Cienna - 13 Years 3 Months ... Kaylee - 10 Years 10 Months!

Finally some family time after all this craziness! The Marty’s minus Ashley for starters. After a fun reunion on Thurs. night, Daddy and the Marty’s headed to Big Bear while Mommy and the girls went to gymnastics for their last time with great friend and teammate Sadie then had a sendoff party for her mom and their AMAZING head gymnastics team coach whom were heading on to new adventures in South Carolina.

Mommy and the girls left to join the rest of the family in Big Bear for a fun Saturday of checking out the town, including the showing of the Riggs’s cabin, first time at the new zoo, exploring the shops, and ice cream. We played Kan Jam  back at Greg’s place and prepared for snowboarding the next day. We loved getting to get another day of snowboarding especially since we got to include Trevor.  We all had fun, the weather certainly was in our favor, and we all lasted the entire time! Kaylee took the final run with Mommy to close out the lifts while Trevor returned his gear.

The Marty’s went their way and we went ours. Next was Mommy’s birthday. She took Kaylee to her ortho appt. to get her retainer after work and then it was full of thoughtful gifts and a date night to Panvimarn with only her and Daddy as the girls were at gymnastics. That weekend we had a last for a while sleepover with the Shoenberg girls before their big move. We made ribs, had plenty of trampoline time, bike rides, and hair styling. We will miss them!

The next week Kaylee got to go back to school in person. She has such an amazing teacher and the year was going so well that all the families in the class didn’t want it to change, but either way it was changing. So we went with in person and we are all happy for it.

Before heading for an amazing trip to see all the family for Spring Break Mommy and the girls took a wild goose chase to a Jersey Mikes for lunch on the way to Ernest E. Debs Regional Park for a hike that turned out to be quite fun and adventurous even if we spent a good 4 hours more in the car than expected before the 7 hour road trip up North the following day.

We headed to Grammy’s house. After already deciding that we were going to facetime Auntie Bridget when we got to color eggs, the big surprise is that she was there!! So we all colored eggs and decorated Easter Bonnets. Easter morning the girls enjoyed seeking out new hiding places to find eggs and seeing what was left for them in their baskets. After the first of many great breakfasts of the week we all headed to Staples for tech items and Whole Foods for lunch with our Easter bonnets to spread some cheer! We took the dogs for a walk in the neighborhood and did some homemade pasta making for dinner that was delicious!

The next morning we went to Dixon to have such a memorable experience for Grandpa Kim’s Military Memorial. It was so beautiful and being with the family during that time meant more than anything. We headed to Mary’s pizza Shack nearby to all enjoy each other and some food following the ceremony. Afterword we went back to the cremorial site to see were his ashes were placed and placed the roses.

The days following, Grammy gave the girls some special gifts including a jewelry box of hers that I played with as a kid and trinkets of Grandpas that the girls were excited to look through.

We then had delicious Ribs again, played laser tag, and stayed way too late at the McFarlands because of all the fun we were having even though it was a school night for Cole and Jacob. It was great to have that time with them.

The next day we all went to see Darcie at the gymnastics center. The girls got to get a little workout in and show Darcie their optional floor routines. We saw Katherine and Bubba too! They enjoyed watching their Optional team workout. Next we headed to the first little league baseball game that we have been to in forever.  We watched Cole stand his own on the plate and pitch straight down the hole like crazy! We loved cheering him on and watching him play!

Most of the week was spent enjoying as much as we could being with Grammy and Auntie Bridget. Daddy helped a lot with the electronics and we had a lot of fun having some home improvements to do. Even some plumbing and trip to Home Depot to get a bathroom sink redone.

We said goodbye to Auntie Bridget and Grammy took her to the airport, then we headed to Poppa’s house. MORE FAMILY TIME! We had a great lunch with ALL the Marty’s, Poppa, and got to spend a great time with Heather for the first in a long time. We also got to meet a new family member, Duke.  Quite a spunky Springer Spaniel. Grammy even joined in on the festivities after getting back from the airport.

After hanging out with Grammy that night we spent a little more time helping Poppa before heading to stay with the Natal’s. When we got there Poppa put the girls to work first thing on the ride on lawn mower and Daddy to work on the computers. I don’t think any of them thought of it as much work. It was quite fun for all of us, and the property actually got mowed pretty well. The computers all configured best they could. Auntie Heather even let both the girls drive her car.

We spent the evening with another great meal (we ate well all week) at the Natal’s and played all night long. Lots of game and night light shooters. The girls had a sleepover all in one room, which is always fun. In the morning we had a waffle breakfast, then Mommy got to meet one of Auntie Megan’s friends and was invited to do a great workout at their place while the dads, kids, and dogs went for a big hike which included a fun swing before we had the long drive home.

During that drive we continued our search for a new puppy, not expecting any different results than we had gotten in the previous months. Mommy responded to a few inquires on the way and got a couple good responses. We responded back and after lots of discussion and things seeming to lead our way we somehow found ourselves heading to “almost Mexico” (Ramona, San Diego) to “take a look at a litter of 6 puppies”. Of course we didn’t leave without one of them. Rigby was the first one to catch our eye and the first to approach Porter. So we took him home. He was apparently found in a ditch in Mexico and we have no idea what kind of dog he might be, but so far so GREAT! We’ve had some anxiety about him being a Chihuahua, but we’ll see. Took barely days to get him potty trained and doesn’t get up more than once a night.

Daddy helped celebrate Roman’s birthday with a fun bike ride and the girls took a short venture to the Cerritos Sculpture Garden. No Jersey Mikes Sub’s adventure side tracks this time. We then made a Lemon Merengue Pie. Then Sunday we had Leah over for a playdate. Even with a cast she got to go on the trampoline, but we also walked to the cakery down the way for ice cream sandwiches and enjoyed playing all day.

Cienna then spent the night excitedly preparing to actually go to school that upcoming week!

Enjoy the photos:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/K87g5fdFDHj5MzFS9

Cienna - 13 Years 2 Months ... Kaylee - 10 Years 9 Months!

We had so much fun thinking about all the things we love about Grace when figuring out what video clips she would love to see from us for her birthday! I hope she loved the outcome as much as we loved making it for her!

We got the Bronco up and running for the first time in the month for the Harshaw's drive by parade before the parents played online Bingo for a Carver fundraiser and one a nice spa kit while the girls were at gymnastics.

Then somehow in the month of February we finally got to perform the Christmas gymnastics holiday show in front of no audience, but was recorded thanks to Mark's amazing co-worker volunteering his time to make the memory last.

The next week we were all very excited to get to doggy sit Elliot for a couple weeks while McKayla and Brion took an important family trip to Florida. During that time the girls had what they thought was their last gymnastics competition for the season. They actually got to compete the next level up (level 7) and nailed all their new skills. We did an awesome photoshoot with all the Lakewood YMCA Gymnastics team girls to send off with a family that has been such a great part of the last almost 6 years of our lives.  The Shoenbergs are heading for new adventures in South Carolina.  Shannon is the girls head coach and our families have grown together with her two daughters (Shelby and Sadie) and fantastic husband. We are extremely sad to see them go, but excited for them and their new adventures.

That evening Auntie Kimmie had made her amazing Chili and Lemon Poke cake waiting for us upon the request of the girls.  Twas DELICIOUS as always.

With Sadie's 13th birthday approaching, we had planned a fun "payback" but thoughtful "party" for her and the rest of the family. The history goes that when Shelby was 13 she had a sleepover birthday in which all the girls made their way to our house for a really well done TP extravaganza.  So, with Sadie turning 13 and her not going to have another chance for that kind of experience we turned the table and got everyone together to go and TP their home! Everyone had so much fun even with a little concern of a midnight mass gathering with black on in their neighborhood and the Shoenbergs loved the surprise and cleanup before their drive by parade and party later that day.

We took the Bronco and after stopping to take pictures with the girls we had a little trouble getting it started again.  Their neighbors and gymnastics families all chipped in to get us back on the road to home.  Earlier that day we made our yearly trip to Gomez Growers to fill our weeded garden with vegetables and herbs to enjoy through Spring and Summer. That night we made Chocolate Soufflé that happen to turn out perfect even with the intricate recipe details.

The next day we spent planting the garden. We were very productive and had a great time all working together. We also had Roman over for the first time brewing beer in over a year. It was practice time getting ready to make beer for summer celebration requests.

The next weekend Daddy represented the gymnastics center and fixed the floor for all the gymnasts to have fewer dead spots and more success as Kaylee and Mommy worked on the Bronco horn together. Cienna got to celebrate her good friend Addie's birthday all day starting with online JackBox, then a ride by celebration followed by online escape rooms which means more socializing with friends!

After many errands together as a family we enjoyed a bike ride to the business park with the Marshalls. And now it is getting real that Kaylee may be going back to school in person on March 29th.  We had a Zoom call with 5th grade parents on how we can make the 5th grade graduation meaningful and continuing traditions such as T-shirts, lawn signs, and memory books in place of year books that aren't going to happen. Not sure how this year is going to play out, including Cienna maybe going back on April 20th. It's a day by day adventure.

Kaylee had an exciting Thursday and got her braces off!  Hopefully this is it and they won't have to go back on.  She was happy to show her gym friends that evening, but then unfortunately one of her best gym buddies had a bad injury that evening.  We all felt much better after talking to Leah the next morning and she was in good spirits after her emergency surgery on her arm.

Enjoy the photos:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/U14x7XhcaWmNuhmn9

Cienna - 13 Years 1 Month ... Kaylee - 10 Years 8 Months!

The day before Cienna became an actual teenager, we were "forced" to go to the local homemade ice cream shop for a Marshall fundraiser after gymnastics.  The Briefs, and Schoenberg's joined us and we all knew we would be there again for sure.  Not sure how the ice cream made it happen, but Kaylee also lost a tooth that night.

The morning was filled with the tooth fairy, then balloons and streamers, and an amazing sign, when Cienna came down the stairs.  Cienna made fun choices for us all to enjoy together as a family! She was spoiled by neighbors with gifts and greeted with a sign in the front yard. She got tons of love from family who called her throughout the day and she knew as always that she was loved!  We had Mod Pizza for dinner and brought drumsticks for friends at gymnastics that evening.

She planned out an amazing Birthday celebration with her friends the following Saturday!  It was an all day party which perfectly matched these interesting times, and will certainly be a memorable 13th Birthday.  She played online Jackbox games with 7 friends in the morning at 10am, then got to play more online games with ALL her friends in the afternoon.  The main game included questions about all those that were playing created by a questionnaire that each of them filled out during the weeks preceding the party.  Then that evening Cienna was super excited to do a night light up bike ride to actually see all her buddies in person, but still be distanced.  We got bike lights for all the friends and were ready to go at 6pm.  Then we had the largest hail we've seen in years about 5 minutes before the ride.  Many friends were skeptical about going, but they knew us better than that and of course we charged on.  All the girls had such and amazing and memorable 3 to 4 mile bike ride around the elementary school and through lightning and rain to the duck pond and back.  The most enjoyable part was to be able to be kids and talk to each other in person as they rode!  We finished the night with cake as a family and so much happiness and appreciation!

We had some wonderful family time putting together a Birthday video for June who was turning 11.  Happy Birthday to June.  It was then time to look into Middle Schools for Kaylee next year... woah slow down.  We also got ready for the girl's 2nd gymnastics competition which was their last one competing Level 6.  It was valentine themed, so we put together 60 valentine's for all competing gymnasts including Xcel and Pre-Team.  They did amazing as always and had a great time.

The next day was the Super Bowl.  We planned on spending it with just the four of us, but had a menu detailed out nevertheless.  We wanted to smoke a pork butt for pulled pork sandwiches for the first time to be prepared with Kings Hawaiian rolls of course.  Also the staples of Triple Cheese Nachos, etc., and supplemented with a fruit bowl!  

Unfortunately we got some somber news that morning that Grandpa Kim had passed away.  We spent the rest of the day talking about great memories we've had with him and how much he meant to all of us.  He will be remembered by us for his kind and generous heart, his goofy faces, and his straight forward ways!  We love you Grandpa Kim!

The love we have carried on to Valentines Day.  We went out for breakfast together which I know Grandpa would have love also.  Then we made ribs for dinner!  We had a pick up for Kaylee's school supplies where we had made more valentines for her classmates.  A strange last elementary valentine's day, but the teachers made it happen.  They also made Rice Crispy treats over a zoom call during class to all enjoy together!

Another different experience for something that they've done each year was the rehearsal for the Gymnastics Holiday show that they had practiced for to be held in December.  So who cares if the show is full of Christmas songs in February.  The show may have been postponed, but still must go on : )

The girls had a couple of Mondays off of school, so we finished our White House Lego set and took a long walk down the Santa Monica beachfront and saw the Pier for the first time.  Was actually probably a better way to see it, since it wasn't all that crowded!

Kaylee lost yet another tooth just before their dentist appointments where Cienna got her first cavity filled.  We took the Bronco for another Birthday drive-by to celebrate the Harshaw twins, and Mommy and Daddy did a BINGO fundraiser for Carver together while the girls were at gymnastics and won a Relaxation Basket which we look forward to seeing the contents.

Our thoughts everyday are with Grandpa, and the rest of the family as always!  We've missed out on so much family time during the holidays but we know that family is always there.  We are also so lucky to have such great friends and support.

Enjoy the photos and videos:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/8G6jNMVWJRHArDPb7

Cienna - 13 Years Years Old! ... Kaylee - 10 Years 7 Months Old!

After moving up to level 6 last spring, just as the competition season came to an unexpected end, the girls finally got to show off their routines for the first time in front of judges in an in house practice meet to start off last month before the Christmas holiday!  Being with their teammates, and all being proud of what they have accomplished, it was a complete success.

We celebrated some good friend's birthdays early in the month as well.  The Bronco made another appearance for Leah's drive by birthday, then Cienna got to do a virtual escape room with friends for Lex's 13th birthday.

All around our neighborhood were tremendous Christmas light displays, so we took plenty of bike rides in our light up selves to see them all.

We missed out on ThanksChristmas with family so we thought we could be there for actual Christmas, but that didn't happen either.  We did however get a visit from the Bakx, and went to deliver gifts to the Ferrario's X 3.  We were all anxiously awaiting the arrival of the newest Ferrario, Emera.  She showed up a little later than expected, but thankfully happy and healthy on 12/29/2020.

We were flooded with gifts from friends and family, but what we loved most was all the Facetime and Zoom calls to see each other in real-time since it couldn't be in person.

The girls made their way to our room in the morning as our tradition, we had a great time with gifts, and a big breakfast.  After making our own Pie, we were also given plenty of extra deserts from Auntie Kimmie.  We spent most of the day outdoors enjoying each other, the neighborhood, and the trampoline before having a delicious rib dinner.

The following weeks, there was plenty of fort building and making use of all the new creative and crafty gifts that we got from friends and family.

Then the new year was upon us.  The girls got a bit creative with baking a New Year's 2021 cake.  They wanted a double layer chocolate but didn't have all the ingredients.  Ended up with one chocolate layer and one vanilla with lemon pudding filling.....??? insert your own emoji.  It was delicious.

We made plans to head to Big Bear for New Years as we often do and were able to thanks to Greg and Jackie for letting us use their cabin!  Of course we all wanted to snowboard, but by the time we looked to getting tickets for that weekend they were all sold out.  However, the nighttime tickets were not.  So, we went snowboarding on New Year's Eve Evening, and loved every minute.  We left after gymnastics at 9pm on the 30th to avoid traffic and it was a great, however late drive up.  We had a relaxing morning and prepared the cold evening of snowboarding.  There were no lines and the snow was perfect.  The only unfortunate thing is that Cienna's feet grew a little too much so she was in for a rude awakening when her feet thawed out in the car after taking off her boots on the way home, but other than that it was awesome!  Mark and the girls made Mommy stay up till midnight, but it was pretty fun and relaxing after a big day.

The next day we took advantage of all the snow that came that week to make a HUGE snowman in the front of the cabin and headed down the road for some sledding time.  The girls got to continue their game of Ratatouille and Porter loved running around the neighborhood in the snow.  We also made another fort/maze in the living room.  The whole trip felt like it was just us with so little traffic and just a great time.

When we got home, it was time to take down the Christmas decorations and get excited for school and the following weeks.  The girls enjoyed their vacation together even making a montage of pictures of amazing poses around our house.  They also made more forts.  Luckily they are also getting better at folding sheets to put the forts away.  They weren't disappointed to go back to online class and see their teachers and get back to learning after Winter Break.

Kaylee had a lot of fun making her first KiWi gift for Christmas and looks forward to the next one, also after all this time she got her first rip and handled it like a champ.  Cienna seems to only get hers on her wrist, so we got her new wrist bands, think that'll help : )

    

The end the month the girls had their first real gymnastics meet.  Still at the gym and with only their team, but they got to compete, for real, as optional gymnasts.  It was such a fun time and it is incredible that they still get to thrive in so many ways right now!  We are all very grateful to have the things that we do!

Mark made a trip to Marina Del Rey to visit Uncle B one last time in his loft.  The Giraldez's are moving to Tennessee to start the next chapter in their life.  Looking forward to visiting!

I guess lastly (honorable mention) we headed to downtown long beach to walk around The Pike to see the sights and enjoy a beautiful evening together!

https://photos.app.goo.gl/cPpJcyWVzt4u3e7c6

Cienna - 12 Years 11 Months ... Kaylee - 10 Years 6 Months Old!

So, after almost 20 years, plenty of duct tape, JB weld and burnt out ice maker, it was time for a new refrigerator.  It's pretty neat to get fresh water and ice from a refrigerator.  Who knew that was possible.

Thanksgiving break was not quite what we were expecting.  Our annual ThanksChristmas up north didn't get to happen.  We at least got to see all our family virtually which is better than nothing, but not as good as the real thing.  We missed all the hugs!!  Daddy got to take the week off with the girls and enjoy time together.  Mommy worked some of the time but we definitely got to enjoy time with each other.  We figured the girls were finally tall enough to take to Go Kart World.  We all had a great time, with almost the whole place to ourselves.

We started Thanksgiving Day with an early morning walk in our neighborhood before the cooking began.  We had gone shopping for everything we needed for a huge Thanksgiving feast for four.  It was fun to cook it all as a family, from the Fried Turkey, Green bean Casserole, jellied cranberries, mashed and sweet potatoes, homemade Apple Pie, (and one homemade pumpkin pie from the Snows) and devilled eggs that actually lasted throughout the day only because they were put in the back of the refrigerator instead of on the counter but got eaten nonetheless.

We loaded up all four of our bikes for the first time since we all have new adult size bikes on our rack with doubt, but they all seemed to fit.  We headed down to the peninsula path.  You can see the whole shoreline from there and is was certainly a beautiful day!

Game nights are still fun when done virtually, and Megan is great at setting them up.  We loved another virtual game night with the Natal's, Marty's, and Auntie Carrie!

Since picture day didn't happen in person this year, we had to use our limited photography skills, but we made it happen at home.

The break from school was mostly spent OFF of electronical devices.  This entailed walks, make shift random fun, mats out front for jumps even from Daddy, and more Lego fun. First they brought out all the old Legos that had been organized by color and together the girls miraculously made an accurate representation of the gymnastics center.  Then we got a new kit of the International Space Station.  It was fun to build and learn about as we went.  We got to appreciate our wonderful neighborhood with night bike rides to check out all the beautiful Christmas lights.

After Thanksgiving break apparently Christmas is the next day : )  So, out came the decorations.  We filled the house and then put up the lights and outdoor decorations.  The following weekend we got our tree from our local Christmas Tree farm (Snow Pines) and had the best service ever.  It really was a fun experience.  We cleaned the house, moved furniture, and got ready for the train and tree display.

We put up SO many ornaments on the tree, Mommy even got a new box from Grammy from her childhood to add to the tree this year!  And then we all wanted to add to our train display so we headed to the local train store.  We thought that it would be fun to change up our track from an oval to a figure 8.  The girls also picked up a build your own flower shop that was on sale to add to the town.

Then Christmas was in full effect.  Daddy had a virtual work Christmas party where he wore his Griswold Hockey Jersey and set up a monitor in the background to show the TV Yule log.  The girls didn't get their usual gymnastics Christmas party, but did get to enjoy their gift exchange at the end of practice with their friends.

Even though gymnastics season may look different this year, our gym wanted to make sure the girls are still encouraged by their progress and had an in house practice meet with judges for them to have fun and see how much progress they have made.  Both girls did absolutely amazing and all the kids had a great time!  Both girls have been grateful to have gymnastics and are improving every day.  They have consistent full twists on floor, their L7 series on beam, and have or are working on their giants on bars!

We finished off this month excited for the holiday and more time together.  Kaylee made a wreath from leftover Christmas Tree scraps and Cienna has spent months making gifts for close family and friends.  We also cleaned the under stair storage all together which was an unexpected gift for Mommy!

MERRY CHRISTMAS

https://photos.app.goo.gl/ZnFh1D6QMv8BKVLZ6

Cienna - 12 Years 10 Months ... Kaylee - 10 Years 5 Months Old!

Loved watching the planes land as we held front supports on the parking garage wall with the Marshalls after having a blast bike riding through the empty parking garage ramps at full speed.  We then brought out Halloween decorations in huge anticipation of making the most out of the holiday.  Before the girls got to first show off their awesome Halloween costumes, Kaylee was able to meet up with her fantastic teacher Ms. Cyrs to pick up some school supplies.  Kaylee also got to start up her school extra curricular weekly zoom clarinet practice with Mr. Gallant. She picked up on it super quick and has had fun playing on her own when she gets the chance.  She has even been playing some duets with Cienna (Jingle Bells).  We loved seeing the creative and way more self completed pumpkin carving this year, even if the pumpkins were bought at the grocery store.  

The girls first got to show off their Halloween costumes at gymnastics practice the Friday before.  They had a fun "practice" full of games with their teammates, but also were so excited for practice to be over because they knew their cousins finally arrived in Long Beach!  

We of course took them to the parking garage on a bike/skateboard ride to show them how cool it was watching the planes land.  On the way back Uncle RJ and Daddy, or better known as the Yeti and Jail Bird, stopped at the local business corner maybe for a beer, but also came through with a pumpkin that we were unable to find at any store on Halloween day.  All the cousins carved the pumpkin and set it out to show for Halloween night.  We had such creative dinner and treats all planned out by the Natal's, and even got to do some social distancing trick or treating all together through the neighborhood.  We're lucky to have such a great neighborhood so we could all feel like it was Halloween.  The girls sorted through and exchanged all their loot together before settling in like zombies.

The next day we got to enjoy more family time with the Natal's.  Girls got to watch some movies while RJ and Megan shopped for delicious breakfast burrito items!  After it was all digested, we made up a fun family style soccer golf game to play at the park.  It had teams and fun challenges for us all to get creative and be active.  Such a great visit!!!

We even got a little bit of a weather teaser with some rain!  We took full advantage and stayed outside for as much of it as possible.  Going on a bike ride, and a staple for us, family tag out front!  The girls are a lot quicker than they used to be... or are we slower... no way!

Then the first Christmas present of the year arrived early.  Cienna's very first NEW bike.  She was beyond excited, and we were a little happy to not have to listen to her whine anymore about the other one.

We made progress on the Bronco stereo, learning that we needed a new speaker, so we ran new speaker wire, and we are bumping the hit tunes.  Bri and Cobi had their baby shower and we are excited for the arrival of Emera come Christmas time!

We are grateful for all that we have, and do our best to appreciate that everyday!

Enjoy the photos:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/d3WU1fU67m2pUCLy6

Cienna - 12 Years 9 Months ... Kaylee - 10 Years 4 Months Old!

To start out the month Daddy had a long fun bike ride along Huntington Beach with Roman and other good buddies.  Later that day, we "attended" our first virtual wedding for Scott who is one of the great gymnastics coaches at the gym.  We also celebrated Haiden's 10th with our first of 3 drive by birthday's of the month.

We are so grateful to be in the situation we are given the circumstances!  We are thankful that all our friends and family are safe through another tragic fire season.  We are proud of all the strength they have and love we share.

We've enjoyed the extra time together as a family and have been trying to make the most of it. We have searched through the under stair storage to bring out a plethora of games, magnetic roller coaster builds, crafts and puzzles.  Baking together is also a fun go to for a treat.  We pretty much play all card games that we can think of or know.  The trampoline still gets really good use.  Maybe not as much as when we weren't at gymnastics 5 days a week, but there is still time on the weekend for Daddy.  And the garage roof is always a popular hangout for the girls on occasion.  Daddy also brought home a VR set to check out have have some fun with.  Bike rides are for sure a go to when we need to get out as a family!  There is a great parking structure to go on the weekends to ride all around.  The best is obviously going back down the ramps after the hard work getting up.  We went with the Marshall's and Knobe's one time, then with the Marshall's and Vigliotti's the next.

We've gotten at least a little time to work on the Bronco as a family and figured out how to get the vacuum system working for the internal air vents!!  As before mentioned it has been used for 3 drive by birthday celebrations this month. The next was for Emery, and then celebrate Shawna becoming a teenager.  Still researching how to get the radio installed and blasting the beats.

The kids are working on their creativity.  Kaylee, with permission used spray paint on the grass to start a wood project and paint her name in the grass.  She also is trying her best to find things to do getting out of the house during school breaks.  She started and continues to practice riding Mommy's skateboard, taking Porter on walks, and going on bike rides around the block.  Her go to snack during break time is a fruit smoothie that she makes using our Ninja.

On a different note, Kaylee had been wanting her ears to be pierced for quite some time.  She has been working on her integrity as a person, understanding of the responsibility and we all decided as a family that we would look up the best way possible.  She got them done on Uncle Matt's birthday because that just happen to work out with our plan, and Happy Birthday to Uncle Matt.  We went to Envy Body Piercing in Downtown LB and had an amazing experience. I give credit to Rena who did the piercing, but Kaylee blew me away.  She asked questions and was completely ready even after watching needle piercings being done.  They haven't bothered her since.  

Cienna was super excited to go through her book shelf and expand her collection with new books in some of her series with a trip to Barnes and Nobles. She has read a ton on the laptop, but was happy to have the books in hand.  She's gone through them like crazy.  She has also kept up her painting on canvas and other fun backgrounds.  She has continued to excel on her clarinet even with the challenges of online learning. There was some miscommunication that led Cienna to be unsure that her teachers recognized her with the online learning as being an amazing student, but then she was the first kid in her History class to be elected as scholar of the month!

And they both have won a handstand contest vs. all the other gymnasts in their group.  It's like a go to in the house any time they are just standing around.  They're getting pretty good at them.

School has gone really well despite being online.  We appreciate all the teachers for all their work and efforts.  Ms. Cyrs is such a great fit for Kaylee, and we hope she gets to continue next semester safely in class.  We still have the directive that we will be online until Jan. 28th which is the end of the first semester.  They have gotten into a routine, and we have good ways communicating with Mommy, and Dad throughout the day if they need help.

The gymnastics team banquet wasn't the same, but the gym family made it happen anyway.  The girls were recognized for all there good work and effort over the previous year.  They both progressed so much physically and mentally with gymnastics it was a deserved celebration.  They each go an award for moving up another level and Kaylee got an award for the Most Improved Gymnast in her level.

It was fun to set up some Halloween decorations, then the girls finally decided what they wanted to dress up as because they didn't want to go without Mommy making their Halloween decorations this year.  We certainly went to JoAnne's Fabrics to pick out material for the designs that they made and even had Daddy as a special guest.  They're coming along as you will see with help from the girls sewing.

Check out the photos:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/THJXTwMREUtoJKxm9