Did Harvey Unga get drafted?

I want to start this post by saying that I love my life. I have an awesome son, another one on the way, and one smokin' hot, crazy cool wife. My life is a whole lot better than I could have ever imagined. I look forward to coming home everyday to hang out with my best friends. It is seriously a blast.

In all honesty, I did not think life could get much better... but then a string of events proved me wrong.

Event #1:
We had just laid Koby down for a nap. It seemed like it had been such a long day and it was only 1:30PM. On any normal day I would have taken a nap, but not on this day. I grabbed a soda and sat my butt down on the couch, determined not to get up for the next 3 and a half hours. I was ready to watch BYU lay a smack down on Utah (unfortunately BYU lost the game, but that's not the point). Then to my delight Megan decided to join me. She started asking me questions about football rules and strategy, which I was more than happy to explain. She ended up watching the entire game with me. by the end she was able to follow most of the plays and knew what was going on. Even though BYU lost, it made happy that Megan took the time to watch the game with me.


Event #2:
About two weeks after the BYU game, I was watching the Colts - Cowboys game. Again Megan sat down with me to watch the game. Two games in two weeks? I didn't know what was going on, usually Megan only watches the Superbowl with me. It was a good game, even though the Colts lost. Megan asked me questions like why do teams run the ball up the middle? or when do teams go for it on fourth down? It made me smile.


Event #3:
If you haven't noticed already all of these event have to do with football. Anyway, the next night we were watching some Monday Night Football after Koby went to bed. It was the Jets - Patriots game. Megan was asking me about the different players and what they do. I wasn't sure if she wanted to keep watching or go do something else. I offered to change the channel and we could watch something else. She responded, "that's ok, I want to see who wins." I seriously thought I was dreaming.


Event #4:
It was only a few days later. The Colts were playing the Titans on Thursday Night Football. Megan watched the entire game with me again. I was so confused, another game? I didn't want to jinx anything, so I didn't talk much. She started making comments about the game, quite insightful sometimes. At the end of the game she said that Peyton Manning played way better than the week before... I was speechless.


Event# 5:
We were laying in bed after the Colts game and Megan started asking me how the NFL draft worked. How long someone needed to go to college before the draft, etc. It honestly made my laugh a little. I think that is every guys dream, to get to explain to their wife the logistics of the NFL draft. it was a beautiful conversation.

Event #6:
At work the next morning I got a text from Megan. It read, "Kerry Collins (the quarterback of the Titans) looks like Tony Horton from P90X." That made my day. when my wife knows the name of a mediocre NFL quarterback, you know you can't ask for more.


On November 26th I didn't think my life could get any better... but I was horribly wrong. Megan, I just wanted to let you know that I think you are the coolest! I hope you keep watching games with me. I just hope you don't become a Patriots fan, even though I know you think they are good. I love you.

My favorite thing in life...

is definately being a mom.

This morning when I went to get Koby up I opened his door and this is what I found...

He was kneeling in his crib with his stuffed doggy on his lap and he was folding his doggy's arms. I hear him say, "Heavly Fadder, Thank you this day, Jesus Christ, Amen!" Then he looks over and sees me, points to the ground by his crib and says, "Mommy kneel, Doggy's prayin."

Also, the other day Koby ran over and climbed onto my lap, laid his head on my chest and gave me a hug. Then he looked up at me and with his eyebrows raised he nodded his head in a point of fact and said, "I love you Mommy."

As hard as it is sometimes, I love my job:)

Prego update

14+ weeks and no more Nausea! Minus the occasional headaches and unbuttoned pants, pregnancy is looking a lot better these last couple weeks.

I'm a dessert person, always have been. With this baby however, I've turned into something else. I'm now a cheese lover. Put a Hot Fudge Sunday and a good turkey sandwich in front of me and I will most definitely pick the sandwich! My loves: CHEESE, milk, tomato and basil Triscuts, pickles, and oranges!

On another note. We had a great Thanksgiving break with James' family and are sad the week had to end. Also, it snowed like crazy here and Koby and I are loving it (probably because I don't have to drive in it).

Baby!

On Monday Megan went in for her first doctor's appointment. They just asked her a bunch of questions and did some blood work. On Tuesday I got off work a little early and took her in so we could hear the heart beat and make sure everything was ok. It's kind of weird, I was talking to Megan about this the other day, but until you actually hear the heartbeat, you kind of wonder if you're really pregnant. It doesn't quite seem real, but when you actually hear and see you baby, it really sinks in.

Anyway, we got to see the baby on the ultrasound machine because the doctor couldn't find the heartbeat right away. It was nice to actually see it and hear it too. Koby was really excited. He kept saying, "Look at baby." Megan is due on May 29th. Pretty exciting stuff.

So, on to the important part of this blog. I am all done with the doctor's visit mumbo jumbo. when Megan was pregnant with Koby, some how we came up with the name Murphy to call him until we decided on a real name. I was thinking about a temporary name for this one, and I am thinking Beuford might be good. I asked Megan and she said we should just call it baby. That's no fun! I am still not quite settled on Beuford, it just doesn't sound completely right, so I am looking for some recommendations. I hope we get some good ones.

Shoutout to James

James turned 26 on Sunday! Happy Birthday to him!

James and Koby are buddies. Koby wakes up and says, "I want Daddy." I say "Daddy is at work" and Koby replies, "Go get him. I want Daddy."

You can see why he loves his daddy so much...

Deep Thoughts

After some nagging by Megan to contribute to our family blog, I gave in. After doing a few posts, I realized that it was pretty fun. But I don't want our family blog to turn into "Deep Thoughts (or maybe not so deep) by James Huntington." So I have started a new blog specifically for my rants and other non-family related thoughts, deepthoughtsbyjames.blogspot.com. I will still contribute to our family blog, but all my other randomness will be on this blog. Hope some of you will decide to check it out.

I have a dream!

"A life without dreams is like a garden without flowers." - Anonymous

That is sad. Flowers are so pretty, without them, and garden would become colorless and boring. I like dreaming too. Not too long ago I had a dream that Jason from Friday the 13th was trying to kill me. It was weird. I guess I didn't really like that one, but I like most of my dreams.

My guess is when Anonymous said this, he wasn't talking about the succession on images, sounds, thoughts, and emotions the mind experiences while one is sleeping, but instead about our life goals and aspirations. Let me know if my thinking is wrong.

This is kind of going off of my last post of my dream of growing a beard. I guess I have just been thinking a lot about dreams. So what did you or do you want to be when you grow up? When you were younger did you envision yourself breaking tackles and diving into the endzone, scoring the winning touchdown in the Superbowl? Did you imagine yourself helping a sick child back to health? Did you see yourself as a pilot soaring thousands of feet in the air?

When I picture myself in my dream job, it makes me feel giddy like a little school girl. I can just see it now. I am surrounded by bright young minds, so of the most intelligent in world. They will one day become the future leaders, entrepreneurs, CEOs, doctors, lawyers, etc. I can see their minds working to acquire the knowledge that they will need to not only to pass the test they are studying for, but to also help them make big decisions in the future. In my dream job I will have more books around me than I will be able to read. Books like The Wealth of Nations, War and Peace, The Tale of Genji, and the works of William Shakespeare. Oh how great it would be, and I will be able to do what I do best... vacuum, sweep, and mop. My dream is to one day be a janitor at Brigham Young University.

Some of you who know me know that I already was a janitor at BYU. I used to clean apartments at Wymount. Oh, and some of the best days of my life were spent there. So wouldn't that be a step back? Haven't I already fulfilled my dream? Yes have fulfilled part of my dream, and it would be a step back if that was the end of my dream. But there is more, oh so much more.

Before I become a janitor, there is much I would need to do. I would like to follow in the footsteps of Michael Nicholson, a 67-year-old Kalamazoo retiree. For his story, please click here. He has 27 college degrees. I want to take that a step further. BYU has 78 possible master's or Ph.D. programs, I am shooting for as many as possible before I am 75-years-old. Then I will submit my application to BYU for a custodial position at the library.

What I would like to do once I have the job is to wear a long trench coat to work everyday. the inside of my trench coat will be lined with my degrees. I will go about my business cleaning and vacuuming the best I can, but I will keep a watchful eye for a student struggling with their homework or studies. When I spot one, I'll quietly make my way over to them in a very discreet manner. Then I will whisper to them something like, "It's (b) kid." Most likely they will respond with something like, "Dude, who is this crazy janitor?" or "How the heck would you know that, this is a graduate-level corporate law assignment that I am working on?" Then I will open my trench coat (hopefully they won't think I am flashing them) and they will see. Maybe I will rig the coat with spotlights for each degree, and when I am talking about a certain degree, I can turn on that light. I want to be a legend... the creepy old guy that knows everything.

Well, that's my dream, what's yours?

Captain Beginning

Growing up, did you have a favorite superhero?  Was it Superman?  Batman?  Wonder Woman?  Robin (if he was your favorite hero, you have serious issues)?  Did you run around the house pretending to be like him/her?  I have a nephew that loves Spiderman.  When we get together, I often find myself playing with him pretending to be the bad guy, running from his webs and dodging his punches.  I have another nephew that used to really like Ben Ten, and I think one night when he was over, he would have me be one bad guy.  then we would fight, and he would beat me up.  Then he would be another bad guy, beat me up, and so on.  Good times.

When I was a young lad, I loved the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.  Maybe it was the little Asian boy in me that liked sneaking around and pretending to fight bad guys like a ninja.  One Halloween, I dressed up in my ninja turtle's pajamas and went trick-or-treating.  I thought I was pretty hot stuff, and I knew deep in my heart that someday I would fall into a sewer, toxic ooze would drip onto me, and I would turn into a ninja turtle... someday.

I suppose I have grown up a little since I was 6 years old, just a little.  I have since convinced myself that I will never find the ooze that will turn me into a ninja turtle, although I hope I am wrong.  Now, almost 20 years later, my idea of superheros have changed a bit.  I don't think that having superhuman powers is a prerequisite for being a superhero.  I don't think that you need to wear a skin tight suit or have a cape.  You don't need to have a secret lair or have to fight crime.  Let me tell you about the person who became my new favorite superhero not too long ago.

In the land that he comes from, he is a little taller than average.  He is a pretty skinny guy.  His looks are by no mean intimidating.  He normally wears black pants or jeans, slightly shorter than what most men would wear.  He has some pretty sweet hair that he is constantly brushing out of his eyes.  He is kind of creepy and kind of greasy.  He once asked me how much a prostitute was in America.  He was a student in my English class in Okayama, Japan.  His name means "beginning."  After every English class we would go outside to say bye to everyone.  Every time, he would roll down his windows, wave to us, turn on his car and blast "Take on Me," by A-Ha.  Without a doubt, every time.

One cold winter night we were at English class.  My friend Steve, Megan, and I were teaching. The class begged us to give them English names that they could go by.  Although a little apprehensive because we thought it was weird, we gave into their request.  "Suzuki-san, you can be Jennifer.  Matsumoto-san, you can be Larry Bird..."  Then we came to him...  He suggested that we call him Jason, but I wasn't feeling that.  It just wasn't good enough.  There had to be something more.  Then it came to me, "Hajime!  You will be known as Captain Beginning!"  A hero was born. You see, in my strange little universe that is my mind, to be a superhero, all you need is a name, and a theme song, and that he already had.  Thank you A-Ha.

Today, while I was at the OC Tanner employee store, I heard a familiar tune come across the air waves...  Bada da dum bum bum pada da da da dum...

So here is to you Captain Beginning, my favorite superhero!

Making the ancestors proud...

For Grandma Takako...

Every time we sing "Head Shoulders Knees and Toes" with Koby he says,"Sing it in Japanese". He usually says most of the words. The other day he was playing in his toy room and I heard him saying,"Atama, Kata, Hiza, Shi, Hiza, Shi, Hiza, Shi!" (Toes should be Ashi)

He also loves to count in Japanese. He says, "Ni, San, Shi, Go, Moku ... Hachi, kyuu, Juu"...He misses one and seven and says Moku instead of Roku, but pretty good for the little Quarter-Asian:)

James can correct all my misspellings. They aren't the best, but here is what we could get on video:

 

Serves me right

And this is what happens when you tell your husband he needs to start helping with the blog he created...

Have Yours Dreams Ever Been Crushed?

Did you want to be the President of the United States when you were younger?  Were you sure that you were going to be the next Jerry Rice or Michael Jordan?  Did your parents tell you that you could be anything you wanted to be?

Have you ever had your dreams crushed because you came to the realization that you are an immigrant and can't become President?  Or were they crushed the day you went out for basketball tryouts and everyone was three feet taller than you?

Well I had a dream once.  When I grew up I wanted to be like Abraham Lincoln, Confucius, and Karl Marx.  Did I want to be president?  No.  Did I want to be honest?  Not really something that I have aspired to be.  Did I want to be wise?  Nope.  Did I want to be a communist?  For a little while, but I grew out of that.  What I wanted was to be able to grow a beard.  William Shakespeare once said, "He that hath a beard is more than a youth, and he that hath no beard is less than a man."  I wanted to don the mark of a distinguished, wise, and powerful man.  But here I am, approaching my 26th birthday, and due to my genes I am only able grow facial hair comparable to a 14 year old.  Do I blame this on my parents?  Maybe, but I know they didn't not wish this upon me.

To my immigrant friend who cannot become president, there is always governor.  To my short friend, there is always Madden.  For me, thanks to the discovery of picnik.com, there is always photo shop.

According to a poll by tressugar.com, 50% of women like scruff, 20% like clean shaven, 13% like full beards, 12% like goatees, 4% like sideburns, and 2% like the 'stache.  Well at least I can do a little scruff and I have no problem being clean shaven.  That accounts for 70%.  I just hope Megan falls into that 70%.  I'll ask her tonight.

I DRIVE A DODGE STRATUS! (well, I used to at least)

I was a bit hesitant to purchase anything other than a Honda, but last January when the last of our Honda Civics was totaled, and we didn't have the money to buy another one, I decided to try and have a more open mind with car brands.  (Side note: we haven't had the best of luck with cars lately.  Please click on these for details - Civic #1, Civic #2, Replacement #2, and Replacement #2 again.)  Anyway, after looking at several different cars over a week or so, I found a nice little Dodge Stratus.  It seemed very well maintained, ran well (so I thought), and I could say, "I DRIVE A DODGE STRATUS!"  (For those who do not know the reference please click here.)  I was excited about that, and the dealer gave me what I thought to be a pretty good deal...

Last Saturday my friend Mike and I were talking about cars.  He told me that Stratus' we rated as the least reliable cars in America.  I joking told him, "Thanks for telling me now, but at least I can say I drive a Dodge Stratus."  Approximately 52 hours later I was driving home from work.  I decided to come home early to help out with Koby because Megan wasn't feeling well.  I was enjoying some sweet tunes as I pulled off the freeway.  I started hearing a strange sound and figured I would need to take the car in.  I stopped at the stop light, and that was the end...  My only friend the end...  I pushed the piece of $%&# to the side of the road (please excuse my language).  A cop happened to be right behind me.  He pulled over and instead of asking me if everything was ok, he had the audacity to ask me if the car was in fact mine.  Are you kidding?  I wanted to kick him in the shins.  He didn't even help me push, he just told me to make sure the car was gone in a few hours.

Well, I started walking home and I saw another car in a ditch on the side of the road.  There was a man, who looked homeless, going through the car and getting stuff out.  I figured he was a bum looking for whatever bums look for.  Then he turned around and I saw his face was all bloody.  My being the slow person that I am thought to myself, "Wo, did this bum just get into a fight?  Maybe he is crazy and he got into a fight with himself... that would be kind of weird to see.  (Started picturing a scene from Me, Myself, and Irene where Jim Carey character fights himself.)"  Then I saw that the air bag were deployed and everything started coming together.  I called 911 and waited until the paramedics got there.

I finally got home and had my uncle help me tow my car to a shop.  The mechanic to one listen to the engine and he knew what was wrong.  He told me that I was going to need a new engine.  He said he would check around for prices, but it would most likely be between $3000 and $4000.  Ha!  That's what I paid for the thing!

So we are now out of a car.  I will never buy a Dodge again, even if I will be one of the few in the lower-middle class that can say "I DRIVE A DODGE STRATUS!"  I miss my Civic.  That baby had 300,000 miles and was still running like a charm.

Anyway, after much thought, I have decided that I am boycotting cars.  I still need a good way to get around, so I did some research on different transportation methods.  I would like everyone who reads this to help me decide on my future mode of transportation.  Please vote for which way you think I should get around.

Here are the options:

Heelies:

These are classic.  They would make me feel like I was 10 years old again, but they wouldn't be the best going up hill.

Camel:

I would love a camel.  How much do they eat?  Are they OK in the snow?  What kind of gas mileage do they get?  Tough decision.

Bike w/ white tires:

I am a huge fan of beach cruisers.  I love the white tires.  My only addition would be a surfboard rack on the side (unfortunately I live in Utah, and there isn't much use for a surfboard, but it would still be cool.  If people asked me, "What's with the surfboard?"  I could be like, "Wait, was I supposed to take a right on Santa Monica Blvd?  I was way off.")

???:

I don't even know what this is, but if a Chinese kid can enjoy it, I think I can too.

Again ???:

This looks kind of fun, but I am sure I would need knee guards and a helmet.

Segway:

I could be like GOB from Arrested Development!

Spring Shoes:

I would need to get a space suit to go along with these.

Unimotorcycle:

Way cooler than a regular motorcycle.  I think Harley should make so of these.  Can you imagine how intimidating a biker gang would be on these?  Scary...

Walker Bike:

This one might be my favorite.  My only dilemma would be what shoes to use.  Can you imagine if I combined this bike with the Spring Shoes above?  That would rock my world.

Couch Bike:

This would be cool, and if we got a big enough couch, the whole family could enjoy it.  Do you think we could do this with a sectional?

Things that make you look like a Gazelle:

If I got these, I would want to get a clown costume with the extra long pants so it would make me look tall, and if somebody gave me a weird look I would be like, "Haven't you ever seen someone with 6 foot long legs?"

What's your vote?

Halloween

 

Halloween was so fun this year! We went with our friends the Mitchells to their Trunk or Treat at church. Then we hit up this fancy neighborhood in Provo. The houses were all decorated with pumpkins, lights, spiders, etc. They were also handing out individual cups of hot chocolate, water bottles for parents and king size candy bars! Crazy, huh?!

Koby went Trick or Treating with his best bud Ty, aka Richard Simmons. Yes Ty's hair is real, yes Crystal made him a sweet Richard Simmons costume, and yes Crystal is wearing a spandex body suit. I didn't get a picture of Scott, but he was a good sport too - wearing some very short shorts and some sweet slicked hair.

At every house Koby would say "Twick or Tweat," pick his candy and say "Thank you, Happy Halloween." Halloween is so much more fun when you have little guys excited for every house.

Do you know how many people called Koby "She". Do you think I would dress a little girl up as a Rocker boy? Also, What one year old has hair like that? haha.

James and Koby were some cute Rockstars...


Richard Simmons, Rocker (Bret Michaels?), and 80's workout chick



"Sweatin' to the Oldies"

Do I need to say anything?

Little Moments

Every now and then between all the dirty diapers, temper tantrums, hitting, timouts, spilled drinks, flying food, and being offered ketchup-dipped bananas, there are moments that remind us why we are so blessed to be parents and have Koby in our lives.  Today we had a few of those moments.

Moment #1:
Sitting in church today, Koby was enjoying some marshmallows while sitting on Megan's lap. He started praying in a loud voice, "Heavly Fadder, thank you day, thank you food, thank you marshmallows, AMEN!"  I guess he was just grateful for those marshmallows and had to let Heavenly Father know right then.

Moment #2:
Before dinner we were watching a church DVD and the menu was left on the TV with a large picture of Jesus... While eating dinner Koby turns towards the TV and says, "Toast Jesus, Here go, its good, yummy."

Moment #3:
Also during dinner, he said, "I want juice!" I held his juice and said, "what do you say?" Koby then gets a whiny face and says again that he wants juice. I say "Koby you say please". Then he looks at us with a FAKE pouty face and says, "Koby cry Waa, Waa!" Ha, manipulation from a one year old taught to him by none other than his mom. Sometimes if he won't give Megan a kiss she'll say, "Koby, mommy wants a kiss, I'm gonna cry...  Waa, Waa!" I guess we know that he is a little sponge sucking up all the things we teach him, intentional or not.

Moment #4 (not proud of this one, but it made me smile):
Koby dropped his colored pencils today and said, "Aw crap!"  Megan doesn't say that stuff, so I guess I will have to watch my language around him, oops.

He just started using "I" and "too" this week. The other day he saw a soccer game and said "I play soccer too."

Our little boy is a growin' fast, but all this stuff makes me glad that I'm a dad.

Family Night(s)

Monday night we took Koby to Mabey's Pumpkin Patch in South Jordan to pick his very own pumpkin. Of course he picks the smallest, ugliest one. Luckily he isn't old enough to notice we switched it. 

   

Last night, we turned on Nightmare Before Christmas, colored pumpkins(easier to do with Koby than carving), and made Hot Fudge Sunday's with non other than Grandma Nebeker's amazing fudge! It was so much fun and Koby was in heaven.

James is going to kill me...

...when he sees this post. James tried making me promise with the second one we'd wait a while. He thought it would be funny if we waited until people started to be uncomfortable and wonder in their mind, "Is she pregnant?" Well I am uncomfortable and since half the world knows...We are pregnant. Koby is in need of a friend so we decided it was time. Hopefully we will be out of a basement apartment before the next one comes:)

With Koby I didn't really show until about week 14 or so. With this one I'm already in that awkward stage...

It is 3:45 in the morning. I have been up for about two hours. It started with the third bathroom trip for the night and it hopefully will end if I ever fall asleep again. I do not remember EVER feeling this horrible with Koby. James had to stay home from work once last week to take care of Koby for me. Luckily the kid is obsessed with the movie Cars. It gives me about a 30 minute window to sit.

Week 4

Week 7

After church. Koby asks to go to nursery pretty much every day.

This is what he looks like when he watches...

...this movie.

Rock Star

The Halloween costumes for kids I've seen lately have been around 30 bucks! We decided to get creative and come up with a cheap Halloween costume(that fits our budget). I used a diaper box, paint, thread, brads, and an old paint-stirring stick to make Koby a guitar. I used some old extension hair and sewed it to a bandana for Rock Star hair.We spent $3.00 on Rock Star tattoos....

Total cost of Halloween costume: $3.00 

Tie Dye Ninja

This is how James entertains Koby...

 It must be rough putting yourself to sleep.

Cause for concern...

 

 

 

 

Koby walks better in heels than his mommy.