And here we go again...

I will just warn you up front that this is going to be a long post. Life really is worth living and I am trying to pack the most of it into the time that I have.
Let's backtrack a few weeks to when I first got home from Texas. As you know from my last post, I was out helping with a new well in the Panhandle area of northern Texas. I can happily say that everything on that went far more smoothly than any of us ever could have hoped for.
The best part of getting home was getting to meet for the first time, my new niece, Phoebe. She was born to Bridgett and Rory while I was away...and this was my first chance to hold her. She is beautiful. And has far more hair than I do.
When I got home to Utah, I took the first few days to catch up on bills and whatnot. I always enjoy fossicking around the untouched piles of unattended items and seeing how my life still continues to plod forward, even when I am not around for it.
That Wednesday, feeling some pains in my neck and lower back, I sought out a massage therapist and had my first, official massage. My cousin Laura recommended her friend that lived locally, and let me tell you...it was amazing! I felt so much better afterwards. I think this is going to become a regular occurrence.
It's a good thing I was relaxed because that evening the Lifferths all gathered together in Provo to celebrate Grandma Lifferth's 90th birthday party. As has become tradition, the grandkids (and mostly great-grandkids), put together a talent show for all the residents of the home. Due to traffic, our usual MC for such events, (Uncle Bob), was delayed in his arrival. And as it was almost time for most of our geriatric crowd to go to bed, (you know...6:00 PM), I was asked to step in as the new MC. If you know me at all, you know I quite enjoy being the center of attention...especially with a microphone. I jumped at the opportunity. We had a wonderful show with many musical numbers, poems, and football tossing skills. The highlight though, was the only act that was done by anyone over the age of 13. It was the magic show done by Craig and Daren. It was fantastic!
After we all wished her a happy birthday and wished Grandma a good night, it still being Wednesday, meant only one thing:

Trafalga Night!!



Quite a few of us who hang out all the time, all bought season passes. So it was a long night of go-karts, batting cages, mini-golf and the XD-Virtual Roller Coaster! It was fantastic.
On Friday I drove out to Colorado and back. A local community college was naming their new engineering building after my Granddad Striegel. We were invited to attend the grand ribbon cutting, (and had the honor of standing in the picture of said cutting). It was so wonderful to visit with family and see all of them. I love those guys.



The next morning, (having gotten back from Colorado for a date the night before), we awoke to Saturday Morning Football! Now that cousin Scott and his family are back in town, football has started up again. And once again, we all realized how much out of shape (and older) we are. But still...so much fun.
Sunday was great as usual. I made it down to Payson to visit the family. I really do enjoy Sunday Dinners.
The next few days were filled with a variety of visits with family and friends. That is until Wednesday when I got to fly out to Indiana and visit my brother Noah and his family.
Obviously the first thing I had to do was re-establish my position as "Favorite Uncle". So I pulled out the big guns...how big you ask? The biggest. I found on Amazon (dot com), the World's Largest Gummy Bear. It is 5 pounds of pure awesomeness. I brought three of them. One for Gabby, one for Alex and one for Oliver. I am sure Kaila was quite happy that her children now had a year's supply of Gummy.



Thursday I got to go into Noah's work and get a tour of the facility where he works. Cummins Diesel Engines have a very, very impressive set up in Columbus Indiana. I was grateful for the opportunity to see how they operate and everything they have donated and contributed to the Columbus Community.



On Friday we went to Louisville, KY. There we first toured the Louisville Slugger museum/factory. If you are a baseball fan, you must make a trip to this place at least once in your life. Besides the souvenir bat that you receive at the end of the tour, you can also try the batting cages, hold one of Mickey Mantle's bats, and see what a 90 mph fastball really looks like. I think the best part was as we were going through the factory, they were actually in the process of making bats for the World Series that had just started. A piece of wood from one of the bats came off the lathe and landed near me, and is now at home on my dresser.



We then went to visit my cousin Austin and his wonderful family. After being so hospitable with feeding us and entertaining us, they also invited us to their Ward's Trunk-Or-Treat. What a great time we had with the members of the church there in the backwoods of Kentucky! They were very kind and welcoming.
Saturday we had the chance to drive up to Indianapolis and see the big city. We toured around downtown, and then went to the Indy 500 Racecar track. We actually got a chance to ride ON the track. That was SO COOL!



But not quite as cool as what happened on Monday.
Sunday we had a great time visiting and seeing their neighbors. I also had the chance to go spend some time with Uncle Ernie and Aunt Judy. Ernie took me out to some property they had where they have campouts and picnics. What beautiful countryside out there! I am very grateful for the opportunity I had to spend time with Ernie. Much like all of my uncles, he is a great man.
On Monday we (Noah and his family, and I), went into Cincinnati before I flew home. We first found the ONLY ventriloquist museum in the world. Sadly, it was closed...so there was no fodder fed to the creepy nightmare supplies. However, it was cool to be there. We then walked across a bridge, (across the Ohio River) that was used to model the Brooklyn Bridge. On the way back across, there was a large barge passing under us. So we stopped to watch it. Kaila wondered aloud if the barge captain would honk his horn if we pumped our fist (much like you do when a semi-truck is coming towards you). I answered her that there was only one way to find out. And guess what...the Captain didn't disappoint.
I am pretty sure that the horn blare was heard throughout most of the city of Cincinnati. It was so incredibly loud. However, despite the volume, while the kids were holding their hands over their ears, they were still exclaiming, "THIS IS SO COOL!!"
And it was.



Sadly, the time came that I had to fly home. As we were pulling into the terminal, Alex started to get emotional in the backseat. Kaila asked him what the matter was. Between sobs, he replied, "I don't want Uncle Zach to leave...he helped me get to level 5 in Paper Mario."



I almost cried myself.

I really had such an amazing time with Noah, Kaila and the kids. They were so nice to have me and really showed me a great time. Thanks guys!

When I got home, it was once again CRAZY time. I knew I was flying out again on Sunday, so I still had much to do.
Wednesday I got another massage.
Wednesday was also a monumental day in that I went to the dentist. I won't lie...this is a huge deal as I hadn't been to the dentist in over 9 years. You can imagine, that with my regular intake of Dr. Pepper, I was expecting some bad news. I was waiting for the lecture on my Swiss Cheese teeth when the doctor returned and congratulated me for having zero cavities. I asked him if he was sure and then told him how long it had been since I had visited one of his profession. He assured me that he knew what he was doing, then proceeded to lecture me about the importance of regular dentist visits. I promised him I would do better.
Wednesday night was, of course, Trafalga Night. This time we went to the one in Lehi and quite enjoyed the bumper boats and Laser Tag.
Thursday my cousin Adam married a wonderful young lady named Jamie, and I was very glad to attend their reception and see a lot of family.
Friday I went to lunch with two of my best friends, (Jon and Todd). We found a great new BBQ place down on Geneva Road in Orem. You simply MUST try it...unless you are a vegetarian...in which case you should slam your head against a wall until you realize that meat is delicious, then go try it.
Saturday was football again....and then bright and early Sunday Morning, I was off to Texas.
Now the observant reader may have noted a significant lack of dating stories. That's because I am throwing that into a separate post. Read on friend...read on.