To Olivia...THANKS...I LOVE YOU

Olivia-

Thanks for helping me pull down all the outside Christmas lights. Thanks for refilling my drink at dinner. Thanks for caring about me while I have this horrible cold. Thanks for giving me back scratches during scripture reading. Thanks for practicing the piano all week without being reminded to do it. Thanks for doing extra chores around the house. I noticed it all, and it made me feel so loved. I love you.

To Accomplish or To Become

I often wonder if I am accomplishing all that I should be, all that I was meant to do or if I am coming up short. It often bothers me, especially around New Years. This year as I sat down to write out my goals and all that I wanted to accomplish in 2009 I had one of those thoughts that stops you in your tracks. Was I too worried about accomplishing things, than who was I becoming? What would the Lord be more concerned about...what I accomplished while I was on the Earth or who I was as a person? The thought then continued that if I was to accomplish all that I was meant to, I needed to be a certain type of person. In a harsh reality moment, I realized I have been going about it all wrong. I was so concerned about accomplishing what I felt was good and right, I was often not worried enough about who I was as a person. I was stalling myself from progressing. The words of "what type of person" came to my mind----integrity, service, charity, kindness, humility, honor, duty, honesty, holiness, love, hope and a host of others.

In the past two weeks I have had two individuals I know pass away. I was able to go the funeral of one who I went to church with and the other was a mother of 5 who I went to high school with and her brother is a good friend who lives close by. As I sat at the funeral of the 57 year old father who had taught my little girls how to ride a horse, little was spoken of accomplishments....much was spoken of the person he was. Father, best-friend, brother, husband...and all the reasons everyone loved him. Not because of what he accomplished, but because of who he was.

I have significantly changed my New Years Resolutions due to today's and last nights thoughts. David Guy Stuart, 57, of Edmond, Oklahoma, was born Dec. 5, 1951 in Pittsburgh, PA, and died Thursday, Dec. 18, 2008. Memorial services will be held at 2pm Tuesday, Dec. 23, at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 5020 NW 63rd, in OKC. Family visitation to be held at 1pm prior to the services. Survivors include his wife Melissa four children, James and his wife Allison, Jeff and his wife Julie, Scott and his wife Stacy, and daughter Hillary grandchildren Aidan, Ethan, Kodie, and Jante siblings, Suzanne, Andrew, Brian and James. He was preceded in death by his parents, Dr. Edward and Geraldine Stuart. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to:Make-A-Wish Foundation (http://www.wish.org/)

Christi Rae Hales 1970 ~ 2008 Christi Rae Hales, 38, of Bartlesville, Oklahoma passed away on Tuesday, December 23, 2008 in the OSU Medical Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Christi was born December 2, 1970 in Rota, Spain to Frank Gerald and Toni-Rae VanHarten Hart Jr. She and Robert Hales were married August 16, 1994 in Salt Lake City, Utah. Christi was a Silver Director for Heritage Makers and was passionate about keeping memories. She loved dance, ballet, and survived three bouts of cancer since the age of 14. Christi is survived by her husband Robert Hales; three sons, Alexander, Nicholas, and Spencer; along with two daughters, Abigail, and Isabella, all of Bartlesville, Oklahoma. She is also survived by her parents Toni and Gerry Hart, of Southaven, MS; four brothers, Gerry Hart, of Edmond, OK; Michael Hart, of Southaven, MS; Jonathan Hart, of Minneapolis, MN; and Patrick Hart, of Noblesville, IN; her sister Jenni Hart, of San Diego, CA; her paternal grandfather Frank Hart, of Highland, UT; and numerous nieces, nephews, cousins, and a host of friends. She was preceded in death by her maternal grandparents Tony and Inez VanHarten; and her paternal grandmother Alta Marshall Hart. Funeral services will be held on Friday, Jan. 2, 2008 at 10 a.m. at the Spanish Fork 12th Ward Chapel, 1150 E. 1240 S., Spanish Fork, UT. Family and friends may call/ gather at the church from 8:45-9:45 a.m. prior to services. Interment will be in the Spanish Fork City Cemetery. Condolences may be sent to the family at: www.walkerfamilymortuary.com

My Wife is a Homeless Person

For the full story you will need to connect to my wife's blog. But I have to give my part of the story. I slept in this morning and I woke up to Gale standing at the end of the bed. I looked at the clock and it was around 9:00am and even the girls weren't up yet. Such bliss sleeping in! I asked Gale if she just got up and she responded with, "No, I have been out shopping for the holiday store all morning." I chuckled a bit and said, (Now before I write this you have to realize my wife is beautiful and she is one of those who is naturally beautiful) but I laughed and said, "you look a bit homeless this morning with your crazy hair." She burst out laughing and said, "You're the second person to tell me that today!" She then proceeded to tell me the story that you can read on her blog. I made her let me take a picture, but I will just have to see if I can actually get her to let me post it.

New Years Resolutions

I love New Years. In fact I am tempted to say that I love New Years almost more than I love Christmas. Something about having the chance to start all over and accomplish those things that I always want to accomplish, yet slip away from me.

Gale always laughs at me as I start writing down my New Years Resolutions in November. This year though I have got it down. I broke my New Years Resolutions down into quarters. So that way I am not trying to accomplish them all the last few months of the year.

I would love to write them all down here, but many are to private. Family Secrets!

This year we started a new tradition. On New Years Eve we wrote down all the goals that we want to accomplish for 2009. I am putting them in a special container and sealing it up and then on New Years Eve next year we are going to open it up and see how we did!

Our family didn't get as much family time this New Years Eve as I had a church New Year's Eve youth dance to go help chaperone. We decided to make it a family affair, so we took all the kids and had a good time. I will admit I usually like to welcome in the New Year in a little bit of a more quiet and solemn, thoughtful way----but the girls all had a blast, so I did too. I must say that little Ava and Elle can sure dance up a storm....they even can pull a Beyonce'!

Twilight

My life has been invaded by the Cullen Family. The comments in our home, the music we listen to and everything else revolves around the books and the movie. My seven year old told me the other day that she is in love with Edward Cullen. "How do you know about Edward?" I ask....well, Elle replied, "Olivia has a poster of him in her bedroom and I stare at him." The wonder of having older sisters! I keep on waiting for Gale to ask me to go outside and stand there for five minutes before coming back in and kissing her!

I must admit I am a bit out of the loop. We were driving home the other day and some classical music was playing on the IPOD. Chloe and her friends were in the car, so I laughed at them and asked them when they started listening to classical music? They looked at me disgusted and said, "This is the soundtrack to Twilight, this was the song that was playing during the Prom scene." Shame on me for not knowing such information!

Grow Grass Grow

So our new home has a backyard that is not so nice. The home we moved from had a great backyard with a pond, a perfect yard and trees (but way to small for four kids). I must admit the backyard is getting better. We had the waist high weeds cut all down and a few trees removed, but we found underneath this all just a little bit of grass left and a whole ton of weeds. Now my dream is to get a design for the backyard that includes a pool, a nice deck, and a nice manicured lawn and all the stuff that goes with it----but until the 150,000 hits my bank account I am going to have to make do. So how am I making due?

I drove to a little small town that is 45 minutes from our house and bought some fescue, some rye, some fertilizer and some rakes and I went to work in the backyard today. I tried to rake the whole backyard before putting down the seed, but I soon realized that was not such a smart idea as the backyard is about 1/2 acre and filled with leaves, undergrowth, dead roots etc. So I borrowed a very powerful and very cool blower and blew away all the leaves and much undergrowth to find the dirt underneath it all. (I was having such a good time I even did 1/2 my neighbors yard). Then Ava and I spread the fescue and the rye and we started the watering process so that our seeds will sprout! It was quite the fun day. I am hoping that the backyard begins to fill in and that next year I can do the same thing and we can actually have a normal backyard lawn. That is until I get my 150,000 dollars to have someone else make it really cool.

Here are some pictures of Ava and I hard at work!

My date

Today Ava and I went on a date. How do I know you ask? Well, Ava told me 30 times on our date. I couldn't stop laughing about it. "Dad, we are on a date aren't we?" "Dad, does mommy know we are on a date?" "Dad, we should hold hands, we are on a date!" I never realized how important a "DATE" with Dad is for a four year old.
So what did we do for our date? We ran to Kinko's to make some copies and send a Fed Ex. We had to go buy some envelopes and then we went and ate at McAlisters Deli. We talked about kindergarten, coloring, kids in her class, lunch, mommy (yes, Ava wanted to make sure mommy knew we were on a date and that Dad loved Ava--we had to call mommy 4 times to tell her that). We also got dessert at McAlisters Deli. Dessert at a restaurant for the kids means true love and cements the date deal. I am officially in hero status after the chocolate molten cake with ice cream on the side. I think every Dad should take their little girl on a date and buy her chocolate molten cake and that every girl should have a Dad take her to lunch and hold her hand and look into her eyes during the whole lunch. (I didn't even answer the phone) I think Mommy is jealous.