Inside the House of Baldwin

This ad was highlighted in the WSJ (may require subscription) as one of the best of 2007. I really like this ad. Like the content and the greater message that is delivers.

As you will see, we marketers have gone overboard to lie and cheat to create the fiction that is beauty. If you’ve got daughters, sit them down and watch this short video segment. What we see is often not the truth, especially in the day of digital imaging.

Is the image that was used in the advertisement reflecting “more” beauty that what was caught on film (actually probably a digital image)? Watch the movie and see the transition.

When I was young, elementary school age, my Mother found me one Christmas night playing with my new toys and took me to her bedroom closet where there was a Christmas gift hidden behind her hanging clothes that she had forgotten to wrap and place under the tree…a Barbie house. I was ecstatic, not only because it was what I wanted, but because I got it after Christmas morning was all over.

Well, tonight (December 30) I was going over our online banking and noticed a description for “Uintah Golf.” At that precise moment a horrifying (actually, amusing) realization came over me. There was a Christmas gift for Brad that I had completely forgotten about. So I called him downstairs to the basement, to the storage room, and moved away the storage boxes on the top shelf to pull out, from the back, a Club Glove…a golf travel bag. “Merry Christmas darling!”

Just call me “Beth.”

Dallen and his friends had a great time playing with the new Rock Band game today. It’s a hoot to watch the guys sing, play guitar, play bass, and pound on the drums. The guitars seem to be a bit easier — or there’s enough hours from playing Guitar Hero II to make them experts. Drums are tough from what everyone says. Singing…well, anyone can sing, but hitting the notes is really optional in this setting.

Jed had a Weapons Seminar several months ago at his dojo. The students learned three different katas in the morning, and then had to perform them and compete against each other in the afternoon. Jed chose to do all three: nunchuku, katana, and bo staff. He did a great job.

Merry Christmas to all who encounter this post. It’s been great to have Amy get excited about managing this blog. She has taken the tech reins, and I’ve sat comfortably on the sideline.

2007 was a very different year for me. I’ve spent the past year learning the difference between being entrepreneurial and being an entrepreneur. Most of the year I’ve spent time working on a video / multi-media marketing project with Rocky Mountain Voices. I’ve interviewed and posted approximately 125 executive / technology people at startup and established companies in the Rocky Mountain area. The goal was to turn this into a money making enterprise. I published all these videos to PodTech.net, the number one new media publishing outlet. I’ve enjoyed getting to know and work with Robert Scoble (the Scobleizer), who was recognized as a Top 10 Web Celeb by Forbes. While it’s been fun, I still haven’t figured out a way to make it turn as much money as I’d like. 2008 may be a year of change.

This past year I found that I needed to face winter head on. As many of you know, I love my summer sport of golf. However, the winters would be so depressing for me to see nothing but snow. So this past year, I broke down and purchased a pair of skis and all the garb to stay warm. Since Dallen had a season pass to snowboard at Brighton, I was able to stay and ski with him a number of times. One of my favorites was a trip with Amy to Snowbird on a gorgeous blue sky day. Another was a day with Bridget after about 18″ of snow. The poor little girl was exhausted after working with knee-deep powder on every run — great memories with Bridget. I also visited with friends at The Canyons, Solitude, and Snowbird. In the end, I skied more in 2007 than I’ve ever skied before. I actually had fun. It’s a great way to pass the winter months.

Of course I spent plenty of time on golf courses this year. The highlight was being able to spend many rounds with my oldest son Dallen. He made the golf team at American Fork High School and was able to play every day in the late summer and fall. I was able to join him and his friends to provide pointers and support. I can’t forget to comment on Jed too. Jed took some lessons this summer and really started to like golf. Jed’s hitting the ball longer and straighter each year. We even bought him a special putter, a TaylorMade Rossa that works really well for Jed.

Another highlight was sharing my love of San Francisco with my family. We had a great trip to the city, staying downtown off Union Square. We took local transportation (bus, subway, taxi). We visited Alcatraz. We walked and walked and walked. Abby was so fun. We rented a car for one day and visited Palo Alto, the Stanford University campus, Half Moon Bay, and Sausalito.

And while I’m on the topic of travel, the water in the Caribbean is really as blue as the pictures show! Amy and I went on a Royal Caribbean cruise out of San Juan and a number of Islands. If you see Amy’s posts, you’ll easily find the video taken on this trip. It was fun to get away with Amy for a week of solitude on the open ocean.

I spent more than my share of time at the Apple store in Salt Lake City, both in training and spending money. However, I really feel like I enhanced my skills and unleashed a lot of creativity that’s been tied down for a long time.

And while I haven’t posted a lot of stories here on the family blog, I have shared a number on my personal blog. So if you don’t feel like you have enough, please visit www.bradbaldwin.com.

Merry Christmas to all. Have a great 2008.

I will officially be 3 1/2 years old in less than two weeks. Mom is hoping that this milestone will officially push us into the four-year-old disposition stage. I think that I have run her ragged for the past six months. Everyday she awakes hoping that I will stop making insane demands on her.

Daddy is trying his hardest to turn me into a Daddy’s Girl. He cheerfully gets me chocolate milk when I demand it, he buys me new shoes, he paints my fingernails. Unfortunately, as soon as Mom arrives on the scene, he is, once again, instantly forgotten. Daddy sighs, with a glimmer of hope inside that one day my eyes will be opened.

My days are slowing becoming more busy. I have dance once a week (hence the Nutcracker performance), and I go to pre-school twice a week. I’m assured at least two days a month playing at a friend’s house while Mom attends the elementary and junior high PTA Board Meetings. Add to that errands, chauffeuring siblings, and other play dates, and my life is pretty busy for a little 3-year-old. Mom is still patiently awaiting 1st Grade. City-wide celebration.

I am still the apple of everybody’s eye and have mastered the techniques that will get me what I want and need. If one says “No,” there are still four others to wear down. But I am a funny girl and provide much humor to the family throughout the day. Life would definitely be boring without me.

Well, the time has come once again to write up my lengthy report of what I have done this year! Whoopee for you guys! To make this easier for myself I am going to just go month by month and if I forget something, then just let me know in a comment — then everyone can remember it as well.

January, I can’t remember much about January other than just going snowboarding all the time and Mom’s birthday… I would still be a little eighth grader… and I would be halfway through the year so.

February! Yay for February! This is the month of my birth which makes it special. I turned the tender age of 14 which alowed me to go to stake dances! The problem was that our stake likes to do dances every — maybe if we are lucky — three months…so I was in for a while so I went to the Cedar Hills stake dances instead, which are much better than ours. On my real birthday I went up to Brighton with my father to go and shred some sickly, powder.

March…I have no idea what happened in March…

April! Yes, April was the fun month for me! Spring break was coming up and I was going to go to San Fransisco with the family. And, the night before I was going to Wolfmother at the Venue in SLC. So my Spring Break was going to be pretty tight if you ask me. Wolfmother was almost a let-down, but the opening bands were cool…San Fransisco was amayzing!!! I would go back in a heart-beat!

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This year has been great! Going to San Fran was a Blast! Summer was fun because I was in Alice in Wonderland, and I got to see and have my cousins, Kendra and Pax, stay with us. In August we went to Park City and had so much fun. Then I went (alone) with Grandma Baldwin to Idaho and stayed and played!

Also, I got my ears pierced. Hooray! In September I turned eleven! Also, I went back to school. Boring! December was Nutcracker. This year was fun. Hope next year is just as good!

Abby is in The Timpanogos School of Dance Nutcracker performance this year, along with her big sister, Bridget. She is a Gumdrop in Cast A.

We had dress rehearsal on Thursday night. She was to arrive at 5:45 pm at the high school. We put her make-up on, we curled her hair, we got her costume ready. As we were getting to leave, the snowstorm decided to make it’s debut. It was snowing heavily and the roads were slick.

We made it to the high school without sliding into another car or off the road, endured gale-force winds as we tried to make our way indoors, and changed Abby out of her street clothes and into her Gumdrop costume.

For all of that we got what you see above. Maybe a minute of rehearsal. We were then told that they were finished and we could take them home. I completely understand that the production is big with lots of dancers, but for a mother it was a bit of an exasperating moment. I wasn’t even given any time to sit back and relax.

By the way, Abby is front row, furthest left. It took me a while to figure out which one she was since all the little girls look virtually alike, except for Abby’s friend, Magan, who is three Gumdrops to the right of her. Dark hair does have it’s advantages.

The reality sunk in even deeper tonight that it is time to purchase a new vehicle. This came after Brad informed me that he and the boys found yet another a problem with our Toyota Sienna. The passenger door on the driver’s side won’t lock. I thought I would try it out when I went to the grocery store tonight. Sure enough, regardless of how you lock the doors, that door stays unlocked. I feel secure now.

This problem is just another addition to the list. Only one bulb works on the dashboard (don’t know how fast I’m driving at night–$250 to get bulbs changed); all four tires are bald ($500 for new ones), the driver’s side window has been known to not close (waiting for that to occur again when it is below freezing temps outside); one of the back lights has a hole in it (Brad got a quote on that and it was ridiculous); the back hatch door won’t open fully so you hit your head on it if you’re not careful (that can be painful). Did I also mention that we’re over 102,000 miles?

I have had a Sienna minivan for 10 years this month. I have had my present one for 7 1/2 years. Even though the new Siennas are sweet, I am tired of minivans. I want an SUV. I want luggage room, and I don’t want to keep a Thule Cargo Box on my roof all the time making it impossible to park in some parking garages, and impossible to use most automatic car washes.

But gas is around $3.00/gallon and will probably never go below that mark again…only above. Insurance will be more, gas mileage will be less. People will yell at me because I’m not being responsibly green.

Do you, once again, make the rational, cost-effective decision? Or do you live a little and buy what you really want? That is the question.

Dallen is becoming quite an accomplished electric guitar player. He has been playing for 1 1/2 years now. He can play along to many songs and is able to pick up the notes, by ear, of many others. To progress he really needs to find kids with other instruments to play along with. That is the biggest challenge.

Over the past several years, I have come to the conclusion that e-mail, message boards, and online chatting have created a society of rude people. Yesterday I experienced more proof of my anecdotal observations.

Background: I posted on Craigs List an ad to sell a modem that we purchased from Qwest when we decided to try their 30-day trial broadband package. We paid $99 for the modem package, but could not return it after deciding that Comcast had better upload speeds for us. So I decided to post it for $75. I thought it was a reasonable price to ask. We had used the modem for maybe 30 minutes. It was virtually brand-new.

I received an e-mail asking if it was still available. I replied that it was and gave the e-mailer my phone number if they were interested in purchasing it. A man called later that evening and talked to me about it. He said that he was interested and would come by the next morning to purchase it. The next morning he called, and I gave him my address and directions to my house. I told him that I would be leaving by 11:00 am. Before hanging up, he asked me again how much I was asking for it. I replied “$75…$25 less than what I paid from Qwest.” He never showed up, which is pretty typical. I tell people that all items for sale are “first come first served” because you are never guaranteed that someone will actually show up to buy something. I figured that he had changed his mind.

While out and about, I received the following e-mail message:

“thanks for being rude to my husband by countering higher than your original asking price when he offered less. he went to best buy and found a NEW one for 69. good luck getting 75 or 100 for yours. merry christmas…”

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I don’t know–maybe I’m used to over-achieving Scottsdale, Arizona–but I swear that parents stayed for at least 1/2 hour, if not longer, when I attended Christmas or “Holiday” pre-school programs for my older children.

I think we parents–in this video–were all a little surprised when the teacher announced that the children were finished after just one song. All I know is that Abby could easily have handled multiple songs. She sings a repertoire of songs, by memory, all day long.

Sorry, Trudy, that I didn’t get Brooklyn in the “musical number” footage. I should have positioned myself behind the teacher to get all the children in my view.

Bridget had to have a gift exchange of her own. The excitement from Mom’s party was not enough to appease her. So she designed her computer invitations, delivered them personally, wrapped her gift (that I purchased…along with all the other moms), and set up for the party in the manner of Mom. The tweens arrived, ate, and exchanged gifts, amidst shrieks and screams. Note: girls are louder than boys.

The gals haven’t quite got down the whole exchange thing, but I suppose with time it will sink in. Bridget needs more training on taking video (it’s not that I haven’t instructed until blue in the face). I edited out most of the wild camera movements. Most of the time there are no heads in the frame. Ah, maybe it’s safer that way, what with the internet and all… :-).

Click on a photo below to view Abby’s 2007 Photo Album…

Click on a photo below to view Bridget’s 2007 Photo Year in Review…

Click on a photo below to view Jed’s 2007 Photo Year in Review…

Click on a photo below to view Dallen’s 2007 Photo Year in Review…

Click on a photo below to view Amy’s 2007 Photo Year in Review…

Click on a picture below to view Brad’s 2007 Photo Year in Review…