Blake's Man Blog

2008-10-26T22:01:00.005-06:00

It has been an adventurous first two weeks for this little guy. Here are some pictures to show some of daddy-son quality time. Mandi will tell you that I have mad skills at changing little Browen's diaper. If you ask Browen, he will probably reluctantly grunt (As shown in the picture), meaning either he is dissapointed in my ability or is busy thinking of other things. Browen I predict will some day build water fountains, he is already proving to be quite the master at fountain technique and performance. I put this picture of him on the changing table. Do not be fooled by the innocence!

He got his first bath and did great!

Browen and I get quality time keeping each other warm. Our conversations usaully only last a few seconds before his head gets tired and he puts it down again. But those are quality moments.

WANT TO SEE MORE PICTURES OF LITTLE BROWEN; SEE BROWEN'S BLOG AT browenblaketaylor.blogspot.com. It will be private for close friends and family only. If you are interested please email Mandi at mandilee82@gmail.com and we will add you to the list. Enjoy

Little Browen Has Arrived!

2008-10-14T18:17:00.006-06:00

Here are a few of the pictures of my beautiful little boy. He was born on October 14 at around 10:45am. He is healthy and from what I can see of his muscles in the picture above, also in how much force he hits with when he flops his little arm, I'd say he is very strong. I love this little bundle of boy already. It amazes me that such a small thing can have such a healing impact on those around it. The love that comes from holding and being with him is inspiring. He has a soothing spirit.

Now that he is here it is wonderful, but he did not come all willing. Dr. Jones used the forceps to pry him out, literally pry him out. If you look close at the pictures you can see little Bro's battle wounds. I suppose it is part of the cost of getting to earth these days. In the nursery he has acquired the nickname, Mr. Beat Up.

So, Mandi and I have discussed his features and have decided that he has a Lee face (nose, mouth, chin), but he has my ears. Speaking of Mandi, she is doing alright. After a normal process of contracting for hours wth little pain, her final 30 minutes were extremely intense, partially due to the fact that her epidural wore off a little. During the tugging with the forceps, Mandi experienced 2nd degree tears. She is trying to relax now and is just happy that the labor is behind her. It is easy for me to say that when we see little Browen, it makes it all worth it, but then again I didn't experience the pain. I think Mandi, despite the pain, can agree with me.

Thanks to all of you for your support and love during this big change in our lives. We look forward to seeing you again. Browen does too!!

Let Him Do it With Simplicity

2008-10-14T04:34:00.006-06:00

I have been meaning to share my thouhts and feelings from the lastest conference which was a week ago. First, a plug to acknowledge the importance of such an occassion to sit under the voices of prophets and apostles and hear the will of God directly. It is truly magnificent and I know once again after hearing them speak, that they are among the angels who administer to us. I know that they are called of God.

The talk by Elder Perry had significant meaning for me. For those who know me, especially my wife, might agree that I am a man who loves simplicity. Athough I don't always live the simplest way, deep down it is what I love the most in life. Kind of boring some would call it. Perry's talk reminded me while we are in these troubled times with growing concerns for finances, it is important to remember the simple things in life. In his talk he spoke of Waldon Pond and Henry David Thoreau's experience of finding the simple things that made his life rich. To recap, there were four things he discovered at the Pond that he felt were the basic needs of life; food, clothing, shelter, and fuel.

I have thought a lot about the direction our society has taken us, down paths of consumption on credit, living outside our means, spending for today and not tomorrow, or finding hopeless joy in those things that eventually will rust away. The things of this world have crept into our lives by slow measures it seems. But once again from the wisdom and divine guidance that comes only from one called of God, we are reminded of the need for repentance and a return to a more simple life grounded in the important things. I feel that when we are living a more simple life, it allows us to be unaffected by the distractions of the world and spiritually we can be in tune to God's will and plan.

This talk helped me see the need to change my way of thinking and return to a more simple approach to life. This talk for me was evidence that God is mindful of my life and has not left any of us alone to filter through life without guidance. I know he loves us and is watching us.

2008-10-05T07:49:00.012-06:00

Okay Gentlemen, we are now half way through the 2008 college football season and at this point both Utah and BYU are looking good. Do you realize that both teams combined have a 27-1 record with the loss coming for Utah at the BYU/Utah game. Ok, let's not go there! I heard on the Game Day review yesterday as I switched stations in between conference to get my saturday football fix, that the BCS polls are predicting BYU to finish 10th and Utah to finish 11th. That my friends will be ahead of teams like Wisconsin, Ohio State, Florida, etc. Hold on, lets just get a little crazy, what if the cougars even played in a national championship ? (http://fannation.com/si_blogs/the_sweep/posts/9101) With the NCAA longest winning streak, BYU is getting the national attention, rightfully so. They will continue to get it too as long as they win. However, if this was a poverty stricken world of predictions and I had two cents to contribute, I'd say that the long awaited duel between the two unbeatens in late November might have an early spoiler. I don't beleive that BYU's toughest match will come with Utah, I think the struggle to remain unbeaten will come in Texas against a stingy TCU defense. The hardest part of BYU's schedule is ahead of them.... on the road! In the meantime, I hope both teams continue to climb the polls and shake up the infrastructure over at BCS headquarters. What are your thoughts?

Oh the Pregnant One

2008-08-31T19:37:00.005-06:00

My wife is still pregnant and coming up on her 8-month stretch. Sometimes she feels like she is a big whale and not attractive. On Sunday during a killer storm, we spent the evening taking pictures, many of them were pregnant shots. Here is my beautiful wife at 8 months along. She is still stunning!

2008-08-24T22:10:00.003-06:00

The Olympics are slowly coming to an end and I am about 96.8% sure that the redeem team USA will bring home the gold. I am proud of the team and impressed with the amount of time and quality of play D-Will has given. He is the future of the Jazz and will be the go-to-man for years to come. My question is this...does D-Will compare to the legendary John Stockton? Give me your thoughts. For now, I think Deron is the shiznit!

Soon-to-be Father Jordan

2008-08-21T16:38:00.002-06:00

I apologize to you guys who didn't get a tribute before fatherhood. Only recently I have entered the blog world and have become blog savvy. I hope to redeem myself.
Well, Anytime now Jordan Jones is on the brink of experiencing life with a little twist and probably some drool to go along with it. In one day you go from being a man, to being a father! The proud parents are expecting a boy this week or the next. I am excited to see Jordan become a dad. This tribute is to you pal for being a loyal friend through the years: Here are the reasons why I think you will be a good dad.

TOP TEN REASONS:

10: You are a Ute fan...speaks volumns.

9: No toy will ever be too expensive to buy, you can just draw the toy for him!

8: Sleep overs will never be a bore. All you need is ping pong.

7: Little Jones will know all the sports events, especially the Jazz; upcoming games, trades, stats, quotes, what they wore, what they ate, and most important the post game review Jordy style.

6: Little Jones will have the best Grill-man in Springville to cook him steak. 5 minutes each side, 5 minutes to sear it.

5: You will never forget his birthday.

4: You are a handy man...he will have state of the art nursery decor!

3: You are as Loyal as I'll get out. You must take Loyalty vitamin pills each night or something. He will have a loyal dad.

2: "I'm so glad when daddy comes home" You will work hard to support the little guys eating habits.

The number one reason you'll be a good dad: Your son will be like you, minus the scar

You will be great with your son Jordan. Between you and Jandee the little guy will have the dynamic duo of parents and I am excited to watch him grow, as well as my own and all the kids our friends are having. Cheers buddy

Becoming Blog Savvy

2008-07-20T20:03:00.001-06:00

Ok fellow bloggers, its me Blake Taylor. Mandi has shown me this whole new world of blogging. I am exploring this avenue of life for a number of reasons. One: My friend Devin introduced me to journal writing back in Jr. High and after many failed attempts at creating a consistency in writing, I decided to give up the art and have felt guilty since. Blogging I hope can ease the guilt of not keeping a consistent journal. Also, I find it interesting to read everyone else's blog to see how friends and family are doing. However, the ladies are the queens of blog-land and have highly saturated it with girly things. I sound like I don't like it, but I enjoy reading what they write because it's extremely detailed. However, what do us guys think?? Hopefully us guys can express ourselves a little more without the pictures of books and names of cool quilts and crafts that the ladies might be sharing on our "joint (95% female) blogs". This blog can serve as a way for guys to talk about manly things, hopefully! At least there will be cool guy pictures to look at. Ok, this might be a new trend into guy blogging and I might be the only guy that ends up doing it, but hey, it's worth a try. SO please, join me guys on this train leaving port and enjoy the manly ride as I take you through the blogging life of Blake Taylor.