Goodbye Skip

 We said goodbye to our wonderful dog Skip on April 26th.

 Skip was found as a stray running the streets of Salt Lake City by one of Dewey's friends. Dewey promptly rescued him and they were each others constant companion for 14 years. Skip was without a simply the best dad ever. He listened and would "heel" and "sit". He never dreamed of leaving the yard. He knew "his jobs" were to help feed the horses and chickens in the morning and at night. He would let you know us know if we were running late for either one.

 He was a calming influence and very best friend to Bailey and then Zoey. Neither one of them were ever very far from Skips side. When he could no longer jump on our bed he started sleeping on the end of Kolbys bed. Kolby LOVED this and looked at Skip as his own protector.

 Whenever the boys were outside playing Skip was never far, snow or sun it didn't matter. He would spend hours during the summer happily"herding" flies. He was a once in a lifetime dog.

We were blessed to be able to have Skip in our lives for as long as we did. He will live forever in our hearts.

The best gift!!

 A few weeks ago we drove up north for the Karate tournament. We had the opportunity to stop and visit with family we had not seen in years. It was wonderful beyond words to catch up. As if just seeing Denise and Ken wasn't enough she gave us each gorgeous quilts.

 I love each of the quilts, I could not pick a favorite if I had too. They are each simply stunning.

 I love the fact that they were made with love with us in mind. Perfect for snuggling, feeling warm and safe.These are like pieces of artwork. It boggles my mind as to how its even possible to make them.

Luke and Kolby are crazy about theirs. And they fit their personality perfectly. 

 Theirs are made up of jars of all things wild and beautiful. Butterfly's, ants, lizards and fish to name a few.

 Some of the lids came off like this one with lady bugs flying free.

 Each frame of the quilt is something new and interesting to look at.

 I love this one with a caterpillar in the bottom jar and a butterfly in the top one.

See these smiles......priceless. Thank you so very much Denise, we will treasure them always.

Texas Visit

 Last weekend Liz (my sister) and I flew out to Texas. (by taking a red eye flight and spending most of the weekend going on zero sleep) 

We got to spend time with our beautiful grandma. Dementia is a hard thing to deal with,  there really is no sugar coating it. And I'll be honest when I say it scares the hell out of me, in terms of my future. But those are worries for another day. This visit was spent talking to a women who was happy to have visitors. And that's enough for me.

On Friday night we got to go to Jordan's Spring football game. So fun to be able to sit on their new field under construction. Funny story Liz and I were wearing sweat shirts and wrapped in blankets freezing. Two little girls came skipping by in shorts and tank tops happy as can be. I guess our desert living did not prepare us for the cold+humidity of Houston. Jordan played great, so glad we got to watch.

On Saturday we spent the day on the coast at Kemah. Everybody knows I love love the ocean. So I am happy as can be just being near it. Unfortunately Patrick had to work but Jordan got to go with us.

 A fun day exploring shops and the area. Interesting to see the damage the last hurricane that came through did. We ate at Bubba Gumps which was a hit with everyone. Even me they had a yummy mushroom "burger".

 Fun weekend with family. Big thanks to the Werts for treating us to such a good time.

First karate competition

 We spent last weekend in Ogden, for Luke and Dewey's very first Karate Competition. The picture above sums up Luke's attitude. He wasn't worried, nervous, nothing. He just walked out there all intense and ready. I burst into tears watching him. I was so emotional thinking about this amazing boy who has accomplished so much. (tears were a pattern for me)

 This was his weapons routine. He was amazing!!

Out of the four finalist he took second!!!

 Next came sparring, he started with "first timers".

 He did great went point for point.

 But in the end lost by 2 points. Then it was on to his actual division sparring. Much more intense, again he got right in there but almost immediately took a kick to the ribs. Instantly I started sobbing, I knew he was fine but it didn't help. His Sensei came over to me and told me to knock it off and not to let Luke see me. (rightly so)  Luke got right back in there and finished the fight and never said one word about being sore. So he is warrior, I am a WIMP.

 Dewey started Karate a little over a month ago and has been hooked ever since. His sparring didn't go as planned, we thought it would be in the afternoon, but they called him up as Luke was doing sparring in another ring at 10am. So Dewey had to run over and suit up without stretching or preparing.

 Even so I think he did great!!!! Not great pictures since I was running back and forth. But I'm so proud of him for getting in there and giving it his all.

 Luke also performed a Korean traditional routine.

 He did fantastic but didn't place in his division.

 Happy boys showing off their competitor wrist bands.

 Auntie Liz and Uncle Gary drove up on Saturday to support the family.

 It really was a great weekend. We got to spend time getting to the know the competition team better. Wonderful kids and family members. We all went to eat Saturday afternoon and had a blast.

 Kolby was so supportive. He also takes karate and loves it. But so far has said he has no interest in competing. So he stuck with me as we went from ring to ring cheering everyone on.

Luke ending up with three gold trophies and the orange ribbon he is wearing is his second place. He is 100% hooked, since we have been home all he talks about is the next competition. And we found out yesterday he is ready to test for his orange belt. One happy happy boy.

Kolbys Birthday

Kolby turned 7 in February. That's right my baby..... is 7. If you know him you know he is the happiest smiliest kid ever.When we asked him what he wanted to do for his party he said he wanted a minion party at our house and to invite his entire class. Well why not, being a Pinterest addict I knew there were tons of ideas for just such a party. And as it turned out there was a much smaller turn out then we planned on so the seven kids that were there made it just right.

We started by making minion beaded bracelets or necklaces, they got to choose yellow or purple minions.

Then it was time to make robot cookies, cookies, candy and icing not hard to imagine that going over well.

Remember the carnival scene in the first Despicable me? Thanks to some art work by Dewey some yellow cups and Nerf guns we did a pretty good job of recreating it.

Kids, Nerf guns, shooting at something also a big hit.

I love love that all the kids help sing and then blow the candles out.

We happened to run across a minion pinata that we couldn't pass up. Kids blind folded with a big stick INSIDE the house.... always a good idea.
In the end Kolby had a really good time. I'm not sure we will do another birthday party at the house. But it never hurts to try something once. 

Karate

 Karate....what can I say it has pretty much taken over our lives. About 6 months ago we signed up the boys for karate. My theory when it comes to sports is "try everything and see what sticks". We have tried wrestling and soccer. Both were fun but no real excitement, I thought that's what this new adventure would be.  Wrong!! From the first class both Luke and Kolby LOVE LOVE it.

 We started two days a week. Every class Kolby would smile and have fun. Luke took to it with an intensity we had not seen before. They both earned stripes and it didnt take Luke long to earn his yellow belt.

 Kolby was not far behind him.

 Before we started my sum total knowledge of karate was having watched the "Karate Kid" (wax on wax off) and I had heard of Bruce Lee. I would like to say I'm an expert now but that's far from the truth. I am learning more and more every day though. We were incredibly lucky to find an amazing Dojo and Sensei. The Dojo has a competition team that Luke tried out for and made. This means he has class 5 days a week. Even with that many hours in he still comes home to continue practicing.

 So our former playroom now looks like this.

 His first competition is in a few weeks. He is beyond excited. I don't know quite what to expect having never seen one. I'm hoping for the best, and trying not to be an overprotective mom by saying things like "wait is my baby going to get hit". I know with Luke's size the confidence he gets from this is immeasurable. And as long as he has the passion for it he seems to I'll support him all the way.

So far Kolby says he is not interested in competing and is happy with his two day a week classes. If both boys are happy I'm happy.