Potatoes to Papayas

Be afraid, be very afraid!

2009-08-24T16:29:00.001-11:00

Jaydn and his friend Carson dressed up like superheros today. Can you tell? They really spooked me!

Dad's and Matt's Birthday

2009-08-24T16:24:00.002-11:00

On Sunday we went to my parents' to celebrate my dad's and my brother Matt's birthday. Here they created a big smoke cloud blowing out candles together.
I was happy to see my grandmother at the dinner.
Jaydn loved holding his cousin, Mia. You can tell he is great with babies!

I love my family.

Lazy Floatin' on the Snake

2009-08-22T16:17:00.005-11:00

Today we went rafting down the Hoback portion of the Snake River! It was wonderful. The weather was perfect, the water was perfect, everything was just great.

Jaydn has never gone before, but he loved it. We went with friends from our ward, the Taylors and Permanns. Here are pictures, although I forgot AGAIN to take any pictures of myself!

Welcome!

2009-08-15T11:15:00.004-11:00

Hello! If you haven't visited us before, we are the Coletti's--Sean, Jessi and Jaydn. We live in Ammon, Idaho. I am an attorney in Idaho Falls, my wife teaches piano, gardens, and does just about everything else, and Jaydn is the best boy you could ever wish for.

We have been around the block a few times. After we got married back in 1999, we lived in Rexburg as we finished our Associate Degrees. Then we moved to Provo, Utah, where I enrolled in Brigham Young University. It was during that first year in Provo that we found out that Jessi was pregnant with Jaydn. I also enlisted in the Army National Guard during that time, and I served in the Guard for six years.

Our greatest blessing, Jaydn, was born in 2000. In 2001 I worked full time for the Army National Guard as a Korean linguist. In 2002, we moved our family to East Hartford, Connecticut, where I enrolled in the University of Connecticut School of Law. We lived in and loved Connecticut and the East Coast for three years.

In 2005 I graduated and we moved to Twin Falls, Idaho, where I took a one year position with District Judge John C. Hohnhorst. In 2006 we moved to exotic American Samoa, a small island chain in the South Pacific. I worked as a law clerk at the High Court of American Samoa for one year. It was an amazing experience living there, and we have many photographs of that experience on this blog. We miss it greatly.

In 2007 we moved back to Idaho Falls, where my parents and Jessi's parents live. I started work at a local law firm, Hopkins Roden Crockett Hansen & Hoopes. We finally became homeowners in December of 2007! In November of 2008, Jaydn was baptized! Now, it is August 2009, and we love our life together. We are excited and hopeful that, someday, we will be able to have another child, or adopt a child. One of my desires is to see Jessi be able to be a mother to another child, and Jaydn be a big brother. We hope that blessing will come. But, if it doesn't, we know we will still be happy together.

Sorry for the rambling, but I wanted to introduce ourselves. Here are some pictures of recent events in our lives:

My sister Melissa's graduation:
Me in all my hairiness as Zebulun in "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat:

Jaydn soccer domination:

Family pictures (the bearded face is now gone):

Me with my sibs (Matt, Eric, Me, Mel):

Entire family (L to R: Eric, Cindy (my mom), Me, Jessi, Logan, Melissa, Mia, Jaydn, Jeff (my dad), Rachael, and Matt):

Cheesy!

Before the "KLCE 97 Second Chance Prom":

Jessi's sister Angela's wedding (L to R: Me, Jaydn, Chandler, Jessi, Sam, Riley, Les (Jessi's dad), William, Angela, Jey, Launa (Jessi's mom), Allie, Hannah, Daniel, and Jared):

Mother's Day 2009, with my grandmother:

So thanks for visiting, and I hope you come back frequently!

Rainbow

2009-05-17T04:46:00.002-11:00

My camera didn't really like this, but a few Saturdays ago I (barely) caught a really cool rainbow. The rainbow was a perfect circle around the sun. See if you can make it out.

It's hard to take direct pictures of the sun!

A Look at My Bookshelf: The American Patriot's Almanac

2009-04-18T09:19:00.002-11:00

Probably the most famous "American" thing that ever happened on my birthday (March 19) was the first day of the invasion of Iraq (2003), although Uncle Tom's Cabin was also published on my birthday in 1852.

On my wedding anniversary (May 7), Germany surrendered to the Allied forces in France, bringing an end to World War II in Europe (1945). George Washington was traveling from Mount Vernon to Philadelphia to attend the Second Continental Congress in 1775.

Today, April 18, brought the most famous ride in American history. Paul Revere made his ride from Boston to Lexington, Massachusetts on this day in 1775. April 18 is also the anniversary of the Great San Francisco Earthquake, which killed 3,000 people.

Each page of The American Patriot’s Almanac, by William J. Bennett and John T.E. Cribb corresponds to a day on the calendar, and contains fascinating and wonderful stories from our nation’s past. Now, more than ever, both we and our children must hear the fabled stories of America. I thoroughly enjoyed reading, and more clearly understanding, our nation’s history in a day-by-day format. I think you will, too, and that is why I gave the book five out of five stars.

Jessi Makes News

2009-03-12T14:28:00.002-11:00

Have I Done Any Good in the World Today?

2009-03-04T09:15:00.001-11:00

California Adventure Park

2009-03-02T16:18:00.004-11:00

Our last day of park stomping was at California Adventure Park, right next to Disneyland.

Jaydn loved the whitewater raft ride.

No, it's not the REAL Wall-E.

Goofy couldn't get over Jaydn's sticker on his forehead.

Our favorite ride was called "Soarin' Over California." It was unreal!

Our least favorite part of CA Park was the "High School Musical 3" dancers. Lame!

Bumper cars!

After hitting some roller coasters, we went to the Brother Bear playground. My feet were about ready to fall off!

And then, the long drive home. Sheesh. Next time we're flying!

Disneyland

2009-03-01T15:12:00.006-11:00

Disneyland! There is no more magical place. Even for old kids like me, it still is a great place.
We first went into the Tiki Tiki room, which I remembered as being really cool. It was ten times better than what I remembered it to be. The whole room comes to life!

Next we went on the safari boat trip. The best part of that was the guide, who basically spoke in "joke."

The Swiss Family Robinson treehouse was replaced by a Tarzan treehouse. A big disappointment!
Pirates of the Carribean scared the socks off of Jaydn, so we stayed away from dark, scary rides after that (although I did go on Indiana Jones by myself. That was fun!)

Here we are on the very tame boat ride:

And (I don't really have a second chin) Jaydn and I drove the cars. The most outdated ride at Disneyland, for sure.
Jaydn wore a sticker on his forehead--the whole week. He told us that if we ever got separated, we could tell where Jaydn was because of the sticker on his forehead! What a great idea!

Jessi and Jaydn did the submarine ride, which is totally redone in the theme of Finding Nemo. They said it was awesome. That's good, because I remember that when I was young it wasn't that cool.

The highlight of the day was that Jaydn was picked to go through Jedi training! And to think that they also chose the girl with the Mickey Mouse ears!?

Jaydn was so excited.
Good thing he learned these light saber moves. What a good padowan.

But then the unexpected...

How'd you like to put on this guy's makeup every day for the Jedi show? What a total pain! I hope he gets paid well. He actually did a good job of acting and moving like Darth Maul.

It's a good thing Jaydn fought him, he was too scary for me!

This girl seemed a little outmatched for the Vader.

So Vader, Maul and the storm troopers were totally wimpy! They got afraid of a bunch of kids and a few pretend Jedis, and left.

Way to go young padowans!

Jaydn's favorite ride was the Buzz Lightyear ride. This combined a ride with laser tag technology. It was really fun!

What a great day!

Sea World

2009-03-01T08:02:00.008-11:00

The next day we went to Sea World in San Diego!!

The shows were very spectacular. Sea World was very professional.

Dolphins shooting out of the water!

Arh! Arh! Seals.

And a big ol' walrus.

Check out this big boy.

That looks like fun.

Dolphin feeding and petting was a hit.

So was petting the manta rays.

They even had a bad lawn ornament section of the park.

The Shamu show was awesome!

Here's Jaydn and Jessi with Avery, Sheri Bates' daughter. We stayed with the Bates's. They were so nice to let us stay with them only a few days before they moved.

They didn't move because of us.

Rainy First Few Days of California Vacation

2009-03-01T07:32:00.006-11:00

On Sunday we just relaxed after a crazy long drive to CA. Monday was President's Day, and it was cold and wet. So we skipped the theme parks and went to a museum, the Temple, and the Beach.

Mammoth bones:

Beautiful (and huge!) LA Temple:
Beach at Santa Monica Pier:

Jaydn missed the beach so much he did his "Lalomanu" wave running game:

Jessi joined him for a run:

A tradition going back to our honeymoon:

Anyone want a degree in trapeze?
Pretty cool pier, eh? We finished the day eating on the pier at "Bubba Gump's"

Anyway, like I was sayin', shrimp is the fruit of the sea. You can barbecue it, boil it, broil it, bake it, saute it. Dey's uh, shrimp-kabobs, shrimp creole, shrimp gumbo. Pan fried, deep fried, stir-fried. There's pineapple shrimp, lemon shrimp, coconut shrimp, pepper shrimp, shrimp soup, shrimp stew, shrimp salad, shrimp and potatoes, shrimp burger, shrimp sandwich. That- that's about it.

Las Vegas

2009-02-23T17:05:00.012-11:00

It's tough to take an eight-year-old to Las Vegas. I mean, there is so much smut that it's hard to tell him where to look. "Look straight ahead, Jaydn." "No, don't look ahead, look over there." Las Vegas really lives up to its nickname.

We did have fun, however. There are some cool free things there. Food is not one of them. I remember when I was very young and we went to buffets for under $5. Now they are $30 per person!

Before going to Vegas, we stayed in St. George at a very nice house with a very nice view. Here's Jaydn with a nice view.

Here are some more pics from the day: Lion in the background...
So many M&Ms!
Crazy people with weird animals on the streets?

If you have never seen the Bellagio fountains:

How fun!

Idaho Falls - Boise Travel is the Pits!

2009-02-23T13:57:00.002-11:00

I had to fly to Boise for a deposition two weeks ago. The flight times are 6:00 a.m. out of IF and 9:45 p.m. back to IF from Boise. Yuk.

The deposition was scheduled the day before our vacation, by the way.

So on the return flight, we hovered over IF. Basically went around in circles five or six times because of low-lying fog. Then we returned to Boise!

At this point, I didn't want to wait until the next night at 9:45 p.m. to come back to IF. So I got a group together and got a rental car.

Let me tell you, the 11:00 pm to 4:00 a.m. drive back to IF was SO much fun.

And then Jessi, Jaydn and I left for our drive to California for our vacation at 10:00 a.m.

Yippee!!

Pinewood Derby

2009-02-02T17:14:00.003-11:00

Well, I got Jaydn's first Pinewood Derby car (block of wood) with only two weeks to spare.

This thing requires a lot of work to make it fast. Carving, sanding, painting, etc., etc., etc... Jaydn did the paint job himself, and chose the stickers. At the end I got lazy and just put fishing weight lead on the back to weigh it down. It did pretty good, although the scout leaders never said who the winner was.

Most importantly, Jaydn had a blast at the race. He loves scouts!

Jey and Angela Veluppillai - January 2, 2009

2009-02-02T16:59:00.004-11:00

Well, Angela (Jessi's sister) is married! Here are pictures (I took) from the beautiful and tiring day.

Now they live in College Station, Texas. No snow and 76 degrees in the day. Lucky!

Christmas!

2009-02-02T16:46:00.003-11:00

Happy Belated Christmas!

We had Christmas morning at our house...

Then it was off to Christmas mid-morning at my parents' house...

With a [w]rapping grandpa...

Then Christmas brunch at Jessi's parent's house... (Jey's first Christmas)

"An Ensign. Wow. Thanks mom."

And for "fowlest" gift of all, the mother-in-law to son-in-law gift. I guess she really layed an egg this time.

Snow Saturdays

2009-02-02T16:41:00.002-11:00

Who needs a hill?

Movie I can't wait to see

2009-01-28T09:09:00.000-11:00

What I'm Thankful For

2008-12-06T11:42:00.001-11:00

A little late, but...

I'm so thankful for my family.

Gingerbreading

2008-12-06T11:40:00.004-11:00

Jaydn and I made our first gingerbread house during Thanksgiving. Not bad for beginners, eh?

Signs that it's Christmas

2008-12-06T11:37:00.001-11:00

Well, when the tree goes up....

Funny Face

2008-12-06T11:35:00.003-11:00

Jaydn took some pictures in the car on the way home from Emma's baptism. This one is classic.

Emma's Baptism and Connecticut Friends

2008-12-06T11:29:00.003-11:00

Last week we went to our friends the Owens' daughter Emma's baptism in Rigby. Lo and behold, our good friends Deanna Lia and her daughter Kayla Paugas from Connecticut came! They are (respectively) Jennifer Owen's mother and younger sister. This was pretty cool for me, because I had the honor of baptizing Kayla when she turned eight in Connecticut!

Jaydn's Baptism

2008-11-19T12:32:00.003-11:00

Jaydn was baptized and confirmed on Saturday, November 15, 2008, along with Angela's fiance and Jaydn's future uncle, Jey. Here are some pictures from the event.

It was held in one of the multi-purpose rooms in the church, and there was literally no room for anyone--standing room only. There were a lot of people there!

It was a wonderful, very spiritual day.

Jaydn's Eighth

2008-11-09T04:12:00.004-11:00

Last week we celebrated Jaydn's birthday with his friends. Here are the pictures:

You see what my job was? Being a target for all the kids.

Then Jessi and I competed on the "Spider Stomper." I won, of course.

Jessi's video is sideways, oops.

Pumpkin Carving

2008-11-09T04:08:00.002-11:00

Here are some pictures from our pumpkin carving extravaganza at my parents' house:

We are ARTISTS!

Halloween Pics

2008-11-09T04:00:00.002-11:00

Just a few, to go along with the previous post:

Halloween Themes

2008-10-31T17:08:00.003-11:00

1. Cereal Killer (my costume - mini-cereal boxes with plastic knives cut through them, taped all over my clothes);

2. Darth Vader (Jaydn; well, Darth Vader with a big orange Jack-o-Lantern to put his candy in);

3. Hot chick (Jessi; no costume, just her normal self);

4. Obi Wan Kenobi (Jaydn's friend and sidekick trick-or-treater);

5. About 50 cars (the size of our hugely ridiculous ward trunk-or-treat);

6. A ghost (our car's very original costume);

7. Darth and Obi walkin' the beats (get this - Obi Wan trains Darth, Darth gets mad, rebels against Obi Wan, Obi Wan cuts off Darth's legs and arms and leaves him for dead, Darth gets really mad, puts on a ghetto new outfit, Obi Wan fights Darth again as an old dude, Darth KILLS Obi Wan, Obi Wan directs Darth's overthrow from the grave, and then DARTH AND OBI WAN GO TRICK OR TREATING TOGETHER!!! What is this world coming to?);

8. Fistfuls (our ridiculous neighbors' method of handing out candy to Jaydn);

9. "Dad, I've only had nine." (response when I tell Jaydn not to eat too much candy);

10. Tomorrow (Jaydn's birthday party).

Life is so hard as a kid!

Clavinova Festival

2008-10-25T07:30:00.003-11:00

Jaydn did a really good job at the Clavinova Festival in Iona. Check it out:

A Family Portrait Sampler

2008-10-19T10:32:00.005-11:00

We took some family pictures yesterday around downtown Idaho Falls. Here's a sampling:

So happy to be together forever.

What a riot

2008-10-18T15:31:00.003-11:00

Jaydn and I spent an afternoon at the Riot Zone playing miniature golf and playing on the blow-up toys. I only beat Jaydn at mini golf by 5 points, ugh.

I've got a good boy.

More Soccer Pics

2008-10-18T15:27:00.004-11:00

Jaydn loooooves soccer! He won his last game of the season today. I asked him if he wanted to play on more American sports teams, like basketball, baseball, or football. "No, just soccer. I love soccer!" He's a soccer boy.

What a Week

2008-10-12T14:44:00.002-11:00

I spent most of last week in beautiful Sun Valley, where there was no sun, only SNOW! I went for the Idaho Bar Annual Conference, which was spectacular, but there was no Jessi and Jaydn for three days.

Then I hopped in the car and drove with my family to Provo (again) for cousin Riley's baptism and cousin Daniel's baby blessing. I did get to go to the BYU vs. New Mexico football game with Jaydn, who got bored with the weird American football rules and wanted to go home after halftime. He'd rather watch soccer anyday.

Then, I experienced for the umpteenth time the famous Grigg car antics for the drive home.

And while Monday is supposed to be a holiday, here I am, going to work.

What a week.

Aspen Grove

2008-10-04T05:25:00.005-11:00

Jessi and I took a few days off from work and went to a J. Reuben Clark Law Society conference at Aspen Grove in Provo Canyon.

First we stopped at Mark and Andrea's house and had a "Samoan game night" with friends we made in Samoa.

The first day of the conference was at the BYU Law School. The next day was held in beautiful Aspen Grove.

This was the view from our cabin.

And a close up of the steep mountain cliffs.

Afterward we visited an old friend of mine, Loren Smemoe and his family. We also visited Jessi's brother in Orem, watched the BYU football game against puny USU, and visited our friends the Merediths in Brigham City before returning home by 2:00 am.

I am so tired!

Lazy September

2008-09-30T16:35:00.003-11:00

September has gone by just swimmingly. I rode the new scooter to work most days, freezing my facial extremities off. I won some arguments, and lost some more. I voted already, before most of the country. Cause I'm special, that's all. It's called "absentee." When you're convinced on the candidate, it's not a bad way to vote.

But most of all, the month went by way too fast.

We celebrated my mom's birthday yesterday night at Chili's. So here's the latest pic of the fam.

Never Forget

2008-09-12T19:26:00.002-11:00

Leprechauns

2008-08-30T15:39:00.002-11:00

Jaydn's soccer team, the "leprechauns," played its first game today. A winner: 3-0. Jaydn is just getting better every year he plays.

Go Jaydn!

Happy Birthday Dad

2008-08-30T15:36:00.003-11:00

Last week we celebrated my dad's ??th birthday. We went to dinner and had some birthday cake and presents. And played the traditional "put the shell on the shiny head and see if it falls off" game.

Camping and a Non-Operational Subway

2008-08-23T07:39:00.004-11:00

We went camping at Heise Hot Springs last night. Our adventure began when we stopped on the way for dinner at the Ririe Subway.

We were happy that there was a "drive thru," so we pulled around the right side of the building. But there was no sign for ordering. So we pulled around the back. Again, no sign. So, we pulled around the other side of the building. Finally, we saw a drive thru window. Then, the following conversation insued:

Girl at the window: (opens window)

Me: I didn't see a sign where I could order.

Girl at the window: You need to go around the building.

Me: There's not a sign over there.

Girl at the window: Uh, we're not fully operational yet.

Me: Well, do you have a menu I can look at?

Girl at the window: No.

Me: Then I guess I'm not sure how to order.

Girl at the window: Haven't you ever been to Subway before?

Me: Yes, of course, but I haven't memorized the menu yet.

Jessi: Sean, just order something.

Me: I will, but I don't know what to order.

Girl at the window: Here--there's sort of a menu on this napkin (stating calories of several menu items).

Me: (thinking, "I'll order a Big Mac then") I guess I'll have the Sweet Onion Teriyaki Chicken sandwich then (only fancy looking sandwich on the napkin).

Girl at the window: What kind of bread?

Me: I don't know, where are the bread choices?

Girl at the window: (rolls shut the window to disclose sticker showing bread choices)

Me: (pointing to the Italian Herb bread)

Us: (Ordering three footlong sandwiches)

Girl at the window: (10 minutes later) That will be $5.14.

Me: Really? (thinking I should take the offer) We ordered three footlong sandwiches.

Girl at the window: (walking somewhere in the kitchen and returning) Uh, I mean, $15.14. (by this time, everyone in the car is cracking up)

Wow. Remind me never to go to a not-yet-fully-operational Subway again. Good ol' Ririe! I need to brush up on my Subway menu memorization skills.

Heise was fun, and the Snake River was beautiful. We went swimming in the hot springs pool on Friday night. We forgot to bring "fire," so we had to borrow someone else's fire to roast our marshmallows after swimming.

Jessi and I slept in the tent, and Jaydn and Launa (my mother-in-law) slept in the car. It was freezing. And for some ridiculous reason, the owners kept the ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-pizzzzzzz, ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-pizzzzzzz sprinkler on all night next to our tent. Jessi said it was because they wanted to water the grass. Ha ha.

Somehow, in the morning we ended up with all four sleeping on the twin air mattress. That means "get up." I was good to take our traditional "morning monster" camping picture.

Beautiful!

Spam

2008-08-22T12:27:00.002-11:00

Spam e-mail tells me: "John McCain Picks Paris Hilton As Running Mate."

Why do I even bother cleaning out my spam box?

School starts today!

2008-08-21T03:18:00.002-11:00

Jaydn went back to school today at a new school--again. He was so excited! As "back to school" news goes, check out the goal for American Samoa schools for the new school year -- having a teacher in every classroom. Hey, at least it's a start!

Important news from Russia - LDS Missionaries are CIA Agents

2008-08-21T02:40:00.003-11:00

OK, we've heard this all before. I got it all the time on my mission. But this Russian professor proves it--Mormon missionaries are SPIES!

See it here in the Interfax online paper:

21 August 2008, 16:07

CIA agents in Mormon disguise are probable to work in Russia, a renowned sect expert believes

Moscow, August 21, Interfax - President of the Russian Association of Centers for Religious and Sectarian Studies Professor Alexander Dvorkin is concerned with Mormon activities in the Russian Federation.

"We have been informed that American Mormon missionaries were detained on the territory of secret military facilities more than once. They are accused of having CIA connections, and it is reasonable," he is quoted as saying by the Komsomolskaya Pravda daily on Thursday.

According to the professor, Mormons have commercial interest: "they actively buy fishing industry."Dvorkin called this sect "a rich transnational corporation."

"They always need people for "tithe" - a tenth part of income paid as a compulsory contribution to the sect. According to the experts, today Mormon's tithe makes one third of their income," he stated.

As Dvorkin said earlier, there are over 80 big sects active in more than half Russian regions. He thinks, minor sects numbers "in thousands."
____________
OK, just so no one is confused, LDS tithing is 1/10th of your income. I sure hope tithing in Russia is not 1/3. Compulsory even! Phew! That would be killer!

Dorf on Golf

2008-08-17T15:41:00.003-11:00

So I arranged a BYU law society luncheon on Friday. That's not the funny part, though. I also arranged for us to have a golf scramble afterward. Me? Golf? It just makes my lips numb to think about it. You could tie golf clubs to my hands and I would be golfing. Sort of like Bill Murray:

I have absolutely zippo experience golfing (except a few lessons when I was 12). When I showed up at the course, I was like, "um, can I share clubs with you?" Share? Clubs? Apparently it's not done. So one of the guys in our group went to his car and got another set of clubs for me. Then I realized--"oh, oops, I can't use those. I'm left-handed." I guess golf clubs are not baseball bats.

So I got my own leftie clubs and we got going. Thank goodness it was a "scramble" where we play the best ball! We were there for about 4 1/2 hours, but if I hit off my own position each time I would have easily have been there for 10 hours!

Golf is really just another one of Bill Murray's movies. It felt like "Groundhog Day" on every hole. I mean, you hit the ball 50 yards or so, drive up and take a few more swipes at the ball (occasionally striking out, even though it's not baseball), and then some other guy gets it in the hole. Then, when you realize you're two over par (whatever that is), you have to start AGAIN. Hit the ball, drive the cart, swipe a few more times, someone else hits it in the hole. AGAIN. Hit, drive, swipe. AGAIN. Hit drive swipe. 18 times.

At least I was golfing with some great guys. I mean, what kind of guy has it in him to zip it while you're swinging airballs one, two, three times in a row? These guys were nice. Of course, they were standing behind me, so I have no idea what they were doing.

Anyway, it was fun but not really me. Am I ready to ditch the sport of my profession? Maybe. At least I wouldn't mind if I didn't have to play... that much. But it'll happen again. I'm a lawyer for crying out loud!

Adoption Conference

2008-08-17T15:21:00.003-11:00

Last weekend we went to Boise to attend a conference on adoption. As most of you may know, we are anxiously awaiting to adopt a child. Jessi and I believe that adoption is one of the most marvelous blessings that a family can have in this life. We hope to be so blessed someday soon.

The Conference was wonderful. We both learned so much. It ended with a roundtable discussion with a group of women who had placed their children for adoption. We both learned quite a bit from these amazing women. I don't think I will ever understand the strength it would take to give your child to another.

While we were in Boise, we visited with Melissa and Logan and my parents. We went out to eat quite often, which can be fun but also expensive and fattening. Needless to say, we didn't go here:

I've heard of pro se litigants, but a restaurant? Ridiculous.

We stayed with our friends, Rod and Deena McArthur. They have four cute kids who loved playing with Jaydn. We really appreciated being able to stay with them!

Take me out to the...

2008-08-01T15:18:00.003-11:00

ballgame. Against the Casper Ghosts. You think they could have thought of a more original nickname?

The Chukars killed 'em. It's all right that we're named after a dumb bird, because at least a bird has a body.

Nevermind the double chin.

We sat right behind home plate. Jaydn picked the longest corndog in history for his snack. He is a corndogaholic.

We moved closer to the Chukars bullpen a little later in the game. Since it was the library reading day, there were kids all over the place. During the game, a gaggle of kids surrounded the small space leading into the bullpen anticipating autographs. The ballboy just shooed them away each time. Then, I noticed he was looking at us and had a ball in his hand. He motioned toward Jaydn, so I told Jaydn to walk over to him. Jaydn was so excited when he got an official Pioneer league baseball from the ballboy. I guess it pays to be calm and patient, like Jaydn.

We left in the seventh inning, pretty confident that the "Ghosts" had absolutely no chance of winning. The funnest part of the night for me was seeing Jaydn have a good time.

Happy Birthday, Jessi!

2008-07-30T03:49:00.002-11:00

I love you, my 29 year-old hottie.

Twin Falls Temple

2008-07-27T10:19:00.002-11:00

We toured the new Twin Falls Temple on Saturday. It was a marvelous experience. If anyone has never been inside a Mormon Temple before, you should go. This is your chance. I think that the open house is for another two to three weeks. And you don't need a ticket or a reservation.

I promise you will not regret it.

Twin Falls Bowling

2008-07-27T10:16:00.004-11:00

Bowling is a secret family pastime for the Coletti's. We went with our friends, the Anderson's from Twin Falls.

And I am getting better.

Craters

2008-07-27T09:42:00.007-11:00

One of the strangest places on Earth is right here in Idaho.

On Saturday, we stopped on our trip to Twin Falls and walked on the moon.

Craters of the Moon is one of the largest smears and piles of lava flow you'll ever see. Get one glance at this spot and you'll instantly wonder how it all came to be.

Eruption after eruption after eruption created this massive glob of lava rock over several thousand years. Some spots literally look like thousands of dump trucks came and unloaded tons of lava rock all over the place.

We toured some of the strange lava formations, and climbed up dormant volcanos.

Jessi showed off her musculos for the camera, right in front of a decrepid tree.Then we dipped into some of the lava tube caves in the area. But with flip-flops, crocs and shorts on, and no flashlights, we were not prepared to go too deep. Nevertheless, it was enough to capture Jaydn's attention.

We even saw some wildlife in this forsaken place.

That... was a hawk.

What a fun way to spend a few hours.

They know more than you think

2008-07-27T09:38:00.002-11:00

I'm used to hearing, "look, mom, a golden eagle" every time we drive somewhere. Seriously, every large bird in the sky is a golden eagle.

So when we were watching Planet Earth a few days ago, a large bird could be seen in the distance on the screen. Jaydn instantly said, "that's a golden eagle." I smirked.

Then, David Attenborough: "The golden eagle soars through the air . . . ."

Huh. I'll never underestimate him again.

Lagoon

2008-07-17T16:16:00.007-11:00

OK, so I struggled my way on a two and 1/2 hour car ride with a sore back to Lagoon. But things are going better for my back, thankfully.

We stayed with my cousins, Joe and Lori Oliver. They are great friends, with a similar family to ours. Jaydn really enjoys their kids, Emma and James. Jessi really gets along well with Lori. And Joe and I are as similar as cousins get.

On Wednesday morning we entered the park. Normally, you'd probably make your way to the big roller-coasters first, right? But when you're with kids, Kiddieland is your first stop.

I don't know what the deal was with the kiddie ride that gets you soaking wet. Kids love to get wet, even with clothes on! Sheesh! Jaydn, Emma and James LOVED this ride:Then on to spaceships, airplanes, dragons, bumper cars, and captive animals, and it was then time for us parents to find a ride of our own!

We went on the new ride, Wicked. Wow. That thing really packs a punch! Jaydn joined us on a few big boy rides as well. We love the ferris wheel.

Get a load of this--The "Catapult," which literally catapults you up hundreds of feet in the air, has a handicap entrance. I must be near-dead, because I wouldn't step one foot near that thing.
Lagoon A Beach was really fun. We spent most of our time there. Jaydn even went on several hefty waterslides without a flinch.

Then, after getting dry, the kids wanted to play in the central water-shooting thing-a-ma-jiggy. So they were wet again.

We finished off the day with a great big dinner at Sizzler, said goodbye to our friends, and, drove home?!

Oh man, am I tired.

Awesome

2008-07-17T16:02:00.005-11:00

On Tuesday we left for Lagoon. But, backtracking a bit, a little after lunch I made my way to Rigby for a hearing. I was a little short on time, and I needed to meet my clients quickly. So I didn't take the first Rigby exit. When I got to the second Rigby exit, it was closed! I had five minutes until the hearing, and there was only one lane open because the road crew were working!

So I drove another five miles until I could turn around. Coming back, the OTHER Rigby exit was closed! Oh, man, by this time my hearing was probably starting! I've never wanted to be late to a hearing; certainly not this one! So I had to drive all the way past Rigby, make sure no police were around, and take the emergency turn to get back on the highway so I could get into Rigby's first exit.

By the time I got to court, my mind was scrambling on how to explain my tardiness to the court. Do I blame it on the road crew? Judges hate it when you blame things on others. Do I just say "sorry"? That won't work, because then he'll think I was late for my own reasons. I settled on telling the judge that I got confused by the exit closures.

Luckily, his previous hearings were running late. Phew! I got there just in time--10 minutes late, to be exact.

But I can't tell you how wonderful this hearing was. Nonconfrontational. No opposition. We won. The absolute best of my extremely short career so far. In fact, I almost cried.

Instead of telling you about it, I'll let my friends do it.

Ouch

2008-07-13T16:11:00.003-11:00

I was putting on my socks Thursday morning at the athletic club when something really bad happened.

As I stood on one foot and lifted my other one up to put on my sock (you can see it coming), I felt something go out.

My back.

I fell on the floor, on hands and knees, in terrible pain. Guys in the locker room stopped what they were doing and wondered what I was doing on the floor. My pride made sure to let everyone know I was all right, that I didn't need help.

Except it took me 30 minutes to get dressed, and I never got my socks on.

All I could think about in this moment was, "how am I going to get to work?" I mean, it was an important day at work and I had a big project to finish. WHY does my back have to go out on a day like this?

Needless to say, I am getting through it. Life goes on. My mother has a bad back. My father has a bad back. My grandmothers on both sides of my family had back surgery. I, am destined.

I don't know why I am telling you all of this. Maybe it's to rub some of the pain off onto you. Maybe I just needed to blog again after doing piddly nothing for so long. Or maybe I have no good reason.

But there has to be a point. Ah yes! I have to keep telling myself that everyone, everyone (even Arnold Schwarzenegger) has at least ONE physical ailment or defect (except maybe my wife). I have extremely many. But this one is probably going to be the worst. I don't have to ask God "why?" every time it goes out. I know I am not alone in the dysfunctional body club.

There! A blog entry to make me feel better. Now if my back can only look like "Ah-nolds" someday . . . .

My Mom's Patriotic Cake

2008-07-12T08:14:00.002-11:00

It was good.

Father's Day Pic

2008-07-12T08:05:00.002-11:00

Not sure why I didn't add this to my Father's Day blog--

Jaydn at the Air Show

2008-07-12T08:01:00.001-11:00

Had to get this one on the blog --

But seriously...

2008-07-06T15:41:00.002-11:00

We had a great Independence Day. We went to the Idaho Falls firework show. Melaleuca calls it the "biggest west of the Mississippi." I'm not sure where they get that. Bigger than firework shows in cities covering more than half the size of the United States? Houston? Phoenix? Salt Lake City? Los Angeles? Seattle? I'd like to see some quantitative proof. Oh well. At least it was fun.

We watched from the grass of the new Hilton Garden Inn Hotel. My parents came, as well as Jessi's parents, Jared, Chandler, and Jared's boys.
Just getting out of the parking lot took us more than 30 minutes after the show.

On Saturday, we had a barbeque at my in-laws' place. This has kind of become a tradition since it's Chandler's birthday on July 5. Then we went out and saw Iron Man while the kiddies did fireworks.

We're really blessed. I can't think of another place I'd rather be than here!

Happy 4th

2008-07-05T11:34:00.001-11:00

From the Muppets.

Firsts

2008-06-16T07:05:00.003-11:00

A weekend of firsts--our first trip to an air show. Jaydn's first time riding his bike without training wheels! And my first full-out run (in church clothes) home from church next to Jaydn while he gets more riding experience. And, accordingly, my first heavy Idaho sweat after attending church meetings.

My first trimming of the edges on the grass in the front yard on our new house. My first use of almost all of the trimming cord in one day of trimming.

Like you really wanted to know all that.

Trunk Monkey

2008-06-10T16:18:00.002-11:00

If you've already seen these, just humor me and watch them again. They're hilarious.

Fishing

2008-06-09T16:48:00.003-11:00

On Saturday we went to the free fishing day at Freeman Park with Grandpa Grigg.

It was cold, and no fish were caught, but we had a good time.

What is up with this crazy Idaho June anyway? Will we ever have summer?

I'm spoiled from living a year in AS.

They're Engaged!

2008-06-09T16:45:00.000-11:00

Angela and Jey are engaged!!!

Baby Names

2008-06-02T07:32:00.005-11:00

OK, we're not thinking about them yet, and have no reason to think yet (so don't get any ideas), but I thought these real Samoan names placed on Markus and Liz's blog were just priceless.

29
Abcde
Aetalo - means eat taro
Afasene (half-a-cent)
Alcapone
Anewvision
Army and Navy (Brothers)
Baby
Batchlor (spelled like that)
Bear
Beaver Ho Ching
Billclinton
Boyblue
California
Christmas
Cinderella
Clever
Conference
Dynamite
Eddie & Edwin (Two brothers, possibly twins)
Fa'afetai (thank you)
Fa'afetai Fa'afetai Jr.
Fabulous
Fantastic
Fiapapalagi
Gasoliga (remember the g=n)
Hail-Mary
Han Solo
Happy
Hurricane
Kirisimasi (Christmas)
Kuwait
Larrybird
LBJ (The hospital is named LBJ)
Lima (5 or hand in Samoan, was probably the fifth kid)
Marie Antoinette Resurrected
Moonstar
Muliei
New Year
Nixon
Omaha
Oti (dead)
Pago Pago
Pluto
Ponce de Leon
Popeye
Poti (Male Sex Organ)
PrettyPrincess
Pu'u Brown
Queen
Rainmaker
Rapture
Rectal
Rocky and Rambo (brothers)
Roketi (Rocket---tons of those)
Saddam
Salvation
Samoa
Shaqkobe or Kobeshaq
Socrates
Souvenir
Sterchicht
Superbowl
Tajmahal
Tutuila (The name of the island)
Ultimate Warrior
United States of America
United States of Samoa

I personally enjoyed seeing "Helicopter" for a name when I was there.

So, if any of you are expecting...

Yellowstone, Part Deux

2008-05-31T12:23:00.009-11:00

We went back to Yellowstone over Memorial Day weekend, hoping it would be sunny. It pretty much rained the whole time.

Here's the whole gang:

We stopped at Old Faithful, of course.

Yellowstone Lake was still frozen!

Angela is seriously dating a guy named Jey. He's from Sri Lanka, and I can't for the life of me ever remember how to spell his full name. He's really a great guy for Angela.

We forgot Jaydn's coat! So he had to wear Angela's:

Buffalo (I mean, ahem, "Bison") were prevalent in Yellowstone.

This bison is "bound for the promised land:"

There's even a "Bison Lane" on the road.

Just kidding, but they did get very close. Check out the baby bison. There were a lot of them.
What does this mean? I had a hard time imagining how I could walk "slippery." Of course, I could only do so when I was "wet." Maybe it applies if you get doused by a geyser. Jaydn made his best "I Love Yellowstone" face:

Going back home, we stopped by the IMAX and watched a show. People in the car got a little crazy when I turned on Abba:

Wow

2008-05-27T03:35:00.002-11:00

http://www.defenselink.mil/dodcmsshare/BloggerAssets/2008-05/05140810405920080514_CaptHall_audio.mp3

Here's a link to a long interview of Captain Trevor Hall discussing his recent flight into Myannmar (Burma) to deliver relief supplies to the survivors of the recent storm there. I graduated high school with Trevor and was his trainer in the mission field in Seoul, Korea. He is a good friend. His adventures with the military are amazing!

Mark and Andrea Hales' Wedding

2008-05-25T13:29:00.012-11:00

On Friday we drove down to Utah to attend Mark and Andrea's wedding. We drove down with Jessi's high school friend, Kalana. In Centerville, we picked up Ali Pili, a friend from American Samoa.

On Saturday morning we drove down to Manti, Utah. I hadn't taken that trip for some time, and I only had a vague memory of the canyon we drove through from when I lived in Price, Utah (a LONG time ago). I didn't remember it (Spanish Fork Canyon?) being so beautiful. Manti was also very nice.

Jessi, Ali and I stopped to take pictures before the wedding ceremony.

The Manti Temple has a lot of history. It is one of the first (perhaps even the first?) Temple built by the Latter-Day Saints once the pioneers came to Utah. So it is really old, but so beautiful.

This view makes it look like a castle.After the ceremony, we all came up and congratulated and hugged Mark and Andrea. It was beautiful, and they were (are) so happy. Jessi and I are so happy for them.

Pictures aren't taken of the actual wedding ceremony inside the Temple. But I did get a whole bunch of candid shots of Mark and Andrea as they exited the Temple.

Later that afternoon we went to their barbeque in Murray, Utah.

Mark wore the "Groom" shirt with a ball and chain for the "o"s. Andrea's shirt had a whip on it.

Right before we left, we took a picture with Mark and Andrea and all of our friends from American Samoa who came to the barbeque. From left to right, (Elder) Brandon Owens, Mark and Andrea, Jessi, Ali Pili, me, (front row) Pyper Jones, Caroline Carter, Jaydn.

Mark and Andrea are now on their way to the Carribean.

I can't think of a better way to spend your weekend than to see your good friends get married.

Do You have a Spouse Like This?

2008-05-18T15:07:00.002-11:00

I was in court on Thursday morning. When I came back, two of the secretaries in my firm confronted me with grins on their faces and asked me if Jessi likes to call in to radio shows. I said that she did, but only if it was a contest. Their grins got bigger, and I said that if they knew something they should spill the beans.

Well, they explained that Jessi had called in on a contest where you had to "brag" on your man or otherwise explain what you wanted to change about him. The conversation must have gone something like this:

Host: "Hi, who is this?"

Jessi: "Jessi."

Host: "Jessi, where are you calling from?"

Jessi: "Ammon."

Host: "OK Jessi, now what is your husband's name?"

Jessi: "His name is Sean."

Host: "What does Sean do that you like or dislike?"

Jessi: "Well, right before he falls asleep at night, his legs start to shake and twitch really fast and the covers start moving. That's when I know he's really asleep."

Host: "That's funny. You must really love him, then. I know that would certainly be a turn-on for me. (Exhaggerating here, mind you)."

Jessi: "Yeah, I do, and it is."

OK, so while I know the general gist of what was said, I elaborated on it a little. I didn't actually HEAR it, so I don't know exactly what was said.

But this is the point to be made--there is probably only one Jessi, who lives in Ammon, who is married to Sean. That means that everyone who knew Jessi or me now knows that I shake my legs before I fall asleep.

Is it good to be known for this?

A Grand-Mother's Day

2008-05-18T14:57:00.002-11:00

This blog entry is a little old, but I just wanted to say how much I loved Mother's Day this year. There is nothing better than being able to spend Mother's Day with all of the "mothers" in your life. Last year we treated Jessi, but this year we had Jessi, my mom, Jessi's mom, and my grandmother.

The Saturday before Mother's Day we took my grandmother out to eat and then fed the ducks at the Falls. It was a nice day, but still kind of cold.

The Falls will always have a special fondness for me. I asked Jessi to marry me here.

Jaydn's Song and Dance

2008-05-18T04:15:00.003-11:00

Here's a vid from Jaydn's school singing class performance. Watch him boogie. I especially like the eyebrow move.

Watch Dad Hit the Ball

2008-05-08T16:09:00.003-11:00

He's still got it in him to play ball. Much better hitter than I ever was.

Awesome Story

2008-05-05T11:30:00.002-11:00

I don't know if you have seen this, but it's pretty cool. Amazing moment in sports history.

HOLY Papayas

2008-04-22T08:14:00.005-11:00

I saw this picture on the Temple's blog, and thought it deserved special attention because of this blog's name.

Where the heck did you find such huge papayas, Ephraim and Melinda?

Witness to a Killing

2008-04-14T15:11:00.006-11:00

On Saturday Jaydn and I, as well as Les, Chandler and my Dad went down to the Utah Jazz basketball game. We had dinner at the Olive Garden, and then walked over to the game.

We stopped for a moment at the collection of Ford Mustangs out in front of the arena. Then Chandler's eye caught sight of something even better.

A Ferarri.

See the smile on his face?

Jaydn looks like he's thinking, "oh, the power!! Yes!!!"

We had great seats at the game.

I mean, here's the view from our upper bowl seats. The pictures above were captured with my zoom lens.

Go forth thou bald head, you're too bright!

Jaydn had a blast, but only when he wasn't whacking me in the head with his blow-up noisemakers.

I'm not sure what "A pa mini" means.

The Jazz won, 124-97. A killing. And we loved every minute of it.

Conference Weekend

2008-04-06T15:02:00.005-11:00

Conference is a good excuse to get off work early. Especially when you are going to Utah to see family, Mark the Shark, and also have Priesthood tickets.

I was a general grump on the trip down. Large lunch, too much computer research and a 3:30 pm departure turned me into a grump. Nobody was funny. No one had anything good to say. Four hours of driving, humph. Get me out of this car.

Saturday was much better. In the morning we visited Mark and Andrea for breakfast at Andrea's apartment. They are just a cute little engaged couple. Check out their pictures at http://www.mark-and-andrea.blogspot.com/.

After the first Saturday session, I had scheduled for Jessi and I to visit the JRCLS law luncheon at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. But driving into SLC downtown at conference time is ridiculous. So we stopped at a UTA shuttle train station and rode to Temple Square.

I really shouldn't have told Jessi and just about everyone else that a general authority was probably speaking at the luncheon. I think I used the word "probably" when explaining it to people, but I don't think Jessi did. So, a whole bunch of people thought we were going to some big thing (well so did I, actually).

It turned out to be just another big shmooze-fest put on by BYU Law School. Oh sure, there were a few judges and professors, but mostly law students and alumni were there. Once Jessi realized that no general authority would be speaking, I realized that I had turned a few hors d' oeuvres into a really impressive-sounding hot-shot lunch party. Jessi just laughed at me. I felt like "baa-ing" like a sheep. You know those times when you are really glad you are married to your date? This was one of those times.

We took our cheesy picture in front of the Temple (above), and headed back to our car.

I came back with Les, Jared and Chandler and attended the Priesthood Session. We had spectacular seats. I mean, some of the best, I think. We were close enough to see the expressions on the general authorities' faces as they spoke. It is really something that everyone should have the opportunity to experience. Twenty-thousand plus Priesthood holders in one room. During the opening prayer, I could have sworn we had all caught whooping cough or something. When 20,000+ men are completely quiet, all you can hear is the prayer, and a WHOLE bunch of people clearing their throats.

And if you've never seen President Monson wiggle his ears, you missed out. It was hilarious.

So very impressive and spiritual. Twelve-year old deacons taking copious notes. Fathers and sons together receiving guidance at the feet of the prophets. My favorite talk was by President Eyring about the oath and covenant of the Priesthood. Beautiful music. I enjoyed every minute of it.

We watched the Sunday sessions at Jessi's brother's house in Orem. It was a wonderful Conference weekend.

Equal Justice

2008-04-04T05:15:00.002-11:00

This, I think, is the latest funny coming out of American Samoa. Whoever said it was difficult to get a public defender needed to move to AS. Usually, your eligibility is based upon your income. Well, in the latest criminal case to hit the headlines, the mayor of the capitol of American Samoa, Pago Pago, was represented in court by a public defender. Sheesh! He must really be hard up for cash!

http://samoanews.com/friday.04042008/story1.html

A Nightmare

2008-04-03T03:37:00.003-11:00

Last night I woke up to a blood-curtling scream. "MOM! MOM! MOM!...." I ran into Jaydn's room to see what was wrong. "Why are you screaming?" "I don't know," he says, as he lays his head back on his pillow and goes back to sleep. I walked back into our bedroom and Jessi mumbles, "you should check the chart." Whatever. I'm going back to sleep.

A few minutes later, "MOM! MOM! MOM!!!" This time, I don't respond. Jessi brings Jaydn into our bed.

Next thing I know, Jessi turns to me in the middle of the night and says, "D, E, F, G, A, B, C," and then lays back down. Teaching piano in her sleep or something.

Can you tell they are related?

Jon Schmidt

2008-03-29T09:55:00.002-11:00

Last night we went to a Jon Schmidt concert in Rexburg. Jaydn went with us because he is becoming quite the pianist. Jaydn remembers the music from his entire opera that he put on with his class, and he has plucked it all out on the piano now. So he really enjoyed Jon Schmidt's piano playing.

I used to have no appreciation for "ear players." "Why can't they just learn how to read music?" I thought. Plus, usually their music all sounds the same. Same beat, same set of chords, etc.

I'm not saying that Jon Schmidt can't read music. I'm sure he can. But when you come from a music reading background, it's hard to appreciate ear players.

But Jon Schmidt is amazing. He plays the piano with absolutely no hesitation. His music is quite fun. I hadn't heard much of his stuff before the concert, but I really enjoyed it.

He is also the ultimate entertainer. His antics on the piano add to the fun.

The coolest part of the concert was when he asked for someone in the audience to yell out the blues notes (is that what they're called??). A guy, who I'm guessing was a BYU-I student, jumped up and yelled them all out. So Jon called the guy up and told him to play blues on the piano alongside him. Totally unstaged. For the next few minutes they both rocked out on the piano. It was pretty neat.

Anyway, I'm not a pianist, so I can't explain how fun the concert was. But I have put some of Jon Schmidt's music on the blog, so check it out.

Jaydn is now plucking out on the piano the notes to "Waterfall" (see below).

A Face from the Past

2008-03-28T09:01:00.002-11:00

I ran into Professor Marlor (my old poli-sci teacher at Ricks) today at my law firm. He was here for an Idaho Citizen's Law Academy meeting. He's still the same great guy. I thought some of you would get a kick out of that (Darcy).

What's in a Name?

2008-03-25T13:28:00.002-11:00

These name changes are pretty funny.

What would you change your name to?

Kid Opera

2008-03-24T15:16:00.003-11:00

I have to backtrack a little for this entry. Jaydn's 1st grade class put on an opera a few weeks ago. They wrote the words. They wrote the storyline. And they helped write the music. They even created the set.

1st grade.

In the opera, they are pilgrim kids that fall asleep and wake up in 2008. They go to school but are really confused, don't like the food, and can't understand their teacher. So, they figure they need to get back in time, so they get in their Delorean (oops, wrong story), I mean, they try a potion with hair and pickles but it doesn't work. So they create a time machine and, suddenly, they wake up as pilgrim kids again.

Yup, 1st grade.

Easter 2008

2008-03-24T15:00:00.004-11:00

I enjoy Easter. Kinda just the opposite of my St. Patrick's Day entry, I know.

On Saturday we had a big Easter egg hunt in our backyard. My parents, Jessi's parents, Melissa and Logan and Chandler and Angela all came. It was really fun to be with everyone, but for goodness sakes, why was there still snow on the ground? I mean, my mom hid Easter eggs in the snow!

Logan found an egg in our window well, but he looks like he's breaking and entering.

Afterward, we went to Bajio's for lunch for my birthday.

On Sunday, we all met at Jessi's parents' home and had Easter dinner. Oh, and a carrot cake for me. I like carrot cake.

Jaydn & I played chess. Jaydn plays chess?! Yup.

The question is whether I ever let him win.

Easter Thoughts

2008-03-22T16:44:00.002-11:00

I found this article on Mormons' view of the resurrection to be very interesting.

May all have a very special Easter holiday.

Support from the Far Left

2008-03-21T10:29:00.003-11:00

Here's a nice article offering some support for Barack - from the Communist Party USA.

"Barack Obama’s campaign has so far generated the most excitement, attracted the most votes, most volunteers and the most money. We think the basic reason for this is that his campaign has the clearest message of unity and progressive change, while having a real possibility for victory in November."

http://cpusa.org/article/articleview/907/1/4/

El Birthday Presente

2008-03-19T16:31:00.003-11:00

I had a birthday party today with family. By far the funniest gift I got was the Twinkie Container. Conteneur de Twinkie. Contenedor para Twinkie. Yes, his name is "Twinkie the Kid," and he "Will Hold One Twinkie." "Tiendra Une Twinkie." "Sostendra Una Twinkie."

And that's not his diaper.

St. Patty's

2008-03-18T16:00:00.002-11:00

This "holiday" is only two days before my big 31st. I walked out the door yesterday for work and groaned. I forgot to wear green. So I went back in and pulled a green tie off the tie rack and drove to work.

Even if my name is "Sean," I can't figure out St. Patty's Day. Honestly, I didn't even wear the tie. In fact, I think only three people in my office had green on. Of course, it was a whole lot different back in Connecticut, where it seemed everything bled Irish, Catholic, greeeen. There, you got invited to some real St. Patrick's Day parties. And some you had to turn down just to make sure you came back from the party still a Mormon.

I stayed late at work on St. Patty's Day. At about 6 pm I watched the 10-minute parade come down Park Avenue from my office window. Mostly firemen in kilts playing drums and bagpipes, and a whole bunch of people looking for a bar. A kilt in March in Idaho sounds terrible. I wouldn't mind a lava lava in March in American Samoa, however.

Jaydn enjoyed St. Patrick's Day. We totally forgot to tell him he had to wear green. He came home and said, "Mom, everyone was pinching me today." I felt pretty silly. He did get some cool cookies, though, so all was well.

No, St. Patrick's Day has never meant that much to me, unfortunately. All it means is that spring should be starting, and I will be getting older soon. But I guess that's a good enough reason to celebrate!?

Pretty Impressive

2008-03-15T14:02:00.001-11:00

No matter what you think about him, this video is pretty impressive.

The Hermit Kingdom

2008-03-10T14:44:00.003-11:00

On my mission I had a unique opportunity to visit the 38th Parallel, the Demilitarized Zone (oddly named, because it is the MOST militarized area on the globe). We needed a special referral back then from US military personnel, and, thankfully, one was being taught the discussions.

The train had a short delay on the way north. I remember sitting in the cab and suddenly feeling a thud. Slowly, the train came to a stop. We had hit someone. Everyone was curious, and many of us hopped off the train to see what had happened. Apparently, a Korean woman had been out farming and didn't hear the horn blaring from the train. Perhaps she heard it everyday and was either deaf or just wasn't thinking. I didn't get close enough to see the dead body due to a throng of people surrounding her. But, unfortunately, I did see her as we passed.

Once we got to our stop, we took a bus ride into one of the many military bases on the DMZ. I had to get out my dictionary so I could read the signs that lined the roads that said "Danger - Landmines."

We stopped on the U.N. base where my companion and I shot a picture in front of the "World's Most Dangerous Golf Course - As Shown on Sports Illustrated." Below that it said, "Danger: Live Minefield on the Green" or something like that.

Our next stop was at an observatory. We entered a room with a huge glass wall overlooking DMZ and the North Korean side of the border. We could look through binoculars at the North, or what you could see of it. Our guide informed us that we should not make any sudden or inflammatory moves or arm gestures, as we, too, were likely being watched from the North.

The view was fascinating. The first thing I noticed was that the South Korean side and all of the DMZ line looked like typical Korea--lush and green. Immediately when you looked past the DMZ onto the North Korean side of the border, and as far as the eye could see north, it was COMPLETELY barren. Not a tree to be seen, no grass, no bushes--nothing. Our guide told us that the North had bulldozed everything for a combination of fuel and to remove any cover for a potential South Korean infiltration (as if the South really wanted to infiltrate the North). I figured that both were true, as well as possibly some sort of punishment from on high for a very evil regime. Who knows.

I could only see two cities in North Korea from my vantage point. Or, at least that's what I thought they were. They actually looked quite nice, with newer buildings. But as I looked closer and spent more time perusing the cities, I realized that nobody actually lives in them. They were just for show--to make the South think the North was a nice place.

Far into the distance I could see the closest Kim Il Sung statue. Kim Il Sung was the founding, ruthless dictator of North Korea. Massive golden and bronzed statues of Kim Il Sung are scattered across the North, to remind the people who their god is. And they do worship him as a god. You may have seen those huge Buddha statues in photographs from friends who had traveled to Asia. Well, the Kim Il Sung statues are probably just as big, but instead of being a great philosopher and religious leader of peace they portray a very wicked dictator who ruthlessly killed tens of millions of Koreans.

Perhaps the most interesting was the propaganda from both sides. The North had signs strewn all over the border that stated things like "Come to North Korea and Live Like a King!" or "You are Important in North Korea!" Kim Jong Il, King Il Sung's just-as-impressive dictator son, had billboards put up of his favorite movie star. He is, of course, a huge fan of movies from the United States--even if he won't let his people watch them.

South Korea, on the other hand, had the trademark South Korean neon crosses all over their side of the border. At Christmas, they blared Christmas music to the North. They, too, told the North how wonderful it was to live in South Korea, only they weren't lying. Both sides, apparently, thought they could lure the opposing side's soldiers with their big talk. Although I'm not sure, I would bet money that the South has had more defectors than the North (just a guess).

From the observatory, we hopped back on the bus and drove to one of several large tunnels. Apparently sometime in the '60s or '70s, North Korea started digging. I believe we were told they had probably built about 10 of these tunnels, although the South Koreans had only found about seven. These were not your ordinary tunnels, mind you. Each tunnel led from the Northern side of the border, under the DMZ (2.5 miles wide) and up onto the Southern side, just like a gopher. The tunnels were big enough to fit a North Korean jeep with four soldiers. So, you can probably picture a large-scale infiltration from the North with hundreds of these jeeps driving through the tunnels and up onto the South, only a stone's throw away from 20 million people in Seoul.

Anyway, the South had found like seven of these, and had exploded the Northern side closed. We walked down into one of the tunnels. It was amazing to see how wide these were. How could no one have seen or heard what they were doing! It was simply amazing. At the end of the tunnel was an armed South Korean soldier standing motionless and looking in our direction. He stood on our side of a small room that the South had created. Inside the room was a bird in a cage. On the other side of the room was another armed South Korean soldier looking at the exploded rock closure. Every so often, the soldiers would check the bird to see if it was still alive. If it was dead, the soldiers would need to get out fast because it meant the North was gassing the tunnel.

North Korea is an extremely odd place. A few years ago I read a fascinating book, "Aquariums of Pyongyang." This was the true story of a man thrown into a North Korean gulag (prison camp) for something like listening to outside radio. He eventually escaped and crossed into China, where he had to dodge Chinese authorities to make it to the South Korean consulate (the Chinese would send him back to North Korea if they caught him). He finally made it to South Korea, where, surprisingly, he has largely been ostracized by many South Koreans who obviously have NO idea what he has been through.

I wish I had time to talk more about this book, or other things I've learned about the North. When you learn these things, you scratch your head and say to yourself, "is this the same world we live in?" This same sentiment is expressed by a CBS News reporter in a new article.

We are SERIOUSLY blessed to live here in the United States!!

Playlist

2008-03-09T13:04:00.002-11:00

I'm having too much fun with my Playlist that I've added to the blog. Whenever I'm on the computer I like to have the blog open so I can listen to all this great music! OK, you probably don't have the same taste as I do, but you can at least see how fun it is to get free music.

I can't believe I found "February Song" on Playlist! This song SO reminds me of Samoa. I listen to it and I am back there in a flash. I can see the beautiful mountains, smell the breeze, see the stray dogs and garbage, etc. Ahh, memories.

You gotta love it

2008-03-01T17:28:00.001-11:00

The lesson in Nursery tomorrow is "I Am Thankful For Water." Isn't Nursery great?

They all wanna be missionaries

2008-03-01T06:25:00.000-11:00

It doesn't work for everybody.

Waterboarding at Work

2008-03-01T05:13:00.002-11:00

I can't believe it. A supervisor at a motivational coaching business (whatever that means) in Provo is accused of waterboarding an employee in front of his sales team to demonstrate that they should work as hard on sales as the employee had worked to breathe.

http://www.sltrib.com/ci_8385103

Now THAT'S motivation!

The King's Singers

2008-02-28T15:14:00.003-11:00

I've always believed that a good "concert" is attended not for the band or the atmosphere, but for the music. I enjoy musical groups that strive for excellence in music, and are not only performing for the entertainment value.

One such group that achieves excellence time and time again is "The King's Singers." They may not be familiar to you, and that may be because you may not enjoy classical music. But this six-part men's acappella group originating from King's College in England is the gold standard for small ensemble vocal groups.

And Jessi and I attended their concert at BYU-I on Tuesday night.

As an example of their excellence, after the concert started the group was introduced by a BYU-Idaho student. Everyone burst into applause. The King's Singers walked out on stage and up to their music stands. There were no instruments. No pitch was played. But once the last clap could be heard, the six men burst into six-part perfect harmony.

Now that is hard to do.

While the King's Singers sang, they listened. Listening probably comprises 1/3 of their talent. Why? Because they strive for perfection in their harmonies, and this requires that a group listen to each other. And there is no more amazing musical feeling than to feel, and know, that a music chord has just achieved perfection.

The Singers also excel at breathing. Breathing is one of the other 1/3rds of their talent. They can hold out long notes and their breaths don't make noise. I hate it when you can hear a singer's breathing just as loud as their singing. Also, the Singers used no microphones. They were, of course, in the wonderful Barrus Concert Hall, but they also could sing out because of excellent breath control.

You know you're listening to a classy music group when they explain the composer and background of a song before they sing, and do not spend each non-singing minute blowing their own horn. This, also, is the King's Singers.

They sang intensely soft, and beautifully strong--two very difficult things to do. When they sang as six, they sounded as if they were one. When they sang as three or four, they sounded like an entire choir.

I just cannot say enough about the King's Singers. I hope you get to listen to them someday.

Bowling

2008-02-24T06:11:00.003-11:00

We hit the bowling alley on Saturday.

Nice form, Jaydn!
Grandpa Grigg was a pro. Before we got there he said his average was 180 --10 years ago. He finished with 183.
Graceful!
Then there's me. Gag! It look like I'm letting go of my lunch or something!

You may notice that the bumpers were up the whole time we were playing. That's because we were playing with Jaydn. But the lanes never put the bumpers down when it was the adults' turns.

Even WITH the bumpers I didn't even scratch 100.

Jessi beat me with her "shuffle."

Believe it or not

2008-02-21T16:23:00.001-11:00

Here's a crazy story from American Samoa. Or maybe not. Actually, for AS, it seems pretty normal to me.

http://www.rnzi.com/pages/news.php?op=read&id=38170

Snow Cave

2008-02-19T19:13:00.003-11:00

My boy has an unfortunate bad case of eczema on the back of his legs that is taking its toll. I don't usually do this, but any comments or suggestions would be appreciated.

Boy, doesn't that cave look fun?

MARK IS ENGAGED

2008-02-18T05:52:00.001-11:00

Check it out:

http://mark-and-andrea.blogspot.com/

Apparently they credit their Idaho Falls trip to their decision to get married. Really, we take all the credit.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

The Battleground

2008-02-17T17:00:00.005-11:00

After a nice, inspirational Sacrament Meeting, I was ready and conditioned for what the next two hours would bring--shell shock.

I stepped into the Nursery room today on this, my second week as a Nursery leader. I was pleasantly surprised to find that I was the only one called to this position that would be in attendance.

With 12+ kids.

Fortunately, I had three very capable parents who stayed and assisted.

The first 20 minutes of Nursery is--pure and simple--cry control. Some children were born to be in Nursery. They are affectionately called my "no-cling kids." If there are snacks on the table, they are oblivious to the fact that their parents have left the room. They entertain themselves, are tough as nails, and never shed a tear.

Others you may call "duct-tape children." These children require some of your effort to remove from their parents. Some are simply "super glue kids;" they are not removed, and remain with mamma or daddy for the duration of adult meetings.

I especially love my "duct-tape children." I think it is because once I get them off of their parents, they are stuck on me--just like duct tape. They don't particularly care about the snacks, but can be distracted by goofy adults trying to entertain them with small toys. They may often be seen either hanging from the Nursery door handles or playing with cars while crying to themselves, "mamma... VROOM... mamma... VROOM."

The best part about duct tape children are that they simply want your attention. They love to be held. And I enjoy that, too.

Then there's the lesson. I realized that it's somewhat difficult to get a two or three-year old to understand that the Holy Ghost doesn't have a body. Picture YOURSELF as a two year old trying to grasp that something is simply invisible.

That's why lecturing this age is like talking to leaves on the tree. Nothing you simply "say" to them is going to keep them engaged. Pictures are children's best friends (aside from tangible objects, of course). But keeping children sat on the floor while attempting to show them items in my lap is practically impossible. "Look at this... oh, now go sit down or I can't show it to you. See this? No, you need to sit down. And this... NO..."

Am I sending mixed messages?

Lessons only work for 2-3 minutes TOPS. Any longer and most children are wrestling, pushing, playing, or picking noses. I learned that the hard way today. Only one girl followed my mouth until I was finished, but I'm afraid she still didn't understand my inability to speak in two-sies talk.

All the while, parents in attendance could do nothing but chuckle at this madhouse.

But my saving grace is the last 20 minutes of bubble blowing. What toys or fruit snacks can't accomplish, small spheres of goopy soap amazingly can. Children are innocently awe-struck at bubbles. There is, of course, the amusing child who sits smirking at the soap bubbles that smack into his face, but can't bring himself to trying to pop them with his hands.

At the end, it is with mixed emotion of adoration and relief that I stick the duct-tape children back on their parents. No-cling kids are simply released back into the wilds of the hallway, and super-glue kids reappear attached to parents who are peeking into the Nursery to look for other children.

After I am released from my tour of duty every Sunday, I can't help but look back and tell myself how lucky I am to work with the cutest and most adorable bunch in the church. Much better than sitting next to scruffy, smelly, ugly Elders, right?

My Valentine

2008-02-14T18:48:00.003-11:00

Can I just tell you about my valentine?

She's perfect, but can settle for imperfection. I'm a perfect (?) example.

She's makes me smile the instant I walk in the door,

And I smile inside every time I think of her.

She's of secondary importance in her own mind,

But she consumes mine.

She just makes me want to be

everything,

And I am, when I'm with her.

BOY, I LUCKED OUT, DIDN'T I?

This surely makes you appreciate something

2008-02-13T17:03:00.003-11:00

The next time you think, "man, I hate my job" (this doesn't apply to me--I like my job, just not my trip to Bozeman), just think of this guy. He spent 37 years tracking the Loch Ness Monster. Now he's convinced that it died because of global warming.

Doh!