Gila Valley Temple

So a couple of a weeks ago, my mom asked me if I would be willing to ditch work to go to the Gila Valley Temple open house with her. I told her that it sounded like fun but that I couldn't ditch work that week. Well we never got all the schedules of everyone who wanted to go aligned... So I figured that we wouldn't get to go. Well on Tuesday of this past week, I found out that Christy was getting out of the hospital, so i decided that it would be fun to try and go with her, but I didn't know when it ended. So the next night I went to the Mesa temple because my aunt was gettting her endowments. I mentioned to someone that Christy was getting out on Thursday and my mom asked if that meant I was ditching work on Friday to take her to the open house and I said sure. From there it grew, and Christy, Sandy, my mom, Jayce, Karley, and I all ended up going to the open house on Friday. It was awesome, I was so glad that I was able to go with Christy. My mom has more pictures that I am sure she will put up on her blog, but here are a few.

The Love of My Life

I do not know how so much time always seems to go by between posts. Something that bothers me is when people don't update their blogs often enough, yet I seem to do a fine job of not updating. I frequently blame my lack of bloggage on the fact that I don't have anything to write about, I am often jealous that my mom seems to have so much fodder for her blog. Well, people have been requesting a new post, especially my mother who is sick of seeing the lovely picture of herself... So I thought that I would attempt to comply. One of the things that has been on my mind recently, rather the thing that is always on my mind, is a certain young lady.

I am very much in love with Christy, for many reasons, and so I thought that I would list some of those reasons here.

This is from a journal entry dated July 23, 2008 although some of these have been added since that time.

Why do I love Her?

She is the most caring person I know.

She is funny, and seems to think that I am too at times.

I feel lost when I don't get to see her.

She is the most beautiful girl I have ever met.

When she touches me I feel tingly.

When I am with her no matter what we are doing I am happy.

She lets me hold her hand.

She worries about other people.

She is always optimistic.

She is smart.

She will make a wonderful mother.

She loves kids.

She is fun to tickle.

She loves the gospel.

She makes me want to be better.

She loves her family.

She loves my family.

She makes me feel like I am special.

She loves the temple.

She likes baseball.

She likes watching movies.

She enjoys reading.

I can talk to her about anything.

Despite trials she stays true to what she believes.

She is strong and faithful.

She has never asked me to stop singing.

Even amid trials I know I want to spend eternity with her.

She loves the Scriptures.

She is patient with me.

She isn't afraid to point out my faults such as a lack of four wheeler driving skills.

She can cheer me up when I am sad.

She is the person I can turn to with any problems I have.

Lastly, I love her because she is her.

I'm Alive!!!!

Contrary to what, by now, must be popular belief, I am alive. It has indeed been awhile since I have posted a blog. However, I am still here.

The other day I came home, and only my mother was at home. She was in her room reading, so when I opened the front door, I yelled "Hello, are you alive?" To which I received no response. As I neared her room, I could see her feet at the end of her bed. At which point I again questioned, "Are you alive." This time she answered, "Of course I am alive. Can't you tell by my alive face?" This is what I saw.

After a short deliberation, we decided that she was indeed alive. She also went through other poses to convince me of this.

Basketball Fun

So today Jayce and I decided to go play basketball at the church. As is customary on our basketball trips to this locale, Jayce tried to shoot the ball backwards from half-court. and
wouldn't you know it...

Woo-hoo. Jayce was excited, but making this shot has become quite usual for him, so he tried to shake it up a little bit in this tribute to Christy.

Yes indeedy, from the knees.

After that we picked up Janaya and Christy and went to Dennys for lunch. While we were there, someone had the brilliant idea to have everybody order for someone else. So we did. Then we all traded food once it came. The waitress seemed a little confused, but hid it well for the most part. During lunch, Steven texted Jayce and asked him if he wanted to go to the church to play basketball, so Jayce, Steven Janaya, Christy, and I went to the church to play basketball. We played bank for a little while, and then the men decided it was time to play 21. For those of you who don't know 21 is basically a game where everyone plays everyone else. Also, most rules are abandoned during this game. What started out as a friendly competition, quickly escalated into mayhem as people attempted to drive to the hoop and were met violently by other competitors.

We followed that up with a quick trip to Sonic for drinks, and then it was back home.

Bishopric Barbeque

So ever since I have been in young mens, there has been a traditional BBQ in the month of December for the youth of the ward. When I was a deacon, this BBQ consisted of having hamburgers at Kiwanis Park. This was fun, and we had good times enjoying various activities at the park and eating lots of food. This is how I remember the bishopric BBQ. It was always one of my favorite events of the year.

Now, I am a teacher's quorum advisor, and I got the privilege of attending the BBQ again for the first time in four or five years. Well since my last BBQ, the bishopric has made a lot of changes, to improve this event. First of all, the food. They have gone from low quality (hamburgers), to high quality (carne asada). Secondly the locale, upgraded from Kiwanis Park to Brother Jones' farm. Last big difference, there is now a hay ride.

So here is how things went. The young men, young women, and their leaders met at the church to carpool to the farm. I happily opened my truck, which has become known as the fun-vee, to Jayce and Steven. Bishop then asked if I would pick up Scott and James. So the fun-vee set out in search of some new passengers. We picked up Scott, and the dropped Jayce off at a store to pick up some snacks, while the fun-vee went to pick up James. Sadly, James was not at home so it was back to pick up Jayce and hit the open road.

Fully supplied with oreos, chocolate covered pretzels, starbursts, and gummy worms, we began the approximately 45 minute trip to the farm. As we cruised down the freeway, we joyfully rocked out to the music pumping from steven's i-pod. As we neared our destination, it became apparent to us that the fun-vee had to arrive in style, so we rolled down the windows, cranked up the bass, augmented the volume, and let everyone know that the fun-vee had arrived.

It was then time to hit the hay, and cruise around the farm. This hayride, is a trailer loaded with hay attached to a tractor which then takes us on a trip around the farm. The adults decided to enhance the ride with a little Christmas music to really allow the joy to fully penetrate the hearts of those in attendance. However I am pretty sure that it wasn't joy the persuaded Jayce to tell me to stop singing or die. Then came the time to return to where the food was, this was accomplished by driving on a main road. Needless to say the cars stuck behind the tractor were not all full of the Christmas spirit.

When we returned, the food was pretty much ready. So we had soft tacos with Carne Asada. Along with chips and salsa, and beans. The food was delicious! After we ate, we cleaned up, and it was back to the open road. As the fun-vee began to pull out, bishop stopped us and queried if we had room for Trevin. Of course we did, so the fun-vee was back at it with an extra passenger.

As we neared the freeway, we were faced with an interesting dilemma. Should we return on the I-10, the way we had come, or should we be a little crazy and follow the loop 101 all the way around? As with any fun-vee, ours was a democracy, and so it was put to a vote. 10 or 101? Well the 101 won unanimously, and we were headed home. A little while later, we pulled into the church parking lot to help unload tables and chairs, and found that we were, regrettably, a little too late. The bishopric had already finished unloading. I guess, we made the right decision during that vote after all;)

Now I will be the first one to say, that I had a good time during the evening, but it is my humble opinion, that this upgraded BBQ left a lot to be desired. Most noticeably, a park, and a good old fashioned american hamburger. The way things should be.

Someone has stolen your heart!

Tempe- A young resident was shocked to find a ransom note taped to her door early Saturday evening.

Upon arrival at the specified location, she was met by a small and sinister man clearly associated with the plot. He told her that he could guide her on with a clue but that she would first have to complete a task for him. She was given a balloon, and told to blow it up. After that she was instructed to draw the face of her boyfriend on the balloon. She was then supposed to demonstrate her first kiss. After her first attempt, the mean man popped her balloon claiming that it did not accurately portray her boyfriend. He did however redeem himself in a small way by blowing up the second balloon for her. She then proceeded to demonstrate her first kiss. She received her next clue, which led to the home of a neighbor, and a monkey from build a bear.

At the new location, the young woman was met by a jolly sort clad in an Arizona Diamondbacks uniform. This man informed her that she would be hitting five baseballs to receive her next clue, however, if the man caught one of the balls that she hit, she would be forced to start over, and if she were to strike out, the game would end and she would have to wait a week to try again. After a handful of pitches the girl eagerly awaited what would be her fifth and final hit. She hit the ball and it gently glided straight into the hands of the jovial pitcher. Who proceeded to give her the clue anyway, along with a stuffed dog dressed in a diamondbacks uniform.This clue guided her to the church where she had been baptized.

As the chauffeur pulled up to the church, a very nice young couple was waiting. They eagerly described the girls next task. She would fill in all the information to her baptismal program. Upon completion of the task, the girl was informed that she had indeed finished properly and that her next destination would be the temple. She also received a bear in a baptism dress.

The girl suspected that her journey was about to come to an end, and was shocked to find not the man that she expected but rather a cheerful man with yet another clue. To obtain this clue, the young lady had to arrange sentence strips containing the plan of slavation, in the proper order. After a short while, she was done. Although she was not as confident as she had been with other tasks, she had indeed properly placed each step. The clue she gained led her to Taco Bell.

At Taco Bell, the girl was met by the same young couple that had met her earlier at the church. They sat near two cups full of mild sauce packets. She was asked to search through the cups to find the three packets with a special message, each was marked with a star. As she sifted endlessly through what seemed like hundreds of packets of mild sauce, she thought that she would never find the special sauces. Close to giving up hope, the girl finally found one star, and then another, and then the final star. The packets said, make a wish, ta-dah, and the feeling is mutual. The girl was then given a clue leading her back to the temple. She also got a veil, that would transform her baptism bear into a bride bear.

As the chauffeur approached the temple, she pulled up to the curb and instructed the girl to get out. The girl was a little unsure, but complied anyway. After walking around the temple grounds, she finally saw standing in a ray of light, the cruel man who had stolen her heart. He was dressed nicely, and his demeanor did not seem as cruel as the ransom note had depicted him. As she approached, he spoke.

"You went through a lot of trouble to get your heart back."

"Yes I did."

"Unfortunately you can't have it back. I plan on keeping it for eternity. However I am willing to make a compromise, and you can have my heart for eternity as well."

With that the man dropped to his knee, swept the hat off his magic bear, revealing a ring and queried,

"Will you marry me?"

The girl quickly responded in the affirmative.

The man then escorted her to his truck. There was a dozen roses waiting with taco bell mild sauce packets, that said will you marry me, decoratively placed among the roses.

The girl has declined to press charges according to one authority close to the case.

That is right folks, she said yes, and I am now officially engaged!!

Fall Break!!

Well, It is that time of year again, yes you know the one I am talking about. It is fall!! Not that one could really tell by walking outside, no out there it still feels just as warm as ever. However looking at the calendar, and finally being on fall break has assured me that fall has arrived at last.

Anyway, I love my job; however, one can always use a week off. Now if I only had some great and exciting plans this would be a very special week. My mom decided that we needed to go somewhere for fall break; unfortunately all the exotic yet close enough travel spots to reach by car simply were not sounding so happening! Such beautiful locales as Flagstaff, Snowflake, Bisbee, and Ajo. Some more enjoyable sounding venues included Las Vegas, and San Diego. Somehow San Diego just seems like more of a summer vacation spot to me, and seeing as the calendar clearly dictates it is now fall, that is simply out of the question. I will admit though, that going to a session at the San Diego temple is something that I have wanted to do for a long time.

However, it is Jayce's fall break too, and I don't think it would be very fair for my mom and I to take him to San Diego, and then leave him to go to a session at the temple.

Upon discussing other possibilities for this week I have received varying answers. My mom is a big fan of cleaning and other types of manual labor. At this point in my life, working during a break is simply to much of an oxymoron. Jayce desperately wants to go fishing. Fishing??? Ummm, I have never really been an advid fisherman, I mean I enjoy it, but how enjoyable is it really to drag in endless amounts of algae?? I don't really have the first clue about fishing, where to go, when to go... Oh well, I foresee a fishing trip in my near future.

The thing that I have wanted to do for my break, is hit the restaurants that I usually go to for lunch time, that is the places that are either to busy or closed by the time I get off work. Unfortunately, my sister's (all three of them) have got me going back to Weight Watchers, and I am already feeling incredibly guilty for wanting to go out to eat. So I will either have to find a way to dissuade my guilt or I will miss out on this exciting adventure as well.