Let's start again with Halloween

I have not done anything with this blog in more than a year.  When I first put it together, I looked for opportunities to write on it.  I changed the background and elements on it for the different Holidays. I had opinion polls on it and was interested what others thought about the question I put up.  Just like scrap booking, I let it get away from me.  I have thought I would just catch up on things, but the thought of that just made me say, "I will do it later".  Of course, it never got done later.  So, instead of catching up on posts that have been happening over the last year, I have decided to just start with Halloween.

You would think my kids would be done with Halloween.  Nope!  Not in the least!  They have always loved it!  When they were younger, they would start planning Halloween for the next year while they were trick or treating.  This year was no different.

Now they all went their separate ways.  We have gone past the days where mom and dad stand by the street while we watch them go up to each house and hope they say Thank you to each person that gives them candy.  They have friends and parties and more trick or treat fun and they did all the this fun in the rain.   It was pretty quiet for Jeremy and I while we were waiting for all the kids to come home from their tricks and treating.  Just like when they were little, they came home, spread the candy and the trading and swapping began.

Megan was Prince Hamlet this year.  She has had this Honors English this semester that she really enjoys and they have been reading some Shakespeare.  I believe she enjoys it.  I was able to take the kids to the Shakespearean Festival in Cedar City Utah this last summer.  We saw Taming of the Shrew, which she also enjoyed.  Megan has always been one to find the deeper meanings so literature and Shakespeare is a good place.

Emilee's favorite Disney princess is Ariel, from The Little Mermaid.  Last year, I had a friend help me make Anna and Elsa costumes for Megan and Emilee.  Emilee was hoping that this year, my friend and I could make the Ariel, "Kiss the Girl" dress.  Well, my friend is busy this time making costumes for the drama dept at the high school.  I didn't want to bother her.  I thought I might be able to sew, but I really am not a sewer at all.  I decided to piece it together.  This is what we got.  I, myself think it turned out quite well.  She looks like Ariel to me even with the big bow in the hair.  I just want to know where Prince Eric is.

Hunter wanted to be something scary.  I was trying to get him to be a super hero or something, but no, he wanted to be scary.  He was so proud of this scary scarecrow.  He does look a little creepy, doesn't he?  I think I prefer the face under the mask.  Much better.

Well, that is it.  I hope that everyone had a fantastic and safe Halloween.  I also hope that this is the beginning, once again of many new entries.  Until next time.....Happy Halloween!

Soccer once again

Hunter's first year playing soccer was last year.  All three of my children have wanted to play soccer, but Jeremy hates it and has always said no.  He hates how much commitment that there is for it.  I finally got him to say yes to Hunter because we put him on the Redstone team, which is the army base here.  It is a more relaxed team and so Jeremy seems to be OK with it.  I even think he enjoys watching, even though I don't think he would ever admit it.  Well, Hunter is now on his second year playing.  Today he had his third soccer game of the season.  They lost again, but they are getting better.  They held it together really good until the end.  The problem is there is only 8 on the team and so they never get to sub anyone.  They are constantly running the whole time.  By the end, they get pretty tired.  The other teams always have plenty of subs.  That is OK.  It looks like they are having fun and so that is what is important.  They are getting better.  Hunter had a hard game today though.  Twice he got hurt.  Once he took the ball hard right in the gut.  He likes to play defense better then offence.  I think it is because he doesn't have to run as much.  Until the next game.....  

She got her red belt!

Emilee has been taking Taekwondo since she was 8 years old.  So, she has been at it for about 4 years.  Today, she became a red belt.  At one time all three of my children were taking Taekwondo.  Hunter being the first, then Megan and finally Emilee decided she wanted to.  (She had no interest at first)  Then Megan decided it wasn't for her, Hunter didn't like the hard work but Emilee stayed.  There are days when she doesn't want to go and times she gets pretty frustrated when she is there.  For the most part, she enjoys it and is glad to go.  She has stuck with it and worked hard.  She has been to tournaments and done well.  The next belt after red is black.  She wants that black belt and is determined to get it.  I am proud of her.  Keep it up!

First Day of school -- August 2014

Not sure if you have noticed, but I have made many posts today.  Just trying to catch up.  I used to be so good at blogging and then, I don't know, things happen.  Life just gets so busy.  So I decided to catch us up briefly on what's been happening this year.  So this is my last post today and hopefully, I will try to stay more in touch with my blogging skills.  For this last post we will talk about the first day of school.  School started here early this year because they gave us back our Fall Break.  Woo-Hoo!  Some people say they would rather have a longer summer break and forget about Fall Break.  Not me.  I love Fall Break.  It is a great time for traveling and even if you don't want to travel.....man, the weather is just perfect to have some good old fashion family fun.  Needless to say, I was very glad for the shorter summer break.  Besides, my kids were really ready to go back to school.  So let's start with Megan,

Megan is hitting a milestone this year.  I huge one.  She is starting high school.  Yep, that's right....high school.  I am still in AWE.  I still can't wrap my brain around that.  I swear, it was just yesterday when I dropped her off at her kindergarten class in Las Vegas.  That makes me a mother of a high school student.  It's just weird I tell you.  She also hit another milestone.  She started seminary this year as well.  In our church, when kids get to high school, they also take a seminary class first thing in the morning before school starts.  This is a chance for them to really dive into the scriptures and get a good understanding of them.  Megan was not sure she was for this.  She thought it would be like going to church every day, but I think she sees it differently now.  She seems happier this year and I think that may be do to opening up the day with thoughts about our Heavenly Father and keeping that with her for the entire day.  She seems to have had some good days this year.  I hope and pray those days will continue.

So I put this on facebook on the first day of school.  I wanted to show how crazy it was that I had this high school student now.  Though, she did make a very cute kindergartner.  

Emilee is also starting a milestone this year.  She is now starting middle school.  Seventh grade.  She gets a locker, a rotating schedule and I even let her start wearing some make-up.  She now tells me she needs a cell phone.  Hmmm.  Not quite Emilee, but maybe soon.  She has been enjoying herself.  Though she already has had to change lockers.  Somehow her locker kept jamming up and so I had to go up there and ask them to change her locker.  I have to say, it is a beautiful locker.  It has wall paper up, a rug, magnets, mirror, whiteboard and even a chandelier that lights up.  Megan didn't want hardly any of that stuff when she started middle school, but not Emilee.  She wanted the works.  Why not.  Maybe I can get her to take a pic and I will post it for ya.  Anyway, she is doing great and having lots of new and fun experiences.

 Hunter started fifth grade.  This is the first year he gets to change classes.  He has Math and Science with his homeroom teacher and then has Reading and History with another teacher.(With whom I just love.  She also taught Megan and Emilee in the Fourth grade)  I of course am a little worried about Hunter this year.  He doesn't speak up too much in class and this is the year where he really needs to speak up and let them know when he doesn't understand.  He will also have to work harder this year then ever before.  He is growing up and it is time to start being responsible for his own learning.  He is a good kid though.  He has enjoyed things so far as he has not had any homework yet.  

So that's it.  That is the first day of school.  Three great kids with aspects of a great new year.  They will do great this year and I know that they will have many many successes.  I am so proud of them already.  They beautiful, kind, smart and talented.  It will be a very AWESOME year.

Louisville, KY - July 2014

A big family vacation was not in the cards this year.  We have been saving our money to go to Disney World and Universal Studios in Florida.  Our plans are to go this October for Fall Break.  Jeremy does a lot of working out of town and was going to Louisville, KY.  He asked us to come along this time and make it a kind of mini vacation.  At first the girls were going to go on this big zip line there that is in an underground cave, but at the last minute, they decided to go to the amusement/water park.  That was right across the street from our hotel.  Hunter didn't want to go.  He had plans to hang out with some friends here and keep his grandma company.    

It was quite and eventful day.  Hot, very hot.  Emilee didn't want to go on the scary rides with Megan and so she was frustrated, but by the end, Megan finally got Emilee on a log ride.  Emilee loved it and couldn't get enough of it.  By then though, it was too late to go on the other things.  The park was closing.  Oh well. Hopefully she will have more courage for our trip to Florida in October.  The next day, I did some shopping with the girls and we met Jeremy and had Cheesecake Factory.  They have never eaten there and hope to eat there again real soon.  I think they liked everything about it....especially the cheesecake.

 It was a short trip.  Every time we come home from a trip to KY, we always stop at one of the caves.  This time it was the "Lost River Cave".  I think I would like to visit the area again.  There was a lot more I would have liked to see of it.

It had a butterfly habitat there.  It was fun to be in the middle of all the butterflies.  Very beautiful.  I highly recommend this place.

Alabama Sports Festival June 2014

Emilee has been taking Taekwondo since she was 9 years old.  She is now a blue belt with three stripes.  That means that the next time she tests, she should be a red belt.  The next belt after that is black.  She really likes it.  Of course there are times, she doesn't want to go, but for the most part, she likes it a lot.  This is the third year in a row that she has participated in the Alabama Sports Festival in Birmingham, Alabama.  It is a little like the Olympics, but on a state level.  Most of the time she competes in sparring and forms.  She always does really well in forms, but she gets very frustrated when she competes in sparring.  This year she decided to take a break from sparring and try board breaking.  So she competed in forms and board breaking this year.     

 In forms she did AWESOME!  She came in first place.  She was extremely happy.  Board breaking was another story.

They don't really focus a lot on breaking boards in her class.  She had only tried it a few times and the boards were a lot thinner then this.  She found out, because she was 12, that she had to use the thicker boards.  She panicked a lot.  She became very nervous.  Even though people assured her that the boards break very easily.  Still, she lacked experience.  I told her, I wasn't going to make her do it, but she did anyway.  I was very proud of her.  She did so well on the first board.  (You break three).  The other two, she just couldn't do and she hurt her foot.  She came in second though.  So not bad for a first time.

 I guess I am a mean mom.  I made her smile for a picture anyway.  Though this is right after.  She is not up for smiling too much.

She did a little better here.

 Afterwards, we went for ice cream by the river and let her soak her sore feet in the cold water.  She cheered up quite a bit.

Hunter stayed with a friend who lives in Birmingham now and Megan came down with us.  She was a trooper.  I know that she really didn't want to go and was bored out of her mind at the competition, but she came to support Emilee and for that, I am very proud of her.  She is a good sister.

May Birthdays 2014

So, by now you should know that the end of month is like Christmas for us.  All three kids have birthdays in the same week.  So of course it began with Megan.  

 I actually didn't get to be with Megan on her birthday.  This is the third year I have not actually been with Megan on her birthday.  Globals is always during her birthday.  So the first year I was at Globals with Emilee, then the next year Megan was at Globals and then this year I was at Globals with Emilee again.  It will probably be like that again if either one of them wins next time also.  So, she celebrated with Jeremy, her grandma and Hunter.  As you can see, they gave her cinnamon rolls.

She turned 14 years old today.  It is very hard to believe that she is really that old and that I am old enough to have a fourteen year old.  I am still in denial.  This year instead of going out to try and find something for her, Jeremy gave her $100 in cash.  I guess when she opened the card, she thought it was just a $20 until she opened it more and kept counting 20's.  She was quite surprised.

 Hunter was next.  He turned 10 years old this year.  I took him and a few friends ice skating on his request.  Two of the boys had never gone before.  They struggled at the beginning but they made it through and actually enjoyed themselves.  Afterwards I took them to the pizza place called Stevie B's and let them play some games.  It was a very easy birthday for me.

Of course he also had to celebrate with the family and his favorite dinner is Pesto pasta.  We call it green spaghetti.

 And ever since Hunter had a GiGi cupcake, he now has an aversion to frosting and just wanted a batch of brownies instead.  Again, pretty easy!

I can't believe my youngest is 10 now.  Man, the time does go by fast.

 And then finally, the last birthday is Emilee.  She turned 12 this year.  Maleficent came out on her birthday and asked if she could take a few friends to go see it.  How could I say no.  Another easy one for me.  Here they all are in front of the movie theater all sweet and cute.

 And this is how we moms see them. Crazy, crazy and more crazy.

After the movie, I took them to get frozen yogurt.  I sat at the next table and pretended I didn't know them.  I think they all felt big.  

 Emilee also celebrated with the family.  Her favorite meal is chicken and rice

...and she has no problem with frosting.  12 years old and going to middle school.  She will be my girly, girl all the way.  She loves clothes, nail polish, make up and shoes.  She never thinks she can have enough shoes.  

Happy Birthday kids!  Hope your year is fantastic!

Sixth Grade Graduation for Emilee

Emilee is finally out of sixth grade.  Talk about excited.  She was so happy!  She couldn't wait to hit middle school.

Of course all the sixth graders are.  They are more then ready for a little more independence.

Emilee will make a great seventh grader.