New Year's Resolutions - Good or Bad?

Several years ago I was visiting with a man of another faith and he explained to me that his minister had warned the congregation about making New Year's Resolutions because when they aren't fulfilled it leads to stress and disappointment. True, but that sure is a pessimistic attitude. I still like New Year's Resolutions, I believe in goal setting and I have several of my own in mind for 2013. I found this interesting infographic, check it out see how you line up (just click on it to enlarge):

Vegetarian...Sort Of

Heidi has been preaching this message for some time but it is good to see the issue being taken seriously...too bad not everyone has caught on yet:

"Meat is so five years ago. Since 2007, meat consumption in the U.S. has declined by 12 percent, says the Department of Agriculture, with an estimated 30 million Americans joining the “less meat’’ revolution. That has spawned a third option for those who find vegetarianism and veganism too restrictive.

It’s called semi-vegetarianism, a movement that has several interpretations. There are flexitarians, who primarily eat a plant-based diet but occasionally indulge in meat for the sake of protein and iron; then there are pescetarians, who don’t eat poultry or red meat, but consume seafood for the benefit of fish oils, which are high in Omega-3 fatty acids. Both lifestyles are also stepping-stones toward more veggie-exclusive diets.
Regardless of the label, the semi-vegetarianism trend signals a growing consciousness of health and environmental issues. People nationwide are looking for a compromise to the all-or-nothing approach that strict vegetarianism offers.

Katya Galbis, a licensed dietician in Longwood, likes what she’s seeing. “We are eating too many animal products and they really are causing a lot of illness. But it’s hard for some people to think of a diet without meat,” she says. “The flexitarian diet can help people discover that vegetarianism isn’t really that hard. In fact, it’s a great way to slowly start learning how to replace meat protein with vegetable protein and reduce your reliance on meals centered around meat.”

Meatless Monday (meatlessmonday.com), a national initiative helping consumers reduce their meat consumption by 15 percent, has been a strong advocate of this partway approach. According to the organization, if every American lowered meat consumption by that amount, greenhouse gases would decrease as much as if we all started driving hybrid cars. Holy cow—pun intended.

Galbis suggests making small changes in meals you already make, such as swapping out the meat for beans on burrito night or loading up lasagna with veggies instead of beef. “Add quinoa where you can, legumes, nuts and seeds, and try tofu instead of chicken with your stir-fry.”

Even if you can’t embace flexitarianism whole-heartedly just yet, an increase in your veggie intake and a decrease in meaty meals will have benefits. The trend is quickly becoming less of a fad and more of a way of life, so much so that even the staunchest of carnivores need to face facts—bean is the new beef."

Source: orlandomagazine.com, January 2013

Adventures at Cove Fort

 

Last week we were driving south on I-15 through Utah. About halfway between Beaver and Fillmore you have probably noticed there are signs for Cove Fort. Well, did you know that Cove Fort is an actual fort? Neither did we?! But we decided to stop and see what it was all about. In addition to church-quality clean bathrooms you can go on a free guided tour of the fort, its courtyard and eight rooms. Cove Fort was kind of like a 19th century roadside motel, who would've thought they even existed/

They decided to put Cove Fort about halfway between Beaver and Fillmore so it was a good place to stop for the night. Can you believe that? Today it takes less than hour to drive the distance! It was a different world back then, eh? But I'm kind of glad I didn't have to ever spend the night there because the fee would get you a couple meals and half a bed with someone of the same gender, even if you were traveling with your wife. Glad I never had to share a bed with some dude at Cove Fort.

At any rate it was fun and it is only a couple miles off I-15. I read in a book awhile back that pointed out we go hundreds, even thousands of miles out of our way to see some attraction yet fail to take advantage of our own immediate surroundings. We are trying to not be like that. They even gave Henry a little pioneer toy...I couldn't figure it out.

Dog Park Episode III

Right around Henry's first birthday we went to the 3-acre Happy Tails Dog Park in Bradenton, FL. It was fun for several reasons. It was heavily wooded with Spanish moss hanging from the trees, there was a spooky looking corner with a separate kennel with a sign that read "Time Out," and the park dropped bails of straw for the dogs to rummage through.

But the best part was these two squirrels that lived in a tree in the middle of the park. These two evil squirrels would climb to the ground make a few chirps to get some hapless dog's attention then run up the tree out of reach. Once they were safe they would climb as low as they could and still be safely out of reach then chirp a little more egging on these poor dogs. There were at least half a dozen dogs surrounding the tree but once they got bored and wandered off the squirrels would come down the ground and start the cycle over again. It was hilarious!

It was clearly a dog friendly community and for us that means a family friendly community. We spent an hour or two on a family outing, enjoying the park, a little walk and some fresh air. It was such an enjoyable outing that as we journeyed back to the in-laws we talked seriously of setting some where in Florida for the beauty but also to be close to Heidi's parents...then they moved to Utah. As we left the park we stumbled across a free pet-magazine that had the following excerpt. You might of seen it before but its funny:

ENTRIES IN A CAT'S JOURNAL:

DAY 752 - My captors continue to taunt me with bizarre little dangling objects. They dine lavishly on fresh meat, while I am forced to eat dry cereal. The only thing that keeps me going is the hope of escape, and the mild satisfaction I get from ruining the occasional piece of furniture. Tomorrow I may eat another house plant. 

DAY 761 - Today my attempt to kill my captors by weaving around their feet while they were walking almost succeeded, must try this at the top of the stairs. In an attempt to disgust and repulse these vile oppressors, I once again induced myself to vomit on their favorite chair...must try this on their bed.

DAY 765 - Decapitated a mouse and brought them the headless body, in attempt to make them aware of what I am capable of, and to try to strike fear into their hearts. They only cooed and condescended about what a good little cat I was...Hmmm. Not working according to plan. 

DAY 768 - I am finally aware of how sadistic they are. For no good reason I was chosen for the water torture. This time, however, it included a burning foamy chemical called "shampoo." What sick minds could invent such a liquid? My only consolation is the piece of thumb still stuck between my teeth. 

DAY 771 - There was some sort of gathering of their accomplices. I was placed in solitary throughout the event. However, I could hear the noise. More importantly I overheard that my confinement was due to MY power of "allergies." Must learn what this is and how to use it to my advantage. 

DAY 774 - I am convinced the other captives are flunkies and maybe snitches. The dog is routinely released and seems more than happy to return. He is obviously a half-wit. The bird, on the other hand, has got to be an informant, and speaks with them regularly. I am certain he reports my every move. Due to his current placement in the metal room his safety is assured. But I can wait; it is only a matter of time......

22 Fictional Characters Whose Names You Don't Know

 

I like trivia. I'm actually pretty proud of the amount of useless knowledge I know. Serious, tons of useless crap. Until I stumbled across this recent list and I'll be honest, I really let myself down. Perhaps you can do better. Check it out, who knows when this bit of info might come in handy. Oh yeah, some of them are a tad stereotypical.

1. Did you know the Comic Book Guy on The Simpsons has a name? It's Jeff Albertson. But that wasn't the decision of creator Matt Groening. "I was out of the room when [the writers] named him," he told MTV in 2007. "In my mind, 'Louis Lane' was his name, and he was obsessed and tormented by Lois Lane."

2. Barbie's full name is Barbara Millicent Roberts. (Ken's last name is Carson.)

3. Cap'n Crunch's full name is Captain Horatio Magellan Crunch

4. Snuffleupagus has a first name — Aloysius.

5. In the Peanuts comic strip, Peppermint Patty's real name is Patricia Reichardt. 

6. The Wizard of Oz rolls off the tongue a lot easier than his full name, Oscar Zoroaster Phadrig Isaac Norman Henkel Emmannuel Ambroise Diggs. From Frank Baum's Dorothy And the Wizard in Oz:
"It was a dreadfully long name to weigh down a poor innocent child, and one of the hardest lessons I ever learned was to remember my own name. When I grew up I just called myself O.Z., because the other initials were P-I-N-H-E-A-D; and that spelled 'pinhead,' which was a reflection on my intelligence."

7. Mr. Clean has a seldom-used first name — "Veritably." The name came from a "Give Mr. Clean a First Name" promotion in 1962.

8. In a deleted scene in the 2006 Curious George movie, The Man With the Yellow Hat's name was revealed as Ted Shackleford. (Since the scene was deleted, perhaps this doesn't count.)

9. The real name of Monopoly mascot Rich Uncle Pennybags is Milburn Pennybags.

10. The policeman in Monopoly has a name, too. You can thank Officer Edgar Mallory the next time he sends you to jail.

11. On Night Court, Nostradamus Shannon was better known as Bull.

12. On Entourage, Turtle's real name is Salvatore Assante.

13. Sesame Street's resident game-show host Guy Smiley was using a pseudonym all these years. He was born Bernie Liederkrantz.

14. The Michelin Man's name is Bibendum.

15. On Gilligan's Island, Jonas Grumby was simply called The Skipper.

16. Staying on Gilligan's Island, The Professor was Roy Hinkley.

17. The unkempt Shaggy of Scooby-Doo fame has a rather proper real name — Norville Rogers.

18. The Pillsbury Doughboy's name is Poppin' Fresh. He has a wife, Poppie Fresh, and two kids, Popper and Bun Bun.

19. The patient in the classic game Operation is Cavity Sam.

20. The true identity of The Lone Ranger was John Reid.

21 & 22. OK, these last two aren't fictional, but just in case it comes up, Bono was born Paul David Hewson, and The Edge's name is David Howell Evans.

A Tick That Might Make You A Vegetarian

The nice thing about being is a vegetarian is you see headline's like this recent article and realize being a vegetarian, forced or voluntarily, is not a punishment! But check out this recent discovery:

"The lone star tick, or Amblyomma americanum, is found from Texas to Maine, identifiable by the white spot on its back. Its saliva has been linked to what's called a meat-induced alpha-gal allergic reaction. Somehow, the tick's bite induces a person's body to produce antibodies that target alpha-gal, a carbohydrate found in red meat. Once the antibodies latch onto alpha-gal, they induce a chemical chain reaction that releases histamines and other inflammatory proteins that spark the symptoms of an allergic reaction."

In other words if this tick bites you eating meat will make you swell up, rashes break out and even barf! How cool is that? But for the 100th time it is not a punishment to be a vegetarian, in fact, it is kind of privilege. At any rate, either we get bit by ticks or voluntarily become vegetarians it will be the way of the world after the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, correct?

Bald

Growing up I had bright red-hair, freckles, pale skin and I was a middle child. Now tell me what about that scenario is fair?! I've grown to like my freckles despite being unable to count them, my pale skin could be more pale and who cares anymore if I'm a middle child. But the bright red-hair has turned a rusty red and perhaps you have noticed that one of the few gifts my father ever gave me was a balding head. Thanks dad. So I keep it really short in an effort at acceptance of my baldness and some might think I wear a cap to hide my baldness but I love hats and have worn them since I was in high school.

At any rate I came across a recent study at the University of Pennsylvania that brought some comfort to me and my thinning noggin. The study found:

  

In one of the experiments, [they] showed 344 subjects photos of the same men in two versions: one showing the man with hair and the other showing him with his hair digitally removed, so his head appears shaved.

...the subjects reported finding the men with shaved heads as more dominant than their hirsute counterparts. In one test, men with shorn heads were even perceived as an inch taller and about 13 percent stronger than those with fuller manes...

The study found that men with thinning hair were viewed as the least attractive and powerful of the bunch, a finding that tracks with other studies showing that people perceive men with typical male-pattern baldness — which affects roughly 35 million Americans — as older and less attractive. For those men, the solution could be as cheap and simple as a shave.

Men with buzzed heads were associated with alpha males, members of the military, and action movie stars. The study also suggested that power-buzzed men are seen as being better leaders. So there you have it guys with lots of beautiful hair - Henry I'm looking in your direction! Bald or buzzed heads are...good? Of course I'm hesitant to point out this last comment but the article concluded but noting:

And how about men with a full head of hair?

Sorry, they're still seen as more attractive, if less dominant, than their hairless counterparts, according to the study.

Well...can't win them all.

Diversity Day

In grad school I took a course called "Cross-Cultural Comparisons," or something like that. The point of the class was to emphasize our abilities to learn from and live among each other despite our differences whether they be ethnic, religious, social etc. When I became an army chaplain I learned even more about religious pluralism and how to embrace our differences. As a social worker and chaplain I have got to know men and women who are Christian, Jew, Muslim, Bahai, Native American, Hindu, Buddhist, Pagan, Agnostic, Atheist and so on. So I get excited whenever I hear about Americans embracing religious diversity. Take these two women from Hawaii and one from Illinois:

 

Mazie Hirono made all sorts of history last week when she was elected to the US Senate. She is the first female to be elected a Senator from Hawaii, the first Asian-American woman to be elected to the Senate and the first Buddhist to ever serve as a US Senator and the first Senator born in Japan. Granted she considers herself an ethnic, non-practicing Buddhist but its still cool.

Tulsi Gabbard was born in America Samoa and was elected the US Congress last week. She is a practicing Hindu (and vegetarian) and will be the first member of her faith ever to serve in the House or Senate. She plans on taking the oath of office with her Bhagavad Gita. Like me she enlisted in the army as a medic but unlike me she served two tours to the Middle East. She was later commissioned an officer in the Army National Guard and is currently a captain.There have been some critics of a Hindu serving in congress but she pointed out that there were no objections when a Hindu put on an army uniform and headed to war.

My sibling-in-laws, Ryan and Ann, might be interested in knowing that Captain Gabbard will be joining her fellow Army National Guard officer Lieutenant Colonel Tammy Duckworth in the House of Representatives and together they will be the first female combat veterans to ever serve in Congress. Duckworth is the first person to serve in Congress born in Thailand, her mom was Thai but her dad was American. As you can see she is disabled courtesy of the rocket that hit the helicopter she was piloting in Iraq. She also has the dubious honor of being the first disabled woman to ever serve in Congress.

I love this stuff. I think it is so neat to see such diverse women serving our country in various capacities. The way I figure if I can't accept people like these women then who on earth is going to accept a thinning red-headed, freckle faced, Mormon? With all that said I am always skeptical of anyone serving in the House or Senate but I wish them the best of luck none-the-less.

Papa John Loves Health Insurance!

 

I was going to let this one slide but Papa John - I think that is his real name - brought it up again recently. Back in August Mr. John announced that Obamacare was going to make the cost of his delicious pizzas go up 11-14 cents a pie. Now he made this bold proclamation thinking it would result in some sort of uprising as Americans saw that their pizzas might go up a dime and a half. But it backfired because most Americans had the same reaction I did: "Wow! That's great, Papa can give his thousands of employees health insurance and all its going to cost is 2-3 nickels a pizza!"

So the issue slipped away until after the election and now he is saying he is going to have to cut employees hours now that Obama has won a second term. Of course cutting his employees hours has nothing to do with the recent verdict convicting his company of sending over half a million unauthorized text messages to cell phones resulting in a $250 million dollar penalty. No, not at all...its all Obama's fault.

I don't get, I'm not a CEO and I have no real desire to ever be a CEO but shouldn't you be proud of yourself for finding a way raise the prices of your pizzas a measly 11-14 cents so your thousands of employees who diligently serve your company can have health insurance? I mean come on, you are in the food service industry, you really need to have your employees in good health.

Its kind of like all these states who are suing to not implement Obamacare. Take Texas for example, more than 25% of the state have no health insurance, worst in the country. So, when these 25% get sick guess who gets stuck with the bill? The governors should be pumped to put this individual mandate to work, its going to save them a fortune! Requiring people to be responsible is a great idea! It is so fiscally conservative, I can see why the Republicans came up with the idea 20 years ago.

But there is some good news for Papa John's and every other food company out there. Two states legalized marijuana! The food industry should perk up in those states if you know what I mean, hee hee hee...I can say that not because I have ever used marijuana but because the doctor made Heidi take synthetic marijuana when she had cancer to give her the munchies after she went from 100 lbs to 82 lbs but that story is for another day.

Dog Park II. . . I think

  

Sometime  ago I decided to start sharing our dog park adventures. We have been to dog parks in Nevada, Florida, Louisiana, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado and California. Sure, it's fun for the dogs but do you know the amount of quality times we have spent as a family?! We are talking about hundreds of hours of family-only time. Plus when we are traveling going to the dog park motivates us to see parts of the communities we visit that tourists don't normally find themselves.

Take this dog park in a New Orleans suburb. It was definitely in an area not frequented by tourists but it had a perfect view of Lake Pontchartrain, the huge body of water with a 30 miles bridge.You can kind of see it in the photo but the cars are staring out on the water. It wasn't the biggest dog park but any dog park with agility obstacles makes Henry happy. We made a few visits over 2 trips to the Big Easy, talked to some nice people and admired the view. It is hard to see in the photo but it over looks a very flat lake if there is such a thing. As much as I enjoy being back in Las Vegas I miss the proximity we were to New Orleans...what a cool place...and weird.

We just got back from the dog park on Warm Springs and Eastern. Going to any park as a family with a couple of mutts is a Sunday night spent well. Nothing like enjoying a nice crisp evening working on those familial relationships while putting our tax dollars to work. So...if you have a pup, make a memory and take it to the dog park.

Say it ain't so...

 

I am a soldier. I enlisted in the army when I was 17, only a junior in high school. I have served this nation for more than 13 years and plan on serving until they make me take the uniform off for good. During my time in the service I have encountered some of the best (and worst) men and women this country has to offer. Though I have never met him, General David Petraeus is one of the best officers produced in the modern army.

Though he left the army for the CIA 14 months ago his career spanned more than 37 years. He was a West Point grad, married his college sweetheart, earned a PhD from Princeton, became an Army Ranger, took an M-16 bullet in the chest during a training accident and has always been a "PT (physical training) Stud." He literally wrote the book on counterinsurgency in a pretty successful attempt to deal with Iraq and became one of the most widely respected officers in the army. He was known as a scholar warrior, a soldier who was impeccable in his soldier skills and a brilliant academician. Yeah, he is one of my heroes.

So I was pretty bummed out when I was running on the treadmill at the gym and saw the story that he resigned as director of the CIA after it was discovered he had an affair with his biographer. The biographer was a journalist who followed him around Afghanisatn for a year wrriting his story. She was also a West Point grad and when I saw her interviewed several months ago it was obvious that like me, he was one of her heroes.

He explained, "After being married for over 37 years, I showed extremely poor judgment by engaging in an extramarital affair. Such behavior is unacceptable, both as a husband and as the leader of an organization such as ours." I guess it is commendable he is owning up to his mistakes but why are so many of my heroes terribly flawed?! Martin Luther King Jr. was a notorious philanderer, Ghandi had all sorts of disturbing characteristics, Abraham Lincoln was far from perfect and don't even get me started on Brigham Young and Joseph Smith.

I guess that is what makes their human existence plausible, these are imperfect people doing extraordinary things. But hey, I'm an imperfect guy and who knows, maybe I might do something extraordinary in my life just like my heroes. So maybe their mistakes make them more human, more like me? At any rate I don't want to judge someone on their mistakes, no matter how serious, when their whole lives were full of so many accomplishments and so much to admire.

Calm Down...

  

I really should write more, it is actually therapeutic. Seriously, it is. I encounter so many things and think, "Well that might be fun to blog about." Like most recently, the election.

I was shocked as Heidi read to me some of the Facebook postings of supposedly strong in the faith, active  members of our church cry out like the end of the world has arrived because Obama won a second term. Which kind of confuses me actually since the end of the world would actually mean the Second Coming of Jesus Christ has arrived and that's a good thing right? Imagine a world with no guns and everyone is a vegetarian! Awesome, I can't wait!

But really, as Heidi read the Facebook postings I was genuinely disturbed. I couldn't believe the ridiculous things active members writing such as the need to stock up on food storage, about the end of democracy arriving, or the end of freedom of religion/speech has officially arrived. I certainly hope they were joking or just being overly dramatic but I have a feeling most were not.

Am I missing something? From what I saw one qualified man with good ideas and a lovely family won the election over a different qualified man with different good ideas and a different lovely family. I think as Americans we should feel privileged to have two quality candidates to choose from. But all of the excitement did get me a little worried so I did what all Mormons do, I turned to my church leaders who have been called of God for guidance and this is what I found:

Mormon Leaders Congratulate President on Election Win 

The First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints issued the following statement Tuesday:

We congratulate President Obama on winning a second term as President of the United States.
After a long campaign, this is now a time for Americans to come together. It is a long tradition among Latter-day Saints to pray for our national leaders in our personal prayers and in our congregations. We invite Americans everywhere, whatever their political persuasion, to pray for the President, for his administration and the new Congress as they lead us through difficult and turbulent times. May our national leaders reflect the best in wisdom and judgment as they fulfill the great trust afforded to them by the American people.

We also commend Governor Romney for engaging at the highest level of our democratic process, which, by its nature, demands so much of those who offer themselves for public service. We wish him and his family every success in their future endeavors.

Phew...good thing there is some level heads out there, right? Seriously, instead of sounding like a bunch of cry babies if we don't get our way maybe we should try to follow the example of our leaders. Besides, I for one am glad that some of the evangelic Christian communities can stop pretending to like Mormons (with that said I know many evangelic Christians who are quite kind to our faith group).

Finally, after re-reading the church's statement I realized I have not prayed for our President today...I wonder how many of my fellow Mormons have?

Unapologetic

This may come off a little political, although it is not meant to be.  However with that said, let me say this.  I am not sure who I’ll vote for.  I really don’t think things will change that much in four years regardless of who wins the election.  That may be pessimistic, but come on most people can’t pay off a car loan in four years let alone a trillion dollars in debt.  But enough about that, this isn’t about the election.  

In the political world I would be considered a moderate.  However I claim a religious affiliation that would most likely consider me liberal.  I’m not out to making marrying your dog legal, but I do conform to equal rights regardless of your age, sex, race, orientation or ability.  I am pro animal rights.  I recycle.  I am personally against abortion, but I believe in the women’s right to choose.  I am pro health care reform.  I don’t think it is a grievous sin if the woman works outside the home.  I don’t spend hours on facebook, or craft blogs or pintrest.  I like tofu, and James Taylor, and going to farm sanctuaries…ok I digress…

Most of the time my moderate/liberal thinking is not a problem.  That is until I try to pair who I am with the culture of that certain religious affiliation I was talking about before.  I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  I am proud to be a Mormon.  I have absolutely no issue with the doctrine of the church.  I understand that, like any religions, there are huge historical flaws in our church-not due to the doctrine per se, but to the weaknesses and humanness of man.  That’s not where the problem lies.  For me the problem lies within the culture of the church.  (Of course if you are not of the Mormon faith this post may mean absolutely nothing to you because it can be hard to understand a culture if you are not submersed in it.)  For those of us who are this moderate/liberal/open-minded/hippy-dippies it can be really hard to be who you are and yet at the same time fit into this culture.  Now, of course living in the West (and heaven forbid living in Utah) makes it harder because there are subsequently more Mormons in the West, but I am a West coast gal and so I stay.   

I got yelled at this week at church. I opened my mouth and shared an opinion, which was obviously not the opinion of the teacher and she yelled at me.  She hushed me so quickly as to not let one more drop of blasphemy leave my lips. Told me to stop.  To not mention it again.  She yelled at me-AT CHURCH.  I was so embarrassed, like I had done something wrong.  I would have gotten up to leave, but I was stuck in the corner with the baby and car-seat.  My heart started to race and my cheeks went red.  This lady totally over-reacted at something I said.  And I was mad too, because she halted me so quickly that I didn’t even get to finish my thought.  Her over-reaction thus labeled me as “the trouble maker.”  

Now let me clarify, what I was saying was NOT against any of the teachings of the church.  It was not anti-Christian or anti-Mormon.  It was not anything that probably wasn’t mentioned before.  It was my opinion, my moderate/liberal/open-minded/hippy-dippy opinion.  And I refuse to apologize for my opinion.  The problem is, I don’t have any friends here in my ward (church congregation).  I have already had some pretty negative interactions in this ward (such as a lady telling me how to raise Henry).  This particular ward is very cliquish and I have had a really hard time fitting in.  I know it shouldn’t bother me, but when the Church, its doctrine and culture, play such a huge part of your life, it can be very hard to just brush it off.  And now that the truth is out-that I’m not like “them,” I feel that it will continue to be hard to make friends.  It is discouraging.

Dan had to remind me that ward families are meant to teach us unconditional love, to learn to work with people who you don’t like and who don’t like you, who think differently than you, who drive you crazy!  Going to church is meant to humble us.  And for those of us who are Liberal Mormons, we may not find friends inside the church.  We may have to continue to attend church week after week and endure the loneliness of feeling out of place because we have a testimony of the truthfulness of the gospel, not because it’s our social hour.

What makes it particularly disheartening is that I don’t want the way we choose to live our lives and raise our children, make it hard on our children.  I cry to think of my children being picked on and ridiculed by members of their same faith because they are not just like them.  It’s hard enough to make friends as it is.  I don’t want them to have to endure the same feelings that I did last Sunday.  But at the same time, what am I suppose to do?

I refuse to apologize for being who I am.

Lydia's Birth Story

I know I haven't blogged in FOREVER.  I figured now is just a good of a time as any to blog.  And why not blog about a huge event in our lives the birth of our baby girl!  ***Warning- Super long post***

My parents came to visit us three weeks before my due date.  They of course were hoping that I would have the baby while they were here.  This pregnancy was different in many ways than with Henry, but I had a feeling that I wouldn't have the baby early.  Like Henry we didn't find out what the sex of the baby was.  However, the doctor and the ultrasound tech said on multiple occasions that "it was so easy" to tell what the gender was, that both Dan and I were convinced that it was another boy.

At 37.5 weeks I went in for a check up and the doctor said I was dilated to a 3.5.  She was really surprised that I wasn't having contractions.  Up to this point my doctor had mentioned induction at every visit, which I was strongly against because I wanted a drug free birth.  She really didn't want me going over my due date.  But since I was dilated, I think she thought that I would be having the baby anytime, and so she didn't mention anything.  My parents were visiting at this point and they started to get excited that they would be here for the birth.

The week past and I went back into the doctor.  I was still a 3.5.  No contractions.  So my doctor decided to strip my membranes.  Ouch!  Not to mention that I had serious cramps the whole rest of the night.  I had wanted to make my own designer hospital gown to labor in, so my mom stayed up all night finishing up a super cute teal paisley gown with bright pink ribbon because she was convinced that I wouldn't make it through the night.  I woke up fine.  Nothing.  I felt fine the rest of the week.  Some cramping here and there, and a lot of "lightening like" shocks in my pelvis, but nothing that I would consider as a wave like contraction.  My parents went back home.

On Tuesday the 28th, two days before my due date I went on a walk in the morning and then went swimming with Henry.  Then that evening I went back into my doctors.  I was still at a 3.5 and so she decided to strip my membranes again.  It wasn't as painful this time around, but within 15 minutes I was cramping up.  We stopped at Deseret Book on the way home, and I was hurting so bad I could hardly stand to walk around.  We got home around 5:30pm and I spent most of the evening complaining of the cramps, but I still ate dinner and went on our evening walk.  Around 8ish my back was hurting and so I laid on the couch with a heating pad.  I tried to go to sleep around 11pm with the heating pad, but I was so uncomfortable and restless.  I was pretty sure I was going into labor, but I was in no rush to get to the hospital because I wanted to labor at home as long as possible.  I just kind of paced around the house all evening.  I took a bath which seemed to relax me a bit.  The crampy pain never left, but at some point I realized that it would get a lot worse and then not so bad.  Finally around 1am I started timing these periods of worsening pain, and they were about 1 minute apart.  At around 1:30am I told Dan we needed to go to the hospital.  I threw up almost immediately after he woke up, I was in transition.  But Dan wanted me to be 100% sure that I was in labor.  He was mad that I didn't have someone to watch Henry.  I told him to text my friend DD but he didn't want to disturb her if it was nothing.  I told him I was serious, but he still didn't really believe me.  So we packed up Henry in the car and headed to the hospital.

The drive to the hospital seemed to take forever!  I was in so much pain.  I told Dan that I was getting an epidural.  (At this point all I knew was that if I was going to be at this pain level for hours and hours there would be no way that I could tolerate it- little did I know I was in transition and almost through labor).  Dan dropped me off at the emergency room and went to park the car with Henry.  I checked into labor and delivery and I could hardly fill out the paperwork.  They checked me at I was at an 8.5 with a bulging bag.  They put me in one of their gowns (Dan was still parking the car), I wouldn't get the chance to wear my fashion forward hospital gown after all.  I was rushed to delivery, they were asking me a bunch of questions, trying to take my blood and start an IV.  Dan arrived with Henry and I told him to text DD now!  I was hurting and remember burying my face in the bed.  I felt the sudden urge to push, and my water broke.  I pushed twice more and let out a primordial warrior princess scream with each push.  I guess I was scaring Henry because Dan took him outside the room.  As he walked out my doctor walked in and I gave one more push.  Dan heard the baby crying and came back in.  Lydia arrived 32 minutes after we got to the hospital. 

I am so glad I gave birth naturally!!  Everything I wanted out of this birth- laboring at home, going drug free at the hospital, and having an easy recovery-happened.  I feel so blessed.  I have been on a high since I had Lydia, and I really do feel awesome.

Henry had no clue what was happening

Daniel cutting the cord

Our big girl 7lbs 4oz, 20 inches

About an hour and 1/2 after she was born

Lydia Louise Shelton

going home

Week old baby girl

Not sure who bugs me more...

When I began my journey becoming a US Army Chaplain I had to complete some graduate work in religion. While scouting out universities I stumbled across a one that was surprisingly biased. All applicants were required to sign two supporting documents:

The first was a statement that the Bible is the only word of God and all other texts including “The Book of Mormon, the Koran, the Torah, etc.” are false scripture and should not be included in one’s studies. 

The second required document explained the Trinity being God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost are one being and not three separate individuals and any other belief is false and would not be condoned at the university. 

Well then...it was quite clear that Jews, Muslims and Mormons were not welcome at that institution which was fine by me, if they didn’t want me then I didn’t want them. But I’ll be honest; there was still a sting of rejection. 

So naturally I was surprised to look at the news today and see that very same school, Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia, had invited Mitt Romney to offer the commencement address. I was baffled; a university that made it clear Mormons were not welcomed as students offered one of their highest honors to one of those exact same Mormons! And I was also baffled that one of those exact same Mormons would want to give the commencement address at a university that don’t really want people of his faith at their school! 

Well, as far as I can tell Liberty University hates Obama more than they hate Mormons even though Obama subscribes to a far more traditional form of Christianity than Mormons do. As for Romney…well he’ll go anywhere and say anything as long as it might get him a few more votes. 

Politics.

Our Vegetarian Menu

We have both at some point or another wrote about what we eat. We do this because we regularly hear from people upon learning we are vegetarians something to the effect: "Wow, what do you even eat?" The fact is with half a dozen cook books we end up eating a very diverse diet, rarely eating the same vegetarian meal twice. Someone recently asked me this same old question so here it is, our most recent menu:

1. Tortellini Salad and Crescent Rolls

Nothing fancy here, even the crescent rolls came from a tube, but plenty filling.

2. Irish Root Soup and Sourdough Rolls

Not sure why this is called root soup because it was primarily leeks and potatoes. Again, the rolls were store bought.

3. BBQ Seitan Sliders and Side Salad

Seitan is called "wheat meat" but tastes great and has a texture similar to a very lean meat. I like the stuff a lot and it costs 3-4 bucks depending on where you are shopping.

4. Black-Eyed Peas with Greens and Baked Sweet Potatoes

The greens we used was kale but turnip, collard or Swiss chard all work. Nothing tastier than a sweet potato smothered in butter and brown sugar.

5. Black Bean Tacos and Cilantro Lime Couscous

We mix black beans with green chilis and onions and used hard taco shells this time - toppings included sour cream, cheese, lettuce and peach-pineapple-chipotle salsa.

So that was our menu for about the past 10 days since we usually have leftovers once or twice. I think our bill was about 50 bucks or so and as usual we had way too much food! That's the other thing about veggie meals, they make a ton of food and are hard to cut down in size - I mean come on, how do you divide a can of black beans in half?

Give it a try, cook vegetarian for an entire week. Another one of our favorite comments is when people say they don't eat that much meat but every freaking time were over their eating meat! Seriously, nothing beats a clean conscience...

Disney on Ice

Never been to Disney on Ice before last Thursday. It was only ten bucks a ticket but that's because it cost twelve bucks for a bag of cotton candy that has the Disney logo on it. Anyway, not sure if I'm the target audience but that's alright. Should have heard the roar of squeals when various characters came out. I can honestly say I have never heard 10,000 kids scream at the same time before.

Afterwards we asked Henry what character was his favorite, he said it was Minnie Mouse. When we asked why he said because she was cute. Not quite sure how I feel about that. We just kept giggling about this SNL sketch. Too bad there isn't a Disney on Ice like this.

Volunteering

Let’s be honest, there are plenty of reasons to do academic studies on Mormons. Some good, some bad, some embarrassing. But to study Mormons and our habit to volunteer is a good one. I have had the opportunity to work with a lot of professional clergy over the past several years and I feel bad about it but I find myself smirking on the inside as I hear them complain that Mormon volunteers make their collegiate efforts null. Recently one clergy coworker remarked that she will never move to Utah because hospice chaplain duties are almost entirely performed by volunteers. But for those who have not seen it here is some of the results discovered by the University of Pennsylvania:

Time Travel

I've always been fascinated with time travel. Maybe its because one of the first movies I went to was Back to the Future which also happened to be the film Heidi and I watched prior to our first kiss.

This clip was discovered several months ago but it has been on my mind since I first saw it. Heidi says it creeps her out. The clip is from a Charlie Chaplin movie and distinctly shows a woman talking on her cell phone! I knew time travel was possible. Of course after playing Red Alert for almost two decades maybe it isn't a good idea after all.

Yet another reason...

There are many reasons we don't plan on living in Utah even though it is where the best Mormons go and the list of reasons just keeps getting longer. This was a recent article we stumbled across that is just mind blowing:

"Legislators passed Senate bill HB363 19-10 after a short debate during which many senators expressed their belief that sex education is meant for the home, not school.

'To replace the parent in the school setting, among people who we have no idea what their morals are, we have no ideas what their values are, yet we turn our children over to them to instruct them in the most sensitive sexual activities in their lives, I think is wrongheaded,' Republican state Sen. Stuart Reid said, according to The Salt Lake Tribune.

The bill lifts the current requirement that all public schools must teach sex ed in grades 8 through 12. Districts would decide whether to offer sex ed classes that teach an abstinence-only curriculum, or not offer the course at all.

Teachers would be barred from talking about homosexuality even if asked about it by a student. They also must restrict their sexual education curriculum to advocating abstinence before marriage and remaining faithful to your spouse."

Can someone clarify this law for us? Maybe we are missing something here. Don't get us wrong, we are pro-abstinence only in relationships but is this law as ignorant, self-righteous and obtuse as this short article suggests? And the part about homosexuality, even the Bible talks about that so how does ignoring it help?

Hopefully the bill will stop there because this just seems like a step backwards. I know there are many in Zion that really want to "fit in" with the extreme views seen in other states but this is just silly. Lets be honest, the best way to pound anything in the minds of young people need to be done in the home and the school regardless what Stuart might think.

The Dog Park - 17th Street Paw Park

*** Our ongoing recollections of our adventures at Dog Parks across the USA ***

Located in Sarasota, FL the 17th Street Paw Park was the last dog park we went to during our stay in December 2009. As you can see the park is quite large and completely grass covered which is kind of nice because many dog parks have large portions covered in dirt. There were also a lot of obstacles for the dogs to play on, run through and jump over. Myla loves that kind of stuff, Bentley just barks at her. The only downside was there was not a lot of shade which is a little weird considering how many trees there are in Florida. You wouldn't think this would be an issue in December but in sunny Florida it is always an issue.

MEMORABLE EVENT: It wasn't so much the park but the situation. Only a couple days later our baby boy, Henry, had his first birthday. It was the only dog park we went to with the Springer Spaniel, Ivy, it was fun for all of them. It was also only a few days before Heidi's parents moved out of Florida for good. We haven't been back to that sunny peninsula since then so the 17th St Paw Park was one of our last dog adventure in that state. I miss going to Florida.

Joshua Tree

Did you know that the largest and most dense Joshua Tree forest in the world is not at Joshua Tree National Park but rather the Mojave National Preserve? Neither did we until we decided to go for a hike on our way to a recent trip to Cali. As you can see it is a strange place, kind of like being in the middle of a Dr. Suess story...except not as colorful.


I must admit, the only reason I know what a Joshua Tree is was not from intellectual curiosity but rather the U2 album. Pop culture, who would've thought? But I did learn somewhere that the Joshua Tree was named by Mormon Pioneers who thought it resembled the Old Testament prophet Joshua lifting his arms in the air. I don't see the resemblance.

It was actually a big deal getting the little guy on this rock. Myla was pretty jealous.

The kid thought he was pretty cool wearing these sun glasses. Pretty big for Yucca plant, right?

Bentley wanted to be in the photo too but this was about the best he could do.

At the top of the 1.5 mile hike. You can't see it but we're actually facing the Cima Dome, one of the largest (in diameter) dome shaped mountains in the nation.

For being the middle of the desert there wasn't too many cacti like this one which I guess made Henry a little sad.

We didn't see this on our hike but ff you are like us and you have always wondered what the Pope looks like in a sombrero here you go. I guess it goes to show, when a Roman is in Mexico...