Mary's Birthday '08

Mary had another birthday this year (who didn't?) just before Christmas. She enjoyed the Ice-cream cake that I made her and some friends watched the kids while we went out to dinner in town. It was a quieter and more simple birthday for her, which was nice, I think. I know it didn't compare to last years' birthday for her of a day of solitude in the library. Happy Birthday Sweetie!

Christmas Family Get-Together '08

On Dec. 20th we headed to Rick and Laurie's house in Fruitland. It was a crazy weekend as Mary and I went to my work party in Boise on Friday, Mary went to the ward Christmas breakfast while I went to work all day on Saturday and then when I got home we threw the kids in the car and headed to Fruitland and didn't get home until late Saturday night. It was our chance to spend some time with some family over Christmas as we were wishing we could be in WA, where all of my siblings and their families were gathered for Christmas (we so wish we could've been there!). The weather was snowy and blustery but we made the trip safely. There were plenty of desserts and just fun conversation/interaction. There were about 40 of us there and Laurie did a gift exchange for the kids that Sarah and Nathan participated in and, as you can see from the pic below, they really enjoyed themselves and the little gifts that they got. Then they did a gift exchange for the older kids and adults after everyone played SANTA Bingo.

Here we are before we left. Actually a decent picture of our little family!

Here's the whole group for the adult gift exchange. Fun times!

My cousin Joey enjoying hanging out with all the Farmer girls. We enjoy being around my cousins!

These pics are of Sarah and Nathan participating in the kids gift exchange. They had a blast and it was good because the presents weren't opened until the end so no one knew what they were giving up as they passed them back and forth.

Prepping for Christmas

The kids love getting the tree set up and decorated and it's fun to put on your own Christmas music, cook some Wassil and some of the famous Farmer Gingersnap cookies Mmmmmmmm. Sarah and Nathan really enjoyed the festivities and this year it was Nathan's turn to put the star on top of the tree. Christmas is such a magical time of the year, we all love it and, as parents, we love to see the excitement that our kids experience and that we remember also experiencing (and still do!).

Kristopher is Engaged!

Mary should be doing this post, but I'll do it. Mary's youngest brother got engaged two weeks ago. We're really excited for him and look forward to getting to know Chelsea more. On their way back down to UT from WA after Thanksgiving they stopped in and stayed with us for a day. We enjoyed playing with them and the kids love their time with their Uncle Kris, who is our most frequent family visitor. Over the years, Kris has brought a number of girls around for family holidays, so it resonated with me when I heard that Jenny's husband asked her if he "needed to remember this ones name?" Sounds like Chelsea is the one that we are supposed to remember and really invest time in getting to know her. They are getting married on March 5th and we look forward to it! Congrats to Kris!

Getting engaged is such an exciting time, but it's also very stressful. I remember thinking that a lot of things would be easier once we were engaged/married... it seemed to make sense to me. But, as Kristopher is sadly learning very quickly, things often get complicated, stressful and a little overwhelming, though it is still exciting to consider the prospect of getting married to someone you love.

[Beware giving me a digital image you don't want to see on my blog!]

Thanksgiving 2008

Thanksgiving this year was so great! This is our second Thanksgiving/Christmas as a family away from our family and it was SO nice to have family visit us. We had my parents come from Seattle as well as my brother Braden, his wife, Amanda, and their son, Mason, from Utah. This is the first time we've been able to host a holiday like this since we've been married and we were so excited to have family visit and stay for a while. Oma and Opa arrived late Monday evening and stayed until Sat afternoon. Braden and Amanda came Wed evening and left late Sat morning. The food was wonderful, the conversation was great, the company was so fun... it was great. Here are some pics with some explanations if needed.



Here is a cute little decoration that Sarah made at a friends birthday party the other day.
Nathan loved cuddling with his Opa.

Nathan only gets his pacifier now if he is going to sleep or going to have his own quiet time with his blanket and bear either by himself or cuddling with someone. Opa was the perfect willing target! For the first couple of days after Oma and Opa left, whenever Nathan would wake up from a nap or bed he would ask "where's Opa?" or "cuddle with Opa". Opa you're welcome back anytime.

Sarah enjoyed helping Oma make the Multi-Berry pie and it's topping. I enjoyed eating it with ice-cream! [I'm not a big pie fan at all, but with ice-cream, I can enjoy berry or apple pie anytime... especially warm... mmmmmm!]

Oma and Opa giving the kids some animal rides (the actual type of animal changes from moment-to-moment and I'm not really sure what they are at this moment)

It was cute to see Mason and Jane together. They are four months apart, but Mason is actually heavier then Jane. It was funny to see Mason laying there as a 3-month old and Jane full-on crawling around the house. Yes, Jane is full-on crawling. It was fun because she was just starting to crawl decently when Oma and Opa first got here and by the time they left she was going from one side of the house (Sarah's room) to the other (toy room). It's cute to have her just show up in a room behind us now.

Last year I was disappointed when I found out that the ward here doesn't do a "Turkey Bowl". But this year I was excited when our new Young Men's President issued a challenge between the Young Men and the adults. I was really glad that Dad and Braden came and played with me. The weather was amazing and we had a great time. I'm ashamed to admit that I was still noticeably sore on Sunday.

These are Sarah's Thanksgiving pictures that she colored (except for the one on the top-right which Mary did at Sarah's insistence). One of our friends asked if we were going to put Thanksgiving pics in the frames and we thought that was a great idea, so Sarah was excited to color them! They're really cute and she does such a good job!

Here is the spread: [L->R] Turkey, Mashed Potatoes, rolls, fruit-filled cool-whip salad, stuffing, homemade cranberry sauce, gravy, pickle-olive tray and green bean casserole. Good stuff and it all tasted wonderful!

Here is our Thanksgiving table, with Sarah and Nathan just out of reach. They enjoyed having their own table, but didn't eat much of anything.

In spite of being a great daddy himself, Braden also made time to be a great Uncle for Nathan and Sarah as well. The kids enjoyed having them read books for them and play with them in other ways as well.

On Friday afternoon we headed over to my Aunt and Uncles house in Fruitland and had a grand old time with many of my cousins and other family members.

Mom made some of her amazing salsa. I wish that you could have an understanding of how big that bowl of salsa is. I'll just say that even though there were over 50 people there, it didn't all get eaten by the time we left. We still got to take some back with us and left some there with them. Mom was literally making this salsa for like three hours (while also doing other Oma things here and there). Amanda made some delicious guacamole and we made some yummy bean dip.

Here are Sarah and her cousin (2nd cousin? or something) Eli playing in the castle at the Farmer's house.

There was a big group of people that played flag football at the Farmer's on Friday evening as well. I was too sore to play but I enjoyed watching from the balcony pictured. We had a great time and it was great to see so many relatives.

We look forward to the Christmas gathering we are planning!

Passing of Joseph B. Wirthlin

Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, passed away on Monday evening at the age of 91. When he passed I thought about my experience with understanding him as a person and as a special witness of Christ. He was not a very dynamic speaker during the years that I was actually attentive to his messages. I don't know if it was always the case for him, but he seemed to speak in somewhat of a monotone voice and was, for me, at times, difficult to listen to. Due to that experience, I made the incorrect assumption that the content of his message matched his delivery. But while I was on my mission and could only read his messages, I quickly learned otherwise... and repented :^). In fact, his messages have been some of the most influential for me over the years. He was related to the late President Gordon B. Hinckley as their grandmother's were half-sisters (they share the same middle name - Bitner). A co-worker of mine is related to the Bitner line and so he has been at family reunions with Elder Wirthlin and President Hinckley. He mentioned to me recently that "Uncle Joe" was one of the kindest men he had ever met and that at these reunions he would frequently be found with a member of the family who "didn't fit in" or was maybe on the outskirts of the mainstream family values. This seemed to fit my image of him. I have always appreciated his humor and the stories he shared.

1. Another lesson I learned on the football field was at the bottom of a pile of 10 other players. It was the Rocky Mountain Conference championship game, and the play called for me to run the ball up the middle to score the go-ahead touchdown. I took the handoff and plunged into the line. I knew I was close to the goal line, but I didn’t know how close. Although I was pinned at the bottom of the pile, I reached my fingers forward a couple of inches and I could feel it. The goal line was two inches away.
At that moment I was tempted to push the ball forward. I could have done it. And when the refs finally pulled the players off the pile, I would have been a hero. No one would have ever known.
I had dreamed of this moment from the time I was a boy. And it was right there within my reach. But then I remembered the words of my mother. “Joseph,” she had often said to me, “do what is right, no matter the consequence. Do what is right and things will turn out OK.”
I wanted so desperately to score that touchdown. But more than being a hero in the eyes of my friends, I wanted to be a hero in the eyes of my mother. And so I left the ball where it was—two inches from the goal line.
I didn’t know it at the time, but this was a defining experience. Had I moved the ball, I could have been a champion for a moment, but the reward of temporary glory would have carried with it too steep and too lasting a price. It would have engraved upon my conscience a scar that would have stayed with me the remainder of my life. I knew I must do what is right.
The Light of Christ helps us to discern right from wrong. When we allow temptations to drown out the still voice of our conscience—that is when decisions become difficult. [The link to the full talk is here]

2. I remember when one of our daughters went on a blind date. She was all dressed up and waiting for her date to arrive when the doorbell rang. In walked a man who seemed a little old, but she tried to be polite. She introduced him to me and my wife and the other children; then she put on her coat and went out the door. We watched as she got into the car, but the car didn’t move. Eventually our daughter got out of the car and, red faced, ran back into the house. The man that she thought was her blind date had actually come to pick up another of our daughters who had agreed to be a babysitter for him and his wife.
We all had a good laugh over that. In fact, we couldn’t stop laughing. Later, when our daughter’s real blind date showed up, I couldn’t come out to meet him because I was still in the kitchen laughing. Now I realize that our daughter could have felt humiliated and embarrassed. But she laughed with us, and as a result, we still laugh about it today.
The next time you’re tempted to groan, you might try to laugh instead. It will extend your life and make the lives of all those around you more enjoyable. [The link to the full talk is here]

Anyway, as many of these great men move through my life, I'm grateful for their distant, yet real impact on who I am as a person, a husband and a father. I'm glad that Elder Wirthlin has reunited with his wife.