I begin this one with a sad story. Since Jarom was a young
boy one of his favorite things to do has always been play basketball. It is
great exercise, builds lasting friendships, and gives him a convenient and
socially acceptable venue to practice his psychological warfare skills. So it is
a good thing that Jarom is Mormon, because everywhere he has lived he has been
able to quickly find a regular pickup game that is played relatively close to
his home on a quality court. And Dallas was no exception to that rule. The
first week he arrived he found the regular pickup games played at the stake
center not once, but twice weekly. It was great. He made friends and stayed in
decent shape. Unfortunately one night between Christmas and January a man from
the high council came in and interrupted the game and informed everyone that
basketball was cancelled by order of the stake president and that we were all
to go home, and that we couldn’t play anymore. This did not fly with Jarom, so
he stuck around to talk with the president for more details, which the
messenger could not provide. The president was in a meeting, so Jarom simply
shot baskets by himself while he waited. After a little while an upset stake
president came through the doors to yell at him for playing basketball. Jarom
asked him why basketball was cancelled, and was given a list of nebulous
pseudo-reasons such as: people are staying too late, there have been incidents
of vandalism (Jarom researched this claim and found it to be patently false),
nobody is in charge, and (this is not a joke) the games are getting too fast.
Jarom offered to be in charge and was referred to one of the counselors to get
the games back on track.
He's a very good snuggler
Costume party at the Walmart?
Over the next few months Jarom was led on a sad trail where
it became increasingly apparent that the stake president had no interest in
restoring the basketball games. A system was arranged where there would be
people with callings who were in charge and responsible, information for all
participants would be kept, games would finish by a specified time, and the
imaginary vandalism would be stopped. No promise was made about making people
run slower. After all this Jarom was told that the only way basketball could be
played is if it was part of a stake sponsored tournament with teams from each
ward. The given reason was that the president is not willing to open the church
up to the possibility of a player getting injured and suing the church. It goes
without saying that a lot of people aren’t thrilled about this decision, but
for the moment it doesn’t seem like there is much that can be done. I guess all
we can hope for is an early release and a less paranoid successor. But you know
what they say; “For every grumpy overzealous ecclesiastical leader who won’t
let you have any fun there is a new litter of adorable bunnies.” At least I
think that’s what they say. And wouldn’t you know, yesterday while Jarom was
giving the lawn its first cut of the year he stumbled across a little den full
of bunnylings. Jenna and Bo are pretty excited about it. I think Sonic would
also be excited about it, but he hasn’t ventured outside so far during his life
and when Jarom tried to take him out yesterday he sort of freaked out. So it
looks like this year’s bunnies will be fine, but next year’s probably won’t be
as lucky.
Looking for Sonic under the crib
Feeding the hyper-aggressive ducks
Speaking of Sonic, that cat is crazy! He is a lot of fun and
we really enjoy having him around, but he is a kitten and has lots of energy
and seems to enjoy the taste of human flesh, particularly hands and feet. He is
an excellent pouncer and practices every chance he gets. Jenna has studied him
in great detail and can sometimes be found stalking and/or pouncing on others.
Bo loves Sonic, but Sonic is a little scared of Bo because he isn’t always the
softest with the cat. He is going through training right now, which consists of
getting sprayed in the face with water any time he misbehaves. He knows to stay
off the couch and the table, and he knows not to play too rough with certain
people. He also knows that he should not climb into the dishwasher, although he
really likes that and will persist in that behavior until he is quite drenched.
This kid eats his body weight per day
In his new big boy bed
Seriously, he never stops eating
The weather is warming up, which meant it was time to have a
bonfire and roast some mallows. The temperature cooperated, staying cool but
not freezing. The precipitation wasn’t as accommodating, with a heavy downpour
coming shortly after the food was cooked. But everyone sat under the tin roof
and pretended they could hear each other and the kids played in the rain and
had a great time. The family also took Opa with them to the Zoo on Saturday
morning, which is always a treat. It is even more fun now that Bo is talking
more. His vocab seems to grow by a dozen words a day, and Jarom is constantly
surprised at the phrases and sentences that he is able to put together. It is
especially cute when putting the kids to bed. Bo has been banished from his
crib and now occupies the first floor of Jenna’s housebed in preparation for
the arrival of Emily Brooke. He seems to enjoy the larger space, and Jenna
seems to enjoy having an audience for her nightly performances. Jenna will ask
Bo what song they should sing, Bo will choose one, and then Jenna will sing it,
often omitting the final word of each line so that Bo can participate. It is
very fun to listen to. Jarom and Lix are very glad that the kids seem to be such
good buds and are able to keep each other occupied for long stretches. They are
working with Bo to keep him from hitting, and with Jenna to keep her from
tattling so much, but these are minor concerns. Overall things are going pretty
well, which is appropriate because soon there will be an addition and
everything will be chaos once again.
Chomper, chomper
Animal rides at the zoo: Turtles, Dads, and Opas
Best of luck with your brackets!
