Today I would like to talk to you about the dangers of Brain Freezes

As a family we love ice cream. I mean it’s an American staple. It’s as American as apple pie, baseball, Pearl Jam, Johnny Cash and Ice cream. Actually, I’d put Cash higher on the list but that’s another column for another day. We love going out for ice cream. Farr’s Fresh, Cherry Berry, Baskins and DQ are all part of the routine.  Well, most of us anyway. Connor I swear is the only kid in a three county areas that doesn’t like ice cream. Ok, he likes it but he doesn’t have the unhealthy obsession that most of us do. Even tonight he didn’t want a Butterscotch Beer Float, just the Butterscotch beer (again its beer like root-beer is beer. Don’t judge). Nothing wrong with it, he is just missing the 2^nd greatest dessert known to man. First was a carrot/cheesecake from Mr. Z’s in SLC that Mandy and I used to frequent we were first married and living downtown. Alas, it’s no longer there but hey I can have a food dream about it…….ok dream over.

Don’t get me wrong, the boy loves his sugar. He is more of a chocolate, candy and slush kind of guy. Especially the slushy, he loves the slushy. From a parents' prospective, is there a more evil kind of dessert than slushy? Ice, sugar flavor and that’s it. It melts into goo so vile that even the strongest of cleaners cannot remove it from clothes or furniture. It stains the teeth, the lips and tongue.  Slushes give you that sickly sweet feeling that lasts for hours. No wonder he loves the things.

A couple of weeks ago we decided to head up the road to the DQ (really if I have to say what the DQ stands for, just stop reading) for some Blizzards and Slushes. Alex and I got our require S’more Blizzard (oh lordy), Mandy got her Snickers Blizzard but Connor, Connor decided to be different again. He went for the Frozen Lemonade Slush. Confession time: it was really flippin good, tart and sweet. It was perfect for hot 129 degree day that it was (temperature may have been exaggerated). We had ordered these all through the drive thru so we could enjoy them at home. On the way home Mandy noticed that Connor was making a face, and not just any face. Connor was making the universal face for BRAIN FREEZE! Eyes scrunched in unimaginable pain. Face pinched together in agony. Temples pulsing in rhythm with his heartbeat that was becoming more rapid as the freeze progressed. We’ve all been there. When the freeze is that bad you just ride it out. Easier said than done.

 

Once, the freeze was discovered we all yell out our different remedies at the same time: look at the ceiling, no look at the traffic lights, no look down and put your head between your knees. All of that came tumbling out. Poor man was almost in, tears it hurt so much. After the brain freeze passed, the question of course is asked, “Mama what was that?”

“Connor that was a cold headache." Are you ok?”

“Yes I think so, Mama.”

“Well, is your frozen Lemonade good?” Mandy asked.

“No Mama, I’m terrified of this.”

“You’re terrified of the brain freeze?”

“No I’m terrified of the slush. It’s too tart.”

Looking back on the situation, driving on a busy road, while laughing so hard tears are coming out is not a fun situation to be in. Even though Mandy and I had stomach cramps after. His delivery was perfectly innocent. He had just gone through the Mother of all Brain Freeze and he was worried about the tartness of the slush.

 

I love him.

Writers block update

I have had a severe case of writers block all week and life has been pretty routine, so when in doubt cop out and do a weekend recap.

I will start with Thursday because of the Utah holiday of Pioneer Day. I never have been into Pioneer Day. It always seemed weird to me that we celebrated a state holiday in July but in historical context, I guess it makes sense. Brigham came down said, “This is the place,” and the rest is history. This year we decided to do something different. We had some friends over for dinner last Pioneer day and he gave a toast of Happy Pie-n-Beer day. I had never heard of this but apparently up on the base it is common place to hear this. An idea was born that day to have a party for those of us, who wanted to celebrate our own way. Really, it was a simple concept; Pie and Beer. Bring your own beer and bring a pie to share. Throw some dead animals on the grill (in the case of hot dogs, several dead animals), get some fruit, chips and dip and you have a party. Mandy made homemade root beer and it was on. It was nice and mellow. A bunch of family and friends relaxing in the yard while the kids ran roughshod all over the place, what could be better. There was plenty of pie for all:

I tried my best to polish off most of the pie but alas, the beer and burgers got in the way.  Next year we assign people to bring pie. It actually saddened me that so many innocent pies had to go to waste.  No one got out of hand or too obnoxious (although I tried but it wasn’t my fault). Just a great evening. Thank you again to all who came.

Friday had to work.

Saturday, we did a couple of little chores, cleaned up the yard a little bit, changed the battery on the truck, and lounged for most of the day. We needed a break after all the work that went into to making the house and yard presentable for the party. That night we decided to make the trek up Weber Canyon to Taggarts.

We have lived in this part of Utah for almost 14 years and we have always heard about how good Taggarts is. So we thought this day was as good as any to make the trip past Morgan to eat dinner. We arrived about ten minutes to five with the intention of walking right in and getting sat at a table. Most of Morgan County it seemed had the same idea. After being told we had a 30 minute wait, we decided to stroll the grounds. For reasons unknown they have a pair of Peacocks roaming around the restaurant like sentry’s guarding a castle. Out back they have a nice Koi pond and deck area.

We waited our allotted time then sat down to eat. If you are ever in the Morgan or northern Davis County area, make the drive and check this place out. It was that good. Mandy had the veggie sandwich, Connor had the kid’s fish and chips, Alex obliterated an adult size 1/3lb bacon cheese burger and I had the ham, cheese and spiced apple wrap. All the sandwiches are on homemade pitas not normal bread. Wait, ham, cheese and cinnamon spiced apples, in a wrap? Yup and it was damn good. For dessert we split carrot cake and Alex choose the cheesecake brownie, while Connor had the chocolate chip cookie. I’m still convinced Connor made the best choice. 

Sunday we slept in and really for me 8AM was a godsend. I cannot remember the last time I slept that late. This just in….I was just informed my lazy butt slept in that late on Father’s Day. However, I don’t count Father’s Day or Birthdays as official sleeping in days. That is expected and the non-expected sleep in days is what really counts. Now back to the blog.

I took in a quiet moment on the back porch with me, the birds and a cup of coffee before the rest of clan stirred.

Mandy came up with the great idea of heading to the pool that afternoon. After consulting the internet and looking at several options we chose Clearfield and off we went. Clearfield is a nice pool that is mostly indoors with a normal pool for lap swimming and a diving board. There is also a lazy “river” that is more akin to a whirlpool (or toilet bowl as the boys called it), a kids play area and a waterslide for the bigger kids ages 8-36 or older. If you have read this blog before you know of Connor’s struggles to try new things fears. It again manifested itself on the big waterslide. We again tried begging, bribing and encouraging for hours to get him to ride it. When Mandy finally convinced him it was an early Bday present to her if he would just ride it once, he finally agreed to go. Again, as soon as we hit the pool it was, “can we go again?” We went again, and again and again and again and again and again. That’s when I got, “why didn’t you tell me it was so much fun Papa? I would have done this sooner.” Grit teeth, grit teeth, and I’m over it. Had a blast at the pool. . It was great just to unwind for four hours.

For dinner we had grilled chicken, with grilled corn on the cob, salad and watermelon. It was good but dessert was Butterscotch Beer Floats. 

We had a guest (you know who you are and thank you) bring the boys some of this for our Pie-n-beer party and they were so good we (I mean I) came up with the idea of adding ice cream (I am the most humble guy I know). If you are a Harry Potter fan, I imagine that is what butter beer tastes like. Pick these up and Harmon’s, add Ice cream and thank me later.

 

See that wasn’t so hard. Writers block meets weekend update.

Cub Scout Camp

Summertime is that magical time of year when there is no school. You get to stay up late. Ride your bikes all day. Throw the ball around. Fireworks for the entire month of July (trust me the neighborhood is proving that last statement). Then there is scout camp. I have gone with Alex the last couple of years to Cub Scout Day camp so it’s not the overnighter, but still, it’s a scout camp. We were supposed to do Alex’s first overnighter this year but that was our first night on vacation so he, sorry pal, you’re missing it. Last week was Connors first adventure at camp.

Connor is his own person and he is not afraid to tell you that. It’s one of his most endearing (and hair pulling) traits. With an event like camp, we had to slowly tell him about it. Build up to the event type of thing. So, with Alex’s help, we started telling him about all the fun things at camp. He would react in horror at the boats or the hike. It was a fun give and take for three days. Finally, the night before the camp arrives and the new battle was the time he had to wake up. Most people don’t like getting up at 615AM during their summer vacation, so his objection was warranted but ultimately ignored. On the ride to the church to meet with the rest of the troop, I promised him he would not have to do the boats but he did have to try everything else. Compromise is a great thing. Well, I think telling him he was riding with his friend Ben helped a little bit also. We arrived at the church and with all health forms and release forms filled out; we headed up to Camp Kiesel.

Due to my awesome planning and navigation abilities we arrived at camp, 35 minutes before we could check in. My bad, but at least we were able to commandeer the best picnic table spot for the troop. BOOM! Camp Kiesel is your typical scout camp; there is shooting BB guns, bow and arrows, nature hike, tug-o-war, obstacle course, canoe rides, and new this year wrist rockets (not to be confused with man-bands, mancelets or brocelets. See yesterday’s post for joke reference. Thank you.).  This year we were lucky we started and ended with the two big events; archery and BB guns.

Like I stated we started with archery and once Connor grasped the concept, he did really good. While he was no William Tell, he didn’t slice his finger open like his older sibling did his first time out. For reference, Alex held his arrow like a pool cue and the fletching sliced his finger as it slid past. 

We then did a respect nature course and tug-o-war.

 After a kids vs. parents tug-o-war and many tears, we took a break before bead making.

Ok, I understand that scouts teaches about knot tying and the outdoors but why do they need to know about bead animal making? More importantly, don’t they know that many Dads’ will be accompanying these boys? That is why this:

Turned out like this:

This is not a Dad event. Scouts are about nature, knives, knots, hiking, and the such. Not beads. Wait, they say this is an exercise in following instructions and dexterity of the fingers to help with the knots. Oh, I see. Moving on.

There was the nature hike, where they learned about what the good and bad plants were in the area, then the dreaded canoes. Connor did not want to do the canoes under any circumstances and after our Disneyland experience, I learned not to press the issue. I asked him if he was absolutely sure he didn’t want to go and that was the end of it. We watched the rest of the boys from shore, when the meltdown happened. He felt stupid and dumb that he didn’t go. That is when I told him, “Buddy, I am proud of you for not going. You made a decision and didn’t let anyone talk you out of it. That is a great trait to have. However, now that you see there is nothing to be afraid of and it’s not as bad as you think, do you want to go next year?” His reply, “I think definitely I maybe will try next year.” I’ll take it.

We had lunch, then shopped at the trading post (Mandy was thrilled with the sling shot we purchased) and then had the obstacle course. The obstacle course consists of a rope bridge, running over and through some tires, walking a balance beam, and ends with a wrist rocket shooting range. Connor again was having nothing to do with the rope bridge. He didn’t even want to try and after some convincing and pleading, he decided to at least try. The first attempt, he wouldn’t even go up on the ladder. So he came back down and wanted to try when no was looking. The second attempt, he climbed all the way up and decided it was too high. While, I was disappointed he wouldn’t go across, at least he tried to and climbed to the top.  He still was able to do the wrist-rockets and thought it was great practice for the sling shot he purchased.

We ended the day at the event he and quite frankly, all the boys wanted to do: BB GUNS! I need to get this boy his own rifle. He was a regular Earp brother out there. He was all over range, nailing his targets. He grasped this concept quicker than anything else all day. I was proud (and slightly alarmed) at how good he really was with the gun.

After guns we had the closing flag ceremony. Note to Camp Kiesel counselors. When it’s time to go and it’s in the low 90’s and you are running 15 minutes over, cut out a song or two (or five) and let’s go home.

Camp was a success I think. Based on the conversations Connor and Ben had on the way home, the boys definitely thought so. We can build on this and hopefully we can get him to do all the events next year. At least it wasn’t an overnight camp.

 

 

 Wait, Alex has an overnighter next year?

Legos and Wrist Adornment

Ahhhhhh, finally I can go back to the reason I started writing this blog. Back to its roots. Back to the very soul of my writing to the internet; laundry, Lego’s and Connor. As a standalone post, on either one of those topics, I can squeeze out at least 800-1,000 words. If you combine them into one gargantuan post, I can probably get around 500 or so.

If you have been reading this blog, you know we went on two vacations in a three week span. As such, when you go on vacations you expect a mountain of clothes to wash when you return. Alas, I wasn’t disappointed. We did Alex’s load with no issues, other than he mixes socks with his normal clothes. Which is no big deal expect he has two separate hampers to put them in that sit two inches apart from each other. Really is that hard to put the socks in the appropriate receptacle? Again no big deal but then one sock goes in normal hamper, the other in with the socks. Socks get missed, single socks sit in a drawer for weeks because I forget about them, then I cry. It’s a vicious cycle. Anyway what was I saying? Oh yes, coffee. I need coffee. Wait! What? It’s early and I’m tired.

Any who, Alex’s laundry went off without any issues (SOCKS!) but then there was Connors. We can usually go weeks without doing Connors laundry. It’s the result of being the younger of two boys and getting all the hand-me-downs mixed with the new stuff. So his hamper gets extremely full before it gets done and as such more stuff can accumulate in his pockets. So let us analyze the picture below.

Hmmmm, we have three weapons, top half of a treasure box, tusk (horn), antennae piece, two miscellaneous Lego pieces, a Dove chocolate wrapper (oh dear lord please let him have eaten the chocolate. Amen), and a rubber band bracelet (editor’s question: if a guy/boy wears wrist adornment, is it still called a bracelet. Can’t we call it a brocelet or a mancelet? Just sayin’, it makes sense).

Let us start with the Lego’s. I’m at a loss anymore. Since, his birthday the Lego’s have multiplied exponentially. I cannot step anywhere in this house without seeing one. I swear the Lego’s are alive and roaming the house like in Toy Story. They go on covert missions at night to place themselves exactly where I will step the next day. These Lego’s above came out of the washer. When Mandy went to empty the dryer later she found more, including the bottom part of the treasure box. However, when I go home that day to take a picture of what came out of the dryer, they were gone. Where to, we may never know. Although, I bet if I asked Connor he knows exactly where they are.

Onto the chocolate part of the picture. It’s a candy wrapper in Connors pocket. I am just proud of him that he didn’t leave it on the couch. Moving on.

Rubber band bracelet (I’m liking mancelet) time. Not sure where this came from. I think my boys are the other siblings in a 10mile radius not making these things. Between this type and the paracord type, their friends have all types of bracelets (ooooooo new once, man-bands) covered. Well whoever gave him this particular man-band (see it fits) will be happy to know they can survive the washer but I am not testing out if it can survive the dryer. They can test that out themselves.  

 

 

For the record this was 606words.

The pillow did it.

After three weeks and two vacations, I think it’s about time we get back to a normal routine. Lego of the Week, laundry pictures and of course Connorisms. I had a conversation with Connor a couple of days before we left for California about his hair and the ever present knots that seem to be tied in his head.

I don’t know if I ever mentioned before but Connor does some of his best work in the shower. From telling me his new shampoo smells like apple juice, to singing Gangnam Style in the shower (complete with dance moves) and telling me what else the “Fox says” (also complete with dance moves. If you don’t get the Fox reference, either you live under a rock or don’t ever get on YouTube). Shower time is a curse and a blessing with Connor. It is always a struggle to get him to the shower but once he’s there, it isn’t so bad (most nights).  

Connor has always had longer hair. He was born with a literal mop of black hair. It was really dark his first year, when it started lightening up. We have always kept it long, because let’s be honest, it fits him. There was that time we cut it short but we don’t’ talk about that. The trauma and tears was too much. After the first cut, he bawled and started telling us to, “Put it back. I don’t want it short. Put it back on!” Since then it has been his choice how short he wants it. Well, since it is longer hair and it’s Connor and he’s a boy, his hair is bound to get, well, bound up (see what I did there. Hunh, hunh).  

We have always joked about the various animals that make a home in his hair when it gets all tangled in knots. There has been a pelican that made a nest there. There was a mountain lion. Our dog Henry has been accused of sleeping on his head, all sorts of animals that have lived in his hair. As he gets older I know these jokes won’t last but I still push the envelope because I’m selfish and I like the jokes. Well this particular night I was joking about the pelican that lived in his hair and he was playing back. I asked, “Well if it’s not a pelican what is it. Is it a robin?”

“No.”

“Is it a raccoon?”

“No.”

“Is it the new lion from the zoo?”

“No."

It went on like this for a minute or so when he informed me, “It’s not an animal, Papa. It’s my pillow.” “Oh, I see,” I replied. “Your pillow is it. Does it just rub your hair until it gets in knots?”

“Nope, he (his pillow is a he?) uses the corners of the pillow case and ties my hair in knots.”

This is what happens when you disrepect the pillow case. You get hogtied by the Lone Ranger.

That is one hell of a pillow, and more impressive, pillow case that “he” can tie knots in his hair. By the way when I mean knots, I mean knots. Mandy and I have literally had to untie his hair. Next time it’s in knots I’m waking up the pillow and “he” can untie it because I’m sick of doing it.

Yellowstone

I have told you about our little trip down to SoCal we had a couple of weeks back, so now it’s a little tale about our July 4^th weekend excursion. My awesome in-laws were gracious enough to pay for some hotel rooms in West Yellowstone, so that as an entire family we could spend the holiday weekend together. I had never been to West Yellowstone prior to this visit so I was excited and the boys were beyond excited for this one. Mandy had found them some books about the park and that only further stoked their interest. So after a four day stay in between vacations, we packed up the car and headed north this time (After a 13hour drive the previous Sunday, five hours is nothing. As a plus no puking this trip and no iPad covers were harmed).

The drive up was uneventful. Stopped in Island Park at Ponds for a quick lunch and we were back on the road. Quick side note about lunch. When we told the boys about going to Yellowstone and telling them about the wildlife and geysers and the such, they got some notion that bison meat (hmmmmm) was a mainstay at the park. So every time we stopped north of Malad (which was too often. No more liquids on trips) whether it was a rest stop or gas station the question was always: “Do they have buffalo burgers here?” Imagine the excitement when at Ponds they had, wait for it……..BUFFALO BURGERS! We bought them one off the adult menu to split. Alex loved it, Connor ended up sharing pizza. Alex finished Connors burger and also shared some of my pizza (yes that was almost an entire adult size burger and two slices of MY pizza. Lord help us when he’s a teenager).

We arrived early afternoon in West Yellowstone, checked into our hotel and headed into the park. Not 5 miles in and we hit buffalo. Connor has a certain liking for the beast and the trip could have ended right there for him. He saw his buffalo and he was happy. After that we headed onto Old Faithful and the lodge area. Now I have only been to Yellowstone once before and that was the year after the great fire up there (89?). So to see it now was a different experience. There were still burnt husks of trees everywhere but always surrounding those were dozens of 10-12ft tall pines ready to take back over. We saw the spewing of hot water from the ground at Old Faithful, toured the Lodge and did the hike around the Old Faithful area to Morning Glory pools and the surrounding area. 

 The hike took waaaaaaayyyyyy longer than we thought, it was fun and a great time but by the end all of us were ornery and hungry (ok maybe I was the only ornery one). We headed back into town for dinner. On our way back we were stopped in traffic for a bear that was seen 500 yards off the road, under a felled tree and tall grass. Of course I grabbed the camera and headed up the road. My sister-in-law, Demi and I trekked up the road and off the beaten path to try and glimpse the animal, when I decided to try and get a closer shot. Not sure if you are aware but there are thousands of little streams and rivulets of water in the park. As I also discovered most of these are hidden by the extremely thick grass that is also in abundance in the park. To quote Seinfeld, I stepped off the path, yada, yada, yada, I threw some tennis shoes away (RIP Orange Kwiss. You always were and always will be my favorite pair of shoes). After a 30 minute delay we were back on the road. We ate dinner that night at a fantastic place, The Slippery Otter, albeit it was a late dinner. We got back late, (I had to change), we had a big party and it was the 4^th in a small tourist town. The burger and Moose Drool (from the tap) was worth the wait. Alex declared his pizza the best he has ever had. Great food and great service.

The next day was a lot of driving and sightseeing. We hit Gibbons Falls first on our way to Mammoth Hot Springs. Again, seeing the awe on your kids’ faces when they see something for the first time is better than me seeing the sights.

 Alex wanted to see an Elk more than anything and he saw one on the way to Mammoth.

We hit the Artist Mud pots on our way to Mammoth and did the quick tour there (I’ll get to more of this in a minute). After a long drive of gorgeous landscape we arrived in Mammoth. When I was a kid, Mammoth Hot Springs was by far my favorite site in the park. The hundreds of little pools in a kaleidoscope of colors was a something I have never forgotten. However, as with the Artists Mud pots, most of it is inactive due to the constant earthquakes that have hit up there recently. In the case of the Mud pots, it was active until the recent quake that was up there in March. Not sure about when Mammoth went so dry but it was and I was more than disappointed. However, the boys again loved it. From the elk that are always present up there to the pools and falls, they were in awe. I was too once we hiked up to the most active part of the site and I was able to relive a little bit of childhood.

We then decided to go over the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone to check out the two big waterfalls. The drive took forever and normally I would blame car problems or little boy issues (see previous mentions of small bladders and car sickness) but this time we had a bigger problem:

This little fella decided to meander through the highest pass in the park at his own leisure.

Yup he got that close.

 After our little detour and one black bear later we made it to the falls (just realized I was damn scared of the heights I didn’t take a picture of damn water. FAIL). After falls, we wandered down to the Mud Volcano area. That was by far my favorite area. From the Volcano, Dragons Mouth and the sour lake it was all great. We even were entertained by two male buffalos that decided to it was a good time to play alpha male. There was snorting, hollering, rolling in the dirt and stomping. This guy was not in a good mood but it made for a great picture. 

We wandered around there for a good 90 minutes, when decided to head back into town for dinner. In town we had some BBQ and what I can only describe as God’s gift to the ice cream world. HUCKLEBERRY ICE CREAM! Alex and I are making the drive alone for more of this stuff. We should have gone back for seconds it was so good but noooooo shopping was more important.

The next morning we headed back into the park to let the boys get there JR Ranger Patches and explore the lower and middle geyser area. Again we were interrupted by some guests:

However because of this herd we decided to take a little side road and see where it took us. It took us to this:

Firehole Falls

We had never heard of this, let alone seen it before. Sometimes the road less traveled is worth it (sorry got sappy with some Frost there).  We eventually ended up at the Geyser area walked around for some time and by then we were all so tired, a family decision was made to head home at that point.

We can’t thank Brad and Linda enough for this opportunity. We definitely made the most of our three days. If only I can figure out a way to get that ice cream here……….

Final Installment of the 2014 Hedrick California Adventure

I know I said there would be four installments about our trip to California and I know I took five days off between posts but there is another adventure I’ll tell you about tomorrow that got in the way of this adventure. Confused? Great so am I. let’s move on.

So I told you about our time in San Diego, the rip-off that was Legoland, Disneyland, and our baseball games. After four days in Anaheim and the happiest place on earth (Angels Stadium) we headed off for Newport Beach. Mandy found this great little hotel that was in the northern part of the city away from all the touristy crap around the pier. It was a four-lane highway and row of houses away from the beach. Literally a two minute walk from feet hitting sand. We arrived at the hotel before check-in but the gal up front told us to drop our gear at hotel, she gave us a parking pass and we headed for the beach. Two quick things about the beaches we hit, Coronado and Newport, the sand was better at Coronado and I liked the vibe of the island a little more but I wanted to really get away it would be Newport. The beach was bigger but not as busy, it was just laid back and relaxing. I have never had so much fun doing nothing. 

Yes we were having fun. Sun was bright and I forgot sunglasses.

We gave the boys sand toys and entertained themselves for the next 6 hours. It was run in the water, build castle, build a moat, build a mountain, chase the waves, have the waves chase them, watch the birds dive in the ocean and look for seashells. Mandy’s friend that lives in the area even came down with her husband and daughter to hang out for an hour or so. (Thanks Red and Paul, we had fun). We were in the sun and surf for almost six hours. When hunger finally grabbed ahold of us we decided it was time to head to the hotel so we could shower and get some dinner. 

Now here is the part where I don’t like Newport. We decided to eat at the pier at a Place called Ruby’s that is out over the water at the end of the pier. Great food, great view and great service and the smore’s shake alone was worth the trip.

However, the traffic was awful. All the bad things you hear about the beach crowds in California was manifested in this area. It took 30minutes from our hotel to park and its maybe three miles down the road. Just crazy busy. In Newport’s defense it was Saturday night and we were there around 530 but still, not a fan of the actual town part of Newport.

After dinner, we headed back to the hotel to grab our jackets and say good-bye to the beach and California.  We meandered down the beach to a rocky outcropping that was jutting off the beach into the ocean. On our walk we looked at all the sandcastles that had been built during the day. We watched how high the tide was coming in. The boys looked for more seashells while Mandy and I soaked it all in. What a great relaxing way to end our vacation.

It was about the time we were getting ready for dinner that Mandy and I realized that she and I were crispy. I mean burned. Have you ever seen a lobster after it’s been in the pot for a minute or two? Have you ever seen a University of Utah (GO UTES!) jersey? Then you have seen how red her back and the top of my arms/shoulders were. To this day we are trying to figure out how we were burned so badly. We applied sunscreen at least three times. We were there almost 10days ago and my arms are just barely starting to feel normal. It was brutal trying to sleep that night and even worse the drive home while being burnt is no Buenos.

Drive home was just lovely. The car sputtering just outside of Cedar City(still think it was something on the grill of the car that wasn’t allowing air to flow), an hour delay in Beaver because of construction and we discovered that Connor gets motion sickness on car rides (sorry buddy that is my fault. I still get carsick sometimes). If you are ever north of Fillmore about 30 miles heading north you might see an Ipad cover soaked in vomit still there. Sorry I know you shouldn’t litter but there is no way that was making the trip home with us. Pukey clothes in the trunk were bad enough there was no way we were dealing with an Ipad cover that wouldn’t come clean. Side note, those covers are like a sponge if liquid ever hits it. We arrived home later than we wanted but we were home safe and that was all that mattered.

We have had many vacations over the years but I will tell you this was our best. The baseball, Connor overcoming fears on rides, the boys really starting to “get” big rides, the food, the beach, the baseball,  WWII aircraft carriers, meeting Captain America, the monorail, baseball, and Newport. We put over 2,000miles on Mandy’s car and I am sure as a family we will remember most of those for years to come.    

For the Love of the Game

The other sports are just sports.
Baseball is a love.
-Bryant Gumbel

I have often talked about my love of baseball. I was horrible at it. If the ball were the size of volleyball I still couldn’t have hit it. All the same I loved it. The smell of the grass, feel of the ball in your hand, the vibration in your hands when you get the perfect bat on ball, and the dirt on your chest when you dive to get that ground ball. There is no greater sound than when a hard throw hits that mitt. For those that love baseball you know what I’m talking about. We have taken the boys to Bee’s games in SLC and Raptors games up north and I love minor league baseball. These guys and most of the time, boys, are trying to make a name for themselves and get to the Show. Deep down most of them know that this will be their pinnacle of success in the sport but they still do it. Why? They love the game. It’s poetic, nostalgic, Americana; its baseball. There is something about the bigs though.

I have been to six MLB games in my life. I’ve been to the old Rangers stadium, Astrodome and Kingdome (all three of those stadiums are either gone or no longer habitable). I was lucky enough in my first MLB game to see Nolan Ryan pitch. It was 91 and father time was finally starting to catch up with him but I saw him pitch 5-2/3 give up six hits and three runs to the A’s that featured Dave Henderson, Ricky Henderson, Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco, and Dave Stewart. I still have the program and game card from that hot, sticky Texas summer night. I proposed to Mandy a year or so ago that when the boys were older I wanted to do a baseball trip to California. Hit as many games as we could in a week. When she said let’s start small first and get a couple in while doing other things, well duh, let’s go.

The boy’s first MLB game was the Padres vs. the Dodgers in San Diego at Petco Park. I’ll never forget the excitement of walking up to my first MLB game but compared to the awe on both of my boys faces as we walked across the street to Petco, well it’s not even close. Let me tell you that is a great place to see a ball game. 

It was a Sunday afternoon game; the salty ocean breeze coming off the bay, smell of popcorn and peanuts was the perfect setting.

I always judge the quality of ballpark food based on its hot dogs and I was disappointed with this one but who cares. They had a large collectable cup and popcorn tub that was refillable for free while at the game. Pause here for a public service announcement.  Just because a popcorn tub has unlimited refills, that doesn’t mean you should keep it full just for the sake of it. I think all four of us were more brine that human by the end of the game due to the constant stream of popcorn and soda. It was a fantastic way to start the baseball portion of the trip. One complaint about the stadium. Mandy went online and it said we could bring one unopened water bottle for each person but it didn’t say how big it could be. Apparently, the difference between 23.6oz and 20oz is a big deal. We had to leave the waters behind, which wouldn’t have been too bad, except for the attitude of the attendant. It didn’t ruin the day but it was annoying.

A couple of years ago, I heard on the radio that Mike Trout was called up from AA ball to AAA and would be in SLC that weekend to play for the Bee’s. I had read a lot about this kid (kid is appropriate. He was only 19 at the time) and told Mandy we have to go see this kid play while he is here because he won’t be here long. That weekend we went to the game and Alex for the first time really started to get baseball. He unleashed a flood of questions that game. From stances and throwing motions, to why there is a big black wall in center field, to why is Trout so special? This was also the first time he really caught on to the minor vs. major league setup was about. After, the game I was told, “Sorry Papa, I know you like the Cubs but I really want to be an Angels fan.” In the back of my mind I was privately happy. Being a Cubs fan is a miserable existence. At least the Angels have a legitimate shot every year. It was awesome seeing him start to become his own person and not what I wanted him to be. All that being said this is about our California baseball experience.

When we first started looking at tickets for these two games it became apparent that MLB wasn’t as cheap as I remember but this was the Angels and both my boys like the Angels so hell let’s spend a little more for great seats.

Yup, we were that close. It was again an awesome experience. Even though it was a noon first pitch and it was hot and humid (OMG IT WAS HUMID) we loved it. It was a little disappointing that they didn’t do b batting practice that day because of the early start but the boys still got an autographed ball Erick Aybar so all was well. The stadium wasn’t as nice as Petco but they didn’t care this was the Angels. This was Trout, Pujols, Hamilton, Kendrick and most of all Weaver.

The past year, since he found out this was his first year of kid pitch, Alex has wanted to pitch. He loves to pitch. We are in the front yard almost every night practicing pitching, not because of me, but because of Alex. He wants to be out there. He loves to pitch and his favorite pitcher is Weaver. Weaver is tall and lanky just like Alex and I think he feels connected because of it. Alex throws over the top because of Weaver. We found out the Monday before our game that Weaver was the probable pitcher. You would have thought it was Christmas, Easter, and Birthday all rolled into one day when Alex found out. He walked on a cloud all morning at the stadium. He was so fun to see Alex that day. For the first three innings Alex would lean forward with every Weaver pitch, relax when it hit the catcher’s mitt and lean forward again when he started his rotation. Alex was the first one on his feet when Weaver was pulled in the seventh. Connor enjoyed it too. He was all about the Gatorades, frozen lemonades and the baseball cards we bought him. The heat did start to wear on all of us as the day went on but who cared. This was Angel baseball and it was Jared Weaver pitching.

The Angels ended up winning the game 6-4 and about the time the game ended we ended up in the shade. Connor was all about Disneyland and the beach but he enjoyed baseball that I am pretty certain he will not to forget his first MLB game. Alex, however I know will never forget his first baseball games. He will never forget he saw his baseball Hero pitch. I will never forget the shear awe in their eyes as we walked up the steps at Petco, or the absolute excitement of seeing Alex when Weaver emerged from the dugout to take the mound. Sports are sports but baseball is love. At any level, any park, any field, any diamond, any front yard where a son asks his dad, “wanna catch?” baseball is love. And after the experience I had last week with my own boys last week, I believe it.

“I see great things in baseball. Its our game, The American game.”

                                                                                                -Walt Whitman

 

Disneyland

We spent 3-1/2 days in Disneyland, so rather than chronicle the entire 3-1/2 days and 237 miles total walked (give or take a 100miles), I will merely hit some quick highlights.

First day in the park we went early to get in line, thinking (correctly I might add) that the park would be super crazy busy. We arrived around 715 and people were already streaming into the park. I asked one of the attendants if that was for Magic Morning (for you non-Disney people you can get in before the park opens with these passes), after telling us yes it was, she promptly handed us four Magic Morning passes. This was going to be a good trip.

The boys made us a promise that they would try every ride in the park, minus Tower of Terror and California Screaming, this trip. We started on Indiana Jones, Connor freaked out so Mandy took him out and I went with Alex. We tried Thunder Mountain Railroad, Connor freaked out so we took turns with Alex. We tried Star Tours; both boys loved it, although Connor would not go again. Oh well, he tried it once. No matter how old you are or your kids are, you have to do Autotopia, Jungle Cruise and the carousel in Fantasyland (even if it’s only because your wife wants to relive Saving Mr. Banks moments. Ok not really it is for nostalgic reasons too). Especially, when they hit that magical 56” height and can drive themselves on Autotopia. We met Captain America. We saw Iron Man’s suits from the movies (editor’s note: I was more excited than the boys to see the suits. My inner 10 year old boy was in full effect seeing Iron Man and the Cap. I was actually mad I didn’t wear my Iron Man shirt that day. Yes I have an Iron Man shirt. Don’t judge, I have a Millennium Falcon shirt too. Wow, I am such a loser.)

Day two was almost all California Adventure. Since Cars Land opened a couple of years ago, our mornings start out with Mandy getting Fast Passes for Radiator Springs Racers while the boys and I get breakfast and more importantly coffee (Starbucks in Disneyland GENIUS) for all of us. Toy Story mania is always fun and no lie, we never had longer than a 25minute wait for this ride the entire trip. Mater’s Junkyard is now a family favorite and Tower of Terror still scares me. As evidenced by last year’s picture:

There was some drama the second day. We have never ridden Grizzly Rapids on any of our trips there; something about being soaking wet the rest of the day is just not appealing to me. However, this is an observation deck on the big drop that you can get relatively close and get some spray. Think the observation deck at Niagara Falls (editor’s note: I have never been to Niagara Falls but I’ve seen pictures and it must be close to the same thing) but on a smaller scale. Alex and I went down there with Connor. Me being the fantastic father I am (sarcasm font) I decided to pick up Connor so he could experience the full effect of being sprayed. First drop no problem, “ok Papa put me down now,” he asked. “No let’s get one more spray,” I replied. That is when the next car/pod dropped and a wave straight out of The Perfect Storm hit Connor and I. There were immediate tears, immediate guilt and $80 dollars and 30minutes later Connor had new socks, shorts and a beach towel (no ever said Disney was cheap). As I was shivering later that night at dinner at the Blue Bayou, Connor and I could finally laugh about the experience. My shoes and socks were still not happy with me.

Day three was only at night due to our day Angel’s game and it was mostly Star Tours, Pirates and Thunder Mountain Railroad, more about the Railroad a little later (crap this is turning into another long post. Oh well, I’m on a roll baby).

Day Four was a day where we had no plans, no dinner reservations, just what do we still want to do and let’s do it. It turned out to literally be the best day we have ever had in the park. It was dead. A Friday in June and it was dead. We counted that night and we were able to get on 26 rides on various attractions (albeit I think 25 of those were between Pirates and Thunder Railroad).  We ruled the Fast Pass. Spent the morning at California Adventure and the rest of the day at the main Park. We were able to ride in the front of the Monorail with the conductor

Picture taken before conductor joined train…..or was it????????

We went Goofy (see that pun) over hats:

 

Just had a great relaxing day that ended up being awesome.

Two more items about Disneyland and I promise I’ll be done. I mentioned above that Connor had meltdowns over riding the “scary” rides. At the end of day 3 he was bribed (we are not above bribery) with a Indiana Jones play set if he would just ride Thunder Mountain at least once. We went and got our Fast Passes, waited until it was our turn to go. The walk down was torture, would he have another tantrum? Did he get the play set or not? The normal chatter box that is Connor went into hyper drive: “Youknowpapathedinsaourbonesareattheveryendrightthere.Doyousee?Righttherebythelights.Aretheirreallyrattlesnakesontheride?Goats?Istheexplosionloud?” That last sentence is verbatim and it was said in the span of 2.12seconds. When it was our turn to get in the train, the whole world went silent. The tension could have been cut by Captain Hooks, well hook. He insisted I ride with my arm around him. The curtain was lifted after the first drop. He laughed and screamed on the ride, not the hysterical I’m going to wet myself before I die scream but pure unadulterated joy scream. When the ride was over he put two little arms into the arm, pulled them straight down, fists clenched with a resounding. “YES I DID IT. THAT WAS AWESOME!” He was able to overcome another fear on the trip. Hence why we rode Thunder Mountain another 6 times. After the last ride on Friday night, he had a moment alone by the fence of the ride to say good-bye to his new favorite ride.

Second last thing; food in the park is beyond good. BBQ in Frontier Land, dinner at the Blue Bayou (jambalaya), churro bites with chocolate sauce, chocolate twist, Red’s Frozen apple drink (Red as the fire engine from Car’s not the apple flavored beer), Mickey Cookie, Bengal BBQ, pineapple spears, Dole Whip, Perfectly Pleasantly Punch, and finally beignets. I love the food in the park. I could go back and just gorge the whole time.

All in all this was by far our most successful Disneyland trip.

 

Tomorrow’s blog: BASEBALL!!!!!