A New Home for Chili Bean.

Kevin and I had to make a terribly tough decision recently.  Chili had grown very protective of the girls, which is not necessarily a good thing.  Though we did everything we could to keep our eye on him and the kids, he had nipped at two of the girls friends the past two months.  We were very concerned that this would continue and someone might get legitimately hurt.  We decided to find him a home with adults only.  He is such a sweet dog, but we could not have him biting any kids. 

 

Once we had made the decision, we told the girls.  At first they were devastated, but I think they understood.  The night that Chili's new owners came to pick him up, the girls had to say goodbye.  They said their goodbyes, then our neighbor had them over to make cookies while the new owners got to know Chili.  For the first time in 13 years, we do not have a dog. 

Huge Change...Yikes.

I decided to make a career change this past month.  I have been working at RedBuilt for 13 years, but I recently decided to take a job with an organization called WoodWorks.  This was a huge decision for me.  I was both terrified and excited.  I have 3 whole weeks under my belt now.  It is such a great group of people and a fantastic organization. 

 

We will be staying in Boise.  Each of the associates works from their home office, which will bring the balance that my family has needed.  I will be traveling a lot, but what I am quickly realizing is that it is something to look forward to.  The first week on the job, we had an All Team meeting in Vancouver BC.  We had the opportunity to tour a number of mass timber projects.  Change is scary, but it can also be good.

McCall, Our Fabulous Neighborhood Kids and More Animal Rides.

Valerie decided to join us on a weekend to McCall.  We were so glad she came.  Typically she sends us up there to enjoy her condo.  This time, we managed to get her to join us.  It was such a relaxing fun weekend.  As always, we enjoyed every moment of it.  I took zero pictures except the one below.  The girls played in the pool and tried their hand at ping pong.  See how good they are?  They managed to  land the ball in the blinds.  That is pretty remarkable...

We have such a fantastic neighborhood.  The kids are like a pack of wild animals roaming from one house to the next.  I love it!  Here they are enjoying spaghetti dinner at our house.  The only one missing...Corbin!

 

I know that I have posted pictures of the girls at the mall on the animal rides before, but they talked me into another trip.  Kevin was home relaxing one evening, while the girls and I shopped until we dropped. 

School Spirit and A Mic Drop.

As many of you know, I typically take the girls to get "fun" pictures around the beginning of the year.  They get to call the shots for these photo shoots.  This year, they chose two themes.  They dressed up as pop stars and donned their school colors.

 

Call me old, but I somehow missed the "mic drop" craze.  Even the photographer knew about this.  Who knew?



 

 

 

Proud of this Girl!

Little Sidney.  She is really growing into her own.  Last fall, she had mentioned that her teacher had submitted one of her art projects for an award.  As it turned out, she won the second grade art award for her watercolor city.  Who knew we had a budding artist?

 

 

Kevin and I received this awesome note from her teacher.  Sidney was so very proud.  Kevin and I were also very proud.  I remember when she started kindergarten, school was not her forte.  She has really grown to love it.  We are super happy about this!

SPOILER ALERT: 
YOU MAY NOT WANT YOUR LITTLE ONES TO READ THE FOLLOWING...

Sidney has finally realized that some things are just for pretend (AKA...the Easter Bunny, Santa, the Tooth Fairy and, yes, even Leprechauns).  One of her friends spilled the beans.  When she confronted me about it, I felt compelled to tell her the truth.  However, I did tell her that continuing to believe in these things, even with her new knowledge, can also be a choice.  Apparently, she has chosen to continue believing.  Below is her letter to the Leprechauns on St. Patrick's Day.  See...they must be real.  They drew her a picture and left chocolate.  I would continue choosing to believe if I were her too!

Awana Quiz Bowl and TnT Games.

First off, I will state that I am so glad that these girls have each other.  They have a bond that is truly unbreakable.  These girls bring out the best in each other.

They partnered up for the TnT Quiz Bowl again this year.  Kendall received an individual Honorable Mention award for her memorization of scripture.

The girls placed again this year.  Now they have two plaques, so the plaque does not have to travel from house to house anymore:)

 

Then they had the Awana games.  This is an Olympics of sorts.  I believe there were 10 teams competing this year.

This grin says it all.

Who wouldn't pair up the tallest girl with the shortest girl for the 3-legged race? 

The Journey-Summit team worked hard and played hard.  Nice job kiddos!

A Trip to Our Alma Mater.

Cal Poly was having their Structural Forum this year.  My work signed up to attend.  I took Kevin along for the trip.  Sadly we had to board the Cougar plane to get there.  We forwarded this picture to our friends, the Brandt's.  They could not understand our hesitancy in boarding the plane, as they are Cougar's themselves.

Kevin made a criminal out of me by breaking into the football stadium to get a picture.

We spent our spare moments acting like crazy tourists.  The weather was not fantastic, but we were not going to let that get us down.  As you can see, we dropped a few bucks at the Cal Poly bookstore.  It is not often we get to load up on Mustang apparel.

We ate at the delicious Klondike Pizza.  Kevin sent this picture to the girls showing them that I was throwing my food on the floor.  They got a kick out of that one.  Such a rebel...throwing peanut shells on the floor when it is allowed.  Whoa!

A true tourist, I took a picture with Elvis in Old Town Arroyo Grande.

We visited my absolute favorite place, the Avila Barn.  I love, love, love it there.

Kevin getting up close and personal with one of the goats at the barn. 

Kyle came over and spent an evening with us.  He and Kevin went out to Pismo Beach.

I took in a yoga class at the SLO Yoga Center.  It was an interesting one to say the least.  I will call it an experience.  For starters, the instructor originally had a substitute scheduled due to the 'phases of the moon'.  She decided to come after all.  I am super glad I went, but quite sure I was the only person that had shaved armpits and deodorant on.  Good times!

The trip was not all play, we did actually do some work.  The students at Cal Poly are impressive.  It amazed me even when I attended school there how focused and driven these kids are!

A Night in the Spotlight.

Boise has a minor league hockey team, The Steelheads.  Kendall's choir group had the privilege of singing the National Anthem at the opening of one of their games this year.  The glowing group at the end of the ice is her choir group singing their hearts out.  She has had so many neat experiences in choir this year. 

 

I was out of town for work, so I sadly missed the game.  Grandma Terrell joined in my absence.  The girls had a blast.  Sidney enjoyed beating her thunder stick the most.   

Kendall claimed that the fights were her favorite.  She informed me that the hockey game was tied with the Meghan Trainor concert for her top favorite experiences.  Seriously?

The girls even took a picture with the mascot.  This is HUGE for Sidney.  She has never been this close to a dressed up creature before.  If she did not have a picture to prove it, I would not have believed her.

It's been too long...

Oh my!  It has been way too long since my last post.  I have stock piled so much that it is almost overwhelming to began again.  I will start with a few ramblings. 

 

Valentines Day has come and gone.  The girls have started a tradition the past few years.  With the help of Grandma Terrell,they have orchestrated a wonderful Valentines dinner for Kevin and I.  Who are we kidding?  It is really Grandma Terrell with a few suggestions from the girls.  Last year, we talked them all into joining us for dinner  This year, we could only talk the girls into staying.  I believe my favorite part was the homemade chocolate mousse.

Jackson is now the proud owner of the Pie Face game.  He and Sidney managed to plow through a whole bottle of whipped cream one afternoon while playing.  This is one game they will not be able to talk me into playing!

Matt and Shelly had given the girls Dutch Bros. coupons for watching their dogs one weekend.  They finally decided to use them.  Imagine what they might have chosen?  Only the LARGEST smoothie they could get.  These girls.

I absolutely love this picture of Sidney.  I am not sure who took it from the balcony at gymnastics, but it landed on my phone.  It is a keeper.