Branding Cows

Chad and Kace are wanna-be cowboys.  Right now they are up helping their grandpa Bruce brand and vaccinate his cows.  They love the animals on their grandpas farm.  I am glad they have the chance to go up and help, and more especially, they are not MY animals.  I sometimes feel as if I can't give them the exposure to all the things they want to do, so when they get a chance to help on the farm, we are glad to have them go.  Chad always says he does not want a "real job" and that he just wants to work on the farm with grandpa.  He likes to ride in the tractor, drive four-wheelers, shoot guns, fish, and all the Idaho outdoorsy stuff  there is to do around here.  Kace is just happy to be Chads shadow.  I enjoy watching these two little guys, especially when they are good to their mom.  Hali loves it when her boys cuddle up with her.

Chad and Kace with the cattle prods.

40

Ok, so today I turned 40.  No big deal.  Hali and I talked about it awhile ago and we agreed on no party, newspaper clippings or fanfare of any type.  We get up this morning and have a yummy breakfast and Hali and the kids got me a few gifts to help my triathlon training, fins, goggles, transition bag, etc, and made a very nice DVD for me to watch.  No big surprises, so we took off for work and school.  I dropped the kids off at school and drove to the clinic and as I pulled up, I saw a Hearse parked in my clinic parking spot!  Yeah, really funny, except it was parked facing the highway, where thousands of cars drive by every day.  They were honking, driving slow to read the "Happy 40th birthday Dr. Roderick" sign on the side and otherwise making a traffic jam.  That was pretty funny, but what is even funnier is that they decorated the office with streamers and signs from the ceiling last night.  No big deal, except this morning the heaters kicked on and started moving the ceiling streamers.  This set off the motion detector security system in the waiting room.  So, here come the police at 7:15 this morning.  They called and asked why the motion detector was going off and I was CLUELESS!!! So I told them it was no big deal and not to worry about it.  About the time I had Rexburg PD in my clinic parking lot, the guy with the Hearse showed up to announce my old agedness.  So we have had multiple calls today asking who died at our clinic because they say they saw the cops AND a hearse at the clinic this morning.  SHEESH!!!!!  They got me a cane, flasher cones for driving slow, prune juice, hair dye and a prescription for VIAGRA.  Seriously funny stuff today.  I have some very good girls that work for me, they have been scheming this for a few months and pulled it off pretty well.  I had no idea.  Then, they had to ask me this afternoon if I noticed that they were all wearing black, I told them "Of course I noticed", but in actuality I didn't.  I am a dork!  I work with great people, have an awesome family, and a fantastic life.  I am blessed!  I still tell Hali I feel good, and that I can still whip anybody twice my age.  Life is good, I am out.

Their announcement to the whole community about my age!

BLACK AND WHITE

Chads fielding form.

Kace ready for a grounder!

Yesterday Chad and I were talking after baseball practice.  We were talking about how his mom has not taken classes at college for almost 17 years, and that she just got done taking finals last week.  He looked at me in a very understanding way and said something that really hurt.  He said, back when mom was in college, was everything in BLACK AND WHITE?  I was crushed!!!  I understand that I am hitting forty this week, but black and white?  Seriously.  I remember thinking that about my grandparents when I was his age.  I do remember party lines, black and white TV, 8 tracks, etc...Maybe time to buy a burial plot.  Hali laughed when I told her because I am older than her, I am still reeling.  Anyway, we have had a good weekend.  Our baseball season starts Tuesday, opening ceremonies Monday.  Mataia is fully involved in Track.  She ran the 100 leg of the medley relay, which was first, she was 4th in the 200, and she got second in the pole vault and high jump in a terribly windy meet at Madison on Friday.  Fun to watch.  Morgan got drafted for a softball team last week, she is going to be good.  She loves softball.  I enjoy spring sports, just not the early spring Idaho weather.

Old School Communication.

On another note, last week we were in Salt Lake and we saw a PAY PHONE!  It looked so out of place, I had to take a picture.  There were a few at the Gateway mall.

VERY TIRING WEEK

OK, so we just got done with the one of the craziest weeks in awhile.  That says a lot because we usually redline our lives 6 days out of 7.  This week was was busy.  Chad is now in the two sports a week club like his big sisters.  He plays piano, guitar, wrestles and now is going to be my second baseman for his minor league team.  We are the New York Mets, and if any of you remember, or care to know, they have been my favorite team since high school.  I just have been a closet fan.  They have not been very good, so I have been a little more vocal for the Yankees since they seem to win, and, they beat the Red Sox, who are just slightly less obnoxious.  So now we have a couple baseball practices to throw in each week.  The cutest thing though, is Kace.  He is only 5, will be 6 next week, but by heck, he IS a Met also!  Takes fielding, warms up, hits and always wonders when he will get "His   Shot" during defensive drills.  He kills me!  he is going to be very good.  Hali bought him a very flattering pair of baseball pants, a pair that she says accentuates his chubby little bum.  "I just want to squeeze his bum in those pants!" she says.  Baseball is fun, but really, it is just about keeping my kids happy and busy.  Taia had a volleyball tournament today, she played well, they got second, but played much more consistently today than they have this spring.  She also had a track meet, she got third in the pole vault, her PR is now 7 feet.  She had a lesson on friday and cleared 8 feet, but not officially in a meet.  If she can clear 8 in a meet, then she qualifies for a big track meet in Boise at the end of April.  I am sure she can do it, all she needs is a carrot dangling in front of her and she is on it.  Anyway, I finally got to ride my road bike about 15 miles on thursday.  It was a nice day, about 60 degrees.  I can tell long time no ride.  Legs were tired, and more than one occasion that I about crashed.  Jeesh!  Looking down about hit a sign, changing gears and hit a hole, forgot to unclip at a stoplight and about crashed in front of a bus of kids.  Rookie stuff, I must be losing it.  Still fun though.  Morgan had the weekend off.  Whew!

My Boys Love their Mom

Hali is a cub scout leader, bears actually, and last week she had them all make toolboxes.  Amazing woman she is.  Here is a picture of the boxes she had my boys do.  They are already filling up with tools, and I am quickly losing mine.  My boys love their mom, they also want to be like their dad, and that makes me feel great.  Now they have a toolbox just like their dad does. Pretty impressive project boys!

Hali also just got done making a yummy cake.  Chad was in here helping and guess who got to lick the beater?  He is such a good helper, he loves his mom.  By the way, the cake is awesome!

Winter will not quit

We had another busy week last week, in fact, it REALLY wore us out.  We were going both directions with so many different things last week that we were never all together at once.  When we got home at night, we were all so tired that all we really wanted to do was go to bed.  That was not so bad, I guess, I suppose we are used to it by now.  I think what really is bothering me is the weather.  Cold, Grey, wet, windy, dark, and still snowing off and on!  I have talked to a lot of my patients, and they all feel the same way I do.  This winter more than any other, has really wore me out.  It has been long and full of snow.  I guess I am just ready to get to mowing the lawn, getting the house sold, and moving on with the next chapter in our lives.  So much of our life is unsettled right now.  We try to keep it as stable as we can, and for the most part, we are doing good, we just know how much things will have to change before we truly will feel settled again.
On another note, I am going to coach Chads baseball team in Rexburg this summer.  He has a tryout on Wednesday, then we will draft all of the new kids into the existing teams.  I think it will be fun to watch and he is looking forward to it.  Kace is going to try T-ball, he will also double as my bat boy and mascot.  He is such a funny little guy.  I hope I have another father that will want to help out with practices.  The girls are still busy with volleyball each weekend, and Mataia had her first track meet last week.  She was one of only two freshman to make the girls varsity track team.  We are very proud of her for that.  Funny though, there are a lot of little freshman girls that are not too happy about that, but Taia does not see it at all.  My opinion...get better and beat her, or get over it!  Just a dads point of view.  Got to go to town, Hali and Morgan are playing the violin and piano at a fireside tonight.  I am out.

NCAA MADNESS

Today is a fun day.  College basketball, which I really do not follow much during the year, started their end of the season national tournament.  It is so fun to watch, because they are all good, and at any time, any one of them could win.  Of course, I am  cheering for BYU, and the fighting Fredetts!  They beat Wofford, now on to the round of 32.  My boys just had a wrestling tournament and they both got second.  Not bad, I am proud of them, it is fun for this old wrestler to watch the next generation try it out.  The girls are doing volleyball this weekend, both in different directions on the map, sheesh.  Mataia's track meet got cancelled on wednesday, so no pole vault results to report, but her vaulting coach just got 6th in the nation at the Indoor National Championships at Texas A&M, so we think she is in pretty good hands there.  Life is great here, I am tired from all the things we do.  OK, I just saw the commercial for Old Spice where the guy says, 'look at me, now look at you, now look at me, now you, now me...that is so funny!'  The picture is of a contraption Chad made to plow the melting snow around here.  He has much more fun riding his bike and scooter than actually shoveling, what a smart little man!  He gets his smarts from his mom I am sure. We are very ready for the snow to melt and be gone.  I am out.

DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS

Saturday today. Sports and traveling are the theme. Morgan is playing volleyball in Ashton about 20 miles away, Taia is in a band concert in Blackfoot, about 60 miles away. Hali is judging a clogging competition in Pocatello, 90 miles away. I am here with Morgan. They boys are none too excited to be here, but it was either here or they had to babysit the chickens all day. Yes, we have egg laying MACHINES. I cannot believe how many eggs we get from these little guys. We have 8 barred rock hens and we get at least 7 eggs a day. It is hard to keep up with them sometimes. We are always giving eggs to the neighbors. It's been a good project for the kids. So now back to volleyball, we are in the gym and there are volleyballs flying everywhere! Little 14u girls running around with bows in their hair, cap sleeved uniforms and spandex. Volleyball is fun to watch. They improve every weekend they play.
This is Morgan hitting against a team from Pocatello.

POLE VAULTING AND WRESTLING

In the last few days we have continued with the busy!  Mataia had track practice a few days ago and she was practicing her pole vault.  Notice the 2" of fresh Idaho powder.  It was cold, but she learned a lot and got some practice on the track before her first meet next week.  Should be fun to watch.

Now tonight we had wrestling practice with the boys.  I have to admit, that I am a bit partial to this sport of stress, strain and work.  My boys are still a bit behind when it comes to excitement for the sport though.  They are cute, they are fun, they are just like there dad!  My cute wife likes to tell me that they are just like me when they are bad, so what can I say.  Chad is on my left, Kace is on the right,  what fun they are.

Like I said this morning, today is Hali's birthday, she is awesome!  Somebody called the radio station and told them it was her birthday, and told them that "RODERICKS RULE!"  I honestly do not know who did it, but it was dang funny.  I love her more now than ever before, I am a lucky guy.  Time for some salsa chicken.  I am out.

FIRE

You know, there are not a lot of words out there that get your head spinning and heart racing like FIRE!  We got a little scare the other night when Hali's grandparents had a chimney fire at their house.  It did some damage, burned a few trusses, got smoke all through the house, but otherwise was taken care of quickly, and very efficiently, by our local fire department and volunteers.  I was terribly impressed at how well they did.  Her grandparents are going to be displaced for a few weeks while they get things back together, but luckily there is a lot of family around to help.  We have been busy here in the RN, Hali has a birthday today.  It is also the 12th anniversary of us opening our clinic, so that is a nice little accomplishment.  Track and volleyball for the girls are rolling along, as is wrestling for the boys.  They are all busy, we love our "down time" at home, and enjoy all the fun times we have together.

TO BOISE AND BACK

This weekend we went over to Boise to watch the Boys State Basketball Championships.  It was so much fun.  We took the girls, one of their friends, and my nephew Foster, and had a blast.  We laughed more this weekend than we have in a long time. Foster acted like he was from Spain and was always saying "In Spain we do this, and in Spain we do that."  It was a running comedy.  Hali...she seemed to just be saying everything that was on her mind at the time, sometimes not exactly what I was expecting to hear, but way funny!  Taia and Morgan got along great, it was fun to see them enjoy each other.  I know it is hard to be nice to each other all the time, but these two are always laughing.  Morgan has this laugh that is funny, when she laughs it makes me want to laugh even more.  I love her for that.  We ate a lot of good food, stayed at a nice hotel, went swimming and just played.  I realize how lucky I am to be a Dad and a husband.  My kids are so much fun, my wife is my best friend, and life is good!  Oh, yeah, Madison won the state championship.  Great fun to watch, but all the real joy for me was to spend time with my family.

AND WE ARE OFF

This morning started like most, Morgan had piano at 6:45, Taia had to be at school at 7:30 for a science review, I had to run on the 'mill, Hali was busy getting the boys ready, and the phone was ringing.  Fast pace to start today, and it is not going to slow down much this afternoon.  Hali has school all afternoon, the boys have wrestling, the girls have volleyball practice following Taia's track practice, and I am busy in the clinic.  We will probably all meet up at home well after dark. We are busy here in RN.  I am out.

MY VIEW OF LIFE

Now, for some reason, my lovely wife has a few blogs that she has been keeping up.  I, however, have been content to just stalk her and make sure she applies the right amount of love and appreciation to me that  she should.  I have finally taken a minute to start my own blog.  I know it will probably just mirror a lot of what Hali already says, but it will be through my eyes, which she says thankfully there are only one pair of them out there.  This is because one of me is plenty.  Most of you who know me can appreciate that statement.  I am sure there will be many who do not like me, nor care for me, so this blog will just give them more ammunition.  I guess that is life.  This is going to be a fun little project.  I hope I can do it justice and provide fair and unbiased information that reflects our life.  It is our life, and as crazy as it is, it is a blast.  Hopefully I can entertain us all with some of the things that happen in "RODERICK NATION".