Anniversary

It has been fourteen years since we got married in California.  I was pretty young and inexperienced all those years ago, but Shauna has been patient and loving despite my bumblings and stumblings.  I cannot say enough good things about Shauna and all she had meant over the years.

We have had good times and bad times, but we have been able to learn and grow from those two young kids striking out in the world together.  I remember the day we packed all of our stuff in a trailer (it was a tiny trailer) and headed out to graduate school.  It is wild to think about all the adventures we had together and how much time we had on our hands before kids came along.

Like the time we drove up to Glacier National Park and found that it was on fire and you could not see or go anywhere in the park. Or the nights running through Manito Park watching the medieval sword fights; or playing soft ball with our friends.  The softball was far and away Shauna's favorite thing we have done. Ever.

It has been more fun than I could have imagined. Here's to fourteen and many more after.

Self-Reliance

Shauna and I have been participating in a self-reliance class through our church the past couple of months.  The topic is personal finance.  We meet with about ten other people from our neighborhood and talk about the various issues, troubles and successes we have related to personal finance.  It has been a really good class so far and we still have three weeks to go.  The topics range from how God is concerned about us and our temporal and spiritual well being, to the details of how to create and maintain a budget; how to examine and deal with debt; to considering insurance and what coverage you should have.

Shauna and I have struggled some with our spending over the years--never anything serious--mostly just differences in priorities.  This class definitely has shown us the priorities that need addressing first and gives both of us goals we can agree on.  We have both made some concessions, but it has made us stronger and more dedicated to the ultimate goal of self reliance.

Now when I say self reliance, I use this term to mean we are doing our best to take care of ourselves not that you should never need or ask for help.  There are things that we cannot control or mistakes that we make that need to be clean up--but if we do our best, we can have confidence that our Heavenly Father will be there to give us help and guidance.

I have to admit that I am a little like Scrooge--I want to save and I am at times a miserly dude, but I am learning to be more flexible and have more faith.  For me saving is the reward with the end goal looking like I am prospering.  The need to have and receive praise from those around us is universal and is not always bad.  However, if you--like me--sometimes imagine people looking at you for your worldly success, we are doing it wrong.  I need to re-examine this line of thinking and see what it really means to prosper.  It may mean different things for different people based on each person's circumstances and for me I see myself putting more time, energy and money into helping those who may not have had my same opportunities, or who have had one or more destabilizing blows spiritually, physically, or mentally.

Gone for a Bit

It has been a little while since I have have posted here.  We have been busy with all things family this year.  We have been doing well.  We recently started with allowance for our kids.  I had checked out several ideas and thoughts on allowance and it seemed there were ideas about how allowance should not be connected to chores or behavior because you want you kids to learn to manage money and they should just have some no matter what.  Others are the opposite, so we decided to combine all in one.  What we did was give the kids a maximum number they could get, then broke this number into thirds.  First, the get one third of the number not matter what.  Second, the get one third if chores are done each week. Third, they get one third if their behavior is up to standard.

Shauna and I were our of town last week so the grandparents had to vouch for the kids chores and behavior, but I am optimistic that this will help our kids learn various lessons about money, work and behavior.

My Dad turned 80 in December and is in remarkably good shape as is my Mom.  I hope am as healthy when I turn 80.  To celebrate, earlier this year, we all decided to take a trip to Mexico without kids.  After some indecision, my sister Jenny took the bull by the horns and rented a house in Playa del Carmen on the Yucatan peninsula.  My brother and I decided to extend our vacations and booked some rooms at the Hyatt Ziva in Cancun after we left the Playa house.

Shauna and I used miles to book flights to Cancun and left on Friday. We stopped in LA and changed planes.  When we boarded the plane for Cancun, there were only about 30 people on the flight so we could stretch out.  We slept, read, and watch a movie (Bridge of Spies-good movie).  We arrived late and I had gotten a car to take us to Playa when we arrived.  (I was pretty excited because the guy was standing out side the gate with a plaque that said my name on it and I have always wanted that)  We got there and some guy grabbed our bags and took them twenty yards to the van and asked for a tip.  I gave him a five.  Pretty good money if you can get it.

We got to the house late, but almost everyone was still awake.  We talked for a bit and then hit the sack.  While we were there we hit the beach which had people of various stages of undress.  I am not too shocked by this stuff having traveled a bit in my life time.

On Sunday we went to church and it was fun to really get the Spanish going and practice a lot.  That afternoon we took a trip to Tulum and saw the complex civilizations that once lived there on the beautiful coast.  On Monday we went to Chichen-Itza and had a blast looking and bargaining.  Shauna wanted to by plates and stuff for the kids, but I was being stubborn and thinking everything was too expensive.  Shauna did end up buying several things, but I was excited to leave the vendors behind.  We also, saw the missionaries there.  It was really cool to see them and talk to them.  Three were from Mexico and one was from Layton, Utah.  It was a fascinating place and you wonder what life was really like there.  It gets romanticized a bit and it was probably just a lot of the daily grind with the occasional human sacrifice.

Playa is also a pretty mellow place compared to Cancun and all of its massive hotels.  I felt bad for all of the Mexican people that will likely never be able to enjoy their beaches and hotels because they do not make enough money to stay in them.  Our hotel--the Hyatt Ziva--was wonderful and the best location you can imagine.  The food in most places was subpar--I understand this is what you get with an all-inclusive and cruises--so I am not really that hot to go on a cruise now.  There were good food options, but I wish I could have known that going in, so I did not eat crappy meals.

The rooms and beach at the Hyatt were the best and we snorkeled right off of the beach and saw tons of fish: sting rays, spotted rays, barracuda and other colorful fish.  It was an awesome trip and I hope to go back sooner rather than later.

On our way.

Playa del Carmen.

Ahoy matey!

La Familia.

Church

The castle at Tulum.

Tulumites view.  Quite nice.

My padres and me.

Sol.

Always hungry.

Beach at Tulum

A bunch of these guys around.

The old ball court.

I hate to tell you, but...the winner dies.  (Umm, found out later this is wrong, The loser dies)

Shauna at Chichen -Itza.

The skull house.

My dad and us.

The temple.

Ik Kil.  The cenote. 

Capybara

Cool Frida Khalo art at playa.

Clubbing on the beach.

Lots of wildlife.

On the beach.

Nachos!

View from our hotel room at Cancun.

Underwater fish pictures.

Night view.

One pool.

On the jetty.

Snorkeling.

Lighthouse. 

The gang.

The New Year

Well, that was fast. It seemed like just a bit ago, the holidays were just winding up, and here we are heading in to the new year.  This year was way too busy and way to fast.  Things were a bit stressful with a family of four little guys (although Joaquin is growing like a weed) and the hustle and bustle of the season.  Through into that all of the December birthdays we have in our extended family and December is down right nuts.

We started out with great intentions and planned to do the Twenty-Five Days of Christmas that the LDS Church had prepared.  We talked about it during Family Night and put the calendar on the fridge. We started out well, but lost steam as we were overtaken by the holiday rush.

One thing we were able to do, was purchase and distribute treats and gift cards to various members of our church and neighborhood.  On the 19th we go together with the Gardners and put some plates together with treats.  We then paired some gift cards with a Christmas card, got our voices warmed up and delivered them, while singing Christmas carols.  Each family was very grateful and it was a very good experience for our kids and us.

We also attended Jim Gaffigan's comedy tour; went the Mormon Tabernacle Christmas program; attended Ruby's preschool Christmas program; had a Ward Christmas party; went to the neighborhood party at the Cheboski's; celebrated my birthday; celebrated my Dad's birthday with dinner and mariachi singing; and finally had Christmas Eve dinner at my parent's house before Christmas.

We had a bit more for our kids this year, but usually this is cyclical and next year will be more constrained as it should be.  I do not want our kids to think buying things brings joy and satisfaction, because it does not.  This year I have felt this even more. No matter what you buy the thing fades and will not last, but the relationships, memories and understanding of Christ are lasting and bring wonderful joy to a heart.

I am carrying this into the New Year and hope to be a better son, husband, father and employee.  I want to be brave and just look out more for other people.  Here's to a wonderful new year.

Arvidsons and us at the Conference Center

Lights

View from the Conference Center.  Merry Christmas!

Ruby's program.

Us at Jim Gaffigan.

Serenading my Dad on his birthday.

We sang along too.

Christmas Eve.

Little awesome angel.

Papa and Sam.

Cousins together.

PJ's from Nana and Papa.

Laney.