Parker Pele

I never played soccer growing up.  Baseball was the national pastime and apparently it was our family pastime.  I remember seeing pictures of my brothers wearing soccer uniforms but pictures of me playing the world's game was not in my world.  Even when I went and watched some friends play soccer I found it very hard to stomach, especially because it took me away from the baseball diamond.

With Parker coming of soccer age and not conflicting with t-ball season, we decided to put Parker into the county soccer league.  He was put on the Castle Dale team with other youth ranging in ages from 4-7 of which he is one of the shortest and the youngest.

Despite not having soccer lineage I have made a few attempts to share with him my wealth of soccer knowledge.  I had seen some soccer highlights and so the first lesson I taught him was that when he scored a goal he was to throw his hands in the air and start running and yelling, "GOOOOOOOAAAAAALLLLLLLL."

5 games into the season that lesson is still waiting to be put into use.  So far he is getting the hang of getting into the "swarm" of kids that moves as one up and down the field.  He started a little timid but seems to be holding his own.  He loves playing goalie and has been a wall only allowing a couple of goals to sneak by.  Probably the best part for Parker is that he gets to travel to other places to play soccer.  So far Parker has taken his Pele skills to Cleveland, Huntington, Ferron, an Orangeville.

Pele was the great Brazillian soccer player, Parker is the Pele of Emery County?

Parker Prayer Roll

It is always nice to be prayed for and surely prayers of a child call down the powers of heaven, but to be prayed for by Parker of late you were either injured or sick.  Almost daily the following made Parker's prayer roll:

     - My eye

     - Brock's sickness

     - Grandpa Swenson

     - Haven's leg

     - The baby in mom's belly

     - Christian's leg

     - Mom's test

     - President Monson family

With Parker's thoughtfulness in praying for others maybe that is why it seemed the list grew!  Truly Parker is a boy of prayer!

Temple in Cedar City

Today was a great day for the kingdom of God! The Lord's Prophet announced today that my hometown would be having a temple built in their backyard! Though we live in Castle Dale we hold Cedar City as a great place and a place we will always call home.

My family moved to Cedar City in 1990. Cedar City was still a small town where everybody knew each other. Leigh Hill was still where you could hunt jack rabbits. My dad had grown up in Cedar City on Dewey Ave. I loved growing up in Cedar City.

Cedar City is where I graduated from high school and college and most importantly where I met my eternal companion. Our first year of marriage started here and we have fond memories here.

As time went on Cedar City changed. Leigh Hill is now covered with homes and probably no sight of jack rabbits on the hill. Having been away now for over 7 years we have lost touch with the community but love to go back and remember.

When they made the announcement today I couldn't help but think of the faithful Cedar City pioneers who have sacrificed so much. My grandparents and parents come to my mind first. I couldn't help but think of how happy my Grandma and Grandpa Esplin are on the other side of the veil!

What a blessing it will be to have a temple in the home of my fathers and my hometown!!

A New Look

For Mom it was age 11, for dad it was age 21 (but should have been earlier), and now Parker joins the list at age 4. All memorable years when eye sight needed some help.

The latest, Parker, has probably handled it the best. Perhaps it is the innocence that comes with age, maybe it is his good heart and his ability to handle challenges. The last couple of days has proven that.

Day 1 - Day one was exciting. It had come with much anticipation as Parker would daily enquire as to the status of his glasses. Having had them fit to his face he couldn't wait to show them off and clean and take care of them. Word spread via text messaging and soon "Parker Kent" was born. Grandma Vicki and family were the first to see the new look and soon it was time to take them to the ball field. While playing a street ball game Parker rounded 3rd and took a dive into the pavement causing blood streaming down his face and some twisted glasses. Mom's are better than eye doctors and soon fixed the situation and took a wounded Parker to straitened the frames out. Parker returned shortly for try #2 two but vowing to not play baseball on pavement. The night was uneventful as he put his glasses to rest in his baseball glasses case, ready for the Easter bunny to come the next day.

Day 2 - Day two built upon some day one successes. On this Easter Saturday he endured some blurry frustration seeing airplanes & soccer balls while making a heart wrenching statement "I can't see what I want to see". With the patch off one of his eyes and now convinced that his glasses actually were super powers for super vision he went about his daily routines of being a fun loving boy. At one point he made the comment, "I can't even tell that I am wearing glasses." Having then improved upon day one he once again put his glasses to bed in his baseball case "all by himself".

Surely there are many more days of frustration, tears, and bent frames but for now we are thrilled at how Parker is doing with what we too went through. It shouldn't come as a surprise. After all it is the same Parker, just with a new super power!

An Easter Tradition?

Easter weekend is a big weekend in Emery County.  The desert seems to beckon all of the four wheelers and trailers to enjoy the beauty and recreation.  After 7 years I think that we just may have caught on to this tradition.  For us our venture has taken us for the last two years to Goblin Valley.  Parker and Brock have loved it as they have climbed all over the "creatures" that emerge from the desert floor.

Easter 2012

Easter 2013

 Highlights from this Easter - Easter 2013!

Raising prophets and missionaries

Recently, the following comments were made to me and my wife:

"So that is what it is like to raise a prophet."

The other:

"The Lord must trust you to raise missionaries."

Both comments were kind and very humbling. These comments came from the following experiences:

Sunday January 20,2013 - "raising a prophet"

Parker loves to sing. He is well taught in the home and is exposed to the primary classics. Upon Parker's request he decided that he wanted to sing in church. With moms help he chose "scripture power". Much effort was put into this including trips to the chapel to practice in front of the microphone. When the time arrived he walked up to the pulpit and faced the 250+ audience with courage. He first recited the 8th article of faith by memory and then sang scripture power. The audience surely made him a little timid but he valiantly sang it word for word and even got a fist pump in for "scripture power". As a father I couldn't help but wonder "what kind of parent makes his kid go through this?" while simultaneously being proud of my son. After collecting Jolly Ranchers from Bishop Magnuson he told mom that "I was a little nervous but it felt good inside." Needless to say that he touched some hearts today

Monday, January 21, 2013 - "raising missionaries"

In much anticipation we traveled to Price today to see how the baby was doing and as a bonus see if we were adding to the basketball team or if we were adding a new color to our home. We were informed that we would be having a healthy baby boy. In our excitement we sent out texts and social media messages to which we had wonderful support. Among the comments that were most touching were, "the Lord must trust you to raise missionaries."

Both comments are kind and overwhelming and in some cases unbelievable. But then I am reminded of the mom that they have who is as the mothers of the stripling warriors and think to myself, "perhaps they are right".

A "Treat" for which we are "Thankful". The best of presents!

The Holidays are an exciting time.  Halloween is full of treats more than tricks.  Thanksgiving evokes gratitude and of course some football games.  Christmas of course is the king of them all with presents and fun galore.

In the midst of this exciting time our family has been "treated" with the addition of another "baby" that will be coming to our home for which we are "thankful"as this will be the best present we will be receiving coming to our home around June 7, 2013

This news has been the best of treats for which we are thankful!

Won & #1

As I turn on the tv to watch some football Parker notices the gold helmets of Notre Dame and says, "Look, gold hemets, its Notre Dame." Watching football was not what he wanted so he said "Let's go play some football." As we get outside he says to me, "I will be Notre Dame, you can be the Cougars." He won! Oh and by the way Notre Dame is #1.

Brock's Buddies

Brock likes his stuffed animals.  From the start it was a monkey that presumably disappeared in a parking lot in Price.  Since then attempts have been made to replace that monkey.  Some have been accepted while sadly some have been rejected.  Some of those that have been embraced and thus loved, carried, dragged, slobbered, squeezed, are a blue "doggy", a Mickey Mouse adopted from mom's old room and a oversized monkey also from mom's old room.  The blue "doggy" goes everywhere Brock goes.  It goes in the crib with Brock, on trips with Brock, and has been the source of comfort for seemingly every tantrum Brock has endured.  When possible we will sneak it out of Brock's sight so to wash it from the dirt that it has gathered upon its various trips.  Upon waking up from every map he identifies where his "doggy" and "mouse" are, puts them in headlocks and climbs out of the crib.

Often I have thought about getting Brock a dog.  After watching Brock with his "buddies" I see know no need for such entertainment.  After all, it is a lot easier to feed these animals

To the Movies - Wreck It Ralph - Brock's First Movie

Parker has seen enough movies to qualify him to be a movie critic.  Brock seems to not be drawn to the big screen as much as Parker was at this age which we are ok with.  Just a few months shy of Brock's 2nd birthday we decided to take Brock to his first movie in the theatre.  Parker was all for it calling the move "I wanna Wreck It" while Brock came along for the ride figuring that a cartoon on a big screen with a guy smashing things might be up right up his alley.  We were somewhat right.  Brock loved the first 15 minutes or so but spent most of the time going back and forth between mom and dad with an occasional peak at the big screen while eating handfuls of smarties.  The theatre was packed and there were plenty of other younger kids so we didn't worry about an active 2 year old on the loose going back in forth on our row.

The movie was good and was made fun by being in 3D.  It brought "Wreck It Ralph" a little more to life.

If Brock does become a critic I think he would have given this movie experience - TWO THUMBS UP!