Garth in Concert

Last Friday, we got to see Garth Brooks in concert at the Staples Center. He took time out of his retirement to host 5 concerts in 2 days to support the firefighters in Southern California. We had great seats, got to be part of the live taping and supported a noble cause. If you missed the show that aired on CBS, here is our little summary. As usual, the quality is bad, but the sound is still great in the video.

100 Posts in 1 Year

Dylan loves the zebra he received for Christmas.....perhaps a little too much!



*A special thank you to Arthur for putting this video together!

Future Rockers

Dear sons,


There is nothing a lady loves more than a man who can a man who can win her heart through the sweet strains of tender, heartfelt music.

There is nothing that will win a heart faster than a well-timed woven tapestry of musical mastery.

There is no sweeter sound than the sound of nimble fingers dancing over the frets of your favorite stringed instrument.

There is no better feeling than hitting an impeccable string of complex chords.

There is nothing more pleasing than the dulcet acoustic-fest produced by strumming with your fingers in a steady rhythm.

There is nothing more thrilling than hitting a well-placed expressive distortion of harmony with a vigorous shake of the whammy bar.

There is nothing like being a...

GUITAR HERO!!!

Sunday Night Chick Flick

So I know PBS has already started their new format of Masterpiece Theater, but I finally got around to watching Persuasion last night. I am so excited for this series of Jane Austen movies. Arthur, of course, is not too thrilled that I will be filling up our TiVo with these movies. You can't feel too much sympathy for him since he did know about my Pride and Prejudice obsession before he asked for my hand in marriage. If you are not familiar with the new format, here is a preview (or just visit the PBS website):

A Rare Photo Op

Arthur's dad spent last year in Japan, so he picked up these adorable outfits for the boys. It has been pretty warm here in Southern California, so they were able to wear them. Tyler and Dylan loved their outfits so much that they even let us take several pictures of them together!

R is for Run!

Once a week, Tyler attends a co-op preschool with 4 of his buddies. We each take a turn teaching the letters to the kids. This month, it is my turn. My first day was pretty chaotic. Most of the boys wanted nothing to do with the fun crafts I planned, singing time became a solo act for me, and playtime turned into a loud, high speed game of "chase". The second week went much more smoothly. A little tweaking in the schedule, and I was able to get each boy to participate in all the activities. After we finished, the boys released all their energy by continuing the "chase" game they apparently didn't finish the previous week.

Burping contest during snack time (not sure which of them initiated this one):

Getting rid of the wiggles (by the sweat on their brows, I am pretty sure Dallin and Tyler needed this the most):

Santa Anita Race Track

Last weekend, we spent the day at the beautiful Santa Anita Race Track. I wasn't sure how the boys would react to the racing, so we decided to go early and take advantage of the tram tour (2 hours before the first race). Knowing there was also a playground in the infield, I thought we could kill time after the tour and leave after watching the first race.

I definitely underestimated the boy's appreciation for the horses! They were not very interested in the tour, the playground was fun, but the races were so exciting for them! If it weren't for the 30 minute break between races, we would have stayed to watch more. After we left the stadium, we went to the Saddling Barn, where you can watch the race horses get saddled and walk to the track (sadly no pictures). Tyler could have sat there forever. Near the Saddling Barn, we came upon a jockey, and Tyler looked at him like he was a celebrity. I would have asked him for a picture, but it was clear by his language that it probably was not a good time.

Blaming the Skunk

So, we thought we had our little problem solved when we caught the skunk after Christmas. We were wrong! Last week, we installed a mesh cover with hinges hoping to allow the skunks to open the "door" to depart, but not re-enter. The next day, we caught number 2. I waved a fond farewell to him and bid him on his way when the animal control lady came. Unfortunately, she warned me that our problems were far from over. Those stinkers are smart and travel in packs!

The remaining members of the Shek Skunk family have proven to be geniuses. They are no longer fooled by the peanut butter and tuna in the trap and somehow they have been able to open the mesh door to get back in. So, Arthur came up with a funky contraption hoping to prevent them from reaching the door after they have left for the night (including a trash bin and wood). But, the 9 PM rumbling noises coming from our crawl space have not ceased. So, if anyone has a sure-fire skunk removal solution (short of harming them), please send it our way!

Here is a slightly humorous side of the story, though: Tyler has accompanied us on a few of the morning "check if we caught a skunk" trips. We warn him to be quiet so that the skunk doesn't spray us. So, the other day, I noticed that he had a wet shirt and asked him if he sprayed the water on himself when he was washing his hands. He thought for a moment and said, "Maybe the skunk sprayed me!"

Cereal Junkie

The biggest problem with eating cereal is trying to decide which brand to eat. I have long been a fan of combining cereals. When you can't choose between fiber or sugar, just go for both. The sweet crunchy flavor of Fiber One - Pops is something you just can't buy at the store. My secret indulgence has been discovered by Tyler, which has recently become a bigger problem. He now insists on getting a sampling of every cereal we have in the pantry. This was what was left on my counter every day last week:

Going for 100

I just realized that my first anniversary of blogging is coming up on the 19th. My goal is to have 100 published posts in 1 year. So, come back to see if I make it!

How many Friends do you have?

I enjoy teasing Arthur when he complains about how few "friends" he has on Facebook. I mean, has his life become that sad that he relies on a friendship counter to make him feel good about himself? Can reading messages on his Wall really help him get through a rough day? He has tried persuading me to join, but I haven't had much interest in social networking. I have good friends in real life, so why would I need fake friends on some website?

He finally convinced me to join when he told me how many of my current friends are already signed up. These friends are normal-functioning members of society, so I figured that if they were part of the phenomenon, I could try it out. My glee was hard to contain when within 20 minutes of registration, I already had 9 friends! I only wish that Arthur was not in the room to avoid having to look at the smirk on his face.

woo-hoo!! I just checked and I now have 11 Friends!!

Boys will be Boys

So, I just received a new calling to teach the 8 year old children at church. The class has 5 wonderfully rambunctious boys. Last week was my first week teaching, and I quickly realized that I am going to have to make the lessons interesting and employ a good sense of humor. I wrote the word, "BROWNIES" on the chalkboard and told them that every time they started to get a little too wild, I would remove one letter. If by the end of the class, there were still any letters remaining, they would get brownies at our next class. All 5 boys nearly fell off their chairs in laughter, when I erased the "O" and one of them yelled out, "We get weenies for our treat??".

6 Kids Under the Age of 8

My brother, Steve came to visit last weekend and brought along his 4 kids. Arthur's brother, Aaron dropped by as well for dinner. Aaron gave Tyler a helmet and pads for protection while he rides his new scooter. Since Tyler thinks Uncle Aaron is the coolest, he wouldn't take off the helmet or pads all night (which is why he is wearing them in all the pictures). In fact, he made us help him put them on over his pajamas when it was nighttime. I don't even want to get started on the negotiations we had to go through to get him to remove them when it was time for bed!

The cousins got to reacquaint themselves with each other by jumping in the mini bouncer and throwing balls down the hill in the backyard. I don't think I'll ever forget Amanda, Tyler and I sneaking into our neighbor's "jungle" backyard to retrieve one of the balls.

Everyone had a blast and we were all sad the next morning when the house was empty. Oh, and with 6 kids in the house, please ignore the mess in the background of the pictures!