Time with Families

This summer has been a busy one with all of the activities both family and church.  I have not kept up with my blog posts, but here is an update on what has happened this summer.  School starts next week so this is pretty much the end of it.  It is a bit sad, but I love seeing the kids get back to learning and having a bit more direction.  Just so you know, I think they need ample free time as well, but after an entire summer of freedom it is time to get back to a bit of a schedule.

Immediately after school was out we headed to California which I have already written about.  After that I had several church activities that included Scout Camp and Girl's Camp.  Then we headed into family reunions.  We had a mini one with my family and a longer one with Shauna's.  Baby turned two in the middle of all of this. Then things ended very well with Pioneer Trek.

Both Scout Camp and Girl's camp was exciting and good for the youth.  Scout Camp was at Bear Lake this year at a Ward member's home on the lake.  I took Joaquin with me to give Shauna a break from having all of the kids.  He had a great time and is clearly going to be one of those annoying deacons in a couple of years.  We left late in the day on a Thursday and made it to the lake as the sun was going down.  We were driving on the east side of the lake when out of nowhere a deer jumped in front of the car and we smacked it good.  I was a bit shocked but it was no big deal.  Joaquin was a bit traumatized but thought it was pretty cool once he saw the reactions from the scouts.  I then realized I had a $500 deductible on the insurance and it bummed me out a bit more.

The scouts spent time on the water and in the water.  They also played a bunch of board and card games until late.  The next day we went to Minnetonka cave and enjoyed hiking around underground for a couple of hours.  We went to Le Beau's for shakes and then went back to the house to play around finishing out the camp.  It was always good to spend time with those young men and I hope they understand the commitment from their leaders, which commitment is a reflection of their testimony.

Girl's camp was a little more eventful than Scout Camp.  I went up later in the day again and was there in time to go on the overnight hike with the older girls.  We did a bit of hiking and ran right into a moose that was crossing the trail.  It was not more than 20 yards in front of us so that was exciting.  I was there with Jeremy Olsen who is everything funny and good about people and the girls love him.  He was a bit of an actor before he joined Costco so it always makes things fun around the camp fire.   The girls did start the fire with a flint and steel and we generally had a blast goofing around and taking a night hike.

The next morning we hike back to the cabins and went to the lake for a boat and canoe outing.  It was fun and I was attacked by about a dozen girls who thoroughly soaked me.  We hiked back to camp and had some free time.  I took a nap for a bit until Jeremy got me in on the skit preparation.  During this time one of the girls got really sick for various reasons and we had to take her to the hospital.  At the hospital they felt like she should be life flighted to Primary Children's Hospital.  She ended up being okay, but it was a bit scary for the girls.  Brandon and I drove down later that night and visited her and her parents at the hospital.  I got home around 2 am.

Deer Slayer.  Second deer this car has killed.

Blazing fire on Bear Lake

Minnetonka

The Scouts in the cave.

Did I say we got a dog?

Unexpected 6 mile run with my brother.

Girls learning how to start a fire.

They did it.  Here is the proof.

All of us together.

Urrr...survival shelters.  Maybe?

Sunset on night hike.

Skits

Another sunset in Sandy.  Wow.

Summer

Summer has started to set in.  Hot - check.  School Out- Check. First Vacation - Check. There are many more things that are indicators of summer, but these are the big ones.  Our kids are sleeping in because they go to bed later--the sun is up, so who wants to be in bed?  My kids sure don't.  It is fun for them to just have a lot of free time.  They can play and not have to rush off to all the activities that they normally have.  They need some down time, but not too much.  We are still expecting reading and other things to get done.

The day after school got out we loaded up the car and headed to Truckee and later Cupertino.  We ran the Lake Tahoe Relay again this year and it almost wiped me out.  I was diagnosed with Greave's disease in January and have been taking medication to get it under control.  The medication combined with my workout regime have caused me to pack on about 20 pounds.  Usually when I am running races I am around 150 -155 pounds.  Currently, I am more like 170.  That extra weight takes a serious toll on the body when you are pounding for 10.7 miles.  Also, I had been nursing a calf injury and had not put in many runs over 9 miles. So, around mile 9 I was spent and had to mentally push the last two miles or so.  I was tough, but I told myself I could not stop running even if I was going slow. My pace was about 8:14.  Shauna on the other hand had a pace of 7:48 for her 9.6 mile leg.  She was looking and feeling good.  I on the other hand was not feeling good at the end.

John ran the hardest leg by far--13.1 miles and a good portion of that was uphill at altitude.  He, as usual, did really well.  Jill, Blake and Servando also did well and we finished with a time of just over 10 hours.  This is a little slower than we are used to (probably due to me) but it was cool with blue skies, so any day you can have that it just a blessing.

The weather was rough for the kids because they did not spend as much time outside because of rain.  They did go on a couple of walks, but Friday was rainy and cold.  On Sunday when we drove over the pass heading to the Bay Area we hit a major spring storm with snow, hail and rain.  It rained on us all the way to the Bencia Bridge.

We hit the aquarium in Monterrey and the kids tried to swim in the pool that had not heated up that much yet.  They did a pretty good job. I even jumped in after a run with Shauna. A

About 30 minutes before I was supposed to leave to catch my flight home, I tried to start the van and the battery was obviously dead.  Blake and Aubrey gave us a jump and I ran to the auto parts store and bought a battery and quickly installed it.  I made it back and caught my flight without a problem.  I did not want to leave Shauna out there with a bum battery.

We celebrated Jon Glenn's birthday with some Jazz.

Meadow next to the cabin.

Truckee River overflowing its banks onto the bike path.

We got piped in when finishing.

We finished on the beach.

John running to Spooner Summit.

Obscured Emerald.

Shauna making good progress.

The team at the finish.

Waiting to go to lunch at Bubba Gumps in Monterrey.

This series of pictures tells you a bit how Sam was doing.

Thought he might be done.

Perked up though and made it the next four hours.

Inside.

Outside.

My run on Saturday.  All up hill!

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

So this came home with Elena yesterday and Shauna showed it to me.  We both had a good laugh and I was glad she is so enthusiastic.  Don't get me wrong, there will need to be a discussion of appropriate time and place for these things, but it is pretty funny.

Life

I was just thinking about my pursuit of peace and happiness and have found my own personal definition fleeting and unrealistic.  I have always imagined myself easing myself through life as a cool and unflappable character.  Something like this:

This guy looks totally with it and the picture of control and coolness.  I am sure there were a lot of wipe outs and hours in the water that lead up to this picture, but this is what I dream about--just being there; doing well, and enjoying it.  

I on the other hand, I feel almost exclusively like this guy: 

This guy looks like he just bit off way more than he could chew and it anything by calm, cool and composed.  In reality he is probably an awesome surfer, but I feel like this right now most of the time.  I am way in over my head and about to get pummeled because of my hubris thinking I could take on such an insane task as life.  

I guess the lesson to be learned is that you have to face your demons and take a pummeling before you get to that place of peace and unrivaled skill.  Keep at it my friends and enjoy the view.  

Things on the Brain

I have always been fascinated by the ocean, especially the tropics where the heat is strong.  I can just fall asleep on warm sand and then go for a long swim right after a quick nap without considering water temperature. Here are a few scenes and pieces of art that reflect this yearning in me.

I am certainly not deprived as I am able to visit these places on occasion, but why not more often? I would like some of these for around the house.  Makes me at peace just looking at them.

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.