Thanksgiving and other things

Once again, I'm back to the weekly writing. It makes it hard on an old man because he forgets so much. I will try to remember at least some of the things that have gone on in this past week, though I know there is more to put here.

Our son had orchestra duties to do on Monday and Tuesday nights of this past week for the play at Bingham High School of Fiddler on the Roof. Our daughter went with her friend from across the street to watch the play on Tuesday evening. I went to Young Men which was the Scouts meeting together to go ice skating. We had decided that if the budget allowed it, we would try to let a couple of the boys get the merit badge so went again. As it was, they only charged us $8 for 10 Scouts and 3 adults. Not bad! Three of our Scouts got the merit badge.

This time around, I got figure skates instead of hockey skates and after I got used to them, I thought they were a bit easier. I also tightened them up enough that maybe I wouldn't rub my skin raw at the ankles to the point of bleeding. It was better all the way around.

Wednesday evening my wife was making sure she had all she needed to make green bean casserole and a sweet potato casserole. Not too much happened that evening.

Thursday was Thanksgiving. We got up and just did a few odds and ends around the house. My wife was running out of time on making what she had to make and asked me to do the green bean casserole. That was a little bit runny, but it was still good. I have to say that the sweet potato casserole was wonderful. Everybody loved that.

We were about 15 minutes late to my in-laws home. But, it was a wonderful meal and we had some good conversation. My wife had gathered a few girl things for Chantelle's daughter, and we gave some of that to her. I think she is grateful for that stuff. It was pretty good stuff. My wife is one of the most giving people I have ever met when she perceives that somebody may be in need. She doesn't like it when people take advantage of that kind of thing though.

There were no family fights on Thanksgiving and that is something else to be grateful for. At least Rod and I didn't get into anything on politics or religion.

Black Friday came along. We didn't do too much. Our son and daughter did go out and came back with shoes for our daughter that were not on any sale. Later, we went to a couple of stores after getting tickets to "New Moon" of the Twilight series. My wife got some new shoes on a deal and our daughter got one more pair. We watched New Moon, which is a romance and a chick flick. Our son was wondering if he should put on a wig and go so that nobody would recognize him. The show was pretty good, and followed the book. It was funny listening to the women and girls ooh and aah when Jacob (in the movie) took off his shirt. I told my wife to not have a heart attack over it or anything.

Saturday, Anne came to our house to get her hair done (after work). Pam also came over and we went to breakfast. We had to call our son because he was out and about looking to get some used Wii games (Rockband). We brought some stuff home for my wife and Anne. They stayed for a bit and then took our kids home with them, as well as Lizzie.

The BYU/Utah rivalry game was on Saturday. I was cheering for the UofU. They lost. The U started out with 6 points in the first quarter to nothing from BYU. In the next quarter or two, BYU was 20-6. The U came back in the 4th quarter and tied the game at 20-20. Then a field goal from the U and then a final touchdown from BYU in overtime. Final score was 26-23 BYU winning the game. I called and congratulated our daughter for her school winning. A bit later, I heard what the QB from BYU said about the fans, the program and everything else about the U, and it made me mad that anybody would say that in his position as a leader. To top things off, the UofU's coaches wife ended up being hit by a rabid BYU fan and when she said "Hey, I'm a woman, he just told her that she was a U fan. She had a fat lip. Why is it that rivalries have to get this way. Some good clean stuff would be the way it should be. Anyway, the QB did apologize today, but I still don't like the guy. What a jerk!

Today I didn't go to church. We stayed home and got a phone call from our daughter asking us what size pants and shirt our son wore. We told her, and then found out that they had to get some clothes for him because his were soaking and stinking from a little dip in a "pond" in Bountiful. I guess our dog jumped into the water, and our son thought the water would only be up to his knees and got in to save her. The water was a lot higher than he thought (he never touched the bottom), but he got our dog out and then got out himself. It wouldn't be so bad, except the water had started to form a little bit of ice when he got in. I am grateful that he and the dog are well.

We also got a phone call from Kathy in Florida. She is trying to plan something and wanted to know what date would be good for us because I have my daughter down there as well. I had to contact my daughter and when I finally did she was a bit mad at me because I texted her to call me immediately rather than ASAP. I guess immediately means that there is something wrong, and ASAP just means to call me soon. We arranged the date with Kathy and will have to wait to see what the surprise is.

We watched a couple of movies at home and then went to Bountiful to have dinner and to pick up our kids. It was a great dinner. We came home, and now it is time for bed so I can get up and get to work in the morning.

More Stuff

Once again, it's been a week since I wrote. A couple of things have gone on that I think should be put in here. Our son spent the whole week at school late. He had all kinds of practices for his part in the orchestra playing for the play "Fiddler on the Roof". This made for extremely long days for him, but he seems to have handled it all fine. It was kind of a bummer for him because he wasn't even able to go to the game where his school (Bingham High) took state in 5A football.

Going back in time now. On Tuesday, soon after I arrived home from work, I got over to the church so we could take the scouts to a city meeting which covers a requirement for two merit badges that we have been working on. We had to leave there at around 7:00 though. One thing that was interesting was that a paramedic came in and talked about a new treatment for heart attack victims. They actually make them cold in some way which they claimed saved a life with no neurological problems. Of course, they are touting how great the city of South Jordan is in implementing this new process (I can't remember exactly what it was called).

After leaving there, we headed to the Olympic Oval so we could join up with the rest of the Young Men and Young Women for ice skating. I put on some hockey skates and thought they were a little bit harder than figure skates (that I have tried in the past). I also ended up with a few sores on my right ankle. I couldn't believe it when my wife pointed them out. I wasn't even really aware of them other than I thought I was kind of sore.

Wednesday evening I ended up going out with the Scouts again to collect things off of peoples porches to take to the Deseret Industries Bins. This only took a little while, but it was a service project that was easy for the scouts and it keeps in their minds that we do need to serve others.

Friday, I took the day off. There were some problems at work, but I couldn't log in to work from my home. I had to have Paul take care of the problems that I was going to take care of before he got in. It was frustrating. It looks like I need to take my PC in on Monday to get that all fixed.

My wife and I were going to go to the temple, but she wasn't feeling up to it. Instead, I ran a couple of errands and then a bit later we went out to grab some lunch. I did have to stop in at work today so I could pick up my turkey and take it over to my in-laws house. We put it in their freezer so it can be cooked up come next Thursday for Thanksgiving. We also took my Father-in-law out to Seagull Book and Tape to get him a CD that he has been wanting with the Bells and the Tabernacle Choir. Our son got home early because school was out for the state championship.

My son and I ended up going to Seagull Book and Tape to buy a Clearplay DVD player. It is a player that along with the service you can take out all the crap they put into movies. Our biggest problem is the "F" word that is put into about every PG-13 movie. We played with it a little bit that night and again the next day to see what it took out of a movie that I know (Wild Hogs). We will have to play with it a bit to make sure it works for us on the settings but I think we pretty well have it down.

Bingham High played Davis on Friday for the State Championship in 5A. This was supposed to be a game that was an easy win for Bingham. They didn't make it so though. Instead, Bingham made a ton of errors. They did end up winning, but not like the should have. They actually gave Davis some hope. It was a good thing they won in the long run.

Friday evening, we had to pick up our daughter from the school and then go right back so we could get in and watch a preview of "The Fiddler on the Roof". It was actually quite enjoyable. The lighting guy goofed up pretty big time, but the people putting on the play did well, and the orchestra (which our son is in) did an OK job (but not great). From my understanding the director is the biggest problem there. We did have a good time though.

Saturday, our son was gone for most of the day doing two performances of Fiddler. I ran a few errands and before we knew it the day was over. My wife didn't like shopping with me because she forgot some things that she was supposed to get on the list. I guess I am a distraction (I think that's a good thing).

Today we all got up and got ourselves to church. In Sunday School, the instructor actually got into the blacks before they were allowed the priesthood and led a discussion as to why that happened in the first place. Usually, I have seen this whitewashed over in the church, but he actually addressed it pretty well. I was glad to see somebody who wasn't going to whitewash something that happened historically. I don't know that we got to the answers, but at least he got people thinking. That's always a good thing. Sacrament meeting was on Thanksgiving.

I took my son home teaching, and gave a lesson on Thanksgiving and being grateful. I think that went over pretty well. We got home and hurried up and ate. We did get to sit around for a little while and then we headed over to my parents house.

Before we got to my parents house, we stopped at my wife's parents house. We wanted our dog to stay there for a bit while we took care of getting Patriarchal blessings for both of our kids. My dad first talked to our two kids and gave them some advice and some history from the Bible and the Book of Abraham. He then gave them their patriarchal blessings and it was quite spiritual. We then visited with them for awhile.

It had put a couple of inches of snow down while we were in there. It was still snowing as we headed home. As soon as we got home, our son got out a snow shovel and started shoveling the walks. I went out with him to do my part. It didn't take too long and it was good exercise for me as a fat old man. My wife and I discussed patriarchal blessings for a bit. I am getting tired now, so I had better head off to bed.

Just stuff

Young Men happened on Tuesday. We started on another merit badge with the Deacons. Our daughter didn't want to go to her Young Women because it was on Personal Progress and she really didn't feel that she had gotten anything done. I wish she would've gone, but understand why she wouldn't want too.

We found a note that was a bit disturbing about our daughter and some boy. We don't know who it is for sure, but we have a person in mind. We talked with our daughter and she said that she had it all taken care of. We don't know if she does or not, and have taken some counter measures to see what we can find. We aren't popular with her right now, but then a parent isn't supposed to be popular with their children. It has been wearing down on us, but at least my wife and I are one on this issue. We don't know exactly where to turn or who to talk to on this one. Why don't our kids come with manuals about how to handle all the situations of their lives.

My wife and I have had a fight tonight and it is quite disturbing to me. I don't know what to do about it. She feels that I haven't communicated properly, and while I agree with her, I also feel that there needs to be some more coming from other areas. I love my wife, but at times don't know what to do to keep our marriage alive. I will do all that I can to keep my marriage and my family together.

H1N1 - Healthcare and other things

It's been a bit since I last wrote. Since I am getting older, it is hard for me to remember everything, so I'll just put in bits and pieces of what's been happening in my life.

Last Tuesday for Young Men, we met at the Thornes house and planned out what we would be doing over this next year. Then there was some Peach Cobbler (Dutch Oven) and sweet rolls when they finished. It was fattening, but boy was it ever good. Of course our daughter had to get some things together so she could go on the Marching Band tour for the Orange Classic in Riverside California. She did all that fine and left on Wednesday evening. Both my wife and I dropped her off. It is hard to see your youngest daughter off and it was even harder on my wife. We got through it though (none worse for the wear). I do think it is harder to let a daughter go out on her own than it is to let a son go out on his own. I don't know why we are more protective of our daughters than our sons, but it is the way it is.

With our daughter gone, we really didn't do too much. I took Friday off of work and did a little bit of painting on our outside doors so the winter weather hopefully will not destroy our wood. Of course, my wife has been after me to do this for awhile. We also had a nice lunch together at Kneaders.

A little later we had Pam come to our house because I had gotten an extra H1N1 (Swine flu) shot, so Pam was able to get hers. Right now they are only doing high risk people which is from ages 6 months to 24, or older people with other health issues (my asthma and my wifes qualify us). This has been something that has really scared my wife and she has wanted us to get it before the holidays. Now, we only had to get one more for our daughter. I had gotten mine on Thursday on my way home.

On Friday, we had two guys from an alarm company come to sell us their alarm system. We let them in. We actually considered getting it and had told him to come back while we had time to think about it. We signed the papers and then came to a realization that it didn't come with everything we had thought. At first that was going to cost extra and we didn't want to pay the extra. We saw the frustration in the guys face and he expressed it a bit. That was getting to unprofessional behavior which finally had us not update our existing system. He left our home quite perturbed with us. My wife was mad at me because I didn't stand up to him for her, and she thought she came out looking like the bad guy. I didn't quite know where to turn and I guess I hadn't done what was my responsibility. It caused some contention in our home. We are upset about that.

Time moved on. I was able to play on the Wii with my son a little bit over this week. We have been having some fun with the Wii Sports Resort. I can even win him on some of the games on there which is a big surprise.

Saturday, there was a few chores to be done around the home. It wasn't real hard, but we got a few things done. Saturday night (really late) there was a vote in the House about the Health care bill. I didn't know what the outcome was before going to bed, but have decided that I am probably too much involved in this problem because I woke up three or four times in the night with a nightmare that it had passed (this bill does scare me). Of course, my nightmare turned out to be true. One of the things that helped it pass was that the Republicans added to the bill that no federal money could go toward abortions making abortion harder under the health care bill. That is what pushed just enough Democrats over to pass the bill. Now the Senate is going to have to debate it and pass it (I hope it doesn't). One problem that they will have is that there was already fighting going on over a public option (government run) and now they have to contend with the Abortion issue which, in my opinion, will take top priority. I really don't think it will pass the way it is, and I hope I am right. Don't get me wrong. I think we need health care reform, I just don't believe this is the answer. So, in essence I am now living my nightmare.

We went to church on Sunday and a few minutes into it, our daughter called and told us that we needed to get to the school to pick her up. My wife and I hurried over there and then waited for about 20 minutes for the buses to actually show up. Our daughter is now safely home and we don't have to worry about her so much. We let her stay home and went back to Sacrament meeting. After that, both of our kids got their six month interview with the bishop and he also interviewed them for their Patriarchal blessing. Now, we just need to wait for him to get a signature from the stake president and we can arrange with my father to get them their Patriarchal Blessings. I guess I need to let my dad know about this.

Today, I was able to call and secure an appointment for our daughter to get her shot. When we told her about it tonight, she was upset, but I told her that she was going to get it. She probably won't be happy with me, but that's the way it goes sometimes. I am not her father out of popularity. Well, that's it for now.

Birthday - Halloween - Sick

Time is flying by even faster than I care to admit. It is unbelievable that our son is now 18. Friday was his 18th birthday. He didn't ask for much, and he didn't get a whole lot either. We did give him a game that he wanted and he has spent a good amount of time playing that game. I went in on Saturday and played the game with him for a bit, and he said that it is better than playing against the computer. It was Wii Sports Resort and it has a few fun games on that disc.

I went to work as normal on Friday. There were a few problems that I had to take care of and then there was an issue that I researched for awhile before being brought to the realization that it was a policy that should not be in the data warehouse. Now, it will be interesting to see if Gallagher Bassett will actually get it taken care of. I also was able to run a couple of errands. I had to get a prescription for me as well as get donuts for our sons birthday. He said he didn't want cake. Instead he wanted glazed donuts. I got them in the form of pumpkins (they were colored orange as well as having a green stem in the middle).

Soon after arriving home, we went to dinner at the Texas Roadhouse. This was his choice because they have the most tender ribs and they really are fall off the bone (I witnessed this firsthand - my son and I shared a full rack). The dinner was fun and we were able to have them come over and give our son a Texas yahoo. He was embarrassed and had to sit on a saddle. He didn't like that much, but it's the price he had to pay. He took it all in with grace.

The people that were at the dinner were Grandma and Grandpa Wach, Pam, Melanie, Nathan and of course the four of us. Our daughter took the picture with my phone and I posted it on facebook just for further embarrassment for our son. He'll do OK with it all.

Saturday came along and we had to get up and go to the church to clean it up. We were with the Browns. The cleaning went well and everybody did their part. It was not too much of a chore to get done. Our son didn't show up at first because he had to drive our daughter to the school so she could go to a Marching Band competition. It only took an hour, so he only had to be with us for about half an hour on this.

I called my sister to make sure that her moving was going OK. She said that she thought they had enough people helping them move that it wasn't a problem that my family could not come (I had called her the day before to tell her we were cleaning the church).

We got home and just did a few minor chores, but not too much really. We just hung out at home with one brief jaunt to Walmart for some stuff that our son wanted to purchase with some of his birthday money. As I mentioned, I played a few games with our son. He later got invited to go to a Halloween party that night.

Our son left our home around 5:00 tonight and didn't get home till after midnight (it was about 12:20 that he came in). I did remind my wife that he was now 18. Our daughter got home from her Marching Band competition in Logan (where they took first place) and then went to a friends house for some Halloween festivities. She went to two different homes. She got home around 10:45 or so. We didn't have a lot of kids at first but then they came a little later than we thought they should've been coming. We had too much candy, but that is something that the people in my family won't mind too much. Our son did come home long enough to pick up Hocus Pocus to show over at the party he was at. It sounds like it was a party full of adults and him and Austin (of course he is an adult now too).

Thankfully, it was the end of daylight savings time, so I was able to sleep in this morning. Unfortunately, I woke up and had the runs and my stomach wasn't feeling to great. I let my wife know this and we didn't go to church. I didn't think the whole family needed to stay home, but if I had the flu (which I don't think I did) then I needed to make sure to not spread it. It was just a day at home for us. Nothing much happened.