The Northwest Pugh's

Family Hike

2009-08-16T20:52:00.001-07:00

Here is a couple of quick picks from our family hike this weekend. We hiked to Lake Talapus which is aways up I-90 form North Bend. The hike was about 5 miles round trip and the boys did great!! Trevor made me promise that if we found a sasquatch that we could bring him home like in Harry and Hendersons. So far I'm the only hairy and smelly animal we've brought home.

Girl Week

2009-08-16T20:14:00.000-07:00

This past week was has been officially dubbed Girl Week by the men of the Northwest Pughs. JR and I had business (see below) to take care of this week and he decided to bring Karen and the girls up for a visit. Our boy's had a great time playing with what they call the "girl cousins" for a couple of days. There was lot's of playing in the fort in the forest, Wii games, and great meals at Ruby's and Red Robin. It was really fun to see them all get along so well and we can't wait until the next time we get together.

Tajee and Karen also had a great time. They got a babysitter one day and were able to have an afternoon out without the kids. Off to the beauty shop for a mani-pedi followed up with a little shopping. I'm not sure JR and I can afford to get these two together very often, but when we do they sure have fun.

JR and I also had a "girl" experience this week as well. Part of the "business" that I mentioned earlier was to play in a charity golf tournament with Russ and our banker. This tournament raises scholarship dollars for local high schoolers who played varsity golf. As part of the tournament each foursome was paired with a junior golfer. Our playing partner was 15 year sophomore from Decatur High named Amanda. This is our second year in a row playing with Amanda and she let us know that she had really improved her game over the year and has gone from a 6 to a 4 handicap. Yes, a 15 year old girl with a 4 handicap!!!! Watching her play was amazing and she pretty much carried our team. JR out drove her twice but other than that she was the long drive on pretty much every hole. Between the JR pressure (very similar to brother pressure), country club pressure (Twin Lakes CC), 15 year old girl who is kicking my butt pressure, and the banker pressure I was pretty much a wreck. I couldn't find the fairway if my life depended on it. I think I'm going to start playing tennis.

(Not my actual club but I really wanted to do this. That's one of the good things about playing with a 15 year old girl. It kept me from swearing (loudly) or throwing clubs. I hate this game).

Seafair Fleet Week

2009-08-01T16:52:00.001-07:00

This morning the Northwest Pugh's took off for an exciting adventure at the Port of Seattle. This week is Seafair and one of the best things about Seafair is Fleet Week. Every year the Navy brings in ships and allows the public to tour the vessels. We were able to head down and tour 2 guided missle cruisers, a 400 ft Coast Guard vessel, and a Vietnam era river boat. The river boat was the boys favorite. They had a .50 caliber machine gun in back and twin turret mounted .50 caliber machine guns in the front that the boys got to play with. Basically we had our very own family re-enactment of Apocolypse Now.
Curtis mans the rear guns keeping an eye out for some guy named Charlie?

This was too natural a position for Trevor and now he can't decide if he wants to be Army or Navy. We told him he can be either one as long as Elder comes first.

The forward deck of the USS Shoup. That's one big gun.

Trevor and Curtis next to the USS Shoup. No sign of Tajee, I think she's off chatting up the sailors. The ladies love a man in unifrom.

We had a great time seeing some our nations military vessels and interacting with the brave Marines and Sailors who give so much to keep our nation free. We appreciate their sacrifice and the example that they are to all of us. God Bless America.

The Fat Pile

2009-07-18T16:05:00.000-07:00

So one of the benefits of losing a few lbs. is the new clothes. As most of you know I've lost a fair amount of weight over the past 7 months (65 pounds and counting, please save the biggest loser jokes). This afternoon Tajee and I did a little shopping to update the wardrobe and all I can say is thank you Nordstroms Rack. Normally I would have just gone to regular Nordstroms but I guess hanging with Tim last week caused a little of his, shall we say, frugalness to rub off. Who knew you could get so much clothes at such low prices. I'm officially the cheap version of Lizzy!!

In order to make room for the new clothes Tajee and I went through all my old clothes and threw out everything that doesn't fit anymore. Look at the size of that pile!!! We fondly call it Mount Fatty Fatterson. Next week some fat guy at the Goodwill is going to think he won the lottery.

Also please pay special attention to the Oklahoma Thunder shirt on the top of Mount Fatty Fatterson. JR thought it was funny to give me that shirt for my birthday last year. Real funny Zundel. Now your responsible for making some down on his luck, Good will shopping, fat guy dress like a jacka***. Why do you hate poor and obese so much? You really should work on being a nicer person.

Life is full of big decissions

2009-06-29T21:57:00.000-07:00

As we go through life we are all faced with the difficulty of making a million different decisions. Every day of my life starts out with a myriad of challenging decision. "Should I get up, or hit the snooze button and get 10 more minutes of sleep?" "What should I wear today?" "Should I stop and grab that Jelly Doughnut I was dreaming about?" These are fairly benign decisions and the consequences rarely have a major impact on my life.

When I get to work the next series of decisions that hit my day are of little more importance to my life. "What should I do about our that data on our daily sales report?" Which customers should I call on for the day?" "What price should I quote this unit at?" These decisions generally have some sort of consequence, some immediate, some occurring later doing the line. Sometimes the consequences are major sometimes minor. Generally speaking though in the grand scheme of these things aren't all that important.

The next type of decisions that we have to make in life don't come around all that often. These are what we call life altering decisions. As I look back on my life I'm guessing I have only had to face these type of decisions about 10 or 12 times. I'm guessing my batting average is about .600. Fantastic for major league baseball but that 40% failure rate leaves for some serious challenges in life. The good news is after a major slump in the late eighties and early nineties I'm on a hitting streak with the big ones.

So why all this talk about big decisions? Well today is the 14th anniversary of the biggest and best decision that I've ever made in life. What was the decision? Marrying Tajee of course.

As I mentioned 14 years ago I was in period of my life where I wasn't make good decisions. I put myself in bad situations, I made choices that limited my options in life, I made choices that kept me from experiencing some wonderful events, and I made decisions that negatively effected many relationships with friends and family. Who would have thought that while I was in the middle of this "decision slump" that I would step up the plate and hit a the Grand Slam of all decisions.

With the kids growing like crazy and life whirring past us at a million miles and hour I've spend a fair amount of time reflecting on life. I look back at how lucky I was to meet Tajee and the incredible difference that she has made in my life. I shudder to thing where I'd be without her and I wanted to publicly let you all know how much I love her and how glad I am that she chose me.

Tajee truly inspires me to be a better man. I work harder because of her. I laugh more because of her. I'm happier because of her. I'm a more committed father because of her. I pray more because of her. I'm more social and outgoing because of her. I have many more opportunities to help others because of her. I try new things because of her. I have a beautiful house because of her. I have to many delicious meals and snacks because of her. I feel loved because of her. I feel safe because of her. I feel needed and important because of her. I have two awesome boys because of her. And most importantly we'll be together as family in happiness and joy forever because of her.

I love you Tajee more that you can imagine. I hope you have a great Anniversary this year. I know I will because I get the perfect present every day. You.

Here are some pictures from my "Grand Slam Day" way back in 1995. Also, sorry for the sports analogy but I couldn't go totally sappy.

She's so HOT!!!

He's pretty studly too!! Check out the sweet hair.

Tajee's Friday night with the Big Unit

2009-05-23T10:59:00.000-07:00

I'm sure most of you quickly hit the back button as you read the title of my latest blog and all I can say is shame on you. I was talking about Randy Johnson!!! Of course I do understand your confusion.

Last night our good friends the Brown's invited us to go the Mariners vs. Giants game. We lucked out and were able to watch 45 year old, and former Mariner great, Randy Johnson go for win 299. It was really fun to see Randy pitch in Safeco again even if he is a shell of his former self. The only bummer was for some reason they sat Junior and he never faced his former teammate. How stupid is that. I would have loved to see a little geezer on geezer duel.

My buddy Jeff is a lifelong Giants fan and had purchased great seats right behind the plate. I'd never sat behind the plate a MLB game and it was fun to have a different vantage point. You get a much better feel of how much speed and movement there is on a major leaguer's pitch.

We had a great time and thank you Brown's for the invite.

We also completed our Randy/Junior retro night by going old school with our babysitter. We couldn't find anyone in the ward to watch the kids so we had Whitney Englund come over and help out. Thank you Whitney!!! It was fun to have her over again and we laughed when she told us that Trevor asked her if she's forty. She's definitely grown up and we are very proud that she'll be off to serve a mission in Hong Kong in July. Sister Englund rocks!!!

Let Them Eat Cake!!!

2009-04-25T16:07:00.000-07:00

....like you have to tell a Pugh to eat cake. We love cake!!! This Friday was our annual cub scout cake auction fund raiser and both boy's had to make a cake for the big night. Fortunately for us we had an extra pair of hands in the kitchen as Grandma Claire is visiting this week from Utah. The boy's had a great time making their cakes with their Mom and Grandma but my guess is they were just playing along, bidding their time, until they could lick the frosting off the bowl and spoons.

Thanks for all the help Grandma!!!!

Trevor wants everyone to know that the jelly beans are dinosaur poop. He thought this was hilarious.

That reminded me of my favorite dinosaur joke that Tajee won't let me share with the boys (thank goodness). The first person to leave the answer to my joke in the comment section will win a prize. (I want to see if anyone other than Lizzy is actually reading our blog) Here's the joke, when someone asks me if I like dinosaurs my answer is???

The Great Salamander Hunt

2009-04-19T11:55:00.000-07:00

In a previous blog post I had shared my love of having my picture taken with Alligators and Crocodiles. I have passed this gene on to Trevor but we are beginning his training with much smaller animals. Check out the pic of the salamander Trevor caught in our backward. He loves to track these guys down and finds one every time he goes out to play. Personally I think it's gross, to me they are just snakes with legs. He told me the other day that he did see a small snake in the back yard. I told him if ever catches one those that he is living outside for the rest of his life.

The girl in the pictures is our neighbor and Trevor's BFF Maria. Don't call her Trevor's girlfriend he doesn't care for that. She is over at our house all the time playing with Trevor and Curtis and we are actually taking her to church with us today. Apparently Trevor is the best member missionary in our little family.

It's official, its now a dynasty

2009-04-08T19:35:00.001-07:00

Since no one in the family has mentioned it, or even posted a comment on yahoo sports I've decided to have my own celebration for another amazing accomplishment in picking the winners of the Men's NCAA Basketball Tournament. Yes it's true for the third year in a row I dominated the field and won the Pugh Family Pick'Em tournament. This outstanding accomplishment vaults my status to that of Michael Jordan and the Bulls, Magic and the Lakers, and yes even Tiger Woods status. Three-peats are very rare and you are all lucky to be witness to this awesome feet. I look forward to next years tournament and plan on defending my title aggersively.

(I only wish I would have done better in the office pool. I could have won some money on that one).

Great Wolf Lodge... the poor man's Disneyland

2009-04-01T18:42:00.000-07:00

Well, its spring break time and in light of the current economic situation we decided to forgo a trip to Disneyland or Hawaii. We thought we'd take a quicker less expensive trip to The Great Wolf Lodge, a new resort which is located in beautiful Chehalis Washington. Great Wolf Lodge has a huge indoor water park which is perfect for us North Westerners. They keep the park at a balmy 85 degrees and you don't have to worry about getting a sun burn. This is key for those of us that haven't seen the sun in the past 6 months. We had a great time riding the slides, playing in the wave pool, shooting hoops in the pool, and basically spending two days in the faux wet and warm weather.

The boys also had a great time in our "Kid Kamp" room. Essentially they had a separate room, within our room, with bunk beds, their own TV, and a Nintendo Game Cube. Other than fighting over the top bunk they had a great time. It was also nice for Mom and Dad to have a little privacy. Wink, wink, nudge, nudge, know what I mean.

The only downfall of the trip was the clientele of the hotel. Now I know that I'm going to sound like an elitist but I don't think there were many people from our zip code at the hotel. I'm guessing that the Great Wolf Lodge is more of Kent or Auburn family destination. Let's put it this way, when I'm the physically fit guy at the pool and the only one without a Harley Davidson tat and a beer in hand, you know you are with a bunch of rednecks. It reminded me of saying Grandpa Bob used to say. "I wonder what the poor people are doing" Well, now I know. One more reason to go back to work and put in a few more hours. Mickey Mouse, I hope you'll welcome us back.

Pinewood Derby 2009

2009-03-28T14:31:00.001-07:00

If there is one thing I have learned about myself as father its that I am a lousy at building pinwood derby cars. Not only am I lousy at it but I HATE DOING IT!!! Now I understand why Dad took me over to Uncle Lorins house to build my car back in the day. Building a fast car takes an awesome set of tools and a lot of patience, two things I really lack.

I told the boy's that when we started that there was little chance of their Dad building a car that could actually win so we were able to manage the boys expectations. The good news is they didn't come in last place. Trevor was second to last for the Wolves and Curtis was third to last in the Webelos. It's amazing that there are Dads that are worse at this than me.

This year was the last for Curtis but I'll still have to build two more for Trevor. I think I'm going to be buying pre made cars on the internet next year. We'll have the best car money can buy. Shake and Bake.

This is Why Ball Sports are Awesome

2009-03-16T17:14:00.000-07:00

On my last trip to Pennsylvania I told Mom my theory on why it's important for kids to be involved in "ball" sports. In my mind there are things in team sports that just can't be substituted with individual accomplishments.

When I read this Rick Reilly article it reminded me of why I love "ball" sports. Teamwork, sacrifice, commradarie, and when done right inclusion of all. This story doesn't mean as much if its about golf, swimming, or bowling. I bet my new hero Matt Watson and his brother Joe would agree with my theory.

Ball sports are awesome.

Life of Reilly
Matt Steven can't see the hoop. But he'll still take the last shot.
by Rick Reilly

A few seconds left. The game teeters on these two free throws. The shooter gulps. The packed gym goes silent, save for the tapping of a white cane on the back of the rim. That's right. The shooter's brother is under the hoop, rapping a cane on the rim. That's because the shooter, Matt Steven, is blind.

So why is a blind kid in a competitive CYO game for sighted high schoolers in Upper Darby, Pa.? Because he doesn't like to miss anything -- especially free throws.

Matt, a senior, had been on the St. Laurence CYO team for a year and never played in a game -- never expected to. "He just likes being on the team," says Matt's brother and coach, Joe. Matt shoots free throws every practice, though, making about half. And that's what gave Joe a crazy, unthinkable, wonderful idea.

Before a charity tourney this past February, Joe asked the other teams if Matt could shoot all of St. Laurence's free throws. Amazingly, they agreed. So did the refs. A blind kid was going to be his team's designated shooter. Hey, it's still better than Shaq.

A BLIND KID AS DESIGNATED SHOOTER? YES.

Did that make Matt nervous? "Nah," he says. "I shoot 'em all the time!"

The first game, Matt came in and -- to the crowd's shock -- made his first two. He was escorted back to the bench, where he grinned as if he had just kissed the head cheerleader. He was 4-for-8 that day.

Matt doesn't talk much -- he has a stutter -- so when Joe got home late after the game, their mom, Joan, asked, "Any idea why Matt's been smiling all night?"

"Oh yeah," Joe yawned. "He shot all our free throws tonight. Going to tomorrow night, too."

Joan about dropped the spaghetti. Does she like it when Matt rides a bike? Ice-skates? Plays soccer? Sort of. She also dreads the day he comes home hurting.

But Matt already knows what it's like to be hurting. Hurting is being born with two permanently detached retinas. Hurting is having your left eye removed in the fifth grade and the right in the sixth. Hurting is when they send you to a high school for the blind even though the last thing you want is to be around only other blind kids. Matt wants to be around other kids. He aches to be treated normal. Not "He does so great for a blind kid!" Just normal.

That's why the free throws meant so much. He'd begged his parents to let him transfer to a regular school -- Monsignor Bonner. And he'd begged his brother to let him join his friends on the CYO team. And then, for the first time in his life, he was going to be one of them.

Which brings us to Matt's moment in that second game. He'd missed his first six free throws, and St. Laurence was down eight to St. Philomena. Then a full-court press pulled the team to within one with 10 seconds left. That's when St. Laurence's best shooter -- 6'4" senior Ryan Haley -- was fouled in the lane. Surely, with the game on the line, the team stud would shoot his own free throws, right?

Up in the stands, Matt's mom was hoping: Please don't make him shoot these.

And Haley really was going to shoot them, until he looked over at Matt on the bench. "And I thought, He comes to every game, he never misses a practice, he cheers us on. He deserves a shot. I mean, it's everyone's dream to make those shots."

So out comes Matt. And for the first time, the St. Phil fans aren't rooting for him. In fact, they look like they'd prefer that he shoot straight into the hot dog table. "That might have been the best moment of all for Matt," recalls Joe. "For once, he was just normal."

Now the ball bounces under Matt's hand. Now the picture shakes in Mom's viewfinder. Now the rim pings from the cane.

Matt lets go. Off the backboard and through. Tie game. Crowd goes berserk. Says Joe: "I think it helped that he's blind. He couldn't see the crowd, the scoreboard, his teammates' faces."

The crowd stills again. Dribble. Tap. Shoot. Bank. Swish! Up by one. The gym windows nearly break.

St. Phil's players forget to give Matt time to get off the court. They race the ball up. Nine guys are running around Matt, who's trying to find a way to the bench. Make that 10, since Ryan's already off the bench and pressing. Make that 11, since Joe -- tears in his eyes -- is trying to get to Matt. Chaos. Joy. Wonder.

St. Phil's desperate shot misses. Game over.

Since then, Matt's life has gone all kinds of crazy, unthinkably wonderful. His teammates call him Shooter. A girl says she heard all about him. He's even thinking about asking somebody to prom.

I hope she says yes. Best blind date of her life.

Trevor Crockett and the Scouts

2009-02-26T20:10:00.000-08:00

Check out Trevor's picture from his bottle doll project. They had to make a bottle doll (2 liter bottle is the body) of a historical figure. Trevor chose Davey Crockett because he was "a real cool hunter and was really good at shooting." We watched scenes from the old John Wayne version of the Alamo and he loved it. He also thought the old Disney song was "totally dorky"

Also check our two Scouts. Now that Trevor is 8 he get's to join his big brother every week for Scouts. Curtis is now a Weblow and is less than a year away from being a full blown scout. Am I really that old?!?!?!? Aunt Lizzy, feel free to come up any time and give these two boys some instruction.

Our Big Night with the Globetrotters

2009-02-21T11:39:00.000-08:00

Last night the Norhwest Pughs drove up the Everett Event center to watch America's Favorite baketball team, The Harlem Globetrotters. Dad had splurged for courtsides in hopes that the family could get into the act. Anyone remember Mom dancing with the team at the Salt Palace back in the day? Anyways late in the 4th quarter our hopes we realized. Big Easy, the teams showman, came up and asked Trevor if he would like to take a shot in the game. As the Washington Generals raced up the far side of the court Trevor and Big Easy sat back "cherry picking" back at their own free throw line. (Very similar to his dad's offensive moves in ward ball). After the Globetrotters stole the ball they threw the outlet pass up to Big Easy who handed it off to Trev. Trevor took two dribbles toward the hoop and calmy drained and 8 foot jump shot in front of thousands of screaming fans. The place went nuts when he made the shot and the whole Globetrotter Team was jumping up and down high fiveing Trevor. The act continued as the referee stopped the game and demanded to know who Trevor was. Big Easy's answer was "he's my son, cant you see the resemblence." Pretty funny stuff. Big Easy then went over and got Trevor one of his official Jerseys that was autographed by the whole team. Trevor was a true celebrity as we left the arena. People were coming up from all over and saying, "great shot kid." It was awesome and his Mom, Dad, and brother couldn't be prouder of him. The whole family had a great time and we can't wait until the Globetrotters come back to town. Here are a few pictures I took of the evening.

You can also see alot more pics at www.globetrotters.com/fanphotos.
Select Everett 2/20/2006 and Gallery 6 and you'll see all the pictures.

Trevors Big Day

2009-02-15T10:22:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was a big day for Trevor as he was baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. We are all very proud of Trevor and his willingness to take this important step in his life. We love you Trev.

Super Bowl Celebration

2009-02-01T21:57:00.000-08:00

When we have a Super Bowl party we really like to finish with a bang!!! That's just how we roll around here. Much thanks to our pyrotechnic crew, Jeff Brown and the Muckleshoot tribe.

Brandon "the Crocodile Hunter" Pugh

2009-01-29T21:26:00.000-08:00

OK, I know this doesn't make any sense but as you know I'm terrified of snakes. However after our New Orleans and Cancun trips I think it safe to say that I'm not afraid of their larger reptile cousins. I've finally found a game I like more than Iron Scrotum, its called Gator Chicken. You play the game by seeing who will get closest to the reptile for a picture. Todd and I had a close battle in New Orleans but I was the hands down winner in Cancun. It was great to hear Dennis Parker yell at me in a very dad like manner, "Brandon, get away from that Crocodile!!" I win. If anyone wants to challenge my dual hempishpere title all you have to do is pay for my ticket to a swamp infested land. Give me a call and game on.

What Not To Wear, starring Tajee Pugh

2008-12-28T16:42:00.001-08:00

I think I can safely say that over the years Tajee's wardrobe has gotten a little "dated." She hasn't been very happy with it either but just didnt know where to start. So, for her Christmas gifts this year I decided to put together our own version of "What not to Wear." I reached out to Bellevue's version of Stacy, our good friend Julie Westra, and turned them loose on Bellevue Square with the goal to bring Tajee's look up to date. After 7 hours at Nordstrom, Sephora, and who knows how many other stores, Tajee came home with a ton of cute outfits and pile of new make up. You can see from the before and after pictures that they did a great job!!! Tajee looks great and feels great about here new looks. However, I do think she is regretting the skinny jeans because I've been chasing her around the house since she put them on. Looking good babe!!

Before #1

Before #2

Before #3

After #1

After #2

After #3

The Frozen Tundra of Redmond

2008-12-24T17:51:00.000-08:00

Well it looks like President Obama has allready made good on his campaign pledge to elimate global warming because as you know its been really cold and snowy up here. We have had over 2 feet of snow in the past week which has led to serious case of cabin fever for the Northwest Pugh's. At one point we didn't leave the house for 5 days. We love each other but seriously 5 days with no outsiders gets a little boring. It's a good thing we had lots of food or we may have had to eaten Trevor. He was starting to look pretty tasty. Short of being trapped in the house we did have a lot of fun. We build a snow fort in the front yard, went sleding, played alot of X-box, and just generally goofed off alot. I also learned a few things about my self during our snow in. #1. I need the structure of an office. The concept of working from home is nice but just doesn't work for me. Too many distractions. Maybe if Tajee wasn't so cute Iwould have gotten more work done. #2. I'm 36 and still can't grow a decent beard. I'd fit in great in Mom and Dad's neck of the woods because all I can get is the amish look, no mustache. How in the world can a guy have grey beard hairs but still not grow a mustache. #3. And finally I learned that watching BYU lose a bowl game is a great way to spending an evening. Fortunately it started to rain today and our snow is melting. We can't wait until its gone and we can get back to normal.

Enjoy our sledding videos and please save your "it looks like a polar bear with a penguin on his back" comments. Merry Christmas and we love you all.

Happy Halloween

2008-11-09T19:02:00.000-08:00

We had a lot of Halloween parties this year but one of the funnest was at Mrs. Nielsons pre-school. Tajee is teaching there this year a couple of days week to help support here shopping addiction. Really though she loves to play with the little kids and loves helping out. (No this doesn't mean we want any more kids). On the day of the Halloween party the boys didn't have school so they got to come "help" Mom out. They are really great with the little kids and had a lot of fun going back to their old school. I just hope Trevors costume did scare too many of the little guys. Very spooky.

Soccer Season Comes to an End

2008-11-09T18:54:00.000-08:00

Soccer season just ended and we couldn't be any prouder of Curtis. He started out the season really timid and wasn't liking it very much. However as the season progressed Curtis found his true love, playing tenacious D. By the last few games he was a dominate defender. At the end of our last game I overheard the other coach say, " jeez... we just can't get past that kid!!" That's my boy!!! We are very proud of Curtis and can't wait to see him tear up the basketball court this winter.

It's not soccer without halftime oranges.

I am Michael Scott

2008-10-04T15:56:00.000-07:00

As you are all aware yesterday was a day of great celebration, my 36th Birthday. As I arrived a work I found a great suprise wating for me. My office admin Dawn pulled the greatest prank of all time and put my "Worlds Best Boss" cup inside Jell-o!!! (She gave the cup for my B-day last year). I don't think I've laughed this hard in a long time. If your not a fan of the The Office and you don't get the joke check out this link.

http://www.tbs.com/video/0,,124280346624,00.html?eref=sharethisUrl

My day kept getting better, my service manager Bob gave me the new DVD copy of Lonesome Dove, the greatest western of all time. And then my Parts Manager Jeff took me to lunch at my favorite restaurant in the world, Grazie's Italian. It was awesome.

One of the benifits of the down economy is it appears this is causing my employees to really kiss up big time. I think I have finally accomplished my mangerial goal with the staff, "they are truly afraid of how much they love me." It really isn't that hard to do. That's what she said.

Take a look a the following link for more of my favorite Michael Scott moments.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-wf2pP7T0Y

Best Sister Ever (Sorry Liz)

2008-10-04T15:41:00.001-07:00

I know that I'm going to get in trouble with Lizzy for posting this blog but I just have to shout the praises of my little sister Anna. Last week when I was down in Salt Lake and ended up getting sick. It started on golf course where to the joy of Jim and Todd I started having serious stomach cramps. They thought it was very funny to see their big brother doubled over in pain and they nearly convinvced me to take a BM in a garbadge can on the course (no bathroom in sight). I would have done it but Todd had his camera phone with him and thats a picture I don't want on anyone's blog. I finally threw up on the 9th tee box but I still hit a great a drive. I knocked my 2nd shot on the green and then on the drive to the green I puked for the 2nd and 3rd time. I was able to 2 putt and finish the hole with a 3 puke par. Let's see tiger do that!!! That was the end of my golf game and I went back Anna and Todd's house to recouperate.

If you are ever sick in SLC go to Noozers house for unbelievable service. Above is the tray of comfort items that Noozer brought me. This is what was on the tray.

Pepto Bismal

Tumms

Advil

Gatorade

Water

Sprite

Cup of Ice

Saltines

Gold Fish Crackers

Noozer made sure I had comfy pillows, a warm blanket, and the remote for the TV. What more could a sick brother want. Thanks Noozer for taking care of me.

Other than the sickness I had a great time visting the family in SLC. It was fun to see all my cute nieces and nephews. It was nice to see Grandma Pugh. I also got to eat at my two favorite SLC resteraunts Training Table and the Sconecutter. Ummmmm Scones... I also got to eat of ton of Anna's fantastic sticky popcorn. Sorry Spencer. I can't wait to see the family again. Love you all espcecially my sweet sister Anna. (I love you too Lizzy)

Baseball Season

2008-05-31T16:42:00.000-07:00

Baseball is in full swing, pardon the pun, around the Pugh house. Between both boys we'll have 9 games in two weeks, and that doesn' t include the 2 games that we'll miss this Sunday. With all this baseball I thought it would be fun to share some pictures in video of the boys with are far away friends and family.

Here is some video of the 3 at bat's from curtis last game. Sorry for the bad camera work after he hits the ball, Dad gets a little excited sometimes and the camera tends to bounce around.

Curtis hits the ball solid but unfortunately it goes right to the first baseman for and out.

Curtis drives the ball to the left side of the infield and gets a nice single.

A nice at bat for Curtis. A runner scores on a pass ball. Curtis works the count full and drives a hard shot to the short stop who makes a nice stop and throw. Fortunately the 1st baseman drops the ball and Curtis is safe and is able advance to 2nd.

Memorial Day Roundup

2008-05-26T19:31:00.000-07:00

Friday Night

Date night with the Westra's. We saw Indiania Jones, had a great meal, and laughed alot.

Saturday Morning

Curtis had a 8:30 baseball game that they lost 17-7. Curtis got to pitch for the first time ever and really struggled on the mound. He threw 32 balls and 4 strikes. He handled it very well and now he really wants to work on his arm. Dad was alot more nervous than he was. Curtis did get a couple of hits and knocked in one of the teams runs as well. He has really improved this year and has become one of the better hitters on his team. This is due in large part to the excellent assistance of Coach Pugh. As the saying goes, "those who cant' do it teach it."

Saturday Afternoon

The family went for a hike up near North Bend. When another hiker saw a snake in the brush Dad didn't freak out, he took the boys over to see it. This was an amazing piece of self control on Dad's part. The boy's had fun looking for Sasquatch, or the brown Yeti, as Trevor calls him. We also have an amateur bird watcher in Curtis who took up a pair of binoculars to help him look for eagles and hawks.

Sunday

Church and a big nap for Mom. Dad completed 8 songs on the hard level of Guitar Hero III.

I'm on my way to being a true rock and roll superstar.

Monday Morning

Dad played golf with Dave Westra, Jeff Brown, and Roger Cottle at Snoqualamie Falls golf course. After todays up and down round I will no longer call the game golf. The official name is now Swing and Swear. I've sliced the ball for 10+ years and today I hooked the ball all day long. Sometimes I hate that game.

Monday Afternoon

We took the boys to Indianna Jones and they loved it!! Tough Trevor got scared a few times and wanted to leave but in the end he hasn't stopped talking about it. After the movie we went to Fred Meyer and bought them Indianna Jones lego sets and they love them.

Mom and Dad BBQ'd burgers and cleaned out the fridge, freezer, and cupboards. We have realized that Tajee isn't the best at food maintenance. I won't tell you how old some of the meat in the freezer was but it's safe to say it had had a few birthdays.

Trevor and Dad snuggled up on the couch and watched John Wayne in The Searchers. What a great old movie. Trevor loved it. I finally have my western buddy.

We have had a great weekend and hope you have too.

Tajee's Quilt

2008-05-26T19:15:00.001-07:00

So far I have only used my blog to tease Tajee. However, this time I'll use it to shout her praises. Attached below is an article that appeared on the front page of our local paper, The Redmond Reporter. Trevor has a girl in his class that was diagnosed with Leukemia this year. She was one of the few girls trevor really liked beacause according to Trevor, " Sarah loves Star Wars too." Ever since they found out Sarah was sick she has had to be kept home and away from school beacause here treatments wear down her immune system. Trevor and Tajee felt really bad for Sarah and wanted to do something nice for her and her family. In typical Tajee fashion, when faced with sadness make a quilt. Tajee and another Mom in the class took pictures of all the kids and had the images transfered to fabric. Tajee then made the beautiful quilt pictured below. Tajee had Mrs. Martin, Sarah and Trevors teacher, deliver it with a note that told here when she feels sick and lonely to snuggle up in her quilt and to think of all the kids at Audobon Elementary that lover her. This quilt has meant a lot to Sarah and her family and as you can see it caught the attention of our local paper.

Let me go on record and say that Tajee is an amazing person. She always looks out for the needs of others and does what ever she can to make sure they feel loved and included. How she ended up with a schmuck like me is a miracle. There must be truth to that whole Ying and Yang thing.

Here is the article that appeared in the paper. Please be sure to keep Sarah and her family in you prayers.

Sarah Robeck misses her first-grade friends at Audubon Elementary School.
Last month, the six-year-old Redmond girl was diagnosed with a blood cancer called ALL (Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia). She’s undergoing chemotherapy at Children’s Hospital in Seattle and can’t attend school due to her weakened immune system.
Usually happy and playful, Sarah’s now moody because of her medication and doesn’t want her mother to leave her side.
Meanwhile, her eight-year-old brother Jacob, a second grader, has been anxious while Tannia, a single parent, struggles to give attention to both children and continues working as a billing specialist for Secor International Inc.
It hasn’t been easy, but the family is braving the storm with love and support from near and far.
Tannia’s mom, Margarita Powell, came out from California when she learned of Sarah’s illness. Audubon principal Karen Dickens, Sarah’s teacher Karen Martin and Jacob’s teacher Erin Zacharda “have been right on top of it, educating the other students about what is going on with our family and looking after Jacob,” Tannia noted.
“The YMCA (on Bel-Red Road) has been a stable foundation,” Tannia continued. And Kathy Watson, the mom of Sarah’s best friend Tyler, has pitched in by taking Jacob to and from school. Watson’s also rallied friends at Westminster Chapel “for prayers, moral support and getting people to donate gift certificates from restaurants.”
The family’s landlord has been very kind, too, lowering their rent for the next six months so that Tannia can use the extra money for Sarah’s needs.
It’s still hard for Tannia to grasp that Sarah has leukemia. She had no symptoms such as fever or weakness. The only odd thing was that Sarah had woken up at night several times, complaining of pain in her foot or ankle. Tannia thought it was “growing pains.” And after Jacob had a check-up and a doctor said he might be low on vitamin D, Tannia reasoned, “Maybe Sarah has a vitamin D deficiency, too.”
A battery of blood tests and bone scans ensued, and although doctors looked concerned, Tannia didn’t expect the news they gave her.
“I couldn’t accept it, didn’t want to know,” she said. “You think that when your child is sick, you can give them Tylenol and they’ll feel better.”
Sarah is nearing the end of phase one of her chemotherapy. At that point, a bone marrow extract will determine what phase two of treatment will entail. Her doctors are hopeful she’ll be back in school within six months and cancer-free within two years.
“She’s tough — she knows that if she wants to get well, she has to do this,” said Tannia. “Her biggest fear is losing her hair. She doesn’t want anyone to see her that way. I told her when she loses her hair, I’ll shave mine off. What we look like on the outside is not important, it’s who we are inside.”
As for Tannia, “My work is my outlet. I have to keep busy,” she said. She added that her boss Lori Seward and co-workers have been wonderful: “They know I love my job and they’ve allowed me to work at home.”
Because she has insurance coverage, Tannia believes that most of Sarah’s medical bills will be covered, but she has set up a bank account in case of unforseen circumstances. Donations to the Account for Benefit of Sarah Robeck can be made to account number 340-325059-5, at any Washington Mutual branch.
Tannia’s also encouraging Redmond neighbors to make donations to Candle Lighters (www.candlelighters.org), an organization which provides books and hope to parents of children with cancer. She’s seen kids from six months old to teens in the cancer ward at Children’s Hospital and wishes all of the families could have the same support that she’s received.
“God has blessed us with a whole bunch of great people and that gives me more faith that Sarah, in the end, will be just fine,” she concluded.

Why Blog?

2007-12-22T21:37:00.000-08:00

After viewing my sister Anna and my brother Tim's blog's I've been inspired that the Northwest Pughs are going to join the blogosphere. For years the family has given me the nickname the "The Instigator." I figure that since the family has all moved away from Washington I can still cause trouble over the world wide web. This is why I will blog.

I'll start my taunting and teasing by picking on my wife Tajee. Several weeks ago she had a bad cold, and we she gets sick she snores, big time. However, she refused to admit that she snores. So I busted out my trusted video camera and create this film. Very scary. I also decided to post it on You Tube for all our freinds and family to view. In case you missed it here it is.

Stay tuned for more fun posts from the Northwest Pugh's