Kodachrome 2011

KODACHROME 2011

Every Memorial Day weekend we have a big get together/family reunion with my family and Tom & Janice's family in Kodachrome state park.

This formation is the centerpiece and crown jewel of  Kodachrome. It has been called many different names but we call it ..... well ..never mind, but the reason why we call it that is because its shape resembles a ...... okay just forget this whole paragraph.

Ruby chillin' with Grandpa

Charly loves playing with Max

Having some of our traditional breakfast burritos

Aiden 

Ruby sleeping on my extremely large belly

Oh, how cute, they fell to sleep together in the couples chair.

Here's a close up, notice how their mouths are open, indicating very deep sleep

Charly shooting Cami right in the eyeball with the squirt gun

Don't get the camera wet!

We rented this sweet little trailer so our Ruby would be protected from the elements.

Rublet

Later we went on a sweet bike ride

Clint, Tyler, and me, overlooking Bryce Canyon

Tom and Tommy

Here's Tom running over Steve's leg for getting in his way

And here's another classic Steve picture

Clinton making his way up a steep hill on his new unscratched and undented bike.

This is a pic. of Tyler just before throwing his bike down and yelling "I'm sick of this, I'm walking home!!"

As you can see in this zoomed in photo, Tyler is actually crying.

You may be asking yourself how I was able to capture these wonderful pics. and still be in them. The answer is; I'm just that good.

WORLDS GREATEST CREPES

Sunday morning was our turn to make breakfast so I decided that I would make my famous crepes, and when I say famous what I mean to say is that 9 of the 15 people who have tried them said they would consider having seconds.

This is me looking like a player, getting ready to cook, you totally can't even tell that I just woke up.

This is Aiden trying to hide and be the first in line for crepes.

It was a little too windy outside so we sat up the crepe bar in our trailer, it worked out perfectly. There's nothing worse that a crepe that has sand blown in it.

Steve looking like a Pimp. Becky says that she loves when he flips his lenses up like that, it reminds her of a convertible car with the top down.

Here's Steven, helping the kids with their Jr. Ranger packets. Notice how Max is winking at the camera, and it's obvious that it takes him little effort to do so.

Takin' a Bath

Chillin' like a villain

It was so windy on Sunday that we decided to take the party to The Kline's house in Henrieville

Tom can make a mean batch of barbecue ribs, he claims that Famous Daves has offered him a million dollars for his secret recipe, but he told them he would never sell out.

Tod catching some air on the jump

The miracles of technology.

I really had to use the restroom and the one at the house gives me stage freight because it's so close to the kitchen so I had to ask the neighbors if I could use theirs.....they said no. Ha, kidding, I was just trying to find some good cell service in order to quickly download a very funny YouTube video to show everyone.

My Mom entertaining Ruby

Max and Charly, attacking Tommy (right where it counts)

Tommy teaching Aiden a very dangerous figure skating move, their form is amazing.

Notice the bandage on Tommy's arm, minutes earlier he crash landed Tom's motorcycle while jumping. Tommy got all patched up but wouldn't stop fussing until Janice gave him a root beer with a twizzler straw. Notice the half grin on his face.

CAMPFIRE TIME

On the last night we always stay up and hang out around the campfire, we don't drink so we have to make do with caffeinated beverages and smores

Yep, only Steve would eat a Smore on a plate, he's so proper.

Steve also told me that besides eating smores on a plate, he uses a knife and fork to eat Snickers bars.

On this night a very interesting experience happened that I would like to present to you.

Well first I kept smelling this very strange burning smell, it smelled like leaves burning but kind of sweet, and it definitely wasn't the campfire.

Second, Tod was acting very jovial and ate about 14 smores, and all other food in sight, which is very odd because anyone who knows Tod, knows that he eats like a bird.

It wasn't until I began compiling my photos that I was able to piece together all the evidence and conclude that Todd was indeed smoking some weed that night

This is Amanda proudly holding a jumbo sized smore, but, what's truly interesting about this pic. is that I inadvertently captured Tod in the background, closer examination of this picture is astounding.

Here's a closer look at Tod's face, notice how his eyes are half way opened and glazed over. Also notice how he has a half smile because he couldn't stop giggling.

You can also see that Tod is eyeing over Amanda's Smore because he had a major case of the munchees.

Now here's a closer look at the suspicious item in Tod's hand, yep, definitely weed.

The next morning I found this on the ground next to where Tod was sitting.

Each year we try to melt things on the fire, for example one year we had a fire so hot that we figured we could melt sand into glass, we obviously failed. But this year we focused on melting coins

As you can see my tool (left) is far superior to Tod's

When Tod realized that my tool was better he got mad and tried (unsuccessfully) to hit mine to the ground

This is a red hot quarter, we couldn't melt it, but I saved it for next years attempt

The next morning my Mom made some of her amazing sweet rolls, well she didn't actually make them while we were camping, she premade them at home then heated them up while camping, so yes, she did make them just not while camping. That's not to say that she couldn't make sweet rolls while camping, it's just much easier to make them in a full size kitchen at home. Not to say that trailers don't have full sized kitchens, they just typically have very small ovens compared to those in most residential dwellings, unless of course that residential dwelling that is being compared to is another camping trailer then they would be of comparable size assuming that the owner did not change the oven to a larger size.

Here's Clint and Cami, proudly standing directly under the pride of Kodachrome

Tyler and Amanda proving that Iphones are much more entertaining than babies, notice how they're both smiling and I'm not.

All that gaming just wore me out!

At this point I would like to end this wonderful blog post with a short experience that occurred while driving home

After it was all done we packed up and headed out. On our way home we hit some bad traffic in Spanish Fork. We were driving along at normal speeds when all of the sudden we came around a bend and traffic was stopped, fortunately I had left enough space between me and the truck ahead of me to stop in time. That is, until a car from the fast lane swerved out in front of me, at that point I knew we were going to crash and destroy my truck and the rented trailer. Unable to stop in time, my only choice was to attempt to swerve around the delinquent car and fit between it and the barrier. Laura covered her eyes, she knew that a serious crash was inevitable. As my tires screeched I somehow miraculously was able to fit my 7' wide truck in a 5' wide space and miss the car and by less than an inch. After passing the car, while doing all I could to keep my middle finger under control I noticed Laura slowly uncover her eyes, she had a look of surprise on her face because she thought we were toast. It took me 20 minutes to stop shaking, but we made it home safe and sound.

THE END

Kicked Out, Special Experience #271

For the few of you who look at my blog, and the even fewer who actually read It, I felt inspired to share a very special experience with you. This special experience is the 271st special experience of my life, so as you can guess it's very near and dear to my heart. I would put this experience somewhere between our first baby being born, and getting unexpectedly doused by a cup of cold water while taking a warm shower.

You may or may not know that last month I was able to take my small Boy scout group to a scout camp in Beaver, Utah, which is coincidentally named Beaver High Adventure Base.

  

While at Beaver we participated in some sweet activities like rock climbing, white water river rafting, climbing around on telephone posts, and shooting guns.

 Before starting the story I must also tell you about one very special boy in my group named Kaden. And as you can tell from this picture Kaden is special, and has to wear a helmet at all times to avoid injuring himself.  Okay so he's not that kind of special just really, really weird. Well Kaden and I have discovered a very special commonality between the two of us, that is, we both love to mess with people.

After much pondering, fasting, and praying, I have decided to name this short and incredible story:

KICKED OUT

Well we had just finished shooting rifles at the shooting range, and had moved on to the archery range, Kaden and Koy were already on thin ice for messing around and bugging Preston, the worker running the range, which didn't help our situation out at all. After shooting for quite a while we were getting a little bored and started coming up with more creative ways to shoot.

 Preston was off flirting with some girls and wasn't paying much attention. Kaden was lobbing the arrows in the air, trying to hit the target, which, at the time, I didn't know was against the rules, (pictured above) I then proceeded to take an action shot of said lobbing. Apparently lobbing arrows is frowned upon at beaver because when Preston saw what Kaden was doing he freaked out, he then came over to Kaden and said "That's strike three get off my range!" we weren't sure if he was joking or serious, as he is one of those goofy guys that is hard to read (he was after all, carrying around a toy pink flamingo in his backpack). Our uncertainty was put to rest when Preston yelled "GET OUT!!!!"

If Preston were a cartoon, this would be him.

Kaden exited the shooting area and we watched everyone else from the side. Of course It couldn't have just ended at that. We thought Preston seemed like a guy who liked to joke around and I thought a little laugh would smooth things over and calm him down so I told Kaden to go tell him sorry, shake his hand and pull him in for a hug. Theoretically this would have been followed by loud laughter, and Preston forgiving Kaden, however the act of laughing and forgiving definitely did not occur (at least not from Preston)

Preston was on the other end of the range still flirting with the girls, Kaden approached Preston, stuck out his hand, and said sorry, but instead of receiving Kaden's apology Preston rejected it yelling "NO" Well I guess Kaden was hell bent on getting a hug because he just bounced back and said "come on man, I'm sorry" and then forced a hug on Preston. A hug, as you know, is something you give to someone who you care about, and not to someone whom you are angry with, so you can imagine how well Preston received Kaden's hug, or perhaps a better term to use would be "rejected Kaden's hug" Preston retaliated with an even harder shove.

Here is a professionally filmed video of Kaden's attempted apology.

When the flirting girls realized that Kaden was an enemy of their potential boyfriend they were angered as well, and if you have had any experience with angry girls then you know that they are completely and totally relentless, and ruthless, and will say anything to hurt your feelings. The girls started ripping on Kaden using verbal attacks like "YOU'RE A JERK", "you'll never have a girlfriend", "you will never get married", and my personal favorite "Your clothes don't even match" (which actually was true as you can see in the photo he is wearing a tie dye shirt with plaid golfing slacks)

After being belittled and rejected in every way, Kaden returned to my side and we continued watching the others attempt to shoot bows. After watching for a few minutes Preston came back over and was observing Koy, Jacob, Drew, and Skyler. At this point Kaden decided to apologize yet again, saying "I'm Sorry, just shake my hand" but Preston wasn't having it, and said "I'll punch you, get away from me" Kaden continued to try to shake hands which only angered Preston even more. Finally I said "Come on Preston, shake his hand. Be the bigger man" After hearing this, Preston reached his boiling point and really lost it, saying, "You're out of here Kaden, get out!" Preston then looked at me and said "You too, you're out of here" Kaden and I just stood there confused, we weren't sure if he was for real or joking. Preston kept yelling at us to leave for a bit but we didn't know what to do, so we stayed. Finally after seeing that his forced authority was not intimidating us he yelled for the guy in charge of the whole shooting range "Zach.....Zach.....ZACH!!!" he then ran off to tell on us.

At this point Kaden and I just slowly walked off. As we walked away, the flirtatious girls started ripping on Kaden, saying once again "your clothes don't match", "you're a looser", and "you'll never have a girlfriend", we just continued on and then heard Zach (the range master) yell out to those still at the shooting range "You guys need to respect Preston and do what he says, he's in charge!"

We returned to our camp, alone, and I explained to Kaden that when you start messing with peoples heads they will respond in one of three ways. They will either laugh hysterically, do nothing because they don't get it, or get extremely angry (which is what Preston did). I also explained to Kaden that when a girl gets mad they become vicious, and will say or do anything to tear you down, or hurt you, even if their ridicule has nothing to do with the current argument, and to simply avoid girls for the rest of his life.

Goin' Down South

Last April we took a trip down south with my family. Here are some pictures.

Our first night we stayed in Cannonville at the grand staircase in, named after the "grand" staircase on the side of the building.

Ruby loves to grab faces

On Saturday we went on a hike to Promise rock, I got to carry Ruby.

Dad carried Charly

And Aiden carried the sunflower seeds (that he stole from Tyler)

Clint, petrified at the sight of a great climb.

More uphill hiking

                              Dad dragging the whole family up another steep spot

All the hiking must have worn Ruby out

Grandma, Charly, and their new found treasures, which I'm sure my Dad was very happy about.

After our hike we went to the Cannonville visitor center to use the bathroom and get some water. I was planning on bathing and washing my dirty socks in the sink unfortunately this sign kept me from doing so. Stupid sign.

While we were waiting this very nice lady came over and started teaching us about provident living, for about an hour. Fortunately she was mainly talking to my mom so we were able to leave while my mom sat and listened.

 

Her car was covered in quotes from the scriptures and prophets, it was totally custom

Getting spun at the park, one time was all it took for me to feel nauseous

The kids couldn't get enough

Chilaxin in the shade

Ruby, licking Amanda's arm, mmm salty.

Speaking of provident living, this guy has an extra house right next to the one he lives in, just in case a tornado destroys the first one.

 

Our next stop was Kodachrome Basin State Park, a little state park located in Kodachome Basin.

We stayed in these very cabins, while here we consumed a jumbo sized bag of peanut butter m&m's

Roasting some Dogs over the fire, there's nothin' like a good hot dog, especially if it's a Mexican Chiuaua, they're so spicy.

Before heading home we stopped in Cannonville and visited my Grandma for a little while, we had plans to go down in a few weeks again so we didn't visit much. Laura told me we should get the camera out and take some pictures with her but we didn't. That was the last time I saw my Grandma in good health before she passed away weeks later. I wish I would have taken a little more time to visit with her.



The Bad Prank

Have you ever tried to pull a prank on someone and it doesn't quite work out the way you planned it? Well I sure have (several times). So I would like to dedicate this posting to that very subject, a prank gone wrong.

There are several reasons for pulling a prank on someone, maybe you just want to get a good laugh at the expense of another, or perhaps you are trying to get even with someone who has previously made you the victim of a nasty prank, or it could be that you are trying to make your worst enemy look like a fool in front of his second cousin, Mildred,  who you had a crush on in the third grade. Whatever the reason for your prank the desired outcome is Laughter from both sides (or laughter from one side and pain from the other).  However if your prank ends in anger, shouting, hatred, searching your house for a tiny water snake, or getting kicked off the archery range at scout camp, then it is possible that your prank was a failure.

At this time I would like to share a very special story,  about a prank that didn't quite work out for the prankster (me). This story is very near and dear to my heart and involves a very immodestly dressed superhero, a glue stick, and one very expensive college book. I would appreciate it if you would turn off your Ipod, and please stop texting your great grandpa so you can be receptive to the spirit.

This story took place about seven years ago but I remember it like it occurred moments ago. Laura and I were spending a Saturday at the Beardalls, when I noticed a small stack of college books that belonged to Jenny (Laura's younger sister) and I picked up a few of them and started thumbing through them when suddenly In a moment of pure genius a great plan was revealed unto me. Now I wish I could say that this wonderful plan involved reading these text books, acquiring a great deal of knowledge and becoming the most knowledgeable man who ever lived, but that would be a blatant lie. The real plan was indeed a wonderful one, but instead of being a plan to use the books to obtain knowledge it was a plan to use the books as a facilitator in the perfect prank.

Now as most of you know hardback college books can be very expensive especially if they are large, and new, so naturally a very large, new book is the perfect tool to execute a good prank. It is also important to keep in mind that any markings or damage done to these books greatly decreases it's value when it is time to sell them after the semester, or when you get kicked out of class for telling an ill timed joke involving a rabbi, a preacher and a bishop who walked into a bar.

For the first part of the prank I went to Laura's Mom's computer and found an amazing picture of a well known superhero named "Captain Underpants" I then printed off an 8 x 10 color picture of this superhero.

If any of you have ever used a textbook then you know that the first two or three pages are typically completely blank and have no real use except perhaps for the occasional doodle, or as a notepad to remind yourself of an important appointment you have at 3:00 in the south parking lot with the school bully. It was on one of these pages that my plan became a reality. Using the glue stick I carefully and very neatly covered the entire first blank page in Jenny's expensive textbook, I then stuck the captain underpants picture to the glue and carefully flattened out all of the bubbles until it looked like it was originally part of the book.

I also, out of moral obligation to honesty, must include in this story that Laura was there while I was in the process of plotting, printing and gluing. I must also tell you that although Laura didn't physically help carry out this joke she supported me in her laughter, and not opposing my actions.

Well my final step in the great plan was to simply place the books back in their original positions and wish I could be there when she saw the picture but hope that she wouldn't see it until she opened up her book in class where other students would see it, make fun of her, and call her "Miss Underpants" for the rest of her life, or until she got married when it would be changed to "Mrs. Underpants"

Their are many activities that can be done on a Saturday, for example you may choose to spend the whole day catching up on some much needed sleep, or doing some neglected work around the house like cleaning the mortar lines in your brick with a toothbrush. But one thing is for sure: Saturdays were absolutely not made for doing homework, so you can imagine my surprise when Jen walked in and immediately picked up her books to begin her studies.

Seeing that my prank was about to prematurely unfold I made like a tree and got the hell out of there. Well in no time at all Jenny had discovered the very offensive picture that was now permanently part of her $150 textbook, and like a true Beardall girl she freaked out. Those of you who have children know that if anyone hurts or offends your child the Mother is typically the first to rush to the child's side, and this was exactly what happened in that moment. Of course there really was no doubt who had committed this despicable, and entirely inappropriate act, it was an outsider, no blood relative would be so ignorant as to destroy a very expensive textbook just to get a laugh. Now I had two people against me, that is until Laura saw how upset her baby sister was and decided that my joke was too much and also turned against me.

The angry Beardall trio quickly tracked me down and proceeded to get all up in my grill about the prank. Carol quickly informed me that those books are very expensive, and that I had completely ruined this book and Jenny would not be able to get a refund at all, and that I don't know anything about how valuable these books are because I have never purchased one. Laura simply asked "why would you do that?" and gave me a very disappointed look.

Jenny was so upset that she just stood there with tears in her eyes, holding her now worthless book in her arms as if though it were a beloved family pet that had just been ran over by a very slow moving ice cream truck.  I cannot describe the look in her eyes, but I'm pretty sure if I would have continued to look into her eyes I would've spontaneously burst into flames.

In that moment I was in a situation known as being "cornered", in other words I had three very angry women attacking me with angry looks, verbal assaults, and very unkind thoughts with no way out. I really wasn't sure what to do, I was now hated by my wife, sister in law and mother in law, which for many men is perfectly normal. I stood there for a few minutes while being verbally pummeled until I simply could not handle the complete and unrestrained overreactions, freak outs and unnecessary crying. I decided that I would try to make it all better.

After knowing the Beardall girls for several years I knew beforehand that my prank could possibly fail, and that I could possibly be "cornered" and have to somehow fix the great damage that would be done. For this reason I chose one of those three blank pages in front of the book to be the special spot where I would glue the picture, because any of those three blank pages in front of the book can be removed without causing any noticeable damage. I also knew that new, thick hardback college books are very expensive because I had purchased several in college, (before dropping out and pursuing a very unsuccessfull career in finish carpentry) so I was sure to plan an emergency escape plan.

Well the only thing left to do was to get the textbook out of Jenny's trembling hands, and with the greatest of care extract the contaminated page from the front of the book with a razor knife, and then burn the offending page so that the evil spirits that were trapped in it would be cast out forever.

After removing the picture the Beardall girls were still quite certain that the book's value had been compromised and that she would not receive a full refund at the end of the year. I assured them that absolutely no one would know that that page was missing, but that brought no solace to the angry women. I then told them that if at the end of the year she didn't receive a full refund then I would pay the full price of $150 for the book. At this point the still doubtful Beardall women must have realized that nothing more could be done and the awkward interaction was adjourned. I then walked away, head down and tail between my legs, feeling like a fool.

THE END