Headfirst into the Holidays

I know I haven't blogged for a while, sometimes I just don't feel the urge, other times I can't wait to put some thoughts down on the computer, then there is the times that I am guilted into it.
With Thanksgiving out of the way it is time to concentrate on Christmas, but before moving on I thought it would be important to take a few minutes to think about all the things that there are to be thankful for. Don't get me wrong, I am not walking around whistling and singing that life is great, and there are no worries here at the Mecham house, but I also recognize that during the rough times it easy to overlook the good things in life that happen daily.
I am thankful first off for my family, my kids, my wife, and even my brothers, sisters, and extended family. We had probably one of my favorite Thanksgivings this year, and it was born out of simplicity. For Thanksgiving dinner we met at my sister Machelles house. It was so interesting, we had most of the Mechams except for Brett and Family and Cherise and family, but Mindy invited C's sisters and nieces, Russell invited a couple that he knew through work, and Rachael invited a friend, every time she does this we adopt them into the family because they are always so funny and entertaining. Randy showed up and brought Bri with him, although Bri has been part of the family for a while. Whenever we get together it is such a madhouse, that I worry about what people who are not used to being around a house full of chaos will think, C's sister relieved my worries when she announced that we were so much fun that we were all invited to her wedding. When asked when her wedding was, she said that as soon as she found a man and got engaged then she would let us know.
Saturday night we went out to find a Karaoke spot at Stephanies request. We looked up on the internet to find a place, and found one that was a Filipino bar-restaurant. We showed up first to get a spot and immediately realized that we were most likely in the wrong type of place. There was a private party with a D.J a dance floor and lots of people that spoke really fast in a different language. We left there and ended up at a place called Three Tomatoes and a Mozzarella. The Karaoke was setting up outside, but it seemed harmless enough so we stayed. Karaoke quickly turned into karaoke roulette, with some of the submittals being handed in without the person singing knowing about it. We stayed until 12 and had a wild time. A couple examples of songs... Mockingbird duet with me and Manda, I like big butts by Heather. A whole new world with Randy and Bri.. I have friends in lowly places sung by Randy and accompanied by the whole Mecham family. The song from Grease by Jeff and my newest adopted niece. But the highlight was Mindy getting drug up to sing Down low and helped out by C's. If you don't know what this song is, watch the movie The Proposal with Sandra Bulloch. It was such a fun night, outdoors with the family, in a very quiet setting with a very rowdy group.
We had such a good time that I wish we could do it every week, but now the weekend is over and it is back to reality. Kathy is cramming some of her homework, and finishing looking over her teaching plans, I am sweating what this week will bring, and Jeff is on his way back to the Y.
The Tebb's stopped by on their way to a vacation in Monte Carlo and Jakes soccer team will have practice to get ready for the RugRat soccer tournament this week.
It would be great to live in a world that we don't have to worry about paying bills, finding work and studying for school, but that is not life right now. The year is coming to an end, and we are grateful that we are still slowly chugging along. We look forward to the possibilities that lie ahead in the new year.

Life is Fragile.

Kathy and I were out at a Halloween party last night at a friends house. It was good to see everyone there and we were settling in when the conversation of trying to find a ride back to BYU for someones kid came up. It was mentioned that maybe there was someone down for a funeral that might be going back. I recognized the name of the family mentioned, but was not aware of any deaths in that family. My friend told me about what had happened and all I could do was sit back in shock.
A while back a group of guys invited me to go with them for their morning bike rides. It was early in the morning, and we all rode with lights, jackets, coats, gloves anything that would keep us from freezing. I rode with the group for several months, and to be real honest, if I was asked to pick any of them out of a police line-up I couldn't, I could recognize them by bike and voice only due to the heavy riding gear and darkness that we rode in.
This invite to ride came at one of those low points in life, and I can't even begin to explain how grateful I was to this group for accepting me in and making me feel so welcome.
As we rode in the dark sometimes I would just listen to conversations, other times I would be involved in them. I felt like part of a close circle of friends, something that I don't normally do.

One of the guys that rode with us had a son that was on a mission in Japan and was going to return home soon. Every morning I would hear the sons name and listen to how he was doing, the plans they had to pick him up, and even what he was going to do when he came home.

A couple of months went by and it was time for the family to go pick up their son. When he came home, he became a part of the morning ride. He showed up on one of the ugliest mountain bikes that I had ever seen, but he still would kick my butt on the morning climb up Villa Ridge. On the way down he would fly. There is a stop sign that sits part way down the hill, it is kind of a stupid place for a sign, because there really is never any traffic and it goes to a nowhere street. One morning as I was descending (fat guys go down hill fast) I was ahead of most of the group, but slowed as I approached the sign. The new kid flew past me without even tapping the brakes. When we got to the bottom, I commented on the no slowing at the sign, and was he not worried about cars. He just smiled, shook his head and said "nah".
When he started working for his Dad for a short time before going to school, he would occasionally head back with me early and we would pace back until the turn-off. I can't say that we became great friends, because we never spoke much, he always rode with his I-pod in and I always wondered if he was rocking out, or listening to a church talk. The one thing I did know about him was that he was a good kid, and his Dad was proud of him and loved him.

Last night as I sat at the party trying to sort out the new information, I was numb as I was told of his accidental death. He was too young, it was not fair, and what a tragedy for this family that are such good people and have done so many good things for so many. I can't imagine going through such a loss, how do you say goodbye to someone so young that you love so much. Life is fragile, my friends son died doing something that he enjoyed. He passed away flying down a mountain, and had an accident. He will be missed by his parents, friends, family, and even the guy that he kind of new that would sometimes pace with him on his way back home to get ready for work. I know that in his short life he lived it to it's fullest, and left a positive impression on many. Life is Fragile. We don't get to choose how or when we will go, we only know that at some point we will all die. I know that I have a belief in a God, and it is my belief that when he arrived home that day, he was met by his Father in heaven, and welcomed home. I believe that we will all see our loved ones again, and when that day happens I feel that it will be a celebration for those on the other side. My thoughts and prayers go out to my friends family, it sure adds instant perspective to what is really important in life. I hope that time will heal the hole in their family.
It is my hope that anyone that reads this will take the time to look at the loved ones around them, tell them you love them. If they are not close by, pick up the phone and call them. Life is Fragile, but it has meaning, we have been placed and have been given the opportunity to be in a family. It is one of the greatest gifts that we have been given. Tonight when you get ready for bed, remember this and remember to give thanks to a wise, loving God that has put us here together for a reason.

Some of Amanda's Newer Pictures

Hey this is Amanda! I just thought I would show everyone some of my new pictures. Here we go!


-One of my dogs, Rex.

One of the pretty flowers by the pool! (:

Me on a four wheeler ride at the cabin. Cassie took this!

It sounded really cool.

Evidence that we saw icicles! Hahaha!

You see the beaver dam? I think this picture is pretty.

One of my favorite pictures ever.

Me (middle), Cassie (bestfriend of the right), Bella (Cassie's sister on the left)

My dad took this one, but I edited it.

Tell me what you think! Bye.

Sometimes it's not about the climb.

Yesterday as I was spending some time with Jake, we were driving in towards the house and looked at Lone Mountain. "Why don't we go climb that today", I suggested to Jake. He didn't hesitate and immediately started to make plans. "When can we go, can I bring a friend, who is coming with us," were his immediate questions. We had one more soccer game, and as I sat there trying to figure out why I had suggested this outing and what was I thinking, I realized that it was something that I have been wanting to do. We have lived in our house for almost 7 years now and there has not been a single time that I have looked at the mountain without wanting to climb it. I don't know why, I don't really like to hike, but there has always been an urge to see what is up top. My brother Randy used to jog the mountain when he was in training to be a fireman, Kathy has been part way up with the young women, and I have watched the transformation of the mountain as we have lived here. At first it stood out all by itself, soon houses started to work their way towards the base, then tracts of home were built behind, the Beltway even comes within 50 yards of the back side of it. Even with the new neighbors, Lone Mt, is still a sentinel standing high above everything around it.

As the game was over we came home and got ready to go. Tim and Amanda decided that they didn't want to climb it. Jake wanted to have a friend go, but he had a baseball game. The only ones that stayed on track with the plans were Kathy, Jake and I. Kathy drove, and as we got closer to the mountain she continued around the backside, the road to the path was newly barricaded so we drove as close as we could, and then climbed out of the Excursion to begin our climb.

We walked until the path started to head straight upwards. I started walking and soon realized that Kathy and Jake had a whole different take on how they were going to tackle this mountain, than I did. I was charging full speed ahead, they were casually walking. I was anxiously climbing each rock to see what was on the other side, they were noticing the different things around (the gravel pits, the marks of graffiti on the rocks, etc..). I kept climbing until we hit about 2/3 of the way up. As I looked back to see what was keeping them, I saw them both standing at the ridge part of the saddle in the hill looking over the valley. Kathy had her hands on her hips, Jake was crouched, just looking. It hit me that this is not anything unusual with how I approach things. I am always so concerned about charging ahead, looking to see what is next, that I sometimes don't take the time to appreciate the journey. If it's work, I am always looking ahead to see what I am going to be doing down the road. Even on family vacations I am guilty of running from ride to ride at Disneyland to get to the next place, and don't take the time to realize all the details of the place, the music, the characters, and yes Darren, even the Churros. I can't wait for the ride to be over so that I can hurry to the next.

As I looked at Kathy and Jake, I realized that maybe it is time to take a different approach to things. They were enjoying their hike, I was just sweating and breathing hard only so that I could get to the top and see how quick I could turn around and get down.

I read a comment on the "Post secrets" website today that I found very insightful, it said,

You shouldn't give up.

Fight for yourself and who you are.

You've got to go through the worst times in life

to get the best .

It is no secret that many of us are charging through life right now, scared of what is going to happen tomorrow. We keep our heads down and charge forward, because that is the only way we know how to go about it. In reality we don't need to be afraid of what is happening right now, to the point that it makes life miserable. We can still take the time to enjoy the climb. Look at the views, try to spot things that you would normally overlook.

I love to look at Amanda's photos, because she can capture the smallest details that many of us do not see, only because she is taking the time to appreciate and look. Where I see a valley, she can identify a flower growing from a crack in a rock, or icecycles growing underneath the banks of a stream.

We did eventually make it to the top of the mountain, it really isn't that big of a hike. The sun was now down over the hills, and the blanket of lights over the Valley were all turning on. We looked for our house. We talked about how straight the streets were and how different all the lights were, we even took a few photos and then it was time to head back. I trailed behind, trying to get a couple of photos of the valley at night.

I watched Jake cautiously walk down the rocks. As we climbed back into the Excursion and started to drive we saw a faint light bobbing up and down. As we go closer, we passed a father and son on their way towards the trail to hike the mountain in the dark. I wondered what they would learn from their trip up. Were they climbing it just because it was there, or would they take time to appreciate the climb.

The difference between then and now.

Today as I drove home from Jakes soccer game we had our interesting conversation. We talk about the freeway being messed up, what was Las Vegas like when I was a kid, etc...
Halfway home I asked him what he wanted to do when he grew up. I want to be a professional soccer player, was his response. I flashed back to when Jeff was slightly younger than Jake is now and I had asked him the same question. Jeff told me that he wanted to be a professional basketball player. Being new to the whole Dad thing, I began my lecture on how hard it would be to play basketball, what it would require, how few people actually ever are good enough to make it. I told him that he would be better off going to college and getting his degree to get a real job instead of pursuing an unrealistic goal for a white kid that doesn't come from a geneticly tall family. For years I regretted telling him that. I think that all kids should have dreams, and in my attempt to be the realistic Dad, I felt like I had crushed his. Why not let them dream, if they want to be a profesional basketball player, scuba diver, or pogo stick hopper, let them dream it. I wish I could go back to that day and answer him differently.
Today I felt like I kind of had that chance. When Jake responded that he wanted to be a pro Soccer Player, he also asked "what should my backup plan be?" I thought about it for a minute, and we talked. I told him that if he wanted to be a soccer player then he is on the right road. Right now he should have fun and practice hard. Plan B would be to get on the high school team, and then go to college and play. As we talked I told him that if he played at the college level, he could also get a degree and that would be awesome. Once he graduates from college then he can decide if he wants to still play, or he could do whatever he wants because he will have both options. I know that whatever his decision is, he is lucky to know early on what he wants. I know that he will grow up and who knows what he will ultimately do. I hope that if sports are his future, that I can at least get discounts to his games, pro sporting events are too expensive.
The important thing is that after that day with Jeff I have never wanted to be a dream killer. The kids are doing just fine deciding what they want to do, and when the time comes they know that they can come to Mom and Dad for advice. In the meantime. watch out David Beckam, Jake Mecham is coming after you.

Sunday

Sunday is always an interesting day around here. Now that Jeff is gone we don't get the piano performances anymore. Amanda sometimes practices her violin, and Jake.... I don't know what he does because he is so quiet.
For Sacrament meeting Amanda and I sang a duet. She has such a pretty voice, and I was nervous that I would embarrass her. I have never been much of a performer, I don't know that I get nervous, it's just that I don't like to do it. We sang a version of Abide with me Tis Eventide. I tried to learn the harmony part, but gave up after a couple million times trying.
Amanda ended up singing the harmony and it was much better.

The best part of the whole thing was seeing the stunned looks on peoples faces when we finished. I don't think anyone knew that I could somewhat sing. Anyway, it was fun for me to get to do this with my daughter. I am lucky that we have such talented fun kids that keep us entertained and never bored.

Yesterday Amanda tried out for Jr. High honor choir, and Mormon youth symphony. She will hear back on honor choir, but was told she could play in the symphony.
Tim's team had a football game on Thursday that he had some great plays in. He had one good run, and several good blocks.
Jake had two soccer games. I am the assistant assistant coach, this year. I have had a ton of fun doing this. The other coaches have lots of experience and have been amazing with the kids this year. In yesterdays game we were put up against a younger, inexperienced team. At first we scored way too many points. We finally made up a 5 pass before shooting rule, and that didn 't work either. We then pulled out 2 players, and that didn't work. Our last effort to even things out was to not let our kids shoot, and just practice passing. It was frustrating that the league would put us in a situation like that.
In the 2nd game we played a more even team and won. The field was the back field at Betty Wilson. If anyone has ever played there, it is quite possibly the worst field in the world. It slopes easily 3 ft from one end to the other. The grass is too long and it makes it difficult for the boys to play on. They end up exhausted from running in the thick long grass uphill, or have a hard time judging their kicks, cue to the slope. All in all things are going well for us. Kathy has been offered a full time math job. She has one more interview, but who wouldn't want to hire her?

More of Amanda's photos

Mandy-Manda-Amanda showed me her photo's the other day. I thought there were some really good ones that were worth posting. I still think she has a gift for taking photos and capturing the moment. (just a side note. I went to Open house at school with her, and made the mistake of publicly calling her Mandy. She corrected me and told me that she was going to start calling me Kim if I didn't address her by the correct name. I now don't know what to call her around her friends so I have resorted to just saying "hey you".)

Here are the Photos.


Mandy and Kasey working on the famous Facebook photo taken into the mirror.

Oh Nooooooo

When you come over to our house it is probably best not to drink out of the plastic cups. It appears that they are also used for entertainment when the kids get bored.

I like the colors of the close-up photos she takes of flowers. This is a Bird of Paradise growing in our front yard.

Can anyone guess where this is from? (Manda informs me that this was taken by Cassie) she doesn't want to take credit for it.

Sand Diego, beach trip. Anybody can write their name in the sand. It takes real talent to spell it with rocks

This looks like it could be from a nature magazine. I'm surprised she got that close to the bee.

These are Growing at Grandma T's cabin, by the front door.

Another bug-flower close up. Butterflies aren't quite as threatening.

Ty with his monster fish. If you want to hear a funny story ask Chase for his version of fishing in the stream.

Clouds in Las Vegas. Kind of unique.




Big D. I am not sure if this is with his shirt on or off, because I swear his parents had the Y tattooed to his chest when he was a baby.

Why does Jake look so guilty in this one. It's alright Jake, they are fish, it's not considered murder if you catch one.

A favorite pastime at the ranch is throwing rocks into this pond, and skipping rocks. I don't know how there are even any rocks still there after all these years and who knows how many kids, that have thrown them in.

Eva's hands, the backdrop is the clear Panguitch sky

This one is just cool.

The cousins and the tire swing. It is always funny when all the cousins get together to explain that they really are all related.

Henrie's Drive inn at Panguitch. The home of the Chubby burger and Aunt Tracey in the summer.

Grandpas Garden. He did pretty good with it for his first year. Notice that Colbie is not smiling in this one either. The corn is now way over their heads and Grandpa has harvested most of it.

The old Bedroom. This was where Great Grandma and Grandpa Mecham lived before they built the much larger house that my Dad grew up in.

Manda on the trampoline at the Ranch. It sits up on a hill and overlooks everything. At night it is fun to go out on and watch the stars. Please don't pay any attention to Jake's goofy pose. He is such a ham

Anyway, that is all the pictures for now. Thanks Mandy-Manda for sharing them. We will have to get some more of the family photos updated. Until next time.

C-ya