The 4th most interesting person of 2010

Adrian Smith

All the guy did was complete the construction of the tallest building in the world in 2010 -- Burj Khalifa. I can't even begin to understand the project management that this thing took. We can't get 4 kids to get on the same page. How about a 2717 feet and 160 floors!?

#5 on my list of the Most Interesting People of 2010

After some prodding from Lisa after my 'almost' bash of Barbara Walter's list of interesting people for 2010, I present the FIFTH most interesting person of 2010.

SCOOTER BRAUN

He's the 29 yr old guy who discovered a 13 year old singer from Canada who had some so-so talent as a musician on youtube. He convinced the kid and his mom to come to Atlanta to record a demo tape and introduce him to a friend named Usher. 2 years later that kid is now 15, rolling in the dough, winning awards, and I can't go one day without seeing or hearing his name. For unleashing the plague that is Justin Beiber ... SCOOTER BRAUN is the 5th most interesting person of 2010.

GET A LIFE AMERICA !!!!!!!

If you care who makes this person's list of 'Most Interesting People in 2010' .... nevermind, Cindy says that my thoughts are inapporpriate.

So what's in a dream?

So Ashton had a very slight "sniffle" last night when she climbed into our bed at 3:37 AM. Oh, and apparently her cheek hurt. Oh and her pajamas were made of the same materials as blankets, so even though she was sleeping in between Cindy and me, she didn't need any covers -- on a night that was like 10 degrees outside -- and it's hard to somehow have both Cindy and myself bundled while the YAHOO in the middle is not.

Long story short, by 5:18 AM my patience was at an end. I had already left the bedroom with her, drugged her with Benedryl, and watched "sweetie" cartoons with her. And she was still not asleep & she was still a miserable soul. So I pawned her off on Cindy.

And in the few moments of sleep that I got after pawning her off (I probably only got about 40 or so) I had a dream. And in this dream, Ashton was eaten by a bear.

I think Scrooge was on to something.

Worse than the over-commercialization of Xmas, is the over activity of Xmas. Every work group has their own Xmas party. The management team has their own Xmas party. The ward has a Xmas party, the young men / young women, the primary, Ashton's gymnastics group, 3 kids at 3 different schools means 3 different Xmas things. And not being a big fan of people, this is a problem.

Now Scrooge got his visits by the 3 ghosts and when it was all said and done he had Christmas Day to spread joy. And that's fine and dandy. Anyone can do a day. But had the 3 ghosts visited on December 3rd and Scrooge had to attend as many functions as me, my guess is that he would have told Marley to go take a flying leap!

Today I learned ...

that Daniel has grown 3 inches since the start of school 3 months ago. For the record he is now 5'7".

that Ashton is 5 years old and no longer needs Daddy to tuck her into bed. Except that she still does as she told Daddy 20 minutes later.

that you can't answer the call of nature when dinner is served, because if you do the 2 cans of refried beans and entire block of grated cheese will be gone by the time you get back 2 minutes later.

and lastly, that there are times when we'd prefer you not share ... which is the case with Craig's mystery rash or whatever is all over his neck. When Ashton thought that Craig had touched her and his hands might have been contaminated and she' better wash her hands and face ... SHE FREAKED and was HYSTERICAL.

Why we don't order pizza for delivery

Cuz the conversation goes like this ....

"Daniel, what do you want on your extra large pizza? Umm, one meat lovers."

"Craig, what do you want on your extra large pizza? Umm, one with double pepperoni and breakfast bacon."

"Nathan, what do you want on your large pizza? Umm, one with double pepperoni."

"Mom, what do you, Ashton, and I want on our small pizza?"


No one should have 3 boys so close in age all eating so much. Our food budget has spiked in the last few months and is only rising. "I'm still hungry!" is now the most commonly spoken phrase in our household, overtaking "GO TO BED!!" (but not by much). We have to make 10 hamburgers for a single meal. A 9x13 pan of chicken enchilada is no longer two meals, but better have a large can of re fried beans and two large bags of tortilla chips as well as a desert to back it up!!!!!

Maybe Pres. Obama will save us ... there is always hope.

Tommy Lasorda, where are you?

As a naive kid, I put a lot of heart and soul in to my routing interest ... and needless to say I'm very much still a kid. And I remember game after game Tommy Lasorda talking about how fortunate the Dodgers where to have the Big Blue Guy in the Sky shining down on them. They won a lot of games in which the balls landed barely fair for the Dodgers and barely foul for the bad guys. Mike Socissa couldn't hit a fly ball past second base but in a Game 6 against the Mets he hit one over the centerfield wall. How!? Why!? The Dodger Eye in the Sky of course. Kirk Gibson could barely walk or swing or stand and yet that ball traveled 400 feet. How!? The Dodger Eye in the Sky of course.

Well he must not be a Dodger fan anymore. O'Malley sold him when he sold the rest of the Dodgers to Fox Corp. And I'm not sure who that guy roots for these days, but today he was wearing Ute Red and I want to puke!!

Every single bounce went their way, and not just a few of them. I can think of 8 that could have bounced anywhere and every single time it went the Utes direction. Yes, we should have still won and made some big mistakes, but where is the justice!? The first Ute TD hit the db in the arm and it could have been caught by him or bounced right to Rich for the int but instead bounced right into the arms of the Ute. A early fumble hit Rich right in the hand and went out of bounds. The punt took an abrupt right hand turn and hit the BYU guy's foot. A BYU fumble went right to the Ute defender. A call that should have been overturned wasn't because the Ref blocked the only camera the TV had on the play. I could go on but I think I need to go throw up!!!

Meet "Dan"

Cindy had parent-teacher conferences with Daniel today, and she learned something that I think the title of this blog probably already gives way. He calls himself Dan and has since the beginning of school. Everyone in his school only knows him as Dan. He is Dan.

Now I don't think this is as quite as radical as the 'Saul-on-the-Road-to-Damascus' level event that occurred the day Jimmy became James but still ...

He has never once referred to himself at home or church as Dan. So where did Dan come from?

A now it all makes sense ...

Ashton likes to come into Mommy & Daddy's bed in the middle of the night ... probably happens 4 times a week, maybe 5. But she is really a wiggle worm and does a lot of touching. Kind of thought "that's just the way she is" ... but at times she is dead to the world and doesn't move a muscle. So why does she squirm and slap us around so much?

Mystery solved. Stayed up a little later than normal last night to watch my first Laker game of the year (they had won their first 8 but lost the first time I watched ... go figure). So by the time I was climbing into bed, sweetheart Cindy was already sawing logs ... and they must have been big Redwoods dropping judging from the amps on that saw she was using on those logs. I couldn't sleep, much less hear myself think. But every time I rolled over or jostled the bed, there would be a momentary pause in the snoring. And every time I touched her, again, another peaceful moment of silent bliss. The problem is the more I bounce the bed or touch the queen, the more I put myself in the warpath of the sleeping princess. The answer? Another sweatheart who is more than willing to jostle the bed or smack the queen. So I went to her room, scooped her up, and brought her to bed to do her dirty work and take the heat should any come. Dirty trick, I know ... but really effective.

But a funny thing happened last night. As soon as Ashton was in bed, Cindy's snoring noticeably decreased a few dozen decibels. Do you think her 'mommy' instinct took over and her level of deep sleep changed knowing a sweetie was in bed with her? Just wondering.

For the record, I am not the quietest sleeper on the planet and have taken my fair share of 'sweetie' slaps in the middle of the night. But at least now I'll understand the method to her madness. But what do we do when she's 18? Get a dog?

She must go ...

First of all, I am a DWTS purist. I look pass image, looks, character, partnering, all of that trivial junk, and I judge the dance for what it is ... in it's purest form. I use my keen sense of choreography, musicality, and rhythm to artfully determine who is the best, pure dancer and who deserves to not ever violate the dance floor again. That said ...

Bristol Palin offends every single one of my dancing senses with every brutal, painful MISS-step. So how is she still on the show!?

I have long felt, nay sensed ... for all intents and purposes DISCERNED ... that there is an deep-seeded undercurrent of evil in this country who vote based on false prophetic notions of who is a "christian" and who isn't. Based on talent, there is no way in the heavens above or hell below that Adam Lambert should have ever lost to Kris Allen -- except Kris was deemed a better "christain" role model than Adam by some underground group who then blasted the voting to ensure Kris won. And the same group is behind the voting in DWTS. Giles Marrini was out-voted by Shawn Johnson. Shawn Johnson isn't fit to hold Giles' dance practice leotard when it comes to ability.

And now this travesty. The same group keeping the two left feet of Bristol alive is also voting up fellow "christian" good guy Kurt Warner. Some day the books will be opened and all this will be revealed ... you heard it here first.

If every couple we knew was in the Amazing Race ...

Blaine and Lisa would be the winner.

I admit the discussion went deep into the night on this one between me and Cindy. Sometimes this discussion was 'warm' and we probably owe every couple we know a deep, heartfelt apology for critiquing each couples relationship, physicality, and overall ability to win The Amazing Race. But in the end, Blaine's ability to sweet talk a stranger, he's will to win at all costs, and Lisa's ability to handle all of that won us over. They would win. Jim and Heather get a distant second because somewhere for some reason they would have to talk to somebody, and we just didn't see that happening.

How do I say nothing ...

I have starred at this blog and I have found nothing to say. And I really hate, no hate is too strong a word, loathe is also too strong, dislike isn't strong enough a word, so I'm not really sure what the word is for not liking something a lot but not to the point of hate ... anyways, I feel that towards long communications about nothing. I think I used to not like it more, but Ashton likes to give me long communications about nothing. I keep thinking, it's a good thing you're so cute. She's given me a lot of practice at being more patient and actively listening to long communications about nothing. She's actually trained me to actively listening because when I glaze over she grabs my two ears and brings my face right up to hers so that I give her my full undivided attention.

Dry heaving is ....

the worst 10 seconds of any day, week, month, or year.

There will soon be 4 fewer kids on the planet.

6:10AM -- Who get's to play PS3? (Daniel & Craig)
6:12AM -- Craig only plays computer games that I don't like (Ashton)
6:15AM -- Daniel only plays PS3 games I don't like (Ashton)
6:20AM -- Can I have birthday cake with my breakfast (Nathan)
6:21AM -- Can I have Nilla waffers and milk in my cup because it is very good for me and makes me happy and will take away my sadness because brothers only play PS3 and computer games that I don't like (Ashton)
6:24AM -- Can I have birthday cake with my breakfast (Nathan)
6:25AM -- Can I play computer with Nathan because Craig and Daniel only play games like baseball and football that I don't like on the PS3 and the computer and it makes me sad (Ashton)
6:27AM -- What's for breakfast (Craig)
6:28AM -- I have an itch (Daniel)
6:30AM -- Can I have birthday cake for breakfast (Nathan)
6:31AM -- Craig farted right in my direction (Ashton)

Get the shotgun Mom.

For old time's sake ...

I made Nathan take off his cub scout shirt before going into the store.

One is going to Yale, the other woodstock ... how fitting.

Nathan & Yale.

He was off to Yale this morning to meet the head of the Yale Pediatric Endocrinology & Diabetes Research Institute. They will be his doctors for the duration of our adventures in the Northeast. The awesome part is that the center is one of the best in the entire country. The bonus is that the care Nathan gets justs meets the end Yale seeks ... research. The big push at the Yale Center right now is developing an artificial pancreas among other things and Nathan could be given opportunities not normally afford to most patients. Nathan and argyle sweaters have been a common sight for most his life. I'm sure he would fit right into the Ivy League crested blazer crowd quite nicely.

Craig & Woodstock

On the other foot, Craig is going off to Woodstock for a 3 day 'Diversity Camp' next month. His class in school was chosen to attend, and he will learn team building, diversity, and inclusion while living it up in an outdoor classroom during the day (rock climbing wall included) and communally sleeping (boys / girls in separate cabins) at night. Showers will be limited to 3 minutes. Nature walks at lunch and Dinner one-ness with the earth treks at night highlight some of the activities. Oh, and I think they drop acid in the afternoon. Craig likes dirt. I'm sure he'll enjoy the hippie camp instead of sitting in class doing math.

When you can't throw the ball 10 yards down field.

BYU never has a good year in the first year of a new quarterback, except Max Hall 3 years ago. That team went 11-2 but had at least 5 guys on defense still playing in the NFL like Aaron Fransisco, Kelly Poppinga, Chris Hoke, Jan Jorgenson, David Nixon. And the Mountain West wasn't as good 3 years ago either.

It happens, and BYU fans will be okay with it as long as we have the future developing right before our eyes, getting the experience they need to go along with the talent they already have so that the years to come will be about winning. GET HEAPS IN THERE. Neilson may be a good guy, and if you want to bring him in for one drive each half to change the pace up with a running QB that is fine. But BYU will never win with a guy who can't stretch the field. He throws the ugliest pass I have ever seen. Let's rebuild this year, not throw it away for no reason at all!!!!

GET OFF THE PHONE!!

The family is watching a really good adventure drama "Eagle Eye" and we are fast approaching the climax.

And then the phone rings, we hit pause and 20 minutes later we all sit here. I forgot what the movie is even about it has been so long. The kids are starting to argue over who is sitting where. The ice in my water has all melted and is getting closer to room temperature. The popcorn is cold now.

Geez ... women.

A really "nice" day vs. my "birthday"

I was going to title this one "All I got for my birthday was a 'discussion' (you'll have to read Cindy's blog to understand it) but it wouldn't be totally true since I got a little more than just a 'discussion'.

The opportunity for 'discussion' arose when I looked deep into my heart and felt that for my birthday I wanted to do nothing. A lot is going on at work, a lot is going on at church with the Young Men, a lot is going on at home with school starting, and what really sounded good to me was the opposite ... not a lot going on and if possible ABSOLUTELY NOTHING GOING ON. The problem is that Cindy, the 3 boys, and Ashton didn't like the sound of Labor Day being spent doing nothing. In fact, the 80 degree weather with soft cool breeze and crystal blue sky was so beautiful I have no doubt that when Judgement Day called my name and the 'books' were opened, the narrator would say, "And what do you say for yourself regarding the sin committed September 6, 2010 when on an absolutely perfect day you asked that your family do NOTHING, stay inside and not even see the beauty of the day" and I would say, "yes, I'm guilty. I wanted to do nothing and was willing to defy a perfect weather day in an effort to do nothing".

In the end, after some nice 'discussion' ... we went for a family hike, found a waterfall with nice warm water to play in, climbed the hills and saw some gorgeous overlooks of the forrest scenery and my "BIRTHDAY" became a really "NICE" day instead because we did something.

Daniel's testimony

Daniel stood up in church today and testified, "I live my life by a scripture ... 'Fear not man, but fear God'. Amen" and then sat down. And now I'm left sitting here wishing another Daniel, this one from Old Testament days, were here to give me the "interpretation thereof" of our Daniel's testamony.

His Mom's interpretation was that Daniel is less concerned about being embarrassed by his actions and more concerned that he's doing the right thing. If his friend's are doing or watching something inappropriate, Daniel is less concerned if they make fun of him if he doesn't participate, and more concerned he's doing what is right in the sight of God. I like her interpretation, but she loves him and I wonder just how rosy and thick are the glasses she's wearing. As for me, I just wonder what he was thinking at the moment he said it. I heard a whole sermon on 'all parents, teachers, leaders be damned! I march to my own drum and God will judge me not anyone else!'.

Perhaps had he said 'fear not man, but fear God and fear Mom likeunto It' I would rest a little better tonite.

My personal revolution against a silent 'k'iller

First, have the nowledge that this is not a nee jerk reaction. I have nown for sometime that a silent killer has been lurking amongst us for a long time like a nife-wielding nucklehead. Some of you may mock, but I can take no more and must stand up and call evil "evil" ... and the silent 'k' in the english language is evil.

I bet Adam and Eve never had to deal with a silent 'k' in the Garden of Eden.

We new Craig was special

And seeing Craig on the Short Bus each morning for school confirms it ... our special little guy

Where does they're brain go during puberty?

It's like talking to a wall. And maybe this reflects more on me as a dad, but I totally understand how Darth Vader felt in Star Wars when he used the force to choke out the Admiral who came out of light speed to early ... what's the point in coaching when the light is on but nobody is home. Might as well move on to the next guy.