Saturday, August 21, 2010
Friday, August 13, 2010
Dressed for Symbolism.
Last night about 1am we put the final touches into another wedding dress. This dress was different than the others we have made due to the hand stitching and beading required for the intended effect. It turned out good, but I do not think we will be doing any more dresses with extensive handiwork. I am far more comfortable with the machine. I also successfully incorporated significant structural boning work in the bodice.
Here it is:
The Bride picked out the basic shape and location of the bead work, and I recruited David to design the specifics of the bead work so they would be appropriately symbolic in pattern and design.
We originally were going to use roses as the stitching, but it did not flow as well with the pattern and design, plus, we could not get them to look as nice as we would have liked.
David decided that the cherry blossom would be a fitting match. It is far more unique than the traditional olive, fig leaves, lillies, or orchid patterns.
In various parts of Chinese culture, the cherry blossom is the symbol of love, good fortune, and affection.
Intricate and gorgeous, the cherry blossom is only seen for a short duration of the year. Therefore this dress is designed to remind those who see it that the eternal marriage is the pinnacle point in life and perhaps its most beautiful moment. It blooms in spring, which, in the seasons of life, is where the Bride and Groom are finishing. It also serves as a subtle reminder that life is short compared to the eternal existence of the soul, so decisions should be made with an eternal perspective.
The drape beading and location of the stitch work also was designed to be symbolic. It starts in the bodice, mirroring a protective breastplate to symbolize strength.
It then moves to the back into an eternal weave to symbolize the length of the marriage, and finally spread to an open curtain to symbolize eternal posterity. (No uncle Gary, that is not the same as eternal posterior, the bride works out thank you).
Here it is:
The Bride picked out the basic shape and location of the bead work, and I recruited David to design the specifics of the bead work so they would be appropriately symbolic in pattern and design.
We originally were going to use roses as the stitching, but it did not flow as well with the pattern and design, plus, we could not get them to look as nice as we would have liked.
David decided that the cherry blossom would be a fitting match. It is far more unique than the traditional olive, fig leaves, lillies, or orchid patterns.
In various parts of Chinese culture, the cherry blossom is the symbol of love, good fortune, and affection.
Intricate and gorgeous, the cherry blossom is only seen for a short duration of the year. Therefore this dress is designed to remind those who see it that the eternal marriage is the pinnacle point in life and perhaps its most beautiful moment. It blooms in spring, which, in the seasons of life, is where the Bride and Groom are finishing. It also serves as a subtle reminder that life is short compared to the eternal existence of the soul, so decisions should be made with an eternal perspective.
The drape beading and location of the stitch work also was designed to be symbolic. It starts in the bodice, mirroring a protective breastplate to symbolize strength.
It then moves to the back into an eternal weave to symbolize the length of the marriage, and finally spread to an open curtain to symbolize eternal posterity. (No uncle Gary, that is not the same as eternal posterior, the bride works out thank you).
Friday, August 6, 2010
Jurassic Family Home Evening
This event can be described simply by the two questions Melissa asked me following the event.
"Soooo, how do you think that went?"
"Do you think it is a good idea to have the children laughing at death?"
On Monday, after our regular family home evening finished, I thought it would be a good idea to address another challenge in the family. Lately the children have been choosing to become "afraid" of a lot of different things. Things like heat, rain, ants, sweating, trying new sports, watching their sister for two minutes, etc. "Afraid" has been the cop-out buzz word. In an effort to help them clarify their emotions, I thought it would be good to help them understand the difference between discomfort, dislike and fear.
I also wanted to help the children recognize the difference between pretend and reality in the media.
So, I TIVOed Jurassic Park last weekend.
Some of you are wondering what I was thinking at this point. You are not alone.
Ami, Tim, Maggie and I gathered in the theater for a little movie time to understand fear. I told the children we were going to watch people get eaten by dinosaurs, and that it was not real.
Yee-haw.
During the opening scene with the rapter, Ami asked, "Why is he bouncing up and down?" Tim stared with a mix of glee and absolute terror. Maggie sat whimpering, I laughed.
So, I figured we needed to lighten the mood a bit. After the movie introduced the main characters, we pause it to play a childhood favorite with my dad, "Guess who is going to die next!"
Maggie bet on the computer programmer, Tim on the scientists. After each death we would place our bets on the next dino snack.
Maggie laugh-cried as she moved further and further into my ribcage as we watched from this part on.
Tim caught the attitude and idea quite well, unfortunately he combined his superhero voice with a maniacal laugh so he sounded like an evil scientist as he cheered for the dinosaurs to eat the rest of them.
Ami lost interest and played with Legos.
We concluded with a discussion of recognizing the difference between fear and the things we do not like. We talked about how being afraid comes from not understanding something or danger, and then discussed how to address those feelings through thought, dialogue, scriptures and prayer.
Interestingly, neither Maggie or Tim have been "afraid" of anything this week since then.
Roar!
To make up for it I took them to "How to train your dragon." I enjoyed my penance.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Obeying Speed Limits
Have you ever found yourself telling your children something like:
Hey, Tim, stop running with knives in the kitchen after your sister!
or
Our bedroom is not a racetrack, stop running around the house and go [insert one here] outside/to the playroom/to bed.
Well, Maggie took the message to heart and created speed limit signs for the different rooms and areas of the house.
Tim and Susanna's room had six different signs. 10 by the door (there is a blind curve where multiple crashes have occurred).
By Susanna's bed the speed limit was 16 to prevent backup and congestion, her diapers violate that "regular"ly
By his desk, the speed limit was 21... and 9... no idea...
Near the laundry basket the speed limit was 23, the highest in the house. Perhaps to indicate the speed at which they pretend to do their chores.
Finally, by the ladder up to his bed and the window the speed limit was 22. The speed at which he jumps down and defies ankle breaking on a daily basis.
After posting the signs. Maggie demonstrated to Tim and Ami what the different speeds were through various speed-walking demonstrations. Since Ami never moves past 9, the established law will not be difficult for her to obey
Tim on the other hand...
hey, put those knives back in the kitchen now buster!
Hey, Tim, stop running with knives in the kitchen after your sister!
or
Our bedroom is not a racetrack, stop running around the house and go [insert one here] outside/to the playroom/to bed.
Well, Maggie took the message to heart and created speed limit signs for the different rooms and areas of the house.
Tim and Susanna's room had six different signs. 10 by the door (there is a blind curve where multiple crashes have occurred).
By Susanna's bed the speed limit was 16 to prevent backup and congestion, her diapers violate that "regular"ly
By his desk, the speed limit was 21... and 9... no idea...
Near the laundry basket the speed limit was 23, the highest in the house. Perhaps to indicate the speed at which they pretend to do their chores.
Finally, by the ladder up to his bed and the window the speed limit was 22. The speed at which he jumps down and defies ankle breaking on a daily basis.
After posting the signs. Maggie demonstrated to Tim and Ami what the different speeds were through various speed-walking demonstrations. Since Ami never moves past 9, the established law will not be difficult for her to obey
Tim on the other hand...
hey, put those knives back in the kitchen now buster!
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Becoming a man.
Tim saw a spider, of which he is still paranoid, despite having Spider-man as his favorite superhero.
(Which is lame, batman is totally the best - see www.howitshouldhaveended.com for evidence or compare Spider-man 3 to The Dark Knight. No contest. No whining).
Anyway, I digress.
I figured it was time to teach him how to kill spiders, since he has been so exited to watch me shoot the invading mice with our new .177. Why yes, we bought another gun... and yes, I am at two shots, two kills with these nice little hollow-point...
Alas, I digress again.
So the spider in question had a body about the size of a pin-top, and legs that might have measured about 2 millimeters long each. Dinky. Tiny. Infintesimal. I had him grab a napkin.
I demonstrated on a piece of lint how to grab and squeeze the spider to death.
Tim's turn.
At 3 feet away from the windowsill, he positioned the napkin in his hand properly, and then promptly threw it (shotput style) at the spider. No, he had not moved closer, thanks for asking.
I was about to comment on his ineffectiveness when the wind from the wake of his travel out of the room hit me. Yep, you read that right. He was out of the room in the 1/240000th of a second it took me to process what had happened.
Oh well. Man lessons will need to be continued another day. In the meantime, enjoy some pictures of fireworks from the Thanksgiving Point celebration we took last night.
(Which is lame, batman is totally the best - see www.howitshouldhaveended.com for evidence or compare Spider-man 3 to The Dark Knight. No contest. No whining).
Anyway, I digress.
I figured it was time to teach him how to kill spiders, since he has been so exited to watch me shoot the invading mice with our new .177. Why yes, we bought another gun... and yes, I am at two shots, two kills with these nice little hollow-point...
Alas, I digress again.
So the spider in question had a body about the size of a pin-top, and legs that might have measured about 2 millimeters long each. Dinky. Tiny. Infintesimal. I had him grab a napkin.
I demonstrated on a piece of lint how to grab and squeeze the spider to death.
Tim's turn.
At 3 feet away from the windowsill, he positioned the napkin in his hand properly, and then promptly threw it (shotput style) at the spider. No, he had not moved closer, thanks for asking.
I was about to comment on his ineffectiveness when the wind from the wake of his travel out of the room hit me. Yep, you read that right. He was out of the room in the 1/240000th of a second it took me to process what had happened.
Oh well. Man lessons will need to be continued another day. In the meantime, enjoy some pictures of fireworks from the Thanksgiving Point celebration we took last night.
Sunday, June 27, 2010
To The Rescue
For this story to make sense, a couple pieces of information are helpful:
1. The only motivation we have found for Tim is the idea of heroes and villains. He has even adopted a "hero voice" which he unwittingly goes into - a mix of Captain America, Superman, and Jeremy Irons (yes, you read that right, Scar from the Lion King). At the bottom of this post is his hero's creed, posted at his desk.
2. In a family of early risers, Ami believes that it is too warm to be awake during the day in the summer. This causes trauma when we are ready for a 9pm bedtime and she is waking up from a 9 hour (okay - it's really 3-4) nap.
Today I noticed that she had been asleep for a few hours. I stood her up and asked her to stay awake. 10 minutes later I sent Tim to check on her. He informed me she was asleep.
I asked him to wake her up. He grinned and went gleefully. From the other room came the whining screams of "NOOOO Tim, I like being asleep.
He returned and reported that she would not get up. Since I was busy, I said another statement indicative of an inexperienced parent.
"Tim, I need Ami up, please go get her up."
"But Dad, she doesn't -"
"Tim, I want you to do whatever it takes to get her up."
*pause* Timidly he asked, "Anything?"
"Sure, just get her up."
*Monstrous Lego land-arrival-smile, and then in his hero voice he shouted al la to-the-rescue style: "YES! This is a recipe for disaster!"
He directly ran to his pillow, and then beat Ami into the land of the living, cackling all the way, knowing he could not get in any trouble.
Sadly, I couldn't stop him. I was crying with laughter from the hero pronouncement.
Epilogue:
"But Tim, I do NOT like waking up!
Appendix:
True Heroes:
Love Heavenly Father.
- They hearken to what He would want them to do - not listening to anyone or anything that goes against God like Nephi (son of Helaman).
- Do not look at things, listen to things, or do things that would betray their divine heritage like Joseph of Egypt.
- They learn from Heavenly Father in prayer, by reading the scriptures, and by listening to the promptings of the Holy Ghost like Timothy in the New Testament.
- Because of this, God gives them blessings and power like Abraham.
(John 14:15 * Doc. & Cov 59:4 * Doc. & Cov. 109:35) Doc. & Cov. 8:2-3 * Doc. & Cov. 9:7-9 * For The Strength of Youth * Helaman 9-12 * Genesis 39 * 1 & 2 Timothy * Abraham)
2. Love others.
- Most importantly their parents like Moroni.
- They carefully obey their parents’ counsel and direction like Jacob.
- They trust and help their parents and lead their families like Nephi.
- They respect and show courtesy towards all women, girls and children like the Stippling Warriors
- Heros treat everyone kindly like Jesus
- Especially those who may be different are struggle or need a hero to help them like President Thomas S. Monson.
- Even when others treat them unkindly, they respond appropriately like Joseph Smith Jr..
- They treat all of God’s creations with proper respect and care like Noah.
(1 Nephi 3-17 * Exodus 20:12 * 2 Nephi 1:14 * Proclamation to the World on the Family * Mormon 8-9 * Moroni 1-10 * Alma 53-62 * Genesis 7-9)
1. The only motivation we have found for Tim is the idea of heroes and villains. He has even adopted a "hero voice" which he unwittingly goes into - a mix of Captain America, Superman, and Jeremy Irons (yes, you read that right, Scar from the Lion King). At the bottom of this post is his hero's creed, posted at his desk.
2. In a family of early risers, Ami believes that it is too warm to be awake during the day in the summer. This causes trauma when we are ready for a 9pm bedtime and she is waking up from a 9 hour (okay - it's really 3-4) nap.
Today I noticed that she had been asleep for a few hours. I stood her up and asked her to stay awake. 10 minutes later I sent Tim to check on her. He informed me she was asleep.
I asked him to wake her up. He grinned and went gleefully. From the other room came the whining screams of "NOOOO Tim, I like being asleep.
He returned and reported that she would not get up. Since I was busy, I said another statement indicative of an inexperienced parent.
"Tim, I need Ami up, please go get her up."
"But Dad, she doesn't -"
"Tim, I want you to do whatever it takes to get her up."
*pause* Timidly he asked, "Anything?"
"Sure, just get her up."
*Monstrous Lego land-arrival-smile, and then in his hero voice he shouted al la to-the-rescue style: "YES! This is a recipe for disaster!"
He directly ran to his pillow, and then beat Ami into the land of the living, cackling all the way, knowing he could not get in any trouble.
Sadly, I couldn't stop him. I was crying with laughter from the hero pronouncement.
Epilogue:
"But Tim, I do NOT like waking up!
Appendix:
True Heroes:
Love Heavenly Father.
- They hearken to what He would want them to do - not listening to anyone or anything that goes against God like Nephi (son of Helaman).
- Do not look at things, listen to things, or do things that would betray their divine heritage like Joseph of Egypt.
- They learn from Heavenly Father in prayer, by reading the scriptures, and by listening to the promptings of the Holy Ghost like Timothy in the New Testament.
- Because of this, God gives them blessings and power like Abraham.
(John 14:15 * Doc. & Cov 59:4 * Doc. & Cov. 109:35) Doc. & Cov. 8:2-3 * Doc. & Cov. 9:7-9 * For The Strength of Youth * Helaman 9-12 * Genesis 39 * 1 & 2 Timothy * Abraham)
2. Love others.
- Most importantly their parents like Moroni.
- They carefully obey their parents’ counsel and direction like Jacob.
- They trust and help their parents and lead their families like Nephi.
- They respect and show courtesy towards all women, girls and children like the Stippling Warriors
- Heros treat everyone kindly like Jesus
- Especially those who may be different are struggle or need a hero to help them like President Thomas S. Monson.
- Even when others treat them unkindly, they respond appropriately like Joseph Smith Jr..
- They treat all of God’s creations with proper respect and care like Noah.
(1 Nephi 3-17 * Exodus 20:12 * 2 Nephi 1:14 * Proclamation to the World on the Family * Mormon 8-9 * Moroni 1-10 * Alma 53-62 * Genesis 7-9)
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Blisters in new places!
Six states, seven nights, 4 days of 12+ hours behind the wheel in the car.
Stop #1 Winter Quarters, Nebraska
A very enthusiastic Sister Missionary decided we needed to dress up to take the tour. The tennis shoes really complete the outfit.
Ami: "Daddy, I don't want them to eat me."
"They are not real. Don't worry."
"I don't want them to bite me either."
Next stop? California Tacos and More, as recommended by Diners, Drive-ins and Dives. The meat was great, and the guacamole was worth every rave review (recipe on Food network website). Pounding the food quick with your hand on your .45 while watch'n you car from the restaurant window in the hood? Best way to raise a heart rate to burn calories while you eat!
What's the best activity when you get home after a long day of sitting in a car? Swimming, unless you prefer more sitting - on a bed in a hotel room!
Next Stop? The Mall of America. Why? American Girl Store!
Oh, and Legoland. Tim was not very excited as you can see. This is prior to him nearly wetting himself with glee.
After that, it was on to Nickelodeon Universe. Maggie was tall enough to go on all the rides, and Tim could handle most with a chaperon!
This was the straight drop ride! Amazingly enough, Maggie, Tim, and Ami all enjoyed the crazy rides. Maggie's favorite part about the fast roller coaster with loop-de-loops, corkscrews, and other things was, "Watching Dad black out and laughing at him." In my defense, I'm paranoid of roller coasters and still went on the rides with the children. And yes, I actually blacked out for about 5 seconds at the top of the drop-off into the corkscrew. Tim and Ami's favorite was the log ride with its 2 and 3 story splash-mountain-esque drops.
You can see Ami enjoying it below while my fight-or-flight reflex kicks in for the twentieth time that day and I succeed again at keeping my cookies where they belong.
She "loved the coaster". Those genes did not come from Dad.
Now, why did we go on this trip again?
Oh yea. You would think we would have a better picture of the couple, but they all turned out blurry. Lame. Sorry Mrs. Hoffman! I mean, we were trying to get a picture of her hair... yea, that's it.
Next a detour to the Badlands National Park in South Dakota. It rained, proving that those lands were naughty. Wow, that was not even close to funny.
On to respect our heritage and forefathers.
This is about how Mount Rushmore went. It was only salvaged by a six pack of cold Henry Whineheart root beer.
So we took them to see the crazy horse monument and laser light show:
Finally we went to Independence Rock and Martin's Cove:
When we asked Ami what the best part of the trip was, she replied, "Being a pioneer in the car[t]".
In reality, Pioneer children did not sing as they walked, they asked for water and bathroom breaks.
Offensive trip conclusions:
Wyoming: God's barrier to remind the rest of America that unless you are divinely commanded, there is no reason to dwell in Utah.
Nebraska: Moo, but green... perhaps there is a connection between cows and fertilized grass...
Iowa: Irrelevant?
Minnesota: Wishes it were Wisconsin, which incidentally, wishes it was Canada, eh?
South Dakota: Started advertising the Black hills over 340 miles away, and for good reason. They were awesome. Unfortunately, SD should really be viewed from a Harley.
I said "yes".
and Melissa said "no".
Again.
Oh well. Back to work for another year. Thanks for the memories...
Stop #1 Winter Quarters, Nebraska
A very enthusiastic Sister Missionary decided we needed to dress up to take the tour. The tennis shoes really complete the outfit.
Ami: "Daddy, I don't want them to eat me."
"They are not real. Don't worry."
"I don't want them to bite me either."
Next stop? California Tacos and More, as recommended by Diners, Drive-ins and Dives. The meat was great, and the guacamole was worth every rave review (recipe on Food network website). Pounding the food quick with your hand on your .45 while watch'n you car from the restaurant window in the hood? Best way to raise a heart rate to burn calories while you eat!
What's the best activity when you get home after a long day of sitting in a car? Swimming, unless you prefer more sitting - on a bed in a hotel room!
Next Stop? The Mall of America. Why? American Girl Store!
Oh, and Legoland. Tim was not very excited as you can see. This is prior to him nearly wetting himself with glee.
After that, it was on to Nickelodeon Universe. Maggie was tall enough to go on all the rides, and Tim could handle most with a chaperon!
This was the straight drop ride! Amazingly enough, Maggie, Tim, and Ami all enjoyed the crazy rides. Maggie's favorite part about the fast roller coaster with loop-de-loops, corkscrews, and other things was, "Watching Dad black out and laughing at him." In my defense, I'm paranoid of roller coasters and still went on the rides with the children. And yes, I actually blacked out for about 5 seconds at the top of the drop-off into the corkscrew. Tim and Ami's favorite was the log ride with its 2 and 3 story splash-mountain-esque drops.
You can see Ami enjoying it below while my fight-or-flight reflex kicks in for the twentieth time that day and I succeed again at keeping my cookies where they belong.
She "loved the coaster". Those genes did not come from Dad.
Now, why did we go on this trip again?
Oh yea. You would think we would have a better picture of the couple, but they all turned out blurry. Lame. Sorry Mrs. Hoffman! I mean, we were trying to get a picture of her hair... yea, that's it.
Next a detour to the Badlands National Park in South Dakota. It rained, proving that those lands were naughty. Wow, that was not even close to funny.
On to respect our heritage and forefathers.
This is about how Mount Rushmore went. It was only salvaged by a six pack of cold Henry Whineheart root beer.
So we took them to see the crazy horse monument and laser light show:
Finally we went to Independence Rock and Martin's Cove:
When we asked Ami what the best part of the trip was, she replied, "Being a pioneer in the car[t]".
In reality, Pioneer children did not sing as they walked, they asked for water and bathroom breaks.
Offensive trip conclusions:
Wyoming: God's barrier to remind the rest of America that unless you are divinely commanded, there is no reason to dwell in Utah.
Nebraska: Moo, but green... perhaps there is a connection between cows and fertilized grass...
Iowa: Irrelevant?
Minnesota: Wishes it were Wisconsin, which incidentally, wishes it was Canada, eh?
South Dakota: Started advertising the Black hills over 340 miles away, and for good reason. They were awesome. Unfortunately, SD should really be viewed from a Harley.
I said "yes".
and Melissa said "no".
Again.
Oh well. Back to work for another year. Thanks for the memories...
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
No Capes!
Tim learned why Edna was so clear on "No capes!" with her superhero designs.
He put on his relatively new apron from Maggie's birthday party, turned it backwards, and went out to ride his bike.
The inevitable happened. The cape got tangled in the back wheel yanking him backward by the neck with the same force of a Hulk Hogan clothesline (yes, that is a reference to a 1980's wrestler thank you very much).
It did not celestialize him, so we just had to dry his tears and trash the cape.
Yea for helmets. Is it sad that this was his second one?