Dumpling Stuffed with the Ovary and Digestive Glands of a Crad (I never thought I'd use some of those words in an actual family blog post, I guess it's good to get past that milestone).
Monday, December 17, 2007
Mmmmm, Sounds Yummy!
My apologies on the drought of blog posts recently, but work has been incredibly busy (and unfortunately will only become moreso) and I've been out of the country in Shanghai, China. I'll post some more about my Shanghai trip in the next few days hopefully, to say the least it was awesome and nothing that I expected. However, I did want to post a picture of a restaraunt we saw in one of the markets. Personally, I'm not familiar with a "crad", especially that part of a "crad", but if you have a good product that people love to eat it's always best to promote it (even in English for the non-Chinese reading people). Please notice that the resaraunt is packed and there was a line of people about 300 yards long waiting to dine. Enjoy, and comments are welcome (the picture was taken with my camera phone, so it's a little fuzzy; I've included below the picture the actual phrase from the bottom line on the restaraunt window).
Dumpling Stuffed with the Ovary and Digestive Glands of a Crad (I never thought I'd use some of those words in an actual family blog post, I guess it's good to get past that milestone).
Dumpling Stuffed with the Ovary and Digestive Glands of a Crad (I never thought I'd use some of those words in an actual family blog post, I guess it's good to get past that milestone).
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Santa Claus is Coming...
This past Saturday was the much anticipated annual tradition of Santa Claus traveling through the city on one of the Syracuse fire trucks. We started hearing the fire engine shortly after 9:00 a.m., and it finally made it to our house around 10:30 a.m. Coleson had a great time playing and waiting outside, and fortunately there was a fresh blanket of snow from the night before. Santa yet again did not dissappoint, and it reminded us all again how great this little city is that we get to live in.
This past weekend we also finally bought some tools and materials to start on finishing our basement. One of our good friends in the neighborhood is going to be assisting us in the completion process (heaven knows I can barely wield a hammer let alone a deadly nail gun). We'll throw some pictures out here as we the process begins and continues, and we are always open to design ideas, etc. Right now everything is pretty standard and we are planning on an entertainment/playroom/pool table room (all one big room), an office, two bedrooms, and a full bath and half bath. It feels really weird to say that when all is said and done we will have five toilets conveniently located throughout the house to serve all your toilet needs.
This past weekend we also finally bought some tools and materials to start on finishing our basement. One of our good friends in the neighborhood is going to be assisting us in the completion process (heaven knows I can barely wield a hammer let alone a deadly nail gun). We'll throw some pictures out here as we the process begins and continues, and we are always open to design ideas, etc. Right now everything is pretty standard and we are planning on an entertainment/playroom/pool table room (all one big room), an office, two bedrooms, and a full bath and half bath. It feels really weird to say that when all is said and done we will have five toilets conveniently located throughout the house to serve all your toilet needs.
Sunday, December 2, 2007
Interesting Insight...
Most of you are familiar with the ward clerk and his duties during sacrament meeting. One of our ward clerks is Bro. Arigot (Coleson knows him by name), and each week he slowly walks the aisles counting the number of worshippers in attendance that day, while making little notes on his notepad. A while ago Coleson explained to us the important work that Bro. Arigot is doing each week. Bro. Arigot apparently is not even counting those in attendance, instead he is checking to see who is being reverent and who is not (bear in mind this is very important work during the Christmas season). We all got a good chuckle out of this unique observation, and I eagerly waited for this Sunday. As Bro. Arigot approached our seats on Sunday, I looked over at Coleson. He too had noticed that Bro. Arigot was coming our way and was attentively watching his progress. Before Bro. Arigot got to us, Coleson looked up at me, we both exchanged a smile, and then proceeded to fold our arms a little tighter and look straight ahead. Bro. Arigot stood at the end of our row, jotted on his notepad, and continued walking. After Bro. Arigot was a “safe” distance away, I tapped Coleson’s knee, and we gave each other a thumbs up before going back to drawing and coloring pictures. I think we scored another perfect mark on the reverence scale.
This past weekend we had several fun activities that we attended. On Friday, Summer and I went to my work Christmas party. It had a casino theme and we had a great time. I don’t think Summer or I have even played the nickel slots before, so we steered clear of the craps and roulette tables and focused on the black jack and bingo (matching numbers and letters is our kind of game). Through our incredible playing abilities we won the first two rounds of bingo and nearly doubled our play money at the black jack table. We’ll still stick with Zarahemla and Candy Land, but it’s nice to know we can sort of hold our own when the stakes are higher. I’ll have to get a picture of Summer out here at some point in her evening dress, she looked fantastic!
On Saturday we met up with Harmer Dog (one of my friends from work, and one of Coleson’s favorite people) and his wife Cassie. We attended the Festival of Trees for our first time and it was a cool experience. All of the money raised from this event goes to the Primary Children’s Hospital, and apparently they clear between $10 to $15 million a year (I assume you can do a lot of good with $10 to $15 million). We were told there was a tree there from the UDSF with pictures of Utah children with Down syndrome, but we didn’t find it among the hundreds of trees. Coleson’s favorite trees were the Jazz Bear (the angel at the top was a Jazz Bear with wings), Hotwheels, and Thomas the Train trees. My personal favorites were the Star Wars, BYU, and Fallen Soldier trees. There were several dance recitals going on while we there, and once Coleson saw one of the groups coming in we knew we had to watch it. This is a picture of Coleson giving his resounding applause for a group of young girls that had just finished their routine. After the festival we watched the BYU vs. San Diego football game at Harmer’s house, and the Cougs did not disappoint. All in all, another great weekend with the family.
This past weekend we had several fun activities that we attended. On Friday, Summer and I went to my work Christmas party. It had a casino theme and we had a great time. I don’t think Summer or I have even played the nickel slots before, so we steered clear of the craps and roulette tables and focused on the black jack and bingo (matching numbers and letters is our kind of game). Through our incredible playing abilities we won the first two rounds of bingo and nearly doubled our play money at the black jack table. We’ll still stick with Zarahemla and Candy Land, but it’s nice to know we can sort of hold our own when the stakes are higher. I’ll have to get a picture of Summer out here at some point in her evening dress, she looked fantastic!
On Saturday we met up with Harmer Dog (one of my friends from work, and one of Coleson’s favorite people) and his wife Cassie. We attended the Festival of Trees for our first time and it was a cool experience. All of the money raised from this event goes to the Primary Children’s Hospital, and apparently they clear between $10 to $15 million a year (I assume you can do a lot of good with $10 to $15 million). We were told there was a tree there from the UDSF with pictures of Utah children with Down syndrome, but we didn’t find it among the hundreds of trees. Coleson’s favorite trees were the Jazz Bear (the angel at the top was a Jazz Bear with wings), Hotwheels, and Thomas the Train trees. My personal favorites were the Star Wars, BYU, and Fallen Soldier trees. There were several dance recitals going on while we there, and once Coleson saw one of the groups coming in we knew we had to watch it. This is a picture of Coleson giving his resounding applause for a group of young girls that had just finished their routine. After the festival we watched the BYU vs. San Diego football game at Harmer’s house, and the Cougs did not disappoint. All in all, another great weekend with the family.
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
California Thanksgiving...
I'll try to summarize our California Thanksgiving up in one post. Bottom line, it was awesome!
For starters, no trip to California is complete without a lunch at the In-n-Out, followed by a dinner or two, and possibly another lunch (from a guy’s point of view the menu has such variety it’s hard to get burned out at In-n-Out). If we gave Coleson the option he’d be cool with In-n-Out for lunch and hotdogs for dinner everyday (personally I could live a long happy life with only Chipotle and In-n-Out). On this particular visit Ammon insisted on trying Summer’s strawberry shake. After one sip he was hooked, and any attempts by Summer to drink her own shake were met by immediate yelps of disapproval. He ended up with a minor tummy ache later that night, but I bet he would gladly endure the discomfort again for another sip of the sweet blessed strawberry shake.
We stayed at Jenna and Steve's house in Irvine for several days and had a wonderful time. We made a quick day trip to Ventura to visit the grandparents. When we were visiting Grandma and Grandpa Grabau in Ventura we had the opportunity to see Grandma Lou at her new home (the Grabau’s are Summer’s grandparents and Grandma Lou is her great grandmother). Grandma Lou was so excited to see us, especially Coleson and Ammon. Ammon loves the sound of Grandma Lou’s voice, he’ll just contently listen and stare at her whenever she talks. She’s called us in the past just to talk to Ammon, and he just loves it. Gerald (Grandma Lou’s son) came to visit as well while we were there and it was good to see him. Gerald told us that he recently went with his group home on a trip to Las Vegas (he said it was alright, but not much gambling). Gerald noticed that Ammon kept taking his glasses off, so he started telling Ammon that he can’t see when he takes them off. Gerald then proceeded to demonstrate for Ammon by taking off his own glasses and then saying, “See, it’s all blurry, you can’t see.” (for those of you that know Gerald imagine him saying this in his voice). It was cool to see Gerald talking to Ammon like he should understand exactly what he’s telling him. Ammon listened intently, but unfortunately the lesson hasn’t sunk in yet.
Grandma Lou has five other “roommates” that live at the same home. Vern is the only guy and well aware of this advantageous fact (it pays to have longevity in the genes). I loved the curlers in Grace's hair, simply classic. We had a great time visiting with everyone, and Coleson and Summer even sang a fun pumpkin song that was met with resounding applause. It was touching to see Gerald express his love and kiss his Mom several times before leaving. Grandma Lou got a little emotional when Gerald and the rest of us were leaving and we were all sad to go. The trip to her home was well worth the travel and I hope we can do it again soon.
We made it down to Kristen's home near Oceanside for the latter half of the week and had a wonderful time there. Coleson loves hanging out with his "cousins" especially Dallas. Thanksgiving dinner was one of the best spreads that I've ever had the chance to feast upon. There was even an authentic smoked turkey made by John. The term gluttony and my overall approach to consuming the smoked turkey is probably an accurate description for some. However, what others perceive as gluttony and extravagance in this instance I only consider light nibbling. Dallas said the Thanksgiving prayer and we all smiled at this line in his prayer, “We are thankful that the Pilgrims and Indians could get together and have a good time.” It’s all about the good times.
We made it to the beach and had a wonderful time tide pooling and running through the freezing water (I'm a pansy when it comes to cold water, who isn't).
We missed the birth of Kayla (by one day), but at least we got to see Seth and Amanda. On our way home Coleson graciously offerred to clean the windows at each gas station. You'll notice he has the tongue in cheek just like his Dad does.
On a side note, I took this amazing picture of Ammon. Now I don't want everyone to get too excited, for clarification Ammon is not crawling yet and a few seconds later he did fall over, but this is a huge step for Ammon. You'll notice that he is holding himself up all on his own and we are all so happy for him. He continues to make great progress!
Go Cougs! (that's another story)
For starters, no trip to California is complete without a lunch at the In-n-Out, followed by a dinner or two, and possibly another lunch (from a guy’s point of view the menu has such variety it’s hard to get burned out at In-n-Out). If we gave Coleson the option he’d be cool with In-n-Out for lunch and hotdogs for dinner everyday (personally I could live a long happy life with only Chipotle and In-n-Out). On this particular visit Ammon insisted on trying Summer’s strawberry shake. After one sip he was hooked, and any attempts by Summer to drink her own shake were met by immediate yelps of disapproval. He ended up with a minor tummy ache later that night, but I bet he would gladly endure the discomfort again for another sip of the sweet blessed strawberry shake.
We stayed at Jenna and Steve's house in Irvine for several days and had a wonderful time. We made a quick day trip to Ventura to visit the grandparents. When we were visiting Grandma and Grandpa Grabau in Ventura we had the opportunity to see Grandma Lou at her new home (the Grabau’s are Summer’s grandparents and Grandma Lou is her great grandmother). Grandma Lou was so excited to see us, especially Coleson and Ammon. Ammon loves the sound of Grandma Lou’s voice, he’ll just contently listen and stare at her whenever she talks. She’s called us in the past just to talk to Ammon, and he just loves it. Gerald (Grandma Lou’s son) came to visit as well while we were there and it was good to see him. Gerald told us that he recently went with his group home on a trip to Las Vegas (he said it was alright, but not much gambling). Gerald noticed that Ammon kept taking his glasses off, so he started telling Ammon that he can’t see when he takes them off. Gerald then proceeded to demonstrate for Ammon by taking off his own glasses and then saying, “See, it’s all blurry, you can’t see.” (for those of you that know Gerald imagine him saying this in his voice). It was cool to see Gerald talking to Ammon like he should understand exactly what he’s telling him. Ammon listened intently, but unfortunately the lesson hasn’t sunk in yet.
Grandma Lou has five other “roommates” that live at the same home. Vern is the only guy and well aware of this advantageous fact (it pays to have longevity in the genes). I loved the curlers in Grace's hair, simply classic. We had a great time visiting with everyone, and Coleson and Summer even sang a fun pumpkin song that was met with resounding applause. It was touching to see Gerald express his love and kiss his Mom several times before leaving. Grandma Lou got a little emotional when Gerald and the rest of us were leaving and we were all sad to go. The trip to her home was well worth the travel and I hope we can do it again soon.
We made it down to Kristen's home near Oceanside for the latter half of the week and had a wonderful time there. Coleson loves hanging out with his "cousins" especially Dallas. Thanksgiving dinner was one of the best spreads that I've ever had the chance to feast upon. There was even an authentic smoked turkey made by John. The term gluttony and my overall approach to consuming the smoked turkey is probably an accurate description for some. However, what others perceive as gluttony and extravagance in this instance I only consider light nibbling. Dallas said the Thanksgiving prayer and we all smiled at this line in his prayer, “We are thankful that the Pilgrims and Indians could get together and have a good time.” It’s all about the good times.
We made it to the beach and had a wonderful time tide pooling and running through the freezing water (I'm a pansy when it comes to cold water, who isn't).
We missed the birth of Kayla (by one day), but at least we got to see Seth and Amanda. On our way home Coleson graciously offerred to clean the windows at each gas station. You'll notice he has the tongue in cheek just like his Dad does.
On a side note, I took this amazing picture of Ammon. Now I don't want everyone to get too excited, for clarification Ammon is not crawling yet and a few seconds later he did fall over, but this is a huge step for Ammon. You'll notice that he is holding himself up all on his own and we are all so happy for him. He continues to make great progress!
Go Cougs! (that's another story)
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Veteran's Day...
Shortly before Veterans Day earlier this month I had the opportunity to plan the Duty to God activity for the young men in our neighborhood (I usually get to do this once a month or so, and Summer always offers great help and sound advice). The “expansive” local Syracuse museum was putting on a veteran’s exhibit, and the night of the activity was opening night (the Hill Air Force Base museum was closed and they were unwilling to open late for a special tour). The exhibit was small, but really pretty cool (20 young men and leaders filled the space up quickly). A retired military man was there as a sort of guide, and he had actually served for the entire Vietnam War. I was so impressed to talk with him. I’m impressed to hear about our military personnel serving today and doing multiple one or two year tours, but I can’t imagine being able and willing to serve for the entire Vietnam War. After being at the museum for about 20 minutes we headed back to the church for the rest of the activity. My work has been involved in a program that sends packages to military personnel serving overseas. So after talking about Veterans Day and our visit to the museum I asked the young men if they would be interested in writing brief thank you cards that would be included in the packages being sent overseas. Everyone wanted to participate, and for the next 15 minutes these 12 to 17 year old young men put a few thoughts down on some thank you cards we provided. I was impressed with each of their responses and wanted to share parts of a few of them with you:
•I wish I had the courage to do what you do every day. Good luck! Stick with it. Push forward.
•I can’t imagine what it’s like, but I know you must have lots more courage then I do. I don’t think I could ever thank you enough.
•I’m very glad for all you do. I want to let you know you’re in my prayers. Stay safe!
•You have made this country stronger every second you are out there. We love you people, and hope you make our country invincible.
•I want to thank you for being a hero for our country. You are the reason this country is America!
•If you guys weren’t fighting we wouldn’t have any of the freedoms and privileges we have as Americans. I hope you stay safe and stay brave. Thanks for defending our freedom.
•Although it may not seem like much. I thank you for serving for our country. Knowing that we have good men and women like you out there fighting for us makes me feel safer. We are all praying for your safe return.
•I am a 13 year old boy who wants to thank you for defending us and for fighting the enemy while putting your life in danger. God bless you, and God bless America.
•I appreciate the service you are rendering for our country. Here at home, many of us take freedom for granted, but everyday I pray that I can fully appreciate that freedom and what it means to me. Thank you for your service.
On Veterans Day the scouts put up flags in our neighborhood at around 6 a.m. in the morning. Thinking back to my own teenage years, getting up anytime before 7:00 a.m. was considered cruel and unusual punishment. I hope that putting up the flags on this Veterans Day was a little easier this time around.
•I wish I had the courage to do what you do every day. Good luck! Stick with it. Push forward.
•I can’t imagine what it’s like, but I know you must have lots more courage then I do. I don’t think I could ever thank you enough.
•I’m very glad for all you do. I want to let you know you’re in my prayers. Stay safe!
•You have made this country stronger every second you are out there. We love you people, and hope you make our country invincible.
•I want to thank you for being a hero for our country. You are the reason this country is America!
•If you guys weren’t fighting we wouldn’t have any of the freedoms and privileges we have as Americans. I hope you stay safe and stay brave. Thanks for defending our freedom.
•Although it may not seem like much. I thank you for serving for our country. Knowing that we have good men and women like you out there fighting for us makes me feel safer. We are all praying for your safe return.
•I am a 13 year old boy who wants to thank you for defending us and for fighting the enemy while putting your life in danger. God bless you, and God bless America.
•I appreciate the service you are rendering for our country. Here at home, many of us take freedom for granted, but everyday I pray that I can fully appreciate that freedom and what it means to me. Thank you for your service.
On Veterans Day the scouts put up flags in our neighborhood at around 6 a.m. in the morning. Thinking back to my own teenage years, getting up anytime before 7:00 a.m. was considered cruel and unusual punishment. I hope that putting up the flags on this Veterans Day was a little easier this time around.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
