We have had so many exciting things happen over the last few months that it is hard to explain them all. But it can all be summed with the statement - Jacob is walking. As many of you know, Jacob has cerebral palsy and has never been able to walk more than a few halting steps at a time. He is now eight. Some of his therapists have held out hope that he might one day walk, others had stated that if a child was not walking by the time they were eight then they probably would never walk.
At the beginning of this year Jacob really seemed no closer. We would practice with him occasionally but no real progress was being made. We had always been told that as long as he was progressing with his motor skills he would not need surgery on his legs, but if he began to plateau then surgery might be necessary. The surgery involves lengthening his tendons. It is a painful surgery with a long recovery that would involve his legs being placed in full casts for up to 3-4 weeks. Not something we were looking forward to.
I won't go into all of the details but after several months of prayers, fasting and priesthood blessings we have truly seen a miracle. Yesterday Jacob attended church without his walker for the 2nd time. Saturday night he went to the ward Halloween party without his walker. He is literally walking on his own. I still follow close behind him to catch him if he tips over but his strength and confidence in walking seem to grow each day. If you had seen him at the beginning of this year you would have thought what he is doing now would be unimaginable.
We are so grateful for all of those who have prayed and fasted for Jacob. You can know that you have been part of a miracle. Jacob's therapist was talking to Holly a few weeks ago and lamenting the fact that they hadn't been pushing him harder since he is making so much progress right now. She said, "I don't know if you realize this, but what we are seeing with Jacob is miraculous."
I think that Brigham's comment summed it up best. Saturday night we were packing up to go to the ward Halloween party. Brigham saw me putting Jacob's walker in the back of the van and said, "Dad, what are you doing. Jacob doesn't need that thing anymore." And he is right. We didn't use it at all that night. Jacob is still using his walker at school but we hope that soon he will be able to get rid of there as well. This is opening up a new an wonderful world for him. Words cannot express the gratitude we feel to our Heavenly Father for this miracle in our lives.
We'll keep you posted on his progress.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Father and Sons
This weekend I took all three boys (Jacob 8, Brigham 5, Caleb 2) on our first Father and Sons camp-out. Normally Caleb wouldn't have made the trip but Holly was going to Philadelphia for the weekend to attend "Timeout for Women" (that is where women go when they refuse to eat their vegetables).
First I would like to point out a few things that I learned that might be of use to someone attempting a similar feat in the future.
Now for a recap of the experience. We got a bit of a late start on Friday afternoon. The campground is only about an hour away but since we didn't get on the road until 5 pm, with traffic we didn't end up getting there until about 6:30. Everyone was eating dinner so we went ahead and joined them. I don't really know anything about camping so I kept asking people where you were supposed to setup etc. All the kids loved dinner. Jacob had Fritos, Caleb downed a hotdog and stole Jacob's Fritos and Brigham went for the full on chili cheese dog (with no bun though since he is on the Atkin's diet).
After dinner we went hunting for a campsite. It was already dark which made things a little complicated. I brought Jacob and Caleb with me and my brother-in-law Josh agreed to come help me setup the tent and would bring Brigham and Sam (Josh's son along with him). We were able to drive the car pretty close to where we were going to camp but since I had to carry the tent, sleeping bags, etc. I couldn't really carry Jacob or Caleb. So they started walking behind me, Jacob in his walker and Caleb waddling along. I was looking for a place to drop our tent down, shining the flashlight around and got a little too far ahead of Jacob and Caleb. I turned around to see Jacob crying and Caleb with a very scared look on his face. I went back to gather the troops and try to move them along to our destination.
About the time I got found a spot Josh showed up and we started setting up the tent. The tent was actually pretty easy to setup except for the fact that Jacob was crying the entire time, begging to go home. By the time we were done with the tent we had two leftover poles. That was a little concerning but I still have no idea where they were supposed to go.
After setting up the ten it was off to the campfire. The stake had a little program and the kids go to roast marsh mellows. All of my kids really liked this. Some of the older kids did skits. Brigham couldn't figure out why the kids in one of the skits called toilet paper the "very important papers".
After the campfire it was off to bed. There was just one problem. We weren't allowed to park our car by the campsite overnight. So we had to take it out to the parking lot. We parked the car and started our walk back to the campground, Jacob in his wheelchair, me carrying a cooler, Brigham with his backpack on wheels and Caleb waddling along.
We were moving pretty well on the pavement but once we got to the gravel road things slowed down considerably. It was almost impossible to push Jacob's wheelchair on the gravel so I turned him around backwards, popped the chair onto its back wheels and stared towing him. At the same time a lot of cars were coming down the gravel road since they were going out the parking lot. This meant we had to keep pulling over to the side of the road and containing Caleb so that he would not "run to the light". Needless to say, our progress was very slow. We had to be quite the site though, me dragging Jacob's wheelchair behind me and Brigham walking along holding onto Caleb's arm, looking like he was taking him to a detention center, to make sure he didn't run away.
Eventually, we made our bathroom stop and finally arrived at the tent. As stated previous, we had a four-man tent and Caleb's port-a-crib took up some significant space. After quite a bit of wrestling I got all of the kids in pajamas and into their sleeping bags/cribs. Jacob passed out almost immediately, Brigham wanted to hear some stories and Caleb was just happy to be there. I told Brigham a few stories and he went on and on about how fun camping was and how we should do this every year and... then he was out cold. But Caleb was still happy to be there. He didn't seem tired yet but I thought I would just go to sleep and Caleb would eventually doze off.
I got into my sleeping bag. All of our sleeping bags were brand new since we had never been camping before as a family. Brigham and Jacob's bags were slightly different than mine. As I got into mine my feet went right out the bottom. What? I checked the zippers to make sure I wasn't in upside down. Nope. I check to see if there was a way to zip up the bottom. Nope. I thought, "What kind of moron makes a sleeping bag with no bottom?" But I was exhausted and decided to just go to sleep.
But Caleb was still excited to be there. He was jumping around the crib, laughing, cheering etc. I am not sure if I fell asleep for awhile or not but as the night wore on Caleb never calmed down. I was having a real tough time getting comfortable, especially since I had forgotten the pillows, was on no padding on bumpy ground with a sleeping bag that had no bottom. After several hours of tossing and turning I finally discovered another zipper on the bag. There was another layer! I could actually get "into" the sleeping bag. All of the sudden my sleeping bag became a lot more useful. And all this time Caleb was still excited to be there.
I closed my eyes for a bit and suddenly something heavy fell on me. I opened my eyes to see Jacob's face right over mine saying "I want a thousand years clapping" (that means he wants to listen to a live version of a Sting song). I told him that it was still night time and he had to go to sleep, which he did promptly. I couldn't quite see but apparently he had fallen asleep on top of Brigham. Brigham woke up a few moments later screaming "I can't move my legs". I rolled him out from underneath Jacob and back to the other side of the tent. And Caleb was still excited to be there.
This was getting crazy. I didn't have a watch on but it had to at least be 3 am and Caleb was still bouncing off of the walls. I hadn't brought a sleeping bag for him, just his blanket sleeper and his blanket. I started thinking that maybe he was too cold t calm down so I got him out his crib to lie down with me in my new and improved sleeping bag. Big mistake. He was even more excited now and started crawling all over everyone in the tent. Brigham awoke again yelling, "He grabbed me in the face! I hate it when Caleb grabs me in the face!"
Caleb was quickly put back in the crib and I tried putting my jacket over him. That didn't work, the Jacket became a very fun thing to throw around the crib. So finally I relented and gave Caleb my sleeping bag. He didn't calm down immediately but after about 45 minutes or so he finally fell asleep. It was almost 5 am at this point.
Everyone was asleep now but I had a problem. I had no pillow and now sleeping bag. I put on all the clothing I had but that still wasn't quite warm enough. So finally, I opened up Jacob's sleeping bag and got in with him. It wasn't big enough that I could close it again but we were both warm enough that I was able to get to sleep for at least 90 minutes or so.
Then Brigham and Jacob woke up and we were ready to start the day! We had some breakfast with everyone and Brigham had a blast playing with his friend John at all of the great play areas in the campe as Jacob and Caleb say by while I packed up the tent and sleeping bags. Caleb, who had been such a wild man the night before was amazingly sedate and seemed content to sit in the port-a-crib with his blankey while I cleaned things up.
By 10 am we were on the road home to get Brigham to a birthday party. Finally at 2 pm Caleb and I were able to lie down for a much needed nap. Hopefully we will be rested enough by the time Father and Sons comes around next year.
First I would like to point out a few things that I learned that might be of use to someone attempting a similar feat in the future.
- Campgrounds do not provide pillows. I really wish they did though since I forgot to bring them.
- If you are going camping, arrive early enough to set your tent up in the daylight. Setting up in the dark is no fun.
- Campgrounds are not exactly "handicap accessible" which we learned as we drug Jacob's wheelchair over the gravel roads.
- Four man tents do not anticipate one of your "men" being in a port-a-crib.
Now for a recap of the experience. We got a bit of a late start on Friday afternoon. The campground is only about an hour away but since we didn't get on the road until 5 pm, with traffic we didn't end up getting there until about 6:30. Everyone was eating dinner so we went ahead and joined them. I don't really know anything about camping so I kept asking people where you were supposed to setup etc. All the kids loved dinner. Jacob had Fritos, Caleb downed a hotdog and stole Jacob's Fritos and Brigham went for the full on chili cheese dog (with no bun though since he is on the Atkin's diet).
After dinner we went hunting for a campsite. It was already dark which made things a little complicated. I brought Jacob and Caleb with me and my brother-in-law Josh agreed to come help me setup the tent and would bring Brigham and Sam (Josh's son along with him). We were able to drive the car pretty close to where we were going to camp but since I had to carry the tent, sleeping bags, etc. I couldn't really carry Jacob or Caleb. So they started walking behind me, Jacob in his walker and Caleb waddling along. I was looking for a place to drop our tent down, shining the flashlight around and got a little too far ahead of Jacob and Caleb. I turned around to see Jacob crying and Caleb with a very scared look on his face. I went back to gather the troops and try to move them along to our destination.
About the time I got found a spot Josh showed up and we started setting up the tent. The tent was actually pretty easy to setup except for the fact that Jacob was crying the entire time, begging to go home. By the time we were done with the tent we had two leftover poles. That was a little concerning but I still have no idea where they were supposed to go.
After setting up the ten it was off to the campfire. The stake had a little program and the kids go to roast marsh mellows. All of my kids really liked this. Some of the older kids did skits. Brigham couldn't figure out why the kids in one of the skits called toilet paper the "very important papers".
After the campfire it was off to bed. There was just one problem. We weren't allowed to park our car by the campsite overnight. So we had to take it out to the parking lot. We parked the car and started our walk back to the campground, Jacob in his wheelchair, me carrying a cooler, Brigham with his backpack on wheels and Caleb waddling along.
We were moving pretty well on the pavement but once we got to the gravel road things slowed down considerably. It was almost impossible to push Jacob's wheelchair on the gravel so I turned him around backwards, popped the chair onto its back wheels and stared towing him. At the same time a lot of cars were coming down the gravel road since they were going out the parking lot. This meant we had to keep pulling over to the side of the road and containing Caleb so that he would not "run to the light". Needless to say, our progress was very slow. We had to be quite the site though, me dragging Jacob's wheelchair behind me and Brigham walking along holding onto Caleb's arm, looking like he was taking him to a detention center, to make sure he didn't run away.
Eventually, we made our bathroom stop and finally arrived at the tent. As stated previous, we had a four-man tent and Caleb's port-a-crib took up some significant space. After quite a bit of wrestling I got all of the kids in pajamas and into their sleeping bags/cribs. Jacob passed out almost immediately, Brigham wanted to hear some stories and Caleb was just happy to be there. I told Brigham a few stories and he went on and on about how fun camping was and how we should do this every year and... then he was out cold. But Caleb was still happy to be there. He didn't seem tired yet but I thought I would just go to sleep and Caleb would eventually doze off.
I got into my sleeping bag. All of our sleeping bags were brand new since we had never been camping before as a family. Brigham and Jacob's bags were slightly different than mine. As I got into mine my feet went right out the bottom. What? I checked the zippers to make sure I wasn't in upside down. Nope. I check to see if there was a way to zip up the bottom. Nope. I thought, "What kind of moron makes a sleeping bag with no bottom?" But I was exhausted and decided to just go to sleep.
But Caleb was still excited to be there. He was jumping around the crib, laughing, cheering etc. I am not sure if I fell asleep for awhile or not but as the night wore on Caleb never calmed down. I was having a real tough time getting comfortable, especially since I had forgotten the pillows, was on no padding on bumpy ground with a sleeping bag that had no bottom. After several hours of tossing and turning I finally discovered another zipper on the bag. There was another layer! I could actually get "into" the sleeping bag. All of the sudden my sleeping bag became a lot more useful. And all this time Caleb was still excited to be there.
I closed my eyes for a bit and suddenly something heavy fell on me. I opened my eyes to see Jacob's face right over mine saying "I want a thousand years clapping" (that means he wants to listen to a live version of a Sting song). I told him that it was still night time and he had to go to sleep, which he did promptly. I couldn't quite see but apparently he had fallen asleep on top of Brigham. Brigham woke up a few moments later screaming "I can't move my legs". I rolled him out from underneath Jacob and back to the other side of the tent. And Caleb was still excited to be there.
This was getting crazy. I didn't have a watch on but it had to at least be 3 am and Caleb was still bouncing off of the walls. I hadn't brought a sleeping bag for him, just his blanket sleeper and his blanket. I started thinking that maybe he was too cold t calm down so I got him out his crib to lie down with me in my new and improved sleeping bag. Big mistake. He was even more excited now and started crawling all over everyone in the tent. Brigham awoke again yelling, "He grabbed me in the face! I hate it when Caleb grabs me in the face!"
Caleb was quickly put back in the crib and I tried putting my jacket over him. That didn't work, the Jacket became a very fun thing to throw around the crib. So finally I relented and gave Caleb my sleeping bag. He didn't calm down immediately but after about 45 minutes or so he finally fell asleep. It was almost 5 am at this point.
Everyone was asleep now but I had a problem. I had no pillow and now sleeping bag. I put on all the clothing I had but that still wasn't quite warm enough. So finally, I opened up Jacob's sleeping bag and got in with him. It wasn't big enough that I could close it again but we were both warm enough that I was able to get to sleep for at least 90 minutes or so.
Then Brigham and Jacob woke up and we were ready to start the day! We had some breakfast with everyone and Brigham had a blast playing with his friend John at all of the great play areas in the campe as Jacob and Caleb say by while I packed up the tent and sleeping bags. Caleb, who had been such a wild man the night before was amazingly sedate and seemed content to sit in the port-a-crib with his blankey while I cleaned things up.
By 10 am we were on the road home to get Brigham to a birthday party. Finally at 2 pm Caleb and I were able to lie down for a much needed nap. Hopefully we will be rested enough by the time Father and Sons comes around next year.
Friday, August 29, 2008
Worst Mom of the Year Award
Yesterday was one of those bad days!! It was raining out and so I
thought I would just let the kids hang out and watch TV so I could get
some much needed cleaning done. Mistake #1. They all really needed
my attention at the SAME TIME, of course, and I was going a little
stir crazy. My attempt to get Brigham focused on something else
failed miserably and ended with me gritting my teeth saying, if your
brothers can practice walking every day you can practice writing your
name!! Oh glory!! Needless to say, he proclaimed that my activity
was not cool and that he was NEVER going to write his name! Go Mom!
Next I decided we all had to get out of the house, so we headed off to
Krispy Kreme (a nice nutricious choice). It was about a half hour
away, but I didn't care. The gas would cost more than the
doughnuts..oh well. THis was my sanity we were talking about. So
with Jacob in tears that he wanted to go back to Grammy Dots house
(for the 3,658th time since his return on Tues.) Brigham telling me
that he hates handwriting, and Caleb ready for a nap, we headed out.
On the way there I called my sister-in-law Mary to see if they would
like to join us. It was nap time for them, so she opted out. We
continued the journey with more crying for Grammy Dot when good Ole
Mommy lost her patience and sternly said, "Stop it, Jacob" "We are
all done with crying." Of course that made him cry more (and I'm sure
made him want to go back to Grammy Dot's house even more, too). That
was when Brigham quipped in "Mom, it's your fault mom, he's crying
because you yelled at him!" Oh heavens....I really am horrible. Yet
in my mind I am thinking....have you not noticed that he has been
crying all day?
We finally arrived at Krispy Kreme and everyone seemed in good
spirits. As we ordered the doughnuts Jacob began doing the bathroom
dance. He said he needed to go and started heading towards the
bathroom. Since I could see it from the register, I let Brigham go
and help him with the door and when I was done paying etc. I went with
Caleb and doughnuts in tow, to the MENS room to help him. (I know,
you are now thinking...there goes her parenting award!!---WHAT was I
thinking!!) Jacob normally can get his pants up and down fine etc. Of
course when I arrived there was urine all over the floor and all over
his shorts and underpants. what to do!!! My van was parked right
outside the door, so I stood in the hallway, so I could see the
bathroom and the van and opened the van door with my remote so I
could see Brigham as he went to the van to get a diaper. That would
work. Poor Jacob hasn't worn diapers in two years! I get his diaper
on and run to the hallway again to double check on Brigham and who do
I see drive up in her mini-van...MARY. Oh thank you!! She kept an
eye on the other kids while I got Jacob cleaned up. Poor Jacob sat on
a chair in his t-shirt and diaper, but he didn't seem to care as he
wolfed down four doughnuts...I know, mommy award for me!!
Anyway, Mary and I enjoyed a nice chat and all seemed well. Suddenly
a man came into the dining area and held up some keys asking people if
they had lost them. I looked over and realized they were mine. (I
hadn't even noticed) I thanked him very much and then I asked, "Where
did you find them? His puzzled reponse..."In the Men's Room"........
thought I would just let the kids hang out and watch TV so I could get
some much needed cleaning done. Mistake #1. They all really needed
my attention at the SAME TIME, of course, and I was going a little
stir crazy. My attempt to get Brigham focused on something else
failed miserably and ended with me gritting my teeth saying, if your
brothers can practice walking every day you can practice writing your
name!! Oh glory!! Needless to say, he proclaimed that my activity
was not cool and that he was NEVER going to write his name! Go Mom!
Next I decided we all had to get out of the house, so we headed off to
Krispy Kreme (a nice nutricious choice). It was about a half hour
away, but I didn't care. The gas would cost more than the
doughnuts..oh well. THis was my sanity we were talking about. So
with Jacob in tears that he wanted to go back to Grammy Dots house
(for the 3,658th time since his return on Tues.) Brigham telling me
that he hates handwriting, and Caleb ready for a nap, we headed out.
On the way there I called my sister-in-law Mary to see if they would
like to join us. It was nap time for them, so she opted out. We
continued the journey with more crying for Grammy Dot when good Ole
Mommy lost her patience and sternly said, "Stop it, Jacob" "We are
all done with crying." Of course that made him cry more (and I'm sure
made him want to go back to Grammy Dot's house even more, too). That
was when Brigham quipped in "Mom, it's your fault mom, he's crying
because you yelled at him!" Oh heavens....I really am horrible. Yet
in my mind I am thinking....have you not noticed that he has been
crying all day?
We finally arrived at Krispy Kreme and everyone seemed in good
spirits. As we ordered the doughnuts Jacob began doing the bathroom
dance. He said he needed to go and started heading towards the
bathroom. Since I could see it from the register, I let Brigham go
and help him with the door and when I was done paying etc. I went with
Caleb and doughnuts in tow, to the MENS room to help him. (I know,
you are now thinking...there goes her parenting award!!---WHAT was I
thinking!!) Jacob normally can get his pants up and down fine etc. Of
course when I arrived there was urine all over the floor and all over
his shorts and underpants. what to do!!! My van was parked right
outside the door, so I stood in the hallway, so I could see the
bathroom and the van and opened the van door with my remote so I
could see Brigham as he went to the van to get a diaper. That would
work. Poor Jacob hasn't worn diapers in two years! I get his diaper
on and run to the hallway again to double check on Brigham and who do
I see drive up in her mini-van...MARY. Oh thank you!! She kept an
eye on the other kids while I got Jacob cleaned up. Poor Jacob sat on
a chair in his t-shirt and diaper, but he didn't seem to care as he
wolfed down four doughnuts...I know, mommy award for me!!
Anyway, Mary and I enjoyed a nice chat and all seemed well. Suddenly
a man came into the dining area and held up some keys asking people if
they had lost them. I looked over and realized they were mine. (I
hadn't even noticed) I thanked him very much and then I asked, "Where
did you find them? His puzzled reponse..."In the Men's Room"........
Sunday, July 27, 2008
The Carillon Bell Tower
Last night we took the kids and met Ja and Laura at the Carillon Bell
Tower next to the Iwo Jima Monument in Arlington. The Carillon Bell
Tower was a gift to the United States from the Netherlands after World
War II. On Saturday evenings in the summer they open it up and have a
bell concert. The view from the top of the tower is just about the
beat view of DC I have ever seen. You have a direct line of site of
the Lincoln, the Washington and the Capitol as well as Arlington
Cemetery on your right and Iwo Jima on your left.
Tower next to the Iwo Jima Monument in Arlington. The Carillon Bell
Tower was a gift to the United States from the Netherlands after World
War II. On Saturday evenings in the summer they open it up and have a
bell concert. The view from the top of the tower is just about the
beat view of DC I have ever seen. You have a direct line of site of
the Lincoln, the Washington and the Capitol as well as Arlington
Cemetery on your right and Iwo Jima on your left.
The boys went tithe top and the bellist(?) let Brigham and Jacob each
play a note. The keyboard looks like an organ but with wood sticks
instaad of keys. Jacob was especially excited that he got to play the
bell.
As you hiked tithe top of the tower you could see the larger bells.
The largest one weighs 16 tons.
It was a great spot and definitely on of the hidden treasures of
Washington DC since there was hardly anyone there.
A Perfect Day And a Bad Parent
Yesterday was great. In the afternoon we took the kids down to
Fletcher Boat House which is about 2 miles north of Georgetown on the
Potomac. For $11 we were able to rent a rowboat for an hour.
Fletcher Boat House which is about 2 miles north of Georgetown on the
Potomac. For $11 we were able to rent a rowboat for an hour.
As we approached the boat Calen started whimpering, Jacob started
exclaiming that he had to go potty while pointing at his groin (this
is what he commonly does when he is scared), and Brigham was wailing,
pleading with someone to stay behind on the docks with him. Despite
their protests we threw them all in the boat.
About 30 seconds into the trip they all changed their attitudes. Jacob
had a huge smile on his face and Brigham said, "This isn't as bad as I
thought it would be."
We rowed up towards Chain Bridge and got to see a guy catch a huge
fish. Brigham had just said, "Does anyone actually catch fish. I
always see people fishing but I don't see them catch any fish." After
we saw the guy catch the fish he said, "Well, I guess they do."
We came back around on the Virginia side and Jacob decided he wanted
to get in. So I put him over the side and he began to swim around. He
was in absolute heaven. Brigham was having a heart attack. Jacob
started swimming down the river and Brigham started yelling as tears
streamed down his face, "Make him get back in the boat. Dad, you knew
that Jacob likes to swim far away. Why did you let him get in?"
At this point Holly started getting worried as well. Both Jacob and I
thought everything was all right but the redheads were quite
concerned. We called out for Jacob to come back and he replied with a
definitive "No!"
I rowed over and picked him up. As we returned to the the boathouse
Brigham said to me, "Dad, you are a really bad parent. You shouldn't
have let Jacob get in the river."
Jacob just kept asking us to take his "seatbelt" (life jacket) off.
Despite Brigham's concerns everyone had a great time and it is
something we are going to do again soon.
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Best Uncle Ever
Brigham: Ja, I love you. You are my best uncle ever.
Ja: Brigham, you probably say that to all of your uncles.
Brigham: Yeah, I do.
Play date
I am watching the kids today while Holly is out. Brigham said, "Dad,
you are the only one we can have fun with today. That means you can't
work. Woo-hop!"
you are the only one we can have fun with today. That means you can't
work. Woo-hop!"
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Tribute to Rich Lloyd in the Kansas City Star
I was in Kansas last weekend for Rich Lloyd's memorial service. For
those that don't know Rich lived in Kansas with his family but was
originally from Salt Lake which is where he was when he passed away.
Thus the funeral in Salt Lake and the memorial service in Kansas. The
Kansas City Star ran a tribute to Rich today. You can see it here:
those that don't know Rich lived in Kansas with his family but was
originally from Salt Lake which is where he was when he passed away.
Thus the funeral in Salt Lake and the memorial service in Kansas. The
Kansas City Star ran a tribute to Rich today. You can see it here:
Thursday, May 08, 2008
Rainy Spring Day
Another Brigism:
> Rainy Spring day....
> Brigham, " Hey mom, we're all pooped up inside today!"
Friday, May 02, 2008
Rich Lloyd's Funeral
I just wanted to write down of a few of my thoughts about Rich Lloyd's funeral this week. For those of you who don't know Rich, he was one of my best friends from high school. Last August he was diagnosed with a brain tumor. He passed away last Friday. You can learn more about what an amazing person he was here:
http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/richlloyd
Friday night both my friends, Steve and Blake called to let me know that Rich had finally passed away. He had been in the hospital all week. All that week I had known that Rich's time had come. He was very much in my thoughts each day. I attended a temple session on Thursday morning and thought of Rich and what this experience had meant to him, to his family and to all of us who vicariously passed through this experience with him. So, when the news came Friday night I wasn't shocked. I felt a peace and an assurance that this was God's will.
Sunday morning I got an email from his wife, Marianne, asking me to speak at the funeral. To say that I expected the call would be wrong. I hadn't ever thought about speaking at my friend's funeral until the week before. Once I knew that he was leaving this world there was a part of me that needed to say something, to communicate what he meant to me. So I don't know what the right word is - but I had felt that that call would come.
Tuesday morning on the plane I spent most of the time organizing my thoughts. I had been thinking about it all week but that was the first time I had actually written them down. I have given many, many talks and have literally never written one out. But I knew that I needed to write this one for two reasons: one, I knew I that I would most likely become very emotional and needed some sort of a script to keep me on track and, two, there were some things that I wanted to make sure that I phrased exactly right. I felt the spirit so strong as I went through several drafts and thought about what Rich had meant to me.
Tuesday evening Holly and I went over early to the viewing to see if there was something we could do to help out. When we arrived no one was there except for the funeral directors. Rich was laying in an open casket. It probably would have been a good time to go in and sit with him for a bit, but for some reason I wasn't ready. I busied myself with trying to take care of other loose ends, avoiding the viewing room.
Once the viewing began the place was packed. Most people waited about 2 hours to get to the viewing room. Towards the end I was finally ready to wait through the line. I don't know why but I had to go through the whole process. It wouldn't have been the same to have not waited with everyone else. When I got to the casket I just stood there for a moment. He looked exactly like he had when I had last seen him. It just seemed like he was going to open his eyes and say "My good friend Greggory". It didn't seem real that I wouldn't hear him say that again in this life.
I spent the next morning reading and revising my talk. I was nervous, but in an unusual way. I knew that there would be a gazillion people there but speaking to large groups has never bothered me. But it was so important to me that I might be able to provide comfort to those who were there but a also some measure of understanding of what this whole experience had meant to Rich, Marianne, their families and all the lives they had touched.
We arrived early at the funeral. I saw so many friends that I hadn't seen in so many years. As expected the place was packed. After visiting for awhile I went up on the stand to sit and try to prepare. The funeral began. Rich's brother-in-law read the eulogy and his brother gave a wonderful tribute. Peter Breinholt played a wonderful song with such a poignant message. And then it was my turn.
I pulled the tissues out before I even began because I knew that it was going to be an emotional experience for me. I hadn't made it through the first two sentences of my talk before I was choked up. But it was never out of sadness. During the whole talk I just felt profound gratitude that I had had the opportunity to know Rich. At parts I had to abandon what I had written because I simply could not read the words, my eyes were so filled with tears. As I said before, the chapel and gym were filled to capacity, but I can only remember seeing Marianne, their three boys and Rich's family. I was really talking to them. Everyone else was just listening in on a private conversation. I wanted them to know how much their husband, son, brother and father had meant to me. How he had changed me and how he had inspired me.
I don't know if I communicated all that I hoped to. But I felt the spirit so strongly as I spoke. I felt that in some small way I had been able to pay back a little bit to Rich for all that he had done for me. The funeral continued and I enjoyed hearing things about Rich that I had never know and especially seeing the profound humility and sincerity of Rich's father.
We went to the grave site and said our final good-byes.
It was a surreal experience. I felt so fortunate to be able to participate in the services. For me it was a very cathartic experience. I was able to say good-bye and thank you to one of my dearest friends. It was also extremely physically, emotionally and spiritually exhausting. As we left the funeral I realized that I had been running on strength that was not my own as a profound exhaustion came over me.
It is amazing how death has the power to tear apart and bring together. Clearly death causes the most profound separation that our mortal minds can comprehend. But at the same time it creates bonds that are incredibly strong. After yesterday I feel that I share a connection with all those who were there. Some I had never met before. But everyone there loved Rich and has been blessed by his life. It as if his influence has wrapped itself around all of us and binds us together in away that is very real but somewhat hard to explain. I feel that his friends are my friends and his family my family. At the same time, I feel closer to Rich than I ever have before in my life. So, while death has taken him away at the same time it has also brought him closer.
For me the funeral was one of those "difficult blessings" I mentioned in my remarks. I wish it never had to have happened. I wish that Rich was still here. But because of it I went on an amazing and profound personal spiritual journey that still continues. It was just one more gift that Rich left for me.
And so today is the first day of the rest of my life. I am not the same and I hope that I will never be the same again. That what this experience has done to and for me will continue with me that I might come one step closer to being who I should be.
http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/richlloyd
Friday night both my friends, Steve and Blake called to let me know that Rich had finally passed away. He had been in the hospital all week. All that week I had known that Rich's time had come. He was very much in my thoughts each day. I attended a temple session on Thursday morning and thought of Rich and what this experience had meant to him, to his family and to all of us who vicariously passed through this experience with him. So, when the news came Friday night I wasn't shocked. I felt a peace and an assurance that this was God's will.
Sunday morning I got an email from his wife, Marianne, asking me to speak at the funeral. To say that I expected the call would be wrong. I hadn't ever thought about speaking at my friend's funeral until the week before. Once I knew that he was leaving this world there was a part of me that needed to say something, to communicate what he meant to me. So I don't know what the right word is - but I had felt that that call would come.
Tuesday morning on the plane I spent most of the time organizing my thoughts. I had been thinking about it all week but that was the first time I had actually written them down. I have given many, many talks and have literally never written one out. But I knew that I needed to write this one for two reasons: one, I knew I that I would most likely become very emotional and needed some sort of a script to keep me on track and, two, there were some things that I wanted to make sure that I phrased exactly right. I felt the spirit so strong as I went through several drafts and thought about what Rich had meant to me.
Tuesday evening Holly and I went over early to the viewing to see if there was something we could do to help out. When we arrived no one was there except for the funeral directors. Rich was laying in an open casket. It probably would have been a good time to go in and sit with him for a bit, but for some reason I wasn't ready. I busied myself with trying to take care of other loose ends, avoiding the viewing room.
Once the viewing began the place was packed. Most people waited about 2 hours to get to the viewing room. Towards the end I was finally ready to wait through the line. I don't know why but I had to go through the whole process. It wouldn't have been the same to have not waited with everyone else. When I got to the casket I just stood there for a moment. He looked exactly like he had when I had last seen him. It just seemed like he was going to open his eyes and say "My good friend Greggory". It didn't seem real that I wouldn't hear him say that again in this life.
I spent the next morning reading and revising my talk. I was nervous, but in an unusual way. I knew that there would be a gazillion people there but speaking to large groups has never bothered me. But it was so important to me that I might be able to provide comfort to those who were there but a also some measure of understanding of what this whole experience had meant to Rich, Marianne, their families and all the lives they had touched.
We arrived early at the funeral. I saw so many friends that I hadn't seen in so many years. As expected the place was packed. After visiting for awhile I went up on the stand to sit and try to prepare. The funeral began. Rich's brother-in-law read the eulogy and his brother gave a wonderful tribute. Peter Breinholt played a wonderful song with such a poignant message. And then it was my turn.
I pulled the tissues out before I even began because I knew that it was going to be an emotional experience for me. I hadn't made it through the first two sentences of my talk before I was choked up. But it was never out of sadness. During the whole talk I just felt profound gratitude that I had had the opportunity to know Rich. At parts I had to abandon what I had written because I simply could not read the words, my eyes were so filled with tears. As I said before, the chapel and gym were filled to capacity, but I can only remember seeing Marianne, their three boys and Rich's family. I was really talking to them. Everyone else was just listening in on a private conversation. I wanted them to know how much their husband, son, brother and father had meant to me. How he had changed me and how he had inspired me.
I don't know if I communicated all that I hoped to. But I felt the spirit so strongly as I spoke. I felt that in some small way I had been able to pay back a little bit to Rich for all that he had done for me. The funeral continued and I enjoyed hearing things about Rich that I had never know and especially seeing the profound humility and sincerity of Rich's father.
We went to the grave site and said our final good-byes.
It was a surreal experience. I felt so fortunate to be able to participate in the services. For me it was a very cathartic experience. I was able to say good-bye and thank you to one of my dearest friends. It was also extremely physically, emotionally and spiritually exhausting. As we left the funeral I realized that I had been running on strength that was not my own as a profound exhaustion came over me.
It is amazing how death has the power to tear apart and bring together. Clearly death causes the most profound separation that our mortal minds can comprehend. But at the same time it creates bonds that are incredibly strong. After yesterday I feel that I share a connection with all those who were there. Some I had never met before. But everyone there loved Rich and has been blessed by his life. It as if his influence has wrapped itself around all of us and binds us together in away that is very real but somewhat hard to explain. I feel that his friends are my friends and his family my family. At the same time, I feel closer to Rich than I ever have before in my life. So, while death has taken him away at the same time it has also brought him closer.
For me the funeral was one of those "difficult blessings" I mentioned in my remarks. I wish it never had to have happened. I wish that Rich was still here. But because of it I went on an amazing and profound personal spiritual journey that still continues. It was just one more gift that Rich left for me.
And so today is the first day of the rest of my life. I am not the same and I hope that I will never be the same again. That what this experience has done to and for me will continue with me that I might come one step closer to being who I should be.
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Brotherly Love
Today in Sacrament the kids were a little wild. Caleb was especially
active. Holly was trying to get a hold of him and he was grabbing at
everything. All of the sudden he got a hold of the Friend magazine and
ripped a page out. Brigham yelled, "Caleb ripped my magazine. I hate
Caleb."
active. Holly was trying to get a hold of him and he was grabbing at
everything. All of the sudden he got a hold of the Friend magazine and
ripped a page out. Brigham yelled, "Caleb ripped my magazine. I hate
Caleb."
We were so glad that we decided to sit up front where everyone could
hear that instead of in the very back of the overflow, where we
usually are.
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Oh, the joy of boys...and going to therapy
Greg has been begging to jot down this experience before I forget it,
so here it goes. A few months back I was taking Jacob to therapy and
had all three boys with me, Jacob in his walker, Caleb in the stroller
and Brigham running free. Jaocb's therapy is in a building on Rt. 7
at Seven Corners (a very busy area of town). Anyway, while we were
leaving I was trying to help Jacob get out the office door. While my
back was turned Brigham had disappeared. I looked down the hall and
hollered his name, no Brigham. I nervously leave Jacob and Caleb in
the hallway and dart out to the parking lot in search of Brigham.
Again I holler, and NO BRIGHAM!! I am about to have a heart attack
when he peeks his head around the side of the building to tell me that
he is rock climbing on the side of the building. I deal with him,
high tail it back in the buliding, and there is Caleb, but NO
JACOB!!! You've got to be kidding me! I look down the other hallway
and realize there is an elevator, no not one, but TWO elevators!!
Jacob LOVES elevators! I press the up button and pray he will be on
one of the elevators. It is taking forever and no elevator comes.
But in walks a Fed EX delivery guy. I quickly explain that I'm
looking for my autistic 8 year old who is also in a walker. An
elevator comes and no Jacob. The delivery guy kindly said he would go
up that one and send Jacob down if he found him, while I anxiously
waited for the other elevator. What seemed like hours, was just a few
minutes when the other elevator arrived...there was Jacob smiling his
innocent smile and saying "I go on the elevator".
Needless to say, I was sweating bullets, but so grateful to have my
brood back together. To top it off, my sweet Brigham spotted the
vending machine behind us and declared. "Mom, I want a treat."
"Yea, right kid!!"
These days, Caleb naps at home during therapy (while Greg works from
home) and Brigham has been threatened with his life, if he even thinks
of leaving my sight.
so here it goes. A few months back I was taking Jacob to therapy and
had all three boys with me, Jacob in his walker, Caleb in the stroller
and Brigham running free. Jaocb's therapy is in a building on Rt. 7
at Seven Corners (a very busy area of town). Anyway, while we were
leaving I was trying to help Jacob get out the office door. While my
back was turned Brigham had disappeared. I looked down the hall and
hollered his name, no Brigham. I nervously leave Jacob and Caleb in
the hallway and dart out to the parking lot in search of Brigham.
Again I holler, and NO BRIGHAM!! I am about to have a heart attack
when he peeks his head around the side of the building to tell me that
he is rock climbing on the side of the building. I deal with him,
high tail it back in the buliding, and there is Caleb, but NO
JACOB!!! You've got to be kidding me! I look down the other hallway
and realize there is an elevator, no not one, but TWO elevators!!
Jacob LOVES elevators! I press the up button and pray he will be on
one of the elevators. It is taking forever and no elevator comes.
But in walks a Fed EX delivery guy. I quickly explain that I'm
looking for my autistic 8 year old who is also in a walker. An
elevator comes and no Jacob. The delivery guy kindly said he would go
up that one and send Jacob down if he found him, while I anxiously
waited for the other elevator. What seemed like hours, was just a few
minutes when the other elevator arrived...there was Jacob smiling his
innocent smile and saying "I go on the elevator".
Needless to say, I was sweating bullets, but so grateful to have my
brood back together. To top it off, my sweet Brigham spotted the
vending machine behind us and declared. "Mom, I want a treat."
"Yea, right kid!!"
These days, Caleb naps at home during therapy (while Greg works from
home) and Brigham has been threatened with his life, if he even thinks
of leaving my sight.
Gladys Knight and the Saints United Choir
Yesterday afternoon Steve called us with some extra tickets to a
fireside in his stake that Gladys Knight was doing with her choir. By
some miracle we were able to find a babysitter at the last minute and
went down there.
fireside in his stake that Gladys Knight was doing with her choir. By
some miracle we were able to find a babysitter at the last minute and
went down there.
What a great night. The music and choir were amazing but equally so
were the testimonies given by Gladys and her husband William. If you
ever have a chance to see this fireside don't pass it up.
True Parental Love
True parental love is picking out the salmon from your salmon roll for
your 4-year old because we loves salmon but hates sushi.
your 4-year old because we loves salmon but hates sushi.
Sunday, March 30, 2008
The Cherry Blossom Festival
Yesterday was amazing. Here are some pictures.
It was the Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington D.C. so we decided to take advantage and go downtown. We had heard that traffic was going to be pretty bad and recommendations were to take the Metro but we decided to chance it with the car. Well, I don't know where the traffic was but it wasn't on the freeway. We were downtown in about 15 minutes and somehow there were a bunch of handicap spots right near the Washington Monument.
In addition to the Cherry Blossom Festival they were having a Kite Festival at the Washington Monument. There were kites of all shapes and sizes everywhere. Brigham was very excited because he was bringing his Star Wars kite to fly. We wandered through all of the kites at the Washington Monument and then headed over to the Tidal Basin to see some of the blossoms. They did not disappoint. It was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen and the pictures I have posted certainly do not do it justice.
We grabbed lunch and the kids had a great time playing on the grass. After lunch we headed back over to the Washington Monument to fly Brigham's kite. But when we pulled it out one of the sticks was missing (Brigham had gotten a little over excited and opened the package earlier). So we couldn't fly the kite. Brigham was devastated. He started yelling at me "You ruined my kite!." How'd I get blamed for this?
We finally calmed him, distracting him by pointing out the Space Shuttle, pirate ship, Spiderman, WW I Bomber and Superman kites. We were almost to the car when we ran into Brigham's old Primary teacher. She happened to have an extra kite so we put it together and after much effort (we are definitely kite rookies) we got the kite up thus grasping victory from the jaws of defeat.
It really was remarkable. If you are ever planning a trip to DC, try to schedule it around the Cherry Blossom Festival. You won't be disappointed.
It was the Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington D.C. so we decided to take advantage and go downtown. We had heard that traffic was going to be pretty bad and recommendations were to take the Metro but we decided to chance it with the car. Well, I don't know where the traffic was but it wasn't on the freeway. We were downtown in about 15 minutes and somehow there were a bunch of handicap spots right near the Washington Monument.
In addition to the Cherry Blossom Festival they were having a Kite Festival at the Washington Monument. There were kites of all shapes and sizes everywhere. Brigham was very excited because he was bringing his Star Wars kite to fly. We wandered through all of the kites at the Washington Monument and then headed over to the Tidal Basin to see some of the blossoms. They did not disappoint. It was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen and the pictures I have posted certainly do not do it justice.
We grabbed lunch and the kids had a great time playing on the grass. After lunch we headed back over to the Washington Monument to fly Brigham's kite. But when we pulled it out one of the sticks was missing (Brigham had gotten a little over excited and opened the package earlier). So we couldn't fly the kite. Brigham was devastated. He started yelling at me "You ruined my kite!." How'd I get blamed for this?
We finally calmed him, distracting him by pointing out the Space Shuttle, pirate ship, Spiderman, WW I Bomber and Superman kites. We were almost to the car when we ran into Brigham's old Primary teacher. She happened to have an extra kite so we put it together and after much effort (we are definitely kite rookies) we got the kite up thus grasping victory from the jaws of defeat.
It really was remarkable. If you are ever planning a trip to DC, try to schedule it around the Cherry Blossom Festival. You won't be disappointed.
Easter Egg Hunt and Wii Contest
Last week we had all of the Hales cousins over for an Easter Egg hunt. You can see pictures here.
It was quite the crew but everyone had a good time. Nikolai arrived a little early so he and Steve got to play a little Start Wars. After the big hunt everyone had a great time playing with the Wii. We played some baseball and all of the kid got to hit. Then we started boxing. The highlights were Elizabeth beating Steve and Holly and Mary going at it so intensely that they could hardly move afterwards (Mary was victorious in the end - she has a longer reach). Everyone had a good time and it was fun to get all of the cousins together.
It was quite the crew but everyone had a good time. Nikolai arrived a little early so he and Steve got to play a little Start Wars. After the big hunt everyone had a great time playing with the Wii. We played some baseball and all of the kid got to hit. Then we started boxing. The highlights were Elizabeth beating Steve and Holly and Mary going at it so intensely that they could hardly move afterwards (Mary was victorious in the end - she has a longer reach). Everyone had a good time and it was fun to get all of the cousins together.
Monday, March 17, 2008
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Holly is becoming a techno geek
Hi all!! Greg is determined to make me "geeky" and help me take advantage of technology, so here is my first blog post!! I have some funny Brigham and Jacob stories to share, but I'll have to do that later. I've got to get going today, so that's all for now...
ta-ta,
hol
Monday, March 10, 2008
Subscribing to an RSS Feed in Mail
Adding an RSS feed to Mac OS X Mail
Learn how to add an RSS feed to mail. You can use this to automatically receive updates when blogs you like to read are updated.
Go to Blog
You should see the blue RSS if you are using Safari. This means that you can subscribe to this blog and have updates show up in Mac OS X mail.
Select URL
Select the full url.
Copy
Go to Mail and Select Add RSS Feeds
Select Add RSS Feeds from the File menu.
Enter URL
Select Specify a custom feed URL (1).
Paste the url into the field (2) and check Show in Inbox (3). Once you are done select Add (4).
Done
It will now show up in your Inbox. Whenever the blog is updated you see a message in your inbox.
Friday, February 08, 2008
Jacob's Baptism
Here is a link to the video of Jacob singing.
Last Saturday Jacob was baptized. We had debated for a long time as to when/if he should be baptized. We were never quite sure how much he understood. Most of the time when we would discuss things with him it would seem like he was off in his own world. But occasionally he would say things that made us think that he had understood at least part of what we had said.
We counseled with our Bishop in McLean, Bishop Hansen, and he encouraged us to have Jacob baptized. After much prayer we decided to go ahead and do it.
Holly's parents and everyone from my side of the family came into town. We split my family between our house and Trevor and Heather's. It was crowded but it was fun to all be together again. Jacob and Brigham were especially excited. I thought that Brigham was going to explode. After the baptism, as we were driving home Brigham said, "I wish everyone could stay forever."
Things were a little hectic the day of the baptism. President Hinckley's funeral was that day as well and we had taken my family to see some sites in DC. Jacob's baptism wasn't until 5 pm so at about 3:30 I went over to fill the font and just relax and try to prepare spiritually for the baptism.
I had an instruction sheet of how to fill the font and keep the water warm. I turned on the hot water and then started to assemble the chairs in the room. After about 40 minutes or so the font was about half full. I went to test the temperature and the water in the font was cold. I checked the water coming out of the faucet and it was ice cold. I panicked at bit. Jacob has a strong aversion to cold water. In fact, he usually likes his baths almost scalding hot. I didn't want this to become a distraction for him that would turn his baptism into tears and screams.
I called around to a few people to see what I could do. Apparently there had been a baptism the night before and the water heater hadn't had enough time to heat the water again. There was nothing to do but fill it up. So, I turned it back on and said a little prayer that things would work out.
The time approached and people began to arrive. We were only missing one important thing - Jacob. Holly had said that she would try to be there by 4:30. At 4:57 the other half of our family still hadn't shown up. Apparently, in all of the commotion the keys had been lost, but at the last minute they were found.
When Jacob came in he was somewhat agitated. He was upset at wearing the white clothes, he wanted to go in the gym and he wanted fruity snacks which were sitting in a bag that had been left at home. I began to worry that this was going to be a negative experience for him. But the Bishop began conducting and Jacob instantly calmed a bit. As the Bishop explained why we were there Jacob called out to him, "Everything else is secondary." That is a favorite quote of his from a commencement speech that Steve Jobs gave at Standford. Then we sang the opening hymn, "I Know My Father Lives" and Jacob lit up. In a few seconds his facial expression had changed from highly agitated to a look of pure joy.
Brigham gave a little talk and Granny Dot spoke on baptism. I couldn't see anyone else but I could not hold back the tears as she spoke of all that had happened to get Jacob to this point in his life. That was pretty much true for me the whole night.
After Granny Dot's talk Jacob sang "I Like to Look for Rainbows". He sang it in this soft sweet voice. I was concerned that no one would be able to hear him but apparently they all did. Josh got a video of it and there is the sweetest expression of joy on his face as he is singing it.
After he finished we headed for the font. As I stepped in the water I was amazed that is was bath tub warm. My prayer had been answered. Jacob came into the water and was very excited. I baptized him and we left the font.
Jacob truly felt pure joy. As I was getting him changed he kept yelling, "I got baptized!" He also wanted to put his white clothes back on. We got dressed and went back out. I caught the tale end of the testimonies that people from our family were sharing.
Grandma Hales gave a talk on confirmation and I reacted just as I had to everything else that had happened that evening. Luckily by then I at least had some tissues.
It was then time for Jacob's confirmation. Between all or our family we had quite a group up there to confirm him. I could hardly get the words out during the prayer. Jacob wasn't sure what he thought about having so many hands on his head so he was bobbing his head around and was a bit of a moving target. After we finished Jacob looked up at everyone with a radiance in his face.
The Bishop gave a wonderful welcome to Jacob and had him come up and sit with him. It was so tender and so appropriate for Jacob.
It was truly a wonderful evening. So many things had happened that could have derailed it but in the end it was one of the most spiritual experiences of my life. The veil had been very thin. Jacob looked angelic I and truly felt that I was in the presence of a little spirit that more pure and angelic than I could ever be.
Most importantly I knew that Jacob had understood. I remembered times on my mission where I would see a missionary testify of the gospel in Spanish that was so broken that no one could understand it. But the person listening would understand. They couldn't understand the words but they could feel the Holy Ghost testifying to their soul that what the missionary was saying was true. I knew that this was what had happened to Jacob. He couldn't always understand what people were saying to him. But his spirit had felt it. He had felt the joy of the Holy Ghost.
I often wonder in these times if I am the only one who has noticed these things. Is it possible that I was touched only because I am his father and he has a special place in my heart? It became quite clear that I was not the only one to feel that way. Many came up after the baptism and remarked how sweet an experience it had been to be present.
My favorite remark came from an 8-year old boy in our ward who had attended the baptism. The next day in fast and testimony meeting he stood up in front of 300+ members of our congregation and said how much he had felt the Spirit as Jacob sang his song and that it had made him remember the Spirit he had felt when he was baptized.
As I think back on this last weekend it really was a spiritual feast. I couldn't have ever imagined that it would have turned out this way. We were so nervous about how it would be for Jacob. We learned that we don't need to worry much about him. We just need to make sure that we live our lives worthily so that some day we can be where he is.
Brigham's Political Leanings
I told Brigham this morning that Mitt Romney had lost the Primary Election.
He asked why?
I said it was because he didn't get enough votes.
Brigham said that that made him sad.
I asked him who the other guy was.
He said, "Huckabee. I don't like Huckabee."
I told him there was someone else too.
He said, "There is another guy in the race?"
I told him it was McCain.
He replied, "I don't like McCain either."
Obviously he spent a lot of time with his grandparents last weekend.
Monday, January 28, 2008
Plug Your Ears
Holly was able to capture this rare musical moment thanks to Brigham and Luc. You may want to plug your ears. The video is here.
Jacob Plays Baseball Wii Style
Jacob got a Nintendo Wii today. He was soooo excited. We had him try it out at a friends house a couple of weeks ago and he really liked it. He especially likes baseball. It was so fun seeing him having such a good time. It is also great because we have finally found something that is somewhat active that he enjoys and that he could do with other kids.
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Flying Mattresses
Next week we have the full DeVore clan and the Hales grandparents coming into town for Jacob's baptism. In the process of getting ready for our visitors we have had to prepare our guest room and key part of that is getting a bed. Holly perused Craig's List for a couple days and found a good deal.
So we packed up the kids to go get the mattress. We quickly realized that this was a bad idea. We were going to have to carry the mattress down from an apartment. What were we going to do with the kids while we did that? Luckily Sally volunteered to take one for the team and we dropped all the kids at her house.
We arrived at the place and the mattress looked great. The lady was moving to Berlin and was just trying to get rid of stuff so she threw in pillows, duvet, and a bunch of other stuff. Holly had gotten a little confused about the price. She had thought it was $100 when the lady had been asking $150. I had $120 on me and thought that we were going to have to find an ATM. But then I found a 20 euro in my wallet from our trip to Italy. Well the lady was going to Berlin so I gave her the 20 euro, and with the terrible exchange rate, we were even.
Holly and I took everything down the elevator and loaded the mattress and box spring on top of our mini van. We were a little unprepared in this area as well. We had some ropes but bungee cords would have been much better. We got it mostly tied on and headed home. We were coming back from downtown DC so it was going to take about 30 minutes.
Things looked a little scary but we thought we were all right. We were headed down Nebraska when all of the I looked in the rear view mirror and saw the box spring standing vertically behind me. We quickly pulled into the nearest driveway - the Japanese embassy. It had blown off the top but the rope had kept it barely attached so it never hit the ground. We pulled out another strap and got it tied down a little better.
Needless to say, from this point on we went very slowly. We did fine until we got to Chain Bridge and had to cross the Potomac River. It was very windy and our mattress looked like it was going to take flight. The people behind us must have been terrified. We prayed our way to the other side and after that we were home free.
I think that next time we will rent a moving truck.
Sunday, January 20, 2008
Macworld
We are finally back from Macworld. What a week. We took off Monday morning for San Francisco with the software still not quite done. After a long night and an early morning the software was finished at about 10:30 am - the booth opened at 11.
It was a very stressful morning as Trevor raced to finish software and went off to pick up posters for our booth. On top of everything I lost may badge so we had to pickup a new one (I spent the whole week losing things - I have never been so absent minded in my life).
The first day went well. Our booth was very busy most of the day (we didn't even get a chance to eat until 3) and people were very complimentary. But it was the 2nd day when things really got exciting.
TUAW, a very popular Apple blogging site did a nice post on us and a video interview that will be published next week. We then had one of the editors of Macworld come over to the booth. He said that they had a write assigned to our booth to check it out but he was just interested in seeing it for himself.
Then it just kept getting better. Several people we demoed it to said that our product had mad the whole Macworld show worth it. One group of consultants came by who were already users of ScreenSteps and went on an on about how easy it had made their jobs. This was our first time ever really showing this at a conference like this and it was so great to see people's reactions.
The absolute best was a guy who came up to our booth and gave us a thank you card and tin of cookies. He told us that we were his favorite developers of the year because ScreenSteps had helped him so much at work.
The whole experience was completely exhausting. We were up very late every night and up pretty early. We thought that things would die down as the week wore on. But they stayed pretty busy throughout. It was by far the largest Macworld that I had ever attended. There were about 50,000 people there.
My Mom came up to see the booth on Thursday afternoon. She was able to get badge from the front desk that said "Dorothy DeVore, Blue Mango Learning Systems", so I guess we have a new employee.
All in all it was a fantastic experience. We met some great people and were able to see some old friends. It was really fun to get to know some of the other developers as well. I think it is safe to say that we will plan on going again next year. Right now we just want to take a few days to sleep.
Holly was busy while I was gone. I got back and she had repainted the whole entrance way. I don't know why she does these things while I am out of town. Maybe she thinks that if I help on the project I will screw it up.
It was a very stressful morning as Trevor raced to finish software and went off to pick up posters for our booth. On top of everything I lost may badge so we had to pickup a new one (I spent the whole week losing things - I have never been so absent minded in my life).
The first day went well. Our booth was very busy most of the day (we didn't even get a chance to eat until 3) and people were very complimentary. But it was the 2nd day when things really got exciting.
TUAW, a very popular Apple blogging site did a nice post on us and a video interview that will be published next week. We then had one of the editors of Macworld come over to the booth. He said that they had a write assigned to our booth to check it out but he was just interested in seeing it for himself.
Then it just kept getting better. Several people we demoed it to said that our product had mad the whole Macworld show worth it. One group of consultants came by who were already users of ScreenSteps and went on an on about how easy it had made their jobs. This was our first time ever really showing this at a conference like this and it was so great to see people's reactions.
The absolute best was a guy who came up to our booth and gave us a thank you card and tin of cookies. He told us that we were his favorite developers of the year because ScreenSteps had helped him so much at work.
The whole experience was completely exhausting. We were up very late every night and up pretty early. We thought that things would die down as the week wore on. But they stayed pretty busy throughout. It was by far the largest Macworld that I had ever attended. There were about 50,000 people there.
My Mom came up to see the booth on Thursday afternoon. She was able to get badge from the front desk that said "Dorothy DeVore, Blue Mango Learning Systems", so I guess we have a new employee.
All in all it was a fantastic experience. We met some great people and were able to see some old friends. It was really fun to get to know some of the other developers as well. I think it is safe to say that we will plan on going again next year. Right now we just want to take a few days to sleep.
Holly was busy while I was gone. I got back and she had repainted the whole entrance way. I don't know why she does these things while I am out of town. Maybe she thinks that if I help on the project I will screw it up.
Brigham's New Shirt
to him. After she did he said, "We HAVE to get this."
Holly was happy to oblige.
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Saturday, January 12, 2008
Going to MacWorld
Trevor and I are getting ready to go to MacWorld next week. We are pretty excited. We even have T-shirts - check them out:
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