A Whopper of a Tail

It was a dark and stormy Christmas morning. Little Peabody sat near the local creek. He was very distraught. It was his brother Ray's first Christmas and Peabody couldn't figure out what to get him as a gift. Ray had no money and wasn't very good at making his own gifts. As he sat by the creek the stress of the moment took over and tears began to fill his eyes.

As Peabody was rubbing his eyes he noticed some movement in the creek. He couldn't believe his eyes as a giant fish rose up out of the water and began walking on his tail to the shore. Frozen with shock, Peabody sat in amazement as the giant fish walked up to him. Peabody asked the fish, "What are you doing here?" The fish answered, "I am Stanley, the Christmas fish. I sensed that you had a problem and wonder if I can help".

Peabody composed himself enough to explain his situation to Stanley. "Nobody should go their first Christmas without a great gift", said Stanley. "I have an idea. I will provide a fishing rod and reel for Ray". "Won't that make it easier for you and your family to get caught", asked Peabody. "Actually, it will probably make it more difficult for us to get caught. Think of all the extra fishing time spent getting Ray's snags out. Picture all the times that Ray's line gets tangled with yours and keeps you from catching us. It really is an ideal situation", replied Stanley.

Peabody couldn't control his excitement. "Let's go give it to him right now!", he exclaimed. Stanley said, " I don't think I should go with you." "But you have to.", cried Peabody. "Nobody will ever believe my story if you don't come." "Very well.", said Stanley and they headed off to see Ray. The people in town were surprised at the sight of Peabody and his new friend. They had never seen a fish so large. Nor had they seen one who could walk and talk. And even stranger, was the fact that the fish was carrying a rod and reel. Whispers spread around town about the possibly cannibalistic fish rapidly. By the time Peabody arrived at his home a large crowd of his extended family was waiting for him. They had already heard the rumors of the Christmas fish.

Stanley went in to Peabody's home and Ray instantly began crying. He had never seen a fish so big and hadn't learned how to control himself. As Stanley got closer he extended his fin and offered the new fishing set-up to Ray. He told Ray, "Don't go catching any of my family." Ray stopped his crying and smiled at his new gift. Ray's happiness made Stanley grin from gill to gill. It was a Christmas miracle. As Ray grew up he promised himself that he would only catch-and-release when he went fishing.

The legend of the Christmas fish spread across the land and there were many sightings on Christmas day. For many families he has been known to show up on a child's first Christmas to offer them a rod and reel and say, "Don't go catching any of my family." And so, Stanley has brought joy to many. He wishes you and yours a merry Christmas and hopes that you will get hooked with holiday cheer.

Cue The Little Drummer Boy

One of my favorite things about Christmas is the music. It isn't uncommon to find me listening to "Christmas" music throughout the whole year (Feliz Navidad was my ring tone for over a year), but the play list gets major rotation throughout the holidays. I enjoy discovering new songs each year and hearing various artists cover the classics. If you haven't muted my music player at the bottom of the page, then you have been privileged to experience great holiday music. It seems like I have a new favorite each year. And so, by popular demand, I present you with my top 10 holiday songs to listen to in 2009 (All of which can be found in the play list at the bottom of the page):

10. Funky, Funky Christmas - Electric Jungle: This was the first year I experienced this song. Everyone knows that Christmas could use a little more funk and this song provides it.

9. Merry Christmas Darling - The Carpenters: I think I might be the only person my age that likes the Carpenters, but they do a great job of covering the Christmas classics. This happens to be my current favorite of all their great Christmas songs.

8. Alien for Christmas - Fountains of Wayne: Speaking of the Carpenters, my favorite Carpenter song is Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft. So, it is only appropriate that aliens make my Christmas list. We have been listening to this song for quite a few years, but it doesn't seem to get old. Who wouldn't want an alien for Christmas?

7. Christmas Day - Dido: Interestingly enough, Dido was born on Christmas day. This song has nothing to do with her birth, but her voice is unique and this song is smooth on the ears.

6. Everything's Gonna Be Cool This Christmas - The Eels: This was the first year I have heard this song. I like the Eels, although they may be confused about why Baby Jesus was born (they think it was to rock).

5. The Lights and Buzz - Jack's Mannequin: This was my favorite song last Christmas. Being a Californian, the chorus is pretty catchy. The story behind this song makes it even more interesting. Here is what wikipedia has to say about it:

It is the first song frontman Andrew McMahon wrote and recorded after his stem cell transplant in connection with his leukemia diagnosis in late 2005. The song's lyrics are heavily influenced by his recovery from the disease, indicated in lines like "I'm coming home from my hardest year" and "It's good to be alive". With a rather depressive holiday theme, a lush piano accompaniment and seemingly less emphasis on the vocals, the song stands, both musically and thematically, in contrast to the uplifting summer feel of McMahon's 2005 album Everything in Transit.

4. What Christmas Means to Me - Stevie Wonder: Stevie Wonder is awesome, and this is my favorite of his Christmas songs. I think a few commercials have influenced me though.

3. It Doesn't Have to Be That Way - Jim Croce: A classic story of lost love at Christmas. I wonder if he is talking about Leroy Brown.

2. Christmas Must Be Tonight - Hall and Oates: They were one of my favorite bands growing up. They cover some great Christmas songs, but this is by far my favorite. I don't know how I hadn't heard this one until this year. The lyrics reflect the true meaning of Christmas.

...............and now, the moment you've all been waiting for. My #1 Christmas song to hear in 2009 is (that's where you come in little drummer boy).

Elf's Lament - Barenaked Ladies: Everyone likes bare naked ladies, and the band is pretty o.k. too. I hadn't heard this song until this year. We play it a lot in the car and the kids always request it (probably making it Mrs. Mustachio's least favorite). When we think about everything to do with the holidays, it seems as though the elves become an afterthought. Poor elves. Here is a video of a live performance. Do you have any favorite Christmas songs? How about sharing?

Christmas Miracles

In the past I have mentioned my dislike of getting Christmas trees. In years past, Mrs. Mustachio has been pretty particular about the tree. I have come to expect spending a large amount of time at the tree lot cutting the twine, unwrapping the tree and shaking it out for her to observe and reject. But this year was different.I pulled out the first tree.

I cut the twine and unwrapped it.
I shook it out and held it up expecting to hear the many things that were wrong with it. But then a miracle happened. Mrs. Mustachio said, "That's the tree." I'll be honest, it threw me for a loop. At first I was expecting to hear her say psyche. When that didn't happen I started to worry a bit. There could only be a few possible reasons for her agreeing to the very first tree:
1. It was too "cold" to bear waiting for me to unwrap another tree.
2. Mrs. Mustachio has done something horribly wrong and is trying to butter me up before breaking the bad news.
3. Mrs. Mustachio is planning on doing something horribly wrong and is trying to earn a get-out-of-the-doghouse-free card before she does.
4. It was actually a good tree (highly doubtful).
So, I am pretty much waiting for Mrs. Mustachio to tell me what she did wrong.

Bodie enjoyed the snowman at the tree lot.

Madison did too.

And here is the tree standing in our home.

This holiday season has gone uncharacteristically smooth. I will share a few examples with you.
We got all the decorations up pretty early this year. Here are a couple of my favorites.

If you look into our kitchen window, you will see a major award.

This is probably my favorite of our Christmas displays (The Padres snowman comes in a close 2nd). It is Santa paying respect to Baby Jesus (although, I don't remember that part in the bible) as the 3 budwisemen(they are made out of Budweiser bottles) look on.

We were able to make a trip to Disneyland on Monday and the kids got to see Santa.

Bodie wasn't too sure of the whole experience.Madison has been very scared of Santa in years past, but overcame the fear during her wait in line. She isn't crying for the first time that I can remember.Geronimo asked for a football.And Skyler asked for a hula hoop.

It was a good quick trip and we knocked a couple things off our Christmas traditions list. I currently have only one gift left to get, and that will be easy. Most other preparations (that I am responsible for) have been completed. A Christmas Story has been watched, we took our family Christmas pictures and we will be heading out to see the DWP Light Festival on Monday. Feel free to call if you want to join us. So, this holiday season has been surprisingly smooth compared to what I expected. Hopefully I didn't just jinx it. Hope you are enjoying Hanuka!

Humbug!

I may have mentioned this before, but Christmas is not one of my favorite holidays. It requires me to use time that could be wisely spent finding a cure for (fill in the disease that means most to you here) or sleeping for a lot of other things. I know that when all is said and done I enjoy the final results of all the labor that goes in to celebrating Christmas, but getting to that point isn't exactly a marshmallow world. I like the kids getting excited about gifts and decorating the tree. The threat of talking to Santa gets a lot more done around that house than the rest of the year too. I don't like trying to find a parking space in order to get those gifts. And getting a tree ranks high on my list of things I would pay somebody else to do if I had the money. I like having family traditions like watching Ralphie be warned about shooting his eye out. I enjoy eating delicious ham. My ears smile when the sound of Christmas music fills them. I sometimes worry that the true meaning of Christmas gets overlooked (not that Christmas is being celebrated at the correct time of year). However, I think Mrs. Mustachio and I do a pretty good job of reminding the children that Santa wasn't born in a barn. We also make it a point to try and do something nice for other people. In the past we have written letters to people away from their families for Christmas and we always make plates of goodies and ding-dong ditch some unsuspecting victims. This year the wife has something planned called "The 12 Days of Christmas". I don't know what it is or where we are going to put the many bird cages, but I look forward to it happening. I recently watched an episode of 90210 where Steve Sanders sinks a half-court shot for $10,000 at a Laker game and then proceeds to donate the money to a less fortunate elementary school at which he played Santa the previous Christmas. I hope to be as great as a philanthropist as Steve Sanders someday, but for now I will just have to stick with doing the best we can. I wonder what other people do to serve others during the holidays.

Killer Christmas

Every year The Killers put out a new song for Christmas with proceeds benefiting a charity. Here is this years song (and yes that is Pimp Dylan):

The Year Before, I Gave You My Kidney

Do You Have an Idea?

Do You Have a Cold?

Chillin and Coolin Just Like a Snowman

The Reason For The Season

I am thankful for holidays. I enjoy the excuse from working, a reason to get together with family, and the large meals that go along with them. I am thankful for family traditions that are enacted because of holidays. I am thankful for new music that is created specifically for holidays. I am thankful for the super-size portion of happiness that comes along with celebrating holidays. I hope everyone else is thankful for something too. I'm looking forward to two belly stretching meals today. Then it is on to a new Black Friday experience. Wish me luck! Happy Thanksgiving!

First Things First

I am thankful for Skyler. I don't want to play favorites, but Skyler and I will always have a special bond. She is our first-born, just like me. She is very creative, just like me (a couple of these pictures were taken by her). I am thankful that she likes to take charge of the younger children. It allows me to focus more time on important things like saving the planet from aliens, or helping my team win the World Series. I am thankful for her kind heart and her understanding. I have told her more than once that we don't know what we are doing as parents, and that she is our experiment. She's o.k. with us making mistakes and learning from our experiences with her. Skyler is a great friend and fun to spend time with. So, I am thankful for Skyler.

I am thankful for Skyler.

Cooper Kong

I am thankful for Madison. You know how sometimes parents tell you, "I can't wait until you have children of your own."? Because, then you will get to go through what you were doing to your parents. Madison is that child. I recognize the evil joy in Mike's smile when we recite a story of one of Madison's misdeeds. Madison is a trouble maker. I don't see that changing in the future, but I am thankful for her. Without her life wouldn't be nearly as entertaining. She makes me laugh when I try and discipline her. She is too smart for her own good. She knows what she wants and she is a very, very strong willed person. She has no fear. She knows how to use her cuteness to her advantage. I am thankful for the crazy things she says. I am thankful for the adventures we go through. I am thankful to be able to say to her, "I can't wait until you have children of your own." I am thankful for Madison.

Geronimo!

I am thankful for Geronimo.I am thankful for his smile. I am thankful for his efforts to choose the right. I am thankful that he gets along with his siblings so well.I am thankful that he has taken an interest in baseball. I enjoy spending time with him. I am thankful for his kindness. I don't know if I have met someone who cares about others more than Geronimo. He wears his heart on his sleeve and would probably shed a tear with his grandfather while watching 7th Heaven. He doesn't give us much trouble and helps out when he can.But most importantly, he can catch fish. So, I am thankful for Geronimo.

That's Me In The Corner

I am thankful for my religion.I think that the majority of religions in the world can help people become better. I think that a belief in a supreme being can help people get through difficult times. I think that a belief in life after death helps people try and make good choices.

I am thankful that I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I am thankful for the knowledge of my purpose in life. I am thankful to know that I can be together with my family forever. I am thankful that God still speaks to us through his prophets. I am thankful for scriptures to provide guidance in my daily life. I am thankful for missionaries who share these teachings with the world. Most importantly, I am thankful for Jesus Christ's willingness to give his life to make God's plan work. I am thankful that,through Him, I can live with God again.When discussing my religion with others close to me, a major point that comes up is the amount of time that we dedicate to it. It does take up a lot of time. Like a lot of people, I have contemplated the idea that there is no life after this one. I wonder if I would have any regrets. Would I regret the amount of time spent and the things required of living my religion? No. Even if what I believed in turned out to be false, I would not have wanted to live my life a different way. I am thankful for the type of person that living my religion has made me. I hope that the general feeling is that I am a good person and I owe that to the concepts taught by the gospel. I am happy because of it, I have hope because of it, and I have stability because of it. So, I am thankful for my religion.

Domo Arigato Mr. Roboto

I am thankful for technology.I remember watching The Jetsons as a young lad and thinking that the stuff that they did was so far out. Little did I know that in just a few short years a lot of the future world of the Jetsons would become a reality.

I am thankful that I don't have to worry about carpal tunnel from using the phone anymore.

I am thankful that I can cook a "meal" in minutes.I am thankful that this wasn't the peak of what video games would be.

I am thankful for all of the great things technology has brought us. It allows me to keep up with my grandma's facebook status. It allows me to bid on unnecessary items for cheap on the internets. It allows me to carry thousands of my favorite songs with me wherever I go. It allows me to record television and watch it later while skipping commercials. It allows me to follow Punky Brewster on Twitter. It allows me to find directions somewhere without whipping out the Thomas Guide. It provides me with more and more benefits each day. It allows me to find, save, and post pictures like these:
The Jetsons future isn't too far off. We still don't have the flying cars yet, but give it a few years. I am thankful for technology.

Brownie Girl

I am thankful for Sara. I was trying to remember another girl who I gave my phone number to that didn't call, and couldn't remember any (could be my old age, but I don't recall it ever happening). Perhaps the fact that she wasn't too impressed by me made me want to impress her even more. I knew that Sara was going to be different than the other girls that I dated. I have been known to think quite highly of myself, but Sara keeps my humility in check. Just the other night Sara looked me right in the eye and said, "You look so gross right now". I never would have made it with a wife who worships me. And that just isn't Sara's style, so it works out pretty perfectly. I won't go into the domestic violence she inflicts upon me, but she keeps me in line.

I am thankful for the great mother that she is. I don't realize all that she does while I am off trying to avoid paper-cuts. There are probably times when she feels under appreciated, but I do know that our family wouldn't make it without her. I used to think that the kids finished their homework with the help of the homework fairy. It turns out that there isn't one. Nor is there a laundry fairy, a dish fairy, and fairy of child transportation, or a dinner fairy.

I admire her willingness to serve others. She is part of the PTA Board, which I never imagined my wife would be. She is a great friend to those close to her. I am proud of her dedication. She recently received a new responsibility to teach some of the young women at church and she spends a great deal of time preparing for her lesson each week. She provides a great example to those young women.

I am impressed by her determination. She recently decided to slim down a little more and has done a great job. She looks just like the girl that didn't call me (which can be a little intimidating). It has always been a challenge to try and keep my hands to myself around her, but now it is almost impossible.

I am thankful for her patience with me. It wouldn't be a stretch to call me more difficult to handle than our children, but she does it. She puts up with my nonsense, she doesn't complain about things like the Mr. Sasquatch Competition, she doesn't mock my silly jokes for very long, and she just lets me be myself. I am thankful for every minute I get to spend with her, and am especially grateful for her love. So, thank you Sara for being my wife.

p.s. It is probably time to get that All-Star shirt out of storage.

Bros Before Hoes (unless you are gardening)

I am thankful for brotherhood.

I am thankful for each one of my brothers and the experience of growing up with them.I am thankful for Jed and his ability to have fun.

He has a great ability to make people laugh, even when it usually isn't appropriate.I am thankful for Kyle and his patience.I admire his musical ability, but wonder why he hasn't agreed to creating a family band (There isn't a band filling the need of people to hear a drummer and 3 dancers perform).I am thankful for Knick and his laidbackness (It's a word, ask Knick).
Of all of my brothers, I have seen him angry the least.We didn't have any sisters, and I think that is because a girl wouldn't have survived us (Kyle barely made it). My life wouldn't be nearly as good without the memories made with my brothers. So, I am thankful for brotherhood.

Oompa Loompa

I am thankful for Willy Wonka. I honestly don't know how this guy hasn't won a Nobel Prize yet. Because of him we have not one, but two great movies.Willy gave us a new term for people who aren't very tall, and a bonus tune to hum around them.

And though those are all great things, those aren't even the best things we have to thank Willy for. The movies place most of the focus on his chocolate bars.

But that is just the beginning of all the sugary deliciousness that he has made available to us.

Candy wouldn't really be candy without Willy Wonka. And he doesn't stop providing us with new items.

Who can remember a childhood without sitting on the curb enjoying some Fun Dip? Nobody.

Would life really be the same without having tasted the everlastingness of a Gobstopper?

And who can forget my personal favorite, Bottle Caps. I still can't see these in the store and walk away. I secretly sneak them to work and avoid the wrath of my dental assistant wife. (Whoops! We probably should keep that on the down-low. It will be our little secret.)

And the list goes on and on. You probably have a favorite Willy Wonka candy too. So, I am thankful for Willy Wonka.