Marvelous Lego Creations

This is a picture of a Super-class Star Destroyer, the largest kind of transport and assault ship piloted by the Galactic Empire. The crew is possibly 100,000, due to the crew of an Imperial-class Star Destroyer being 1/8 of that (an Imperial-class Destroyer is one-eighth the size of a Super-class).

I based this off of the Episode V (5) Star Destroyer, Darth Vader's Executor, the one that was always after the Millennium Falcon. These massive beasts were always the Empire's little "enforcers," as they went from planet to planet, maintaining the peace that the empire always needed to work in. The Emperor, A.K.A. Darth Sidious. His Star Destroyer was called the Eclipse II.

Shown here is the back of my model. As you can probably see, there are two sets of reverse thrusters, each with four engines on it. The one close-up is a back-up thruster, with the other being the hypersonic set. This set allows the Destroyer to make the jump to light speed and beyond, since most Destroyers have at least a class three hyperdrive. Above the thrusters, there is the very back of the Destroyer, which holds the command bridge tail fin.

This is the front needle of the Destroyer's massive hull. As you can see, there is a sharp end at the very tip of the nose cone, and that is mainly for show and speed when in hyperspace. No Destroyers have this sharp of a nosecone at the front of their hull, though. This is just my perspective of how the Destroyer would look actually shrunk down to be about the size of this model.

This picture shows that each and every Star Destroyer was very heavily guarded and protected. The part between the forward heavy turrets, the piece that looks like the inside of an engine, is the shield generator. This is something that can be placed in or on almost any place on the Destroyer itself. The large turret that has two barrels and each one pointing in a direction is the rotating ball blaster cannon, which can aim and shoot at two different targets, at the same time!!

This picture shows the main hypersonic thrusters. Like mentioned before, these are the thrusters that carry the Destroyer into hyperspeed and beyond.

This is another picture of the Star Destroyer, from a main point of view. Noticeable are the cannons and the heavy laser turrets, at about the middle point. As well, there is the large nose cone that enables faster speed through hyperspace.

This is a picture of the Republic (early clones)'s first X-class starfighter, with two guns: one on each fixed wing.

The main people that pilot these things are mostly Clone Pilots and Clone Marines. They flew these in the Prequel Trilogy, or the first three episodes. But, in one of the books in between Episodes IV and V, Han Solo finds one on Kamino, the origination planet of all the Clones. Here, there were facilities that were always working, 'growing' the clones.

This is a side view of the ARC-170 Starfighter (ARC meaning 'aggressive recon'). You can see the front landing gear, just underneath the nose. Also noticeable are the side guns, each having an orange light on the barrel.

Now, you can see, that the S-foils on this neat-o fighter don't stay closed but open up, to remain in fighting position. The landing gear that folds out from the nose is not noticeable on this particular photo; they have been folded up into the nose.

This is a rear view of the ARC-170. It reveals there are some smaller guns (missile launchers) that are not as noticeable as the other guns. They are on the very back of the gun barrels, on the S-foils themselves.

This probably looks familiar. I wonder what it is? An AT-ST, of course! These, like the Super-class Star Destroyers, are used by the Galactic Empire. AT-ST stands for All-Terrain-Scout-Transport. There is a much larger version of this particular walker, the AT-AT, which stands for All-Terrain-Assault-Transport. The AT-ST can carry only three or four for a crew, whereas the AT-AT can carry at least forty or fifty for a crew, including troops and other weapons being transported to the battlefield, including speeder bikes.

Most of the people that would use these would be spies and scouts. These are mainly used as a replacement for AT-AT's where they cannot fit, they are not needed for a job (they provide firepower enough to destroy a small transport in minutes), etc. These AT-ST's were used on the battlefield of Endor. in Episode VI.

This is a rear view of the AT-ST, and it reveals that these particular walkers had many joints in their legs. My model only has three joints per leg, and is very hard to stabilize, but it definitely is recognizable.

As you can possibly see from this photo, the AT-ST had a few guns on the side and the bottom of the cab. The ones under the cab are heavy blaster cannons, and the ones on the side of the cab are light repeating blasters.

These are only some of the "Marvelous Lego Creations" that I have constructed, but these are some of the best that I have not easily erected.

Love,
Dallin(Lego Master)

Is It Too Much To Ask?

Is it too much to ask...


...for my husband to get up with the alarm instead of sleeping through it or turning it off to "lay in bed for a minute"?


...for my husband to let me know when he's going to be home from work each night without having to ask him everyday?


...for my children to do their chores?


...for my five-month old baby to take a nap?


...for my sons to pee only in the toilet bowl?


...for my children to not pick their noses in front of me?


...for my family not to have skid marks in their underwear?


...for my children to not wipe their boogers on walls, clothing, towels, hair, etc?


...for there not to be a spill at the dinner table?


...for my daughter to not get food in her hair when she eats and toothpaste in her hair when she brushes her teeth?


...for my family to not burp and fart at the dinner table?


...for my children to not play with my cell phone--to not change my ringtone, turn my ringer off altogether, or download games, etc. which will later show up on my bill?


...for my children to actually put their trash in the trash cans and their dirty clothes in the hamper?


...for my sons to wash their hands after using the bathroom without being told?


...for my children to not stay in the shower until they turn into raisins and use up all the hot water?


...for us to have a good morning?


...for there not to be screaming in my house?


...for my children to not hide things from me and each other?


...for my children to not remove my bookmark from whatever novel I might be reading so that I lose my place and while searching for said lost place spoil the book for myself?


...for my children to not eat my Weight Watchers and diet food, especially since I buy them the real thing which tastes so much better and costs less money?


...for my family to say "thank you" once in a while?


...for there not to be any complaints about a meal I've just prepared?


...for me to not have to wait till lunchtime to finally eat for the first time?


...for my laptop to be available to me when I need it?


...for my children to not leave fingerprints on my stainless steel appliances and any and all glass surfaces?


...for my family to not wake up the baby before she's ready to get up in the morning?


...for my DVRs to actually record what I program them to?


...for my husband to not make the children mad before he up and leaves for work, leaving me to deal with the meltdown?


...for my family to leave me alone when I am using the bathroom by not following me in or talking to me from the other side of the door?


...for my family to not talk to me while I'm on the phone?


...for my children to respect when my bedroom door is locked and not yank and pull at the handle until they break the lock which then has to be repaired for the hundredth time?


...for my family to exercise common courtesy and common sense?


...for my life to not be so difficult and chaotic and reminiscent of "Groundhog Day"?


...for me to have peace?


...for me to have time to myself?


Apparently it is. Sorry I asked!


Cara

Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow

Twenty-two months is a long time to wait for a haircut, but Mimi did. Yep, her last haircut (other than a bang-trim) was in December of 2007. It was at that time that Mimi donated her hair to Locks of Love. A couple of months later she received a certificate from Locks of Love thanking her for her donation. Mimi felt so good about what she had done, she vowed to donate her hair again once it had reached the minimum length necessary for donation (10 inches).

Mimi has been asking everyday for months if her hair was long enough to donate again. A couple times a month I would break out the measuring tape to see. Well, this month's measurement showed that her hair had finally grown enough to donate without relieving her of all her beautiful blond hair.

So last Wednesday night while the boys were at Scouts, I took Mimi to a salon so she could get her hair cut.



Mimi was so ready for a change. She had no second thoughts!



No matter that she had beautiful blond hair. Mimi wasn't selfish enough to keep it all but instead was ready to share it. Here's one last picture of her from the back.



Before Annette (Mimi's stylist) cut Mimi's hair, she bound it with rubber bands.



Then the cutting began.



Mimi proudly displays the hair that is no longer attached to her head.



Annette then led Mimi to the sink for shampooing.



Mimi held very still while Annette trimmed the little hairs on the back of her neck. She pretended to be a popsicle!



Mimi's neck is now exposed!



Annette blow-dried and styled Mimi's hair. Mimi stared at her new reflection in the mirror. Oh, how different she now looked.



The finished product. Absolutely adorable! When Annette announced she was done, Mimi shouted, "I can't wait to do it again!"



While Mimi and I waited for Daddy to pick us up, she read a magazine and savored the sucker Annette gave her. Lucky girl.



The next morning before school, I curled Mimi's new hair. So pretty.



Check out her newly exposed neck!



Side profile.



Not to be left out, Felicity wanted her hair curled, too. No, she still doesn't have much hair, but I did the best I could with what she does have. She also wanted her picture taken.



Felicity's neck is still exposed. She often sunburns there.



Side profile.



My pretty girls.


A lot can change in two years, but I bet that sometime in 2011 Mimi will want to do this again. Am I surprised? No. Afterall, it feels good to be selfless. Isn't that what the gospel is all about? Service? Richard and I must be doing something right.


Love, Cara

The Force Is Strong With Felicity

Daddy, will you please buy me a light saber so that I can complete my Jedi training? The dark side of the force is strong, but with proper training and the correct light saber I can bring balance to the force.





Until I get a real light saber (#1 on my Christmas wish list) I'll have to make do with Mommy's turkey baster.




Felicity, having completed her Jedi training under the tutelage of Yoda (the Jedi master), pauses for a quick picture. After this picture was taken, Felicity hopped into an AT-TE and continued the fight against Darth Vader (the Sith Lord).

Let it be known that Richard helped me to write this post, as I know nothing about Star Wars. My entire family, myself excepted, is obsessed with Star Wars. In fact, most nights our conversation around the dinner table is all about Star Wars. I just don't get it. That's when I tune out and stick my nose in a book. But that's another post for another day...

Will someone please get Felicity a light saber? She'd like a green one. Just like Yoda's.

Love, Cara

Baby Bling

At the tender age of five months, Bree is already a seasoned model. Here she is modeling the latest in baby bling.



As we all know, Bree loves to suck her fingers. Sometimes she doesn't even remove them from her mouth when modeling.




Case in point. This is Bree's "I love you" pose. Whew! Modeling is exhausting!




Side profile.




Another side profile.




Aww! Could you just die? This smile is a killer, and one that Mom and Dad cannot say no to.




Bree enjoys her modeling career. She works for food: boob juice.



I know it's generally the rule that too much of a good thing is bad, but does the rule apply to a super cute baby? I don't think so!


Love, Cara

Autumn Is Awesome

Autumn is my second favorite season, spring being my favorite. Given that autumn officially begins tomorrow, I felt it appropriate to list some of the reasons I love this season:


01) The kids are back in school! This is good on so many levels. First off, it allows me to miss Dallin, Elijah and Amelia. Secondly, it allows me time alone with the little girls. Thirdly, it allows me quiet time and no fighting in the house. Yes, someday Felicity and Aubrielle will fight, but for now they don't and I appreciate it.

02) Warm clothing is the norm. I love to wear jeans and T-shirts and thick socks. When I'm home I enjoy wearing my robe or sweater over my clothes if I get a little chilly, and I love a good pair of fuzzy slippers. When I leave the house, in place of sandals I wear high-heeled boots under my jeans that come up to my knees (these help to keep my feet and legs warm and give me much-needed height).

03) Reading by the fireplace. Oh, yeah. That's what I'm talking about. Is there anything better than reading a great book and feeling the warmth of the fireplace, while enjoying a cup of hot cocoa?

04) Soups, stews and chowders. 'Nuff said.

05) Cuddling to stay warm.

06) The warmth, smell and ambiance of scented candles throughout the house.

07) Anticipation of holidays like Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas and the music associated with them.

08) The changing colors outside. Can anyone argue that it's beautiful here in Colorado?

09) Basketball season begins. Go, Lakers!

10) New fall shows premiere! That's a whole post in itself.


For all of these reasons, and many more, I love autumn. God bless this autumn to be good to us (unlike autumn of 2006!)

Love, Cara

Man Date Straight Up

This past Thursday night Richard and his best friend JP went out on a man date.

Our story begins at 5:00p.m. Thursday evening. Our family and the Schneider family were outside at our park enjoying the gorgeous weather, knowing we should all head inside to feed our families and get our children into bed. First my cell phone rang. It was our neighbor Tammy. Since I didn't answer my phone before it went to voicemail, Tammy then called Richard's cell phone. She called to say that her family was under the weather and were in possession of four Colorado Avalanche tickets they were consequently unable to use. She wondered if Richard and JP were interested in using them.

Duh! No-brainer! Of course the guys wanted to use the tickets, are you kidding?!

Tera and I said our goodbyes and shepherded our children into the house for baths and a quick dinner (Top Ramen, watermelon and banana bread, all well received). JP ran to The Olive Garden to pick up dinner for Tera and me, then ran back home to pick up Richard before heading to the game which began at 7:00p.m.

For all those who are wondering, of course Tera and I were jealous of Richard and JP. We would have loved to go. Thank heavens we had good TV to watch while the guys were at the game: the season premiere of "Survivor" was that night!

Anyway, here are the pictures that Richard took from his seat in the 13th row behind the goal. I'll turn the journaling responsibilities over to him now since I wasn't there. So jealous.



Here is the outside of the Pepsi Center as seen from the bridge crossing the railroad tracks from Elitch Gardens, an amusement park. The Pepsi Center is home to many sports teams, concerts and conventions.


Here is the view going up the escalator from the main entrance up to the level where you get to the seats.


For those who have never been to a hockey game, JP and I included, the game is fast-paced and non-stop action.


Here is a face-off in the Dallas zone. This is how the game is restarted after a stoppage of play.



Here are two players getting better acquainted. This means they are fighting. The gloves come off, they grab each other by the neck of the jersey and start swinging. The refs in the striped shirts will allow the players to keep fighting as long as they are both standing and they are still swinging at each other. In this case, after about 30 seconds of fighting, the two players stopped swinging and were allotted 5 minutes each in the penalty box to do some soul searching.



Our seats were in the 13th row from the ice, but I wanted a picture from the ice level. All that separates the players from the fans is the boards on the bottom and the glass on top. The glass protects the fans from getting hit by the puck which is made of solid rubber. Every time an errant shot by a player would hit the glass, the fans in front would duck since it was coming so fast.



This is visual proof of what happens to a fan who jumps out of their seat when we scored a goal sitting in front of JP's nachos. Notice the added cheese and sour cream. We hoped this eager fan would enjoy a lasting momento of the game.



Here is the famous Zamboni. Between each period, there is a 17 minute intermission where the players leave the ice, rest, strategize, sleep, throw a party who knows. During the intermission, there are two Zambonis that drive over the ice and resmooth and recondition it for the next period.









Here are a few pictures of the hockey action. As you can see, the pictures are a little fuzzy because the players are in constant motion.



Now and then there is a stop of play and I am sure the players are very grateful for the chance to catch their breath.



All in all, JP and I had a great evening. We got to experience a professional sporting event that we had never had the opportunity to attend in person. As with all such events, watching it on tv does not even compare with the live action.

When given the opportunity for a man date on ice, we prefer ours to be Straight Up.

To finish this fairy tale, I must not have been a very good date. JP did not hold my hand, he did not walk me to the door, and I have yet to hear from him about a second date. I shall have to perfect my man date skills.

Still waiting for the second date,

Richard