Memory Monday

WE THOUGHT HE WOULD LIVE FOREVER

Goodbye to our dear Prophet.

Sarah's Visit

We had a fun four-day visit from Sarah, Ashton and Alvie this past week. They came to meet Will and celebrate Spencer's fifth birthday. Another important reason for the visit was Chuck E. Cheese. It seems that a few days before their trip, Ashton was watching TV and caught a commercial for Chuck E. Cheese. He pulled a long face and mournfully told his mother, "There is no Chuck E. Cheese in my world." We corrected that, taking him and Spencer to meet the big guy and spend all the tokens that Aunt Clare could buy. We (Sarah, Clare and I) decided that Chuck's advertising slogan could be; "Chuck E. Cheese--it's not as gross as you might think." Here are a few photos from the visit:

Memory Monday

Amazing Race--The Grand Finale

Tonight's finale featured some of the toughest challenges of the entire race, and came down to a competition between brains, heart and endurance. I really felt for Christine, trying to climb the glacier. I think that men had a definite advantage in this challenge with their superior upper body strength. I also felt Nick's pain as he rearranged his donkey over and over in the final challenge, trying unsuccessfully to remember. In the end, it was the calm and thoughtful hippies, TK and Rachael, who proved that good guys CAN finish first. I really enjoyed this season. AR is the one reality show that I never tire of. I will be counting the weeks and months until we meet up with Phil on the mat again. Your thoughts on this season and the finale?

Memory Monday

Amazing Race Episode WONDERFUL!

Come on, sing along with me..."Ding dong, the witch is dead..." Tonight we bade a gleeful farewell to Nate and Jen. And, in case you missed one of her 37 references, on her birthday, too! It's so unfair! I have several comments to make about this team of brainiacs:

1. They apparently believe that Taiwan and Thailand are one and the same.
2. They managed to pronounce Taipei so that it sounded like they were ordering a two-crusted pastry filled with toes.
3. Jen took it as a personal offense every time she even caught sight of TK and Rachael. She went so far as to threaten to rip out TK's dreads! And she went on at some length to explain why it was so unfair that she and Nate actually sweated, while TK and Rachael just kind of moseyed along having a good time.
4. The final scene of Nate sobbing in the Chaing Kai Chek Plaza was kind of sad. They could have used the million dollars to put towards therapy. Jen, especially, is going to need a little head work if she thinks anyone who watched this season will come within a barge pole's length of her looking for romance. (I'm counting Nate out. I'm hoping he believed her this time when she screamed that she hated him in front of a crowd of startled Chinese.)

I am rooting for either Christine and Ron or TK and Rachael next week. The former are probably the smartest racers and the latter are the nicest. Of course, Don is the oldest, so it's all good.

Who are you rooting for? And one final question; Where are the Nether Antilles?

P.S. Dad and I saw Elvis in the Taipei airport. This was all the more amazing because he had been dead (supposedly) for several years.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CLARE!!!

Well, our baby has put to bed her first quarter-century. At the ripe old age of 26 she has a pretty impressive resume. Here are just a few of the highlights:

1. She has a college degree in art and a secondary teaching credential.

2. People have paid her large sums of money for her artistic creations.

3. She is beloved by many former Sunbeams in the Bakersfield Second Ward.

4. She is an excellent cook.

5. She is a friend to all animals.

6. She and her husband, Chris, are learning to play together nicely at Wii Smarty Pants.

And, finally, we all know that Clare is beautiful, inside and out. But I'm only going to share photos of the outside:

Happy Birthday! We love you!

Memory Monday

Emily has Flashback Friday. I am going to start Memory Monday. Each Monday I will post a photo from the past and invite you to share any memories that the photo may evoke.

Amazing Race #9

Well, we are getting down to the wire, and TK and Rachael are still in it, thanks to (as I predicted) a non-elimination round. Can they make up the three hour deficit AND perform an extra task? I hope so! A bit of advice for our hapless hippies; When you are making plane reservations, don't ask for the flight that LEAVES quickest. Ask for the flight that ARRIVES quickest. They must have suffered some hellish layovers on their way to Osaka.

Speaking of Osaka...It looks like a nice place, doesn't it? I don't think we can hold it against them that no one there speaks English. Chris had a definite advantage, I think, by speaking the language. Unlike her fellow racers, every stop for directions didn't turn into a game of charades. And how classy is it that the taxis have doilies, and the drivers wear gloves and snappy caps?

I am back to liking Ron again this week. He is much easier to like when he admits that he's a jerk and tries not to be. I would be okay with them winning, I think. Mainly because Chris has been a smart racer and has been SO VERY PATIENT with her dad.

I'm okay with Nick and Don, too. They have zero personality, and Nick couldn't find his way out of an open paper bag, but Don is 69 years old and still in the game. Of course, it helps, that Nick carries all their luggage and talks Don through all the techno stuff.

And, finally, to the team that will cause me to poke out my own eyeballs if they win...Nate and Jennifer. I was really bummed thinking that they might get first place in last night's leg. And then Jennifer wrecked that possibility by mispronouncing the name of the pit stop to all the taxi drivers they asked. No wonder none of them knew where it was! I was happy when they missed out again (I know--it's so unfair)! Jennifer has that look on her face all the time that used to make me say to the kids, "Don't give me that look!"

I'm crossing my fingers for TK and Rachael. Even when they thought they were on their way to an elimination they were cool with it. They are so appreciative of the opportunity they've had and treat each other so well that they deserve to win. What do you think?

Meeting Will

Will spent a busy first day, getting acquainted with a steady stream of grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and, of course, siblings. We all agree that he is an exceptionally handsome baby (as befitting a Reed) and very well-behaved, as well.

He's Here!

William Donald Reed (Will) was born tonight shortly after 10:00 p.m. Both Heather and baby are doing well. Carl is a little disappointed about the whole tax deduction thing, but I think he'll get over it. Will weighed in at 7 lbs. 8 oz. and is 18 inches long. He has a nice amount of dark brown hair. We only got a brief glimpse of him, but the consensus is that he looks like Aubrey. More to follow...