June 25, 2011

What are some of the funniest moments (things they said or did) you can remember about your children?

Ben, scouting experiences

Ben was a rather short small boy for his age until he decided to grow in his teenage years. However as a 12 or 13 year old scout he wasn’t really very big compared to the other boys. So one time as he stood up to one of the younger boys who was making comments about me his short swing only landed air and the other boys long swing broke Ben’s nose.

Another time he was goofing off around the large open ring campfire pit and stumbled falling right into the glowing coals. It only took me a split second to reach down and pull him out but his jacket carried the holes from the burned areas cause by the hot coals.

Jeff, followed home by angry visitor due to speed of driving on Larsen lane.

Some of these were not too funny at the time especially for the child. Jeff was a soccer coach in his later teen years and one day had forgotten something for practice so in his hurry to come and get it he was traveling fairly fast down Larsen lane (800 West) and one of the neighbors sons decided that since he ignored his signaling to slow down that he would come and have a talk with him. Jeff ran into the house and asked quickly where something was and so I told him and he headed on out to the shed. I couldn’t figure out why he was in such a hurry or why he seemed worried. A few seconds later I found out why though when the fellow knocked on the door asking for my son. I talked to him and he told me about the incident and so I told him that I appreciated the concern and would talk to him about it. It took a few minutes to get him to believe that and he finally left. I don’t know if Jeff drove back to the school on Larsen lane or Main street however.

Hayden, flour all over him.

I got a frantic call from Marie one day asking how to use my camera. It seems that our little toddler had discovered something of interest on the counter and pulled it down spilling the contents of the flour canister all over him.

Tia, ability to make Loren mad

There are a number of memorable experiences of the funny and not so funny nature depending on if you are not Loren or if you are Loren. Tia has always had the ability to get Loren’s scientific mind in a battle of wits with hers. There are several memorable quotes due to this fact that still carry on to this day so it would be wise to pass the  milk when you are at our table in “The Traditional Manner” since Loren would rather not have it passed to him as you would pass a football.

Loren. Speech, crying up the statue of liberty

Loren gave us a lot of concern when he was learning to talk because as we have since come to learn he has a very special mind and a different way of thinking. Due to that fact when he was learning to speak he invented his own vocabulary and used it all the time. We didn’t know that was what was happening until a speech therapist explained it to us as we started the counseling sessions that would teach him the correct use of the language we all spoke in.

Loren’s most memorable experience though was when he was still quite young around 4 or 5. I don’t recall when we went to the National Jamboree exactly but it happened during that trip. We were climbing the stairs up the Statue of Liberty and Loren was petrified. We stood in line to be able to go and the walkway became only big enough for a fat person to walk  in s when he began to cry there was no way that I could carry him back down the stairs. So consequently I swung the video camera over my shoulder and picked him up and carried him to the top. The video was proof that he didn’t stop until we got to the top. It was recording each of the locations of the bolts near the stairs as it swung on my side as I carried him to the top and of course the sound was also recorded as he cried and was telling me all the way up. “I want to go back down!” This was also recorded in his vocabulary which I cannot quote now as I have forgotten most of it. It was mainly made up of “R’s” as I recall.

Brittany, Tia’s first stave

For Brittany the most memorable and an event that started a new hobby for me, occurred at Tia’s first or second year at Girl’s Camp. Marie had gone with Tia to camp and so I went up in the motorhome that David Nemelka had given to us and set up camp outside of Bennion Creek where the girls were camping. I would then take Loren and Brittany with me to camp after we had breakfast and played around the motorhome camp site for a few hours. I would go in and help the leaders teach the girls skills that I knew from scouting such as starting fires and use of  a compass. Well britt and Loren would just play and britt found out that Tia had a “secret sister” who became no secret shortly after that. Tia was so upset with me for bringing her to camp that I spent the next day carfing anf woodburning a new stave for her. She used the stave for several years at camp and I began going to camp every year after that as a priesthood advisor and carved a lot of staves for young women leaders over those years.