Saturday, August 27, 2016

Yellow Belt!

Yesterday night, Zev got his yellow belt!  Here he is breaking a board to earn it. He was really proud of himself, especially for this part. 

Here he is being presented with it.

Here is the master carrying Zev around by his new belt. 

With his karate master, and the other kids who were leveling up. 

Showing it off after class


Afterward we got to go to an ice cream social at the elementary school to celebrate. 

We're proud of you Zevi! 


Monday, August 22, 2016

1st Day of school!

This is a preview from our pictures of Zev and Tahl before school. I can't wait to get the rest! 

I could not love this picture more.  It is so perfectly Zev up there on top of the monkey bars. 

Sweet guy.

So, I'm not sure why they are backward, but we got our books for the first day of school again.  Everyone was very happy with their choices.  

Zev got an Ultimate Guide to Pokemon, and he was VERY happy.

Here is Zev's first day of school sign. In case you can't read it:
I am 7 years old. I love to climb trees, read, and build Lego's. My favorite color is gold. I am 48 pounds and 47.5 inches. I love Dixie, and my teacher is Mrs. Pate.  I want to be an engineer when I grow up, and my favorite book is Harry Potter!


Here is Tahl's first day of school sign. In case you can't read it:
I am 5 years old. I love to play, read, and pet dogs. My favorite color is gold. I am 42 pounds and 46 inches. My teacher is Mrs. Hydrick.  I want to be a zoo keeper when I grow up, and my favorite book is The Gruffalo!


How cute is this pair???

I love this one too.  They were ready to go! 

So was I apparently because we got there too early to go into our classrooms. 

We did have time for some silly selfies though... 




Here is Tahl at his table. He wasn't even too nervous. 

Here is Zev at his big second grade desk! 

Tahl's teacher posted a few pictures during the day. The face in this one cracks me up. 

Here he is having snack outside with his friends. 

Both boys had a few incidents, but they got an overall good report from their teachers.  We will see how it goes the rest of the week! 

Saturday, August 20, 2016

Grandma and Grandpa

Last week my grandma and grandpa both got to come home from the hospital to be together at their assisted living home. 

Here they are when they had gone out to lunch with some of the family. 


They decided soon after they both got home that they would both go on hospice care.  I drove in town to visit my grandma and grandpa the next day.  Here I am with my grandma.  I got lots of good time to snuggle her and just tell her how much I love her. 

Zev understood what was going on, and he wanted us to go back that weekend so that he could say goodbye to Grandma and Grandpa.

We wanted to get a picture of them with all six of their great grand kids, but that wouldn't work without some moms in the picture. 

The very next day, on Sunday August 14th my grandma passed away.

It was a very tough day for me. I hate that I couldn't be there, but I know that she was surrounded by people who love her.  My brother Scott acted as her hospice nurse, and I know he was amazing.
Look how young she was here.  I love having these. 

Because my grandpa had stopped dialysis, I am told that he was somewhat confused by Sunday. I am not sure how much he understood what was happening, but he was there with my grandma when she passed away. 

My grandma has always been one of my best friends. I talk to her on the phone all the time about my kids, my life, and just anything.  She was the most loving and happy person.  You could not ask for a better grandmother.  She has been such a big influence in my life, and I can't explain how much I miss her already. 
Just looking at this picture makes me giggle because I remember her telling me how much she needed to use the restroom, but she couldn't because she would never get her spanx back up.  Even when it rained on my wedding day, my grandma could make me giggle.


By Wednesday early in the morning, my grandpa joined my grandma, which was just how they wanted it. It was truly a love real love story with ups and downs. 

My grandpa was a kind, hard working, and loving man who was always there for his family.  This has always been my favorite picture of him. I feel like you can really see how loved he is by all the people in the background.

I love this picture from my wedding of grandma dancing with Scott. 

I have loved spending time with both of them for as long as I can remember.

We would play in their backyard for hours, go to the movies with my grandma, and my grandpa would take me out for donuts.  On his 80th birthday, he took Zev to the movies. 

They were the best parents to my dad and each of his siblings. They were so lucky to have them as an example to follow. 

I know they lived a long and happy life, but it doesn't stop me from missing them. 

We will be going to Tyler this weekend for the joint funeral, and I hope there are lots of tissues there. I know there will be lots of Elvis music, lots of food and hugging, and lots of love because that is just how they would have wanted it.

Thursday, August 18, 2016

The week before school...

In the last week or so before school, Isaac had some fun. 

We had a good time at the splash park together. 


Isaac really wanted to make his way over to the actual park.

When he got to the top of this mountain, he said, "I strong! Take a picture for Pops!"



Here is just being his usual goofy self. 


Sometimes when your mom vacuums, you just have to join her. 


I set the train table back up for this two year old.

He has been loving it, and suddenly the big guys are playing with it again too. 

This is a picture I took because I thought it was funny how much basil Zev wants on his sandwich.  Thank goodness we have a garden. 

Here is Tahl meeting his teacher at "Meet the Teacher" night the week before school started.  Her name is Mrs. Hydrick, and she seems beyond amazing. 

This is Zev's new teacher, Mrs. Pate.  I've heard only fantastic things about her too. 

 We can't wait for the year to start!