Ping Pong

Did I tell you we got a ping pong table for Christmas? My sweetie loves game tables and over the years we have had quite a few of them including air hockey, pool, and skeeball. Most of these have eventually gone the way of the big dumpster after the kids have played them to death. (Actually it's not that simple. First they have to get broken, but not badly enough that my sweetie will let me throw them directly into the trash. Then they sit in the garage for several years waiting to be fixed first...)

But I digress.

A goofy pic of me and Gamer. Nothing to do with ping pong.

We set up our new ping pong table downstairs in the family room. Thankfully, this one folds up so we don't have to dedicate that much space to it all the time. We had our very first tournament on Christmas Day and the kids were shocked that I am actually pretty good at ping pong.

What they didn't know was that I had played hundreds of games of it as a child. My parents didn't have the funds or the space for a real ping pong table, but we had an awesome kitchen table! It was oval shaped and the chairs were attached to it. They did not have legs that sat on the floor. (I looked and looked through Google Images to find a picture of the table that is still in my dad's house, but apparently it was a Utah thing and they just don't exist anymore.) We had a little detachable net and a couple of paddles and we spent hours playing ping pong in our kitchen.

It was a little trickier than our official ping pong table. It wasn't quite as wide and of course we didn't have lines on it (although we did put them on a few times with masking tape, but Mom didn't like it). The biggest difference was the rounded corners. Balls that would have been perfectly legal on our real table just ended up on the floor in the kitchen.

Point being, I learned to play a really tight game right down the middle. The kids were all annoyed that I won the tournament, but I reminded them that I was playing with a huge disadvantage...We didn't have the chairs that couldn't be removed (like our old kitchen table) to trip over.

Message Received

I have definitely been in a mood today.

My real and actual sock basket.

I spent the better part of the day going through drawers and discarding clothes that were too small for Crafty, Sport, Scout, and Curly. I've pretty much filled the minivan with things to take to the DI. I guess maybe I went a little overboard because when my sweetie got home he came back to the laundry room where I was attempting to fold a huge basket full of socks.

"Maybe we should just get rid of these too," I suggested hopefully.

"How much is it going to cost to buy all new things after you give it all away?" he asked a little too seriously.

Message received...

Guess I'll be folding more socks tomorrow.

It's In the Bag

Our Relief Society is working on a service project. They want us to make small afghans out of baby yarn to give to the little ones who are still-born at the hospital. First, let me say that I'm very busy! But quite a few years ago my sister-in-law had a little one that she lost at seven months. I'm pretty sure I told you at least part of that story once before. Her baby died the week before Taco was born. Anyway, because we had shared a small amount of her pain, I really wanted to help make one of these afghans.

I learned to crochet when I was about 10 years old. We did it for a primary project and I was pretty proud of my hard work. But when I showed my project to Grandma, she was not very happy. First she told me I was holding my crochet hook wrong and I would have to relearn how to hold it correctly. Then she told me every stitch I made was too tight!  And she was right. It was extremely difficult to get the hook back through for the second row of stitches.

I was devastated. I wanted to make her so happy! She loved crocheting and I swear she could do it in her sleep. I finally completed a project that was a pink baby cape. I know, it was very impractical, but what did I know, I was just a kid...

Grandma said all the right words, but I could tell that she was still disappointed in my apparent lack of skills. I tried a few other projects, a couple of baby afghans out of broomstick lace which is sort of crocheting, but not really. I made a full-sized afghan, but it was using another tool that looked like a couple of knitting needles. I also started another baby afghan just before Bossy was born...it's still half-done in a bag somewhere. Overall, I'd say I was pretty much a failure when it came to crocheting.

But I really wanted to support this service project. Two weeks before Grandma died last fall, Teach bought several skeins of baby yarn so that Grandma could make her some baby dresses. Sadly, the dresses were never made and the yarn is just sitting.on a shelf. So today during General Conference, I pulled one of them out, dug in my junk drawer until I found the right size crochet hook, and got started.

After I had done about three rows, the Drama Queen decided she wanted to help too. Unfortunately, she couldn't find another crochet hook that was the right size. Being the awesome mom that I am, I handed her my project and let her have at it. But first I had to teach her how to crochet. It's funny, but she held the hook the same way I did until Grandma made me change. Of course I pointed that out right away...no sense in having to break bad habits.

After the morning session was over, she handed the project back to me. She had done about three more rows, and you know what? Her stitches were tighter than mine! Finally, now that Grandma is no longer here to see them, I've figured out how to crochet. After I finish this afghan, maybe I'll even pull that old bag off the shelf and finish Bossy's afghan...it will be a little small...

Guest Blog - Bad Dad by Sweetie

So I've been working a bit of overtime lately. As always after a bit of that I start feeling like a bad dad, even when we need the extra money, the guilt seems to build. So I've actively been trying to do a bit extra... I know quality time is a myth... but so is Santa and he brings me some pretty good stuff, so why not some good results from the quality time fairy?

Here's some of the things I wanted to get done today... 

Get the grass growing better.   (This one's for my wife)

Fix some things around the house...

Listen to conference... (Eternal Salvation, but it's also a good example for the kids)

Work... (So I can get ahead at work and can take a 5-day weekend next weekend)

Play with the little kids...

Play with the big kids...

Tell the teenagers I love them and I'm proud of them... (I've been thinking a lot about what good kids they are but never when they are around ...I need to tell them)

Figure out why the shower is leaking....  (Everyone would like that fixed)

My brother has offered to fix a chair... (He is a way better wood-worker than I am... can't seem to get it to his house)

So all that was on my mind about 8:00 Friday night when Bossy came in to tell us that as she was closing the garage door a mouse ran out. Needless to say, my wife was less than enthused...that suddenly became my top priority.

I got up early, despite sleeping on the couch half the night because there were too many people in our bed... Headed out for some mouse gear...and some grass seed... (forgot the peat moss, and some parts to attack the shower problem...) Set out some de-mousing gear.. Quickly started mowing the lawn before reseeding, trying to get done in time that I could listen to conference while spreading grass seed and raking it in. Oh crap, the rake is broken... Guess I'll go inside and check on the family.   

Shortly after I got settled, Bossy came in offering to help clean the garage so we could assess how bad the mice were...  Offer was to good to pass up... I looked at all the kids nicely watching general conference... 

Expectation

Reality (Thankfully not ours)

"OK Kids... new plan we will be listening and cleaning at the same time... That was Bad Dad Number One. All the kids worked together to accomplish a huge task in a small amount of time, but the tiny radio was hard to hear....  Bad Dad Number Two. (Didn't find any mice, BTW.) We worked until almost three when I decided to finally feed the gang..  Pizza Hut... me trying to be a good dad... and teach the kids that rewards come to hard workers. After getting to finally sit and watch the last 1/2 hour of conference... I got feeling guilty and decided to take advantage  of the howling wind and take the kids kite- flying. The only problem was that I had to be showered and to the church  by six... I had about 45 minutes... 

Flying kites with kids is like fishing with kids only there are no hooks... but way worse tangles, and the odds of success are about the  same. But with today's winds the biggest danger was the kites self destructing. I was excited... i was being a good dad. Crafty had been talking about how she had never really succeeded at flying a kite, and today she would.  

 
They all got the kites up and crashed them and tangled strings... Of course it took me a while to assemble and get all the kites ready to go. As I was working on the last one, I noticed Crafty chasing a loose kite across the park towards the trees. Then I looked over and saw her trying to get the kite out of a tree. Sighing, I went back to getting the last kite in the air and then I would go help her. The kite seemed to be down and she was sitting, enjoying the shade I suppose...     Drat! The string is tangled right out of the box. Why is Crafty waving to us? Maybe her string is stuck...   i shout to Prima Donna to go help her.

Still working on the string about five minutes later. Prima Donna is further away and obviously can't hear me. Crafty is still waving and my string is still tangled...  "Sport, go help your sister," I call. Sport and Curly suddenly get their kites tangled mid air. I Start working on that. I glance over at Crafty. She still doesn't have any help...  

Oh good, divine intervention.. the pink Barbie kite is loose and heading towards Crafty. It drops right by her. At least she will get her help. I finally get the last kite in the air. Curly is by himself, getting dragged across the field...  Thankfully a big gust downs his kite. The Angry Birds kite is broken, but at least Curly is safe. 

It must be time to start cleaning up. Suddenly, I have a brilliant idea. The kites have short strings... If I put the long string roll on a new kite.. I bet I can get it pretty high. The string is pink and Barbie will match. Just as I get the string tied on, Crafty shows up in tears. "Dad, I broke the kite!" I glance at her unhappy face, "That's OK," I assure her. "But Dad, I got the string stuck in the tree and the fence and me and I couldn't move and no one would come," <sob> "and help"  <sob sob sob> "me!"  I try to soothe her, "I am sorry... want to see  a kite really fly?"  <sob sob> So I left her tied up for about ten minutes...or so.... Evidently she was waving and crying, but down wind we couldn't hear... Bad Dad Number Three. But surely she would like this. so I risk a man card  and start flying a pink Barbie kite with pink string. <sob sob>  "Dad, I'm thirsty... it's too windy, let's go home." Then as the kite gets higher and higher, they start to watch... 

 

The wind is really too strong for the kite... it's like a big fish. It needs line or something is going to snap.I have the spool on my fingers and the kite is taking the line SOO fast! Then suddenly the wind dies.  I drop the spool but the line tightens and the kite starts to climb again.... and suddenly off she goes. The string is burning my hands. The spool is on the ground. I look down... plenty of string...  up up up she goes.. this is SOO cool.. and then suddenly WHOOSH! Right through my fingers.. the string is gone... kite gone... Now it's Scout  <sob sob> "My kite! <sob sob>.... Bad Dad Number Four.

A few hours later.. the little ones are bouncing off the walls throwing pillows from the couch at each other, Bossy is telling them to stop. She can't see the need for some unwind time. I have a brilliant idea. I loudly demand all the pillows. After getting them all, I mass fire, bouncing them off the kids. They got the message immediately and I was soon in a pillow fight..  all against me! I got buried several times. The big pillows from the other couches came in...  then suddenly the fun was over. It seems I had caused so much excitement Curly's asthma had flared up and he started coughing. He ran to his mom and his supper come up all over my wife.... Bad Dad Number Five.....  



I never did make it back to the grass.. or the plants I bought....or the chair.. didn't get much work done..but quality time? I got that one...and the Bad Dad award to prove it.