Karate Graduation

Vance received his fifth karate belt last Saturday. He is progressing so much! I really like his jumping kicks. He still seems to enjoy the class once we get him there, but getting him to leave the house for lessons is super tough. Vance feels a great sense of accomplishment having earned the white belt with a green stripe. Great job, Vance!

End of Soccer Season

Caden had his last soccer game this past Saturday. Aunt Calee, Uncle Tony, Aunt Talicee, and Grandpa were all able to come and cheer him on. He only got to play in two quarters, but that was fine by him. He spent the rest of the time playing with the other team members on the sideline and Vance. After the game, he told me, "I am going to play next year, too." I am glad that he enjoys it. We were very blessed this season to be on such a great team- great because all the boys were nice and playing for fun, and the coach was patient and kind. I am going to miss this team a lot.

Nutcrackers

This year, the boys painted their own nutcrackers. They really enjoyed it. I can't believe how well Vance did without any help! Caden's looks good, too.

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving had the potential to be fabulous this year. Caden had the entire week off of school, so we (the boys and I) packed up and headed to my parents' house. Unfortunately, my brother and his family weren't able to join us this year, but I was looking forward to seeing Mom, Dad, my sister and her boyfriend, and of course, Tevye (he joined us on Thanksgiving Day). This was the year that I was in charge of baking the pumpkin pies. I am so glad that I did that a day early, because I ended up getting very sick with a cold (I was hoping it was just allergies) the night before Thanksgiving. It was almost torture sitting down with a plate of scrumptious looking food and not being able to taste any of it. The only compliment I was qualified to give out was, "It has good texture/consistency."

I did have a lot of fun talking with my family, and we brought Dance Dance Revolution to work off the calories. After dinner, Emilia, Cody, and I went for a very short walk outside. It was very cold, so the neighbors' horses were bundled up in their horse blankets. Two of the horses weren't sure what to think of Cody, and they tried to charge him, but the fence was in their way. Emilia is so fun, and I am thankful for the few moments I get to spend with her.

Scott's dog, Cody. This is one of the sweetest dogs I have ever known.

Emilia really gets into the spirit of the party!

Tevye playing DDR.

Emilia and Scott.
The next day, Dad asked Tevye to go with him to explore some back road through the Cleavland Nat'l Forest. When they came back with a truck this muddy, I knew that my husband had a very pleasant experience. I can't remember the last time his truck looked so good!

Happy Birthday, Tevye!

He is so cute! This year, we celebrated Tev's birthday a day late, because he was out of town for work on his birthday. Caden and Vance picked this cake out for him at the Wal-Mart bakery. We love you, Tevye!

Busy, Busy, Busy

We have been too busy to blog, so here is a little glimpse into our adventures:

Birthdays- The boys' and mine. Kree and David came down at the same time for Kree's knee surgery, so she was able to take us to Disneyland on Vance's birthday.Caden is finally tall enough to ride Indiana Jones at Disney.

Halloween- Caden made a perfect Harry Potter! Vance was a courageous knight.

We went to San Diego Zoo's Wild Animal Park for a CAVA (homeschool) field trip. This was an interesting bird day. A pigeon pecked Caden's leg, a bird swooped down and stole Vance's chicken strip off of his plate, and the lorakeets landed all over my mom to get the nectar in the little cups. The leg-pecking culprit.The chicken strip thief.The bird lady of Escondido (Mom)

Last Saturday, we went to see Thomas the Tank Engine at the Orange Empire Railway. This was a surprise for the boys, and they were very happy. Tevye and I enjoyed watching them have fun.

We have also been busy with soccer and Lego club!

Lego Club

Caden wanted to start a Lego club, so today was our first meeting. It was a great success. Our theme for this week was "Castle," though we had kids building submarines, trains, and playgrounds, as well. The kids built a dungeon inside their castle which held a prisoner. The castle also included a pirate with a treasure chest, a working drawbridge, and a kracken gaurding the moat.

All of the kids played well together. It is so fun to watch their imagination go to work!