Called To Serve Him, Heavenly King Of Glory...

Well, here we are on the eve of our daughter's mission and the emotions are running deep...Not so much on the surface, but we certainly are anxiously engaged in the final preparations.

Lauree requested to watch Nicholas Nickleby as she was finishing her packing. Nicholas Nickleby is her favorite movie...at least according to the number of times she has watched it. Somewhere between visits from friends and neighbors we were able to get through the movie and Lauree is mostly packed. I was able to give her a father's blessing.

It is times like this that I am reminded just what an honor it is to hold the priesthood. I am not sure how a father can possibly serve his family adequately without the priesthood. To know that God has entrusted me with the same power that he used and uses to serve his children is quite humbling. I find great comfort knowing that she will have access to this same priesthood through the elders with whom she will be serving.

So, now as I get ready to send her off, I have to put my trust in The Lord as my parents put their trust in The Lord when they sent me on my mission. It is not easy, but I am excited, because I know what is in store for her. She is about to experience the greatest transformation one can make as she shares the blessings of the gospel with her brothers and sisters in Ecuador. Her faith is about to grow from the mustard seed into the mighty mustard tree. The experiences she will have will bring her the greatest joy she can possibly experience until she holds her own child in her arms...It makes my heart sing just thinking of the love she is going to experience.
http://calledtoserveecuadorquito.blogspot.com/

If Ye Love Me...

While at Yellowstone we were walking around the boardwalk at Prismatic pool, there we saw someone had taken an object and written their name in the algae mats. They also wrote these words, "I love Yellowstone." I thought, how ironic. Then the thought came to me, "If ye love me keep my commandments." (John 14:15)

I wonder, how many of us know what that means? We say we love our Heavenly Father, but then we are quick to excuse our sins. Or we may just cherry-pick those commandments that we think are more important than others.


As a Latter-day Saint, it is like sustaining our leaders and then not SUSTAINING them when they ask us to help.

God has given us these commandments as a gift to help us be happy while living with our fellow man. To dismiss them is like giving your child a present only to have them set it aside without even opening it.

The only way we truly can know the power and wisdom of God is to test his wisdom through obedience. 

Zion's National Park.

Over Spring break we decided to visit one of the many National Parks in our state. So, we chose Zions National Park. I have not been there in many years. In fact I do not remember ever going their before. Wow!!


What an incredible place to visit. When it comes to mountains I think more in terms of pine trees lakes meadows and such, but the sculptures that God created in
Zion's has to be some of the most impressive works of art I have ever seen. There is so much to see in this area that it is impossible to take it all in in one day.  The red and white sandstone stained with black streaks formed by mineral and hard water deposits created a truly impressive spectacle of nature at is best. We could only imagine the hanging gardens that had not fully recovered from the long hard winter, but what we did see was incredible. These magical gardens are formed where ever water seeps through the porous sandstone seeking is way to the Virgin River that created these canyons.

The steep walls of the canyons make for spectacular views in the morning. In fact I am not sure there is a bad time to be in the park from sun up to sundown the shadows of the surrounding monoliths, plateaus  and mesas, are forever changing and creating new scenic adventures where ever you may be in the canyons.



The weeping rock is a short but steep hike to an area where the moisture seems to come from nowhere. You can walk behind the curtain of rain under an over hang of rock and escape the heat of the afternoon sun. I can only imagine the sounds of thunder in as it would echoed off the walls of the canyon.

From the Emerald pools, to the Three Patriarch, to the Angels Landing and The Alter, each feature carries with it it's own majesty with royal colors and all.

Hiking to the mouth of the canyon where the narrows begin we noticed several people wearing wet suits and some foot wear that seemed kind of odd, but later found out that it was canyoneering equipment, which they rented from from a place in town. The narrows is a popular place to hike because of the haunting beauty of the reflected light in the very narrow canyons that have been carved away by the river. The narrows are also very dangerous when storms are anywhere close due to the narrow walls the steepness of the mountains surrounding the this canyon is prone to flash flooding. We did not make it to the narrows on this trip, but we will be back to explore the things we did not this time around.

The second day we headed to the east side of the park. The east side features a whole different look. Water still plays a part in the erosion of this side, but it is obvious that wind is also a factor in the shaping of this region of the park. Years ago there was a monumental effort to join the east with the west by creating the longest man made tunnel through the rock. The tunnel is nearly a mile long and very impressive. On the eastern side of the Park there was less water, but the interesting rock formations didn't lose anything. It was much more desert like, and while water has had its influence on the geography it is also evident that the wind had a great part in shaping the intriguing surroundings. And while the west has the Virgin River, the west has pools that form in the slot canyons. The ecosystems are much different.

Life in the park is quite diverse as well. Along the trails we spotted deer and squirrels a plenty on the west and Mountain sheep on the east. One squirrel in particular caught our attention as it was playing with a young girl just a head of us. She would clap her hands and the squirrel would mimic her and clap right back. It was obvious that the signs that said do not feed the animals was often ignored, and fines did not seem to be much of a deterrence to most visitors.

Sunday we ended up at Kolob Canyon which is yet another section of the park, which is closer to Cedar City. Kolob, according to the prophet Joseph Smith, is the closest planet to the throne of God. A more fitting description could not have been made of this canyon. I wish we had had more time to explore this area of the park, but then again we will have many more chances I am sure of that.


 Zion's National Park is definitely a jewel that is a must see if you get the chance or are in the area of Southern Utah. We will be going back again in the near future. It is always fun to see what a place like this looks like at varying times during the year. There really is so much to see and explore in this area it is no wonder this area would be considered sacred grounds. It is a magical playground of the gods.

Sister Milligan Has Been Called To Serve...

I am a little slow in posting this mostly because initially I think I was somewhat in shock and I was fighting a bit of a strep throat. But, Lauree has gotten her mission call. She will be serving the Lord in the great country of Ecuador. She has been called to serve in the Quito Ecuador Mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is funny how we have an idea where we think they may go, but it is a rare thing for someone to get their mission call to a place they think they are going to be called to. It was no exception for us this time. The place she was called was not even on our radar. I thought Europe, or possibly Eastern United States somewhere, but South America never even crossed my mind. It is exciting and it is interesting how quickly the Lord confirms the rightness of the call.
As a parent that confirmation is important, because if we are sending our child out we really don't want to worry about where they are serving. I know many who have been sent to missions where it is questionable how missionaries will be treated, without that confirmation it would be very difficult to send our children out to share the gospel.
As it is we have no doubt that Lauree will serve the Lord honorably and will be granted the blessings from her service, and the people of Ecuador will be blessed by her presence. 

My Daughter Is Going On A Mission

There are many who misunderstand the purpose of missionary work and why the LDS missionaries are sent throughout the world. Missionaries are not sent to convert people to the Mormon religion. Missionaries are sent to share a message of Jesus Christ, no strings attached. In the process if one discovers their message to be true through a very personal process of study and prayer then they are invited to be baptized and help spread the word that Jesus Christ lives.
I am pleased that my daughter has chosen to join this group of individuals who are willing to sacrifice their time, money, and opportunities to put others first. If a Sis Milligan knocks on your door in the next couple of years it just might be my daughter. She will be on the Lords errand. Please treat her well. Thank you!

As for now we await the familiar white envelope from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints addressed from church headquarters that will inform us where she will be called to serve.

The Purpose Of Life Is To Learn

The purpose of life is to learn to think, do, and feel as God does. As children of God it is our natural order to become like our Father.

Life is a test. Life is a test where the teacher has stepped out of the room. The test is not so much to see if we know the answers, but to test our ability to learn the answers when we make mistakes. The only way to truly fail is to not learn.

For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. (John 3:17)
We will never reach perfection in this life, but every step forward is a step closer to becoming who we are meant to be.

The older I get the more I see my dad in me. When I was younger I could not imagine getting as old as I am today. As a child of God it is hard for me to see ever becoming like him, but looking back I can see every experience I have, for good for for bad, I seem to feel more of what my Heavenly Father must feel. I am far from his level of perfection, but every once in awhile I can get a glimpse of what I can be.

As a parent and a child of God there are times when I do feel like the older child trying to help my younger siblings along. I believe that is what life is all about, and I do believe that was the plan. 

Reporting On Our 30 Day Experiment

Well, one of our boys has made it through the 30 day chart and is moving on to his second chart, by his own suggestion nonetheless. This time he wants to see a movie. I am not sure if it has as strong a pull as his Legos did, but his attitude has  changed so much and he recognizes how much better he feels as well. So, we are calling this experiment a complete success for our one boy.

Our second son has struggled, but he has improved so much that we can not say that it has failed him either. He fights it, but the chart forces him to think about where he is failing even if he doesn't like the change. It has caused us to have many conversations, but communication is good, even if it is frustrating most of the time, because it seems to be the same conversation over and over, but I have confidence that it is going to sink in and when he has his light bulb moment a huge weight is going to be lifted off of all our shoulders and we are going to sing Hallelujahs. He also wants to start a second chart so he can earn a backpack for his scouting.

His biggest problem is that he does not trust adults. I believe this stems from a rough early childhood. Both of our boys were adopted through the state. Our oldest was 18 months which is a very impressionable age. Because of his situation we believe that he went into survival mode. In survival mode his higher level thinking abilities were increased, but his emotional development was delayed. Not to mention his natural tendency to want to be older than he is.
Anyways that is for another post...maybe.

A couple of things we are finding along the way:
First, the key is once the terms are established then we have to become their biggest cheerleader. Motivation is important. Be more concerned about helping them change than punishing them for their bad behavior.

Another thing that I think is important is that we consider each child and their abilities. 30 days may work for us but 10 or 15 days may be better for younger kids, or a particularly hard challenge that our child is looking . Maybe even less to start with. The idea is not to punish them, but to help them change their behavior. Make it long enough to make them stretch, but not so long that they lose their motivation.

We have to look for opportunities to teach and communicate. We have to let them know we are not their to make them miserable. Sometimes it can get frustrating, but it is in communication that we find out either our message hasn't been clear or they really are not understanding what we are saying. We found out that sometimes our children seem to be learning from a different dictionary. The more we are able to talk the better we can decipher what they mean. We must never assume that they know what we are saying and we should never assume that they are too young to understand what we are talking about.


Anyways, I am sure we are going to learn a lot more along the way, but so far this experiment as been an answer to our prayers.

Joy To The World...

Recently we had a young woman sign up for a storage unit. She pretty much opened up to us and told us what was happening with her. She was a drug addict and it was obvious she was pregnant. She told us that she was getting herself ready to enter a recovery program, she was working with her bishop, and that she was ready to grow up.

She told us how much she loved her bishop and how he helped her to feel okay about her situation and the situation that she was bringing her child into. It was obviously not the ideal situation and the child was coming into the world with some potentially big problems. 

She wanted the storage so that she could start saving things up for her little one and to hold on to the few things she owned so she could enter a shelter prior to entering the recovery program. She told us that this was the first grown up thing she had ever done. 

She has stopped in every so often and each time her countenance has gotten brighter. It has been a beautiful thing to watch her as she has cleaned herself up. 

This morning she came in to communicate with us and let us know how things were going as well as pay her bill. She had an older woman with her, part of her support system from her church family. Her baby was in a car seat and covered in a blanket. She told us that she had just come from court where DCFS was reviewing her case, because of her situation they were thinking of taking custody of the child. However, they said that she was doing so well that they did not feel that they needed to take him from her. 

She uncovered her little baby, and I do mean little. Apparently he was born at 5 lbs 12 oz., he was tiny, and he was absolutely beautiful. His complexion was clean and pure and he looked so peaceful. We visited for awhile and as she was getting ready to leave, her and the older woman started to cover the child up in order to keep him warm from the cold. I am not sure what it was that suddenly hit me, but something did and I almost started blubbering like a baby. I say almost, because I kept my composure but inside I was blubbering, and when she left I had tears streaming down my face.

I got back to my desk and I started thinking about why I was so emotionally moved by this experience. I mean the child was beautiful and all, and he reminded me of my own daughter with how clear and peaceful he looked, but that wouldn't have such a powerful and profound effect as to hit me that deeply. I couldn't say what had just happened.

It wasn't until later that I realized what it was. As this young lady accepted help from the older lady there was an innocence about her that was so beautiful. Suddenly, I realized that this young woman who had lived a very rough life, had made many bad decisions, and had suffered many consequences for those decisions had received forgiveness in her heart and had become innocent. 

My heart is so full, and I am overwhelmed with gratitude for the atonement. God lives, Jesus is the Christ, and he was born in Bethlehem and died on Calvary all because he loves us, and so that he could take on our guilt that we might be declared innocent before God.

Joy to the World...Yes indeed, and hope, and love, and happiness too... 

The 30 Day Experiment

 A couple of weeks ago I wrote about an idea that we had for disciplining our boys. Every child reacts  different to anything we are going to try, and it shows in our two boys. One has taken quite well to the program and is going to finish up in well under the 30 days. My other boy is really facing some huge internal struggles, but he also is making huge strides despite losing several days. The talks that we have been able to have with both boys has been amazing and in many ways life changing for us and I believe for them.


The frustration level I had gotten to was beyond healthy. I imagine that my blood pressure was well above anything the doctor would approve of, and I was not happy. I felt like I was constantly raising my voice and in a constant state of disciplining. It made me sick.

Our boys are not bad boys, they just have developed bad habits and were stubbornly clinging to some ideas that where not going to bring them happiness in the short run or the long run. Both have anger issues that manifest themselves in different ways. Despite the troubles we have with them, all in all they are great kids.

So, it frustrates us more that we haven't been able to get them to catch on to the idea that work is good for them, and that it is important to both work and play, that work can be fun in its own way.
Another problem we have with one of my boys is being honest. We have struggled to get him to understand that just because he tells the truth sometimes, does not mean that we are going to believe him that time, or any time until he starts telling the truth consistently. We want our boys to contribute to society, and we would rather them be good citizens than our friends, although ideally we don't see why we shouldn't be able to do both.

So, now we are almost three weeks into the experiment and we are about to declare this experiment a success because of the attitude that has been in our home almost immediately.

The key to our success, I believe, has been the fact that we entered into the experiment not with an attitude that we wanted them to fail, but we wanted them to change their attitude. With that in mind we have become their biggest cheerleaders and have been a lot more lenient with them as long as their attitudes are changing. Once one of them hit the half way mark we told them that we were going to make it just a little harder to earn a 2 day prize, but that doesn't seem to have really discouraged them too much, they haven't really put forth the effort to earn the 2 days, but their attitude is still much better.

Along the way we have had several opportunities to talk to the boys and teach them some things that we have been trying to teach them for years. They are starting to understand that we are not their enemies, and that we want them to understand us, which has been half the battle. We found out in our conversations that our oldest thought that we were just speaking gibberish when we started telling him to be aware of his surroundings, not that he ever asked us to explain it. However, now he thinks that he understands what we are talking about and his actions are starting to show that he just might. Another conversation was about living by principles and how to apply one lesson to several situations. These concepts are slowly sinking in one conversation at a time.

Some of our greatest conversations have come as they were in the process of losing a day. It is then that we have been able to talk to them and discuss why they were losing a day. They seem to pay a little closer attention to what they can do to change their behavior.

This experiment has been no less a miracle than the parting of the Red Sea, or maybe more appropriate Christ calming the storm, as the storm clouds in my own head and heart have been calmed.

Think Radical, Act Moderate, And Educate Along The Way

Think radically, act moderately, and don't worry about who gets credit, then educate, and soon the ship will be turned around. You may choose to act like an iceberg and not moderate, but then you would be no better than the crew who thought the ship was unsinkable.

It is funny, I thought that this principle was a principle for politics, but the other day I got so angry with one of my boys because he throws a fit every time we ask him to do anything that takes him away from his Legos. In my anger I spanked him, and told him to pick up his Legos, and that he was grounded from them for 30 days so that he could learn to enjoy work. 

I was so mad I had to leave to get out of the situation. I felt terrible. I was upset all day. My son had forgiven me, but he was curious as to whether I was serious about the 30 days. I felt there is no way I can back down, but I also felt that I didn't want to follow through with the 30 days. I had a radical thought that I wanted to force him to learn about the importance of working with a good attitude. Now, I was stuck with the consequences myself. 

Through the day I was trying to come up with an idea that would satisfy the 30 days and yet would give them the incentive to change their behavior before they got discouraged and thinking they could never make it. Then the phrase "time off for good behavior" came to mind.  Then I thought to myself, a day without complaints about work was worth more to me than a normal day. So, I decided to make them earn 30 days but they could earn up to 2 days for a really good day. This allowed me to moderate my initial action and give them incentive to be better than just okay without compromising the end goal. 

So we set forth the rules as such:

1) if you get more than 2 warnings you lose a day.

2) if you get 2 or less warnings then you can mark 1 day

3) if you get no warnings and have a great attitude the whole day you can mark 2 days off the chart.

Now, that we have got them into the routine and they are making an effort we, as parents, can sit back and encourage, and educate them, help them to see what they can change so they don't have to lose a day. 

So far it seems to be working better than I thought. We are early on in this experiment, but I can already tell a difference in this approach over other approaches. I believe that it gives them more incentive to change than to stay the same. I can also tell that it is going to take a little more mental effort for one of my boys than it will be for the other. However, I still see a difference in his attitude as well. 

It wasn't until I had set up the rules and had my boy print out his chart that I realized that this program followed the principle of think radical, act moderate, and educate along the way. I am really excited to see the results at the end of this experiment. 

San Diego Vacation 2012

This year for Christmas we decided that if we could pay off several of our debts and put ourselves in position to pay off the rest, we would go to San Diego with our friends the Recksiek family. They are a traveling family and while they like to go to Disneyland often, I have struggled getting excited about Disneyland. So, when they said San Diego I thought it could be promising. To be honest I have struggled taking time off at all for vacation, not that I don't like time off, but because I fear coming back. Nonetheless, I decided if my wife was willing to work for it that hard I was not going to be a fuddy duddy. Besides the other part of the deal was that it be paid for ahead of time.

So, after planning things out with the Recksieks we were excited for the new adventure. We decided to leave a day earlier than the Recksieks so that we could visit with the Lee family in Irvine on the way down. So we left on Saturday the 14th just after noon in our rental vehicle, a GMC Canyon. The ride down was rather uneventful. DeeAnn wanted to drive and there were not any dirt roads for "short cuts" to slow us down so we made good time and arrived just about midnight.

As we entered the valley we were taken back with the size of the moon. It was incredible. We used our handy dandy GPS app on my phone which worked pretty good. There were a couple of areas that it wigged out on us, but we were able to get to our destination without too much hassle, in fact we beat the Lees home.
Sunday morning we got up and ready for church. We were a bit late, but we made it to most of our meetings. That day the Elders quorum had taken over the Primary for the Sisters so they could attend a special Relief Society meeting. I decided to stay with the primary where we had a cool lesson on protecting ourselves spiritually by putting on the Armor of God. During the lesson I had this thought, God's laws do not restrict us, but they reveal those things that do restrict us.

After we got back from church, we hung around the house, talked and rested some until about 4:30 when we were going to try and catch a sunset at Inspiration Point at New Port Beach. Not the best time for a sunset picture due to the clouds and the coming storm, but we still got a couple of pictures and the kids got their feet...and a little bit more wet before the wet from beneath us started meeting with the wet from above us. And that ended our stay at the beach.
Monday we visited with the Lees and Lauree got to help Jean make sushi for us before we headed off to San Diego. Our timing couldn't have been any better as We met up with the Recksieks just after we got checked in at the Plaza Circle Ramada. That was would be our base for the next 5 nights. We shared neighboring rooms. It probably drove the people underneath us crazy, but we had kids back and forth from room to room at times. It was really fun.
That first night we ate at Ricky's it was supposed to be like the 2nd best place to eat in San Diego. We didn't have to fight for seating and the food was pretty good, but I was not sold on 2nd best. Maybe it was because I looked at the wrong side of the menu to determine what I ate, but I would definitely eat there again.

Tuesday morning after we got back from the hotel breakfast nook we prepared our lunches for the day and headed out on our first activity. We decided since Legoland was closed on Tuesday and Wednesday that we would go to the Point Loma Lighthouse museum and then to the Aquarium.
Did I tell you I really love technology. All I did was put Point Loma into my GPS and wallah it sends me to Point Loma...naval base where we were greeted some very friendly well armed sailors who were nice enough to turn us around before declaring us enemies of the state...
The ride to Point Loma lighthouse was quite humbling as we past through the cemetery where thousands of sailors have been laid to rest.
The museum and lighthouse were pretty cool as you can stand above the bay and watch ships coming and going from the bay. I have been to harbors before but nothing like this. It was impressive. The lighthouse was interesting as we got to learn about how a small light could be magnified by the shape of the glass. The living quarters were interesting as well. I heard someone say that it was 10 hours away to get any wood...That is crazy. It took us not much longer than that to drive from Salt Lake City to Los Angeles.

After the Lighthouse we took the road down bellow the lighthouse to the tidal pools along the shore. There we ate lunch and played on the rocks looking for hermit crabs, fish, and any other signs of terrestrial life forms that we could find. We got there a little late for the to explore too much, but it was fun and we found some interesting life forms.

On to the Birch Aquarium. Birch Aquarium was not as good as the Aquarium of the Pacific, but it was fun. The kids got to play in the mock tidal pool. Emily made friends with gentleman who was instructing us as to what we were seeing and giving us the opportunity to do some hands on activities. At the overlook we were told we could see the whale spouts as the whales were migrating through the area...Indeed we did see the whale spouts. I even got some pictures of the event. After going through the aquarium portion they had some cool water features and games for everyone to play.
We had received a tip that in La Jolla there was a beach that taken over by sea lions. It was getting kind of late, but I also wanted to get a sunset picture so once found the park in La Jolla I was able to get a few pictures in before the sun went down. One of my favorites was a split second shot of 5 seagulls flying in directly toward me with the sunset at their backs. It was awesome. Bytheway, those sea lions were not very graceful when they were on land, but they were beautiful creatures nonetheless.
We had to laugh at our GPS which thus far had given us the correct pronunciation for the streets in San Diego, but when it came to La Jolla it pronounced it with the English rules. So it became our joke when ever we passed the La Jolla exit.

After getting some dinner at Wendy's we called it a night and headed back to the hotel. So we could get some rest for the day to come...

Wednesday was the Zoo. We headed out right after breakfast. I think I ate more waffles that week than I have in a couple of years, it was a good thing we stayed active through the week.
The Zoo was incredible. We started off with the bus tour, which was a good thing because had it not been for the bus and the sky ride we would not have seen half the zoo. It was amazing how big it was and how many different animals we saw. I think my favorite part of the zoo had to be the primates, but the polar bears were pretty cool as well in fact all the animals were pretty cool. We learned that zebras are identified by the stripes on their butt. It seems that their butt is more identifiable than any other part of their body. So I took a picture of a zebra leaving his identity in tact. It was a lot of walking, but it was tons of fun. We were there from just after opening to closing time.
For Dinner we decided to go to Little Italy, to eat at Filipa's Pizza Grotto. The food was really good, but this was where the Recksieks vacation started to take a dip to the south, as little Millie got sick at dinner. You would not have known it by looking at her because Millie is probably one of the happiest sick people I have ever met.
This was just the first of their children to get sick on the trip. First it was Millie, then Hyrum, next was Emily, and finally Sam on the way home. I can't say enough about how well Amy and Joe handled it. We would have never known that they were having such a hard time had we not seen what was going on. We learned a lot from them about parenting in general just by observing them in action. I am so glad that we have friends that we can continue to learn from. Amy and Joe are certainly a great couple and it is obvious their children are in good hands.

 So, Thursday was the day that the boys had been waiting for. It was a day at Legoland where they could spend the money that they didn't lose by disobeying adults or running off. They did well so they were excited. Legoland was probably my biggest surprise. I have to admit it did not sound like fun to me. I was going for the kids and was going to have fun watching them have fun. I mean how much can you do with the legos that I grew up with? I was impressed from the get go as they had life sized sculptures of people just outside the entrance to the park. It only got better from there. I took tons of pictures, but I have to say my favorite area was the several world cityscapes. They were breath taking how intricately detailed they were. from the band playing in front of the the United States Capital replica, to the streets in New York City. it was just amazing. You felt like you could just step in and be a part of it. They had life size elephants and giraffes, as well as....well so many things I couldn't name them all without several pages of mentions.

They had a whole area dedicated to Star Wars including a life size Chewy, R2D2, and Darth Vader. It was just out right fun. Not to mention the venue they had where you could go as a family and make your own cars and race them. They also had several rides, mostly geared to the kids, but it was fun as an adult as well. Legoland was just awesome.
At the end of the day we decided to try going to a restaurant there in Carlsbad, but unfortunately it was Hyrum's turn to be sick. Joe and I ended up going to Carl's Jr to pick up dinner.


Friday was a little more lax as we got a little slower start getting out. Our first destination was the USS Midway Museum. That was an incredible experience. The first thing I noticed was the passage ways through the ship as you passed from one section to the next you had to watch your step or you find out what they meant by the swearing like a sailor. Your shins would constantly be exposed to the possibility of severe punishment if you ever had to run from place to place. Next sleeping quarters were not for the claustrophobic or the weak of stomach. I can only imagine the smell of a bunch of young men who were working in those conditions, it must have been an terrible smell. I began to realize that those who serve our nation are special people. As we talked to those who were posted on the ship as guides you couldn't help but notice the love they had for their time in the service.

Anchor chain

I was in awe at how big this carrier ship was. I had seen pictures of them in the movies and such, but seeing one in person was more impressive. One link on the anchor chain, they said, weighed somewhere in the neighborhood of 130lbs. I can only imagine the sound they made as they were being lowered or raised. Looking inside of the cockpits of the jets brought me another admiration for our service men as I can not imagine all the controls they had to know to fly these machines. If anyone ever infers that our service men are less than intelligent I think we should place them in a plane and have them fly off the backside of a carrier. These young men and women who serve our country are very intelligent.


After the USS Midway we decided it was time for lunch. We found a place that looked promising just up the street from the museum. Anthony's boasted of the best fish and chips in San Diego. Fish and chips was what we were looking for. I ordered the "treasure chest" an assortment of deep fried fish, shrimp, calamari, and clams. Oh my goodness! This was the best place we had eaten all week long. If I thought I could have I think I would have forgotten my good senses and ordered more. Poor Amy was  not left with such a desire as Millie added her to bits to the clam chowder. The boys, once they finished their lunch had a lively conversation with a couple of the board walk vendors.

Following Lunch the Recksieks decided to head back to the hotel to take care of Millie and so Amy could get a much needed nap in. We on the other hand decided to go to Fisherman's Village.
Fisherman's Village as a small retail village with several small stores with lots of souvenir opportunities. It was a fun place little place, prices were for the most part more than I wanted to pay, but I ended up getting a couple of T-shirts from a small camera shop.




When we were done shopping we headed to Coronado Island to meet up with the Recksieks and to get our sunset pictures on the beach. There was not a lot of time to play, before the sun was nearing the horizon. The sand on the beach was super fine and looked like it had gold glitter sprinkled through out the entire beach. It was cool, but the water was not extremely cold so it was fun to let the water lick our toes as the tide continued to rise while we were taking pictures.
Just a note to follow so...It is not as easy as it looked to hold a crane pose with the waves taking the sand out from under your feet. :) After leaving Coronado we went to dinner at a Mexican restaurant not far from our hotel. While the food was pretty good we were not impressed with the service, kinda bummed.
After dinner we went back to the hotel. DeeAnn, Emily, and Amy all went shopping for ice cream while Joe and I went down and braved the swimming pool with the boys. We swam for probably an hour or so playing Marco Polo and other such water games. It was lot of fun. Once the other group left the hot tub we took it over for a few minutes while we relaxed before heading back up to our room to get ready for ice cream and games.
We had been trying to do ice cream and games several nights but one thing or another kept going wrong. Mostly we were tired by the time we got back at night, between that and sick kids we finally got together and had ice cream, but following ice cream, Spencer got sick and we were so tired and people were still not feeling super duper so we took a rain check on the games.


Saturday we had planned on going to the Mormon Battalion museum, but after we cleaned up and got ready to leave for breakfast we realized that it was raining. The pull to head home was greater than the desire to see the museum. Not that we did not want to, but we were anxious to get back home and the rain just increased our anxiety as we new what we were headed back to in Utah...a major snow storm.
On the way home we ran into all kinds of weather. We started in the rain, ran into fog about 45 minutes later, followed by monster winds. On I-15 we played a game of frogger with tumble weeds, we being the cars. We almost named one tumble weed that disintegrated upon contact with our bumper. In Barstow we stopped for lunch the wind was blowing so hard that it had shredded a flag above the eatery across the street. On the road from Barstow to Las Vegas we went through a sand blaster of a dust storm and finally in Primm a Semi had been blown over. The wind continued pretty much all the way home. We finally caught up to the Recksieks in Cedar City where they decided to wait it out at Joe's sister's home. We thought about staying, but decided that we would continue on up to Salt Lake City. Had we realized how bad the roads would be we might have been more tempted to stay back in Cedar City, but as the old saying goes, fools go where angels dare not tread.. and so it was we made it home. And we would do it again.