William is born

Our baby boy, William Michael, was born yesterday, Tuesday, September 21, 2010. We've been through baby births a few times, and I tell you, it is special every time. William was born at 1:53 pm weighing 7 pounds, 8 oz and measuring 19 inches long. Mommy was cool, calm and collected through the process. She is amazing...probably in a lot more pain and discomfort than she lets on. We really struggled settling on this little guy's name(s). Lots of ideas, but in the end we knew he was William Michael. Both 'William' and 'Michael' are family names. His sisters have already started to refer to him as "Will".

William seems to be a very 'relaxed' baby, although it is only day one. I also got to witness the circumcision today, which was a new experience for me. It is a really simple procedure. It was kinda sad to see him in pain, but it really wasn't as bad as I imagined.

The girls are really excited to have a baby brother. They all want to hold him and see his little hands, feet, etc. Yup, this guy is going to be spoiled by his older sisters.

Any day now...

Melissa has been REALLY ready to have a baby lately. Due date is this week and man, she has been enduring all kinds of discomfort. I’m so grateful for women and the stuff they go through to bring a life into this world. Man, it can be downright miserable at times. She has been induced for every baby birth, but this time she’s really been feeling like labor was coming naturally in the last week or so. But, now that we’re the day before scheduled induction, it does not look like naturally induced labor is in the cards. Late last week she kept telling me “today is the day” and to be ready to rush to the hospital on a moment’s notice. Well, that emergency didn’t come and it looks like we’ll have to wake the little fella up to get him to come out and play.

We’re really excited for baby boy to join us. I’m just so grateful that it appears everything is “normal” and no reason to be concerned for health issues, etc. Life is good. Tough times, but truly, sincerely good.

9/18/2010 - Bridal Veil Falls hike

Saturday morning we had a few hours before the 1:00 soccer game, so I grabbed 3 little ones and headed up to the Columbia River gorge for an “easy” family hike to bridal veil falls. We stopped in downtown Portland at Voodoo doughnuts, just to see what all the fuss was about. As advertised, the line to buy a donut was wrapped around the front of the building. Then it was confirmed: a $1 donut, hyped into a $2 donut. Now I know. But the kids sure liked the monster-shaped donut they picked.

Bridal Veil falls is a nice, short little hike. The thing that surprised me was the elevation loss/gain. It’s a short hike, but you descend quickly, then climb back up on your way out. We took some great pictures at the bottom of the falls, then started back up the trail. But…then I noticed…darn, where are my glasses? I know I took them off briefly to take a picture, but they’re not in my pocket now. Where did they end up? I dropped them somewhere.

Long story short, I looked for 30 minutes or so, bummed about the situation. Then I said a prayer. After the prayer, I tried my step-by-step logic again, but added a twist: what if they fell off my head while adjusting the kids for a picture? Well, I had been searching around quite a bit in the area, then it struck me…it’s possible they could be in the big 18-inch pile of gooey-green sea-foam here. Maybe. I extended my arm into the goo and started feeling around. Something felt like a twig, and I felt around to find it again and pulled it out: My glasses! As simple as it sounds, I really felt this was an answer to my simple prayer. It was also cool that my 3 youngest girls were able to see it unfold. They saw daddy get an answer to his prayer. I don’t know if they’ll remember it for long, but even Clara understood. She re-told the story again the next day and it shocked me how detailed her version was. Even the 2-yr old knew what was going on. That was really cool. Oh, and the falls were really cool, too.

Speed workout (track training)

I am now starting to add speed training to my workout routine. I know I should be doing more of this, but I've basically been cheating and counting basketball as my interval training. I also will often run suicides and time myself after playing, etc. But I know dedicated speed training will be good for my overall fitness and race performance. So, I went to the track yesterday and here are the times I came up with:

40-yrd dash: 5.56 seconds*
200m: 0:32.4
400m: 1:08
800m: 2:41

*Note: I was wearing long distance running shoes for my 40-yd time. I will try again in cleats to see if it affects my time.

This was a good start for getting a feel for my speed. I found myself noticing whether or not I am up on my toes or rocking on my heels, things like that. It also teaches my muscles to give more output when they are feeling maxed out, full of lactic acid and screaming to quit. I think I'm going to enjoy this aspect of training, at least a couple times a week. I'll find ways to improve on the times above. My body had some similar "post-race" symptoms of back pain and the like, so I can tell it pushes me to the limit when I am racing against the stopwatch.

September 5 2010 – Labor day hike – Little Zig Zag Falls

We spent a great deal of labor day just prepping our house for the new baby coming. After two soccer games and a number of tasks, I decided I wanted to take my little ladies on a hike. So we hopped in the car and hustled up to Mt. Hood for a quick hike. It was worth the effort. Although a short hike (perfect for young kids and a pregnant wife who decided at the last minute she wanted to come), the falls are really a stunning site when you fist walk up to them. We went a little while there, Moriah and I hiked up above the falls for a few minutes, then I shared a short message from the scriptures with the girls. Basically, the thought was about Moroni and when he was wandering alone for so many years, he probably found some beautiful places like this near water and pondered the important things of life (pride cycle, becoming more Christlike, etc). I also mentioned Alma teaching and baptizing at the Waters of Mormon. It was a fun day hike and a great way to cap off an eventful summer.

September 4 2010 – Moriah’s baptism

Moriah’s baptism was special occasion. Both grandpa’s spoke and both grandma’s helped with the music. Aunt Heather Witnesses were bro. Fink and bro. Jensen. She was welcomed into the ward by bro. Risenmay. In her typical somewhat-shy way, Moriah really just took it all in without saying much. I was able to perform the baptism ordinance and was touched as we embraced after she came out of the water. She’s a good kid trying to do the right thing. It was a special day for our family.

Also, we took some outdoor family pictures just before going to the baptism. That’s becoming a tradition for us, as we took family pictures on Emery’s baptism day as well.

September 3 2010 – Moriah’s birthday

Wow. Moriah is 8. Time is flying. I am so proud of the little woman she is becoming. Her big hope for this birthday was to get a pet, preferably a frog or a lizard. Due to some particular issues that might make that a bad decision, we decided to surprise her with 2 hermit crabs. I am surprised at how cool I think they are. When I bought them, I was surprised at how they look and act. They are actually pretty interesting little creatures. They like to climb, change shells, etc. She’s having fun bringing them out of their cage daily and playing with them. Her party was a success, although not exactly what we had hoped. She wanted to use the pop-up pool in the backyard, so Melissa planned a big “luau” themed party. Unfortunately, my pool maintenance skills are not up to snuff. I keep trying to add chemicals, shock it, etc…but it keeps getting algae growth and I have to replace the water. Aarrgghh. That comes along with another set of issues, so we decided to skip the pol and have a slip-n-slide party in the back yard. Still did the luau action with games, Hawaiian music, etc. Tried to teach the group of friends how to hula dance with a DVD, and it was funny to watch, but I’m not sure they were totally in to the idea.

Later, my parents and I headed down to the aviation museum and were able to spend 10 minutes or so just looking at the Spruce Goose and quickly walked around the floor before they closed. They got a feel for what a quality museum it is and plan to spend a full day or two in the near future.

For Moriah’s birthday dinner, we went out to Red Robin. That was fun. When the staff sang to her, she stood up on the table and beamed out at the people in the restaurant. She was so happy and proud of her birthday. Another funny thing was what my dad ordered. He said he wasn’t very hungry, so he just ordered an oreo milkshake (ice cream) and french fries. He said he didn’t realize that the fries would be so big, but he downed the whole thing. Since they don’t have fry sauce there, I showed him the old bbq sauce/mayo/ketchup combo and he was hooked. I told him he ordered his food like a teenager! And he loved the meal. You just never know.

Happy Birthday, Moriah! It's hard to believe...where has the time gone!?!

August 13 2010 – Ball visit

My sister and family visited for a few days to attend her 20th high school reunion. It was a blast having them in town – they have children with similar ages to ours, so it was an instant party! We spent one day at the beach (Pacific City). It was a rare day that the temperature got above 80 at the beach, and there were a TON of people there, considering the usual size of the crowds. We climbed the sand dune at Cape Kiwanda. I’ve climbed at least 6 or 7 times now…but wow, now that was some HOT sand on a hot day. It felt like my feet were going to burn right off. On the top, Emery had a defining moment. She was whispering to me “I did it!” She was so proud that she got up that dune. It was a tough climb, and the hot sand made it miserable for all of us. But we persevered, and especially Emery. It was a very cool moment for me. I was so happy for her and was so glad she was feeling so strongly about it. On the way back down, I’ll never forget Dovie and Andy whooping and hollering as they raced down the dune. Good times. Then we went over to Tillamook and toured the cheese factory. Cool stuff.

After arriving home that night, Dovie went to her reunion activities while Andy and I took the kids to an outdoor movie. A friend of mine has rigged a big screen in his cul-de-sac and showing movies on summer nights. So we saw “Honey, I shrunk the kids” outside. Fun times.

On Saturday, we got to head down to the aviation museum in McMinnville where the Spruce Goose is on display. The kids had fun. I was most really impressed with the quality of the museum and all of the amazing things they had inside and outside the place. The IMAX movie they show as really cool, too. It was a fun weekend with family.

August 9 2010 – Coaching soccer

Now I’m in for it. The rec. club said they needed a few more coaches to volunteer or they would have 24 1st grade girls they’ll have to turn away from playing. So, since I have a girl in the system, I agreed to give it a shot and coach her team…even though I have never played a lick of soccer in my life! I figure since the players are only 6 yrs old, they might not notice if I mess up a few rules here and there. The point at this age really is to make sure they have fun. And I am also blessed that I have 3, count them 3! Asst coach/parents helping me out. So, I’m figuring the sport out and actually having a blast. Since basketball is “my” sport, I have some basic concepts of soccer. But man, now that I’m giving it a shot, I realize hey, maybe I should have done this as a kid! Short people like me can be pretty good players! What was I thinking, falling in love with basketball, a tall-man’s sport? Well, ok, so soccer isn’t as cool as basketball, but I am learning to appreciate the game and having a good time coaching my daughter and her new friends. I hope I don’t mess up too bad!

August 6 2010 – Brother’s 40th

My big bro turned 40. Wow. Time is flying. Guess I’ll be there soon enough. So his wife surprised him with an unexpected trip here to Portland, so we got to celebrate with them. Funny thing: when they came into town, he needed a haircut, so I recommended my barber. Right after he left there, I get a call, saying; “dude, that was the most disturbing barber experience of my life.” So I’m thinking: “oh no, what…bad haircut?” Then he tells me that the haircut was great, but the disturbing part came at the end. Just before finishing the barber give him a final look from the front and decides to do some finish work…and starts snipping his eyebrows. He was mortified because they will usually at least ask if he wants them to do this, but this time, right on his 40th celebration trip, the barber sees it needs to be done and just goes for it. We gotta get used to it sometime, I guess.

So they went and enjoyed a few days at the Oregon coast. Upon their return to town, my two sisters from Seattle made the trip down and we had all 4 of us siblings, a couple spouses and our kids to throw him a little fiesta party. Mexican themed because we LOVE Mexican food in our family...he and I have a special affinity for Burritos. Just one of those little joys in life when you down a satisfying, delicious Burrito. It was a fun party.

Next day, we headed over to our favorite day-rafting spot on the Clackamas river. He and I inner-tubed the 40-minute route once just to make sure it wasn’t too bad, then took my little girls down in small rafts the second time. Barlow took Moriah and Brooke in his raft while Clara sat with me. In retro spect, it was a bit sketchy to have Clara in there with me. The water was very cold and I couldn’t seem to keep the water out of the raft (even got out and dumped it a couple times). So, she was cold, but having a great time. At one point it started to rain on us while we were on a smooth section and the drops on the water looked really cool hitting the river surface. Clara looked at that and said: “Look dad, it’s sparkling!” What a cool way to describe it. You never know what’s gonna come out of the mouth of a 2 yr old. It’s so fun to see her wonder at the world around her.

On the way home, we had a big fat bummer. The minivan loaded with 8 people broke down. Turned out to be the water pump, but at the time, all I could see was gushing antifreeze and hear a terrible grinding noise. We tried to get at least somewhat close to civilization. We ended up being able to limp along and park at a pizza joint. The family ate while I did the tow truck dance. Had a cool conversation with the truck driver about religion on the way to Sherwood. He had been rehabbing for over a year from a terrible accident (he was a pedestrian run over by a truck) and we talked about the existence of God, and the conversation steered toward the Book of Mormon and its significance to the human race. It was a really cool conversation. You never know when an opportunity like that is going to arise. We dropped off the vehicle and I raced back to pick them up with my other car. Again, another reason I’m grateful to have the new vehicle with additional seats.

Happy birthday, bro! Sorry about the breakdown on your last night in town, guys! It was a bummer, but at least we got in some tubing/rafting and some good pizza! It wasn’t a total loss. In fact, it worked out pretty well, all things considered. It’s kinda amazing how things work out sometimes.

August 4 2010 – Hagg Lake Sprint Series Triathlon

Athlete’s lounge has been organizing a Sprint Series of casual training races at Hagg Lake this summer. I was able to go this final one on August 4th. It was a very short 300-yd swim in the lake, then bike the roads around the lake, and finish with a 2 mile trail run. I was on my mtn bike again, and had only a rough idea of how long it should take. But I figured I should be able to finish in less than an hour. I came in at 56:09-ish, so I can’t complain too much. It was not officially timed, but I think I got 9th place out of 66 people. Of course, I got lots of “you’re insane” type comments about competing like this on a mtn bike. I have to admit, I like it when guys on fast road bikes get frustrated that they can’t quite shake me on my mtn bike. When they comment, I just say: “Hey, anything I can do to level the playing field, man.” A little harmless banter is always fun. It felt good to get out and “try” to compete, even if it wasn’t a real race. I wonder how I’d do on a “real” bike? Hope to find out someday, but for now the trusty old (and I mean old) Kona Cinder Cone suits me just fine. This is a really cool event. Glad to hear they’ll be doing a few more again next year.

July 31 2010 – Timothy Lake triathlon (sort-of)

Since I’ve grown to love the addicting sport of triathlon, it’s been a bummer that my schedule has conflicted with pretty much any relatively local race I could compete in this summer. So, what was my solution? Why not put together a casual version with friends? So that’s what we did. 7 of us guys gathered at Timothy Lake to have some fun. Most were just there for the bike ride, but 3 of us swam a half-mile or so first in the lake, then rode the 19-mile mtn bike trail around the lake. It was beautiful for sure, and tough too. I’m impressed at a few of these guys who haven’t been riding at all. Their rear ends must have been sore after! I also went for a short run at the end, just to feel like I did all three events. The main gig? BBQ, baby! We had a feast at the end. Wives & kids were waiting/swimming/playing while we rode around the lake, so we had a hungry crew at the end. We grilled up some awesome hamburgers, etc right there next to the lake. It was a fun day. Needless to say, we slept well that night…and early morning church the next morning was a bit brutal.

July 26 2010 – pop-up pool

Now we gone done and did it. Got ourselves a pop-up pool for the backyard. Thought I’d never do such a weird thing, but man, the kids really love this thing. It’s not big, 12ft across and approx. 3 feet deep. Just right for our size little ones. They had cousins in town for a week or so and it was key to keep them entertained in the heat of summer. Even with all the headache of up-keep, I’m glad we did it.

July 22 2010 – Cooking camp

Melissa has been running a “cooking camp” for each of our girls and a few of their friends. I thought this was a cool idea. The local community ones seemed a bit too spendy, so they created their own. The girls learned to make homemade pizza, jam, cookies, etc. I think everyone had a good time. Nice job, Mel!

July 21 2010 – Scout camp

Got to spend a few days at scout camp with the troop. We went to “Camp Pioneer” in central Oregon this time. Cool place, much smaller than the other summer camps in the council. But it was great. The lake was nice. Eric and I won a scoutmaster canoe race where we had to keep jumping out of the canoe, switch ends and climb back in every time the official blew his whistle. He probably did this to us 7 or 8 times during the race. We got pretty efficient at jumping out, swimming to the other side and climbing in simultaneously. Good times. Then the next morning we had the “Polar Bear Swim” at 6:00 am. Brave scouts and a few of us crazy scoutmasters went to the dock and jumped in. We had to come up, scream “Good morning camp Pioneer!” as loud as possible, then sing the “Fuzzy Wuzzy” song. Funny thing was, I thought the water was much more bearable than standing on the dock in the cold morning. I didn’t want to get out of the water! It’s fun to go to camp and re-live some scout memories with the boys. The scouting program really did make a profound difference in my life as a young person. It’s nice to at least give ‘something’ back by helping out.

July 6-12 2010 – Idaho/Utah trip

Took a special trip to Utah for a baptism. Because mommy is pregnant and Emery had other commitments, it was just myself, Moriah and Brooke. We had a great time. We veered a couple hundred miles out of the way to visit Sun Valley, Idaho on the way down. I had some business to tend to. It was cool to see the place, as the last (and only) time I was there was 1987. It looks pretty different during summer! But I tell you what else, it made the trip feel SO LONG. I don’t know what it was, but man that highway seemed like it was never gonna end. The kids were troopers about the whole detour thing, and actually asked when we’ll be heading back there. I guess they really liked the hotel pool or something because man, that was a haul.

Then we headed down to Utah and were able to celebrate my father’s 76th birthday with family. We got to stay with my brother’s family for a couple nights. Man, those cousins had a blast together. I also got to see my bro’s office in downtown SLC and go to the “legacy center” for a swim with the kids. Fun times, man. Fun times.

The highlight of the trip, of course, was my niece’s baptism. It was particularly special for me because I was able to perform both ordinances. She asked me a few months before, and man what a special thing that was. I told her that I hope she writes it down in her journal and never forgets what this day was like for her. I really felt blessed to be able to a small part of that. She has a bright future ahead of her.

I had a moment of triumph on this trip. I bought an SUV a few months ago and wanted to give it a good test. I knew of a spot up on one of the mountains near Springville where you veer off the main trail and can climb a wall-like steep spot that feels straight up, then pop out on a tiny mountain top, just big enough for your vehicle. They call it the “Camels back” and has an incredible view of Mapleton and Springville. I had to try, so I grabbed my dad and my bro-in-law and we headed up the canyon. The road is very bumpy and has some rough terrain, but nothing too bad. Then you get to the turn-off spot and see the “wall” you’re about to climb. Two 4x4’s were at the bottom, drivers talking to each other, seemingly lamenting that they couldn’t get up the hill. But I was not deterred. I had come this far, I had to try. We got up half-way just flooring it in AWD. But then it literally stopped moving because the power was totally sapped. Not because it lost traction, but because the engine couldn’t push us up that steep of an incline. Wow. You look out the windshield and all you see is sky. It feels like you’re pointed straight up. I knew if I tried to go backwards it might get even uglier, so I had a moment of adrenaline. I could tell that even my even-keeled dad was looking at me with wide-eyes, internally cursing the predicament. Later, he said he thought we were gonna fall off the side of the hill. I also learned that many a vehicle has rolled off from that spot. Yikes. But I was not doubting. I threw the transmission in first gear and locked it in 4WD (has to be in 1st to lock, otherwise it’s in AWD). Gave it some gas. We rocked a bit, and with some real engine-revving effort, we hopped right out of the spot and climbed the remaining 100 feet or so. When we got to the top, I was in awe. Jumped out, ran to the front of the rig and saw what would have been a great advertisement photo. Sitting there, on top of the rocky mountains, having just conquered a tough climb. I was impressed. We spent the next 15 minutes or so looking over the view of the towns below. Really cool moment. And we made it down the mountain without tumbling. That was a bonus, too.

We also got to spend a couple nights at grandma and grandpa’s house. Got to play some hoops with my bro-in-law. Introduced the game “Tip 21” to him. Pretty fun game…I can play that game for hours and hours and not get tired of it. (In fact, that’s just what I did during many of my teenage years. But I digress.) This trip reminded me again how cool our family is and that there’s a reason we make all the effort to maintain family relationships, even (or especially) from afar.

A last note: The return trip from Utah to Portland always seems so much shorter to me. Of course, you gain an hour coming back, so during the summer you can do the whole trip during daylight. And the Idaho detour made the trip there seem much longer. But there’s something else. It just seems so much shorter heading home than it does going there. Lots of reasons, I suppose, but I still always am amazed at the phenomenon. Time for some forensics!

June 16 2010 – Emery’s birthday

Wow. Emery is 10. She had a fun “Friends only” party, which meant I had to keep the other sisters contained while they par-tay. Her big gift this year? Two holes in her head. That’s right, she got her ears pierced. Growing up. Wow. Sometimes I look at her, see how big she’s getting and can’t believe it’s been that long since she was little. Gotta enjoy it while they’re around, ‘cause something tells me the next decade will speed by as well.