The Olympics were held from February 8 - February 24, 2002. My volunteer assignment was in the Athlete’s Lounge at the Delta Center (known as the Salt Lake Ice Center during the Olympics, and now the Energy Solutions Arena), which housed the figure skating and short track speed skating. Yes, that means that Apolo Ohno, Sarah Hughes, Michelle Kwan, Sasha Cohen, Todd Eldredge, Michael Weiss, Timothy Goebel, Jamie Sale and David Pelletier, Elvis Stojko, and Evgeni Plushenko were my “kids” during that time. It was so much fun! Apolo has done so well since then – every time I see him, I remember him as the little 19-year-old who came into the lounge looking for food! :)
We weren’t allowed to take pictures of the athletes, but there was one day that we were allowed to take our cameras to take pictures of the different spots in our venue. Here are a few of mine, including this one with Gail and the late Larry Miller, who would regularly come around and visit us at the different areas at the Delta Center.
With this being the 10 year anniversary of the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City, there have been a lot of events held around the Salt Lake valley and in Park City. Unfortunately, because of our other responsibilities and commitments, we were not able to make it to any. However, on Thursday, February 16, as we were leaving the rec center, we realized that was the day they were having an ice show there. The Olympic mascots were in the lobby, so I took a few blurry pictures with my cell phone camera.
My friend, Melissa, took her kids to most of the 10 year anniversary events. You can read her recaps and see her fun pictures here and here.
Our session included talks by the members of the First Presidency as well as a couple of members of the Quorum of the Twelve. One of the talks was the somewhat controversial talk given by Elder Packer. I’m not going to comment on it either way, except to say that I’m disappointed that so many of my friends who were once active members of the Church are now using this particular talk to spew hateful messages themselves. For those who are arguing that it was a message of hate against a particular group, many of their comments could be defined in the same manner. With my family history, of course some of the things that Elder Packer discussed were very sensitive. However, I felt that, overall, the message was given with the spirit of love and encouragement, not hate, blame, and guilt. That’s my two cents.
Later Sunday night as we were doing Ryan’s bedtime routine, he said, “Mom, I have a new life plan. I’m going to play football for BYU, then be an engineer, then be a general authority.” Quite the aspirations! As one whose original life plan didn’t quite turn out (nor the back-up plan, nor the back-up, back-up plan), I tried to be encouraging, while still expressing that he may not necessarily be the one that makes some of those decisions. At least one of those is something that people generally can’t pursue and accomplish strictly on their own. We had a good discussion about it. I believe that Ryan is capable of many great things in his life, so it will be fun to see which “life plans” come to pass.
The Fab Five performed (and Ryan met them)…
Jon McNaughton discussed his painting, “One Nation Under God.” We purchased one, and had him sign it…
Kimberly Smith & her son, Bryan Dennis (descendants of Joseph Smith, but converts to the Church) spoke about their conversion and sang songs they had written about Joseph, Emma, and some of the events of the Restoration. It was neat talking with them, too.
Howard Carlos Smith, a high school classmate of Rara’s, spoke about his book, “Keeper of the Prophet’s Sword,” and we were fascinated by the sword.
Sister Mary Ellen Smoot, former General Relief Society President, spoke about the history of Centerville, and the partnership between Bountiful and Centerville over the years. It was fun to talk with Sister Smoot and her husband over lunch and during the program.
It was a neat weekend. We were able to meet some amazing people and learn some wonderful things. Ryan and I were two of the youngest people there. Everyone kept commenting at how well-behaved Ryan was, and how impressed they were that he was there and paying attention to all of the speakers! He loved all of the different speakers and everything they shared. I'm proud of him for being such a wonderful young man!
Our cub scout pack meeting for February was celebrating the 100th birthday/anniversary of the Boy Scouts. I talked about things that were happening in the country 100 years ago, and then we had a special guest speaker who has been involved with scouting for over 50 years! He has a fun collection of scout stuff from the past 50 years, so he talked about the changes in uniforms, awards, books, etc. He spotted Ryan in the front row with all of his arrow points and called him up as a "helper." He had no idea that Ryan was the cubmaster's son! He just saw the long line of arrow points and called on him, pointing out the long row of arrow points. Of course, Ryan loved it!
After our guest speaker finished speaking, we played a couple of fun birthday games and then had birthday cake. I think it went very well.
Ryan and I had a wonderful experience in February, due to the generosity of a lifelong friend. My friend Curtis has season tickets to the Jazz games, and his seats are just a few rows behind the Jazz bench. He was unable to attend a game one night, and gave us his tickets!
Curtis is also involved with several philanthropic organizations, including some with Thurl Bailey, former Jazz player and current Jazz commentator. Curtis not only gave us his tickets, but made arrangements for us to meet Thurl during the game. We also met Pace Mannion, former University of Utah player, who is now a commentator with Thurl Bailey. When we went up to the area where they broadcast, there was a crowd of people around watching and hoping for an autograph or a picture. Curtis told us to walk right up to the security guard, tell him that Curtis had sent us, and he’d let us in. He did! We had fun taking pictures on the set and getting autographs. The crowds waiting were very jealous, and we felt like VIPs!
Ryan was also thrilled to find out that Thurl was number 41 when he played for the Jazz…Ryan’s number this year on Jr. Jazz!
Allow me to “name drop” for a moment. Coach Larry Gelwix and Gary Cole who played him, were in the lobby being interviewed as we entered, as were the director, producer, composer, etc. Marc grabbed whoever he could find to introduce us. He had previously given Ryan a mini rugby ball which was signed by several players and actors from the film. We had everyone we met sign it. Marc also gave Ryan a full-size rugby ball with “Forever Strong” on it. He toted both of them around all night. And, yes, he even slept with them.
We walked into the theater with Elder Russell M. Nelson and his family. There were only about a dozen people in the theater when we went in, and the Nelsons were about five rows behind us. After we all got settled, Ryan wanted to go up and talk with him. Elder Nelson was so cute with Ryan, asking him his name and a little bit about himself. Ryan was proud to tell him that we were there because his uncle had worked on the film.
It was such a fun evening! We were glad that Marc was able to get us in to such an amazing event!
I’ve never been a big fan of “winning” goldfish or having a REAL fishing pond at carnivals. Some of you may remember a couple of years ago when Ryan “won” two goldfish at the Eaglewood 4th of July carnival. It was on a Saturday afternoon/evening, and we toted those poor fish around with us through eating, games, and fireworks. We found marginally suitable temporary lodging for them when we got home late Saturday night, and then had to run to the store Sunday before church to get food for them. Unfortunately, Nemo and Gil had gone belly up by the time we came home from church. Ryan is convinced that they died due to the deadly combination of the loud fireworks and us shopping on Sunday for their food. We had a small graveside service for them. Ryan said the prayers, sang the songs, and gave the talks. And cried. A lot.
I am certain that local pet stores donate cheap goldfish to carnivals just to get people to come into their stores to get the other “necessities” that come with fish ownership. After I picked up Ry on Thursday, we went to the local pet store to get more suitable lodging. Ry also decided that Nemo needed a friend, so we looked at other fish. I had an amount in mind when I went into the store of what I thought we’d spend. I obviously haven’t set foot in a pet store for a long time. No, we didn’t spend anything close to the $1399.00 price tag on a Yorkie there, but the bill ended up to be about three times what I thought it would be. That’s ok. Nemo now has a beautiful aquarium, some plants and a treasure chest to swim around and through, and a beautiful blue betta-fish friend named Brock (don’t ask).
We ran home from the pet store, had dinner, and set up our yard for cub scout pack meeting. The theme for this month is “Leaf it to Cubs.” We decided to have a leaf identification/collection activity in our yard and neighborhood for pack meeting. My mom was our guest speaker. She did a great job teaching us about the different types of deciduous trees, and then we took a walk to identify and collect some of them.
Ryan also earned his Bobcat and EIGHT belt loops!!! (This picture is Ryan pinning the "Mother's Pin" on me.
We also had a lot of fun this week and weekend having lunch with old friends and dinner with new friends. Thanks! :)
My parents were recruited quite a while ago to do some ads for IHC. This is the only picture we’ve seen so far. Apparently larger-than-life posters are also going to start showing up in IHC facilities soon. Let us know if you see anything anywhere!
An exciting event for our family was a reception held Friday, December 7, at the Rio Grande building honoring the Utah Arts’ Council “Emerging Artists Award” winners. Marc won the award for film! I teased him about his “major award,” hoping that he’d win a leg lamp (from “A Christmas Story” for those who are lost). Sadly, that was not one of the prizes. The evening was a lot of fun. The Rio Grande gallery was set up with sections for each artist. Marc had his film playing while people strolled through the gallery. We could tell that most people who watched it really enjoyed it, but there was one couple who watched it all the way through three or four times. They laughed hysterically all the way through it! We all enjoyed watching them enjoying it! Ryan was given the job of keeping the free copies of the DVD stocked in the bin on the wall. He did a great job!
Friday, December 14, we went to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas concert. Every year they invite special guests – always well-known musicians. This year was The King’s Singers. It was amazing! For most events in the Conference Center, tickets are just for a particular section, not assigned seats. They usually open the doors between 60 and 90 minutes before the event, and seats are on a first come basis. We got there about an hour early and got some great seats. I took a notepad and colored pencils for Ryan to draw while we waited. The Conference Center holds something like 22,000 people. It was pretty loud with people talking until about 7:15, when everything went absolutely silent. Having been in the Conference Center for General Conference, etc. before, we knew what that silence meant. We looked to the side door, and President Hinckley, President Monson and his wife, and President Eyring and his wife were entering. Ryan LOVES President Hinckley, and always asks me to lift him up so he can see him (I’m not going to be able to do that much longer!).
After the concert, we walked through Temple Square and the Main Street Plaza and looked at the lights. It was about 20 degrees, but it was a lot of fun. It’s always so beautiful that it’s easy to forget how cold it is.
Saturday, December 15, was Mom and Dad's annual "Orchard Place" open house. Ryan and I have become such good friends with so many of their neighbors, that we always join them. We have a great time visiting with all of our friends in that neighborhood.
Marc and Frances spent the week of Christmas in New York City with Frances’ family. Her grandparents are serving a mission in the Manhattan Temple, and it is their 50th wedding anniversary the week of Christmas. The whole family traveled to New York to be together for the celebration of that wonderful milestone. Since Marc and Frances weren’t in Utah for Christmas, the Inman family had our celebration together for Family Home Evening on Monday, December 17. It was fun to have dinner together, exchange presents, and just hang out and have fun together. Most of us gave each other gifts relating to our upcoming return to Hawaii. It’s always fun when we have a family trip planned – we always give each other stuff relating to the trip.
As you can see from the above pictures, we have a new addition to the family – Max. (Gee, BYU fans, who could he possibly be named after?) Ryan has been asking for a little sister for quite a while. Since that obviously isn’t happening anytime soon, I caved and agreed to the other thing he has wanted for a long time - a Build-A-Bear. I’m somewhat embarrassed to say that Max has really become a real member of the family; he and Ryan received matching Christmas Eve pajamas and Miami Dolphins jerseys (I know – I’ve gone too far.)