SouthernAZ Wolfington Blog

First new post in a long time!

2011-08-02T11:04:00.000-07:00

Wow, I can't believe it's been 3 months since my last post.

Liz thinks Juniper is growing "so fast", but I think she's hardly changed over these three months. I'm just anxious for her to be old enough for us to scrap around together and wrAstle. She is soooooo dang beautiful. Luckily she's got a gorgeous mom, because I was a little worried what my daughter would look like if she came out looking like my ugly mug. She's throwing out a little Zoolander 'blue steel' pose in the picture above. Already working it!

Oliver is finally talking! Hallelujah! "Oliver, take your bowl to the sink" "I DID DAD, I DID"!! He's 95% potty trained which means we are down to just one mini-person in diapers until the grandkids come-a-knocking. But I don't think Grandpa's change diapers anyway, so there!! Yeah! Plus Liz is using cloth diapers and they stink something fierce.

Elijah is about to start all day kindergarten here in Sierra Vista. Not sure how that's going to go. Liz and I are both excited and nervous about it. Eli is the man, and he likes to make funny faces at the camera.

Noah (Mr. 14-yr-old-about-to-start-at-Mesa-High) came to Sierra Vista for summer break and we had a great time. One day we went to Bisbee and did the Queen Mine tour. It's an old abandoned copper mine, and you get all geared up and ride the original mine carts down 1800 feet into the mine. It was fun!

JHW

2011-05-04T00:29:00.000-07:00

Juniper Hazel Wolfington born April 22nd 2011.
10lbs 2oz's of utter perfection. She is sleeping a little better now-a-days and she's healthy.
All I can say about Liz is she is super-human. She rocked the delivery. She owned it. She said "oh, hi delivery... you want a piece of me?!" and then round-house kicked it's butt out cold. I guess the delivery did actually land a few punches that Liz is still recovering from, but there is no doubt who the battle.

Mommy has had fun playing dress-up with our new toy. Juniper is so beautiful.

Sleepy time. So chubby! We love her!!

T-ball excitement

2011-03-20T00:23:00.000-07:00

I've been anxiously awaiting Elijah's upcoming T-ball season to begin. Ever since Liz mentioned it to me several weeks ago, I've been looking forward to helping him learn the game and watch him have fun with it. He's using Noah's hand-me-down glove, and we got him hooked up with other necessary practice gear. We were set. We met the coach, had a practice, it was great. He is/was having fun with it until mean ol' Dad (me) demanded too much, too soon; and a nice little father-son, Saturday afternoon practice session in the park turned into hurt feelings and backward progress.

My hat goes off to all the patient Dads out there. I do try, but dangit! Is it an aquired skill? Is it learned from development? Either way, I am definitely lacking.

Oy! Very frustrating.

Birthday - Belly - BIEBER!!

2011-03-11T22:52:00.000-08:00

Noah turned FOURTEEN. Yeah, wow. We had a classic Mesa birthday party... PizzaMart for palate (roof of your mouth) scalding pizza and Golfland for race cars, laser tag and video games. We invited his whole crew out for the festivities and luckily everything went off w/o a hitch. Yeah us!!

Liz crafted this amazing cake from an idea she found online (Noah is into dirtbikes). Noah isn't a big fan of chocolate, so the brown frosting is root-beer flavor! Liz is the best!

Liz is large with child. She's a beautiful pregnant mommy. April 8th!!

And finally... THE BIEBER!! Elijah has been called "little lady"/ our "daughter" one too many times. Liz went to give him a trim... and let's just say it didn't go as planned. An hour later and a quick trip to our local Great-clips... they return with "the Bieber" cut. Oy vey! It's staying for now, but don't get too used to it. The trusty clippers are coming out soon.

Reno R&R

2011-01-26T18:32:00.000-08:00

What a good friend I am. Making a trip all the way up to northern Nevada for one of my best amigo's 32nd birthday. I didn't even really want to go either... all the rest, being catered to, snow skiing Tahoe, Russell (and Amber's) amazing cooking, hanging out with good friends, etc, etc. It was torture! --> (sarcasm) :-)

Elizabeth and Amber. Models?

The girls brought us delicious lunch half way through the day. I was lucky to not get injured. Admittedly I like to ski on the brink between out-of-control and safe. But skiing Mt. Rose, the scales were definitely tipped opposite safe.

December

2011-01-02T19:29:00.000-08:00

Sorry, I don't feel like writing much. Just some pictures.

Elijah and Oliver at a recent family photo shoot. There's a really good one with Noah in it that the photographer took that I will post sometime maybe.

Artsie fartsie Christmas morning picture with my phone. I guess these are all with my phone. Our camera is out of commission right now.

Here's what our baby girl looks like at 7 months. Baby is kicking and growing all the while pushing all Liz's organs out of the way.

Here's a pretty cool vid. of Elijah overcoming his fear of heights on a friend's awesome jungle gym thing. His legs flipping over the top edge is the best part.

siete anos!!

2010-11-22T21:17:00.000-08:00

Liz and I took a quick trip to Tucson over the weekend for to celebrate our anniversary. We stayed in a sweet hotel, ate some great food, and did a little Christmas shopping. It was fun to get away!
Check out my photoshop skills! Borders anyone? Check!

Liz actually planned the whole trip and found a pretty great hike in Saguaro National Park, just outside of town. It was really windy and quite cold, I must admit. Check out the cactus growing straight out of a tiny crack in the rock.

Classic profile belly shot of the expecting mommy at 20 weeks (or something like that).

Grandma Cindy not only came to watch our kids for our getaway, she brought Sterling and Jenn's kids with her! (Sorry, too lazy to take out the red-eye).

October shtuff

2010-11-10T22:55:00.000-08:00

October has come and gone.
Elizabeth is feeling less and less nauseous, but still gets pretty puke-ie (minus the puke-ing) now and again. Maybe more often than I think because she's not big on complaining. She went to PHX for the Sonogram and if there's anyone left who doesn't know--> it's a GIRL. AWESOME! We are pretty darn excited. I was at work, and Liz called me and put me on speaker-phone before she found out... so we could find out together. It was pretty cool. My first question to the tech; "HOW SURE ARE YOU?" We have pretty much decided to opt for midwife/homebirth at this point. We feel great about our/her midwife because of her knowledge, experience, vibe, honesty, etc, etc. Should be pretty interesting.
I have been... 'settling' in, I guess you could say. Everyday is something new. Mostly good. It's a roller coaster! Procedure by procedure, patient by patient, day by day. I hope/foresee with experience... a more even keel. Less surprise and maybe a want for surprise. But as for right now; surprise has me contemplating a Xanax prescription (half joking).
Here are some pictures.

So I put Elijah in this tree and he is not so brave when it comes to heights. He was a good sport for the pictures though.

The Tacketts came to visit, and we had a good visit, hike, hang out... and trunk or treat.

Elijah and Oliver at some pumpkin patch nearby. These boys are really starting to play together more and more. Oli follows Eli around most of the day.

September

2010-10-10T21:23:00.000-07:00

I have to admit; I had a good "Daddy" day today. Elijah finally picked up riding his bike, sans training wheels. He fell a couple of time and got some scrapes. It's good for a boy to have some scrapes! I know, I know... he's not wearing a helmet. When we go around the neighborhood I'll have him wear one.

The carnival came to town and it was a great time. I friggin' love the carnival. Sketchy rides and all. The food was the highlight for Liz and I. It is so easy to drop some serious coin at the carnival though if your not careful.

The Ferris wheel was called the "Big Eli".

We went to New Mexico to visit my Dad and his wife Cathy. We also went to the Albuquerque Balloon Festival. It was amazing! Too much waking up early though! The balloons could only fly for about a 4 hour window starting at sunrise.

Noah in SV

2010-09-16T19:12:00.000-07:00

He's almost up to my shoulders. A few more years and we'll be eye level, I'll bet. Serene backdrop right?

Noah spotted this cool lizard on this rad old barn that we took some family pictures in front of. Christmas cards are comin' baby! Sorry, no sneak peeks... Liz's orders.

2010-09-01T23:17:00.000-07:00

So... Sierra Vista. We like. Awesome weather, job, small town, and not Vegas. This is about 20ish minutes from our house in the Huachuca mountains (Wa-choo-ka).
Tripod = rock.

It has been monsoon-ing ever since we arrived. Much more rain than Mesa. Awesome lightning shows and cracking thunder.
Standing in the partially flooded street.

Oliver hard at work. Such a rough life. O.S.W. turned 2! We didn't do much.

It's time to FEEEEESH!

2010-08-06T23:40:00.000-07:00

So I have to brag a little about a pretty sweet trip I just got back from. One of my best amigos invited me on a last minute, chartered tuna fishing trip down in Mexican waters. We drove to and departed from San Diego and then motored down about 150 miles south for the two and a half day excursion. I guess the fleet, out of Point Loma, have been having an extremely slow season, so I was very lucky / skilled (ha ha) to get 2 fish (aka - 'feeeesh').
HUGE thanks to the Kennedy brothers; Russell (aka - Rew-sal) and Derek (aka - heavy D) for the invite.

Also, thanks to Liz for calling me a pansy, when I was trying to talk myself out of going. "Go; you'll have so much fun! Be spontaneous... GOSH!" I think were her exact words. What kind of wife says stuff like that anyways? I've grown into a fairly boring, practical, geezer over the last couple of years I guess.

I got pretty sick after the first night. Oy! I didn't hack though. Some dudes on the boat had some prescription strength Dramamine derivatives and it did the trick for the most part.

This is Rew-sal (and me) w/ our Albacore. Not record breakers by any means, but decent I think.

This is the yellow-fin... it was so much fun to fight. It was cool because I caught this just in the 'nick of time' you could say. This was the last stop were we baited our hooks and gave it one last go, before we headed back to San Diego. "First in the water gets the fish!"

what's new

2010-07-20T11:06:00.000-07:00

... nothing is new. The Las Vegas-Mesa-Sierra Vista Wolfingtons are still stuck in a Groundhog Day-ish transition period. Not cool.
Lizabeth, Elijah, AND Oliver are just now getting better after a solid week and half of being bedridden-ly sick. I felt like Will Smith in I Am Legend, were I had some weird immunity to whatever bug they had.

The boys playing at BurgerKing.

Elijah and Cohen on the carousel at SS springs mall.
Liz pretending to eat her semi-famous Krabby patty desert treats.

Rocky Point 2010

2010-06-23T00:08:00.000-07:00

Liz's parents got the family some awesome condo's down in Rocky Point a few weeks ago and we had a friggin' blast. The kids (in there ever growing numbers) were a bit needy at times, but it was so nice to relax on the beach. We love Rocky Point.
Our sister-in-law/photographer Harmony took this 'funny face' group shot with her nice DSLR (and the one with Oliver, by himself).
Shmee-lie Bee-lie and smally-Olly. If you know Oliver, you can actually hear him saying "EEEEEE" (for "cheeeeese") as we take this picture. Food in his mouth and all. Unfortunately for Elijah, I passed down my Chinese smiling eyes. I would say Elijah had the most fun out of anyone. The kid was in the water 80% of the time, no joke.

We eat at this fish place in town, the few times we've gone to Rocky Point. I don't remember what it is called, and that is unimportant anyway. We order this fish and just peel the meat right off and make fish tacos. It's real good. This is the place the kids presented the most struggle. Oy vey. I can still remember the headache.

Mi amore.

Graduation / graduation trip

2010-05-16T13:49:00.000-07:00

Crazy. Unbelievable.
I would say, in the same breath as "time has flown by",... it has been a friggin' long 4 yrs of dental school! Sheeeeesh! All the hurdles. All the anxiety over those big tests. All the time spent with good friends. And now it all changes. Everything switches. Friends fan out across the country, and Las Vegas becomes 'a place we used to live'. Grades morph into paychecks... and I so VERY rarely say this but... HOLLA!! It's a good thing too because the baby chimpanzee that was on my back when I started school has grown into a plane swatting, chest pounding, damsel stealing King Kong of a monkey (i.e. debt). Elizabeth and I are excited for the future.
Martha E. and I decided to take a trip to Manhattan for a few days and my Mom so kindly agreed to watch the boys during our get away. Thanks again to all the family who made the drive/flight up to Vegas for the graduation. I AM special! Aw, shucks.

Apparently "Lavender" is the 'dental' color for our graduation. Weird.
These dudes have been my family for 4 years. *sniff sniff

Thanks to my Aunt Marcie, and a website called Tripadvisor, our itinerary was strategically executed. We got everything done we wanted to, and then some, w/o feeling rushed.

This picture is on the Brooklyn bridge. We took the subway to the east side, and walked back to Manhattan across the bridge at sunset with the cityscape as our backdrop. Magic!
"Top of the Rock" - Rockefeller Center overlooking downtown.

I have a truck load more pictures, but they are tied up on a memory card that won't allow me to extract the data. Bummer. Once I figure that out I will post a couple more pictures of NYC.

Mesquite Nevada

2010-03-15T22:14:00.000-07:00

Some very nice friends of ours invited a group of us to their family's ranch house in Mesquite, which is about an hour away from Vegas. It was a beautiful property with a significant head of cattle, snow capped mountain ranges in every direction pretty much, and on this day; powerful storm clouds. We rode some quads, ate some mean BBQ, shot some shotguns, and relaxed. It was a lot of fun. For those of you who are familiar... it kind of looks like Thatcher/Safford - don't ya think?

So I look a little Asian when I smile big. Don't judge me.

Elizabeth was my main patient for boards a few weeks ago. I did two fillings on her. She was a great patient. Yes, she is trying to make a funny face. A big thanks to our friends for watching our rug rats for the day. 5 more weeks is all that's left. Craaaaaazy.

Liz found a cheap, yet legit, play-doh set and Elijah has been geeked out on it ever since.

recharging batteries

2010-02-28T21:07:00.000-08:00

Two hours of sleep the night before and one - LONG -- day.

More than once, I told myself; "I'm going home and am going to just collapse". So I drove home and instead of the collapse... I found my batteries beginning to recharge.
- my smiling wife
- hot food
- two rambunctious boys wearing matching PJ's, bouncing off the walls (figuratively & literally).
- a nice hot shower
- a comfy couch

No collapse.

update...

2010-01-17T23:00:00.000-08:00

After spending a fun week in Mesa, pre-Christmas... we drove back to Vegas Christmas night and spent the last week of school break w/ Noah at home. The boys slept most of the drive, even though Noah was awfully cramped between the two car seats in the backseat of the Maxima. We have definitely outgrown the 4-door sedan. Noah ordered a cool RC car w/ his Christmas loot, so we played w/ that some, and played some racquetball down at our YMCA. It was fun to have family dinners w/o an empty seat at the table. Elijah loves having his big brother home.

Shmoliver showing off his bun buns, pretending like he didn't know we were snapping a pic.

This is the "candy bar game". Liz did this growing up. You roll two dice and try to get doubles, and when you do... you have to race to put on the random accessories, because after you put them on, you start stuffing your face w/ candy. Meanwhile, the other players keep rolling the dice. It's a hoot.

Liz isn't used to staying up so late.

HAPPY NEW YEARS!!

late Thanksgiving pictures

2009-12-10T21:04:00.000-08:00

Eli D. aka Huckleberry Finn, scrounging in the hay for candy.

We had great weather for Turkey day as we ate dinner out in Kevin's botanical garden of a 'backyard'.

Showing off Oliver's beautiful blue eyes.

It was good to see my Dad and his wife Cathy while they were here for Thanksgiving.

Ollie's early Christmas present. This bike seat is really cool and he just laughs and laughs the whole time he is in it.

busy busy busy

2009-11-23T09:33:00.001-08:00

So I showed up to the trunk or treat and it was... unseasonably bright outside. Stupid daylight savings time in Nevada. Liz crafted the costume. Duct tape boots. I told people I lost a bet so I wouldn't look like I actually volunteered to wear this. Oh well. Pretty much everyone over 40 had no idea who Nachoooooooooooooooooooo was. Take it easy!
Liz and I went on an exclusive Hoover Dam tour w/ a group from my school. The father of a guy in my class is a tour guide and it was so cool to see the 'innards' of the dam.

Grandma Lindsay flew up to visit Sin City. It was brief, but fun. Turns out Oli is a mega-phone mouth. I wish you all could hear the audio from this picture, and you would know what I mean. It makes church not so fun.

My wife the philanthropist. Elizabeth worked her behind off getting donations from local businesses toward the Down Syndrome Organization of Southern Nevada's annual festival of trees and lights. She put together a 'party tree' w/ a gumball machine (seen to my right), bounce house rental, cotton candy machine rental, and a bunch of other stuff I am forgetting... which was auctioned off w/ the $$ going to the organization. Our friends Adam and Julia Olsen got Liz involved. It was a fun night w/ some fancy food.

Oliver is walking. That dang 'ol head creates a top-heavy situation though. He's still working out the physics.

... and a parting shot of Elijah Dale in deep thought. This kid is awesome.

2009-11-10T22:32:00.000-08:00

Maybe I've been studying too much, but this was really funny. We eat quite a bit of popcorn 'round these parts, and this is the traditional 'delivery' system by which the uncooked popcorn gets into the micro. He usually nails it on the first throw. This kid brightens my day. I was talking to him on the phone the other night from school, right before he went to bed and he said "daddy, I want you to come to my house". Sad/adorable huh?

The ending of the video was total improvisation. What a goofball.

2009-10-16T08:36:00.000-07:00

My nephew's 50cc motorcyle... he is 4. I've got to get me one of these.

Oliveeee in the bath. A little bit TOO cute huh?

Good Weather Days

2009-10-01T09:32:00.001-07:00

We had a kind neighbor gift us this 3rd-wheel-kid's-bike-trailer thing the other day as he saw us struggling w/ Eli's little training wheel bike. Just one more to our fleet. All we need is a tandem and a 'tall bike' (google it... they are pretty cool) and our collection will be complete. I shudder to think what this life would be like sans beach cruisers.

Elijah loves his new bike. It's designed w/ a little tensioner on the chainless sprocket, to simulate actual pedaling. He doesn't know the difference.

And yes, I doctored the photo. I've been wanting to 'blur' a background for a while to make the people 'pop', and in this case I killed two birds w/ one stone because our neighbor's front yard is literally a dump. He collects junk from who-knows-where and then sells it for metal recycling $. So not exactly a scenic view out our front door.

Future Sun Devil

2009-09-16T12:28:00.000-07:00

Elijah came up w/ this all on this own to show people how old he is. I'm so proud of him. It just goes to show how ingrained ASU is in our family. GO DEVILS!!!

"Hidden SoCal"... on the cheap

2009-08-28T13:17:00.000-07:00

Elizabeth and I decided, kind of on a whim, to take a quick vacation trip to Southern California for something fun to do over this break between semesters. I did a little investigation and found some hidden gems to visit... along side some serious beach lounging of course. The first night we went and visited Liz's Grandpa Kellis who is in a nursing home, and then we stayed w/ some of Liz's extended family; Stacy and Bob Gleason. They were such awesome people. We wish we would have gotten a picture w/ them.

Mission San Diego de Alcala, founded in 1769. The first mission to be established in California. Admission was mearly a donation. We did a little tour around the original chapel (where they still hold mass), the first Padre's living quarters, and a few other well preserved areas.

Elijah striking a pose.

Horse races at Del Mar Racetrack. This was a lot of fun. We watched the first race by the rail, and the second up in the stands. The weather was great, and we got in w/ reserved seats for FREE. It happened to be some kind of free Wednesday thing. It seemed like Liz and I were more excited than Elijah was to watch the races. Sitting in the stands, it got really loud when the horses came around to the finish line w/ all the money on the line. The boys held it together though.

First Newport beach, and then to La Jolla. We liked Newport better... much less crowded, and less seaweed and stuff in the water. I taught Eli how to duck under big waves. He recently realized how fun it is to dunk your head under the water, and has been really excited to go swimming everyday since.
Instant classic. "Daddy, look at me!" Elijah loved the beach.

WARNING... Graphic content!

2009-08-09T17:33:00.001-07:00

BAM!! Canker Sore! Well... 'aphthous ulcer' to be more precise. But there is good news everyone! After much research on the matter, I have discovered DEBACTEROL! This prescription only medicament is a chemical cauterizing agent and the pain relief is permanent and immediate! I usually get these little boogers after biting my lip, or when I had braces... I would get them all the time. They can also be caused by stress, particular foods, or even some ingredients in tooth paste (SLS).

This is what it looks like. I plan on having this on hand for my patients, becuase it works soooo well.

Republico Dominicana!!

2009-07-29T13:10:00.000-07:00

The trip was a success! It was friggin' HOT!! My scrub top was drenched everyday. We were able to see a ton of patients. Muchas gracias again to those who were able to donate to my trip (I'll be sending some personal packages in the mail in the next few days).

This is a car dealership in the capital city Santo Domingo. I'm sure it's just a shell of a truck... but it's still pretty cool to see.

This is the crew from UNLV.

Motorcycle taxis were everywhere. I drove one in the mountains a few days after I snapped this picture. This picture was taken just outside the hotel we stayed at in Santo Domingo.

Some cute kiddos in front of their casa. It was definitely 3rd world.
Santo Domingo Temple. It was muy, muy bonita.

Resemble anyone famous? This dude was awesome. He had already been told he looked like Pres. Obama. He was one of the few who showed real gratitude after we worked on him.

Barack in his late 20's. This guy was also very thankful for the dental work done for him.

The last sunset. This was taken in Punta Cana. We stayed here the last 3 nights of the trip. Most of us got sunburns and some kind of viral flu (possible H1N1) which I am still recovering from.

NTW in LV 2009!!

2009-07-05T21:59:00.000-07:00

Elizabeth took the boys to a kid's museum and it was really cool. I ended up going down on my lunch break 'cuz it was right around the corner practically.

Gigantic "operation" game anyone?

We went up to Mt. Charleston on Friday (no school... yeah!!) w/ the Ferrin's and the Bauerle's. I cooked up some fingerlicking BBQ chicken.

Liz's 28th B-day was on the 2nd of July. I snapped this picture as Noah and I sang the birthday song to her. The candle is in a half-eaten, retail purchased cupcake. The Cupcakery... anyone heard of it? Bah-humbug I say. Liz has always wanted to try it. Happy birthday baby!

A cool shot of our long-haired Eli-Beeli. I say buz it... Liz wants to keep it around for a while. It's really too hot in Vegas for long hair, but he just looks too stinkin' cute/ awesome.

Random photos

2009-06-11T21:47:00.000-07:00

Date night. Wait a minute... shouldn't that be me she's kissing?

Braces off baby!! Sorry Cindy, the 'terrorist beard' is back temporarily. It's getting a little gnarly though... it'll be off in a few days.

Slightly blurred picture of Oli balls wrAstling Eli Deezel. It's cute to have them playing around together.

Eli turns 3 and Memorial Day Fishing

2009-05-30T10:11:00.000-07:00

Liz is the Ace of Cakes 'round these parts. Even though you can only see 2 candles, we celebrated Elijah Dale's 3rd birthday two weekends ago. Liz put together a great party w/ a slip-n-slide, kiddy pool, and one of those spray-spinner-hose attachment toys. It was pretty hot and the small corner of shade was definitely in demand.

Eli blowing out his candles.

On our usual route to AZ over the Hoover dam we ran into some dam traffic, so Oliver got to sit on my lap for a while (i.e. we weren't moving). I hate dam traffic. Ha ha. That never gets old. They are doing a lot of dam construction too. Yep, still funny.

Noah driving Pappa Markham's (Liz's mom's father) little 12', 6hp fishing boat that we used to do some serious Trout fishing. You've got to love northern Arizona's trout lakes. Heaven.

Taking the family out for a little mid-afternoon boat ride. It was slightly overcast. It was so relaxing and fun for all. Oliver is sleeping in his car-seat at my feet (out of camera view).

14 hrs of driving, mucho dineros spent on snacks, bait, lures, fishing licences, etc, 5 solid hours on the water = ONE TROUT. Definitely a hit to my ego. Them fish just wernt bittin' I reckon. We threw everything at 'em, but we had a blast out on the water. Brandon Tackett (Liz's sister Catherine's husband) went out w/ Noah and I for some early morning Memorial Day fishing that won't soon be forgotten.

Cinco de Mayo!!!

2009-05-19T08:55:00.000-07:00

Eli and Oli, Oli and Eli.

Who's got a couple extra bucks?!!

2009-05-07T12:19:00.000-07:00

I and 9 other dental students are heading to the Dominican Republic in July for a one week long dental service mission and we are paying our own way for the trip, to the tune of 15 hundred dollars. So I know this probably isn't the best time to be soliciting donations, but if anyone has the means and the desire to do so... a tax deductible donation would be mucho appreciato (that's Spanish (j/k)). No donation is too large or too small. Thanks for the consideration. More information if interested!

Spring time!!

2009-04-11T17:06:00.001-07:00

I'm sure we have some pictures on the camera, but these are just a couple I had on my phone. Actually some Liz sent me, blah blah blah... no body cares about that.

We are having some pretty great weather. Too bad I've been stuck inside for the last... who know's how long. Big final exam on Monday. If anyone needs something to pray for, throw me in there. :-)

As you can see, this is Elijah's favorite funny face right now. He's ridin' his bike all over town. The training wheels will be coming off before he's 4 for sure.

... worth a thousand words.

2009-04-06T09:20:00.000-07:00

W

Ronny

You-know-who

SUCCESS

2009-03-16T23:31:00.001-07:00

So I jumped in my car the other day in a hurry to get a movie rental back on time, put my key in the ignition, turned it, and felt a snap. My heart sank becuase I knew what it was. I slowly removed it and much to my dismay... saw only half of the key. OH CRAP!
Fast forward a few days of hassling Liz to use her car, hours of jamming things in the ignition while holding a flashlight... straining my eyes to peer into the depths of the switch to fish out the stub. FINALLY!! No Locksmith! Yee-haw.

Now I just have to put the column back together.

Shoot.

Eli D. in the house!

uPDaTe

2009-03-10T08:22:00.001-07:00

I know it has been a while since I've updated... but I've kind of lost the blogging bug I think.

Ahh, shucks... we are all 'growed' up Sis!

The Wolfington Boys. We love our Wolfington Boys.

For Noah's 12th birthday (I know right... 12!) we did a repeat of last year w/ his good buddy David. They had a blast. They are sitting in the very front of the roller coaster. They rode this ride probably 12 times. No lines!

2009-02-24T12:11:00.000-08:00

It may appear my brother is winning this wrAstling match, but it is but a momentary setback I assure you.

Frustrations w/ Barack

2009-02-10T08:47:00.000-08:00

Stimulus Mr. Obama? Ha. More like spending!

In a truly partisan move by our President (who has spoken mostly of bi-partisanship...(laugh)) Barack Obama has pulled out the 'catastrophe' card in his first address to the nation to sell his 809 BILLION (yeah, that's almost a TRILLION) dollar spending bill. Some might say this tactic is reminiscent of what the media accused George W.'s administration of doing, by creating "fear" in order to push political agendas. No doubt we are in a great recession, but catastrophe? There is an ebb and flow in all things, and the economy is certainly not immune. We've enjoyed a ripe decade or so, and now we are in a slowdown... not a surprise.

Instead of developing corporate tax cuts proposed my many lawmakers, which would lower the cost of doing business in the US, which would limit jobs sent overseas thus creating them here... the left wing spending bill is 90% top heavy with social policy and only 10% economic policy. Frustrating!! And another thing I found to be an Obamanation he said during his speach was "nobody wants a hand-out". Are you serious? No one wants a handout? EVERYBODY wants a handout! Show me someone who doesn't want something for nothing, and I'll show you a real life poke-a-dotted unicorn for pete's sake.

Valley of Fire State Park

2009-01-22T13:14:00.000-08:00

So we spent MLK day celebrating the great weather outdoors. About 45 min. outside L.V. there is a SWEET geologic formation called Valley of Fire. It's these really orangie-redish rocks, which stand out from the landscape. We went with some friends and we all had a great time relaxing.

Actual petroglyphs from earlier native inhabitants.

Eli D.

Liz had Elijah go pee-pee in the grass over the Christmas break and ever since then he has wanted to do his #1 business in the great outdoors. He likes to go by himself. "I DO IT!!"

Nothin' new going on.

2009-01-16T12:17:00.000-08:00

It's been a while since the Christmas post, but there's not a lot of news to report on. Oliver did roll over for me last night when Liz was out bowling w/ some girlfriends. But that's really only significant to the parents I think. Elijah was doing really good w/ the potty training bit until yesterday when he had two accidents (one awake and one asleep), but again, something only significant to the parents.

Elijah said yesterday, very matter-of-factly... "mommy, come wif me or I'll punch you". He says some funny stuff.

See... I told you; not a whole lot going on.

The Christmas Post

2009-01-05T11:34:00.001-08:00

So we had a great 3 week break from school. We spent most of it in AZ. Liz's Grandparents were great hosts at their house/cabin in Showlow. It dumped 14 inches of snow on us the first night we were there. We all had a blast sledding the next morning right by the cabin. It was the highlight of the break for sure.

Me and Elijah sledding. He loved it! If I wasn't so bad at actually taking the pictures, there would have been some good ones of Elizabeth as well.

Noah put some pine needles in his head to give our snowman a mohawk. This is the night we got there, before it dumped the powder on us.

I captured this video on my phone. This is one of Noah's more successful runs. We made a cool little jump with a transition and everything.

2008-12-18T12:01:00.000-08:00

'I'm dreeeeeaaaaming of a whiiiiiiiiite Christmaaaaaass; just like the ones I uuused to knoooow.' Yep, the white stuff fell here all day yesterday. It was cool. I was thinking though... since Las Vegas (more accurately 'the strip') is probably the closest in evil to hell, you may want to watch out for all those promises you've made ... 'when hell freezes over'!

Ely and Olie, Olie and Ely... la la la la-la.

Elijah Dale checking out his big boy Diego undies. He's doing really well with the potty training. "I dropped a stinky!!!"

SIN City

2008-12-11T17:19:00.000-08:00

So this is the marque of a bar right next to the Dental School. Can you believe it? Sheesh! You can just see the small UNLV marque underneath it.

BTW... Elijah 'performed' yesterday! He's getting to be such a big boy; running around in his little undies and talking up a storm.

NUMBER 2

2008-12-05T15:20:00.000-08:00

So Elijah is doing pretty well w/ the potty training except el numero dos (aka poo poo). We think he is scarred of doing the deed in the toilet and things are starting to get a little 'backed up'. Advise? I'm thinking of getting him some X-lax or something so he doesn't blow a gasket. We've tried setting the portable DVD player on the bowl and turning him around to watch it so he can just relax and let things happen naturally, but it just aint working out so well. Poor kid.

THATCHgiving '08

2008-12-02T12:14:00.000-08:00

We drove over 1000, yes... ONE THOUSAND miles over this Thanksgiving weekend driving from Vegas to Mesa, then to Thatcher.... and back. No accidents, or breakdowns, or speeding tickets. SUCCESS! We all had a great time. Very laid back. Saw a ton of family in Thatcher and Mesa. Thanksgiving is officially my favorite holiday.

This is out back of my Mom's place. This is actually the sidewall of a copper mine dump truck tire. Grandpa Dave is a whiz at engineering and building.

Yep... Liz milking a cow. This is my cousin Matt and his cow Daisy. Liz was very much excited about this activity. I had to "talk" our city slicker son Noah into doing it, but I think he's better off w/ a little quality life experience.

Eli D. on my Grandpa Udall's new John Deere.

NTW riding Matt's horse.

I wish we had more pictures of the zip line. It was the hit of the weekend. Noah must have gone down it a hundred times. I think I might have been the biggest person to ride it. Note the cable sagging and straining under my fat butt. Yes, that's Elijah on my lap. He loved it, but didn't want to ride it again.

Veteran's Day parade and Halloween

2008-11-14T12:26:00.000-08:00

We had a pretty great Veteran's Day parade outing. It was pretty emotional because we happened to park and stand right next to the grandstand where our mayor gave commendations to injured soldiers from Iraq. Wow... still emotional. There were several soldiers with prosthetic limbs, arm slings, eye patches, etc. They give so much.

Pac-man!!! He had no idea what it was. It was pretty funny. He couldn't really walk well or use his arms right becuase of the design. I think it looks pretty cool though... which is all that matters! Cardboard and spray paint. Easy peesy lemon sqeezy.

VP Sarah Palin?! Liz loves Halloween. I however... am kind of a scrooge, so no, I was not her Iditarod/snowmobile racing husband. Oliver was a skeleton (thanks to the Stoddards).

... back to pics of the kiddos

2008-11-10T19:34:00.000-08:00

A recent photo of OSW. He's starting to smile a lot, and he's getting nice and plump.

Elijah being a boy.
I actually recall vividly (I know... it's a rarity) sitting in my original Grandparent's house, in Thatcher, in the back of their kitchen table, on the long wood bench... doing this exact same thing and having my Mom and my Grandma Udall tell me I was crazy for doing this until I made myself sick (not literally). And I wouldn't just do it halfway, I would really push the speed. Anyway, just a weird sidenote. Sorry.

Karl v. Tommy... YOU DECIDE

2008-10-30T16:35:00.000-07:00

Although I have never shared my political views thus far here in blog-o-land... I thought I would stray from my usual pictures of the kids for a quick thought on this redistribution of wealth horse hockey that is being spouted from Barack Hussein Obama.

From Wikipedia - "Socialists (i.e. socialism) mainly share the belief that capitalism unfairly concentrates power and wealth among a small segment of society that controls capital and creates an unequal society. All socialists advocate the creation of an egalitarian society, in which wealth and power are distributed more evenly."

And now for a little political commentary from one of our FOUNDING FATHERS...“To take from one, because it is thought his own industry and that of his father’s has acquired too much, in order to spare to others, who, or whose fathers, have not exercised equal industry and skill, is to violate arbitrarily the first principle of association, the guarantee to everyone the free exercise of his industry and the fruits acquired by it.” — Thomas Jefferson

Furthermore... “The government of the United States is a definite (meaning having definite borders and limitations) government, confined to specified objects and is not meant to meddle in affairs of the state.” — James Madison

Like I tell my sister... if you like the philosophies of Barack Obama so much... GO LIVE IN SWEDEN or CANADA, becuase our nation was built on the ideals of capitalism!!!

p.s. I love my sister and I don't want her to move anywhere!

... and finally a quick joke to further explain the unfairness of Obama's economic proposals;
--> --> Today on my way to lunch I passed a homeless guy with a sign that read "Vote Obama, I need the money." I laughed.

Once in the restaurant my server had on a "Obama 08" tie. Again I laughed as he had given away his political preference -- just imagine the coincidence.

When the bill came I decided not to tip the server and explained to him that I was exploring the Obama redistribution of wealth concept. He stood there in disbelief while I told him that I was going to redistribute his tip to someone who I deemed more in need--the homeless guy outside. The server angrily stormed from my sight.

I went outside, gave the homeless guy $10 and told him to thank the server inside as I've decided he could use the money more. The homeless guy was grateful.

At the end of my rather unscientific redistribution experiment I realized the homeless guy was grateful for the money he did not earn, but the waiter was pretty angry that I gave away the money he did earn even though the actual recipient deserved money more.

I guess redistribution of wealth is an easier thing to swallow in concept than in practical application.

UPDATE:
1) These views are mine alone and are not to be assumed the political opinions of my fantastic wife (because they are not).
2) Please don’t think of me as a money-hoarding, heartless Scrooge McDuck (go Ducktails/the early 90’s!). I feel the welfare system has its place in modern American society, but its current state of wastefulness and gross mismanagement is sickening to me. Our welfare system is in need of a major overhaul/ privatization to bring some sense of efficiency. Yes, privatization. Competition = efficiency. Econ. 101!
3) Don’t hate me ‘cuz I’m right (no pun intended, but it works!).

poor little guy

2008-10-20T07:49:00.000-07:00

So some of you may already know about Elijah's little accident, but for those of you who don't... Elijah got some teeth knocked out the other day at the mall.

As usual he was wondering around and running away from us at each available moment... and the kid is fast. He had run down the aisle at Dillards and I called for him to come back. Well he started back toward us in a run and I turned to talk to Liz. A moment later, I heard a thud and cries. We didn't see it, but we imagine he started running toward us while looking in an entirely different direction and veered off enough to T-bone into this display table which was just at the right height of his lower teeth. He started whaling instantly and I knew it had to be bad so we ran over there to see a bloody mouth. I cleared the blood and I could only find one of the two teeth that were out of the socket. I couldn't find it anywhere, so we left quickly and went to my school where a pedodontist was able to evaluate him. Unfortunately there isn't anything to do when primary (baby) teeth are traumatically removed from their normal position like this, so our poor little guy will be without 2 lower incisors for 4 years until the permanents come in! I still feel sick about it. This happened around 3pm and he was running around by 7pm like nothing ever happened. The accident reminded Liz and I of how special this little guy is to us. Not that we needed to be reminded, but we give him extra hugs, kisses and attention now.

The next day he says to me... "Daddy, I bonked my teeff". Poor kid!

Sorry, I forgot that I can't rotate video like I can pictures... so just turn your head a little bit. Elijah loves to jump off stuff. You can see his new jack-o-lantern smile right at the end.

He didn't cut his lip, but his gum tissue is torn a little bit where the teeth broke out the front part of the bone.

WE LOVE OUR BOYS SO MUCH

2008-10-15T12:41:00.000-07:00

Noah finally got to hold his newest baby brother! He's such a good big bro.

"I wanna hold baby Ol-ffer mom"

It's fun to have Elijah and Noah playing together a little bit. Elijah loves to call him his "big bru-der". "He's my Noah, my big bru-der". This is funny becuase Noah's helmet is not on Elijah right and is actually covering his eyes... but he stood still for the picture anyway.
Noah and his 'tough guy' look. He did really well riding the quads. He has a perfect attitude of safety and fun. Elijah loved riding the motorcycles and cried anytime he was left behind.

Oliver occasionally sucks his thumb when it will cooperate.

AZ trip

2008-10-09T15:47:00.000-07:00

This is the first picture from our baby blessing/Noah weekend. Thanks to Brandon and Kris for taking us out for a very enjoyable ATV outing. We had a great weeekend and Ollie and Ely did super on the "to and fro" car ride.

Random pics

2008-09-28T20:09:00.000-07:00

"Singin' in the rain"

Thanks Papa and Grandma for visiting and getting my toys out of the drum

Waaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!

Mt. Charleston School BBQ two days before Oliver's birth.

I love my girls

2008-09-25T23:59:00.000-07:00

So I have been blessed w/ a great group of friends here. We are all pretty much dental school wives. When the boys are gone studying late for tests then we get together for dinner and good company. We have weekly play groups for the kids which you know are really for us. We just find lots of fun things to do together. We have to otherwise things get lonely w/ school being so demanding. With Oliver being born my girls have really been taking care of me as far as picking up Eli for the day or bringing us dinner. Thanks for showin the love.

more Oli picks as requested...

2008-09-15T17:43:00.000-07:00

It seems all the pictures I currently have are of him sleeping. He's a good little guy.

I rike to sreep arr the time.

2008-09-09T11:16:00.000-07:00

I need to get some pictures off our camera, so more pics of Oliver will be posted soon. These are off my phone.

Oli in the hospital.

Rain in Vegas yesterday! Who knew. It's been so, so, so long since we've seen any moisture.

Elijah in the family waiting room at the hospital when he got a little loud in the room. He made this "choo choo train" all by himself.

OLIVER!!!!!!!!!!

2008-08-31T17:44:00.000-07:00

Oliver Steven Wolfington; born this, the 31st day in the blistering month of August, 2008. Born 8lbs 19.5 inches, with the labor lasting a mere 2 hours from 11pm to 1am. Did I mention he has BLONDE hair? Yep, light skin, and blonde hair. He's a beautiful little baby boy; equaled only by his two older brothers Elijah and Noah (parental bias...sorry). Elizabeth is doing really well, and Oli is healthy. Life is good!

2008-08-25T11:39:00.000-07:00

So today is Liz's original due date and... nothing. No baby yet. We are both ready, but I guess he's just a little too cozy in there.
I'm half way through my two week break after another semester down.
Picture #2 of in my continuing "future DMD" series of photos. This is Elijah wearing "daddy's gasses".

Our latest trip to In-n-out. We decorated Elijah's face with the stickers they pass out to kids. He just lets us mess with him. It's fun.

This was so funny. We have been going on bike rides more and more as the weather gets bearable in the evenings. So we were going over to swim at a house in our ward and I saw Elijah kind of slumped forward a bit, doing some wicked head bobbing (you know when you're really tired). It was so funny. I put a towel next to him and layed him on it and he was OUT. It's the first time he has fallen asleep in his bike trailer.

Mr. Fix it

2008-08-17T22:22:00.000-07:00

Ok, so Steven never could fix the TV, however he does save us a lot of money around the house w/ his well rounded handyman skills. If he doesn't know how to fix it he looks it up on the computer. He remodeled our whole kitchen going off rented DIY library books. Impressive, eh? (Just don't ask how long it took).

Steve got up super early to fix the car and avoid the heat. This job, like most, was successful. And yes, he really did spray me.

Looking sexy in the toolbelt. He just fixed our plumbing problems this weekend.

I'm less than two weeks away from the due date! Just waddling around. Wish me luck.

I love this pic. The stroller is a hand me down from Eli's friend but he added his own touch.

Trying to keep cool here in the desert by swimming at the YMCA... a regular occurance. Steven, Elijah, and his buddy Luke.

Eli and Dex sniffin around at the dog park a few weeks ago.

he's all BOY

2008-08-11T08:59:00.000-07:00

An unmistakable display of boyhood. Girls put on make-up, and boys make fart noises... period. Elijah discovered this on his own without any provocation on our part. It was pretty hilarious. It’s funny to see him realize he needs to dry his arm off to get maximum sound, and then when he is laughing and smiling so much he can’t get a good seal on his arm to make the noise.

broken

2008-08-04T10:54:00.000-07:00

Finals week(s) are upon me and it seems like we are having a ton of stuff BREAK on us lately. Sentra radiator, Maxima tires, faucets, sinks, shower, TV, backyard grass-now-desert landscaping, etc, etc. Liz and I are done with buying 80's, DIY, fixer-upper houses. Anyone seen that old movie Moneypit with with Tom Hanks? Sheesh! If it aint one thing, it's surely the other.

Here are pictures of my so far vain attempt to fix our TV.

2008-07-25T08:17:00.000-07:00

My wonderful grandmother Leona Udall.

True and beautifully consoling words from Joseph Smith
“…while we are only separated for a short season: their spirits which now exist with God have left the tabernacle of clay only for a little moment, as it were; and they now exist in a place where they converse together the same as we do on the earth…”
“We have reason to have the greatest hope and consolation for those who have passed on, of any people on the earth; for we have seen them walk worthily in our midst, and seen them sink asleep in the arms of Jesus…”
“When men are prepared, they are better off to go hence. The spirits of the just are exalted to a greater and more glorious work; hence they are blessed in their departure to the world of spirits.”

Elijah "fipping"

2008-07-12T07:50:00.000-07:00

Not a whole lot is going on 'round these parts... just pluggin' away, day after day, come what may, guys in my class have to work way too hard for an A, don't forget to pray twice a day (which is much harder to do than say), I'm pretty happy with what I currently weigh, not to mention the fact I'll never need a toupee, unfortunately us Wolfington men need new hips by the time we are old and gray. Which brings me to my next point without further delay... there's no better day than today, and I guess what I'm trying to say in a round about way is there's no point to life if 'yer just going to waste it away. If you're thinking of coming up to Las Vegas to get away... you've definitely got a free place to stay. That is if you are willing to bring my Liz a bouquet, because her pregnant belly is much on display... somewhat to her dismay. Oh yeah, I didn't do so good on my test in X-ray. I promise, this is all that I'll say.

2008-06-26T14:11:00.000-07:00

Elizabeth in her (almost) 8 month glory. She is having such a great time being so pregnant with a crazy 2 yr. old jumping all over her, whinning and crying (sarcasm, if you weren't sure).

We went to Shark Reef at the Mandalay Bay when Noah was up for a week. It was great! This picture was in the "tube" where the sharks and stuff would swim right over our heads. We couldn't use the flash, or the fish would disappear. There was another part where we could reach in to a shallow tank and "pet" the sting-rays. They are squishy and slime-a-licous.

Elijah in his Sunday best. What a stud huh?

Puerto Penasco pictures and Noah in LV

2008-06-16T14:24:00.000-07:00

So Liz and Eli D. had a great time in Rocky Point (no surprise). I'm really not bitter about it... even though my last post was a tad on the jealous side. :-)

I forget what kind of fish this is, but it tastes 100% better than it looks. It is a fresh fish right there in Rocky Point, and you put some fresh lime and Pico de gallo on it an it is authentic Mexico for sure.

Elijah with Noah's spiderman towel/backpack. PACK-PACK!! (what Eli calls a back-pack)

And Noah is up here right now! We are love, love, loving his company and I had the best Father's day on record with my family all complete. Life is good.

2008-06-09T11:11:00.001-07:00

Elizabeth and Elijah are here. (generic picutre of Mexico)

While I'm stuck here. (generic picutre of a classroom)
THAT'S MESSED UP HUH? It's OK, I guess... I just hope they are having fun and staying safe. I miss them somethin' fierce though.

the benefits of dental school...

2008-05-30T12:26:00.000-07:00

FREE (relatively speaking of coarse, "there's no such thing as a free lunch"), all you can eat, PANDAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This is a picture of all the 'tins'.

This is a blurry picture of me with all of the tins. I'm happy.

Here you can see the splendor of Panda's goodness. Ohhhhhhh, yeahhh!!!

nothin' new

2008-05-27T16:40:00.000-07:00

So... nothing real big is going on. I did pass the part 1 board exam, which I guess is pretty big news... but not exactly something I could have captured on camera. he he. Thank you to everyone who prayed for my safe passage over that mountain. It was a dooooooooosey.
Elijah will be going through some milestones in the next month when the binky goes bye-bye and we transition to the "big boy bed". Potty training still seems a ways away, even though he say's "poo-poo" and "stinky" before, during and after he takes care of his 'business'. We've put him on the toilet and he just laughs and looks at us like we are crazy. Its crazy how challenging he can be one minute and then the next minute Liz and I want to kiss his face off. We love our boys.
That's pretty much it. I am dreading the oncoming summer months, but I guess it is what it is.

what is the best thing to see in the middle of a 5 and a 1/2 hour drive...?

2008-05-15T21:47:00.001-07:00

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--->

Elijah's Birthday Party!

2008-05-08T23:36:00.000-07:00

We celebrated Elijah's 2nd birthday this week here in Mesa. It was a great time. Liz has been watching Ace of Cakes ("I love Food Network!" -Liz) and put together a friggin' sweet Elmo cake. I did individual cupcake Elmo faces, which were pretty awesome... if I do say so myself. By the way, Liz is 6 months pregnant, and not "just hanging her belly out".

No, seriously... Liz made this cake from scratch. Professional huh?!

Elijah was pretty much pooped out by the end of the night. How do I stop my boys from growing up?!

Good Weather Days

2008-04-16T12:01:00.001-07:00

We have been enjoying some great weather here for the last couple of weeks and have been going on several "BIKE-IDE"s (that's how Elijah says it). Mary Catherine and Chloe Rebecca came up for a few day visit and it was nice for me to know Liz and Eli were occupied while I was/am in the thick of finals.

Our kids look so darn cute in this picture. The bike trailer is a great thing to have.

I love my phone

2008-04-03T10:42:00.000-07:00

I took this video of Eli doing his first 'rail-swing' at Arby's. He is so entertaining.

Then we went to Old Navy on our hot date night to look for some maternity pants for Elizabeth. I walked up on Elijah checking out this headless manniquin. He couldn't figure out what was going on!

Elijah laying his head on mine. I love my phone.

Thatcher and Easter

2008-03-28T11:02:00.000-07:00

This last weekend we flew (thx again Mom) to AZ for a quick Thatcher visit and Easter celebration. Thatcher was great but short and Easter was fun. It was so great to see my Grandpa and Grandma Udall and the other Gila Valley regulars.

Leona Udall

My Grandmother is the definition of altruism. Her legacy of steadfast love and caring is the glue that holds our extended family together. She is a such legendary person. She is unique in many ways... probably best illustrated by her undeterred frugality which, on occasion, includes the washing and reusing of plastic plates, forks and cups. We love you Grandma!

My Grandpa has this old tractor out back that we decided to take some quick family pictures on. Needs more tractor in my opinion.

It's a(nother) BOY!!!

2008-03-14T11:05:00.000-07:00

We found out the other day that we are expecting another Wolfington boy! We are very excited about having so many brothers mixin' it up. Elizabeth actually felt the little one kicking for the first time last night. I decided not to paste the "it's a boy" ultrasound pic becuase... come on, it's a little personal. Ha ha.

Elijah lets Liz give him little massages once and a while. She took these funny pictures a couple weeks ago from underneath the table.

Elizabeth and her D-school wives crew took the kiddies out to a local hike this past weekend while we were finishing up with mid-terms. Eli had such a good time and got nice and dirty.

mirror mirror, on the wall...

2008-02-28T14:25:00.000-08:00

So Elijah had a milestone day today. We have been getting him to say his name when we say "where is Elijah?" and he'll baby-talk "ijah" and it's so cute. But today, Liz had him in front of the bathroom mirror and he looked and pointed at himself, got a big smile on his face and said "YIJAH" and giggled.

So cute huh?

We have an 11 year old!!!

2008-02-19T16:57:00.000-08:00

Crazy, I know.
We went down to AZ this Presidents Day weekend to celebrate Noah's 11th birthday. His B-day isn't until the 4th of March, but we took advantage of this 3 day weekend in conjunction with a lull in exams. We had a great, GREAT time. We finally broke down after several failed Christmas and birthday attempts to be creative and non-traditional with our gift giving... by buying him a little portable Nintendo game system. Our safe bet paid off and he loved it. We also took him and his best buddy David to Castles and Coasters for the day and they had a blast. Sorry for those of you whom we didn't visit, but it was a quick trip.

2 months of checking Craigslist twice a day for Nintendo DS lite w/ case and charger - $90,

Homemade ice cream pies - $20,

12 hours of driving w/ screaming 2 yr old + gas ($500,000 + $60),

Eye popping, jaw dropping smile on 11 yr old's face ----> PRICELESS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Luckily they came around twice... you can just barely see Noah and David in the front of the coaster.

Noah is in front on this lap. David (white shirt) came back from behind for the win.

Odd request

2008-02-13T12:38:00.000-08:00

After extensive searching in multiple Nevada locations and online... I am sad to inform all of you regarding my inability to replenish the supply of my favorite pair of socks. Yeah, socks. I'm sure many of you can agree there are many factors to consider when buying socks, so you can undoubtedly understand my current plight.

To my AZ connections... will you, the next time you go to Wal-Mart, meander over to the Men's sock section and look for this much sought after sock?

Description: Black, crew-length, Wilson (the brand), with a little white 'W' at the very top (closest to the calf). 80% sure they came in a package of 6.

I can't recall exactly if the socks were packaged in a bag or just in the cardboard sock holder thinga-ma-jig.

I'm not sure what to offer the winner of this little scavenger hunt... but we can work that out later. THANKS!

FYI...s...

2008-02-04T08:35:00.000-08:00

As a reminder, this Saturday the 9th of February is the day set aside to celebrate and feast for St. Apollonia (seen below). She is the regarded as the 'patroness of dentistry'. Saint Apollonia was martyred in a violent manner involving her teeth, and prayers of Roman Catholics are directed to her when suffering from common dental ailments.

Oh yeah, Liz is pregnant. YEE-HAW!!!!!!!!!!!! She had an ultrasound last week and everything is looking good with the heartbeat beating strong. She is 10 weeks and has her first appointment with our new obstetrician today. Good job Noah for keeping the secret! Liz is dealing with her first trimester nausea, which is extra tough with a near 2 yr. old. On a side note and speaking of Elijah, he says "mine-in" for Vitamin. It's so freaking cute.
(This is not Martha's ultrasound, just a generic one from Wiki... we don't have a scanner to put the real deal on the blog.)

I pledge allegiance to the flag...

2008-01-26T09:46:00.000-08:00

I came across this video on YouTube and wow... hold on, I just got something stuck in my eye... (deep breaths)...
I just love our Military. I doubt anyone from our armed forces will see my blog, or this post, but I want to express how appreciative I am of their great service and hard work fighting with their lives to protect us from those absolute cowards.
If you see a veteran or an active duty soldier, step out of your comfort 'bubble' and shake their hand or give them a hug so they know how much their sacrifices mean to us. God bless the USA.

I vont to suck your blood!!

2008-01-21T12:57:00.001-08:00

2008-01-18T08:11:00.000-08:00

When we were down in AZ for Christmas, we were 3 of 6,329,870 people at Superstition Springs mall and Liz took Elijah on the mall merry-go-round. Not unlike many other 'firsts' in his young life, Eli hated it at first... but as the ride progressed, he loved it and threw a nice little fit when it was time to get off.

We also took Elijah to the nursery where aunt Miriam and uncle Spencer teach. Luckily for Eli, they had some bubbles there because he LOVES BUBBLES!!! He calls them "baboos", and it's so freaking cute. You've got to love that little suit. I think we got that from his big cousin Logan.

Holiday Super-post!

2008-01-03T09:10:00.000-08:00

Noah and I used Liz's blood money to go and see Penn and Teller when he was home in Las Vegas. I say blood money becuase Liz regularly donates blood and they are apperently short on the red stuff here in NV, so they give some sweet prizes for the donation. This last time they gave her two Penn and Teller (magic/comedy show at the Rio) tickets and she wanted me and Noah to have them. It was a good time.

So just in the last couple weeks Elijah is coming into his own. He is growing up so fast. He is saying all sorts of new words, understanding the words we say and just really becoming his own little person. He likes to say 'MINE', 'BUTT' (for bite), and 'MA MA', and 'NO---WA' (Noah), just to name a few. He's also developed this awesome scream/cry, which is super fun.

Just the other night we were watching his baby-tv channel and I decided to turn it and he started yelling 'NO! NO! NOOOOO!!!'. Liz and I were cracking up and I turned it back promptly. He loves to help push the cart. Thanks to Eli, we don't forget to pray because when we sit down for a meal or finish a book at night-night time, he automatically folds his arms and waits for the prayer. He's a crack-up right now.

We took a quick trip up to Mt. Charleston while Noah was up and had a blast playing in the snow. Eli wasn't too happy about big brother picking him up for this picture. It's crazy this winter wonderland is only half an hour from our desert home.

NEW YEARS FIREWORKDS... VEGAS STYLE!!

Liz, Noah, cousin Dane (aka Dane-Train) and I decided to go down and experience the fireworks on the Strip for new years eve. We stood a-ways back from the crazies and it was pretty enjoyable, however chilly we might have been.

Sally Tackett (sorry if I spelled that wrong) surprised us the other day by showing up in Las Vegas with some of her boys (sans Brandon... what's up Brandon?!) and treated us to some mighty fine dinner. My boys weren't on their best behavior, but we had a good time chit-chatting anyhow. Thanks Sally!!!

Thanks to the Gordons...

2007-12-03T12:14:00.000-08:00

Liz and I were able to see the show Stomp at the Planet Hollywood the other night, and it was SWEET! We sat front row of this huge theater and were blown away (literally and figuratively) with the performance. My Aunt Marcie and Uncle Darrin Gordon were up for a business thing and couldn't use the tickets that the company provided for them so they hooked us up, big time!!! Eli missed his mamma while we were gone and the babysitter had to earn her money! It was great to take a break from studying for Finals and do something out of the ordinary.

WARNING!!! Extreme Cuteness!

2007-11-26T09:41:00.000-08:00

The 'adults' won these glasses at Peter Piper Pizza the night before (PARTY!!) and I had a vision of this exact picture as we redeemed our tickets for these pop bottle glasses that were in the glass case-o-prizes. We love our Eli boy! His age is so fun right now. He is doing his CHEESE face where he slides his jaw to one side. That white thing in the left (his left) of his mouth is a molar.

Future DMD

Elijah digging out back in Grandpa's flower bed (no flowers were harmed). He's such a ham.

I had to make up for that last Halloween picture. Here is a better representation of Elizabeth's heart-stopping beauty. And that is a freshly picked rose (take notes boys) in her ear from yours trully. HUBBA-HUBBA!

2007-11-19T09:28:00.000-08:00

MOMMY SPOILS ME!!!

You can't go wrong w/ the 'ol HOT DOG AND MUSTARD number for Halloween!

Why we haven't been able to pull our troops out of Iraq

2007-11-14T12:03:00.000-08:00

This was not staged. This was an actual video shot in Iraq, at a U.S.-led training facility. Pretty funny/ sad huh?

2nd annual Indio,CA Trip

2007-11-06T15:10:00.000-08:00

I, and five other buddies, went to the rural Palm Springs area over this last weekend to 'get our hands wet' doing some dental work. We were all able to do some pretty interesting procedures and watch some really great dentists in action. It was well worth the drive and gas money. Here's a quick link to the write-up in the local paper if you're interested. I'm the one on the left, partially covered by the assistant.
http://www.mydesert.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071106/NEWS01/711060322/1006/news01

We also had Miriam and Spencer come up for the weekend. Catherine and Chloe came up as well, driving separate. Liz and Elijah really enjoyed their company over the weekend while I was gone. The Tackett girls will be here until tomorrow and Chloe is so dang cute. It's been great to have some family up in LV!

This was the line at 7 am when we showed up! If you look close, you can see the line snaking around the corner and into the parking lot.

Circus Time!!

2007-10-22T09:29:00.000-07:00

Martha E. and Elijah D. went to a small, local circus the other weekend and had a great time. Liz said Elijah could not take his eyes off the animals when they were under the tent watching the show. Liz got Elijah's face painted, they ate popcorn, saw the animals... all while I'm stuck at school studying on a Saturday! Messed up huh? Just kidding, I'm glad they were able to have so much fun. Oh yeah,... Elijah hates clowns.

Mean mommy!!!!

Sunday afternoon B.R.

2007-10-15T06:38:00.000-07:00

Nothing beats the Sunday afternoon Bike Ride. So we finally found a bike trailer on Craigs. for Elijah and... he pretty much hates it! I think is is related to how much he abhors his car seat right now. You know... the straps and what-not. On the return route, he wiggled his arms out of the straps and tried to stand up and then cried the rest of the way after we told him to sit down. He is so independent now.

On that note, we are dealing with pre-nursery Eli at church and it is no easy task! It's hard enough during SS and the class we teach, but Sac. is a whole different ball of wax! The kid is non-stop. Liz and I could only laugh because the last couple of weeks, he has been acting so crazy during that hour, I'm sure people think we hop him up on sugar or something. Anyone have any toddler-sacrament activities that we could give a go?

p.s. don't hate us because we have the coolest beach cruisers this side of the Mississippi.

post weight-loss challenge

2007-10-02T13:40:00.000-07:00

Hallelujah, the challenge is over. For those of you who don't know, for the last two months I have been competing in a dental school weight loss challenge with 33 of my classmates. We were in groups of 3 and we put some $ in a pot for the winning team. We gave it our all, and came in 6th out of 11! Weak huh? I know. My concious is clear becuase I worked my tail off and lost 20 lbs. My body fat % went from 11.9 (I know this seems very low as a starting % for me, but our professor took my caliper measurements twice) to a 10.7. I will be returning to my Panda's Express mistress for lunches and late night "you deserve it" meals ASAP.

Sorry, you don't get to see any before and after pics. I didn't take any, and I wouldn't put them on here anyhow! That's about all that is going on in LV for now. Sorry we're a little dull latley!

nothin' going on

2007-09-19T10:16:00.001-07:00

Liz took this rare picture of Elijah sleeping (outside his crib) using her phone when they came to visit the other day. He is so dang cute, and it was just what I needed to keep up the drudgery of my studies.

Not a whole lot else is going on out of the ordinary.

The other day I thought our pipes were busted behind our shower so I got my circular saw out and cut a huge hole in the fiberglass shower surround, only to find out the repair only required me to replace the valve... accessible from the front of the shower. So now we have some waterproof duct-tape holding part of our shower together, but our shower works great!

Year one DOWN!!!!

2007-09-05T12:22:00.000-07:00

Dental School is easy. ha ha ha...

So we headed straight to Martha's grandparents cabin after my Friday final... final and we had a great time at the Markham family reunion. We Nevadans were reminded of what water falling out of the sky looks like, I think everyone callied it rAIn, or perhaps 'wrane', I'm not too sure. It was the craziest thing we had ever seen. Yeah, I know, it made everything on the ground wet, and not dusty and sun-scorched! A good time was had by all.

Goings on

2007-08-24T15:12:00.001-07:00

Not a lot to report. I'm in the thick of finals, with the worst behind me/us.

That's right... it's a mohawk, and he's lovin' every minute of it! Sorry Grandma(s)!

A cool photo of my red hot smokin' wife (Talledega Nights) taken while Elijah was trying to round up some of his homeboys on the mobile.

This was my first offical, bonified, scheduled patient. It was an awesome experience and I was super-nervous. I did a cleaning. He was a cool first.

This is what yer face looks like w/o any skin and stuff on it!!

2007-08-16T15:27:00.000-07:00

So I just did this waxing project and we don't really have anything else to post so I thought I would throw it up and hopefully freak some people out a little. It took me about 10 hours cumulatively. I waxed (using a flame and waxing instruments) the muscles in red and they are the 'muscles of mastication' (chewing) except for the ones associated w/ the eye, and then the extensive nerve networks in yellow (that don't show up very well) and then the arteries which are also in red. Oh yeah, I cut the mandible a little to show the inside nerves and stuff (where I will be sticking most of you with really sharp needles). ha ha.

Babysitter

2007-08-08T15:15:00.000-07:00

Thanks to all friends and family that have helped out with Elijah but this was his first official babysitter! Katie is in our Sunday school class that we teach. After the movie and frozen yogurt and paying Katie, we realized why our dates are only annually... Yes I painted our house yellow, which the picture does not flatter, but it is actually very cute and cozy. I got ancy for a project one day which was to Steve's surprise when he got home from a long day at school.

2007-08-08T14:55:00.000-07:00

Eli and friend Brooklyn playing in our fancy indoor pool.
chunky buns
Eli's got a mean wind up.
Dirt ball.
Elijah's long hair before the summer buzz.

... becuase you wouldn't get your hair cut by somebody with ugly hair... RIGHT?!!

2007-07-24T19:50:00.000-07:00

So here it is.... I got my braces on today from a local Dr. here in Vegas. Palatal expander and all. I've already had braces, but that was done while I was in Joseph City/ Holbrook (enough said), so now I get to have it done again... when I'm an adult... and it will hurt twice as much since my bones have quit growing. I talk kind of funny and I am reminded of how sharp the dang brackets are on my cheeks, but oh well. Liz thinks I'm hot.

Elijah Walking!!!

2007-07-16T12:42:00.001-07:00

I think we can make it offical and say that Eli is walking (walking > crawling). It's so awesome to see him walk, even though he still wipes out a lot.

Also, you will notice the table tennis racquet (ping pong paddle (for the novice)) in his hand. I'm not pressuring him at this point, but I'm just letting it become comfortable in his hand. As you can see he's already integrating it into his walking, so I think he's progressing well.

Elijah is also getting his molars in, and switching to the one-nap-per-day, so if anyone would like to come up and help Liz graft her hair back into her head (she's pulling her hair out... get it?) we would appreciate it.

Noah in Nevada!!

2007-06-27T09:27:00.001-07:00

This past week we had Noah home with us and it was simply magical. Liz and Noah were able to spend a lot of time together and I spent as much time at home as possible when I didn't absolutely have to be at school. We got a babysitter one night and took Noah to the Strip where we rode the roller coaster at the New York, New York and saw the sights. It was such a fun outing for us all. The trip couldn't have gone any better. Now we miss him even more though. Funny how that works. WE LOVE YOU NOAH T.!!

Elijah gives sweet kisses.

Udall Flagstaff Family Reunion

2007-06-19T15:14:00.000-07:00

Lee Kenyon Udall. THE LEGEND

So I was able to ditch school this last Friday and we went down to Flagstaff, AZ for a little Udall Family reunion. It was great. We had Noah meet us up there, and we rode the ski lift up Snowbowl, saw the Lowell observatory, rode mountain bikes, played games and stayed in some great cabins.

Noah actually came back with us to Vegas, yeah... you heard right... we are soaking up this time with him since we have been looking forward to it for so, so, so long. I will be slacking my study duties this week to spend as much time at home with mi familia as possible.

Ode to Steve

2007-06-05T10:51:00.000-07:00

Happy Father's Day!!
So I know I'm a little early but I'm still in Mesa and trying to utilize my computer time before we take off. We don't have internet in our home. (you know how it is, living the student life) That's why Steve does all the blog entries while he's at school "studying". So, sorry about the blog update overload.

His good looks give me some handsome boys.

Steve is an amazing dad. He works hard for his family and we sincerely appreciate him. I love his enthusiasm for fatherhood. Our boys are so blessed to have you. They want to say thanks for all the love you show them. We love you dad!

I have some great pics of Steve teaching Noah to ride a bike and skateboard. I wish I could share them but they are from 35mm. Steven has taught Noah so much. To tie his shoes, to read, whistle,.. the list goes on. What would we do with out our dad. I know he loves every minute of it and I look forward to seeing it all again and again.

All the kids love him.