe and she’s in charge, no help from me or Jennie. (I’m sure we’ll end up doing something to help her, but we’ll see!) She choose Chicken Teriyaki which looks simple enough. I can’t tell you how thrilled I am if Ame ends up helping Jennie doing some cooking. That would be exciting. I’m getting sick of doing all the cooking.

· Fiery Foods That I Love by Paul Prudhomme – (As anyone who knows me can attest, I’m a Cajun cooker at heart).

· Professional Cooking, Fifth Edition – This is a textbook my Mom had and passed to me upon her death. It’s a fantastic book, because it is geared to how to learn to cook for a restauraunt and how to make money at it. It’s kind of cool.

· Soups – Williams-Sonomo Kitchen Library –

· The Fannie Farmer Cookbook – Thirteenth Edition –

I also got a recipe from Elizabeth and Jennie had some ideas about how her Mother did it. Okay, so I put them all together into my head and this is what I came up with. (BTW – Asher and I just tasted it and it tastes good, but it’s not thickening up into a green paste like my Mom’s. Maybe it just needs time or we might have to put it into a food blender. (I’m hoping not, because I made so much).

Here is my Seasoning Mix, the ideas for which I got from all the recipes plus one ingredient just for Jennie:

SEASONING MIX

2 TSP Dried Basil

2 TSP Dried Thyme

3 Bay Leaves

2 TSP of Paprika

1 ½ TSP of Smoked Liquid Hickory

2 TSP of Chili Powder

Salt and Pepper to Taste

Here are the Ingredients we used

· 1 Ham Shank, with bone included. (Jennie said her Mom used a bone from those spiral hams you get on Christmas to make the stock, but those are really expensive. Ham Shank with bone is $20.00, so that’s what I used.)

· 2 Tbls Garlic (That pre chopped up stuff in a jar)

· 4 Medium Onions

· 1 Full bunch of Celery

· 2 Hormel 12 oz packages of Salt Pork

· 1 10 oz package of Shredded Carrots (Kroger Fresh Selections)

· 3 lbs of Split Peas (picked over by Ame)

· 2 lbs (2 packages) of Cantebury Naturals Garden Harvest Split Pea Classic Artistic Soup Mix Organic

We started at 5:00 AM by putting the Ham Shank, Garlic, 1 Onion, and the fluffy stuff from the Celery Bunch into a HUGE pot of water and boiling it for 5 hours. Thus our stock simmered all morning.

At 10:00 AM we diced up the salt pork and fried it in our largest pan. I read afterwards that you should do this slowly to render it down, and not to cook it fast or brown the meat. Well… I didn’t read that till after, so I cooked it high and fast and browned that meat good. Oh well. We’ll see?

Then I took the huge chunks of fatty Salt Pork (with attending browned pieces of meat) and popped them into the boiling stock pot for a while. Might as well add extra flavor over there, yes?

In the remaining fat in the pan we put the remaining onions and celery and carrots that Ame had chopped up. To this we added the seasoning mix. We stirred this pretty constantly, about 10-15 minutes till it looked really good and cooked.

Then we added the 5lbs of peas (with the little seasoning packages from the 2 organic packages) a huge pot, then added the vegetable mixture. This we stirred together. Then we added 12 quarts of the ham bone stock. They say about 2 quarts per pound, but I found that not to be enough (as you’ll notice even more later on).

We threw in 3 Bay Leaves at this point, some fresh Basil chopped and fresh Oregano sprigs.

I took the meat off the bone of the Ham Shank, separated the fat (which made a tasty meal for the dogs) and put the meat back in. Then we added the huge ham bone and the salt pork chunks (we will remove them later). We brought to a boil and it has been simmering ever since.

At this point I could tell I needed more liquid, so 2 more quarts of stock went in. (And yes, we had TONS of stock from the cooking and still have some left).

Then about 1 hour later, we realized we needed even more stock, so put 2 more quarts (which is 4 cups) of liquid in.

At this point we are waiting. We did taste it, as I mentioned, and it was fantastic, but we have mushiness at this point, no green mush looking stuff. But we’ll cook it all day long on low, and really simmer all those flavors together. Hopefully we won’t have to put it in the blender, as I made enough for a friggen army.

Yes… I will tell you how it turns out! Just be PATIENT!

October 13th, 2010 - Moab

2010-10-13T09:33:00.002-06:00

My Dad went to Moab Monday for a photo trip, and yesterday (Tuesday) ended up slipping and falling down a set of stairs. He bruised himself really bad and had surgery on his elbow. They don't know if they are going to let him out today or not. Asher and I will be driving down this evening.

Last night Jennie and I spent a couple hours with Ame practicing soccer. After watching her game Monday, we decided she needed some work on fundamentals. It was great to see her improve. We all had a great time.

I asked Ame what one meal she might want Jennie and I to make her, and she said Split Pea Soup. My Mom had a great recipe for Split Pea Soup all my life, but she neglected to actually write it down in her handwritten cookbook. So we found 5 different recipes and Thursday, tomorrow, we will do one with the family.

I'm worried about my Dad.

The kids are off school Thursday and Friday for some UEA thing. I think it's a thinly veiled excuse for going on the Deer Hunt.

We are back!

2010-08-31T20:51:00.001-06:00

I went to Ojai for 5 days and didn't take a single picture... oh well. Jennie and are back from our yoga intensive, and we are spent! Back to work and the real world. It is hard.

A few more pictures

2010-08-24T20:20:00.002-06:00

Ame's Painting

2010-08-24T20:14:00.003-06:00

Here is a small version of it:

Hello!

2010-08-23T07:44:00.002-06:00

Monday August 23rd, 2010

This weekend the kids were getting ready to get back to school. Jennie and I took a class down in Salt Lake Saturday and Sunday, and Fall is in the air. You can smell it. Ame painted a painting and I'm going to take a picture of it and get it up so you can all see it. Wednesday Jennie and I head to California for our 5 day intensive, and the kids will start school on Friday. The air is filled with smoke, and life is good, though breathing is hard.

Oh there is more....

2010-08-10T17:00:00.003-06:00

August 10th, 2010

2010-08-10T16:53:00.004-06:00

It has been a busy summer, so I am sorry for not writing more. I'll start with what I can here. Yes, a picture of Philo. Don't laugh. He's a good cat! :)

Hello!

2010-07-21T16:13:00.005-06:00

It has been a while so I'll get back into this as best I can. It is weird the way you slip out of doing this. I think I did so much when in Hawaii, but this VERY eventful summer has not given me much chance to update the blog! Damn Facebook! Makes it too easy!

Right now Jennie is at work, and this weekend will be going to the Women's Retreat in Ojai, and Riley is in Idaho with Jennie's parents fishing (picture below) and Ame and Asher are here at work. Ame should be going up to Idaho Friday.

Jason

Pictures are Princess after hiking, Riley by the Creek, and Riley on the River.

Week in May

2010-05-14T10:48:00.002-06:00

This week are watching Godiva (the chocolate lab) for John and Peggy as they are on a vacation back east. Elizabeth, the kids Nana from Australia is here visiting, and Jennie and I took her to dinner the other night. Asher got a job at the movie theater making drinks and popcorn. Riley got his Ipod taken away for disrespect and not doing his job. Ame won her soccer game Tuesday and has her last one for the season on Saturday!

Wednesday, May 5th

2010-05-05T09:38:00.002-06:00

Last night Ame surprised me with a cake for my birthday! Even though it was back in April, I was in Hawaii when it happened, so she waited and surprised me with a cake. It was a wonderful cake, and I really felt moved that she thought of it and still did something. It was a nice and beautiful gesture.

Talked with Asher about depression and sadness last night as he is feeling down about a girl who likes him and whom he likes, but she's acting all, well... like a teenager, and he's not dealing well with her 'flippant' attitude. We had a good long talk, and though I don't know if I can help him, I let him know I love him no matter what and that I'm there for him.

Soccer

2010-05-04T16:19:00.002-06:00

Ame's team won their second soccer game in a row last night! In Heber! They are excited. Another game tomorrow night!

Monday in MAY!!!

2010-05-03T13:35:00.003-06:00

It's sunny! After a weekend of hellish snow and cold! Had a great weekend. Tom and Jennette took me out to dinner and a movie for my birthday! We went to Mike's Sushi Maru but he's closed for a month... so we went to the place next door. Not quite as fun. I was telling Tom celebrating birthdays are important, and then I thought to myself, hey, did I celebrate Tom's birthday? I totally blanked. I asked him, did we do something for your birthday? He was like... uh... did we? We sat there thinking what did we do? Then we suddenly both remembered we DID do something for his birthday! We went out to Sushi, saw Alice in Wonderland, and came over to the house for cake! For some reason all that slipped our minds!!! And it was only a month ago! Anyway, Tom and Jennette were great and gave me a nice birthday. And plus they introduced me to the magical wonder of a certain red painted toenailed barefoot drummer....

Ame has a busy week, three soccer games coming up. Asher and Riley had friends over Friday and Asher went running last night.

Elizabeth comes to visit this week, she should be here Wednesday.

Friday, April 30th 2010

2010-04-30T10:22:00.002-06:00

About 4 years ago I gave Riley a huge Lego Submarine for Christmas and he asked me to help him do it. I promised I would, but got very busy, and never did. Last night was 'man's night out' with Riley. We went to Don Pedros for dinner. Afterwards, we got the Submarine out in the Man Cave, and began building it in earnest. 3000+ pieces! It was a good time working together. Riley chats a lot. We of course didn't get it done, but it was good start, and we kept the door to the room closed so a cat doesn't kill it. We'll continue on it soon! I had a great night. Afterwards we played a football game on the XBOX together. Jennie worked late and didn't get home till 11:30! Then she was up at 6:00 the next morning and back to work!

Thursday, April 29th

2010-04-29T10:25:00.002-06:00

This is my brother Rick's 56th birthday. He's in Oklahoma, or somewhere, we really don't know, as since his wife died he's been kind of 'travelin'. Sunday night Jennie made us all dinner, the famous Melted Cheese Sandwiches. These were here best yet. Monday we went back to work, and started digging out of the holes that our Maui trip had caused. Ame had Soccer Practice Monday and Tuesday, while the weather was good (it's now snowed icy cold hell for 2 days). Asher and Riley went to scouts last night. Jennie's Dad... almost killed himself. Yep. He has a bar hung up in the basement upon which he hangs upside down on. Well I guess Peggy came home yesterday to find him on the basement floor passed out. The bar (or whatever holds it) had broken and down went John! Knocked himself out, gave himself a concussion. We are LUCKY he's okay. Peggy called 911 and he went to the hospital, but he's okay. What a scare!

My Dad went to Oxnard for a acation so I'm taking care of the house and the dogs for a few days. Let's see, today is Thursday so that is Jennie's day she has to work late at the lab (being a supervisor, she needs to actually see the LATE NIGHT people once a week, so on Thursday's she usually works 12-9, but she had to go in a bit earlier today). She's been working on BUDGETS all week! How fun!

Last night Jennie went to bed early, so I took the kids downstairs and we had a lesson/lecture/discussion on The Kabbalah, which is this sect of Jewish Mystics and their 'take' on religion. Pretty new age, and interesting, very insightful, and all based on the concept of PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY. I like that and think it's good for the kids to hear about it from as many directions as possible. The kids had quite the discussion about the concept of 'freewill'. It was enjoyable. I taught them that step one on the path to Wisdom is SILENCE. They didn't like that..... (grin)!. (Step 2 is LISTENING! They liked that less!)

Wednesday night Jennie and I met with our friend Suzzanne and Wendy and Sharie (sp?) in our monthly get together and discuss life meeting. It's like a book club, only we don't talk books, we talk life. It's really cool and insightful.

So, it's Thursday morning and I'm at work. MOSTLY caught up. Good hell, can you believe? Yes! I'm mostly caught up. So I have time to actually write. Oh yeah, forgot to mention that Parker and Kelly came up to Heber on Sunday to work on the NASCRAG module for 2011, which we are the authors of for the tournament at Gen Con in Indianapolis. Can you believe that? Us authors? It's cool.

Sunday

2010-04-25T12:57:00.002-06:00

Back from Maui this week it's been busy. Rise of the Eldrazi released, a bit game that we did well on. Also getting settled in. Today Jennie took Asher shopping while the rest of us did a lot of cleaning. It is... CLEANING DAY at the Smith household. It's warm and the dogs want to go outside. Asher and I played catch.

Let's see what else we did this week. Ame had a soccer game three times this week. They lost all three, but yesterday's was the closest. She did really well, and she throws the ball in from the sideline the best of all her team, she she has to run over and do it every time there is a throw in. Wears her out because she's often on the other side of the field when it goes out! Let's see, Friday she spent the night at Taren's house and had fun. Thursday night she and I had our long planned date night. We went to Canton City for dinner, a ride on the motorcycle, shopping, and watched a movie on how to paint. Our next date night will be painting an oil painting together! I'm excited.

Jennie got her hair done, and I should get some pictures of it because it's different and really cool! I like it. She's back to work and doing here supervisor thing. She's been helping me with the NASCRAG module we're writing for Gen Con 2011.

Riley spent the night Friday at Conner's and went snowmobiling Saturday. He reported having a lot of fun doing that.

Asher spent the weekend hanging out with his friend Ashton and Caleb. I think they all went to see a movie, though I can't remember the name of it. Hm... nope, I don't remember.

My Dad is heading out of town on a vacation for 2 weeks, so we'll be taking care of his animals during that time. Next Friday we are taking Peggy and John out to dinner at the Marketstreet Grill (I think we are, I haven't gotten 100% confirmation yet) as a small token of our appreciation for watching the kids for 11 days while Jennie and I were in Maui.

Unless I've forgotten anything...

Oh yes... there are a few days on the Maui trip that have photos I haven't posted yet. I plan on doing that, maybe today, but probably in a few days.

Opps....

2010-04-18T11:45:00.000-06:00

So... you are thinking to yourself... those photos on the last post looked unlike anything one might expect on a trip to Haleakala. That's because they weren't of Haleakala. They were... of the trip toward HANA! So that got messed up. I'll take some time tonight to sort it all out. Today is day 11 in Maui as I write this.

Day 9 - Friday Haleakala

2010-04-17T13:56:00.011-06:00

Today Jennie and I woke and went to the pool after a coffee breakfast... nothing new there, I grant you, but THEN, after reading some good books, we hopped in the car at 3:00 in the afternoon and headed up toward Haleakala. This is a huge volcano. We started in the cold blustery rain down at sea level, and drove up into lush green farmlands. I commented more than once that this looked a lot like New England, with the thick forests on either side of the road. Up up we went. First 1,000 feet, then 2, then 3, etc. Soon we entered ranch land, rife with chickens and cows. It was beautiful land. The city of Kula lies up here, along the foothills of the great Haleakala. So we kept driving, and it got drier and drier, and then we broke out of the clouds... and we were driving on the top of the world. It was CRAZY. And never wracking. You felt queasy in your stomach looking at it! Back and forth up the switch back road. Passing signs for NENE birds, and then we were at the top and it was COLD, and it was like being on the TOP OF THE WORLD. Amazing. Spiritual. Awesome. Cold. And these little birds live up there. Okay, enough! We came down, saw the sun go down, then drove into a mist (back into the cloud), saw misty cows, and came back to the hotel a few hours later for dinner and sleep. Amazing. Everyone should go up there if they can and experience it. Here are some photos!!!

Awe!!!! SWEET!

Day 8 - Thursday - Books

2010-04-15T22:55:00.013-06:00

Hey! What happened to the rest of the Blow Hole trip? Yep, I got you covered, but I'm going to jump ahead to something else. Y'all know I'm a big reader, but the last few years have been really busy, and so I haven't read nearly as much as I would have liked. So... this trip I decided to read, and what I wanted to read were a couple books that Asher recommended to me. I shared with him so many books as he grew up, when he started discovering books he liked he decided to share them with me. So I read two books he recommended. So here are the books that we have been reading and what we thought of them so far. Included are some other books I'm reading and books that Jennie is reading. Here they are!

This is the new Stephen King book. It's a whopper, over 1,000 pages! I'm about 100 pages into it and it's interesting. Cool concept. Lots of characters.

This is one of the books Asher recommended. Frankly, I wasn't too thrilled about this at first. It's a teen book. And not the kind of adventure teen book I normally liked. It's about two girls, so... it wasn't exactly thrilling. Finally, as it started, one of the girls had a mother who was very very sick, depressed, and out of it. This was hard to read for me as it tripped a lot of feelings. In the end however, the book was a great look into teens, and how things are not as they seem, and how there is hope in even the worst situation. Now I'm not recommending the book per se, as a book of adventure, but it is interesting and the theme of it struck me. When the mother was so out of it that the kids were just lost, a few times it even choked me up. It is a good story about strong kids who find strength in their differences. I do recommend it. But it's just not a big adventure or anything. Not of the sort I normally like, anyway.

I have read this book many times. I always take a Glen Cook book with me on a plane because it's easy to read and I love them. This is a good one, with Lady as the Captain and Annalist of the Black Company.

Jennie read this book, and really enjoyed it. It answers a LOT of good questions. And yes... dead people DO watch you shower.

Jennie liked this book so much she told me to read it, so I have started it, but she finished today. You have to read it in increments. It's a lot of commons sense stuff but they put in words. Stuff you can feel. Good stuff.

Jennie is reading this, and is about 77 pages in. So far...good book.

Jennie read this book... and considered it very different, but very good.

And finally, this is the first book Asher recommended to me and I found it to be EXCELLENT. An adventure that I predict will one day be made into a movie. Riley has read it as well, and he loved it. I plan on having Ame read it when I get home, she should like it as well.

So... today, being the 8th day in Maui, we relaxed by the pool and got more sun, and did some reading, then walked the beach extensively, then had dinner. Oh... I almost forgot one other book!

This is a book from my childhood which Ame is reading upon my recommendation!

Meanwhile, here in Maui I used this book (which was very complicated) to figure out Jennie's relationship signs towards me, and mine to hers. It is a fun yet complicated astrology book that gives you some fun insights:

Finally I'm reading this book slowly, as it is a very challenging book about becoming a better man.

Day 7 Wednesday - Blow Hole

2010-04-15T21:05:00.010-06:00

We woke up early today and headed out to see the Blow Hole. Now we saw this from the helicopter, but now planned to drive there! We got... a TON of pictures. We saw so much and had a great day. I will start by saying we drove north from Kanaapalli and up around the island. So first I should tell you that the southern side that we are on is very DRY. Not much rain, about 10 inches a year of rain. But about 10 miles up around the bend... and we had FULL ON RAIN FOREST. We pulled over in this muddy wallow and took a 20 minutes walk. Jennie has huge number of these photos up on her facebook page, so that's the best place to see them. I'll put a few up here so you can kind of see what we were feeling and experiencing. It was like entering another world:

Okay, our next stop was the MOON. Not quite the actual moon, but a landscape worthy of it! See you next time I get time to write and put up pictures! For now it's off to dinner!

Day 6 Tuesday

2010-04-15T21:00:00.004-06:00

Day 6 - Tuesday

Day six we got up early and headed down to the pool. I read Hunger Games and Blue Truth, and Jennie read the Power of Kabalah. We split a burger, and had a relaxing time. Then in the afternoon we headed back to Lahaina and did some shopping, and then stopped at the Aloha Mixed Plate for dinner. It got cold!

Here is a picture of Jennie with Snorkle Gear on from the previous day. We all looked this funny! She's a good sport for posing for this photo!

Day 4 Banyan Tree

2010-04-15T20:58:00.002-06:00

Here is a picture of the Banyan Tree back from Sunday, Day 4! It is all one big tree!!! Amazing!

Day 5 in Maui - Monday

2010-04-14T23:44:00.005-06:00

Maui Day 5 – Monday

This morning we woke early to a soft rain and headed down to the coffee shack and had bagels and coffee. As we sat there an old gentleman wheeled out the big birds they have in the courtyard. They have 1 white Cockatoo, and three Parrots, 1 red, 1 green, and 1 blue. I got the Cockatoo to say hello!

Slathered in sunscreen, we met our boat, the Teralini 2 again, and Kevin one of the crew from the previous night. We boarded much as we did two days ago, and the captain met us with the same story about safety and a decision. North into the rain, which had the better snorkeling, or south into the sun. I voted north for some odd reason, but everyone else voted south. South it was, and along the way… we saw more WHALES! We came right up close to a mother and a calf. The calf was slapping his tail on the water, and the mother came up and started showing him how! It was awesome! Here is a synchronized picture of the two tails up in the air!

We got a fruit breakfast, more coffee and guava juice, and then we arrived at our first snorkeling destination. The first time I snorkeled, years ago, I was nervous. YES, I saw a shark and that scared the hell out of me, but I was nervous. The previous night Jennie dreamed she had been attacked by whales while snorkeling, and I dreamed Chevy Chase was friends with my parents when I was a kid and I stared in a commercial as a baby for laundry detergent. Yep… that was a tangent, but I wanted to tell you about Jennie’s dream. Turns out neither of us had anything to fear. Now… my goal, my number one goal was to see TURTLES. I went in, saw lots of fish, and saw NO TURTLES. After an hour we got out, and then everyone saw them and here is a picture Jennie took!

Here is another one!

Remember how I said the whales were cool? The Turtles are almost as cool. They are just awesome. I could be a marine biologist. I love the sea life.

Okay, so we went to the next site, waited for another boat to move out, then we got in the water a second time while the crew cooked Hamburgers hotdogs and bbq chicken. My goal was unchanged. I wanted to see Sea Turtles. I was thwarted again. I saw some cool fish, and Jennie and I stuck together as we were scuba partners. So I came back to the boat, and as I got there Kevin told me exactly where the turtles were, in what he called a Turtle Cleaning station. I swam to where he said, and lo and behold, he was right. Turtle city. There were tons of them. All on the bottom, and then once in a while they would float up to get a breath of air, sticking their little heads up above the water. It was AWESOME. They are so cool! We don’t have pictures of them in this area because we were in the water, but trust me when I tell you… it was awesome!

So then we got out, and they opened the bar and the food flowed, I ate two hamburgers, half a hotdog and a big piece of chicken! Oh yes! Then we turned the boat around, came back toward the hotel, saw some whales along the way, and got so cold and wet in the rain we went down under. Then the sun came out, and we were back on the beach! What a wonderful ride! Awesome!

So we went to hang out at the pool… but the wind came up and the rain started again, so we came back to the room, a place we don’t spend much time. I called the kids, took a 10 minute nap, caught up on blogging, Jennie read her book, called her Mom, and did some facebooking with her new photos.

Maui Day 4 - Relaxing Day

2010-04-12T22:54:00.000-06:00

Maui Day 4 - Relaxing Day - Sunday April 11th, 2010

Today we relaxed… we woke early and went down for a nice fruit and coffee breakfast. Then we went out to the adult pool, ordered drinks and a hamburger and sat and read. I read Linda Goodman’s Relationship Signs, and Jennie read April Witch. We had a nice time in the sun and we both took swims. I don’t think I have any pictures of it, but there wasn’t really much to see anyway. Then I decided Jennie should see the Banyan Tree, and she wanted to go shopping, so the two ideas mixed well. We took Front street down to the Banyan tree and parked. Jennie got some great photos and we walked all the way up and down the place. This one guy was smiling at me from across the street while I was waiting for Jennie as she shopped for earrings and a tikki statue, so I went over across the street near him and he asked me if I wanted to buy weed! I politely said no thank you. Later when we drove by, he was speaking to some other people, no doubt making the same offer, right out in the open!

Shopping was fun, but we were tired and so we came back and went down to the hotel restaurant and I had a cheese pizza with basil and tomatoes, and Jennie had the catch of the day, an awesome Mahi Mahi with a glass of wine.

And that was day four… yes, I know. Pretty boring huh? But after that event filled Day 3, we really needed to take a break! And we did! On Monday we would see Whales again, and also TURTLES!!!

Maui Day 3 Part 3

2010-04-12T22:10:00.011-06:00

Maui Day 3 – Saturday Part III

So after the zip line, Jennie and I came back to the hotel. It was 10:30! We had done so much that we felt energized, so we went down to the beach to swim around and lay on the beach. We found a nice abandoned umbrella with two chairs and plopped down in the sun. We alternately read and just kind of dozed. Eventually I wanted to get some snorkeling equipment, so I got up and asked around till I found some in the Whaler’s Village, which is only about 50 feet up the path. I met a nice lady named Wendy, who gave me a great deal for a week’s worth of using the snorkeling equipment, and we talked about boat rides. Well, it turned out they had a boat ride that night that was mostly empty, so would we like to go on it? Sure! So I came back and surprised Jennie with the boat ride dinner we were going to go on. We continued to lay out for a while until we were informed by a very nice lady that the umbrella and chairs we were sitting under cost $25.00 a day to rent. We moved, and had the pleasure to sit next to a pair of young guys and a young girl. One young guy, sandy blond hair, and good looking, with a big shark tattoo on his stomach, was probably the single biggest walking cliché I have ever heard in my life. I was ready to leave 20 minutes before I actually left, because listening to him was such an experience. It’s hard to describe, but if there was a cliché thing to say, he SAID IT. The most unoriginal person I have ever had the interest of overhearing. If I had written a story with him in it, the editor would have 100% rejected it on the claim that no one talks that way, no one could possibly be that cliché.

So at 4:00 we met Kevin (one of the crew)

of the Teralini 2

and took off our shoes (throwing them in a tub with everyone else) and marched single file onto the boat.

The Captain

gave us a quick lecture about safety, and the drinks and food started flowing. They warned us that it was April, and most of the whales were heading north back to Alaska and they hadn’t seen a whale all day.

Jennie and I took a picture together:

And Jennie took pictures

Until…

We saw WHALES! Lots of them. This a photo Jennie got:

And

At one point we met a little calf and his mother, and the calf breached about 50 times. Leapt right up into the air and crashed down:

But that wasn’t everything! We then saw DOLPHINS!

After all that, I have to say, I was moved. Truly. The whales were amazing, and the dolphins, plus the flying Mahi Mahi, that I was just moved. I felt something important. Life out there was just cool. I was open to the universe, and God was visible and accessible.

We finished with this fantastic sunset photo by Jennie, that just summed up the beauty and magic of Maui.

And then we were back on the beach, another awesome photo by Jennie:

So what a day day three was! Of course day 4 would be a big day of relaxation and shopping, but we needed it! Day 5 we are back out on the boat! More whales, and this time we’ll show you TURTLES!!!

And finally, here is a little video I caught of the Whales!

Jason on the Zip

2010-04-12T00:11:00.003-06:00

Here I am, on the zip itself taping my trip across. It's a bit bumpy but pretty cool!

Maui Day 3 Part 2

2010-04-12T00:02:00.002-06:00

Here is the video of Jennie riding the zip!

Maui Day 3

2010-04-11T22:20:00.007-06:00

So Jennie and I got up at the crack of dawn (5:00) to get to the Eco Skyline Adventures meeting place for the Zip Line experience! We get there with 10 other people, take a last bathroom break, and get in a van and head up the mountain! It's a 20 minute drive through fields that used to be Sugar Cane fields but now are just nothing. Dirty red clay is everywhere. Finally we get to a little hut with 3 horses loitering around. Turns out there used to be a trail guide ride here, yet, the guide gave up doing it, and just let the horse go. The poor beasts almost died of starvation up here, so this lady came up to save them and comes up on her own dime every day to feed and water them. The horses were pretty scruffy, and thin, but were really friendly. They came up and we got to pat them and say hello.

So we got locked into our gear, which is this harness, and this helmet, with these nice guides, then we got into the black van, and were taken to the top of the mountain. So the zip line is this cable strung between two poles over a gorge. You attach your pulley to it, which is attached to your harness. Then you run and jump and the pulley zips you along the cable over the gorge down to the other pole. Each side has a big wooden structure built so you can take off and land.

This might all make more sense with a picture? No?

Opps! That was the friendly horse! Let's instead look at Jennie in her harness and helmet!

So now you want a photo of the zip itself? Here is Jennie just starting on the zip!

Now let's see Jennie actually ON the zip! Here she is!

And here she is landing!!!!

My next post will have VIDEO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And this day isn't over, either. We will see WHALES before it is over. WHALES I tell you. WHALES!

Day 2 in Maui

2010-04-11T11:58:00.004-06:00

Day 2 started with us racing down to the court at the Westin for BREAKFAST. Nothing like hot coffee and a buffet filled with FRESH FRUIT! Oh my! It was awesome. My favorite part almost! Then... we packed up the car and headed back all the way to the airport. Why? Well we were going to take a Helicopter Tour! We got lost along the way. Have I told you that Jennie gets upset easily in the car? She does. But we found our way back thanks to some of my firm guidance and direction on my part. We weighed in and joined two other couples. Our guide was a Hawaiian woman who had been piloting for 27 years! The helicopter rose up like magic, and away we were. This woman, Janelle, was amazing in how well she remembered all our names. Somewhere in the middle of this Jennie's camera batteries died and she had what we all call a "shit fit". She was NOT happy. Luckily I had my little camera, and I offered it to her (as she had the window seat) and she took some great pictures. Here is one of them!

The helicopter went up around the north side of Maui then over to Molokai and to the north side of Molokai which was just incredible! Then we came back, saw the blow hole, and we were back to the Heliport. An AWESOME ride. Then we went up to Paia, and had some great shopping an lunch. Britta used to have a shop up here years ago, but we couldn't find it, so if she's there, we missed her. Then we went to Costco, got shorts, shoes, flip flops, towels, fruit and ... a NEW CAMERA. I bought Jennie a cool Cannon. I should include a picture of it.

We raced home put the batteries on the charger and raced out to the Adults only pool where I took a swim, Jennie sunbathed, I got a strawberry smoothy (no alcohol) and it was so good! I went swimming, then we went back to the room, got ready for dinner at the Tropico. It was good, and Jennie got some photos with her new camera of the sun setting, and there was this guy who did music with a acoustic guitar who was good, but for the money we paid? I don't know if it was worth it. Then we came back to the hotel and like two slugs went sleep around 8:00....

Maui, Day 1

2010-04-10T18:32:00.005-06:00

So Jennie and I got up at 3:00 am. Yep, you read that right. 3:00 AM! We changed the sheets, and got ready. Luckily we were smart enough to pack the previous few days. We woke the boys who wanted to say goodbye. They got up. We woke Ame to say goodbye and she hugged me from bed and crashed back down. :) Off to the airport in the dark, getting some gas, and then realizing we were both tired and hungry. We got to the Airport, checked in, and found we had a problem. I was on the MOST WATCHED list on account of my nefarious past. Or, because of my common nefarious NAME. They checked me over thoroughly and then said I was okay. But then in the security line, a fat guard about 300 pounds pulled out a pair of gloves and said, "Sir, I'm going to have to pat down your buttocks!" Luckily he didn't actually use the gloves for anything other than a gentle pat down. He found a small wad of kleenex in my back pocket which apparently sent the sad pathetic homeland security people on a bender of worry and apprehension! Holy shit he might be a terrorist. Can I say the Homeland Security division is itself a bunch of shit? Yes? Good, because I'm going to say it. It is a pathetic bureaucratic time waster all in the interest of 'saving lives', but isn't everything the government does about helping us and isn't almost everything they do utter shit? I know there are a lot of you out there who believe in the government. I'm not one of them. They do somethings okay, but not much.

Okay, we landed at LAX, then switched planes. Amazing thing here, the next plane was TWO GATES AWAY. Can you believe that? And I was all prepared for the cross airport run that would damn near kill me.

The plane was delayed because the morning pilot had forgotten to turn off the lights, and he killed the battery. Took about 30 minutes, but then we were on the runway. There, we got stopped against because the delay caused the tower control system (again run by the federal government) to lose our flight details. So they had to resubmit them in ATLANTA. Took another 20 minutes, but then we were safely on our way up into the sky. I looked down on Malibu and Zuma beach, my old stomping grounds as a child as we flew off into the air.

Luckily the flight was mostly empty, so I adroitly skipped across the aisle and took 3 seats, watched 6 episodes of Arrested Development on DVD, then two episodes of the Final Season of the Shield (also, coincidently enough, on DVD), and then I read a bit of a book Jennie recommended for me, Strong Father's, Strong Daughters, which pretty much made me feel like a loser of a father, but did motivate me to spend a HECK of a lot more time with Ame, and not just time with her, but time PAYING ATTENTION and listening to her.

I also drank my customary can of Tomato Juice, had cookies, bagels, salt, crackers, and pretzels. I also slept stretched out on three chairs. OH YEAH!

We landed in Maui and it was WARM! Windy and warm. Luggage came right out, took bus to Alamo car lot, got oversized car because midsized were gone, and off we went. Jennie drove and when Jennie drives in a new place and is confused you should watch out. She gets CRABBY. I should have driven. We passed the Costco that Brandy told us about (we would return the next day) and headed out on 380 to 33 all the wait to Kanapali and the Westin, which had the most amazingly good rates, even though we have a MOUNTAIN view. For only$500 a night we could move to an ocean view! (Duh, who cares about a view when you hardly ever spend time in the hotel???)

Talked with Peggy and Ame, texted with Riley, then off we went, walking the beach. Jennie's first time in Hawaii or Maui, and her first assessment was: "I could live here!" It's great to see her relax into her feminine (don't tell her though) and enjoy the place. She's such a go go person, it's great to see her relax from her work day supervisor at ARUP routine.

Me? I'm loving it. It's warm. It's beautiful, and I'm concentrating on relaxing and finding my center. Finding me in the swirl of all this feminine energy. There sure is a relaxed atmosphere here and a LOT of pretty women. Jennie and I have both noticed it. Women are so 'unhooked' from their usual masculine posturing. It's nice to see men be men, and women be men. Though most of the men are kind of relaxed and unfocused too.

Jennie challenged me to let go of my nervous energy (hard not to think about the business) and focus on her and on the trip and be calm in my body, mind and soul. It was a good challenge.

We walked up to Whaler's village, bought some flip flops for me and a little purse for Jennie, and then walked all the way down the beach to the Hyatt, then came back. I think we stopped somewhere along the way for a little dinner. We hit the hotel at 7:00, exhausted (it was 11:00) our time, and we crashed early! Day One in Maui was COMPLETE!

I leave you with a good picture of Jennie and I on our first day in Maui! Notice both my new hair cut and my new glasses.

Ame's Grades

2010-04-07T09:21:00.005-06:00

Ame's Third Term Grades are in:

P.E. - Pass (You either pass or fail)

Keyboarding - Pass (Same thing)

Math - A

Media - Pass

Music - Pass (She plays the trumpet now, switching from the French Horn)

English - A

Reading - A

Brass - A

Science - A

Social Studies - A

How about THAT? Not a single A minus in the group! Straight 4.00 grade point average through the ENTIRE year. Let's encourage her to keep going and take it home in the 4th term with a perfect year! She DID slip in her citizenship grades. You either get a Honor, Satisfactory, or Unsatisfactory in citizenship. She had straight honors, but got Satisfactories in Math, English, Reading, and Science. Teacher says she likes to talk too much... :)

On another note I took Asher to his 10th Grade SEOP conference in which the parents join with the teachers to chart out the child's future. The gave this great presentation about JOBS, and WORK WORK WORK, and GRADES that just made me smile and grin from ear to ear! Then we looked at Asher's grades, his grade point average, and his class schedule for the future, and his ACT scores. I will tell you this... the results were surprising to me. I'll leave you with that and come back with some details! VERY interesting!

Red Iguana

2010-03-18T14:28:00.005-06:00

On Sunday March 14th Paul and Jen flew in from Vermont (where they live and work) for a vacation here with the folks, and we all stopped as is tradition at the Red Iguana, only this time we ate at the NEW one, which is 1 block from the old one . The old one is still there too though!

Here are some photos!

Thursday, March 18th, 2010

2010-03-18T14:17:00.003-06:00

Today Jennie took the day off of work and took Riley out of school for a day and took him skiing! That is awesome ! Tom and I are here at the office building shelves. Want to see a photo? Sure, I'll go take one! Or even two!

And here is Tom helping!

March 16th, 2010

2010-03-16T09:24:00.003-06:00

Haven't blogged in a while though there are a lot of things to say! So I'm going to start catching up a little at a time here. Today is Tuesday, and we are building new shelves in the store, and this is exciting. Ame was sick yesterday, but is better today and I took her to school. She forgot her soccer stuff though. Asher and Riley stayed late to work yesterday, but didn't do their work, so they are grounded for 7 days each. They don't know this yet but will find out when they get to work. Let's see. Jennie and I took Riley to Canton City last night for his birthday dinner, which was really nice. He talks a lot, but it was comfortable and fun. I am getting new computer for the office and/or home. Got it at Best Buy. Jen and Paul (Paul is Jennie's brother) are in town from Vermont on a ski vacation. We had dinner with them at the Red Iguana on Sunday night (and I have photos of that I should put up soon!). We should see them again a few times during the week! Okay, that's that for now! Requests?

Cut my Hair

2010-02-08T19:45:00.000-07:00

After 10 years of long hair, I finally cut it today. Weird. Jennie likes it. I wish I had a photo for you to see, as it is kind of meaningless unless I show you. I will have to see what I can do about getting a photo!

Weekend

2010-02-08T19:41:00.003-07:00

So tonight I'm cooking chicken poppers and Chicken Masala. I know... they don't necessarily go together, the poppers are EXCELLENT and hopefully the chicken will turn out good. It is simmering on the stove for a while.

This weekend the kids went Skiing, and their Aunt Susie came up to visit them. Jennie and I took a relationships class, and it was awesome. Challenging? Yes. But cool. And then last night we all watched the Super Bowl. Did that suck? Yes it did. I'm a Colts fan, and so even though I like the Saints, I didn't want them to win. Oh well!

So the weekend was tiring, but invigorating, and I can tell you I'm exhausted and excited and scared about life. It's just a never ending wave!

January 24th, 2010

2010-01-24T18:06:00.002-07:00

Sunday dawned clear and beautiful. Last night, (Saturday night) Jim and Ramie and Caitlen came up on a heavy snowy night and we all went to Soldier Hollow to go tubing. This... was... fun. The kids loved it, and Jennie and I and Jim went up and down the hill 7 times before joining Ramie in the lodge for hot chocolate! It was a beautiful night, snowed the whole time, it was just great. We had Papa Murphy's Pizza at the house before we went. It was great. At night Asher and Jennie watched a scary movie called Paranormal Activities. They dragged me in for 2 minutes but I had enough and went down and worked with Riley on Disasternecessities.com. He's really helping me! After Jennie and Asher watched the scary movie together, Jennie and I watched the first half of the comedy The Hangover. I have to give The Hangover 4 stars. It was a GREAT movie. Not just funny, but clever. We watched the second half this morning. I went over this morning to my Dad's house to take care of the dogs while he's out of town. Jennie and I took a long walk with Churchill (our St. Bernard) and found a nice secluded place where we mediated together. Jennie had a really cool vision. Church just loved the snow! Asher and Riley worked their asses off shoveling the steep and huge driveway. Plus Asher did some serious work cleaning the basement. It looks AWESOME. Good job Asher. Ame slept till 1:30 the lazy slug. If I had known she was asleep I would have waken her up.

Then Jennie and I watched the Indianapolis Colts beat the NY Jets, and as I type this we are watching the Saints and the Vikings play. Jennie is on the bike. Friday Jennie and I went to Soldier Hollow to buy tickets and went to dinner and then we watched the romantic comedy The Ugly Truth. Good movie that one too.

I read some more of The Way of the Superior Man this morning, finally finishing it by reading Chapter 51. Amazing stuff that book is. Changing my life, or it will, if I let it. :)

Tonight is Bake Potatoes, Steak, and frozen peas. The potatoes are cooking. Jennie and I are gearing up for work tomorrow. She's not thrilled about it. I wish I could make enough money for her to quit. It is my full intention.

Well, that was this weekend. It was nice. It was fun. Relaxing, but there is a stress in the air. I hope to even that out this week, but I get the feeling it will be challenging. I'll let you know how it turns out. Kids are out of school tomorrow. I can't believe how often they let the kids out in this school district. Ridiculous.

January 23rd, 2010 - Saturday

2010-01-23T10:33:00.002-07:00

How you all doing? I hope everyone is well. I'm sitting her Saturday morning in the new house and I took a moment to look out over the fields filled with snow, and was filled with gratitude. My dad is out of town this weekend, so we went over to his house and fed the dogs and cats. This makes me sad. No way we can take any more animals, just no way, but those little Chihuahua's of my Mom's are so sad there alone. My dad doesn't give them the attention they need. And the cats. Poor Eddie, the paralyzed cat, (from the waist down) misses her so bad. My Dad doesn't love them and take care of them like he should.

Anyway, we went to dinner at the Bear Dance Cafe. Ame had her friend Ruby over to stay the night, and Riley had his friend Jordan over to stay the night. The boys stayed at the office after a satisfying day of work and played games with their friends.

So, a boring snap shot of life here in Snowy Heber. Today however the kids go skiing all day at Sundance, Jennie has a hair appointment in Salt Lake City, and if she goes to that (she's thinking of cancelling) I'll do some work that needs to be done. Tonight however, fun fun fun. Jennie's brother Jim is coming up with his wife Raimi and daughter Caitlen and we are going tubing at Soldier Hollow! Big fun family night.

You may be wondering why I haven't updated this blog as much. It's because of Facebook. Spend too much time on Facebook. That reaches a different group of people than this does. I've always said, Facebook needs to add a blog feature. Google should buy facebook and integrate it with Blogger. Just my billion dollar idea.

Oh, Asher's birthday is coming up February 12th! How exciting. Sixteen. Can you believe it? Sixteen! Wow. Okay, If you are lucky you will get soldier hollow pictures and notes. Something worth writing about is bound to happen. Goodness! :)

2010-01-11T14:25:00.001-07:00

So I held my annual Game Day at my house. Yes you would think owning a game store I would have more than one game day a year, and usually we do, but we do this one every year as kind of a tradition. So I'll run down the gaming for you and let you know how it all worked out.

We opened with Dominion. If you haven't played Dominion yet, go to this link, buy the game, and play it. Seriously. Don't hesitate. If you were in the retail store, I would give you a copy, and tell you to go play it, and if you like it, come back and pay me. If you don't like it, bring it back. Everyone I do this with comes back and pays for it. Not one person has brought it back and said they didn't like it. Period. So go get it. Now. Matt Drake even wrote a wonderful review about it, HERE. We played it, and the Seaside Expansion for it, for hours. Awesome fun with friends. Good game.

Then... we moved to Roborally, which was just rereleased over Christmas, and wow, it's just a fun game. Never played it before, so it was new. But it was easy to pick up, and it was fun. Here is the thing with Roborally. Things are going to go wrong, and because of that, you can't plan out a perfect strategy, which can really bother the hell out of you. BUT... if you take it as a FUN game and enjoy all the crazy things that occur because you can't plan for everything, then it turns out quite fun. Parker got turned around once and screwed up his move so badly once that I almost fell on the floor laughing as he kept screwing up. It's a fun game, and can accomodated many players and was good for some great laughs.

Then we played Small World. I've played this three times before, and it DOES keep getting better. The first time I was unimpressed, but by this fourth time, I have to say I liked it a lot better. We'll see if it keeps growing on me. I won, so that makes a difference. It's the BIG game this year, and Matt Drake again reviewed it and loved it. I was lukewarm at first, but it IS getting better.

Finally we played Pictionary, and damn that was FUN. What a fun game for couples and teams and just a lot of laughs. I don't even sell Pictionary . I should fix that. It's such a great game I can recommend it to everyone. We play on this HUGE white board I have and it's fun see it show up on the big board. We are SERIOUS as pictionary in my family! :) Ben and B'andra managed to include a certain piece of the male anatomy in EVERY SINGLE PICTURE they drew. It almost put me on the ground.

Okay, the next day, having played so many games I wasn't even CLOSE to burning out, so I pulled out Tales of the Arabian Nights, a game Matt Drake reviewed and recommended and I've wanted to play for a while now. Me and my daughter got it set up and then discovered the Quest Cards were missing. So that was a BUMMER. Can't really review that. Hopefuly Z-Man Games will fix that. We also opened the new Axis & Allies Pacific, but found that one of the treys of chits was missing. I think the Japanese were missing, or doubled, and no Chinese. So that game was unplayable. Let's hope Wizards of the Coast fixes THAT! Then we opened Ghost Stories, ANOTHER game that Matt reviewed and liked, and was recommended to us by Sheridan as well, but by that time the Arizona Packers game was on so we never got to play it.

Did anyone see that game? Packers had an AMAZING comeback. AMAZING. But they just couldn't pull it off. They need a better Defense. :)

Anyway, that was the gaming weekend. This week instead of game night we are going rock climbing, I believe. I'll let you know how that turns out! :)

New Year

2010-01-07T22:52:00.000-07:00

We had a great Christmas and New Year, and of course tons of family and pictures and all that stuff but I'm so far behind on this blog. Mostly because of Facebook. It's so much easier to put stuff up there, but I'm going to make an effort Sunday to catch up and show pictures and life and all that good stuff from our lives over Christmas.

Jason

Merry Christmas!!!

2009-12-25T19:16:00.002-07:00

Hello everyone! It is Christmas night. Peggy and John and Raimi and Jim and Caitlen and Josh came up for Christmas dinner and day, and it was just wonderful. We had wine, soda, pie, ham, and so many snacks it was crazy! They brought Godiva, and she was just thrilled to see our dogs! Jennie and I got up early and opened presents with the kids, and it was just wonderful. We had a great day! Josh is still here now, talking about family matters with Jennie. It is a nice time. A beautiful day. Great day of family and friends.

Now we are just hanging out, but I wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas. More later. It's been really busy and I haven't updated this, but we'll get to it. We took a lot of pictures which we will share with you.

Soon!

Love!

Happy Birthday Ame!!!!

2009-12-01T09:51:00.003-07:00

How exciting! Ame is 11 years old right now! Isn't that exciting? Happy Birthday. I'm about to head to DAys to pick up her cake, deposit Jennie's check, and .... and... hm... there was one more thing to do at Days.... dang... what was it? Big O tire! Yep, that was it!

Sunday November 29th, 2009

2009-11-29T21:24:00.002-07:00

Hello folks. This Thanskgiving was a difficult one. I miss my mother. There is no doubt it was empty without her. We did however get to go to Jennie's Mom's house, and that was wonderful. Good food and family.

This morning took a walk with the five dogs and Jennie, and it was really nice. Jennie got a LOT of nice photos which you can see on her Facebook Page. I wish you could see them all and wish there was a way to easily link to them.

Today I cleaned, and relaxed a lot. Yesterday Jennie and I started Christmas shopping, and went to Happy Sumo, and she got her hair done. Tonight we all together as a family and watched Star Trek, which was fun. The kids just love spending time with us. Asher went running, and I put away books, and I finally put together Asher and Riley's beds.

Hm... there had to be more than that, no? No, not really. The walk was nice, the movie was nice, and oh yeah I did a lot of work. The games orders are really big this time of year. That is nice considering how hurt we were when we lost Magic the Gathering for a while there. What evil people they are at Wizards of the Coast.

Anyway, that's that. I will try and update you more soon. I'm helping Ame build her models for Warhammer, she's choosing the Dark Angels Space Marines. I did a lot of Tyranids too. I put my whole army together today and was a bit disapointed. It was smaller than I thought it would be. Asher and Riley are way ahead of me, but they are kids!

Okay, I'll go. If I can figure a way for you to see Jennie's photos of the kids and family and dogs I will.

Thanksgiving

2009-11-27T08:45:00.003-07:00

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! This year kind of sucked. The first year without my Mother. It was a tough day for sure. Everything seems messed up. But... we went to Jennie's folks for dinner and it was so nice! I was grateful to sit back and have a Thanksgiving dinner like that. Very enjoyable. I thank everyone who helped. Jennie and I got up and cooked in the morning, and it was fun. She made Mac and Cheese, and I really liked it. Anyway, ending love and light out to all you who read our blog and follow the family adventure! Thanks!

Today being Friday as I write this we are all back at work. Jennie leaving to Salt Lake this morning, and me heading down to Heber from the new house.

Oh, Ben and B'andra came by last night, and it was really nice to see them. They only stopped by for a minute, but it was great to see them.

Dexter

2009-11-22T22:48:00.004-07:00

Good evening friends! It has been a bit of a while since I posted. This weekend, Friday and Saturday, and Sunday, we did nothing. Well, not nothing, but not much. We took a much needed rest. It was upsetting on some levels, I think Saturday Jennie and I both felt moody. Friday night Riley had four friends over and they stayed nearly all day Saturday too. Asher is grounded for bad grades. Ame on Saturday went to ODP tryouts, that is Olympic Development Program tryouts for soccer! She doesnt' think she made the team, but I'm sure it was a great experience for her. Thanks to her soccer coach Mandy for taking her.

What did Jennie and I do? We watched Dexter. All 12 hours of it. Yep, season one of the show Dexter, which is about a serial killer with a code. I don't recommend this to everyone, but it is one of the best shows I have ever watched. Most well written... I just can't say enough. BUT... it's dark, and not for the faint of heart. Still, as a writer, I admire what these guys have done creating this.

Tonight (being Sunday) Jennie cooked Fried Chicken for us. WOW! It was good. And she actually cooked it. No proxy. We had a family dinner. We took the dogs for two walks. Asher and Riley took them in the morning, and Jennie and I took them tonight. Up here along the trails we just leave them off leash, even Figgy and Boo. Speaking of Boo, she has a rash and was sick all day Saturday. Better today. Anyway, on the walk the dogs just loved it. It was great. we saw LOTS of deer. They live in our backyard. We both reflected on how weird it is my kids haven't explored all the areas yet.

I'm reading my friend John Brown's novel, Servant of a Dark God. He got published before me. How about that? Cool for him. So far it is similar to the draft I remember reading a long time ago.

Jennie read Asher's Sun Sign to him and we were supposed to get together for dinner with Mike Aguilar at the house but he wanted to go out to dinner instead, and we didn't really want to do that since we had dinner cooked here. Riley helped with some orders on the computer.

Well... and we ordered some Graber olives.

Thanksgiving is next week. I can't wait. It was so good of Jennie to cook for us today, and I want to thank her.

Well, have a good great week!!!!

Oh hell, I almost forgot! We watched RSL win the MSL soccer cup tonight! OH WOW! Was that FUN! AWESOME! Salt Lake City has won it's first major professional sports championship! It was just awesome. LOVED IT!

Jason