It's About Time...

It seems like my success with keeping up a blog is directly proportional to my success with keeping a journal. So in an attempt to catch up on all things Bisel that have happened in the last couple of months I present this plethora of photos. Enjoy.

In November we took a family outing to take Christmas card pictures. This is the one we decided on.

Although this was my favorite (to pose for) we decided against using it. 

This is yet another discarded attempt.

Mitchell was  a very somber shepherd on Christmas Eve.

We had a wonderful tea party on Christmas Adam (what my kids decided we should start calling the day before Christmas Eve, because Adam came before Eve you know.) After the Tea party we had a Wii party.

Lizzy was the cutest of elves at her ballet Christmas recital. And she knows how to pose for the camera. 

We enjoyed decorating the house for Christmas.

Ahhhhhh... Thanksgiving in St. George. Papa Jimbo treats us all to a 90 degree pool in November. Who could ask for more?

More swimming in St. George.

Lizzy enjoying the warm warm water. 

We spent some time traveling to the North Pole on the Polar Express to see Santa. What a nice guy to give all the kids their very own Christmas bells. 

On the way to St. George for Thanksgiving we stopped at the Grand Canyon. We have been in AZ for 3 1/2 years now and this is the first time we have visited. It was amazing!!

These two pictures are for all you poor people living in the freezing cold. The flowers are beautiful in our back yard on Christmas day. 

Christmas morning was a huge success at the Bisel household. Santa was great to everyone. The kids haven't stopped playing. True to form, Mitchell's favorite present cost a dollar and is called noise putty. We weren't really sure what it was when Lizzy picked it out for him, but how bad could it be. Turns out that when you press it into the container it came in you get a very real sounding "toot".  At least it doesn't smell. 

Halloween and Haircuts

Mitchell decided it would be fun if he and I went as each other for Halloween. The first step in that process involved shaving Mitchell's head. He was quite excited about the idea... Now that is commitment to the Holiday!!

We decided to have a little fun during the process.

Little Mr. Mohawk

Aaaahhhhhhh!!!!! I'm Bald!!!!!!!!!

Now that's a shiny Melon.

We had matching soccer uniforms with orange shirts, 

black shorts, orange socks, and black soccer cleats.

We also had a fashionable Pippie Longstocking, and the cutest tooth fairy ever.

The Toothfairy had an attitude this year.

Pippie Longstocking never looked so good.

Fall Decorations and M&Ms

The kids didn't have school this week and I didn't have work on Friday so we decided it would be a good time to decorate for Halloween. We built "Uncle George", and set him on the front porch. He consists of an old sweatshirt and an old pair of my jeans stuffed with newspapers and pillows, with a pumpkin basket for a head. He freaks us out every time we leave the house. The last time we built him was in Michigan so the kids were quite excited to resurrect him this year. My incredible wife, Sarah, decided that she wanted some classier fall decorations than Uncle George. So out came the grapevine pumpkins, fall wreath, gourds, and indian corn. As usual, she did a great job and it looks incredible. For a finishing touch she found some fall colored M&Ms that she placed in clear containers around the other decorations. I didn't even know they made M&Ms in fall colors. They come in peanut, plain, and dark chocolate varieties. They looked really good with the rest of the decorations. They were the perfect touch. I think Sarah's intention was to have these fall colored M&Ms last throughout the fall season. There is only one problem... did you know that fall colored M&Ms taste just like regular M&Ms!? It's true! Needless to say they didn't last for very long. As a matter of fact the peanut M&Ms were gone within a few hours. Sorry Sarah, maybe next time we should decorate with fall colored brussels sprouts... dipped in chocolate of course.

Crash

Mitchell has picked up a new nickname... Crash! As you can see from the photo the name fits perfectly. While trying to outrun his sister the other night, he tripped and ended up eating some pavement. Luckily his school pictures were the previous week, and his two front teeth had already fallen out. I think he likes his new look and the new name to go along with it.

31 Years Ago Today...

Most of you may not realize but October 12th is a very significant day... and no, I am not talking about Columbus Day. I am talking about another monumental day in the history of the world. On October 12th 1977 a incredible event took place. In the early morning hours, at a hospital in Salt Lake City Utah, Regina Redd Mitchell gave birth to my future love and the future mother of our wonderful children. Over the next 31 years she developed into the incredibly talented woman that I now have the privilege of waking up to every morning and falling asleep with every night. I am constantly amazed at the talent, intelligence, drive, love, humility, caring, energy, wit, intuition, insight, patience, kindness, faith, understanding, and beauty of the woman I am lucky enough to call my wife. Everyday I thank my Heavenly Father that I crossed paths with this most incredible woman. The last ten years have been the most fulfilling of my life because of Sarah Mitchell Bisel... born 31 years ago today. Happy Birthday Sweetheart, and thanks for being you. I love you.

Pinewood Derby

Our ward had a Pinewood Derby that was open to all the members. The kids and I designed and built a car for each of them. They each chose a design and then I cut them out and helped them to build the cars. They had a blast racing the cars and they each won their fair share of races. 

Madeline loaded her car up with Littlest Petshop toys. Not sure if these are the first ever pink pinewood derby cars, but I am sure they are among the few.

Mitchell's car had a snake running through from front to back. 

Lizzy doesn't like the flash of the camera, but here is a good shot of her car and hand. Also pink with a littlest petshop toy. She wanted her car to be a triangle.

Mentos and Diet Coke

The kids and I decided to perform some experiments with Mentos and Diet Coke. We invited some of the kid's friends over and went to town. The kids had a great time... and so did I. If you haven't tried this I would highly recommend it. I would also recommend drilling a smaller hole in the cap of the Diet Coke. I think we could have achieved a much higher projection. 

Finished Project

After 9 months of working on the patio cover it is finally complete. 3 years ago we moved into our house with the intention of building a covered patio. It was a long time coming. We poured a 12 x24 concrete slab shortly after we moved in, but the covered portion has taken a bit longer. My brother in law helped design the patio cover and got me started building it. My father also chipped in, but finding large blocks of time to work on it was harder than expected. My patient wife has endured 9 long months of a partially completed project and then this weekend we finally finished the last couple of details. Sanding and caulking happened on Thursday night, painting on Friday, and hanging the lights and fans finished the deal on Saturday. It feels great to get this project out of the way... now on to the next one. 

Kids, Cameras, and Fun!!

The kids and I had fun creating this video. They thought it was great they could use their Jedi powers for everyone to see. 

Fasting for the First Time

My eight year old daughter, Madeline, was baptized 2 weeks ago and officially became a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It was a wonderful experience to be involved with this event in her life. One week later it was fast Sunday, and she had decided to join her mother and me in fasting through breakfast and lunch. We explained to her that fasting was more than just going without food, but that she should choose something to fast about. Something that was important to her. We gave her a couple of suggestions, but in the end she came up with her own cause. She chose to fast for a very special girl in our ward family. Chantil is severely autistic and mentally handicapped and comes from a wonderful family. Madeline has been listening when my wife and I discuss Chantil's situation. She will be turning 18 soon and as such will become a ward of the state unless her parents go to court to appeal for custody. Madeline, with her sweet spirit and sensitive hearts wants the best for Chantil. So she decided to fast for Chantil and ask Heavenly Father to make sure the right thing happens for her. 

My First Blog

My wife has convinced me that I should start blogging. This is my first attempt, and hopefully the posts will get better over time.