Go BYU!

I had the opportunity a few weeks ago to take Brooklyn to her very first BYU football game. It was the game against New Mexico and we had a great time. I was worried when Brooklyn started asking how much longer the game was before the 1st quarter ended, but as soon as she figured out my little set of binoculars, she entertained herself the rest of the game. Of course we had to buy root beer and kettle corn during halftime. It was an exciting game because it was the game that decided the Mountain West Conference Champions, which BYU earned without any problems. We even stayed after the game to watch the awards ceremony and to listen to the official invitation to the Las Vegas Bowl. Brooklyn really liked the Cougar growl that plays over the speakers pretty often. Everyone rushed the field too after the game ended.

The Thanksgiving "Marathon"

This year Brian decided to coordinate a 5K run Thanksgiving morning before our big family meal. He made shirts and everything. The kids were also involved and ran probably 1/2 K, but they called it a marathon nonetheless. They were so excited to run their "marathon". We held the race on a very cool Thanksgiving morning at about 10:00 am. The wind was blowing and it was pretty chilly. Brooklyn talks about how she was so exhausted after she ran. I ran the 5K and Tami pushed Brooklyn and Isaac in a stroller for the 5K.Here's the rest of us that ran the 5K.

Where's baby Abby?

So, for those who don't already know, Tami's sister Marinda had a baby last week. However, baby Abby had some respiratory problems and is still in the hospital. This has been confusing especially to Isaac who went to the hospital with Tami to see baby Abby last week. Tami was able to see her, but not Isaac or Brooklyn yet. Isaac was confused because he wasn't able to physically see Abby and knows that baby Abby is no longer in Marinda's tummy. So he asked, "Is baby Abby in Mike's tummy now?" (Mike is Marinda's husband). At least he's a curious little boy!

It's all in the suit!

So I've wondered why my colleague always swims so much faster than I do. The suit I was wearing before was the standard baggy swim trunks that went down to my knees. With every stroke, I could feel the suit flapping freely underwater. I didn't think it was that big of a deal. However, I finally decided to buy one of these "Lycra" swimsuits. Just as good as a Speedo, but quite a bit more modest. Here's a picture of the one I bought. I like the red accents on the sides. They even match my red tinted goggles. These are pretty much like Spandex, but with a swimsuit lining for support. As soon as I got in the water and pushed off, the difference was immediate. Like a hot knife slicing through butter. I swam a half mile in 16:45 (previous best was 18:40) and I swam a mile in 33:40 (previous and only other time was 42:30). Don't worry though . . . I'm not about to shave my body. I'm not that serious.

Happy Halloween!!!

So, we have successfully made it through another Halloween and the kids really had a good time this year. We put up some scary decorations around the house and carved 5 pumpkins this year, a record for the Fenn family. The kids came to my work again for the annual "cubicle" Trick-or-Treat. They actually get about 98% of their Halloween candy at work, which makes our evening much shorter. Plus, by about 6pm, it was in the upper 30s outside and the kids didn't have much tolerance to go to more than about 5 homes before they were chilled right through. This year I also entered my infamous BYU pumpkin into a work contest and won 2nd place and a $25 gift certificate. I was ousted by someone who made a Novell pumpkin. What do they think this is? A work contest? The fact that BYU is doing so well this season helped boost my numbers though.

Here's Isaac as a pirate. He was going all over the house saying "Aaarggh Maties" and "Pillage and Plunder". We caught this picture right as he was saying "Aaargh".Brooklyn wanted to be a fairy princess, so we dressed her up nicely.However, we modified their costumes a bit as you can see from the final picture . We ditched the fairy wings and put a vest on Isaac and some waterproof mascara for a beard. They sure looked cute. You gotta love Brooklyn's little signature smile.Here's the two pumpkins I carved this year. This Sponge Bob one turned out pretty cool and of course "The Beast" also turned out pretty scary looking. These pumpkins sure take a long time to carve but we always get a lot of compliments at the door.And of course we can't forget the kids pumpkins. They actually drew the faces on paper and I transferred it to the pumpkins. Isaac's is on the left and Brooklyn's was on the right. Isaac really wanted the rabbit teeth on his for some reason. I think he's been watching too much "Wallace and Gromit: Curse of the Were Rabbit"

One Mile!

So, about 2 months ago a friend of mine at work talked me into swimming with him to try to get into some sort of shape. I've been feeling extremely un-athletic lately and Tami laughed when I told her I was going to start swimming 3 days a week. She didn't think I'd last 2 weeks, but it's been easier than I thought. The first day I could hardly swim 4 lengths of the pool without feeling like I was drowning with every stroke, but it's gotten easier and my breathing rhythm and technique has improved quite a bit. I usually try to swim at least 800 meters each time, but today I decided to just keep going and surprisingly, the second half mile wasn't nearly as bad. I finished a half mile in 18:30 and a mile in 42:30. We go to the Provo Rec Center which is actually part of Provo High School. For those wondering how long a mile is, it is 64 lengths of a pool (the Provo pool is only 25 m long). We go during lunch and can get there, swim and be back at work in about an hour and 15 minutes. My buddy swims a mile in about 30 minutes, so I have work to do.