Just a quick note...

I love my wife.

- Brandon

Game Night!!!

So, we had our friends over for a game night. We played two games, the first of which was Mad Gab.

Rob and I had our butts handed to us by Sarah and Heather. But, in some regards, the fact that we were so bad at Mad Gab was what helped us keep our dignity.

The girls were really good but at what cost? Sounding ridiculous! Don't believe me?

See for yourself:



Anyway, it was really fun. Rob and I got a kick out of watching the girls make up their own language :).

- Brandon

It's a small world

We made some new friends at church. The Yorks. They invited us to their house for the Super Bowl. Rob got a new high-def TV and high-def cable to go with it. If it weren't for the fact that he didn't have it set up right, I would have never seen this, because the picture was SO small. But because I went to go help him look behind the cable box, I saw a small picture. In fact, I did a double-take. It was our friends from Pullman, the Holmstroms!!!!!

I asked. Sure enough, Megan Holmstrom is Heather York's sister.

Here's Megan:



And here's Heather, with Hyrum and my beautiful, pregnant wife Sarah:



The last time we saw the Holmstroms was 2004. So five years later, without even knowing, we were friends with another part of the family. You can totally see the resemblance.

Too weird. What a small world.

- Brandon

Point of Clarification.

My wonderful wife is not my infallible wife. She needs ginseng for her memory or something. While I DO have snow pics, I don't have pics of the kids in the snow. How quickly she forgets that those types of pics reside on her parents' camera and not ours. If we do not have pics of the kids in the snow, it is because she has not requested or subsequently obtained the aforementioned photos, thereby and in conclusion vindicating me and laying any and all blame squarely on her shoulders.

- Brandon

Hyrum is so cute!

Snow + Western Washington = Bad roads

OK, so I realize I was a pooper when it snowed (see previous entry). We're just not equipped to handle it here in Western Washington. Give us rain any day!

Anyway, here were some pics:






So, the pics aren't too bad because this was just day one. We would end up getting a couple more feet. But you can see how bad the roads get.

– Brandon

Oh, winter

So, in Washington when it snows, we all enjoy it for a few days and then get cabin fever because the state is not prepared to clear massive amounts of snow and ice to make driving conditions safe. Well, that stage of winter is over and where temperatures were in the upper 20s and low 30s, they are now in the 40s and 50s and, surprise, it is raining. Which means all the snow is melting, fast.

Unfortunately, the many rivers, lakes, estuaries, streams, creeks, and ditches cannot handle the sudden inundation and there is flooding. I know our area made national headlines last year and we are expecting the same this year with rivers reaching flood level tonight and not cresting until Friday at seven and a half feet above flood level. I don't know how much more this poor area can handle. People who are just getting their homes back in order from last year are now facing flooding again. Fortunately we were very picky about where we bought our house and we are not in a flood plain, but there are people in our area are being evacuated and our ward building has been turned into an evacuation center.

What a winter.

Here's my favorite local news website. komonews.com They have some great pictures.