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.