Board Game Review: Uno Attack!
The Corays brought over a game to play - Uno Attack!, a variation on the Uno card game. The game plays the same as the original but with one exception: when a player needs to "draw two", "draw four", or just draw from the top of the deck, he or she must push the button on the card dispenser. The card dispenser then spits out a random amount of cards which can vary from zero to five - the total number of cards dispensed is completely random.

Summary: A fun twist on an old classic.

Beverage Review: Sparkling: Fre Brut by Sutter Home
I chilled a bottle of Brut Fre (dealcoholized sparkling wine) for the celebration of the New Year. I uncorked it and poured out some samples for myself, Kristy, Laura, and Spencer. No one but myself cared for it; most cited the "fermented taste" as the source of the dislike. Personally, I thought it was a delightful beverage. I polished off the rest of the bottle myself.

Summary: Highly recommended (available at most grocery stores including the Pine Lake QFC).

New Year's Eve Recap
We spent a very low-key New Year's Eve with family. The Corays drove up to spend the night at our home. We hosted a small dinner and had the Sorensons over. While the kids were having fun, the adults ate and conversed and played a few board games. After the kids retired and the Sorensons left to return home. Kristy and I and the Corays watched a movie (Talledega Nights) and played a card game (Uno Attack!).

When the new year passed, I popped open a bottle of dealcoholized sparkling wine to drink (Sutter Home Fre Sparkling Wine) which I thought was excellent; but no one else was impressed. Actually, a more correct characterization of the reaction was that it was widely spurned. The fact that I was the contrarian of this small sample group is probably a good omen for the New Year. Heh.

Movie Review: Talledega Nights

Title:	Talledega Nights (2006)
Rating:	5/10

The premise of Talledega Nights is quite humorous and promises to be a no-holds-barred parody of the NASCAR fan and lifestyle and, on that point, it delivers. The characters and the dialog are quite hilarious at times, but like most of these types of movies (e.g. feature length SNL skits) the jokes grow old and the gags fall flat toward the end of the movie. It is entertaining nonetheless.

Summary: Keep expectations low.

December 2006 Photos
The December 2006 photo galleries for Berkeley, Eliana, and Olivia are complete. The galleries mainly are comprised of photos taken while on vacation to Utah over Christmas and some from our trip to Southern California. Many of the pictures in their galleries have been posted on this space previously, but it is always fun to look back on another month in the books. You can review the "December 2006" galleries of my kids using the links on Berkeley's web site, Eliana's web site, and Olivia's web site. Or simply access the galleries directly using the following links:

Berkeley's December 2006 Gallery ... (4 years, 5 months old)
Eliana's December 2006 Gallery ... (2 years, 9 months old)
Olivia's December 2006 Gallery ... (5 months old)

Beethoven's Ninth and The Georgian
Per our own holiday tradition, Kristy and I attended a performance of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony by the Seattle Symphony and Chorale tonight (see 2005 review here). As per my own suggestion last year (and it was one year ago today no less), we dined first at The Georgian. We had a wonderful evening and shared it with some friends, Greg and Julie (James).

Our meal was excellent. Like last year, we ordered the 4-course prix fixe menu. Our first course consisted of an Ahi tuna carpaccio with a crab salad stuffed with caviar. It was very good. The appetizer was followed by a serving of petite crab cakes that were placed in a shallow dish of crab bisque. For our main course, Kristy ordered the veal porterhouse with seared foie gras and I enjoyed one of my favorites - seared scallops. My scallops were exceptional. For dessert, we both had the superb Georgian black and white chocolate soufflé - it was just as good as I remember from the year before. Yum yum.

The symphony performance was wonderfully moving. My humble opinion is that Beethoven's Ninth is the single greatest piece of music ever written by the hand of man. We upgraded our seats this year to First Tier box seats - they were great.

We'll be back the same time next year.

Biff's Slow Cooked BBQ Pork
Be sure to plan ahead, this takes about 12 hours of cooking time.

7-8 lb boneless pork shoulder roast
1 large orange
3-4 cloves garlic
olive oil
¼ cup dried sliced onion
1 tsp ground cloves (optional)
salt
pepper
1 12oz bottle barbecue sauce

Zest orange. Mince garlic. Place roast in crock pot, rub with olive oil, minced garlic, and orange zest. Add ground sea salt and pepper according to preference and season pork. Add one 12oz bottle of top quality barbecue sauce (don't use the super sweet high fructose corn syrup sauces like Kraft, et al). I like the stuff put out by Tom Douglas, see here. Juice orange. Add orange juice, dried onion, and ground cloves to crock pot (check ingredients in barbecue sauce... no need to add cloves if cloves are included in the barbecue sauce).

Turn crock pot on high. Slow cook for 9-12 hours. Pull pork apart and serve.

Sorenson Holiday Party
We traveled down to the Corays this evening for the Sorenson Holiday Party. We enjoyed a potluck dinner (I made some barbecue pork), did our annual "bring the most hideous gift you can find" white elephant gift exchange, and played some board games. Scott busted out a new board game he has been hyping for several weeks, but we arrived too late to play it - so I'll review it a future date.

From Snow to Snow
We left the Utah snow yesterday and drove back home from our Christmas vacation. Unfortunately we got off to a late start (because of a power steering problem with the ML) and as a result did not arrive back home until about 2am this morning. Before we left, we heard from Matt that Snoqualmie Pass conditions could be a bit sketchy because of a snow storm. It was snowing on the Pass when we drove over, but the plows were out in full force and we were able to summit. However, once we hit North Bend (where the snow plows were turning around and heading back east) the road conditions deteriorated rapidly.

When we spoke with Matt on the phone, he remarked that this would be a day to determine if the extra change we dropped down for the all-wheel drive Mercedes SUV would prove to be money well spent. Well, I'm very happy to report that the Benz performed admirably... and then some. In fact, we must have passed a couple of dozen stranded vehicles on the side of the road between North Bend and our own driveway. On the way up snake hill alone, we passed about 8 vehicles that had pulled off to the side of the road (or had slid off into the side of the road) because they lacked the traction to make it to the top. At the sharp 120 degree curve about halfway up snake hill, an Infiniti SUV was sitting on the road idling while the driver scurried about outside. I slowed to a stop and asked the driver if he needed any help. "Nope," came the reply, "I'm just putting the chains on the tires." I pressed on; the ML made its way to the top of snake hill and required no such assistance. When the day finally comes that we replace the ML, it will definitely be with another Mercedes SUV (I test drove the GL yesterday morning... nice car!). The Benz is a solid choice and has proved to be money well spent.

After we returned home, I snapped a picture of the snow that had built up on the Benz. Check it out:

Today was my last day off for Christmas vacation (back to the grind tomorrow!). The kids and I spent part of the day outside playing in the snow. The kids had been somewhat disappointed by the dry powdery Utah snow because it could not be packed and rolled into snowman components. The wet snow that falls around here is perfectly suited for snowman construction... so we built a couple of them. Fun.

Christmas Vacation: Day 5 - Christmas Day
Well, Christmas Day... it has now come... and gone. The kids have been actively anticipating today for at least a couple of weeks; perhaps a little bit longer. We woke up today and had some pancakes, and then let the kids open their stocking presents. We then bathed the kids and got them dressed and lined them up in front of their "Santa bags". It sounds like we did a lot before the kids could get their first crack at opening presents, but we started opening gifts at a respectable hour... at around 9am.

We didn't get the kids too many toys... they mainly received clothes and little dollar-store trinkets. They did each get one "big" gift. Berkeley got a race track; Eliana got a doll house; and Olivia got, well, she got only small items (she's still little!).

Here are a few pictures we took while the kids opened their presents:

There are many more pictures here.

After we were done opening all of the loot, we packed up the kids and motored over to Bryan/Jess's house to hang out for an hour or so. Then we drove down to Brent/Shantell's for lunch and stopped by Mark/Jen's house for dinner. The kids had a great time playing with everyone else's new toys. When we finally made our way back to Mom/Dad's house, the kids got their first chance to play with their own new stuff. It was a long fun-filled day.

Christmas Vacation: Day 4
James was blessed today. Then everyone congregated at the folks house for dinner and some birthday pie for Bryan, who turned 30 today. Good pie... per usual.

As I mentioned last April (see here), Olivia is part of three cousins (on my side) that were born just 4 months apart. (Eliana is also one of three cousins, on my side, that were born very close together; 4 weeks apart). This Christmas trip has been the first opportunity for Olivia to meet her closely aged cousins (Hailey and James) and to be together at the same time. Olivia (five months old today!) is the oldest of the three. Here is a picture of them together (click to enlarge):

Christmas Vacation: Day 3
For Berkeley, the highlight of any trip to Salt Lake City is to go downtown and ride the white train (UTA Trax). Tonight that is just what we did... drove downtown to Gateway, hopped on the Trax, and then rode down to Temple Square to see the lights. Here are some pictures:

Christmas Vacation: Day 2
This evening my Mom and Dad arranged a Santa visit with the grandkids. This is something my Grandma and Grandpa Berrett did when I was growing up and my Mom and Dad have recently re-established the tradition. Here are some pictures of each of us taken a turn on Santa's lap (click to enlarge):

Christmas Vacation: Day 1
We are now in Salt Lake City on Christmas vacation. We left last night at around 7pm and drove through the night. Kristy and I took turns driving, so we are both tired, but not completely wasted. The kids did great... Olivia pretty much slept the whole way. Berkeley and Eliana watched a movie and then zonked out until we were only about an hour away from Grandma/Grandpa's house.

After we settled in, we bundled the kids up and did some sledding. Here are some sample pictures (click to enlarge):

The full gallery is available here. Berkeley was a much more capable sledder this year than he was last year. His favorite thing to do this year was get a running start so that he could take the hill with a bit more velocity.

In the evening we drove over to the home of Kristy's brother, Robert, and his new bride... Jessica. They prepared a very nice dinner for us. Karen met us there for dinner as well. We stayed and chatted while the kids watched part of a movie. Robert and Jessica leave for Colorado tomorrow and Karen is driving back home to San Diego for Christmas so this was the only chance we had to visit with them.

Holding Her Own
Olivia is slowly developing her fine motor skills. Today she was able to hold her bottle in place long enough (about 30 seconds) to take a few sips before it would tumble to one side or the other. It's still a work in progress, but I'm still very proud of her. Here is a picture:

A Special Bond
I spent last night over at the Thurmond's house with their two kids as well as my two oldest. Matt and Kathy were unexpectedly indisposed for the evening. In order to fit the crew into the ML, I put Berkeley up front on a booster seat and the three girls (Elizabeth, Eliana, and Emily) in the back. We drove over to Snoqualmie and I patched in a generator to their electrical panel in order to fire up the Thurmond's furnace and juice their freezer (they are still without power... 4 days later). We stayed up late (9:30pm), watched some movies, played with toys, and ate a bunch of junk food.

On our way back home this morning, we used the same seating arrangement that we had the evening before - the girls sat in the back and Berkeley sat next to me in the front. With the benefit of the daylight, I now noticed that the booster seat Berkeley sat upon raised his forehead up to my own eye-level. He appeared to be quite content sitting in the front seat of the ML and enjoyed his elevated position - I can't be sure, but I'm fairly certain this was the first time he has sat in the front seat of the ML. I stole looks at him all the way down I-90 from the Thurmonds. As we drove, his expression suggested that he was suppressing a small smirk as he surveyed the unencumbered view in front of him.

While driving north on East Lake Sammamish Parkway toward our home, I took one of those extended moments and looked over at my son. I stared. His hair was tousled from the previous night's sleep; he didn't look unkempt, but the disheveled appearance gave him the look of a much older boy. His eyes were wide open and alert; the soft morning light suffused through the overcast skies and deepened the sage color in his irises. His cheeks and chin were angular and hid what is left of the plump rosiness his face used to bear as a toddler. His hands seemed all at once larger than they should be, or at least, larger than I expected. I took his left hand in my right hand and gave it a few squeezes. He looked over at me briefly and then back toward the road ahead.

"Father and Son... special friends.", he said with a smile.

Then as quickly as I had taken his hand, he let go of mine. I put my own hand on the wheel and looked back toward the road ahead.

Merry Christmas from The Berretts!
Our life has been somewhat hectic lately and my time has been in great demand both at home and at work. Therefore, we are somewhat late in our Christmas Card mailings. But we got the bulk of it done during candlelight over the past few powerless evenings. We did not include a lengthy letter with our card this year, but instead we prepared an on-line newsleter which we simply reference in our card. I'll be closely tracking the traffic via the logs and see how many people actually care enough about us to look up the newsletter on-line. It should be an interesting revelation.

Christmas Newsletter 2006

I still need to update it to include pictures from our trip to Mexico and California... I have also yet to blog about that trip. What a slacker!

Three Days of Darkness
We spent the day at home yesterday. Church was canceled. I spent the morning cleaning out our refrigerator and throwing many of the items away. The others I stowed in containers out on our back porch. In the afternoon, my home teacher brought over a generator that he no longer needed as his power had been restored. I went down to Home Depot and Lowe's in search for some heavy gauge wire and a male L14-30 4 prong locking connector. I found some nice 6-gauge wire, but the hardware stores supplies of the connectors were completely depleted. So instead I used a couple of severed 14-gauge 120v extension cords and patched the generator power directly into both phases of the electrical panel. Soon, I had our entire home's electrical system back on-line. It was nice.

The kids went crazy-happy when the lights came back on under generator power. The cable was still out (both TV and Internet), but we have an over-the-air antenna in our attic to pull down the locally broadcast HDTV channels. We tuned in our TV just in time for Charlie Brown's Christmas on ABC. Kristy and I then busied ourselves doing once-neglected chores around the house for the remainder of the evening.

Our power to the street was eventually restored last night at around 10pm. When I went to bed at around 1am, the Comcast TV cable signal was back on-line, but the cable Internet service was still down. This morning the Internet is back up. So our life now has completely returned to normal after our three days of darkness.

Update on Power Outage
We are over at the Sharps today enjoying their generator and T1 Internet access. The kids are playing, watching movies, and other fun things. We are still without power and our land line finally gave up the ghost. I guess the local POP ran out of battery power or something. Our cell phone network (Cingular) doesn't appear to have power at the local cell towers... so no coverage.

We have heat from our two gas fireplaces and our stove top range is gas powered. So we can heat up food and have warm meals. Our candles are getting smaller, but we have a couple of flashlights and a couple of butane lanterns. We are in no danger of freezing or starving - the power outage, for us at least, is more of an inconvenience than anything. We will need to move our food from the refrigerator to outside today if the power isn't restored. There is frost on the lawn when we wake up in the morning, so it is sufficiently cold around here to keep our perishables (such as milk and eggs) from spoiling. Items in our chest freezer located in the garage still seem adequately frozen.

I just topped off the Mercedes at a gas station close to the Sharps. The station had recently restored their power. I waited in line for half an hour. While I was in line I was listening to the radio and heard reports of people waiting in line for over an hour to get gasoline. Crazy. I also heard that almost 800,000 thousand Puget Sound residents are still without power. Incredible. From the shape that our local power lines are in, I would not expect our own power to come back on-line for a couple more days.

Power Outage
Our power is out due to recent storms and may be for some time; possibly 3-4 days. I'm currently working (and blogging) from the Sharp's residence. Dave has a generator and a T-1. While driving over here, I literally drove under a dozen trees that were hanging over the roadway - suspended in the air by the power lines. Many roads were blocked completely by fallen trees. Most local grocery stores and gas stations are closed. Our refrigerator is getting warmer and warmer and warmer.

I have put off purchasing a generator for too long... I'll buy one next week. I have already done the electrical wiring required to patch a generator into our panel, I just have not got around to buying the actual generator. The generator that I want has a capacity of generating 10000 watts and can run on one of three different fuel sources: natural gas, propane, or gasoline. It costs around 3 grand... ouch. But now that I need one, I'm kicking myself. Lesson learned: Be Prepared.

Our home phone line is still up, but our cell phones are useless. If we had power, I wonder if our cable-based internet service would still be up. Since our phone line is still working, I would imagine that phone-based internet service (e.g. DSL) would still work... so I may want to consider switching ISPs sometime in the future, or possibly subscribing to both a cable-based and a phone-based ISP.

(Update Sat Dec 16 18:37:54 PST 2006 // corrected wattage rating)

Positive Mental Energy
I started watching this video yesterday... it was sent to me by a professional colleague. I have only watched the first 15 minutes of the video (it's over an hour and a half long) and I am intrigued by the underlying message; that of projecting a positive mental attitude. Although many of the motives presented in the video for maintaining a positive mental outlook may not be completely above board (i.e. attaining wealth, acquiring material assets, etc), I believe that there are many other tangible and intangible benefits from projecting positive energy. The video doesn't say it is easy - and it isn't - but I think the benefits are undeniable.

For example, I was speaking with a friend a few days ago on the phone; I needed to get their new address for our Christmas card mailing. We had not talked for a couple of years, but I knew that they had recently moved because of some information I heard through a mutual friend. We knew this family back when we were living in Provo and going to school... as were they. Now of course, our lives are completely different, and so we spent some time catching up. One of the last times I saw this particular person was at a dinner that I hosted in Kristy's honor (when she graduated with her PhD) back in 2000. This friend can still remember to this day (or so she related) how impressed she was with me and a "change" that she perceived in me. She had heretofore thought of me as somewhat of a "curmudgeon" and "anti-social" (which is probably true), yet on that day her perception of me radically changed... to that of someone that was "completely happy" (or something to that effect). Why? Simply because of the way I positively presented myself on a single day. It made an impact.

Also, I have been trying recently to react much more positively to Eliana's tantrums. Though it is extremely difficult to maintain a patient and positive attitude during these tantrums, I genuinely believe that in the last two weeks that her tantrums are decreasing in both quantity and duration. I'm confident that the improvements are the result of reacting to the situation in a much more positive way.

The film describes the result of projecting positive energy as a metaphysical "Law of Attraction" - if we project or radiate positive mental energy, we will attract positive people and experiences. Likewise, if we choose to radiate negative mental energy, we will attract negativity. It seems somewhat of a naïve concept when taken at face value, yet at its core there is truth to the matter. The "light" of persons that project confidence, faith, happiness, and cheer tend to brighten those around them. Whereas, the negativity of one person in a group (such as at home) can serve to darken the entire environment.

Yet, the short term effort required to "be happy" seems daunting at times. It is a struggle... I struggle... with this. It is too easy for me to get caught up in short term strife and forget about how blessed I have been. Only when I back and look at the big picture do I really see everything in the proper perspective. What reason do I have to not be happy? Seriously.

Team Shirts
Berkeley has two rugby-style shirts that have numbers on them. They have, for whatever reason, become in his mind "team shirts" because of the numbers. Every day he asks if he can wear one of these shirts. I suppose he is either interested in numbers or he is interested in participating in team sports. As such, I enrolled him in a sport sampler at the community center that begins early in 2007. He'll attend 3 classes of basketball, 3 classes of baseball (well, tee ball), and 3 class of soccer. A t-shirt was included in the cost of the registration... hopefully the t-shirt will come with a number on the back.

Eliana the Caregiver
I have very dry skin around the heels of my feet; it has become a bit worse lately because I've been jogging Berkeley in the rain. The feet get wet and then dry out and have been cracking. I need to get some heavy duty lotion or maybe a prescription or something. It definitely wouldn't hurt to see a dermatologist.

Anyway, tonight the kids and I took a lengthy dip in the hot tub. Immediately after the soak, we had special time. I spent the evening with Eliana. While I was sitting on the floor playing "dress up", she saw some of the cracking on my feet and expressed some concern:

"Daddy, you have an ow-ie on your foot."

"Yes, I do.", I replied.

Concerned, Eliana continued, "Do you need to see the doctor?"

"Yes, I probably should."

Then Eliana did her best imitation of Kristy and blurted out spontaneously, "Oh, sweetheart!"

Then, a pause as she stood there in thought.

"You stay right there Daddy, I'll get you a band-aid."

"Eliana, that's OK... just a kiss will make me feel better.", I assured her.

And I got that kiss followed by a very concerned hug. It was nice.

Beverage Review: Egg Nog: Wilcox Farms
Milk, cream, cane sugar, and eggs are the first four ingredients of the very fine egg nog produced by Wilcox Farms. I went through a quart of this egg nog in 24 hours last week and didn't even blink... at the time I purchased it I was thinking, "Yeah, this should last me until we leave for vacation [to Utah next week]". Today I upped the ante and bought a half gallon of the Wilcox Farms egg nog (after taking back the undrinkable Mountain Diary brand). I've already put down a couple glasses. If there is one weakness to this beverage, then it is viscosity - it is a tad thick for my own liking. But after I mix one part milk to two parts Wilcox Farms egg nog, it goes down much smoother.

I believe Costco carries the Wilcox Farms egg nog. I've walked past it at Costco several times thinking, "Who can drink a gallon of egg nog?"... and I like egg nog. This half gallon may not last more than a couple of days... I've caught myself daydreaming about ways of consuming more egg nog, like Egg Nog French Toast, hot steamed Egg Nog, and Egg Nog Coffeecake. { /me drools }

Summary: Good flavor, but a little thick out of the carton.

(Update Sun Dec 16 22:04:16 PST 2007 // Organic Valley Egg Nog is now Santa's favorite)

Beverage Review: Egg Nog: Mountain Dairy
High fructose corn syrup is the second ingredient in this cheap replica of egg nog. I grabbed this at the store only because one half gallon of the Mountain Dairy product costs less than one quart of the good stuff. (Note to self: always check ingredients first.) I had one glass of the stuff. It was so bad that I took it back to the grocery store for a refund... it wasn't sour or past the stamped due date... it was just plain foul tasting. I never take back things to the grocery store... ever, but this product was so bad that I would have hated myself until Christmas if I didn't return it. Buyer beware.

Summary: Avoid at any cost... no matter how cheap.

Making the Nightly Rounds
Part of my evening ritual before I retire is to walk from bedroom to bedroom and check in on all the kids, pull the covers around them tight, and then give them each a kiss on their cheeks. Sometimes, like tonight, I'll just stand there and look at them sleep for several moments. They each sleep so peacefully. As the kids gets older, I know this privilege of mine can't last... but I am enjoying it for now.

Pray for Knights
Berkeley said family prayer this evening, here is an excerpt:

"Bless that the knights will come and get any bad guys that try and get in our home and that the knights will keep us safe."

Olivia Rolling Over
Olivia is slowly developing a decent command of life's first gymnastic skill: rolling over. Today she rolled from back to stomach to back again quite capably I'm told (I was down in the office working). She is a very active baby and is constantly kicking and grabbing at things that come into her field of view.

She is also just tall enough now to touch the bottom of the bouncer. She doesn't quite have the core muscle development to keep her face from mashing against the inside front pad of the bouncer seat. She does have good neck control though.

Restaurant Review: Frankie's

Restaurant:	Frankie's
Cuisine:	Italian
Rating:	Excellent Pizza
Price:	$8 for lunch (tip not included)
Location:	16630 Redmond Way, Redmond
Website:	www.frankiesredmond.com

I needed to run an errand up in Redmond today, so I called up Carl and Dave and arranged a quick lunch rendezvous at Frankie's. I've eaten at Frankie's before, but it has been awhile. Carl, however, is a Frankie's regular (mainly for dinner). All of the servers at Frankie's know Carl by name. We received excellent service throughout our meal; probably because of Carl's charming persona.

For lunch, I ordered up the pizza/soup special and supplemented it with a glass of raspberry lemonade. It wasn't really a lemonade kind of day today (cloudy and overcast), but the description of the beverage intrigued me (freshly made daily on site) and so I ordered one (Carl ordered an ice tea, so I wasn't the only one at the table with a summer drink). The lemonade was delicious.

The tomato basil bisque had a hearty consistency - chunky and full of earthy tomato flavor. The soup came in a large bowl filled almost to the brim; I could tell I wouldn't be able to finish it. I ate about half and packaged the rest up to take home for Kristy. The sausage gorgonzola pizza slice (a generous one, perhaps almost a quarter of a medium-sized pizza) arrived at the same time as the soup. The sausage topping was a mild sweet Italian type. It was well matched with the gorgonzola. The pizza sauce was not overwhelming (a plus) and provided a nice compliment to the toppings. The pizza crust was seasoned slightly with some Italian herbs and was quite tasty. The crust had a nice structure, giving the bread a chewy and moist texture. I was very pleased with the pizza and consumed it completely.

Summary: Highly recommended.

Eye Close-Ups
Our portrait is being produced at Brandes next week. The final product is created on canvas and is a combination of painting and photography. As part of the process, we have been asked to provide close-up photos of each of our eyes to match for color. Here is what Kristy and I have prepared for the three kids (click to enlarge):

All five of our eyes can be reviewed here.

Root Beer Floats
A couple of days ago I made myself a root beer float. Berkeley was in the kitchen and wanted a taste. He is now hooked. For dessert last night I made them both root beer floats and again tonight. I offered them a large array of dessert options including long-time favorites like Oreos and milk... none were more desirable than the root beer float. Berkeley claims that root beer floats are now his "favorite thing in the whole world".

The Terrible 2s
Eliana can be the sweetest and most angelic child you could possibly imagine. However, from time to time she will throw herself into a rage over the smallest offense imaginable. This morning she went into a rage because I put milk on her breakfast cereal, and apparently, she didn't want milk on her cereal. When Eliana gets in rage mode, she will scream, kick, bite herself, bite her clothing, and bite others or she will pull at her hair or scratch herself (and others).

Obviously, if we could sidestep the triggers which provoke Eliana that would be ideal... but she has at times gone into a rage instead of stopping bad behavior after being asked. So some tantrums almost seem unavoidable. Kristy and I believe the best way to deal with the tantrums is to respond as positively as possible until the rage passes. Yet, it is difficult to deal with such irrational behavior and I freely admit that, at times, I'm not doing a good job at alleviating these situations and sometimes even exacerbate them. Note to self: a soft voice and lots of hugs work better than anything else.

Berkeley used to get all tense and clinch his teeth and his arms when he became upset at that age. I remember we would respond by acting as if he was flexing his muscles; the result was that the situation turned into a positive one instead of a negative one. Berkeley can still throw a fit now and again, but they have become much less frequent. Hopefully, Eliana will grow out of these rages as well.

Eliana Dental Trauma Follow-Up #2
I almost forgot to mention that Eliana had her final follow-up dental visit for the dental trauma she experienced back in early September. The most damaged tooth, as the dentist expected, has pretty much returned to its normal position. X-rays taken today confirmed that the tooth is healthy... so that is a relief. For as bad it looked back in September, it is incredible that her smile has returned to normal.

Olivia Four Month Checkup
Kristy took Olivia to the doctor today for her belated 4-month checkup. Olivia was measured, inspected, and received four shots. Olivia weighs a scant 12 lbs even, which puts her in the 25th percentile for her age. By comparison, Eliana weighed in at 15 lbs 5 ounces at the same age. Eliana weighed more at 2 months old (12 lbs 4 ounces) than Olivia does now at 4+ months. Berkeley at 4 months weighed 15 lbs 7 ounces.

Despite being a featherweight, Olivia is tall for her age. She measures 25¼" in length, which places her in the 95th percentile. Eliana was a bit taller at 4 months; she measured 26¼" (97th percentile). Berkeley measured 26½" at 4 months.

Immediately after her shots, Olivia wasn't in the best mood. But after a nap and a dose of Tylenol, she was pretty happy. She "talks" quite a lot, or at least, much more than I remember the other two kids doing at the same age. Today while sitting in her bouncer on the kitchen island, she seemed to pick a spot on the ceiling (or the pot rack) and talk in that general direction for about half an hour. Her temperament is normal (happy when fed and rested; grumpy when hungry and tired). She does love personal face-to-face contact and will light up if anyone pays her just a scant amount of attention. She has a great smile; one that reminds me of Berkeley when he was Olivia's age.

Chuck Hagel: Leaving Iraq, Honorably
I have been catching up on my political reading today somewhat. A column written by Chuck Hagel a few days ago stood out. I'll pick out a few choice paragraphs, but I recommend that you the whole thing.

Leaving Iraq, Honorably

By Chuck Hagel
Sunday, November 26, 2006; Page B07

There will be no victory or defeat for the United States in Iraq. These terms do not reflect the reality of what is going to happen there. The future of Iraq was always going to be determined by the Iraqis -- not the Americans.

Iraq is not a prize to be won or lost. It is part of the ongoing global struggle against instability, brutality, intolerance, extremism and terrorism. There will be no military victory or military solution for Iraq. Former secretary of state Henry Kissinger made this point last weekend.

The time for more U.S. troops in Iraq has passed. We do not have more troops to send and, even if we did, they would not bring a resolution to Iraq. Militaries are built to fight and win wars, not bind together failing nations. We are once again learning a very hard lesson in foreign affairs: America cannot impose a democracy on any nation -- regardless of our noble purpose.

We have misunderstood, misread, misplanned and mismanaged our honorable intentions in Iraq with an arrogant self-delusion reminiscent of Vietnam. Honorable intentions are not policies and plans. Iraq belongs to the 25 million Iraqis who live there. They will decide their fate and form of government.

[...]

America finds itself in a dangerous and isolated position in the world. We are perceived as a nation at war with Muslims. Unfortunately, that perception is gaining credibility in the Muslim world and for many years will complicate America's global credibility, purpose and leadership. This debilitating and dangerous perception must be reversed as the world seeks a new geopolitical, trade and economic center that will accommodate the interests of billions of people over the next 25 years. The world will continue to require realistic, clear-headed American leadership -- not an American divine mission.

The United States must begin planning for a phased troop withdrawal from Iraq. The cost of combat in Iraq in terms of American lives, dollars and world standing has been devastating. We've already spent more than $300 billion there to prosecute an almost four-year-old war and are still spending $8 billion per month. The United States has spent more than $500 billion on our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. And our effort in Afghanistan continues to deteriorate, partly because we took our focus off the real terrorist threat, which was there, and not in Iraq.

We are destroying our force structure, which took 30 years to build. We've been funding this war dishonestly, mainly through supplemental appropriations, which minimizes responsible congressional oversight and allows the administration to duck tough questions in defending its policies. Congress has abdicated its oversight responsibility in the past four years.

It is not too late. The United States can still extricate itself honorably from an impending disaster in Iraq. The Baker-Hamilton commission gives the president a new opportunity to form a bipartisan consensus to get out of Iraq. If the president fails to build a bipartisan foundation for an exit strategy, America will pay a high price for this blunder -- one that we will have difficulty recovering from in the years ahead.

To squander this moment would be to squander future possibilities for the Middle East and the world. That is what is at stake over the next few months.

The writer is a Republican senator from Nebraska.

I really, really, really wish Chuck Hagel would run for President in 2008. We need a leader that will stand up for old-school conservative principles and Senator Hagel seems (to me) to be the most competent person to take that charge.

Southern California Vacation Log: Day 3: Family Portrait Day
We spent the morning exploring our resort. I doubt we will have much time to hang out here, it's too bad because it is a real nice place. We practically have the whole resort to ourselves. We played at the pool for a bit while Kristy got some spa treatments. Then we played with the outdoor billiards table and some large-sized chess pieces and checker boards near the pool. There is a very nice kids play area almost immediately adjacent to our condo that includes a sand box (with sand toys), a putting green, a basketball sport court, and a toddler playground.

In the afternoon, we motored up to Westlake Village for our portrait sitting with Mark Brandes of Brandes Portraiture. I forgot my shoes and socks at Dick/Bertha's house, so we had to make a quick stop at Nordstrom's in our old stomping grounds, Woodland Hills, to buy some new ones. Oops. Even with the small delay, we still managed to make it to the studio on time... albeit barely.

Mr. Brandes took us to edge of a nearby man-made lake for our family portrait sitting. He set up the chairs in a grassy area in between the sidewalk (we were just a few feet away from a fairly busy street) and the water's edge. I'm sure if I was driving down the street adjacent to the lake, I wouldn't have given the spot where we sat a second thought. So, I tip my hat to Mr. Brandes for having a great eye; our resulting family portrait is fantastic (in my very humble opinion). Here is a low-res version of the portrait:

We also tried to get a picture of just the kids at our outside location, but the kids were not cooperating. Here are a couple of candid photos that April (Brandes) took of our efforts.

		This is a wide shot of the site where we took our portrait. You can see the sidewalk and the road on the left hand side of the picture. Mark is in the foreground waiting patiently while we try and get the kids to sit still for just one second(!).
		More of the same - trying to get a good picture of the kids. None of our efforts were successful. This one is cute of Eliana though.

After we returned to the studio, we spent about a half an hour trying to get the kids to all sit still for an indoor portrait. The results were pretty poor. We did manage to get one decent shot. It's not great (no smiles). But it will do. Here is a low-res version:

We ordered a big (6' by 5') version of the family portrait and a small version (approximate 2' by 1') of the kids portrait. They won't be ready until sometime early in 2007.

Washing Dishes By Hand
Our dishwasher is on the blink, it isn't draining very well. I disassembled it the other day and cleaned it out and that helped some, but it still needs some work. We have resorted to using a lot of paper products lately and are washing dishes by hand when necessary. Surprisingly, the kids love to wash dishes by hand and volunteer to help. Of course, "helping" technically means "playing in the soapy water" but they do manage to clean a couple of dishes. Here is a picture of our little helpers:

Kitchen Tent
After church today I took some time to play with my kids. We made a tent in the kitchen using a blanket to cover the kitchen island. We pretended we were camping. We ate marshmellows and then pretened to sleep. Here are a couple of pictures. I love the one with the legs protruding out from the "tent" (click to enlarge):

Robert and Jessica Wedding Day Photos
I have uploaded the photos I took at Robert and Jessica's wedding (and open house). For the benefit of those that don't have blazing fast (or reliable) internet connections (e.g. Kristy's parents in Ecuador), I have downsized each picture to be somewhat small (max width or height is 900 pixels). As such, the pictures that I have posted are not suitable for printing(!).

If you would like to produce a hard copy version of any of the pictures that I took, then just let me know which picture(s) and what aspect ratio you prefer (i.e. 8x10, 5x7, 4x6, etc). I will then prepare a full-size digital picture (in an appropriate aspect ratio) that you can use to produce a hard-copy. You can e-mail me or call me with your request... I am very happy to oblige.

The complete galleries: Wedding Photos, Various Sorenson Family Members on Temple Grounds at Wedding, Open House Photos

If you would rather not wade through the entire set of galleries, here are some sample photos (click to enlarge):

Trip to San Diego
Robert and Jessica were married today in the San Diego temple (see pics). We arose early (Kristy, myself, and Olivia) and traveled with Kathy to the airport to catch an early morning flight. We thought we gave ourselves plenty of time for the annoying security checkpoint, but the line was incredibly long. So we used Olivia and a lame (but effective) "nursing infant" excuse to cut to the front. Thanks Olivia!

After a pleasant flight, we arrived in San Diego, picked up our rental car, and traveled down I-5 to the temple. We made it with plenty of time to spare, just under an hour before the 11am ceremony was to begin. While we waited outside the temple doors enjoying the perfect San Diego weather, Kristy's family members arrived one by one. It was great to see everyone. It has been almost 5 years since the last time all ten of Kristy's siblings were together in one place (at the last wedding). Kristy's parents flew back from Ecuador, where they have been serving a temple mission for the past year or so. Kristy's father is a temple sealer (he sealed Kristy and myself); he officiated at the ceremony.

After the marriage, we gathered around outside again and took several family pictures. Then we returned to 11 Center (the Sorenson home base) for lunch. We sat around and talked, relaxed, and played a few games. In the evening we attended the reception. It was held in the backyard of some family friends and was very lovely. The food was quite good. I spent most of the time snapping pictures while Kristy chatted with family and friends. It was a good day.

Personal Visit with Steve Marsing
Before I left for Seattle today, I drove down to Skyline High School and had a personal visit with Steve. He was still glowing from the party the night before... I could tell the party really meant a lot to him. While Steve attended to some administrative matters, I sat in his office and thumbed through some of the old swim team picture books that he had on his shelves. There were many of me in there. Sheesh... I was a tall, skinny kid back in the day. After Steve returned, we looked through a few of pictures and talked about a few of the old memories and then set out for the swimming pool building.

As we walked, we chatted about what we have both been doing since 1987. Steve's oldest kids (two twin boys) were 6 back when I was in high school, and one of his kids had not been born yet. Now his kids are all grown up, two are married, and one is expecting Steve's first grandchild. Time flies.

We arrived at the swimming building and entered. Nothing in the lobby had changed in 20 years. I looked down over the railing to the counter and the doors to the swimming administrative offices beyond... all the same. We walked first up to the observation deck, a place where we had innumerable team meetings. It was filled with gym equipment now. We then walked downstairs, through the boys locker room, and into swimming pool area itself. It all looked pretty much the same as it did 20 years ago, especially the locker room. I went over to my old locker and opened it. Steve told me that they had all been replaced since my day, but they looked exactly the same to me.

The pool had changed somewhat. The diving boards were gone. The permanent lifeguard stand was gone. The analog swimming clocks were gone; replaced with digital ones. The lane lines were in. I walked up to the edge of the pool and looked at the tiles beneath the water. How many hours had I spent looking at those tiles, swimming lap after lap? Steve and I then walked over to the old record boards. The boards were still there, but the old records were all gone now. New ones set in the last few years populated the board... apparently Skyline is now the swimming powerhouse, having won 6 or 7 straight state titles now.

After the tour, Steve escorted me back to the main building. I gave him a hug, shook his hand, and bid him a fond farewell. I doubt I'll ever see him again in my life, but his memory will last my lifetime.

Steve Marsing Surprise Party
Tonight I attended a surprise party for my high school swim coach, Steve Marsing, held at the Salt Lake City Sheraton. Steve recently retired from teaching/coaching and is now an assistant principal at my alma mater, Skyline High School. Steve coached some 25+ classes of kids and all were invited to attend the party. I didn't get an exact count, but there were probably around 300 people there at the party.

Steve was snookered (by his boss, the Skyline principal) into believing he was attending a dinner/conference at the Sheraton supposedly presented by some famous educational author. When Steve arrived, he even had the author's latest book in hand... perhaps to seek an autograph. He was genuinely surprised and completely overwhelmed by the amount of "kids" that turned out for the event. It was great to see his face.

The dinner party was a unique opportunity for me to renew relationships and catch up with many of my old high school friends... not only from my own class (some of whom I've seen since at a high school class reunion), but from the classes before and after me that were a part of the team at the time I was in high school. Before tonight, I had not seen many of these old friends in 20 years... and I may not ever see them again. It was truly a once in a lifetime opportunity.

Scott Bybee, Paul Harding, Julie Leeper, and Scott Teerlink from the class of 1986 were there. Brian Ellison, Becky Hebert, Mark "Sport" Anderson, Elahe Mostagel, Randi Abramowitz, Diana Despain, and Mark Dewyea from the class of 1988 were there. And there were a host of "sophomores" there from the class of 1989 including my brother Brent, Mike Dallon, Becky Cable, Amy Leeper, Chris Atkinson, Scott Johnson, Dave's sister Deanna, and others. My brother Mark was there as well with his buddies (from the class of 1991).

Of course, I also was able to talk with Steve. I had not seen him since my senior year. He was an excellent coach. Someone I wish my kids could have as their coach. He didn't just teach me how to swim, but he taught me how to swim competitively... i.e. teaching skills such as stress management, discipline, self-assurance, courage, selflessness, etc. As a coach, he was an old-school by-the-book disciplinarian and ran a tight ship. Yet we also had some great times playing "Sharks and Minnows" and traveling on the road to many different swimming meets and water polo tournaments.

I had a wonderful time and spoke with as many of my dear old friends as time allowed. Many people are getting together again tomorrow night; regretfully, I fly back to Seattle in the morning.

Here a few pictures from the affair:

The first is of Scott Bybee (class of 1986), Dave, and myself. We were some of the first persons to arrive. The second picture is of my class of 1987 teammates... from left to right: Andrea Levy, Dave, myself, Diana Sherwood, Sue Benner, and Chris Krueger. Chris organized the entire thing. The third picture is taken of Steve just as he entered the ballroom... surprise!

Maryanne Elaine Transformed
I'm in Utah this evening to attend a swim team reunion. While at my Mom and Dad's place I stumbled on a picture of my mother and her older sister when they were little girls. When I saw the picture, I could not believe how much of Eliana I saw in my mother. I scanned the picture and sent it along to Kristy to review. Her impression is that she sees a lot more of my mom in Brent's kids than in Eliana. Judge for yourself, here is the picture (my mom is on the right):

You can see where Eliana got her hair and eye color from. And some of Eliana's facial structure is similar too.

Berkeley's Preschool Class Pictures
Berkeley's brought home his preschool class pictures today. Here are the scans:

The first picture is of his entire class (obviously). His teachers are Miss Karen (on the left) and Miss Katie (on the right).

Voting Day
I cast my vote via absentee today. I've been checking the net to see the latest results. On a local level, nothing I voted for passed. I voted to repeal the state estate tax... but only about a third of my fellow state-citizens voted the same way. Estate tax is probably the most progressive (i.e. unfair) tax on the books; requiring only a small portion of the population to pony up. The estate tax is the polar opposite of a fair tax (e.g. a flat tax) where each person pays the same percentage of their increase... a system that seems to be working reasonably well for the LDS Church.

I also voted to rollback the excessive environmental regulations governing private property that unduly restrict property owners; the initiative was defeated by a wide margin. *sigh*

I voted against forcing utility companies to generate a portion of their energy using renewables... but that passed. Hey, why have the market dictate when renewables are cost competitive? Instead, let's have the government "incent" to force renewables on the market before they are cost competitive (hello higher energy bills!).

Nationally however, I was pleased that the Reagan Democrats turned power back over to the Democratic Party. I've been pretty disgusted with the Republicans in Congress. After a promising start (in 1994) during the Clinton years, Republicans have completely shredded the Contract With America during the last six years. This is an extremely sad development considering that many of the bills that were passed by Congress to implement the 1994 Contract were then vetoed by Clinton; one would expect that similar bills would be passed by the Congress since 2000 and then warmly welcomed (and signed) by Bush. Nope. Congress was too busy rubber stamping Bush's very unconservative agenda. Perhaps a few years in the wilderness will remind the Republicans why the people voted for them back in 1994.

Impressionable Berkeley
Berkeley has a friend in preschool that he is constantly talking about, a little boy named Evan. At first, Kristy and I were fairly excited that Berkeley is making new friends. But lately we aren't so enthusiastic. First there was this:

"Dad, I need some game cartridges.", stated Berkeley.

"What for?", I asked.

"I need to play some video games.", replied Berkeley.

"You can play games on my computer any time like Thomas and Kids CBC, remember?"

Exasperated, Berkeley continued: "But Dad, I need game cartridges. Evan plays games on game cartridges."

"Well, you play games on the Internet. You don't need cartridges to play games."

Then the other day, there was this:

"Dad, do you want to play a game with me?", asked Berkeley.

"Sure.", I said. "What game?"

"Shooters. It's a game where you shoot all the girls until they are dead.", explained Berkeley.

"Uh, where did you learn this game?", I inquired.

"At preschool... Evan taught me how to play."

Needless to say, we have had a few conversations with Berkeley about what he is "learning" from preschool. I'd like to think it is sinking in, but he seems quite enamored with his new friend. Just today after jogging him over to school, I watched through the window as Berkeley walked into the classroom, took off his coat, walk over to his friend Evan, sat down next to him, and just sat there watching him play. Everyone else in the classroom was playing, but Berkeley was just sitting there watching this other little fellow play. When I asked him about this, he said: "I just like to watch Evan play." Um, okay.

Hot Soy Milk (熱豆漿)
Recently I bought a case of organic soy milk from Costco. Kristy has wanted to add soy to our diet and I love the stuff, so I was happy to oblige. This morning I fixed myself up a nice hot bowl of "豆漿" (soy milk) just like I had nearly every morning for breakfast on my mission in Taiwan. Here is how to make it:

1 cup soy milk
1 tbs raw cane sugar
1 porcelain Chinese-style soup spoon

Place cane sugar in bottom of small bowl. Heat soy milk in microwave or over stove. Hold spoon inside of bowl and pour hot soy milk into spoon and allow to spill over into bowl (this prevents the sugar from dissolving too quickly). Enjoy!

Kate's 2nd Birthday Party
Berkeley and Eliana were invited to our neighbor Kate's birthday party today. The party theme was royalty (princes and princesses). The kids love attending birthday parties. Eliana still talks about Jenna's 5th Birthday Party even now... more than a month later. I snapped just a few pictures (click to enlarge):

Eliana's Bedtime "Tents"
One of the unique rituals that is part of putting Eliana to bed is that of making a "tent" for her to sleep under. The tent supports are made by stacking two pillows on each side of her head. Then the covers are pulled up toward the headboard as much as possible and then placed on top of the pillow supports. Then the covers are tucked underneath the mattress (if possible) or just under the pillows. This creates a small covered cavity or cave or "tent" over Eliana's head. She can't go to sleep without asking "Can you make a tent Daddy?" ... it's part of the bedtime ritual now.

Movie Review: Nacho Libre

Title:	Nacho Libre (2006)
Rating:	3/10

Kristy and I rented and watched Nacho Libre tonight. Nacho Libre is written and directed by the same people that created Napolean Dynamite, a film that I liked much more than Kristy. In any event, both of Kristy and myself were pretty disappointed with Nacho Libre. Though funny at times (especially in the beginning of the film), the material lacked the unique campy charm of Dynamite. Without the charm, the film's gags and silliness became old very quickly. Jack Black was annoying as usual.

Floor Puzzles
I bought the kids a couple of big floor puzzles today; a castle for Eliana and Thomas (of course) for Berkeley. They had a lot of fun putting the puzzles together (we should probably buy more of them... they are cheap toys and seem to provide a good mental challenge). The puzzle activity tonight also reminded me of assembling the 500-piece and 1000-piece puzzles while I was growing up. My mother and I would work on the puzzles on the dining room table. We also did a few over at Grandma Kiser's ranch.

Here is a picture of the kids with the Thomas floor puzzle:

Flashback: High School Memorabilia
My high school swim coach, Steve Marsing, retired from coaching last year after 25 years. I was part of his 6th or 7th group of kids back in my day (1985-1987). Next week I will be attending a high school reunion of sorts. One of my peers is organizing a dinner party in Steve's honor, which will be held next Thursday (shhh!). As part of the party preparations, each alumnus was instructed to contribute some old pictures to be included in a multimedia presentation. I scanned a bunch of old pictures, documents, and newspaper clippings that my mother preserved for me in some remembrance books (my apologies in advance for the image quality of some of the photos).

The first set of pictures are of me (back in the day). From left to right, the first picture was taken at some random swim meet. The lane lines look green, so it could have been at Olympus. The second is a picture of the pattern I shaved into my head before the District Swim Finals in 1986. Each swimmer picked a pattern to shave into their heads one week before the District (or State) Finals (we would then completely shave our heads the day before Finals). I decided to shave the phrase "Buddy Holly Lives" into my very short hair. The pattern was inspired by the graffiti on the album cover of a 1978 compilation album of Buddy Holly's 20 Golden Greats (I was an avid fan of 50s and 60s rock-n-roll music at the time). The third picture is snapped at a water polo game, but I don't have a cap on... so it must have been taken during pre-game warm-ups. The last picture is one of myself and my close friend David Barnes and was taken at some time during our senior year. David and I hung out (through thick and thin) beginning when we were about 12 years old. We are still very good friends today.

The second set of pictures include both the swimming and water polo schedules from my senior year. I also scanned a newspaper clipping that was written about the 1987 swim meet between Skyline and Brighton (the "Battle of the Paddle"). Skyline and Brighton, at the time anyway, were the dominant swimming powers and detested rivals. Brighton was much better than we were, having won the State Championships the previous four years running.

The last set of pictures are scans of portraits taken at various school dances that I attended during my junior and senior years. As can be observed somewhat readily, the same actors are present in many of these pictures. Our swim team was a pretty tight group, probably because we spent so much time training with each other. As such, we dated almost exclusively within our group. Yes, kinda weird. Oh well... we had a lot of fun.

1985 Homecoming Dance This event occurred during the first month of my junior year. Top Row: Me, Unknown Girl (non-swimmer), Diana Sherwood, Scott Sternloff (diver), Julie Leeper, Paul Harding Bottom Row: Scott Bybee, Candi Nelson, Dave Barnes, Unknown Girl (non-swimmer), Jennifer Gillette (Granger swimmer), Aaron Baar

1985 Women's Preference Dance This event occurred (if I recall correctly) during November of my junior year. The young woman that I took to the dance, Becky Hebert, is one of the nicest people you will ever meet. We still keep in touch even today. Top Row: Me, Becky Hebert, Scott Sternloff (diver), Chris Keller, Dave Barnes, Andrea Levy Bottom Row: Aaron Baar, Shelley Rogers, Scott Bybee, Heidi McDonald, Kris McCracken, Paul Harding

1986 Senior Prom The event must have occurred very early in 1986, most likely in January. I can say that with confidence because the boys have all of the hair on their heads. I was a junior here, but anyone was allowed to attend "Senior" Prom at my high school. Our high school proms weren't as formal as some. At my wife's high school, Senior Prom was the biggest event of the year. One where the boys would not think to attend dressed in anything but a tuxedo. That's just not how it was at our school. Top Row: Andrea Levy, Julie Leeper, Unknown Girl (non-swimmer), Becky Hebert, Unknown Girl (non-swimmer), Chris Keller Bottom Row: Aaron Baar, Craig Teel, Scott Bybee, Me, Mark "Sport" Anderson, Brian Ellison

1986 Seminary Ball Our LDS Seminary hosted a ball in February on the weekend before State Finals. It was girls choice and persons of all faiths were invited to attend. I was asked to attend by Kris McCracken, a young woman of the RLDS faith. The one memory I vividly remember from the night was Kris and Scott Bybee (an active LDS boy) engaging in lengthy (and heated) debates about whether or not women should hold the priesthood (the RLDS Church allows women to hold the priesthood, the LDS Church does not). It was an interesting evening. You'll note that I am the only one with a shaved head. Coach Marsing had me tapering for District Finals so I could qualify for State (which I accomplished). So I shaved my head for District Finals which I think was the day before; everyone else pictured shaved their heads a week later. Top Row: Kris McCracken, Me, Diana Sherwood, Paul Harding, Julie Leeper, Craig Teel Bottom Row: Aaron Baar, Andrea Levy, Tara Stauffer (non-swimmer), Scott Bybee

1986 Junior Prom I don't remember much about this date other than it was my first date with Kim Williams. This is only memorable because after the dance a few couples went up Millcreek Canyon and built a campfire. Kim and I then passed the time staring at the fire and pretending that the other couples weren't hidden under blankets making out. It was a bit uncomfortable. Finally Kim and I went back to the parking lot and talked in the car (yes, seriously, we just talked) until it was time to go. Good times! Becky writes: "For the record-- I was not part of the making out in Mill Creek Canyon date. Scott Bybee and I spent the evening not making out elsewhere." Thanks for the clarification Becky! lol. Top Row: Dave Barnes, Sue Benner, Me, Kim Williams, Shelley Rogers, Unknown Boy (non-swimmer), Bottom Row: Andrea Levy, Aaron Baar, Scott Bybee, Becky Hebert

1986 Homecoming Dance This was the first dance of my senior year. I don't remember anything about it, not even the name of the girl I invited. It does appear that many of us invited non-swimmers for the Homecoming Dance (both in 1986 and in 1985), but then as the year progressed we quickly returned to our circle of comfort (other swimmers). Top Row: Steve Bergen, Unknown Girl (non-swimmer) Middle Row: Craig Teel, Sue Benner, Mark "Sport" Anderson", Becky Hebert, Unknown Girl (non-swimmer), Me Bottom Row: Sue Johnson (non-swimmer), Dave Barnes, Aaron Baar, Robyn Galbos (non-swimmer)

1986 Women's Preference Dance This event occurred in early December of 1986 as I recall. I was asked by Amy Leeper, the girl I was dating at the time. Amy and I dated off an on for much of my senior year and my first year in college. We were still dating when I left for Taiwan to serve my LDS mission. As is often the case, we drifted apart while I was overseas. Top Row: Andrea Levy, David Tanner, Becky Hebert, Craig Teel, Amy Leeper, Me Bottom Row: Nick White, Unknown Girl (sophomore swimmer), Becky Cable, Chris Atkinson

1987 Senior Prom My Senior Prom as a senior was pretty low-key. I invited Becky Hebert, who was one of my best (purely platonic) girl friends at the time. Despite the supposed formality of a "prom date", it was a very casual affair. Note: Dave was the senior class president. I think that is probably why he was wearing a tuxedo - he looks sharp! Top Row: Paul Harding, Andrea Levy, Craig Teel, Diana Sherwood Bottom Row: Dave Barnes, Valerie Oakey (non-swimmer), Becky Hebert, Me

October 2006 Photos
The October 2006 photo galleries for each of the kids is now complete. They are each populated predominantly with pictures taken in costume. All of the pictures in their galleries have been posted on this space previously, but it is always fun to look back on another month in the books. You can review the "October 2006" galleries of my kids using the links on Berkeley's web site, Eliana's web site, and Olivia's web site. Or simply access the galleries directly using the following links:

Berkeley's October 2006 Gallery ... (4 years, 3 months old)
Eliana's October 2006 Gallery ... (2 years, 7 months old)
Olivia's October 2006 Gallery ... (3 months old)

Neighborhood Trick or Treat
We dressed up in our costumes again tonight for the real deal... door to door trick or treating. It's been cold here of late, so we bundled them up and put their costumes on over the top of their clothes:

We only take the kids up and down our own street. Excluding our own home, that is just 15 houses. It took about half an hour (maybe a little less) to complete the circuit.

We returned home and let the kids dump their bounty on the kitchen island. We only hit probably 12 homes, but their bags got pretty full. We don't see a lot of foot traffic on Halloween, so everyone was