The Parent

"Children aren't happy with nothing to ignore,
And that's what parents were created for."
~Ogden Nash

(Oddly enough, my parents actually used to recite
Ogden Nash to us, mostly as they were herding us off to bed)

So, let me preface this by saying that, in ten years of attending religion classes, including five years at BYU, I had somehow managed not to take Marriage Prep. Not sure how that happened. Anyhow, I felt like I should take it this semester, and I ended up with probably the best institute teacher I've ever had. He's been married 17 years and has 10 kids, so he pretty much knows what he's talking about. Anyhow, we were talking in class on Monday about the divine roles of men and women (which, in and of itself, was amazing), and in order to preface this he showed us a few clips. And so, I share them with you, for you viewing pleasure.

You absolutely must go to this link. I think when I have kids I'll just play this for them, and then I won't have to say the actual phrases. I'll just carry a little tape recorder and fast forward to the part I need.

The Mom Song


Dads, here's one for you all:

A Little bit Rowdy

A String of Thoughts

So, you know how people have those defining moments in their lives where something happened that made them doubt, or wonder about, the existence of God? I had one of those the other day. Now, let me start off by saying: Don't worry. My testimony is still completely strong. I have not fallen away from the church or the gospel due to this experience. And if I had, it would really be a pathetic excuse to not believe in God--and I would have to laugh at myself every day for it's ridiculousness. I just thought it was humorous that this "string of thought" would even occur to me.

Anyhow, it all started when I was flossing my teeth before bed. I was standing in the bathroom and flossing and it occurred to me that floss was an incredible invention. I mean, who ever would have thought that running string between your teeth and gums would be so healthy for your teeth, right?...

Next thought: You know, teeth are a really important organ. There are so many people in the world that lose their teeth because we just don't know how to take care of them. And when you don't take care of them, they cause a lot of health problems that aren't easily solved...

Thought number Three: If teeth are so essential to our well-being, why wasn't the manner of taking care of them revealed from God? I mean, if you don't have your teeth, you really don't have much. You can barely eat. Shouldn't that have been one of the things listed in the Word of Wisdom? Don't drink hot drinks, keep your body healthy, and take care of your teeth in such and such a way? And, for that matter, why wouldn't it have been something revealed to Adam and Eve? "Hey, Adam, here's how you take those grains of wheat and smash them up to something I like to call "flour." Then you take this recipe and make "bread." Oh, and by the way, when your done grab some thin stuff that you used to make twine and run it between each of your pearly whites. You'll live an extra two hundred years if you do that."

And, I have to say, the problem perplexed me. But, in the end, I suppose that caring for our teeth is just another challenge that we have in learning how to take care of our mortal bodies. I'm not going to lie, though. I'm really happy that I live in a time of Floss.

Holey Cow!

Okay, as requested: An actual video of the cow at USU that has a hole in it. For those of you who weren't in on the conversation, there is, indeed, a cow at USU that has an actual hole about the size of your fist in it's side. There's some sort of apparatus inside that keeps the hole open. They use the hole in veterinary studies to help students understand the workings of the cows' stomach. You can actually reach inside the hole and pull the already-chewed and digesting food out of it's stomach to see it. Then, when they're all done feeling around in there, they plug the hole back up so nothing gets infected. Supposedly it doesn't hurt the cow at all.

As I am not a veterinary-science student, I didn't feel it would be entirely appropriate to stick my hand in the cows' hole. Besides, I'm not sure whether or not it would've been considered a crime. Could you imagine the report that the USU Police would have to write up?

Poor cow.

Happy 9-9-09!

I love it when the dates go in order. January 2nd, 2003. September 9th, 2009. Next year on October 10th it'll be even more exciting because it'll be my brother Mike's birthday. =] Yea for random celebration days landing on REAL celebration days!

I had a really great Labor Day weekend. On Saturday I went down to Salt Lake and went through the SLC Temple for the second time. I love the Salt Lake Temple. I love to look at all the old, ornate things inside and feel connected to the pioneers that sacrificed so much to build it. After I did a session I made it just in time to see the Joseph Smith movie over at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. =] I don't think it really matters how many times you see it-you'll cry every time. When it was over I wandered briefly over to Deseret Book to see if there was anything I wanted. I ended up getting a CTR ring. Generally I don't wear much jewelry. The last CTR ring I had was on my mission. I'd taken it off because it was bothering me and ended up accidentally throwing it away into a dumpster. Whoops. So on Saturday I decided that it was about time to get another one. Here's the one I chose.

Kind of different from the usual. I think that's one reason I liked it. After Deseret Book I made my way down to Orem and spent the rest of the evening and Sunday with my sister, brother-in-law and nephew. I was really excited because Chase is finally walking consistently (that's my nephew. Not my brother-in-law. As far as I know, Ross has been walking consistently for quite a while). It was so fun to run around with him, and watch Chase wander all over the house exploring things. We even got into a little game of basketball, where he would clutch his mini-basketball and run up to the closet door, and I would lift him up high so he could throw the ball into the mini basket. Yea!

On Monday I went shopping a bit, then visited Val, Dax and JayDax for a couple of hours. I love it when I get to visit my friends! It's hard sometimes, but it makes me so happy to be able to see my friends =] After a barbeque with my sister's in-laws (and a lot of razzing from my brother-in-law and his Dad about how USU lost their football game last week--I'm not surprised they lost) I drove back up to Logan, but not before stopping in Magna to talk with my friend Alise for a couple of hours. She gave me the most beautiful scarf from Venice that she got while on study abroad this summer.

Yea for weekends away!

Meltdown

So, last night I was studying. It's a productive thing to do, right? Most of our professors post articles for us to read online, so I was doing this studying on my Lappy. Okay, so I have this study lamp that I use on my desk. It gets kind of hot, and it's pretty bright so I keep a handkerchief over the top to dim it down a little. Well, when I moved into my pre-furnished apartment the first thing I noticed was the desk. It's this little triangular desk that fits just right into a corner of the bedroom. It's a little awkward, but it's functional. Anyhow, it's small, so there isn't much room on top--especially when I put my lamp, laptop, speakers, rubber-band ball, stress ball and stress palm tree, and my desk organizer thing. Therefore, the lamp was banished to the back corner of the desk, just behind my Lappy. The lamp is still functional because I can tilt it just so that the light shines over the top of my laptop. So far it has worked just fine. Until I got to class today, pulled my laptop out and looked at the top of my lappy. Right around the top, surrounding the sliding tab to open said laptop, my poor little Lappy was...melted. Luckily the screen wasn't damaged. Unluckily, the sliding tab doesn't slide anymore. I can still open my laptop by shifting the screen over slightly. so that's good. And now my little Lappy is definitely unique. So even if someone stole it and I didn't have the number, it would still be identifiable.

The Victim


The Perpetrator

And thus we have evidence that lamps do not like to be banished to corners.