Cruise

In February Cami and I went on a cruise that I earned working last summer for PPC. It was much needed, especially for Cami; she had not been away from our children for longer than 6 hours since Annie was born. To say the least, she loved it! Nana, Papa, and Aunt Tami watched Annie and Ethan for the 7 day cruise, God bless them!
We sailed down the Pacific along the CA and Mexican coasts. We stopped at Los Cabos, Mazatlan, and Puerto Vallarta. We spent lots of time on the beach, saw some beautiful scenery, got our fill of relaxation, ate wonderful food until we almost burst (obviously, its a cruise!), and enjoyed spending time together.

McIlnay Cousins

Annie had a blast this Christmas break hanging-out with her McIlnday cousins.

At the Grossology Exhibit in CO

Here we are at the Colorado Wildlife Adventure Grossology exhibit. Yes, you heard right, "Grossology." The exhibit features several educational modules like, for example, an explanation of how beetles roll dung balls 10 times their size and how to distinguish fox poop from elephant poop--yes, obvious I know. We had a great time! But the best part was the cute faces.

Ethan Sings Superman

Ethan Playing Ball with Papa

Trip to Rexburg, ID

After Christmas we took a trip up to Idaho to visit Shawn's grandparents Ted and May Adamson and to see some sites and friends in Idaho. The Rexburg temple was impressive. The last time we were on that ground was for the groundbreaking back in 2005. At that time Cami was carrying Annie in her womb and almost ready to pop. We also saw the newly renovated Snow building where Cami and I spent countless hours as students. After the tour of campus we saw a few old friends: Ted Ashton (Cami's violin teacher) and Andrea Radke (Shawn's history professor) with her new baby boy.

Christmas in Utah

We spent this Christmas in UT with Cami's family. It was a rare occosion to have all of Cami's siblings present. We had a blast.

The top picture shows Cami with her brother Randen holding a violin that he himself made. It's looks beautiful and sounds wonderful too. Good work Ray!

Sledding Fun

Around Christmas time, Annie and some of her cousins went sledding in UT. I was doubtful that Annie would enjoy it, but as you can see she had a blast! After a few small trial runs, she asked me if we could sled down from the "tipity top." Then she insisted that we go down from the "tipity, tipity top!" I was impressed at her enthsiasm since this was the steepest and tallest hill I've seen at a public park!

We spent the New Years in Colorado with Nana and Papa Austin. After a nice snowstorm we had a little fun with the sled and the ATV. I finally was able to convince Papa to give it a try! Take a look. I couldn't stop laughing!

Bach Double Mini-Style

Cami and her brother Randen playing the Bach Double on violins made for a 4 year-old.

Annie and Brynlee

In October, my sister Tami gave birth to her 4th girl, Brynlee. She is adorable. At Thanksgiving everyone had a good time passing her around. It's hard to know if Brynlee enjoyed it though.

Papa and the Turkey Dance

This Thanksgiving Nana, Papa, Aunt Tami, and Uncle BJ and their 4 beautiful girls came down to Albuquerque. Our three bedroom house was bursting at the seams but oh was it a blast to have everyone (except Scotty) here! Papa was a great entertainer for the girls as he showed the how a turkey does the moonwalk. You should see what he can do at a pig roast!

Christmas 2008

Merry Christmas!

Why History?

The Church recently carried an article on its Newsroom about a new history of the "mountain meadows massacre", arguably the worst event in Mormon history. The Church gave the three LDS authors unprecedented access to Church archives--archives that other scholars believed would implicate Brigham Young. In the end they found no evidence to support the prophet's involvment. The research for this book is impressive. It took them about 7 years to complete it. Just to give you an idea, the reasearch and writing process for my dissertation will take about 3-4 years. But I'm only one person, this project involved three experienced historians.

In a video interview the three authors spoke about why they decided to write the book. Richard E. Turley, Jr (the Assistant Church Historian) said that the driving purspose for writing the book had to do with healing: "Only by facing this head-on, directly, could we finally expect to get to a point where real healing could take place." This is important. Since the Massacre, many Mormons have tried to forget about it, push it aside and try not to confront it. Yet it has always been the proverbial elephant in the room (among other elephants). As an historian, I think there is a great lesson in Bro. Turley's comments. It is just as dammaging to cover up our past as a people as it is to cover up our individual pasts from the Lord. Individually, we must all confront the scars of our past lest they continue to haunt us in the present.

Here's a link if you want more info.: http://newsroom.lds.org/ldsnewsroom/eng/news-releases-stories/book-provides-an-unflinching-look-at-mountain-meadows-massacre

Restaurants with the Austins

After a fun Saturday afternoon at the pool we decided to go to Panda Express for dinner. Just as with other trips to restaurants, we made quite a mess. This mess, however, was particularly bad. Emboldened by her growing table manners and our insisting that she was a “big girl”, Annie decided to handle her ice-cold water with one hand. After we stripped her of her soaked clothes, and failed to find any dry replacements in the car we resumed our beef broccoli and kung pow with Annie in nothing but her princess undies. Meanwhile, Ethan was struggling to get his fried rice and chow mein from his plate to his mouth. My rough estimate is that around 42% made it. The rest ended up in his high chair and on the floor. The area around our table promptly began to attract flies. Soon a diligent employee made his way to our table. Without a word, he revealed a large, orange CAUTION cone and placed it directly in front of our table. After returning with a mop and cleaning supplies, he proceeded to clean up the mess. One glance at each other and Cami and I burst out into exuberant laughter, solidifying the other patrons’ beliefs that we were white trash. In my best Alabama, accent I boasted to the employee, “At the last place we went, they’s had tuh put yella tape ‘round our table.”

Pagosa Springs Trip.

In June we met up with the rest of the family for a little camping trip. The kids were adorable and had the time of their lives. Each day we made little trips to fish or hike. Treasure falls is featured here. It was a perfect hike for the kids: not to long, but long enough. The mist off the waterfall was refreshing. It was great for all of us to be together on a vacation since Scotty will be heading off on his mission in October to Tijuana, Mexico! Felicidades Elder Austin!

"Ready, set, GO!"

Ethan loves things that "GO!": cars, trucks, balls, and Ethan.

"I'm so glad when Daddy comes home"

Annie often sings this to me when I get home from school...it melts my heart. This summer I'm selling pest control door to door and get home after the kids are in bed so Cami recorded this for me; she's a sweetheart.

Taking Care of Babbies

Recently, Annie has been fascinated with caring for baby dolls. She changes diapers, sings lullabies, and even pretends to nurse her babies. As always, Ethan follows her lead albeit with less grace. His nurturing skills are not yet as refined as Annie's.

Nature Walk

Down by the ol' Rio Grande there's a nature reserve we visited. Not much to say except that it was hot.