Guess what me and Shaw did..

Any guesses? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?
We rented a Rhino for a few hours and went on an across-the-desert adventure.

There's our car parked at the edge of civilization and we are ready to embark. There were about 20 people who rented off-road vehicles and quads. We were the first to leave which was fine because we didn't have to contend with anybody elses dust.

This is one end of the off-road area beside the Verde River. It was flowing quite nicely. I was a bit lost because we got there so quickly I didn't think we could possibly be at the end of the road and I had to really study the map to realize that we had made it. We went about 25 miles round trip.

Out there in the middle of nowhere, there was no one to snap a picture for us. My arm is the length that it is and so this is what I got.

I told an industry mate last night that I was going to do this today and she said that it was going to cost me $100k. She owns a couple of quads and one of these and a trailer and the insurance and the super-duper suspension etc etc... it's addictively fun and it adds up.

I've never driven one of these but I did own a motorcycle 25 years ago. Off-roading is inherently dangerous but these machines are built for such things and I was really pleased with how quickly I could get a feel for what it could do. It handled very well and was very stable- I even climbed over some serious rocks.

It was a perfect day and the perfect travel companion and absolutely one of the funnest things one can do... but I caught my limit. Maybe I can rent a couple of these a couple of times a year and I'll be fine with that. That was a great day!

Best pizza in town

There's a saying about pizza that even when it's not that good, it's still pretty good... I was attending an industry mixer recently and I chatted with the head chef of the largest catering company in this city. His company does high-end events that feed several thousand and they do it well. He recommended a pizza place that is off the beaten path- it's in an commercial/industrial area in Tempe. It's called Spinatos. We tried it out a few days later. It WAS very, very good pizza.

This is Lesa and Shaw having a spirited intellectual discussion about the merits of good pizza sauce and how sourdough can become bitter when over cooked. We ordered a large pizza and on one half, we had what the waiter recommended- artichoke hearts, Canadian ham and onions. On the other half, I chose meatballs and Italian sausage. I don't think any of us were particularly starved but even when we are, I can't remember when we ever finished a pizza without taking a few slices home in a box. We devoured the whole pizza rather quickly, Lesa and I shared a brownie with a scoop of vanilla gelato and Shaw had an order of 4 hot garlic bread sticks for desert because he's like that...

Heading out the door- Lesa shouting her compliments to the staff. Contact me for details if you ever want to have a great pizza.

The Temple is rising!

We paid a visit to the Gilbert Temple site after church today. We had been trying to go on first Sundays but for whatever reason, we hadn't been down in a couple of months. I hope they realize that in addition to us, there will be other curious lookie-loos and it would be great for us to have a viewing platform at some point so we don't have to hoist the little ones up on our shoulders go see the progress, but I didn't mind hoisting him up so much... The Redlands California Temple had a senior missionary couple assigned to the construction site for that very reason. They had fun facts and activities for visitors and even stayed late on Mondays for Family Home Evening visitors- I guess that's technically Family OUT Evening. They invited children and families from all of the stakes in the new Redlands Temple district to bring a rock out to the construction site and put a family signature on it or a favorite scripture or quote and they were ultimately buried in the foundation of the fountain out front. He's pointing and describing some features to me not realizing that I can see through the screen just fine. This below ground portion will be where the Temple baptistry will be. In Christianity, a baptism is by immersion and the font should be below adjacent ground level. It's symbolic of death and burial and that sounds a bit morbid as written here but it's a reminder that the old sinful self is dead and buried in Christ and then the new person is symbolically resurrected as they come out of the water clean and new. Now that we can see the footprint of the temple, I'm surprised that it is rather close to the intersection of Pecos and Greenfield Rd. I just imagined it further back on the property. There are major power poles going all directions at that intersection and I know that usually the church attempts to avoid- when it can- being adjacent to a radio aereal or a other visual architectural distractions so that the Temple really stands out, visually, as the beacon to the world that it is, spiritually. I did note a couple of new towers being constructed some distance away that I theorize/wonder if they will be used to route the cables underground in the vicinity of the temple before the construction is complete. Stay tuned.

Shaw's last Pinewood Derby

Shaw raced his third and final Pinewood Derby race for his Cub Scout career. Our baby is getting all growed up. This was taken at the Saturday morning weigh-in. Cub Committee Chairman David Frost and his son and fellow cub scouter, Jeremiah next to the scale. Tuesday night- race time! Pre-race jitters and giggles.

Shaw's first race of the night. He's in the lane on the right closest to himself.

Reviewing the video of a disputed close finish. The Cubmasters' original call stands.

Shaw won the Judges Award and 6th place in the racing out of 10 cars. His first year he was 14th out of 14, he was sick that night and didn't even get to attend but I raced his car for him. Last year, he won 3rd out of 13 cars! Congratulations from the Primary Presidency counselor over Cub Scouts and from the Cub Committee Chairman.

Here's some fun video of one of the heats. He's in the center lane here and he took third in this particular pairing and lane but he was getting second pretty consistently in all other heats. I think he won only one grouping.

I've said all three years that I thought that it was a bit backwards having the Cub Scouts do the Pinewood Derby and that it should be saved until they are older. I can't think of any parent with half a brain that would allow an 8, 9, or 10 yr old anywhere near an electric cutting tool that has the potential to sever a finger. I realized this time that this is exactly the thing that facilitates boys working WITH their dads. Brilliant!

Bike Rodeo at Ishikawa

First of all, it's important to have a clean bike for the camera.

Quick inspection and some instructions...

And... He's OFF!

A visit to the Desert Botanical Gardens in Phoenix

Here are some pictures from our family adventure at the Desert Botanical Gardens here in Phoenix from Spring Break. There was a fantastic butterfly exhibit. Don't ask what the names of any of those butterflies are. As far as I'm concerned their names are Frank, Kathy, Jim, Stephanie... I just know they were really beautiful.

Shaw had a scavenger hunt designed to have kids discover all the elements of the garden and he's checking something off here.

Notice the butterfly in the center of course, but check out the one flying out of the shot in the top right.

That tall spiky thing in the left third of the shot is a boojum tree and the cactus that fills the other two thirds on the right is not a saguaro but an organ pipe cactus.

These are saguaros.

Shaw on a mission.

Clan Whipple.

Shaw has conquered the garden. Those yellow/green plants are actually glass sculptures compliments of artist Dale Chihuly.