Saying Good-by to a Friend

I have been thinking about this for quite some time now. This week I will be saying good-bye to my closest friend - THE SHED. How exactly should I say good-bye? I mean, THE SHED has been through all the good times and the bad times here in Salem with me. Those dark and cold nights - who was there? THE SHED (granted it was cold because THE SHED can't keep heat in it. Who was there comforting me after each iChat with my family and realizing how much I missed them? THE SHED. Who was there on those weekends when no one else would hang out with me (not counting Billy the Blue Jay, and Nuts the Squirrel? THE SHED. Who was there on the nights that I cried myself to sleep when I missed my family like crazy? NO ONE because I didn't cry myself to sleep - because that wouldn't be manly...probably didn't happen. But had I done that, then THE SHED would have been there. Even when I found myself another friend (my electric blanket) was THE SHED jealous? No, THE SHED stood by me even then and we had quite a little party group on Saturday nights - but we didn't go out much together - we all preferred to stay home. When spiders, carpenter ants, sugar ants, and termites came into THE SHED, did THE SHED help me there? No - THE SHED was scared of them as well, but my electric blanket protected as I curled into a ball and through it over my head. As you can see, it is going to be hard for me to say good-bye to THE SHED, and I am not sure proper way to say good-bye.

Maybe I will just extend my middle finger and yell out 'I hope I never see you again!!'

Exciting Week

So, this is the week. This is what I have been waiting for all winter. We will finally be reunited - it has definitely been a very long time. Yes, baseball starts today and the first week of the season officially opens up tomorrow! I am so excited! Also, I will be going to pick up my family on Wednesday night - just for the record, I am more excited about that then baseball season. See I have evolved and grown up over the years. After ichatting with the family today and listening to conference talks about family all weekend, I can barely wait to see them on Wednesday. I predict that there will be a lot of hugging and kissing going in the first few minutes I see the family...and it won't stop for the next few days after! We will pack everything up on Thursday and drive part way to Oregon - maybe stop in Pendleton? Then, on Friday we will drive the remaining way and start unpacking our stuff and then on Saturday we will do a full blown move into an apartment. Getting the right house in Salem has been a challenge and a task for us, so we will rent until we do find the house that we love. Should be quite the adventure. But we are just so excited to be back together as a family - I can't wait for the family to experience Salem.

Salem Update

April 7th is not coming fast enough. I am sooooooo looking forward to seeing the family again. It seems so close, yet so far away! So, Stacey and I made an offer on a house that is right next door to the house that we made an offer on a few weeks ago, and someone came in and swooped it away from us. If we get this house, we feel like we will hold no grudges against our neighbors. This house is a little pricier then the other house and fits us a little better, though it has one less bedroom - but it does have a den. You can see some video I took of the houses at www.horsecloverhouse.blogspot.com. The first 6 videos on the website are of the house we are looking at now, and the other videos are from the previous house we lost out on. Anyway, we made an offer and the bank countered on Friday. We decided to counter back, but because the bank was not willing to drop very far on their price, we are not certain if they will come down very much further. We hope so. We hope to find out on Wednesday May 31, if they will meet us.

On a somewhat related story, I went to the temple yesterday. It is nice to be able to do that on a Saturday morning. Of course, I have had a lot on my mind concerning the house and getting the family out here, and some of you may know that I am a planner and worry about the future, or try to plan around various scenarios that frequently include the worst-case scenario. Anway, I opened the Book of Mormon in the temple yesterday (normally I read Isaiah in the temple because I love the allegories of the temple in his writings - so this is something I have not done in a long, long time) and read Chapter 12 and 13 of 3rd Nephi for no particular reason but the fact that the book opened to those pages. After that I went through the session and then sat in the Celestial room for quite some time. I was just about to leave when the thought came to me to re-read Chapter 13, so grabbed a BoM sitting on the table next to me and re-read the chapter. The last 5 versus struck me so very hard, especially to the 'planning-brain' side of me. The versus are below:


30 Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, even so will he clothe you, if ye are not of little faith.
31 Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?
32 For your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.
33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.
34 Take therefore no thought for the morrow, for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself.

This may not mean much to you, but to me it hit so hard - I have little faith. I should not be planning for worst-case scenarios, but I need to be planning how to help my family and I be more spiritual. As long as I (and my family) am keeping the covenants I have made with the Lord, and putting my faith in his hands, then he will provide. So, if I am worried about providing for my family, then I need to rely more on the Lord and seek the "kingdom of God." With everything in the world and the economy in such a flux, now is the time more than ever to hold fast to the covenants we have made with the Lord. As I do keep the commandments, covenants, and grow closer to him, then he will bless us and make sure we have food, clothing, and a roof over our heads.

I am grateful for how the Lord answers the prayers of our hearts - sometimes, when you are as pig-headed and prideful as me, it takes some extra prodding.

Salem Update

So, it has been a little while since I have posted. Stacey and I terminated the contract on the Arroyo RIdge house due to the third flood that took place - and no rainbow. We moved on to our next favorite house, and found out today that someone came in and swooped it away from us. Now we are back to square one. However, we are going to take a break from active looking for houses and just get an apartment. I am going to Utah to pick up the family on April 8th and we will finally be together!! Yipee! I am going to leave the house looking up to Stacey....

Are you kidding me?

Did someone once say that floods come in 3's? Well, we walked into the house today to find a third flood. This was the last straw. I think it is time to give up and move on. I had someone come over to the house today from a restoration company and they dug deep into the issue and found that there is 20K to 30K worth of damage done to the house due to three floods. This was a conservative bid and did not include the full cost of replacing the cabinets. Anyway, two partners of my firm helped write an addendum to the bank -- basically a letter stating that we are tired of all your crap and this is how things are going to be done, if not then we are walking. I have attached pictures just for fun...

Quick Update

So, here is what is happening with the house: we were supposed to close on the house last Wednesday, but we ran into a few problems. 1) The seller's bank only fixed the leaking pipe in the kitchen. There is also a leaking pipe in the garage leading to an outside faucet. 2) The bank did not give us any money for the floods they caused. 3) Our bank forgot to put Stacey on the loan documentation. So, after all that we submitted an addendum to close this Friday - March 5th. Do you think that is going to happen? Of course not. Our bank has completely disappeared and we have no idea what is going on with our loan. The seller's bank has still not fixed the leak, nor have they signed any paperwork saying they will either give us money to fix things or they will fix things. Let me just say that Stacey and I have been completely baffled by this whole situation and we have let our frustrations loose on more then a few individuals. We will have no friends and a reputation of being ANGRY and MEAN when this is all said and done. We submitted a new addendum tonight that states we will close on March 17th. This is the 5th time we will have a closing date on this house. Is it worth it, you ask? Is it illegal to walk across the state line in Minnesota with a duck on your head? The answer is yes - you can look it up. Well, we actually hope it will all be worth it. At this point we are about ready to get a tent and live in a KOA as long as we are together as a family. This has been too long and too frustrating a process - if it goes too much longer then I am going to completely lose it and will probably be crossing the state line of Minnesota with a duck on my head...

Baseball Spouse's Survival Guide

Spring Training games begin tomorrow and by the end of the month of March, baseball's regular season will begin. I wrote down a few steps in helping families of baseball fans cope with the oncoming baseball season:

1. Step 1
Women need to understand that being a baseball fan is like a full-time job, so imagine what it can do to your relationship. Baseball has one of the longest seasons in sports. With a season that lasts from April to October and 162 regular season games.

2. Step 2
Women who lose their husbands to baseball complain that their lives have been turned upside down. Make it easier on you and the family by investing in a smartphone and implementing web access during the baseball season. He'll be able to check stats on his phone discreetly and even in church on Sunday.

3. Step 3
Men - You don't have to give up your love of the game for your relationship. You just need to be aware of your schedule. Plan dates around your baseball watching. Chances are you don't hang out every night, even if married, so schedule couple time on off-nights. Schedule a date night once a week, so she knows that she ranks right up there with baseball. HINT: You can always take your iTouch or iPhone and sneak away for a few minutes to catch a portion or a game or take her out to eat where games are being televised.

4. Step 4
Baseball is available virtually every single night during the regular season and for most couples, weekday games don't cause too much of a problem. For most couples, weekend baseball is a point of contention. Weekends are often the only time couples have together, so playing second fiddle to a TV can get old for the wife. Brunch dates, walks in the park or day trips to the beach have to be rescheduled if they conflict with a true fan's baseball watching unless you plan accordingly. Get your wife a spa package or massage, so you can live guilt-free in front of the TV. Offer to watch the kids while she has some ‘free time’ shopping or relaxing. Chances are that your kids will be fine for 3 hours relatively unsupervised – hopefully, you have a child old enough to recognize when another child may need to go to the hospital.

5. Step 5
The bottom line is that woman aren't expecting you to change. You're not a fair weather fan and wives respect you're unwavering commitment. If there is still an issue, then have 3 or 4 children to keep her busy. She'll always have the children to keep her company.

Sami on iChat

Just a little video of me talking with Sami...

Stacey

So, I wanted to make a list of 25 things that I loved about Stacey for Valentine's day - well, the list quickly expanded to 50 then to 100....

1. I love how creative she is.

2. Everyday she amazes me with her talents.

3. I am so proud of the pictures she takes, and I love to boast and brag to everyone about them.

4. I love her smile.

5. I love how she snuggles close to me when she feels uncomfortable or out of her element. This occurs most frequently when meeting new people.

6. I love that she drools when she sleeps.

7. The relationship that she has with my family – how much they love her and have made her a part of the family.

8. The beautiful children she has produced.

9. The willingness to bring children into our family and into this world.

10. She understands that I will never be close to perfect, but she seems to like those imperfections.

11. How she puts up with my romantic endeavors

12. The jokes we make about her being in love with Mr. Darcey

13. The jokes we make about her being in love with Edward

14. She puts up with my jokes and teasing about her Twilight books

15. How she loves Chick Flicks

16. How she loves Reality Shows

17. Her ability to put up with my singing, yet I am a horrible singer!

18. She puts up with my love of ‘gay’ music and the 80’s.

19. She is such a wonderful mother

20. She cracks me up when she has had enough of the kids for the day – and will lock herself in her room to get some free time.

21. I love how she needs her afternoon Sunday nap.

22. She puts up with watching my Guy Flicks with me.

23. She dresses nice, and seems fashionable to me.

24. I love snuggling with her.

25. Her innate ability to laugh at my bad jokes, and will throw in a few of her own.

26. Her ability to deal with the fact that her husband is immature.

27. Her home-decorating skills

28. He feistiness

29. The words that slip out of her mouth on occasion…usually during car accidents or close calls.

30. She pushes me when I procrastinate – especially on house projects.

31. She calls me or texts me during the day when I am at work.

32. She always looks good, especially without make-up

33. Her inability to do simple math

34. I love her stomach

35. She does not stay angry at me for long

36. She manipulated me into reading the Twilight series and watch the Twilight movies with her – but I enjoy doing something with her that she enjoys.

37. She cracks me up that she has read each Twilight book at least 10 times (not an exaggeration)

38. She is addicted to email and her computer

39. She has dreams of traveling to exotic places – and Chicago.

40. She bought me a guitar

41. She puts up with my guitar playing.

42. She laughs when I have gas.

43. She laughs when she has gas and blames it on me.

44. She wrecks all of our cars – I didn’t let her drive the truck much…

45. After 14 years of marriage, I haven’t driven her crazy.

46. The fact that we read the Harry Potter series together (or at least a majority of it)

47. She likes to play GOA, Ticket to Ride, etc.

48. I love her cooking

49. She puts up with the fact that I like to bake

50. People wonder how I snagged such a wonderful, beautiful girl

51. She thinks I look good

52. She picks out great clothes for the kids to wear

53. She loves to sleep

54. She tolerates my golf habit…

55. She is non-social (rather stay in with the family then go out in groups)

56. It is sometimes hard to talk her into doing things, but then she ends up enjoying it.

57. She loves 5 guys hamburgers

58. She loves Lamars

59. Everyone loves Stacey’s personality

60. IT’S A MOTHER’S DAY MIRACLE!

61. She enjoys attending baseball games with me

62. She gets nervous when giving talks or lessons, and frets about it for days.

63. She is jealous of my iphone.

64. She takes me out to dinner and movies – she always pays…

65. She loves SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE and DANCING WITH THE STARS, but doesn’t like to dance.

66. She loves to ride bikes as a family and is willing to drag Sami behind her in a bike trailer.

67. She has this uncanny ability to tune me out

68. She puts up with my fantasy baseball, basketball, and football addiction

69. She puts up with my Major League Baseball addiction

70. She loves to see her children succeed at things

71. Sometimes she knows the day before that she won’t be well enough to attend church…

72. I can’t sleep without her – I have had insomnia for two and a half months

73. I love the way she kisses me

74. I love falling asleep next to her

75. I love kissing her each morning before I leave to work (and most of the time she remembers it)

76. She made me go to a Celine Dion concert

77. She let me go to a Death Cab for Cutie Concert

78. PAPYRUS

79. She calls me ‘babe’

80. She hates needles

81. I love her turkey enchiladas and chicken rolls

82. I love her eggs with cheese and bacon

83. I love her cheese cake

84. She makes fantastic scrap books

85. She gets mad at me when she has a bad dream about me

86. She loves the HELL’S KITCHEN at HEIDI’S DELI

87. Stacey is more into technological gadgets then I am – she wanted an HD TV.

88. I love how she has a fear of swimming in anything where she can’t see the bottom

89. I love that she tried snorkeling for me – and she loved it.

90. I love how she loves to read – sometimes it is not even Twilight books

91. She sleeps in sweat pants and loves to be warm all the time

92. She takes the hottest showers

93. She has a hard time being early to anything

94. I love that she had to have someone in the ward teach her how to dress more feminine

95. She loves COSTCO

96. She doesn’t know the lyrics to most songs but ends up making up her own lyrics

97. She is my best friend

98. I love her Brain Farts

99. I love that we can spend so much time together and not get sick of each other

100. I love the way she makes my heart flutter when I think about her, and that there is still romance and love in our marriage. That I still get excited to spend time with her and hold her hand, and that we still kiss each other and make-out on occasion.

Griffin Happenings

I just wanted to jot down a few thoughts on things that have been going on lately. The house is still in limbo -- we are supposed to close on the house next Monday, so the bank needs to get things in gear right now. Very frustrating process and I don't recommend anyone going through this. Mainly, I wanted to write about what the kids are up to. Sami just turned 2 last week. I can't believe that I have a two year old little girl - she is growing up too fast. When you ask her how old she is, she will put up one finger from each hand to show that she is two. The other day, Stacey's Dad was cleaning out the lint from the dryer and he put on a face mask so he wouldn't breath in the lint. Sami saw him and it freaked her out -- she clung to her Grandma McClanahan's leg until she was picked up. Then, she said 'close eyes' and proceed to close her eyes for the next couple of minutes until Grandpa took off the mask. Silly girl! On Sunday, she got her hair put into curlers so it was really curly. She thought that she was something else with her beautiful hair!! Ryan right now is focusing on school. Stacey said that he comes home and does his homework on his own - he will get on the computer and start typing out his spelling words until he has them memorized. Great kid! He cracks me up when we talk on iChat, because he spends more time playing with the gadgets that turn the screen different colors or makes people have funny faces. I just sit and stare at him and laugh - and wonder how he grew up so fast. Hunter is busy with his legos. Right now he is making Custom Legos - meaning that he is taking lego figures that he already has and is coloring them different colors or taking sandpaper to rub off certain things to change their appearance or their weapons. He also has made paper capes and other things for the figures. He has made some amazing things. He sanded down two lego heads so they had half a head and then he glued them together to form a distorted face. He is sending pictures so I will get those posted. Stacey is still pregnant - but that will only last 6 more months. I miss being able to be there everyday with her and to see the progress of her expanding belly. Hopefully, we will soon be together!

Ducks Fan??

Apparently, in Oregon you have to be a University of Oregon Ducks fan or an Oregon St. University Beaver fan (personally, I think a Cougar could take them both on). In my firm, there is a division of Beaver and Duck fans, and they are all trying to convert me to one side or the other. One of the Partners bribed me with courtside seats to the Ducks vs. Arizona game for this past Saturday. It was an amazing game! I called up Alan Longhurst and he flew in for the weekend and we went to the game. Arizona beat Oregon pretty good, though the score was pretty close for much of the game. Attached are a few pictures from the game:

Do you Recognize the old guy in the picture with me? That is Lute Olsen who coached the Arizona team for many, many years.

Places I've Been...

Here are a couple of pictures of places that I have been in the last week. Last Saturday, I drove to Portland and went to the Portland Temple. Beautiful Temple both inside and out, though most of them are anyways.

Last night, a partner gave me and an associate attorney, Brian Moore, his tickets to the Trailblazers basketball game. Turns out that his tickets are first row club level seats that come with an all inclusive setting - in other words, we could eat whatever we wanted on that level for free. Needless to say, we wiped out the place as we ate nachos, cookies, hot dogs, licorice, pop, salad, potato wedges, brats, and vegetables. Yes, that was everything that I ate - though Brian did just the same. I did not eat much today and feel a little sick, but we definitely had a good time. Oh yeah, the game was fun to watch as well...