Waakea

After an extremely long day we are please with the arrival of our beautiful baby boy :) Mama and baby are doing well after the C section.

Born: Aug 1 2013 10:15pm
Weight: 8lbs 0oz
Length: 20.5 inches
Name: TBD

I hate reading so i wont bother writing. this is just a pic dump. you can wait for sarah's blog to read stuff :)

i never thought id be the kind of dad that takes a billion pics. i still dont :) my excuse is that i took them for sarah since she cant :)

Embryonic Stem Cells

So we are studying stem cell research in class

A sperm and an egg are introduced in vitro(in a dish) and are allowed to grow to a developmental stage before implantation in the uterus. Those that aren’t used are thrown away. A scientist takes one of these embryos and about 5 days after developing the embryo divides into the trophectoderm and the inner cell mass(ICM). This ICM is extracted and used to conduct research. This is the embryonic stem cell.

The allure of this cell to many scientists is that these cells can divide amongst themselves and become any cell in the body. Theoretically you could replace tissue and connections (CNS and PNS). You could test drugs on heart tissue for example without needing an actual heart and complications arise when trying to apply animal research to humans. You could eliminate that.

One of the major challenges is that it’s really hard to do and science hasn’t come that far yet. Another challenge though is an ethical one and all this was to build up to this ethics part. An argument against stem cell research is that you are killing life. The egg and sperm have the potential to be a human and by doing this you extinguish that possibility. On the other hand people say the egg was going to die anyway when its discarded(as a side note an egg that is fertilized in vitro has zero chance of being a person until it’s implanted in a uterus). On the other hand if someone is on death row is it ok to harvest his organs before he dies since he was going to die anyway? On the other hand the stem cells can be used to not only test new drugs but to also cure a number of diseases: parkinsons, huntigtons, alzheimers and ALS(lou gehrigs). This could SAVE many people not to mention the many people that are waiting for donors and matches. Does the end justify the means? They could just grow themselves a new kidney or what not. Many advances in science and the things we enjoy now have come at a price many never consider or think of.

So, my question is this: is stem cell research ok? 

I'm A Photographer

these are all pics that i have taken in my Neuro 481 class and they are all of brain and spinal chord slices under a microscope. the magnification varies from 40x-400x. these are the images that scientists look at and determine how your brain works. its amazing to me how all these little dots can actually mean something to someone. see if you can figure out which section is where in the body. The stains used are Silver(the brown ones, i know its borwn and not silver but thats how it comes out), Luxol Fast Blue(the blueis purpleish ones), and a combination Hematoxylin and Eosin stain(the pink ones).

in 481 we are studying histology(microscopic study of tissue) for the first half of the semester. so ive learned how to prepare a brain to put on a slide and i have done actual staining and preparation of slides. ive learned how to use a microscope etc. im SUPPOSED to know what im looking at too hehe

Sarah's Song

i made this video for Sarah as a birthday present and then later made a "behind the scenes" type of video with John to kind of explain everything behind the video. ill admit that the quality is low but i guess that was expected. the budget was small, the camera, editing software, sound software and computer and other hardware was low quality as well. the was tons of heart in it though and time and i worked with what i had. i firmly believe that its one of those projects where the receiver loves the giver so much that the quality of the love is more important than the quality of the actual project. anyway she did end up loving it and so i guess it worked out in the end.

A New Year’s comment, a walk by the river

You would talk for hours, I could listen forever

Chewy sprees, we’d sing “I’d rather be with you”

And somehow we keep on pulling through

My heart was screaming, so loud it was going deaf,

Do you remember? How you sat in silence?

I finally sang, through all the stumbling and all the bumbling

I love you Sarah, how did I get to be so lucky?

Life doesn’t get much better, than you this blessing beyond belief,

And all the happiness that you bring,

I find new things to love each day,

I could fall for you a thousand times a day,

I wouldn’t have it any other way

Getting lost in the shuffle, win tickets for a prize

Build a fire, I can feel it, when I look deep in your eyes

A snow globe, a wedding robe

A promise that forever and the rest of my life

That I’ll love you Sarah, how did I get to be so lucky?

Life doesn’t get much better, than spend for always with the girl of my dreams,

And all the happiness that you bring,

Well find new things to love each day,

And I stil fall for you a thousand times a day

I wouldn’t have it any other way.

The Gratitude Challenge

My wife and I recently did this together one Sunday morning and it was very beneficial for us. We both enjoyed and loved being able to reflect on our many blessings. It was wonderful and I encourage it. it was taken from the Dec 2011 Ensign under the Youth section but I feel like anyone and everyone should get in on it. So here is another version( I see no reason why we can't continue to make these lists) Here it is for today:

Take a Gratitude Challenge

By John Hilton III and Anthony Sweat

Let’s not just talk about counting our blessings—let’s do it! Write a list of 100 things you are thankful for. If that sounds like it is too many, try this:

1. Write 10 physical abilities you are grateful for.

2. Write 10 material possessions you are grateful for.

3. Write 10 living people you are grateful for.

4. Write 10 deceased people you are grateful for.

5. Write 10 things about nature you are grateful for.

6. Write 10 things about today you are grateful for.

7. Write 10 places on earth you are grateful for.

8. Write 10 modern inventions you are grateful for.

9. Write 10 foods you are grateful for.

10. Write 10 things about the gospel you are grateful for.

When we make a list like this, we discover that a list of 100 doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface of all the things God has given us.

I am grateful for

1.                   The ability to run

2.                   The ability to jump

3.                   The ability to see

4.                   The ability to hear

5.                   The ability to breathe

6.                   The ability to stretch

7.                   The ability to bend over and pick things up off the ground

8.                   The ability to coordinate movements

9.                   The ability to touch things

10.               The ability to taste

11.               Ps3

12.               Longboard

13.               Laptop

14.               Ukulele

15.               Guitar

16.               The “Dart”

17.               Scriptures

18.               Clothes

19.               Shoes

20.               Toilet paper

21.               Christ( he lives)

22.               Wife

23.               Mom and Dad

24.               Siblings

25.               Rest of family

26.               Thomas Monson

27.               Bishop Miner

28.               John Parker

29.               Those that serve in the Armed Forces

30.               Andrew Crawford

31.               Joseph Smith

32.               George Washington

33.               Martin Luther King Jr

34.               Abraham Lincoln

35.               Both Grandpas

36.               Steve Jobs

37.               Those that preserved the bible

38.               Those that wrote the Book of Mormon

39.               Those that served in the armed forces

40.               Kamehameha the Great

41.               Fall leaves

42.               Snow in the mountains and only in the mountains

43.               Grass, trees, shrubs flowers, fruits

44.               The colors

45.               A cool breeze

46.               Sunshine

47.               The beach

48.               The forest

49.               The animals

50.               The variety

51.               I am alive

52.               I am debt free

53.               I woke up next to my beautiful wife

54.               I don’t have to go to work

55.               I don’t have to go to school

56.               Neither does my wife:p

57.               The sun is out and shining

58.               I got to sleep in

59.               I get to enjoy my presents

60.               I have the internet

61.               Kekaha

62.               Helena

63.               Provo

64.               Salt Lake

65.               Logan

66.               Home

67.               Philadelpia

68.               China

69.               Japan

70.               Ecuador

71.               Toilets

72.               Cell phones

73.               Computers

74.               Cars

75.               Airplanes

76.               Microwaves

77.               Electricity(the practical use of)

78.               Heavy machinery

79.               Space shuttles

80.               Refrigerators

81.               Pulehu Chicken

82.               Kalua

83.               Mac salad

84.               Lau Lau

85.               Lomi salmon

86.               Chocolate

87.               Sprite

88.               Butterfish

89.               Steak

90.               Chicken long rice

91.               Atonement

92.               Repentance

93.               Tithing

94.               Forgiveness

95.               Plan of Salvation

96.               The Holy Ghost

97.               The chance to find out for ourselves and decide for ourselves whether or not its true

98.               The endowments

99.               The Priesthood

100.            Celestial Marriage

Do you have a list?