An awakening of mortality


So, we have seemed to have had an awakening of our mortality. The other day, I cut my toe nails and somehow got an infection in my big toe. It hurt to put any pressure on my toe. Shoes were hard to wear, but I prevailed, and it is getting better, and I am walking fine. The infection is almost gone too.

So my sweet wife hurt her back somehow. I am not sure how except I think I can adequately blame it at least in part on flip-flops. She would even admit to them being one of the causes. The two boys managed have a combined weight well over 60 lbs which doesn't help much either. We have even joked that this is her annual back going out time because it always seems to happen in June. Now the back going out would not be so bad if it weren't for Isaac not understanding why mom can't even get him out of the crib.

Probably the biggest concern over this back problem is with the start of the second trimester comes the possibility and concern of potential bed rest. She was put on bed rest the last time. We are grateful to all those who were so kind to take our children as we dealt with her being down. This time we have been trying to plan ahead though. Fully expecting a chance of this (though hoping it won't happen) we have put together the packages so we could get her on bed rest in a pinch. For example, we got a laptop so she can work from the bed. I am finished with classes so I can do research where ever I can study. We have ice packs frequently cooling. Isaac is walking - no more absolute need to carry him. We have the freezer reasonably packed. All of the maternity stuff is just a hope chest away. Michael has figured out how to turn on and off the TV and only does so with permission. We don't go out to eat (not in our budget) so she won't miss this. The garden gets rained on daily or at least frequently enough to avoid watering currently. And the cars seem to run just fine.

Hopefully this works like our 72 hour kit, and we never really need to utilize all these things. Regardless, we need to be prepared for this. We just have to figure out everything we need to be prepared for.

To relieve the anticipation:


30 Dec 2008.


Merry Christmas.


Start shopping now.

1st Video

Isaac started walking.


Toddler 1. Parents 0.

27 - I feel old today. Hopefully tomorrow I will feel my age again.

Where’s that sock?

(I found this while looking through some old files. This is from 9th grade.)

Once upon a time, there was a great clothes dryer. His name was Spark. Now Spark was a mean dryer. He liked to rip the sleeves off of helpless shirts. All the shirts in the hamper were scared of him. One day that all changed.

A sock got thrown into the hamper one day. That sock’s name was Mahonri. Now, Mahonri was not just an ordinary sock; he was a brave, hero sock. He heard the cries and moans of the defenseless shirts.

“Woe is us, woe is us. If we get put into Spark, the dryer, we will surely lose our sleeves. Then no one will want to wear us, and then they will want to get rid of us.”

“I’ll help you,” said Mahonri, “I have a plan.”

Mahonri did have a plan. He jumped into the next load of dirty clothes to be washed, and he went through the washing machine. By the time he went into the dryer he was almost dry. One of the shirts asked him, “Are you sure this will work?”

Mahonri replied, “Yes, the good guy always wins.”

All the shirts were satisfied with his response. Start started up, and in a low grumbly voice he tauntingly asked, “Is there anyone that is willing to try to stop me from taking off a sleeve or two?”

Without expecting a response, Mahonri said, “I will if you’re not too scared to take me on.”

Spark replied, “You, but you’re just a sock. I will take you on.”

Then without a moment’s hesitation, Mahonri turned into a big ball of lint and spread himself all over the shirts. Now Spark couldn’t take the sleeves off of any of the shirts until he removed all the lint. It took the whole drying time to get all of Mahonri’s lint off the shirts. Spark couldn’t take any sleeves off any shirts that day.

So, if you get your wash out of the dryer and there is a sock missing or if there is still is lint on your clothes, remember a sock gave its life so your shirts can have sleeves.

The History of Cars


As we look towards father's day, I can't help but reflect on being so glad to be a father. Now, Part of fatherhood or husbandhood as you may need to call it has been owning and taking care of cars. I admit that before we were married, I drove a car, but it was really my Dad's. He owned it and paid insurance on it. So, as a tribute to father's day, I thought that I would talk about the many cars we have owned.

We have been married over 4 years, but not yet 5 (that comes later in August.) Two kids later, we find that we have been averaging just under 2 vehicles per year of marriage. So, here is the review of the cars we have owned. Pros and Cons. We are only including pictures where we have them.

We came into our marriage with two vehicles. Really, it was just one and the one I shared with my sisters. From the more comfortable and routine long distance driving side of the marriage came a Buick LeSabre 1992 (I think.) This was a 6 seater with 2 benches. We got around 25 or 26 miles to the gallon on the highway with that big V-6 engine and gas was about $1.60/gallon. It floated down the highway, Utah potholes and all. I had never understood why people wanted to get an American car until then. Now, it did have some problems, like the breaks had to be changed because one of the calipers stuck and bent the pads. A lady with 4 kids in a minivan turned into us on 100 S in Provo on our way to the Post Office totaling it. Fortunately, Rachael, Anna's roommate, came and saved us from a chilly mile walk home. That was the end of that car for us.

By this time, we had bought the Blazer from my Dad. We had a rod bearing going out on it and were trying to unsuccessfully sell it for my Dad, but it just made more sense for us to buy it and get it off his insurance. I have to say that this was an awesome car for us. We ran it a lot after the Buick was totaled. It made lots of trips to Orem, but never out of the valley while we owned it. The best part was the rear-wheel drive in the snow which made for a very forgivable clutch while my sweet wife was getting used to driving a stick. Despite my best efforts to get a new engine and justify keeping it because it could have (technically) fit a car seat in the back, we eventually knew that we would need a new car. The Blazer was eventually sold to some hispanic guys never to be seen again. Sniff-Sniff.

We went to a car lot after learning a bit of lingo and talked one of the sales men who let us get a 1995 Nissan Altima off the backlot. It had just come in on trade. It needed a new CV axle, but it was the right price - about what we got from insurance on the totaled Buick. It was also a gold like color. We really loved that car too. It did have a draw back though. The back seat folded down, buy only enough to put a set of skis through. That was kind of useless to us. You could put your arm through, but that was about it. We took that car to Texas to see Grandma Bowen before she passed away. It served us very well. We decided to sell it though to pay for the expenses associated with Michael's birth. We were glad to have the car and glad to have the money when we sold it.

To replace the car, we bought our first Saturn. This car was the first car this guy ever had. It was light weight and a standard transmission. I personally think that the 1992-93 range of Saturns had a really good look with the curved back windshield, but maybe I am just biased. We got just over 30 mpg on that car. It did have automatic seatbelts which lowered insurance prices, but we didn't like them. It drove right on top of the snow, but when it got really cold, that engine just didn't have enough to keep us warm in the car. We drove up to Star Valley one time and nearly froze including Michael in his carseat. A paper bag in front of the radiator helped us make it home nice and warm. We left it there until April when it got wet and fell out. We kept that car until right before we moved to Florida since the A/C system needed to be replaced - otherwise we may still have had it.

We managed to get two cars here for the price of one picture. The Saturn in the background was such a good car. We found the EIC and the Additional Child Credit to be most beneficial to us financially, but when FAFSA came around, we had too much money to qualify. They don't seem to care about the vehicles you drive, so we made a strategic investment in buying this Subaru. I had really wanted a Subaru since I was a teenager. This one was an automatic and had all-wheel drive. We had to put new tires on it. The car wasn't really that bad, but we just were not impressed. We thought the wagon feature would be good, but we learned that you can't really fit much more in the back. Bigger things can be fit in, but since you don't want things falling down on you or your kids, you can't stack things that high. So bigger stuff, not more. We ended up keeping this car for a while and eventually selling it to someone working up in Park City area. It met our purposes, just wasn't the car for us.

We were searching the board at BYU for a car that we could move away from Utah with (needed working A/C.) It was Autotrader that came to the rescue though. We found a 1995 Nissan Altima for sale for our price range. That was really good for us. We called up that day and made a deal that night. The car made it to Florida. Despite changing a few parts which wear out over time, we have been really happy with it even though it gets about 23 mpg around town with the A/C on. It rides really well and feels very secure. We still have it. Until we decide to sell it that is.

When we got to Georgia, we made a deal with my brother to buy his Ford Ranger since he was leaving the country for Brazil to work. We drove it around for a while, but we ended up selling it back to him when he got back. They needed a car and they still have it. It would be a funny sight to see him driving it around with the missionaries though. It was supposed to seat 3 (seatbelt wise) but it doesn't really work that way since the stick shift is on the floor. Michael used to try to kick it out of gear and was successful at times. It would have been nice to have my sweet wife sit next to me again on a bench seat, but that was not the vehicle for that. I do miss the ability to haul things, but it has kept us from accumulating even more stuff. I would like to be able to get a whole sheet of plywood again though. Gas mileage was not great, but it wasn't bad.


When we decided it was time to have a second car again, we looked a really long time. We finally ran across this Saturn which was not in the best shape. I replaced a belt and the head liner is falling down, but it was a good price. I took this one to Orlando and back for a conference. On the return trip I got 45 mpg. It is a 5 speed standard with out power steering and I was avoiding using the A/C. I also followed the semis on the road since there is no cruise control so there may have been some drag reduction and maybe a favorable wind to my back, but 45 mpg was great even if it was a little hyper-inflated from normal highway driving. I was paying $3.50 a gallon or so which means I was paying about $1 in gasoline for every 12 1/2 miles. Back to the Buick, I was getting 15 1/2 miles for that dollar. I miss the capacity and comfort of the Buick and the hauling capacity of the truck, but I don't miss the MPG's at this gas price. We will just have to bite the bullet though and get a minivan for this third car seat.


We have also had a bunch of scooters - 5 to be specific. Here is probably the best looking one that we had. It had that classic styling. I just fixed them and sold them really. I love the real old school looks from Honda and Yamaha when a scooter was a glorified bicycle. The Honda Elite 80 proved that things can be built to last, 20 years old when I sold it, and it ran great. This one was only 3 years old or so and I put at least as much effort into fixing it as the rest of them. Only one never made it back on the road, but it was just one of 3 that I bought as a lot. It has been a fun hobby.

We have also had 1 non-running motorcycle, a go-cart, and 2 trailers. So to make the final count, 8 "cars", 6 motorbikes, 1 go-cart, and 2 trailers. Totaling 17 in all. This is just in less than 5 years. So happy father's day to all you who made it to my tally. I know fatherhood is not about cars, but how could I have not put that red car at the top on there which belongs to my wife's great-uncle. It was taken the day we got married which is the day I became a husband and could celebrate father's day for me.

Hope Chests

While I admit to being a guy and not sure about may of these things, in talking with one of my sisters-in-law, I realized something about a hope chest. To show my background, most of my knowledge of a hope chest stems from reading my Mom's book, "Belle of Nauvoo." The hope chest is supposed to be filled with everything that would be needed to establish a household when you get married. This means that everything that goes into the hope chest is chosen by the wife. This is probably a good thing when I look back on it.

I don't particularly have a great eye for colors or coordinating themes. I am much more of a 'Value-ist' where value is the dominant theme of my decor. You could take for instance our $2.50 couch or our extremely sturdy free desk. Things may not match in color, but in value it all seems to work.

So, this observation will make more sense for outside of my household. I don't exactly think it fair that the sheets and pillow-cases and towels and plates and flatware etc. are all chosen by one person. Maybe I like Mauve more than pink or rose. Maybe I can't stand the sight of orchids on the comforter. This is not very fair for the guy coming into the marriage.

To give the reverse example, maybe the guy's hope chest would be filled with similar things but separate themes. Could you imagine coming into a marriage with the planter's peanut man theme or a GI-Joe theme. What about monster truck themes. I am not sure that you want to go through that when you get married.

Now, I want it known that I am pleased with what my wife brought into our marriage. I was a lucky one. So I guess my plea for all those thinking about putting together a hope chest is to be considerate of the future spouse. And don't forget the "Big Box" hope chests (we went with Target and Bed Bath & Beyond.)

What would you want to have in your hope chest? You can think retrospectively.

A Trip to the Store


So, I was sitting there and noting we are ill-prepared for hurricane season here. It is not that we needed to get together our 72- hour kit or getting food storage together in case a hurricane actually made it all the way to Tallahassee. No no, we did not go and get a generator to use when the power goes out. It is a different kind of preparedness for hurricane season. Hurricane season just happens to coincide with the months of June through October when the temperature really heats up our semi-coastal semi-paradise. So, the trip was to go to the store to get clothing appropriate to survive a HOT summer.

Now, my sweet wife does not like shopping. It is really difficult for her to go and buy things for herself. I am much the same way. While this works to our advantage most of the time, it takes some insisting to get things purchased. So, I handed her a wad of cash sufficient to cover her purchasing enough clothes to last at least a week in the summer, pushed her out the door (not literally) with out the boys, and sent her to Target - hopefully better quality for an affordable price. She came home with three pair of pants and 2 sets of pajamas for Michael. It is like pulling teeth to get her to go shopping and buy clothes.

I love my wife.