Father's Name

A bit of a somber Father's Day this year... Father’s Family Name You got it from your father It was all he had to give So it's yours to use and cherish For as long as you may live If you lost the watch he gave you It can always be replaced; But a black mark on your name Can never be erased It was clean the day you took it And a worthy name to bear When he got it from his father There was no dishonor there So make sure you guard it wisely After all is said and done You'll be glad the name is spotless When you give it to your son

HARDY

Maybe Next Year?

Awsumb was excited to play two teams this season.  Majors Braves and 50/70 Cubs.  It was exhausting and who would have ever thought we would think something was too much baseball.  This sure came close.  Awsumb had a lot of success on the 50/70 team and was excited to play with old friends and teammates on the Braves.

 When Awsumb was just a toddler in the afternoons he would sometimes ask to watch baseball. He didn't really watch much kids TV after a few morning shows so the afternoon request was always granted. In the afternoons the games that we often found to watch were Braves games.  Awsumb would get so excited pointing out the A's on their hats and say, "My team Mommy! My team!"  Then he would watch closely and as the pitch was thrown he would yell to the batter, "SWING!"  My brother Brian and his wife reside in Atlanta.  Awsumb was very excited to play for the braves as his Little League Majors team.

This past year Little League introduced a new level, 50/70.  Our league convinced Kenneth to get out league started in this level and coach a team this year.  As the league uniform coordinator I set aside some Cubs uniforms for the new team.  It was slow going and a bit of a bad news bears years as we had so many double rostered kids and just putting a team together every game was a lot of work.  But you have to start somewhere.  Hopefully all the kinks are worked out and next year will be pretty good!  Awsumb and Kenneth were excited to play and coach the cubs in honor of Duane's passing.

I didn't get many pictures this season as I was recovering from emergency surgery I had at the beginning of April.  But here are a few...
(coming soon...)

PUT ME IN COACH!
 I'm ready to play today!
Look at me, I can be
Centerfield
-John Forgerty

Focus Week?

Awsumb's new school sends the kids away for a week in the spring.  Focus Week, they call it.  The trips are sponsored by a teacher or two and generally related to current studies in class.  The school fills the trips based on priority.  So the older kids get first dibs on trips to Europe of other high adventure trips. We thought 6th grade would be perfect for a D.C. trip.  But when the art teacher sponsored that one and said the kids would be doing a lot of sitting around sketching we decided that was NOT the trip for Awsumb.  Next best thing was a California trip.  6 parks in 6 days, Roller coasters, studying physics and statistics... say no more, Kenneth was signed up!  I was a little miffed, seriously?  I thought some of the local hiking trips were better options.  But Kenneth wasn't going to pass this one up.  The trip was actually 9 days with a couple beach days and a museum thrown in there.  Oh and to top it off, they were gone over our 19th Wedding Anniversary.   So I packed Kenneth a space pen with a note that said "write me" (inside joke).  An I made Awsumb a mini Disney survival kit in a mickey mouse tin (which he loved, and remember I've been overboard on the emergency prep every since my surgery).  I sure missed them.  Especially since all the solitary time during my recovery after surgery. I was just ready to be out and about.   The boys have gone away together loads of times for the week for school, scouts, etc.  But this one was the longest week of my life.

Boys will be boys and they took only a few photos...

(coming soon)

Totally Awsumb Disney

We made the decision to send Awsumb on our little Spring Break trip solo.  After all sitting around all week worrying about me and my recovery wouldn't be much fun for him.  I also really needed to rest.  So we made some calls and prepared to send him on his way.  That's right, his first solo flight. I was a bit nervous for him, but he felt pretty confident.

To our surprise Southwest Airlines considered and up an adult.  SO he really was on his own.  There was a stop in San Jose, no plane change, but a stop and I was texting with him the entire time he was on the ground!  He did great and I send a new little friend along for him to find in his backpack.

(Pickles)

Auntie and Uncle were at the John Wayne Airport waiting for him at the gate and I am sure he was thrilled to see them!  After a couple days with the Allen's he met up with some old friends at Disneyland.  The Erickson's moved to Minnesota a few years back.  Awsumb makes friends easily, but has also considered Caleb to be his best friend.  I was so sad to miss catching up with Kimberly.  But thankful she was willing to spend a few days with him so he could take his mind off things!

Here are a few fun pictures from his trip....

(coming soon)

I Am Becoming...

 

Awsumb Kenneth Hardy

age 12

 I am becoming...

This statement was above the school doors my son entered every day of elementary school.  This year he is in the 6th grade, at a new school with a lot of pressure and expectations upon him.  And he is becoming... quite the little man.  Some days I wish with all my heart he could stay little forever.  And others I marvel at who he is becoming.

 

 

Red Ryder BB Gun

Not posted or distributed due to current news events of the season from 2012.  But I feel like enough time has passed I can now share...

 

 The Official Red Ryder Carbine-Action Two-Hundred-Shot Range Model Air Rifle

 

"Guaranteed to shoot your eye out!"

 

Love, Your Mother, Your Teacher and Santa Claus

 

May your Christmas be full of warm memories!

 

 

Love, Kenneth, Wendy and Awsumb

The Letter

Dennis Awsumb, Duane Hardy,

Little Awsumb and Kenneth Hardy

October 2006 Awsumb's 5th Birthday

 Mariner's Dugout

Safeco Field, Seattle, Washington

 

When we first learned that Duane was sick my father was among the first to invite us to come stay at his home anytime at a moments notice so that we could visit and spend time with the Hardy family during what he knew would be a tough next so many months. 

During this time my father was very busy and traveling lot. He didn't want to intrude and didn't know what he could do.  And in the end Duane went pretty fast. 

Kenneth and I grew up just 2 streets apart and our families went way back and our fathers had always been friends.  Our little brothers played ball together.  Our fathers played church sports together.  They also served together in the church clerk's office.

So when we drove out for the funeral my father told me he really wanted to share some things with Shirley but didn't know if he could be composed enough to do it. My reply, "Say it in a Hallmark."  The next morning he left specially selected cards out for Kenneth and Shirley that included the letter below.

This past few weeks many people have been especially kind to us, sharing cards, flowers, plants or asking where they could send a donation or simply a hug and an "I'm sorry."  But this letter has touched us all the most and I will keep it as a treasure for my son to have to remember that his Grandfathers were friends and both loved him very much.  I hope Awsumb learns from both of our fathers about commitment, working hard and their sacrifice and service to our country.  This letter encompassed so much of what Duane meant to all of us and Kenneth's family even decided it needed to be read during his memorial service.

Kenneth and I are so blessed to have grown up with such outstanding fathers!

So with my father's permission, the letter:

Duane Taught Me Many Things

Duane taught me to be passionate about many things - whatever Duane was doing he gave it his full attention. If Duane was playing ball or doing finance work for the Church it was the only thing that mattered at the time.

Duane taught me to never give up.  If we were playing softball and were down by 10 runs Duane would say we are still in this and many times we would win the game.

Duane taught me to never wear glasses in the ocean.  Once when we were in California he lost his glasses in the ocean, from that day on I never wore my glasses in the ocean.

Duane taught me to be helpful to other people.  Many times he would figure out a way to help a neighbor in need either by doing the task himself or finding someone else that could help.

Duane taught me to always be the first one "there."  Duane always liked to be at the opening day of any event - like a Bees or Trappers game.  I enjoy to this day going to things on the opening day.

Duane taught me to never run up a score on another team. Once at a BYU football game BYU was way behind and the other team kept scoring.  Duane said, "LaVell Edwards would never do that."  So I try to never run up a score on anybody.

Duane taught me to see into the future.  When a ball diamond was being built behind the church Duane was always the first one to sign up to work on the field, whether to rake the rocks or lay the sod.  As we raked those rocks and laid the sod, Duane would say, "This will be a great ball field some day."

Duane taught me to always support my wife.  Duane and Shirley had many different interests from each other and supported each other in those interests.

Duane taught me to love my kids no matter what. Duane was always interested and proud of each of his children's interests and accomplishments.

Duane taught me to plan ahead - we spent time together in the ward clerk's office planning how to get Wendy and Kenneth to go out with each other - it was one of the best things we did as a team.  As a result we share a wonderful grandson.

Duane taught me many things - I will miss that guy.

-Dennis Awsumb

Mickey's Halloween Party Birthday Suprise

After throwing Awsumb a decoy Totally Awsumb Nerf Birthday Bash it was finally time to reveal the surprise...   Kenneth checked Awsumb out of school, telling him we had dentist appointments.  When Awsumb came in the door he found a pile of packed luggage and an invitation I customized from a mailer Disney sent out last month advertising Mickey's Halloween.

 

 

We flew out Thursday and after check in visited Downtown Disney to pick up our Annual Passes.  After dinner at Storytellers it was time for bed.

 

Here are some iphone shots. I'll have to come back and update with photopass stuff later

Disneyland - Friday Day 1

Because we planned to stay out late for Mickey's Halloween Party we took our time and had breakfast in the room arriving at the park at 10:30.  It's always fun to walk in and find the park all decked out for the season!

 

Awsumb pulled Space Mountain FP's and we headed to Pirates, Haunted Mansion, Winnie the Pooh, Pulled Indy FP and used our Space Mountain or as it is called at Halloween Ghost Galaxy Fast passes. I really don't like this ride. I don't know if it's because it's darker or the creepy skinless ghost or what.  It kinda makes me sick.  But Awsumb thinks it's fantastic!  Then we went on Star Tours, The Matterhorn and caught the Parade.

When you buy tickets to Mickey's Halloween Party you can enter the park 3 hours before start time.  Or if you are already in the park pick up your bracelets and trick or treat bags at that time over in Frontierland. Then we went on Indy and The Jungle Cruise.

 Awsumb knew we were going to the Halloween Party, but didn't know what he was wearing as a costume. We teased him all night that he was going to be one of the 7 dwarves, which he wasn't too happy about. So when he woke up to a Captain Jack Sparrow Costume he was excited to play pirate for the day!  You can see that it was very busy this weekend. (Utah Schools were out for UEA, an educators conference or as we call it - Utah Escapes to Anaheim).  The park was pretty packed.  And the Friday night Halloween Party was sold out.

 

Lunch at Blue Bayou

Monte Cristo split plate.  Did you know you can do a split plate and they will also include a side and soup or salad?  Awsumb loves this because he can start with jambalaya!  I was sad to learn the  latest revised menu no longer serves veggies and cheesy potatoes with the Monte Cristo.

 

 

Kenneth has been Indiana Jones every year for over a decade.

 

 

Maybe not such a good idea to wear a leather jacket when it was 80 degrees!  We got a special backstage encounter on our trip through Indiana Jones Adventure this time.  But I dare not publish it here!

 

Kenneth and I on the Jungle Cruise

 

 

Because I didn't know what the weather or the party would be like I choose a simple Minnie Mouse Apron. It was fun and easy and I received lots of comments from other moms.

 

After lunch we wet to Frontierland and Saw Goofy, Minnie and Mickey and played some games.  We were among first in line for the Toon Town pre- party and it was totally worth it.  They couldn't send us through everything fast enough!  There was lots of trick or treat trails, rides and characters.  We saw Carabelle and Goofy and went on Gadget Go-Coast and ended up missing Roger Rabbit (should have done that in backwards order)  We had more candy than we could ever eat over the weekend before the party officially began! 

 

Trick or Treating in Minnie's House

 

 There are so many fun things to see.  Don't miss walking through the path behind Big Thunder Mountain from the Ranch to Frontierland, at night it becomes a really cool spooky trail! 

Our best tip is to avoid the main hub and stay in the back or corners of the park as much as you can.  The parties can be very crowded and overwhelming. Especially as the regular park goers are being escorted out and the Halloween Party guests are trying to enter Disneyland.

 

 

We saw Peter Pan and Wendy, went through all the Trick or Treat Trails in the area, and saw Donald and Chip and Dale.

 During Halloween the Dapper Dans turn into the Cadaver Dans and float on a raft in the middle of the foggy Rivers of America. It was amazing and their singing filled the whole area with a spooky atmosphere.

 

Time to Meet Jack Sparrow!

I should have video taped this encounter as Jack didn't really hold still for a picture until the end and played around with Awsumb and his costume and hat for a while...  Lots of fun!

 

Jack wasn't too keep on this Indiana Jones Guy!

 

We caught the Costume Cavalcade. I don't know why they don't just call it the Halloween Parade!  The Halloween Fireworks were AMAZING and we got a last minute front row joe seat directly in front of the castle.

 

 

We made our way to Tomorrowland to find Darth Vader was not appearing, although he was a usual character at the Halloween parties this year.  but the storm troopers were in front of a cool back drop.

 

Then we went through the innovation trick or treat trail to see Phineas and Ferb.  After riding single rider through both sides of the Matterhorn we caught the Costume Cavalcade again and trick or treated through fantasyland to the ranch to see the spooky trail again.

 

Just before the end of the night we made the line to see Minnie and Mickey.  It shouldn't have been a long wait, but these two took their sweet time with each party.  At that point I just wanted to get off my feet!  Minnie was very cute about my costume and kept giving Indy BIG kisses!

 

It was so much fun to see what the Halloween Parties at Disneyland were all about.  I kept telling the boys we didn't care about candy. In the end you end up with a lot of candy because a lot of the special characters are in candy trails.

 

They did have "healthy" choices.  Apples, Carrots, Craisens, Cheeze-its, Graham Crackers, Goldfish, etc.  The candy was all chocolate. No hard candy, suckers or gum.
 

 

Sleep Tight Birthday Boy!

 

I wanted Awsumb to have a few small things to open on his birthday.  So I arranged to have Mickey and the Gang deliver a surprise. (i.e. I snuck all this into our luggage) Each card included a  joke and a small gift from each character:

Mickey - iPhone Cover

Minnie - Handmade Pillowcase

Donald - Mickey Duct Tape

Goofy - Mickey Bandaids

Pluto - pirate shoelaces

 

Saturday - California Adventure Day 2

Happy 12th Birthday Awsumb!

I knew Awsumb would choose to spend some of his birthday monies on this hand knitted Oswald The Lucky Rabbit he has been wanting for a long time now...

 

 

 

A slow day in California Adventure as we were just so tired from the day before.  Kenneth took Awsumb through the Grizzly River Rapids TWICE and got him SOAKING WET including his shoes. I had flip flops and told them to put them in the bag if we planned on riding that day... they both insisted they wouldn't and then well... So Awsumb got a new pair of Mickey crocs.

  

Dinner at Napa Rose with Auntie and Uncle

 

Awsumb choose the sea bass with blood orange sauce and couscous.  And to start a seasonal soup with apples and duck confit.  He ate every bite.

 

Auntie and Uncle presented him with a leather bound Mickey Mouse journal.

Thank you Auntie and Uncle!

 

Sunday -  Carsland Day 3

 

Traditional Picture in front of the pumps!

It's always too crowded to get a picture here, but I try anyway... 

 

Awsumb's shoes were soaked on Grizzly River Rapids the day before so he was stuck wearing Mickey crocs the rest of the trip. I can so black mail him with this later in life!

 

 

Popcone with nacho flavoring is our new favorite snack!

 

 

Cars, Screaming x2, Tower of Terror

 

Lunch at Carthay Circle

Because we had a big breakfast we weren't that hungry and decided we wanted to eat in the lounge after we canceled our reservation to go upstairs.  Everything we ordered was lovely!  I especially like the lobster spring rolls and Kenneth loves the deviled eggs.

 

 Ebi Shrimp Rolls and Minnie Mouse Caramel Cones!

 

Cars again, Tower of Terror 2 more times!

  Animation Academy x 2

Because I can't even draw a stick figure these classes are especially fun as I begin to recognize characters towards the end of the instructions. Love it!

 

 

 

 

Mad hatter Dance Party and Monsters Pictures

 

Then we parked hopped over to Disneyland for the rest of the evening

Dinner at Jolly Holiday where I was excited to get the warm grains and vegetable salad, which turns out to not be warm. And would be so great warm, especially on a cool night!  But it would be refreshing on a hot day!

 

Jungle Cruise, Pirates, caught the end of Fantasmic, Fireworks, Haunted Mansion and took the Disneyland Railroad the Main Street.

 

Monday - Disneyland Day 3

 

After a mix up at the hotel and free room service for breakfast (don't stay at the Convention Center Hilton - just don't...)  We checked out bags with the bell hop and took ART over to the park for a few more hours before our flight.

 

Star Tours and Buzz, saw the Ironman Armor display, Ghost Galaxy x2, Matterhorn x2

 

Café Orleans for lunch, Pirates, Haunted Mansion, Indy and the Jungle Cruise

 

Then we got our hands stamped - A family tradition, so you know you can always come back and it was time to fly home.   Awsumb slept the entire plane ride home!

 

If you notice there was no fantasyland in this trip. Some of this is due to the fact that as a seasonal trip we had unusual plans each day.  And also because the carousal was being refurbished. The large tent covering it up was ugly and made fantasyland not so fantastic to be in. Also Awsumb seemed to have other things he was focused on this trip. We didn't really do it on purpose, we just kept putting it off, but it does say something about the way Disney experiences change are your children grow up!

 

 Kenneth really needed the break from work and all the other things that are going on in our lives right now.  Happy Birthday Awsumb! I hope it was a trip to remember.