Family Ties

Family Ties: A Mesage for Fathers by L. Tom Perry
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I found this book to be a great guide to fathers.  I found many areas that I could be better as a father.  And I found many areas that I could see my father as having done, and I am trying to do.


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Labor Day 2014

We spent Labor Day with the Browers and Jons up Webb Canyon at the Anderson campground.  Got that?

It was a very fun weekend.  We pulled our trailer to the campground on Thursday evening and came home late afternoon on Monday.  Most of each family were there at one time or another.  Since I had to work on Friday, I was not there during the day, but returned that evening.  On Saturday, Deb went to work while I stayed at the campground.  On Sunday, we went home and showered and then went to Sacrament Meeting in Downey.

We had some delicious meals including tin foil dinners, walking tacos, and dutch oven chicken.  Unfortunately, with my gallbladder situation, the fried chicken did not sit well and I spent most of Sunday evening and Monday morning in the trailer.  I did get to read quite a bit, though.  And luckily it cooled off a bit so it wasn't stifling in the afternoons.  In fact, it was very cold on Sunday night.  I found out on Monday morning that the trailer had a good heater much to the chagrin of Deb!

Orene and Idonna Brower have an incredible family.  For just a moment that weekend, I thought that perhaps it truly was heaven on earth--and I'm sure Mom and Dad were there with the rest of the family.

Path of the Assassin

Path of the Assassin by Brad Thor
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Brad Thor is fast becoming one of my favorite authors.  Path of the Assassin begins where Lions of Lucerne leaves off with Scot Havarth getting involved in another terrorist plot.  He finds an assassin with unique eyes and tries to find the person.  The action is again page-turning.  Now on to Blowback!


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The "Gall" of It!

After about two months of trying to find out why I was sick and tired, I finally got sick and tired of it!  After 6 different doctors and 4 different tests, I have been diagnosed that it is probably my gallbladder.  What it means is a consultation with a surgeon to see if surgery will be performed.  So, I will be seeing the 7th doctor and have a 5th procedure to get me better!

Lake Powell 2014 Edition

We left for Lake Powell on Saturday, July 26.  We left earlier than normal so that we could meet with Kristi, Mike, Amanda, Jacob, Jordan, and Casmine in Provo Canyon at Scott's cabin.  The Wisners had flown out to Provo to be with Jordan and Casmine since Jacob had just returned from his mission in Brazil.  It was great seeing the recently returned missionary and his family.  In addition, Brad & Lorie and their family, Shauna and Scott and Jessie, Sid & Tracy and their family, and Todd and Chelsey and their family were all there.  We had a nice visit.

That evening, we stayed at the Hampton Inn in Orem.  It was a very nice hotel.  Sid's and Todd's families also stayed there.

The next morning we ate the complimentary breakfast and then headed to Lake Powell.  We got there at about 5 pm.  We loaded our supplies onto the houseboat, had supper provided by Kaylee and Michael.  That night we settled into bed with a storm brewing around us.  We could see lightening off in the distance but it passed by us.  The wind blew almost all night.  When the wind stopped, it sprinkled for a while so it made it a little cool to sleep that night.

Early the next morning we left the marina and found a place up Warm Creek Canyon.  With 35 people on board (19 adults, 16 children), it was a little crowded.  However, some set up tents on the beach, so everyone had a place to sleep.

Each family was in charge of a breakfast and a dinner.  We were teamed with Kaylee and Michael so they did the dinner and we did the breakfast.  We had our breakfast on Thursday.  We cooked Sausage and Hash Brown Casseroles prior to leaving and warmed them up in the oven on Thursday morning.  Everyone seemed to enjoy the breakfast.

One day (I believe it was Tuesday--it is easy to lose track of time while on the boat), we went to Face Canyon and went up one of the side canyons.  We went all the way to the end, which was spectacular.  We had to get out of the speed boat and walk the last 100 yards or so because the canyon was so narrow.  The water was only waste deep, and since it was at the end of the canyon, all the crap that is in the reservoir ends up in the end of the canyon.  We had to push away all the dead weeds and wood to make our way up the canyon.

Early Saturday morning we returned to the marina and then loaded up and came home.  On our way home, we stopped at Cove Fort.  While returning home from the Brower Reunion in Saint Johns, Arizona, we stopped in Cove Fort and found out the Saturday we were coming home from Lake Powell was going to be Cove Fort Historic Days.  So, we stopped.  There were many different booths set up showing how the pioneers did various things.  There was also a stage where entertainment was provided.  It was an all-too-brief stop, but we were anxious to get home.

We pulled into Downey just before midnight.  It was a great trip, but it was awesome to be able to sleep in our own beds that night!

Catching up with the Hunger Games

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This happens all too often:  an author writes a novel that becomes a best seller.  The author writes a sequel knowing that a sequel to the sequel will be written.  The first sequel ends in a cliff hanger.  That is exactly what happens in the sequel to The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.  Having said that, I found the story engaging and page-turning (or should I CD changing since I listened to it on CD on book) although the plot became somewhat the same to the original plot.  All-in-all I would recommend this book.


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The Lions of Lucerne by Brad Thor
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Lions of Lucerne is the first novel by Brad Thor in the Scot Harvath series. The story starts on the slopes of Utah when the President of the United States is kidnapped. Harvath is the only Secret Service agent to survive the attack. Using the skills he learned in the US Navy SEALs, he tracks the kidnappers while avoiding the authorities who think he is involved in the kidnapping. It is a fast-paced, action-packed story. At times, I felt the character has too many roadblocks in his way, but the story kept my attention as it was well written. All through the story, I kept thinking this would make a great movie. Hopefully, it will be made into one someday (without screwing up the storyline!).

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Si-cology 1: Tales and Wisdom from Duck Dynasty’s Favorite Uncle by Si Robertson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

About a year ago, I was introduced to Duck Dynasty on A&E Network. I instantly fell in love with the series. It was funny, clever, and every episode provided a great moral value. Knowing my love for the show, Deb brought Uncle Si's book home for me to read. I found the book entertaining, witty, and in the end, a great moral value as I learned about some very private aspects of his life.

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The Andromeda Strain by Michael Crichton
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I am starting to think that Michael Crichton is becoming one of my favorite authors. Every book that I have read that he has written has been very enjoyable and have kept my attention. As a kid, I had seen the movie "Andromeda Strain" on television. Now, that I have read the book, I want to see the movie again.

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OLB Reunion

On Wednesday, July 2, we left home for our trek to Arizona for the Orene and Idonna Brower Reunion being hosted by Dick and Fran.  We pulled the trailer that Deb got as an inheritance from her mother.  We drove to Price, found a parking lot next to the fire station, and went to sleep.  We pulled into Price at about 1 am.  We left Price at about 9 am and finally got to Saint Johns at about 5 pm.  The road was very hilly and pulling the trailer literally drained our gas tank way too fast (we figured later that it would have been a lot cheaper to stayed in hotel rooms).

Our first full day in Arizona, Friday, was Independence Day.  We spent the day at the city park with their Independence Day celebrations.  There was entertainment in the morning, a free lunch (to us--the local taxpayers paid for it!), and races in the afternoon.  Both Angie and Lilli participated in the races.  That evening, Dick and Lynn put on a Dutch Oven supper with chicken and corn on the cob.

On Saturday, we went to Lyman Lake State Park some 10 miles from Saint Johns.  Flint and Amber provided a speed boat and the kids (and some adults) had fun being pulled on the tube behind the boat.  It was a pretty area, and the kids had fun in the water and on the beach.

Sunday morning, a testimony meeting was held with the family.  It was very spiritual and emotional for everyone there.  The heritage that Orene and Idonna have left with their family is very faith-building.  It is a very wonderful family.

After the testimony meeting, we got ready to leave and left at about noon.  We decided to go back home through Flagstaff since most of the way would be on freeways and not so hilly.  It was a correct decision since we spent about half as much on gas going home as we did on going to Arizona.  We stopped in Holbrook at a petrified wood store there.  We got some souvenirs and then got back on the road.  We got to Kanab, Utah at about 10 pm and found a church parking lot to use for the night.

We stopped at Cove Fort, Utah so that the girls could go through the fort.  It is such an interesting place to see.  Out tour guide made sure that the girls understood what he was trying to explain to us, and we enjoyed the stopover.

We got home at about 10 pm that night.  It was fun to be with the Brower family, but we were glad to be home.

The Butterfly Effect

The Butterfly Effect by Andy Andrews
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

My wife gave me this book to read. She had read it after being recommended to read it by our Stake President. It took me all of 15 minutes to read it.

In my life, I have often contemplated on what may have been if different choices were made. One that I have reflected on a lot was a choice made by my parents when I was a baby. Dad served his mission in Montana and the Dakotas. For part of his mission, he served in Dillon, Montana. He loved the area and the people. Shortly after I was born, he took Mom and me to visit his old stomping grounds. While there, he learned that farm ground was at very cheap prices and some of his friends in Dillon suggested he buy some ground and farm there. Mom said that she became concerned that he may do that, but eventually decided to stay in Swan Lake. How would my life, not to mention the rest of my family, been different if Dad had chosen to farm in Dillon?

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Steve Jobs

Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

My first real experience with a personal computer was the Macintosh.  I really liked the computer, and it instilled in me a desire to do things with the computer.  Although I left the Mac computer and went to Windows machines, I have always felt the Mac was better as a personal computer, but when I bought my first computer, the Mac was on the way down while Windows machines were a dime a dozen.  After reading the book, I wish I had stuck with the Mac!

The book is written very well.  In fact, it felt like a novel to me in that I wanted to know what happened next.  Walter Isaacson did a masterful job in telling us what the man, Steve Jobs, was like. After I had finished the book, I felt like I really knew who Steve Jobs was.


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Life and Death, Joy and Heartbreak

Lilli holding Bill last summer.

On 11/12/13, we lost our friend and pet Bill.  He had some sort of problem that eventually led to his death.  We buried him in the backyard next to Sadie and Buttons.  (Our first cats were Buttons and Bow.  We came home to find Buttons had been shot, and we never did find Bow.)  It was a sad time for the family, but it was not unexpected.

Bill came into our life right after we lost Buttons and Bow.  We came home and he was in our garage.  We do not know how he got there.

He was a very sickly kitten and did not act very kitty-like the first year we had him.  In fact, I thought that he wouldn't survive the first winter, but he did.  Then when Sadie came into our family, Sadie become the bossy sibling.  She would grab Bill by the tail and swing him around.  Bill tolerated Sadie, but she would try to get away from her whenever Sadie would try to play with him.

The girls loved Bill, especially Lilli.  Bill was never a cat that liked to be held.  Very few times did Bill jump on my lap and stay there while I petted him.  However, he got very used to Lilli constantly holding him as can be seen in the picture above.

Misty playing with a glow
stick on the couch.

A few weeks after Bill died, Deb was visiting a day care in Lava (she does that as part of her job with the Downey Library).  She found out that the day care owner had found some abandoned kittens and was trying to find homes for them.  Deb told her that we had just lost our cat and was looking for a replacement so we got her.  We named her Misty after the person that gave us the kitty.

Needless to say, the girls loved her.  And she loved the girls.  As soon as she would see them, she would go running to them.  She was a very feisty kitten and would chase anything that moved.  The girls loved getting her to play with them.  At times, I felt sorry for the poor kitten as she became the "baby" that needed to be taken care of.

She also loved to snuggle with Deb.  A few weeks ago, Deb had surgery.  It was an outpatient procedure, but it made Deb very weak and tired.  She spent the first week or so sleeping on the couch.  Misty would jump up on her and snuggle next to her neck and go to sleep.  At other times, Misty would lay next to Deb, but the cat made sure she was touching Deb with her paw.

On February 25 (the day before Angie's 9th birthday), Deb came home to find Misty laying on the lawn.  She could tell that something was wrong.  Misty had been run over.  Deb hurried Misty to the vet (with Grandma Bet providing support) to see how serious the injury was.  The vet found that her pelvic bone was crushed and that her internal organs had ruptured.  He said that Misty would be in a lot of pain.  After consulting with me over the phone, Deb asked the vet to put her to sleep.  It was heart-wrenching.  Even though that kitten had been in our lives a couple of months, we had all grown to love her.

Since the girls were in school when all of this happened, I came home early to help Deb break the news to the girls.  Understandably, both girls were upset.  Lilli grabbed the scratching post we had give to Misty for Christmas and just cried.  Angie started to cry and say, "She was just a little kitten."  Of course, Mom and Dad were very heartbroken and shed tears with Angie and Lilli.

We buried Misty right next to Bill.

Now, we are again looking for the pet to make our family complete.  Each day, the girls ask when we will get our next pet.

The Pillars of the Earth

The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Ken Follet's The Pillars of the Earth is a novel of historical fiction set in 12th century England. The story follows a monk along with a builder and his family and their triumphs, disasters, betrayals and revenges.

The book is very intimidating being nearly 1,000 pages long. However, it is a good read and, with the exception of a couple of places, the story moves along and keeps you interested in the events. There were times, however, when I was very uncomfortable reading the graphic descriptions of events to some of the characters that I care about. I was also a little disappointed in the ending--I thought it ended to abruptly and I had to go to Wikipedia to find out more about the events that happened.

All in all, I enjoyed the book.

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