The Funniest Thing I've Never Seen

Hello! Is anyone still out there? It's been a while, I know. Just to let you know I looked up the word "crazy" in the dictionary and the definition was "Kjirsten's summer of 2008". I could try to explain it all, but really - where do I start. Be grateful that I will spare you the gory details for now, I am sure they will come out in a later post, when it is wintertime and I am having post traumatic flashbacks.

So what prompts me to write now? Well, I saw my good friend and sister-in-law Crystal the other day. It is always wonderful to see her and Dale. Anyway, she made the comment that she hadn't posted forever, and I told her I was so grateful because I felt as long as she hadn't posted, I was under no pressure to do so (being that she is the one that got me in to the blogging thing in the first place, you are following the logic, aren't you?). Then she told me something that motivated this blog...her internet has been out for 2 months. Drat. No more excuses for me.

To break my blogging drought, I will tell you a story the kids told me the other day. I have heard it before, but since I wasn't there, I keep forgetting it and everytime they tell me the story we all get the giggles. Here it is:

Joe's "thriftiness" is legendary. In his younger days, his peers lovingly named him "Crowbar" because, they said that's what it took to get him to open his wallet. From coupons, to generic groceries to yard sales, Joe is always finding ways to save a penny. One of his personal favorites was when he "found" a box full of York Peppermint Patties in a dumpster behind a grocery store (I don't even want to know why he was going thru the dumpster). Anyway, he figured since the patties were wrapped and in sealed plastic bags,and even though waaay past their expiration, they were still consumable. So he passed them out for Halloween and fed the leftovers to the neighborhood children (sorry, Cox boys and Caytee). Yes, Joe is cheap. But the story my kids told me the other day is the best one yet. Last fall, Joe had bought tickets for all the boys to go with him to a BYU football game(one of the only things he will pay full price for if he has to). They were all excited and looked forward to the game with anticipation. When game day came, it was cold and looked like it would snow or rain. We had several rain ponchos on hand and I asked Joe to take them. He just brushed them off and said that the weather would clear once they got past Nephi. I reminded him that buying rain ponchos for 5 people would be pricey so to just take these along "in case". But Joe couldn't be bothered and away he and the boys went to cheer on their favorite team. Well, somewhere in Utah Valley (past Nephi, mind you) the sky opened and dumped rain and snow as they were nearing the stadium. Joe knew he was in trouble because he could tell the weather wasn't going to let up anytime soon, and missing the game was NOT an option. Buying rain gear was also not an option (too spendy, remember?) but Joe's creativity won the day, he ducked into a nearby IFA store, and solved the problem. The boys will never forget (and love to tell the story!) that after they found their seats, with the rain and the snow pouring down on them, their dad brought out his recently purchased item, a tarp (BYU blue of course, the size you cover stacks of hay with)spread it over their heads, and then with his pocket knife cut five openings for each one of them to stick their heads thru - my two unbelievably cool teenagers, who normally wouldn't be caught dead in anything from IFA, a preteen who will do anything his big brothers do, a little boy who isn't sure he likes football, but knows for sure he hates getting wet, and the biggest little boy of all, Joe. And that's how they stayed dry and watched the whole game - under a five holed tarp and cheered BYU on to victory. So taking the script from a popular credit card commercial: BYU football tickets for 5: $75.00, Blue tarp: $3.50, Watching BYU win during a freezing monsoon snuggled next to your dad under an IFA tarp: Priceless.

Of course, Joe didn't think to get a picture, even with his cell phone. But, I can picture the whole thing in my mind's eye. And it's the funniest thing I've never seen