How Smart Are Your Kid's Toys

For Christmas Leah got one of those stuffed dogs with buttons on its paws that plays songs and says cute little phrases. The cool part is it has a USB port and can be connected to a computer. The included software lets you customize how it interacts. It will learn your kids name, favorite color, animal, and food. That information is used in the songs and phrases. You can also change the songs that it sings and set up a bedtime routine where the dog will play a certain amount of bedtime music to help your child fall asleep. Over all it is very cool and one of Leah's favorite toys.

So what smart toys did you kids get this Christmas?

The Joy of Christmas

It’s Christmas!!! Santa Clause brought me TWO presents! Andrew wake up!
Those are just a few of the reactions Spencer had this morning. After months of waiting, his favorite day is finally here. It was impossible for him to contain his joy, he had to share it. For him, today is a simple day full of wonder and happiness.

Today is a simple day.

Born without earthly fanfare to parents who lived a simple life and who I’m sure didn’t have many worldly things, Jesus Christ was finally here. The joy was impossible for heaven to contain, it had to be share. A new star was born to light the world. The sky was not darkened for three days in the Americas. Angels rejoiced and sang glory to His name. The scriptures tell of other wonders and happiness for those waiting for this day.

His birth was announced to a group of simple shepherds who understood the eternal meaning of Christ’s birth. I’m sure they could not contain their joy as they ran to Bethlehem, to witness the birth of their Savior. Wiseman knew the significance of the new star and immediately started their journey to honor their Savior.

Today we cannot travel to Bethlehem or listen to angels sing. However, we can still honor our Savior with simple acts of giving. There is joy and happiness found in the giving and receiving of even the smallest gifts. That joy is a reminder of the joy we receive from Christ’s gift. It is a joy that is magnified with each gift we give and the more we give the better we understand the joy we receive from Christ. It is a joy that is impossible to contain, it must be shared.

Today is simple day, it is all about joy.

Virus Alert at Airport

I was stuck at the Cincinnati Airport yesterday during the FAA computer system meltdown. This was on one of the departure information screens in the terminal. It makes you wonder if it really was a router that went bad. I also wonder what idiot designed their network so if one router goes down it takes down the whole system. Haven't they heard of redundant systems?

Some Pictures from Montreal

I had some spare time while in Montreal so I went to check out one of their main landmarks, St Joseph's Oratory.

This is the view of the bottom.

This is the view from half way up. (I couldn't get all the way to the top doors due to construction)

Inside one of the lobbies they had this shrine for the founder. Yes, that is his real heart.

This is inside the chapel.

This is their pipe organ. I didn't get to hear it, but I'm sure it sounds awsome.

Some Thoughts from Montreal Canada

I was in Montreal for a business trip to help our new dealer setup four test sites. I work for a company that makes radar sensors that monitor traffic flow (nothing with law enforcement). Our dealer was having issues with these sites so I flew up there to train them on how configure the sensor and help them get these four test sites working. The setup was a little trickier than our normal installations so the help they needed was understandable. Due to the rules in Canada and the locations where the sensors were mounted, we had to do all the work at night so they could close an on-ramp and an off-ramp. I was able to help them get all fours sites working to their satisfaction, so I’m pleased with the results of the trip.


I won’t bore you with all the details, but the picture below reminds me of two questions I often ask myself when driving through constructions zones.

1. Why is the road closed and no one is working?
2. Why are all those people standing around doing nothing?



Well, now I have some answers. They aren’t good answers but at least they are answers.

1. One of our test sites was located near the end of an on-ramp. The only way we could safely work there was to close it. We didn’t know how long it was going to take to configure that site so they went ahead a closed the off-ramp where the last site was located at the same time they closed the on-ramp. It ended up taking us about two hours to configure the site on the on-ramp (the other sites were about 30 minutes). So that off-ramp was closed for 2 hours with no one even there to do any work. I bet that was annoying for anyone that needed to get off there. I know I would have been annoyed.

2. In the traffic industry everyone has a specialty. There was a total of 6 people working with the sensors. There was one person from MTQ’s project department, two people from their planning department, two people for our dealer, and myself. The guy for the project department was there to operate the bucket truck and make any adjustments to how the sensor was mounted. The two planning people were there to make sure we got it working. I was there to make sure our dealer knew how to get it to work. We had important roles, but could not all do our jobs at the same time. However, it was more efficient for us to be there together. I’m sure the same thing is true for other construction work and that is why you often see people just standing there.

Defening Marriage

I would normally post this on my other blog that covers political views, but this is too important.

Today I ran across this opinion article on The Washington Times website:
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/oct/28/attacking-the-defense-of-marriage-act/ about how members of the Obama Administration think marriage has no value. Here are few highlights, but you should read the whole article.

Apparently, the administration doesn't much care about public opinion or electoral consequences. On Friday, Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. delivered a lecture at the University of Maine where he reiterated President Obama's intent to push for repeal of the law defining marriage as a legal union between one man and one woman for purposes of federal laws. In August, Justice Department spokesman Tracy Schmaler said much the same thing, arguing the "act is discriminatory and should be repealed."

What?!? But it gets worse...

Cass Sunstein, Mr. Obama's powerful "regulatory czar," is equally out of touch. In a new edition of his book "Nudge," coauthored with Richard Thaler, the authors call marriage an "anachronism" and its benefits "surprisingly low." The book goes on to complain that marriage, "produce* unnecessary polarization. ... the most obvious difficulty is that religious organizations insist that they should be permitted to define marriage as they like, while same-sex couples insist that they should be able to make long-term commitments without having a second-class status."

So, because the federal government does not recognize marriage of homosexuals, Mr. Sunstein's solution is that we shouldn't recognize traditional marriage. There's more. An Obama nominee to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Chai Feldblum, claimed in 2005: "I, for one, am not sure whether marriage is a normatively good institution."

Who are this people?!?

The article goes on to point out that marriage has a proven track record for offering society positive benefits.

Okay, so remember 14 years ago when a Prophet declared:

The family is ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan. Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity. Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities. By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children. In these sacred responsibilities, fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners. Disability, death, or other circumstances may necessitate individual adaptation. Extended families should lend support when needed.

We warn that individuals who violate covenants of chastity, who abuse spouse or offspring, or who fail to fulfill family responsibilities will one day stand accountable before God. Further, we warn that the disintegration of the family will bring upon individuals, communities, and nations the calamities foretold by ancient and modern prophets.

We call upon responsible citizens and officers of government everywhere to promote those measures designed to maintain and strengthen the family as the fundamental unit of society. (see here)

So on one hand you have a group of people who want to destroy marriage and on the other hand we have a strong warning that marriage and families are essential to a strong nation. The scary part, is that the group that wants to destroy marriage is actually part of our government.

We can not let these evil men destroy marriage!!! It is our responsibility to stand up and send a clear message that these views are not acceptable for members of OUR government. Contact your representatives and make it very clear that they must not support any efforts that weaken marriage. Make it clear that failure to represent your views will result in you firing them. We must be proactive or these evil men will win.

The time to stand up is now!!

Pinewood Derby 2009

Last night was the Pinewood Derby for Spencer's Cub Scout pack. We totally forgot about it until the night before. So we made a run to the scout office and got a template. Sariah spent all day craving it out and Spencer painted it when he got home from school. Spencer's car is the yellow on the far left.

Spencer looks a little worried. He should be that black car was fast.

When the graphite had settled Spencer won 2nd. Not bad for a day's worth of work. The black car was faster by .001 of a second depending on the lane. It wasn't even close with the other cars. Spencer was very exicted and loved racing his car. I was surpised how well the car did considering it was put together at the last minute. Maybe dads should let moms build more cars.

Leah helped herself to a cupcake. She was very proud of herself.

Leah's First BYU Football Game

Today I took all the kids to a BYU Football Game. It was Leah's first time.

This is the cougar in front of the football stadium. Leah was being camera shy.

When we got out the seats Leah pointed to the field and said "football".

Here we are waiting for the players to rush the field.

This was the view looking towards the mountains. Notice that the trees have started to change colors.

Here the kids a being funny when I want them to smile. I gave up after one try cuz I didn't feel like going through what I did last time.

Here is Leah clapping to the fight song after a BYU touchdown.

Leah still clapping, but wondering what here Dad is doing.

BYU won the game 48 to 23!! Go Cougars!!

How to take a good picture of your kids

I took my two sons, Spencer and Andrew, to a Real Salt Lake soccer game last night. We were sitting right behind the south goal and I wanted to get a picture of them with the field in the background. Below are are 5 tries it took to get a good picture.


Spencer wanted to make a funny face.



Spencer still being silly and Andrew isn't looking at the camera. This one might have worked if we could have seen Andrew's face.



Andrew looks constipated and Spencer is still being silly.



Ok, this one was my fault



Finally a good picture.

Thank goodness for a digital camera where you can take as many pictures as you need to get it right.

(RSL played the Chicago Fire and the game ended with a 1-1 tie)

Spencer is a BYU Fan!

You know you have raised your kids right when they dress like this. Spencer is wearing a BYU hat, a BYU shirt, BYU pants, and BYU slippers. The best part is that he choose to dress like this without any prompting from anyone. I wasn't even at home at the time.

By the way, in case you live under a rock and for some reason only read this blog, BYU beat OU in a 14 to 13 upset. GO COUGARS!!!

Price Family Review

I have recently added alot of people to my Facebook friend's list. It has been fun and interesting to reconnect with so many people from my past. I have also gotten several of requests for updates on what I have been doing. So this is going to be a review of all the major events that have happened over the last 4 years. For some of you, this will be a review and for others it will be news.

In April 2005 I moved my wife Sariah and two kids, Spencer and Andrew to Provo, UT so I could work on a Master's Degree in Information Systems at Brigham Young University. We were all nervous but have really enjoyed living in Utah. The schools have been much better for Spencer, who as a Deaf kid needs services the schools in California did not want to offer.

In December of 2007 we welcomed Leah into our family. She is now a feisty 20 month old who has no problems tackling her older brothers to get her way. Just don't pick her up, she does not like other adults and is very much a mommy or daddy's girl. Sariah claims that she has me very well trained, but I deny that I spoil her.

In 2008 I finished both a Bachelor's and Master's degree in Information Systems Management. It was 3 years of hard work but I really enjoyed my classes and was able to work closely with several outstanding professors and fellow students. Information Systems is a combination of business and computers and is part of BYU's Marriott School of Management. I took the same core classes as all the other business majors and learned enough accounting to know when to hire an accountant. The degrees qualify me to work in a vast array of areas and industries, which has been very helpful with today's economy.

After finishing school in August 2008, I took a job that I thought would be enjoyable, but quickly learned otherwise. I secretly continued looking for another job and in October 2008 was blessed with an offer from a Utah based company named Wavetronix. It was started 9 years ago by a former BYU professor who had a vision to create radar devices to detect and monitor traffic. His other primary goal was to create jobs for families in Utah county. The company has a very family friendly attitude and gives me plenty of time to spend with the family. I work in their technical services department and help people setup and configure sensors and communication devices (see www.wavetronix.com for more information). I'm also working on a company-wide project to implement Microsoft SharePoint (see my other blog on that subject, http://tipsforsharepoint.blogspot.com).

So it appears that we will be living in Utah for a while. It was not the original plan, but we feel very blessed for the job I was able to find and love being around others that share our same standards. But we plan on visiting our family and friends in California often, so stay in touch.

You are now caught up on the David Price Family.

;)