October- a brief summary :)

I have always enjoyed October- leaves different colors. The excitement of the start of the Holiday's. Birthdays. October is always a busy month for us- so here is a brief summary of our time.

The following pic is from the birthday party with Sam's family for both Sam and Nate. This is William (the cutest nephew ever) playing with the Hulk hands Sam's mom gave him. It was a wonderful weekend. We were able to watch conference- which is always calming and a blessing, enjoy a nice drive up Cedar Canyon in our new truck (pics coming), spend time with the family, and learn that we get to be uncle and aunt to another baby in a few months! We are truly blessed!




A couple weekends ago the weather was so warm Sam took me to the driving range! Doesn't he look like a pro!! Perhaps he will get updated clubs for Christmas... if anyone knows a good place to look let me know :)




Then, Halloween weekend we went to Tuacahn and saw "Thriller." It was quite enjoyable! We were then able to spend time with Nate, Mel, and Will- it was fun to have him all to ourselves :) We had lunch with Craig, Diana, and Cayson- I just have to say he had the cutest expressions (Sam just couldn't get over how he would sigh, look so serious, and hold his head in his hands). Then we were able to head up over the mountain to Orderville and spend time with Jeff, Jenna, and Dallin. They are doing so well and Jenna really has their house decorated up nice. Dallin was the sweetest guy- we sure enjoyed our time with them!

After all that we headed for the family cabin to spend the night and Sunday morning with Sam's dad. On the way there was a controlled burn, and of course Sam had to stop and take pics (which would be the reason my car still smells like smoke :). Here is my picture of the fire... well actually of Sam taking pictures of the fire!



And the fire:




It was a great weekend! It sure was nice to catch up with friends and family! We sure love you guys!!

Happy Birthday!!

I hope you had a great day! Just wanted to say thank you for being such an amazing husband. I sure am lucky!

S- smart
A- awesome
M- manly
U- unusually kind
E- excellent
L- loved

Honey, you are perfect for me. Hope your special day was special :)

Breast Cancer Awareness

Making Strides Against Breast Cancer - 2008-2009

With a sister-in-law employed by the American Cancer Society I now get to hear about different volunteer opportunities! This October I am puting together a team to participate in "Making Strides Against Breast Cancer." Part of making that team is to fundraise- so I am taking a chance, posting this post, and asking that anyone who desires make a donation.

Here is the link to the team space. You can also make a donation from here.

http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR/MakingStridesAgainstBreastCancer/MSABCFY09GreatWest?team_id=344455&pg=team&fr_id=11683&et=m--ifRhNPyg9hJUd_G1pEg..&s_tafId=194114

If you want any further information please let me know! I can also send you an email with a link.

Thank you

River Rafting

Like most, I have been really excited to post this. The river rafting in Colorado is fantastic. I have never been down a more exciting run. On the left side of the boat going from front to back you have me (Sam), Jamie, and my sister Erin. On the Right you have Stranger #1, #2, and my mom. We really didn't get to talk to stranger #1 and 2 very much, so I can't remember their names. If you look at the pictures you will see what I mean.

Here is a fun bit of trivia. Stranger #1 thought that it would be a good idea to bring along his smokes. Who wouldn't be relaxed slowly rafting down the river smoking your favorite brand. Well, as you will see from the pictures not such a good idea. Instead of smoking he was soaking. (I know that was a little lame, but I put it in anyway.)

Here is your second bit of trivia. Like all good trivia, you don't have to read it because you will never need to know it, but it is worth the read.

when I was in sixth grade my writing teacher gave us an assignment where over the course of 3 weeks we had to write down six memories. Every story had a different format and had to be from a different point of view. As a cover page we were to bring in a picture that represented our life and write a one sentence motto describing what we thought was the essence of our life. I looked in my moms Good House Keeping magazine for this assignment and I saw an add for a boat. The picture was of the back of a girl's head with really long hair. Her hair was soaked and she was ringing all the water out of it. Underneath the picture it said "Life; it is not about keeping your hair dry." From the eyes of a sixth grader, this was my life's motto. (even to this day it still kind of is) I did pretty good on the writing portion I think I got something like 88%, but on my cover page I only got 4 out of 10, that is only 40% yikes. I guess she didn't understand the meaning of my life, but I want you to look through these pictures and tell me if you don't start to understand where I was coming from. Life; it is not about keeping your hair dry.

Here we just unloaded the raft and we just bearly got in the water. I don't think that anyone was really ready for it to be this intence this fast. We are coming to our first rapid and I just knew that we were going to get soaked. You will see in the picture that I am closing my mouth. Jamie and Erin saw the camara so they both put on their best smiles. :) This picture is called "And so it starts."



You can see in this next picture that everybody sort of stops paddling except for me. I don't know if I was too dumb to stop or not, but he told us to paddle forward and that he would tell us when to stop. It is hard to tell from the angle of the camara, but it was quite the drop.



Have you ever been totally enveloped by water and thought "hey, where am I" yep, that is what happened. We are still going down here.



Here we are on the way up, but still covered with water. What a trip.



Yes, we made it!



This next picture is a little further down the river. We are still getting soaked, and loving it! You will notice that my side is a little lower in the water. As you can see I am totally covered with water while stranger #1 is riding high and dry. The reason for this is because left side was strong side.



There are several more pictures that I was going to put on, but I thought that this was getting a little long. So, I will end with this one. I think that it is pretty cool. It is called "where's the boat."

Colorado

We went to Colorado for the 24th of July. For those of you who live in Utah you know that this is a Utah holiday. One of our family motto's is "when you have a state holiday leave the state for that day." I have never understood this motto, but I think that is has something to do with getting away where people don't celebrate so you don't have to worry about the crowds. No one in Colorado celebrates this Utah holiday so we didn't have to worry about traffic or anything, it was amazing. This blog is going to talk about the biking portion of the trip because I don't have the river rafting pictures yet, but believe you me, they are something else.

Not all of the Barker clan was up to biking, but the strong ones were Jamie, my mom, my brother, and me. Because we only had two bikes Nate and I drove Jamie and mom up to the top then drove down and waited. Waited is the appropriate word here, it took them forever. If you look at the top picture of Jamie and the following one of my mom I think that you can see why. They took their time lolly-gagging in the river :) I think that I have to note here that they also rode about twice the distance Nate and I did, so yea, they are pretty tough.



Because the trail was so long Nate and I didn't have the time to go back up to the top. This means that we only did a partial trip. (also we are not as strong as Jamie and mom :) As you can see, I caught my brother napping along the trail. He is the in shape speedy hair, while I am the slow and steady tortoise, but I didn't get to win this race. More on that after the picture.



About half way down the trail my tire blew. Here is a picture of my stem that I found. Don't worry about me, because I have such strong expertise in physical matters I was able to gain control of my bike and come to a stop without causing an accident. (also, I am a little out of shape, so I couldn't get going fast enough to get into any trouble :)



Here is a picture of my tire (where the stem should be)



Luckily I was close to where I could get picked up so mom and Jamie came to my rescue. Well, we rushed back down to the bottom to pick up Nate, then we rode back to the part where my tire blew so I could finish the trek. I am not a quitter :) Jamie told me that I had better take a picture riding by myself so people would believe that I actually finished and didn't wuss out. So here is the picture



The river in the background is the same one that I will write about when I get our white water pictures, so get ready for an adventure!

This picture is just a random picture that I took when I was by myself. This is one of my favorite parts on the bike ride. I couldn't resist, so I put it in.



Lastly, this is a picture of my nephew. (he is also the reason that not everyone came on the bike ride. Someone had to stay in the hotel and watch this cute little guy so he wouldn't get into trouble.) Here he is playing the "where is it?" game. You show him something (shown here we are showing him food) then you hide it behind one of your hands and ask him "where is the food?" He then puts his hands up and says "where is it?" then he chooses a hand and you give him the object (again here it was food.)I have to say that I have the cutest nephew in the whole world!

My Bike

Yes you read it right, I am giving free rides all month long on my bike. 7-10-08 is a historic day. That was when some over paid bank owner looses one of his greatest assets. He looses the right to stop by my house and take HIS bike out for a spin. I paid off what I owed on my bike and now I am a full owner. He now has to grovel at my feet if he wants to sport around town on the coolist bike in the world.

Anyway, this picture was taken when I was stopped at a stop light. The digital screen that reads 107.7 is my trip-ometer and not my speedometer. It is one of my favorite pictures of my bike.

So, don't be afraid to stop on in and ask for your free ride this month!

An Experience Never to be Equaled

Yes, this is the monster drink of monsters. It makes ordinary cans of soda pop look like regular teaspoons. Normal cans contain your regular everyday allotment of stuff you should never intake. This can takes all of that unhealthy-ness and triples it. There is enough sugar in this to keep a young child awake for 72 hours straight, and enough energy supplements to power a small city for at least that. I am not going to lie to you, this drink is as untamed as any beast in the deepest, darkest jungles of the Nile. Trying to tame it is no easy accomplishment, but one I was able to manage. What you are about to witness is not for the faint of heart. Bring on the pictures

Ok, I may have stretched the truth a little here. First off, I never actually guzzled this drink. I took the pictures of me drinking it while it was still closed, then I took the pictures of me opening it. It also took me three days to put it down. It tasted like pure gas-o-leen, and it was a bright, neon, radiation color green that seemed to glow a little when the lights were out. I think this is the stuff that the Ninja Turtles were swimming in when Master Splinter found them. I don't really remember getting any sort of cafeen high even though there is way to much of that in it too. My whole body, however, did go completly numb and now (one week later) I am starting to get feeling back in my right hand. If anyone ever wants to experience what it would be like to drink pure rocket fuel this is a great way to do it. Just don't light a match!

Cute Pics

It seems like we haven't been taking as many pictures as we used to. Or perhaps we are just due to go on another trip!! :) Here are some cute pics of our nephew, William, from a couple weeks ago.

We went down to St. George. They have this fun park with the cutest little man-made stream for kids to play in. Will thought it was just the most amazing thing! He was giggling and wouldn't slow down for a second!

This picture is one of my favorites. He looks so cute with his Aunt Erin, who I know misses him dearly since she joined us here in the North :)

Here we are with Sam's mom. It was such a beautiful day!

This is Melanie, aka Will mom, Will and Erin. Thanks family for being so enjoyable and amazing!

Patience

I have decided that I do not have enough patience, and that is why I am having to learn it the hard way. I don't know about you, but I am a planner. I like to have my goals written out, and all the steps to complete those goals set up so I can accomplish things in a timely manner. Well...sometimes I guess my timely manner does not fit with the timeline the Lord has set up for me.

Perhaps I am an idealist, but it seems that we have had a few big goals that seem to be taking at least twice as long as I think they should. House... chillin's... cars... education... trips abroad... so many things. Don't think I am complaining, just trying to evolve :) I am thinking if I can just survive the next few years- and become willing to make my timeline a bit more flexible- I will be able to successfully not drive Sam crazy. Wish me luck!!

Snake

Happy Easter

We hope your Easter was as fun as ours. We had a blast. We left here on Thursday and arrived in Bryce where Jamie's parents were kind enough to pay for our room and board. We got up Friday where we met with Jamie's grandparents and went 4-wheeling. I know what you are thinking, what about all the snow? Well, we went anyway and had way too much fun getting stuck and trying to get unstuck. Look how I am totally lifting the 4-wheeler!



Saturday we drove into Bryce Canyon where we did some biking and some hiking. WoW, you haven't experienced Bryce until you see it with the snow. There was so much mud on one of the hikes. I wish I would have taken some pictures of the people as they came up the trail, but I felt strange asking them to let me take their picture. So, here are some of the ones that I did take.




Sunday we listened to Mo Tab as we got ready as there was no church around. Then we turned in our room keys and went to Red Canyon and rode the bikes up and down the arches trail. For lunch my mom and sister came up and gave us a nice Easter picnic. Then we rode down (not up) the trail one last time and departed for home. I didn't get any pictures of my family as I had put away my camera just before they got there, but the food was amazing, and the company even better.

Tagged

Thanks do Donny and Lena for tagging us. It is supposed to be a get to know your spouse tag, but like Lena said, the questions are targeted more to us as a couple so in honor of the getting to know your spouse, here is a little bit about Jamie.


Jamie is the daughter of Vaughn and Marianne Oborn. She has a younger sister who she is very close to and very proud of.


Jamie's younger years where spent growing up in California near the orange groves. This is why she has the sunkissed skin and beautiful white smile. She is a classic example of the song by the Beach Boys "I wish they all could be California Girls."


She attended high school in Delta Utah. That is where she got her love of everything nature. It is also why the birds seem to follow her around and why she always smells of the country. She started college at SUU (that is where we met) and finished up at the U with her Bach, in Nursing.


What is her name? Jamie Camille Barker (when she gets mad: aka Bruno)
How long have you been married? 4.4 years.
How long did you date? 1 year
How old is she? 25 (this year)
Who eats more? With her petite frame it is obvious that I do...
Who said "I love you" first? Me, but she was a close second
Who is taller? I am (are we counting her high heels?)
Who sings better? My shower skill are impressive, but hers are bigger
Who is smarter? Jamie is by far


Whose temper is worse? Jamie will tell you that I pout more, but her temper is worse
Who does the laundry? she does, I can't touch her "delicates" with out giggling
Who does the dishes? both of us
Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Jamie


Who pays the bills? It is labeled a Jamie job, but we both do, she likes to put it off until the last minute then have me run them to the post office (we don't have out going mail at our place)
Who mows the lawn? The establishment since 1876


Who cooks dinner? The vending machine at school sad but true
Who drives when you are together? I like to make her... ok, I know I should man up on this one because I know she doesn't like to.
Who is more stubborn? At the first of our marriage she was, I couldn't get her to do anything I wanted, now I think I have her trained :)
Who is the first to admit when they are wrong? No contest, she is. My motto is "Always right don't bother to fight" I need to be more like her and admit my faults more... Sorry Jamie


Whose parents do you see the most? Hers
Who proposed? I did, but it is not a good story, it just kind of happened. I think that she feels a little sad about this. We have a ton of romantic dating storys, but our engagement story is that "it just happened."
Who has more friends? She does
Who has more siblings? She has one sister, and I have a sister and a brother, so I do
Who wears the pants? She does, how can I say no to those beautiful eyes, you should see how hot she is in a dress though, man oh man!!!

What Happened

As people casually come into my office and look at my computer and see this picture on my desk they often ask "What happened?" (no they are not saying that about the tornado that tore apart the top of my desk, but to the picture...)So, due to public demand I thought that I would blog about it. Last month Donny and I saw this happen. If you look to the far right of the pic you will see that a driver hit a telephone pole and split it like a toothpick then continued where she hit a huge rock and it flipped her on her side as she drug the rock to a stop. We raced across the street and were able to push the car back onto it's wheels so she could get out and away from the car. Fluids were running toward the downed power lines and pieces of the car were every where (for example the car battery was sitting by the road) it was a little scary, but again we got her out and everyone was ok. As they say in the psychological world, "I'm ok, your ok." Well, an ambulance was called along with the police and they showed up in under 2 minutes. I think they took her to the hospital just in case, but she was fine (just a little embarrassed and scared.)Crazy huh?

To My Friend Nick

I totally saw this on my friends blog, so I stole it and put it on mine. I thought that it was that funny! No I am not in the habit of stealing, nor am I in the habit of taking credit for OPW (other peoples work) so a shout out to my friend Nick and his creative geniousessness with this post.



this brought this whole scene to my head of some lady grabbing this lovely bikini and tromping through the rest of the store until happening on the cookie isle. You can almost feel the inner struggle where the balance between bikini and cookies was momentarily in chaos... guess who won? Yeah, ditch the bikini and go for the box of cookies!

Thanks Nick you are a true rockstar. One thing people may not know about me is that I had one class with Nick. We knew each other through various activities and shared friends, but only had one class together. This class was a computer like class (I can't remember really) I only remember it was on of those classes where the teacher does not teach they just assign and you get the work done. It was also one of those classes that you only take because you absolutely have to. We would just show up to the computer lab and do our work and go. Not only did we hate the class, but the only reason that I would show up was to glean the wisdom of Nicks analogy's and metaphors.

During class one day (one day is the best way to describe this day because as we entered the day neither of us would know the significance of how this day would change not only my life, but my love of life) I was sitting doing some random computer assignment that would not benefit my life in any other way other then get me a diploma. The time that I waisted in that class is now lost to time along with the knowledge associated with the assignment as it left me five minutes after the end of class. But I digress for what Nick taught me during that class stays with me. Nick came into class about 10 minutes late. Not a big deal, I was only on time that day because... come to think of it, I can't remember why. Nick sat down next to me and one of us made some remark like "I am sick of this class" or something similar. We shared a quick laugh and started talking about the assignment as Nick was getting his book out and logging in.

That is when it happened. (at this moment it is important to note that all of these facts may be fake for I don't remember much about what happened that "one day" it was just a day long ago) Nick turned to me and said "you know, I am not going to work on the assignment today. I am going to write a letter to the editor instead." "You might fail the assignment" I cautioned. "Like Hell I will" Nick laughed (at this point I have to mention that I have never heard Nick swear in my life... it was added to show the seriousness of the assignment)

Well, as the class was coming closer to a close Nick turned to me and said hey read this. As I was reading I noticed that this was a very well put together letter. It had costs of college/books costs of time spent in class. It had time spent in classes needed for one's major vs. time spent in general classes that don't help in the job field in any way. (I thought Nicks example was funny, he used Art Appreciation, but he was kind of going into art back then so... you should see the kid paint/draw/whatever artist do... I failed art appreciation so I don't know what it is called...) He gave statistics on how many people have to retake these classes because they failed, he gave the stats for classes failed in one's major. The stats that he had showed that more students fail art appreciation then they do in their area of study. He gave detailed analysis on how much more one could learn in their own field if they could take the time spent on General ed and put it toward their own field of study. He stated the importance of being well rounded, but the importance of the schools responsible to prepare a student for the work place instead of teach fluff classes.

I know at this point of the story some of you are concerned about Nick and his grade on this assignment. Well, he finished it in the last five minutes of class like every one else. Instead of spending our time on a cause that we believed in we spent our time on "the world wide web."

Does Nick know that I remember this? Does he know how much it inspired me to live my life in the little moments that make me happy? With how much effort he put into this letter to the editor he taught me that life is not about having fun, he taught me that one cannot really be happy just surfing the web or playing. He taught me that work, yes work, is where true happiness comes from, for that is where our accomplishments lie.

Thanks Nick for the lesson and the picture. Oh yea, I would feel out of place if I did not mention that a bikini trumps cookies in my book any day... but I am a guy...