Black Belts in the House

My 11 year old and my 9 year old 

started taking Tae Kwon Do 

when they were 6 and 4 years old.

Now,

after 5 years of classes, belt testing,  and lots of persistence,

it was time to test for their Black Belts!

We made a 12 hour car ride to California,

to test with their association,

and spent TWO DAYS

doing a written test AND a performance test.

They've never worked so hard to push through

anxieties, nerves,  and self-doubt,

but they DID and they Passed their tests!

B Testing

C Testing

The Crowd of Testers

Even after passing belt testing,

they still have to commit

to 6 months more of training

before they receive their actual 

black belts!

So Fast-Forward to October,

and here they are:

BOOM.

Certified,

Full-Fledged,

BLACK BELTS.

Run, Camp, Sleep? Repeat.

We Signed up with 6 other Crazies
to run the Ragnar Relay Zion Trail
and started our Trail Running Training in March!

[Beautiful Trails and Views]

And at the end of April,

it was Show Time!-er, I mean RUN Time!

The Ragnar Trail Series

is made of teams of 8 people,

Each person runs 3 legs- 

each person runs 

an 8 mile trail, a 4 mile trail, and a 3 mile trail,

for a total of 24 legs when it is all said and done!

Its at a campground and the teams 

bring their own tents, food, sleeping accommodations,

and camping gear!

The first day of Running,

it was very warm and very WINDY-

blowing in the coming storm!

During the night

(keep in mind, the relay goes on continuously through the night)

it began to rain as I came in about 1am,

and as three or four more teammates came and went 

in the dark,

it continued to rain and turn to snow.

The trails were a muddy, slippery treacherous mess!

About 6 am,

Ragnar stopped letting Runners go out,

and called off the race,

and went to pick up runners on the trails.

Then it was a mad dash to get packed up,

and out of there! 

We were able to complete 18 of our 24 legs before it was called off,

So we felt good about our effort!

THAT was quite the adventure in running! 

Easter: Coloring & Collecting

04.12.14

Garden Time

Got our "cold" veggies in: 

Spinach, Kale, Lettuce, Onions, 

& Strawberries

04.10.14

We May or May Not Have

Gotten our kids out of Bed

 and surprised them with a late night Movie Date 

to see the new Captain America Movie. 

Those kids were probably wondering 

where their "Real" Parents were. 

General Conference

Twice a year our Church has General Conference,
a time when we get to listen to the words of our Prophets
from the comforts of our homes on TV or Internet.
Can You say "Pajama Party"!?

We really encourage our kids to watch and listen,

as best as they can!

Keeping in mind that they ARE just KIDS,

we've developed a system where if they are listening 

and drawing pictures or taking notes,

they can earn points,

to be used at our Family Conference Concession Stand,

to buy treats for the following sessions of talks.

We only do this for ONE 2 Hour Session of talks.

Also, 

I do not agree with Sugaring up the kids in such a Marvelous Way

but My Husband is a Great Fan of buying EVERY form of Sugar

under the Sun for such an Occasion! 

Next Time?

(In October)

I've got plans for non-sugar Ideas 

that are already forming in my mind!

Family Times

A Collection of Random Family Pics

of Random things our Family Did:

1. Brackets for March Madness 

2. Hockey Game

3. Ice Cream

St Patricks Day

Dressed in Green,

We Feasted.

{Shamrock Pizza and Minty Cookies} 

Ice Cream Times

J came to me with two dollars and said,

"Mom, this is for You and Me to go get some Ice Cream!"

And so We did.

Football and Bikes

C and I spent a Chilly Saturday afternoon

Riding Bikes to his school and Playing Catch.

One of our Favorite things to do Together

is to toss his Football.

I've never thrown a Football around,

as much as I have as a Mom to all Boys,

and they were pretty patient with me

way back in the beginning-

as I learned how to coordinate 

these ol' eyes and hands

 to figure out how to 

catch and throw.

But now? 

My Pig Skin tossing Skillz are Mad.