June 10th – June 18th 2012

As I have mentioned we try to go on a date every couple of weeks. Nothing too active this time. We went to Thai House (in Lehi) and then saw Snow White and the Huntsman. The movie was actually pretty good!

This past week Fran took the kids up to Cherry Hill water park & family fun center in Kaysville. Full RV hooksups!

Noting better than eating hotdogs and cucumbers! There were tons of fun activities for the kids. The first day they went swimming, tubing and rock climbing.

Fran and Gabe made a quick detour to Paris (Cherry Hill has a very nice miniature golf course). Camping in an RV with a baby is quite challenging, but Fran is a brave (brave) woman! Good thing Chloe is so adorable. The next day the Browns & Bensons arrived at Cherry Hill.

I came up the evening of the second day and we took the kids to the arcade. It’s a little lackluster, but they had fun (Arcade review: I wish the air hockey tables actually had air). When the kids went to bed the adults all played a few rounds of Five Crowns. A fun trip for all!

On the 18th we celerbated Fran’s 34th birthday! We ate lunch together at Jimmy John’s and then had Cafe Rio for dinner (with coconut flawn!)

Fran wanted to go on a family bike ride for her birthday so we took out the bikes, got them in working order and rode around the neighborhood for a bit. Another successful birthday under the ye old Hughes belt.

Date Night

Sometimes our kids get mad when we go out. We try and explain that when mommy and daddy are friends the odds are much better that the family will be happier. Since summer is nearly here and school is out, our babysitter can stay extra late. So, we decided to cram in as much date as possible tonight.

First we hit up Gold’S Gym to play some racquetball. Fran’s getting better- right now we’re working on not being afraid of the ball.

Next we swung over to the Lehi legacy center to use their indoor track. If you’re looking for a nice indoor place to run I think their track is great. We were short on time (and slightly starving) so we only did about a mile and half.

We ate at Burger King. Our eyes might have been bigger than our stomachs. To our credit we did eat most of the food.

Then it was off to Men in Black III. I read some reviews that made me apprehensive about the movie butt I thought it was really good! I liked it better than the first two- I’d probably even go see it again (sometimes you have to watch time travel movies twice).

We made it home around midnight (having left at around 6:45). All in all an excellent action packed date!


Posted by Cam

Family Run

Sometimes we get together with the Sabins for an evening jog. Tonight we we decided to mobilize the entire family for the run. I’m not sure if it was our best idea, but it was worth a shot.

We typically run between three and five miles- too far for the kids to comfortably run. So we brought two bikes (that way the kids could run a bit and switch off when they got tired). We put the baby in a jogging stroller. It all worked okay. The kids took turns “dying” and anyone on a bike rode off into the event horizon. Maybe we’ll try it again sometime when the kids are all grown up!

After our run. Some of us are happy. Some of us are sad. But all of us know that mom is the toughest (she pushed the stroller most of the way)


So I’m going to give this blogging thing a shot- but I’m not totally committed to it yet. We’ll see how it goes (I’m going light on the text). 3:30am over here. Who needs sleep when you can share your memories with Internet strangers?


Posted by Cam

Memorial Day

First a “thank you” to all our soldiers who have served and helped to shape this great country.

I decided it was important to spend the day with the family- moving tires and boxes to a storage unit could wait until another time. We started the day off with a trip to Fran’s favorite restaurant, The Sweet Tomato. It’s a buffet with salad, soups, pasta pizza and some desserts. The pasta is lackluster, but everything else is really good.

Lunch at The Sweet Tomato in Sandy

After lunch we visited the Living Planet Aquarium. What a cool place!

My wife and kids have been there before, but this was my first time. When I was on business in Georgia I visited the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta. The Living Planet Aquarium is much smaller, but I thought it was just as fun.

The Jelly Fish are so weird, but they are mesmerizing:

The Lion-fish are beautiful but extremely poisonous:

All kinds of cool underwater life:

You can pet a Manta ray too:

And they even have penguins! These guys are adorable. You almost want to take one home with you:

And the otters. These guys were as cute as the penguins. I’d probably take one of each home. Wonder if they would fight?

There was a lot to see- I think we spent almost two hours at the aquarium!

The aquarium is absolutely worth visiting. In additions to fish, sharks, turtles, otters and penguins they have a spiders, snakes, frogs and other really cool underwater life. Now I’m excited to visit the zoo later this year.

One the way home we swung by REI to get the kids hiking shoes (kids grow- really aggravating). I’ve never seen the store that crowded. I should have taken a picture of the line we stood in.

I took the kids with me to run some errands (well, Gabe was asleep at this point) and they “helped” me wash the truck. I love my kids, but I got so sick of hearing “I want a turn” and “Let me try” every single time I switched the wash settings.

We used almost 15 mins of time washing the truck. Thanks kids!

After we got back Fran too the kids hiking with her sister. And I got those tires and boxed moved. A fun day, if ever there was one.

Laser Tag

On Saturday (May 26th, 2012) Erin & Doug Atwood came to town! We had offered a game of laser tag last time they were in town so they took us up on our offer this time. The whole family went to Jack & Jill’s (in Lehi) and played a couple of games and then bummed around the arcade for a bit. I really like the Jack & Jill’s laser tag because the two story arena is fun and I like to see the laser beam when I shoot at people. I wish the facility was was run a bit better (one surly teen just doesn’t cut it).

The scores from our second game. No one checked to see who they were. We don't play to win. We just play.


Posted by Cam

Other Blogs Have I Which Are Not of This Fold.

Just a quick little update for the family and fans (ah ha ha! Haaaaah ah….). In the past few weeks I have updated most of my other blogs:

CamOnCommerce.com – Just a couple of miscellaneous posts.

UtahCorvette.com – Still messing with my car. A couple of fun posts too.

UtahCamaro.com – Starting to mess with the new car.

ZoobaBean.com  – Sometimes I post silly things I’ve written. This blog has had a couple of updates in the last few weeks.

HughesFamily.com – Last year I picked up this domain and put up a blog. I’m in the process of deciding if I want to maintain it. Thoughts?

KnifeBlog.com – This is my company’s main blog and it has cool stuff on it (I don’t do the blogging personally, but I think a blog this good deserves a plug).


Posted by Cam, May 29, 2012

 

Terrible Short Stories for Children

I’ve always thought the idea of adult themes presented in a children’s book format was amusing. These are some awful little tidbits that I’ve written here and there over the years. Most are pretty bad, but there are some gems. I present to you Terrible Short Stories for Children

The Little Boy with too Much to Do.

Adam had too much to do! He couldn’t finish everything so he flung himself from a cliff.

The Little lost Girl

Gretchen was lost in the mall. She had wandered away from her mother. She cried and cried until a nice man said, “Come with me, I’ll drive you home to your house.” Gretchen went with the man and no one ever saw her again.

The Bad Little Dog

Pepper was a bad little dog. He would not sit, he would not roll over and he begged at the dinner table. “I will take Pepper on a trip, and when we come back he will be a good dog.” Later, Father came home but no one saw Pepper. The next night at dinner Father said, “Will someone please pass me Pepper?”

The Bird who Could Not Fly.

Little Bobbie Robin sat in his nest. He could not fly. He decided he must learn, so he hopped out of his nest and jumped. Little Bobbie Robin could not fly.

The Seed that could not Grow

Once there was a little seed. A bird ate it and pooped it out on some rocks. It could not grow.

The Fat Little Cow

There was a farmer who had a fat little cow. Each day he went to see the cow and told her how beautiful she was. He said, “You are the fattest most beautiful cow there ever was!” The cow felt very good and ate as much as she could so she would become even fatter for the farmer. Soon the little cow was so fat she could not walk. The Farmer said, “You are the most amazing cow I have ever seen!” The cow was very happy. Until the Farmer killed and ate her.

The Bad Teacher

Barney’s teacher was bad. She made Barney learn to add and subtract, divide and multiply. She made Barney learn the alphabet and she forced him to read and write. Barney grew up and became a successful business man. When he was rich enough he hired high powered lawyers to sue his bad teacher for ruining his life.

The Little Fish

There lived a little fish in a little pond. He had just learned to swim. One day he was caught by a hook. A boy-scout pulled him from his warm home and danced about gleefully. The boy-scouts ate the little fish.

The Race

Paul ran as hard as he could. He finished last. His father came over to him and said, “It is okay that you did not win. Your brothers are better than you and they will win.”

Three Wishes

Bob found a magic lamp while he was on vacation. The Genie inside said I will give you three wishes. Bob said, “I wish I knew what to wish for! And I wish I was home so I could show my friends. No, I wish I hadn’t wished that.” The Genie slapped Bob.

The Boy Who Cried Turtle

The Wade Family went to the Beach. “Turtle!” said little Timmy Wade. No one looked because Timmy saw Turtles everywhere. The Turtle climbed out of the sea and ate Timmy.

Healthy

Mr. Riggs worked out every day. He ran five miles, he lifted weights for hours and he swam and swam. He only ate healthy foods- never anything he liked. He never had time for anything fun. But he always said, “I’m taking care of myself now so I can enjoy my family when I’m old!” The doctor said Mr. Riggs was in perfect health. A truck hitMr.Riggs and he died.

Ice Cream

Mommy brought home ice cream for dessert. She said if we ate all our vegetables we could have some. Dad ate ice cream before he ate his vegetables. Dad said, “When you are a Dad you can eat what you want.” When I am a Dad I will eat kittens and  bunnies.

Baby Lewis Learns to Talk

Baby Lewis was learning to talk. “Come on! You can do it” said Mommy. “Come on! You can do it!” said Daddy. They practiced long and hard, every day for months. Baby Lewis learned how to talk! “Quiet!” said Mommy. “Shhhh!!” said Daddy.

The Bike Story

John had a brand new bike. He had worked hard and saved his money for two years to buy it. Each day he washed and waxed his new bike. He rode it around the neighborhood each afternoon. Every night John carefully put his bike under the porch and locked it to a post. John’s bike was his favorite thing in the whole world. One day John was hungry and he traded his bike for a cookie.

The Lonely Tree

Billy was an oak tree. He was all alone. One day a forest elf said he could have a wish. Billy clapped his branches together. “I wish for a friend!” The forest elf said he would grant the wish. The next day a man came into the woods and walked up to Billy. “I am your friend!” he said. He took out his ax and chopped Billy down.

Best Friends

Pete and Joe were best friends. Where Pete went Joe went. Where Joe went Pete went. They played tag, hide and seek, they ran and laughed. Later that day Pete found a new best friend named Dave.

The Lamp Lie

Lucy was scared. She had broken her mom’s favorite lamp. When mommy saw the lamp she was very sad. Mommy asked Lucy, “Do you know who broke my lamp?” Lucy shook her head. She felt bad inside. When Daddy came home he said, “Do you know who broke mommy’s lamp?” Lucy shook her head. She felt bad inside again. Lucy lied more and more and eventually the bad feeling went away

Mark’s Teeth

Mark would not brush his teeth. His mom told him they would rot and turn green. Mark would not brush his teeth. His Dad told him they would smell bad and turn yellow. Mark would not brush his teeth. His Brother told him they would get cavities and turn gray. . Mark would not brush his teeth. His sister said they would decay and turn brown.. Mark would not brush his teeth. And nothing anyone said came true. Mark’s teeth turned black and fell out.

The Newspaper

Mr. Fuller was not happy. Each day his newspaper was thrown into his grass. Mr. Fuller stopped the paper boy and yelled at him. He told the paperboy to stop throwing the newspaper in the grass. Mr. Fuller was not happy. Each day the newspaper was thrown through his window.

 Marvin’s TV

Marvin liked to watch TV. And the TV liked to watch Marvin. One day Marvin went to turn the TV off and the TV turned Marvin off.

To Blog or Not to Blog

I already have several blogs that I update on a regular basis. I love to blog. I wish I could blog for a living (I’d probably have to blog about interesting things though… how boring). But I’m trying to decide if I want to add another blog to my pile. I’m already the busiest guy in the world (especially when it’s convenient) but I feel like it’s important to create a record of what we do as a family.

This wouldn’t be a  “Hey look what we did!” kind of blog. Rather, I’m interested in making quick little posts when we do something as a family so my kids can look back and see that we cared. We spent time with them. We loved them. Sometimes we’re so busy living in the moment that we forget what we’re doing (which means there’s no way we can ever remember what we did).

Yeah, not sure what I’ll do (blog? no blog?) This is a big decision and I’m sure not going to make it tonight at two in the morning. “Oh man! I did what last night?” If I commit to it I’m in for the long haul.

Cam