What I did this summer

Mostly I worked - but that's not really what I want to write about. Unlike last summer, when my family and I took the month of July to travel across the country visiting friends and relatives, this summer I only took a little over two weeks of total time off. With summer coming to an end, it's those two weeks of time I want to focus on.

On July 3rd, in spite of the fact that I'm no longer living the carefree life of a college student, I acted like one anyway and stayed up all night to complete all of the missions in "Medal of Honor, Heroes 2" on the Wii. My wife was proud of me. Wait, I mean she made fun of me. Whatever - I was proud of myself. I'm now a sergeant major in the SAS (at least in the virtual world). Go me! I mean, mii!

Needless to say on July 4th, I was pretty punchy at the ward breakfast; although, when I explained why, most of the guys from church understood. After the ward breakfast, I slept most of the day so I'd be ready for the sacred communion of fireworks. (And, yes, all you women out there (Tracy), I agree - I have an understanding wife. I know if I was your husband, you'd make me stay up and play with the kids, just so I learned my lesson.)

If you know me, you know I'm not being facetious when I refer to the Fourth of July fireworks as a "sacred communion". I'm not normally very social, but there is something about the Fourth of July that makes me want to be with other Americans and watch the sky light up in celebration of all the sacrifices that have been made to give us the gift of freedom. And for me, the bigger the crowd, the better.

When I was a teen, I used to go down to the national mall to watch the fireworks just because the crowd was so large. That doesn't really work now that I'm the father of small children. Instead, it's become our family tradition to view the fireworks over the lake at the Columbia Mall. This year, after some cajoling, our friends the Oberings joined us and, in spite of some initial light rain, the fireworks did not disappoint.

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On August 1st, I flew to Denver to participate in my niece, Jenniel's, baptism. My brother, Dan, Jenniel's father, has recently returned to activity and is very enthusiastic about living closer to Heavenly Father. I enjoyed the opportunity to visit with him and discuss the Gospel. It also turned out to be a bit of a mini family reunion. Grandma Betty, my grandmother on my mom's side, and my mom and stepfather, Bill, all came out for the baptism. That night we all went out for dinner with Dan, Jenniel, my nephew, Cameron, and my sister, Flora, and her husband, Matt, who also live near Denver. Afterwards, we walked around the temple grounds and took pictures. (Mom, you still owe me a picture.)

August 2nd was the day of the baptism. Jenniel had asked that I perform the baptism and I was honored that she would ask me. That didn't keep me from making a mistake in the wording of the prayer, though, so I actually had to baptize her twice. In spite of that, it was a very moving experience and Jenniel seemed very happy as she came out of the water.

After we changed into dry clothes, my mom spoke about the gift of the Holy Ghost and then I confirmed Jenniel. I felt the Spirit strongly during her confirmation and felt inspired to bless her that, as she followed the promptings of the Holy Ghost, she would become a leader among her peers. I'm looking forward to seeing that promise fulfilled. Jenniel is a special girl.

In addition to our family, Dan had invited two friends from where he used to work and they both came. Jen, Jenniel's mother and Dan's ex-wife, was there as well. It was good to see her.

After the baptism, we went to a public pool that puts other public pools to shame. You can get in for four dollars and it has two full sized water slides, a lazy river, and a giant 1000 gallon bucket of water that fills up every 20 minutes, then flips and pours water on the crowd below. We had a lot of fun there, then wrapped up the day with a barbecue at my cousin, Melissa's, house. She and her husband, Lance, were kind enough to host us at the last minute when Dan and Flora changed plans (originally it was supposed to be at Flora's house on Sunday).

Sunday, August 3rd, I went to church with Dan and his kids, then we all headed to Flora's for a delicious dinner of salad, peas, and homemade mac and cheese. (Mmm, mmm, goood!) Dan's kids and I then spent the night at Flora's house. Flora and I chatted while watching a movie with the kids, "Howl's Moving Castle". While I enjoyed the movie, it was a bit weird. I guess I haven't watched enough japanime to get the aesthetic.

Monday, August 4th, was my last day in Denver. In spite of the altitude (Flora lives in the mountains above Denver), I opted to go for a morning run at 5:30 AM. Last summer, when we were at Flora's, I lamented the fact that we never saw a bear, a sight that Flora had said wasn't that uncommon. A couple of weeks later, she even sent me some pictures of a bear in her yard. I had plenty of time to reflect on that as I ran. When I got back and commented to Matt that, shortly after starting my run, I wondered if I wasn't a little crazy to be out there when there could be bears in the area, he said, "Why do you think I never go running?" Touche.

Flora and Matt both work in Denver and have to get an early start, so we got the kids up and left by 6:30. Matt dropped Flora at work, then drove me and the kids to Dan's place. The kids and I then spent the morning at two parks near Dan's apartment. After lunch, we hit the Sonic for a cherry limeade in honor of my wife, who turned me on to them, then headed to the airport for my return flight home.

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Well, it is taking longer than I expected to chronicle my two weeks, so I will have to continue in another post tomorrow.