Time is short. 

60 years old sounds like a very young age to die. In most cases it is, but Brad's life did not follow norms. Brad was born in 1960 and was diagnosed as a Mongoloid at six months of age which would later be called Down Syndrome. The doctor informed his mom, Louise, that he would be a vegetable with no communication and should be placed in a home. Brad exceeded all expectations. He learned to read, write, and do much more. You may have seen Brad working as a manager at The Hub at Utah State University. This would have been unheard of in recent years, but Brad helped pave the way for this generation to have more opportunities. 

The reason I bring up Brad is that he was my dad's cousin and he passed away last week. Thus, I was faced with a decision, and on Friday night at 5:30 I made my choice. By 6:30 I was in Logan's car (not his choice!) on my way to Utah for the funeral. I drove all night and arrived in time for the viewing. Because...Family. 

From 10:30 that morning until 12:30 that evening I was completely encircled by family. Funerals have a silver lining in that they are an amazing way to bring people together no matter the distance that separates.  I spent irreplaceable hours taking time to really talk to some of the people I love, but who the miles have kept apart. The drive was worth every minute. 

Some eternities are longer than others.

Time is short.

It is hard to believe that Deanna was my age when I lived with her in Texas! Time is slippery that way

I sure love these people. The trip was worth every minute. 

When Mom is away the kids will play! No one was missing me during my little jaunt to Utah as Logan spoiled the kids rotten with swimming at the Kroc, campfiring (yes, we coined this word) in the back yard, fort building, and a junk food movie night! 

Oh my! Those are some lucky kids. What a great Dad!

Have a good week!
Live it up!

This has been a really good week for us. Well...for me specifically. There hasn't been any singular event or anything- it just seems like a week where things fell into perfect balance. Work was busy, but not too busy, and Rach and I went to a backyard get-together over the weekend with the team. My enthusiasm for the guitar has once again blossomed and I began taking lessons again this week. I also played in the band at church on Sunday which is always a fun way to contribute and be a part of things. In climbing, I had what might be the best bouldering week of my life as far as grades are concerned, and I'm feeling more fit than ever in preparation for some hard sport climbing in the near future. As a family we had two great days full of bike riding and exploring, and I can honestly say that my own kids are some of the coolest people I get to hang out with. In addition to all of this, the weather seems to be bright and happy lately, buds are appearing on the trees, and there is a not-unpleasant smell of manure in the air as people prepare their gardens. It's all very nice, and lends itself well to cheerfulness and optimism. I think I can officially say that it feels like spring is in the air, and these changing seasons are one of my favorite parts of living here. In short, life is good. Here are some photos:

My team. These are some of my favorite people and I feel lucky to be able to work with them. Every single person contributes and makes it easy to feel that "work" is actually is a misnomer for "fun." Sean (far right) hosted a great family get-together, and we will all miss Sydney (center yellow) when she moves to Idaho Falls next month. These people have become like family to us and it is hard to see them go. Also, please ignore my weird, cheesy face. This is the best photo of everyone else and I'm taking one for the team here :)

We had such a good time on Sunday when we explored Heyburn State Park from our bikes. Jackson was away at a birthday party, but the rest of us enjoyed a relaxed 10 miles of some of the prettiest waterfront around.

This bridge was kind of cool and seemed like it went on forever. I love Lindsey's "try hard" face as she climbs the incline you can see far in the distance of the next photo.

Have a good week!

 There is a lot to record this week, mostly in the way of photos. It was a good busy week, with an even busier weekend. Good times all around.

We finally had a birthday party for this girl! (her birthday was in February) She wanted a campfire theme and a sleepover with her friends. Rachel really delivered with the cake, the girls all stayed up until 2am, and everyone had a great time.

Another Vantage day with the family. If you know our family at all, you know this is one of our favorite destinations when the weather is cold around home. As soon as we arrived we ate a picnic lunch on top of a big cliff, looking at the waterfall far in the distance. It was Ev who suggested we abandon our climbing plans and hike to the waterfall. Everyone else was on board, and we were soon scrambling down on a family adventure!

Right after this picture the cliff sort of drops off for a bit of easy but chossy downclimbing. Lindsey was actually near tears. Like any good dad, I reached out to help, but then thought twice and brought out  the camera instead to capture the genuine look of abject terror on her face. She screamed most of the way down, but once we reached the bottom it was just nonstop chatter about how "we are a cool family because we do dangerous things." I'm not sure it was actually all that dangerous, but it's the perception that matters. 

This old car was a favorite point of interest. After much investigation we determined it was a 1955 International pickup truck. There were all sorts of fun and disturbing stories the kids came up with about how it got there. The road where we started is on top of the cliffs in the background, and there were actually quite a few old car wrecks below these cliffs. Combined with the desert stillness and the carrion birds overhead, I felt a little like I had stepped into a McCarthy novel.

We made it to the waterfall!

There were some people who didn't want to make the climb back up the cliff and opted for a long hike around it to get back to the car. The others took the more direct route. I think that we were glad we went the long way.

Jackson had his pinewood derby for scouts. He made a "banana boat car." If you can see around the ribbons and everything, you'll actually see a sail sticking up on it. I'm pretty sure it came in last place in terms of speed, but it was definitely a favorite among the boys. Every time the car raced, the entire room started chanting (in the dorky excited way that only boyscouts can pull off) "Bannana Boat! Bannana Boat! Bannana Boat!"
Side note: How is it even a thing that scouting is a part of our lives? Ugh.

All right- have a great week!

The kids have all been on spring break for the past week. They are also finally able to start going to school a full five days a week now, so they are ready to run hard into the home-stretch of the academic year. 

Speaking of running hard- they are all part of a "virtual race" right now in leu of the Bloomsday run in Spokane. For each day of the month that they run (not walk) 10 minutes or more, they get a point. As the points add up, the race organizers dole out prizes. They are all aiming for 20 days/points, because then we get a family trip to Silverwood. Also, it turns out that we have some pretty good runners in the family. If you are talking to our kids this month, be sure to ask them how they are doing with these goals. :)

For spring break, we all went to Utah to visit extended family. We got to catch up with people we hadn't seen in a long time. It was good.

I flew home early to work, and enjoyed a few days to myself. The rest of the family was home in time for Easter, and we had what will probably be our last ski day of the year. Jack and I spent the most time together racing down the mountain and pushing the definition of "control." Other kids took it a little easier, and everyone is looking forward to next year.

Anyway- here are some photos. Have a good week!

My cousin is in a dance company in Salt Lake. We met up with a bunch of people to go see his performance. Most of the kids stayed home with Rachel's mom, but we took Maren since she is the dancer in our family. She said she loved it and she actually had some insightful comments about the contemporary/abstract nature of the movement.

Museum day with Grandma and Grandpa great! These are two of my favorite people in the world, and I am proud to be their grandson.

Park day with Courtney

Night out with Shannon and Adrian

Easter egg hunt in Coeur d'Alene. Apparently there were seven thousand eggs hidden on the hill- some in plain sight, some not so much.

Maren and I searched for eggs for a little bit. Sort of. I think we got four between the two of us. It was more of a nice walk than anything, and we were easily (and pleasantly) distracted.

Maren and I sat on this little beach for a long time and just chatted. It was really nice. Later, Evelyn and Rachel came and joined us.

Jackson was by far our most devoted egg hunter. If you look closely in the background, you can also see the wild turkeys he found.

Alright- that's about it for this week. There should have been more photos of Utah and skiing, and less of the egg thing, but I guess the pictures don't always tell the whole story. It was a good week.