Family

So it's a new year and of course I'd like to be better at keeping up on these blogs so lets all hope I do. For this post I wanted to talk about my family and how much they all mean to me. I have a big family and love them all dearly but for this post I'm going to focus on my immediate family.

My Mom

She is an amazing person, she loves all of us so much an is always worrying about us. She loves to sail and sew and is always making things for Misty and I and our house (keep them coming Mom). She wants to make sure we're happy and healthy. She is one of the hardest workers I know and while I was growing up she worked her butt off just to make sure we kids had not only what we needed but also what we wanted. She calls at least once a week to check in and make sure I'm doing okay. She is an example to me of hard work and many other things. I think one of her biggest worries is that she calls to much and "nags" me but she doesn't. I love her and thank her for all that she has taught me.

Mike

Mike is my stepfather, he married my Mom when I was about 14 years old and he certainly didn't have it easy. Getting 3 teenagers all at once with out getting the benefit of us as little kids to help remind him how awesome we were. I know a few teenagers and I they're really stupid people, I cant imagine my siblings being that stupid but maybe, I know for sure I wasn't ;) Mike loves to sail and even though I don't share his love of it I do enjoy spending a day on the lake eating KFC and oreo cookies with him on the boat. Mike has nothing but my love and respect. He makes my Mom happy and works hard doing something he loves. I can't thank him enough for all he has done and continues to do for Misty and myself but most of all for loving my Mom and making her smile.

My Dad

My Dad is simply a older version of myself. Well for the most part, there are many ways we are similar but also many ways that he simply dwarfs me in comparison. My Dad is the most patient person I know, he is also extremely humble and his love of the scriptures and testimony amaze me. He is always willing to help me out from big stuff to small stuff. He taught me to be proud of who I am and always respect people even if I didn't think they deserved it. My geekyness and love of writing and reading comes from him. He has always been an example to me and I strive to be more like him everyday.

Natalie

 Nat is my stepmother and she came into the family when us kids were younger but she didn't have it easy either. The first time she met us kids Cody knocked over a pitcher of soda that covered the pizza and I warned her to leave because it would only get worse. Needless to say she ignored my advice and stuck around. She not only makes my Dad happy but put up with all his nonsense as well. She isn't afraid to tell me when I'm being an idiot which does happen every now and then. I remember watching my cartoons and her sitting on the coach laughing at how much I'm like my Dad which of course is a complement. She loves to smile and take photos of everything and anything. She was always willing to listen to me complain about things and give me advice when needed which I thank her for.

Laurie Jo

My sister is one of my best friends. She is an excellent sister and mother to her boys. We butted heads quite a bit growing up because she took forever to realize I'm awesome but once she did we would watch Full House on Nick at Night every night with Cody. She loves the Utes in an almost unhealthy way. I know I can always count on her to have my back and I'm so grateful for the relationship we have. I can ask her any question I have about any topic and I'll know I'll always get an honest answer from her. She is one of the smartest people I know and settling is not something she does. She has taught me to reach for the stars and not be content just soaring among the clouds.

Josh

My brother-in-law Josh is more like a older brother I never had. Most importantly he makes my sister happy. While they were dating he went out of his way to make sure he had a relationship with both my brother and I. He loves his wife, kids and the gospel with all his heart. I know I can call him for anything from a video game night to advice on a choice I have to make. He knows me very well and calls me for things as well. (like buying a ipad) He is my older brother and close friend. He is a wonderful father to his boys. He gets excited about geeky things and I know that I can count on him for whatever I need.

Cody

My brother and are like two sides of the same coin, we're very different but still the same. He's very into sports and politics where as I am not. But he still has his geeky side and can get excited about things of the geek nature. Loyalty is very important to him, his trust is something I've always tried to make sure I obtain and hold onto because it's something I would never want to loose. There are things we don't agree on but we always respect each others choices. My brother and I teamed up to bug our sister quite a bit growing up and from all the things we did some nice some not so nice I know that he is someone I always want on my team.

Maggie

My little sister, I love her to death. She is a little pill and has me wrapped around her finger. She knows this and climbs all over me like a jungle gym. She is too cute for her own good and I know that when she starts dating boys they're gonna have her two older brothers to deal with. She is so full of energy and life. I love her and am so grateful for the miracle of adoption so that she could complete our family. 

Misty

My wonderful wife. She is my everything, my sun and stars. She supports me in everything I do. She laughs at my jokes, tells me when I'm doing something wrong and amazingly enough loves me enough to put up with me. She works as hard as she can to be the everything she can for people. She hates to disappoint people and makes a lot of sacrifices to benefit others. Her love for her family is amazing and she would do anything for them. She loves her family unconditionally.  I am the man I am because of her and strive to be the man she deserves. She is the most amazing wife and will be the best mom. I'm so excited to wake up everyday and know that we are sealed for all time and eternity. 

Adalee

 I'm so excited! In 41 days my little daughter will be born and I get to start the joys of being a daddy. I love her so much already and love talking to her. When ever she kicks while I'm touching Misty's stomach I get such a rush. I fall asleep like that quite a bit. I love hearing her heartbeat at the doctors and watching the dvds of the ultrasounds. I love this little girl so much and can't wait to be see the person she will become.

I love my family so much. Not just the ones I've talked about here but all of them. Family is the most important thing to me and I would do anything for them. Love you all.

In God I still trust.

So I know I haven't updated either blog in forever. I plan on fixing that. There's been a lot that has happened in the family since I updated last. We're having a baby girl which I plan on writing a whole blog about within the next couple of weeks. We also had some really scary family stuff happen and it's still going on, for a almost full story of that read Misty's blog post.

This post that I'm writing tonight comes from a few things. First- a preacher saying I'm not a Christian. Second- A song by Diamond Rio called "Here in America, in God we still trust" that has been banned from local radio for being to controversial. I wanted to write this post to get some thoughts out of my head and on "paper" so to speak.

First I am a Christian. I worship and love my Father in Heaven. I belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. What I believe is the very core to my existence. The choices I make day in and day out of my life steam from what I believe: I know my Father lives. I am a child of child of God. My Heavenly Father loves me. Families can be together forever. Faith. He sent His Son. He died that we might live. Jesus has Risen. I feel my Saviors love. Jesus entered Jordan's waters. Jesus said love everyone. Follow the Prophet. Keep the commandments. Love one another. Remember the Sabbath Day. Repentance.

In short I am a Christian.

I'm also a Republican. Does that mean because I am a Christian, a Republican and a member of the same church that Mitt Romney goes to that I'm voting for him? Absolutely not. When I vote I don't just vote for a someone in the republican party. I don't just vote for a Christian. I look into each person running, what they stand for, the promises they make and most of all I look to see if I think this person running for office can help make the world we all share a better place to live in.

Now it does matter to me if the person running for office believes in God. I could care less if when they're saying their prayers they use the name; Lord, God, Father in Heaven, Allah, Krishna, or Jehovah. To me when a person prays, they are humble enough to admit that there is a higher power at work in the universe. It does not matter to me if they believe in the same higher power that I do. But I respect those that can look at the universe surrounding them and see a divine hand.

This is in no way to say that if someone does not believe in some kind of God that I have no respect for them, or that if they are running for office they wont get my vote. I respect your right to believe in what ever you want. However, if someone does not believe that God exists and tries to show me how I'm wrong, tell me I'm wrong over and over again and not show me the same respect that I show them. That is when I loose all respect for that person and in a sense they will loose my vote.

It is true that I'm a member of the LDS church. It is true that I went on a mission. I went to the Caribbean and spent two of the most amazing years of my life sharing what I believe with others. My family and I paid for this mission. I was in no way paid by the church or the people I served among. I would do it over again in a heart beat. Some people have said to me that I'm being hypocritical when I say people shouldn't try and change my mind of what I believe but I spent two years of my life doing the same thing.

To these people I simply explain that they misunderstand what I did in the mission field. Yes I did walk up and down the street, talking to everyone I could offering to share what I believe with them. If someone wanted to hear the message I would explain my core beliefs of my faith and invite them to find out for themselves if it was true. I also went to Hindu Temples, Mosques, and many other Christan Churches. Simply because if someone was willing to come to the church I worship at and then invited me to go to theirs I would show them the same respect they showed me.

My point of this blog post is to simply say that when it comes to the choices I make in my daily life and where the affairs of the world are concerned I still put my trust in God.

I Remember.

It's been so long since I updated that I'm having a baby!

So everyone it has been forever since I updated last. June, July and August all gone! Well the biggest news which most of you know about already if you ever talk to me or stalk me on the facebook is that I'm gonna be Dad! Misty is 16 weeks along and we find out if we're having a boy or a girl on the 15th! Now a lot of people are saying "don't find out be surprised!" well the problem with that is that Misty and I have a hard time keeping what we bought each other for Christmas a secret so there is no way we could wait to find out. Which ever we have all I want is for it to be healthy and happy. Misty's due date is February 18th so we'll keep you posted as time goes on. I have to say that hearing the baby's heartbeat was one of the most incredible sounds I have ever heard. I cant describe the feeling I have when I look at this picture and remember that sound other than pure bliss. I'm so excited to be a Dad and I'm grateful for the two sets of incredible parents that I have who set the example for me.


I'm going to U and I'm ready to be done with school, so so ready. I have about a year and half left so hopefully when that time rolls around I'll be typing up my blog entry of how glad I am that it's over. Until I decide to get my masters that it is.:)

We did a lot this summer, we went to Vegas for our first year anniversary and saw "phantom of the opera" which was awesome! we had some seats pretty far back, I think it was row JJ or something and my sister-in-law Jen said "I'm cold." to the usher person who upgraded our seats to the 6th or 7 row back from the stage because it's supposed to be warmer down there. That was awesome, so message is if you go to a play and it's not sold out complain that you're cold and either you'll get moved up or be told of a place to buy a blanket.


July was busy as well, we hung out on July 4th with some of my old friends from back in the day when I thought I was cool cause I was in high school (see now I'm cool cause I'm not in high school) Mike and Heather, I love them. it was a lot of fun. We didn't do much just walked around the fair ground thing down at Target and watched the super cool parade where Chick-fil-a threw out popcorn chicken, awesome! Then dinner at TGIF and then watched the fireworks. Also in July we went to see Brad Paisley in concert at the stadium of fire and it was pretty sweet. Jen and Carl went with us. It was bloody hot but well worth it. He put on a good show.




August was my sister and brothers b-days and Misty's best friend's wedding. Brenna got married so we packed up and went to Florida. The wedding was awesome and Florida was hot and humid. We sadly didn't make it to Disney but that's okay.


Side note, and I promise it's relevant, while in Florida, Misty and the other bridesmaids got pedicures. They kept telling me I should get one, now Misty has never ever in her whole life eaten at Taco Bell. So after we got home I made a deal with her that I would get a pedicure if she would eat at Taco Bell. Seems like a fair trade to me.

That's pretty much summer in nutshell. I promise I'll be much better at updating and not have such long periods between posts. Until that time, remember to stay in school and say no to drugs.

New News

So it's been awhile since I last updated either of my blogs but I'm happy to say that my picture blog has been updated and I'll do better at it. For awhile I didn't take pictures and then I started taking pics but then I didn't upload them and now I have.

In other news, those of you that know me well know that I've worked for FOX 13 for the last 2 1/2-3 years and it's just been part time. I've had other jobs that were full time while still working FOX so really I've had two jobs for the last 3 years. Oh how my heart did swell and my joy runs over that I can now say I work for FOX full time!

I'm in master control. Simply put I'm the 'DJ' for the station. I make sure all the commercials we get paid for air when they're supposed too. I also make sure news and prime time start on time. It can be stressful during live events like American Idol or any sporting event. Why would it be stressful you ask? Because if I mess up on just a 2 min break and the commercials don't play it could be thousands of dollars out the window that we have no way of getting back. No mess ups yet. (cause I'm awesome)

These are two pictures of my work area. As you can see there is a lot of things I monitor at once. Multitasking is key.




I am still working the Hilton but I've reduced my hours and if I start to get to burned out then we'll go from there. The major thing I hate most about working two jobs is that I don't get to spend very much time with my wife. The days we would have the most time is Saturday and Sunday morning but I'm still doing audio at FOX until they find my replacement. So that gives us a total of 3 hours each day that I'm not at work or traveling to work.(not counting sleep time at night) It's lame. But I look forward to when my only job is master control.

I have to say thanks to my wonderful wife. She supports me in all that I want to do. She's the best and I'm lucky to have her.

Tomorrow is Les Mis, and then next week is Phantom in Vegas in celebration of our 1 year anniversary. More posts and pics will follow.

Battle For The Ages

Today a battle happened. Not just any battle but one that will go down in history and be told over camp fires to inspire the young to rise up and do great things. My telling is the one you should memorize because it is the most accurate.

I had today off from the Hilton and my morning was spent relaxing not really doing anything special. Then around 10:30 am my phone rings. Looking at the caller id I see "Chick" which is my sister. Thinking she just wants to ask how to make sure her boys turn out as awesome as myself I answered.

Right away I could tell something was wrong from the deep frightened breaths coming from her end of the phone call. I was greeted with "There's a bird in my house!" after asking "what??" and talking for a few minutes I found out somehow a bird was in my sisters house and she was panicking. I told her I'd be right over. I jumped in my car and heroically raced to her house. On the way she called me to tell me she had no idea where the bird was but that she had barricaded herself with her two sons in one of the boys bedrooms.

I got to the house and like any house where a battle is about to take place, I found the front door open. I walked inside and called out to my sister that I was there. Looking around the kitchen I couldn't find my Nemesis. So I ventured upstairs. As I walked past the bathroom I heard a screech of a bird which could only mean "DIE HUMAN!" and caught a look at my foe for the first time. It looked something like this.

















I jumped back as the bird circled the bathroom once and with another cry of war dove into the master bedroom. Realizing I needed weapons I closed all the doors to the rest of the house except the bedroom door, lest the fowl demon try and hide. I headed back downstairs looking for my weapons of choice.

My first thought was of other battles I have fought with flying opponents. I remember well the flying, hissing cockroaches of the Caribbean. We used a flame thrower made of hairspray and a candle against them. But my 'Geek Sense' was tingling and I figured fire would be a bad idea against this bird.

So I grabbed a pot and roll of wrapping paper, now armed to the teeth I went back upstairs.





























As I entered the room, the bird was preached on the window frame waiting for me. Seeing I was armed, he gave another screech and with a laugh fit only for something not of this world transformed before my very eyes. Sharp beak, talons in the front, lion body in the back, feathers such a deep black they make the moonless night look like a summer day. I was staring at a griffin.

















Steeling myself for the fight I knew would not end quickly, I took a deep breath and called upon all the comic knowledge I posses. (which is quite a lot). My weapons and clothing shimmered a silvery hue and with a burst of light which sent the griffin soaring backwards into a nearby cave, I now stood, ready to fight to the death if needed. I was a knight.














My eyes darted around the room. The monster had vanished, my heart racing, my muscles tense, ready to be attacked at any moment I began my search. Spotting a near by closet I knew the creature must be in there. Caves always make good hiding places. As I attacked the darkness a cry that will freeze your soul escaped from it's throat. Soaring above me, pooping something that I knew must be lethal if it came in contact with human skin, the griffin made it's escape out the door I left open.

Charging downstairs after it we did battle again in the kitchen. Here there was more room for it to maneuver. But by forcing it into the corner I was able to open the back door and as I made my final charge the griffin circled the room and with a flash of light changed back into it's bird form and flew out the door disappearing into the blue sky.

I'm glad I was able to protect my sister and nephews today, but I'm going to have to start my nephews training so they can ward off future threats.

Halo

I love this video parody. It's done by a comedy group out of BYU. They have quite a few of them. Check out youtube for more. They're called Divine Comedy.