A Day in the Life...

Copper is one of my favorite people...  

 I skipped the first half of Young Women's this week on Tuesday so I could go watch Micah break boards at karate. She ordered five of the thickest boards and five medium boards.  She told me she wanted to try putting two medium boards together, which is thicker than one of the thickest boards. When it was her turn though, her sensei asked jokingly if she wanted to put four of the medium boards all together, and we were all surprised when she said yes. She punched right through them in one try.  It's been the buzz talk of the dojo all week. Afterward, her top sensei stated he could feel her entire body's force, and remarked how strong she's become.  The last few weeks in her regular classes and her honors class in karate she has come home purple-faced and purple fists from exhaustion. But she has beamed. And she couldn't stop dreaming when her sensei called her a beast and a creature, haha. Off to the ISKA camp this summer, and her advanced purple belt in the next mo...

This was one week ago exactly and it hasn't stopped snowing since.  We have piles and piles of snow.   This dog has always loved snow... he's a nut. Copper and I went thrift shopping and she found these heels to wear. I don't understand it because I've always been a flat shoe lover. She likes them though. Kota and Micah tried them on. Dakota could at least stay standing but couldn't walk more than a few steps. Micah couldn't really stand, hahaha. We made our neighbor dinner and Copper made the dessert, plus made a cake and proudly decorated it. What a goofy picture. Micah had returned from karate and couldn't stop smiling because her teacher called her a "beast" and "creature" and she beamed and beamed.  She broke through six of the thickest boards they  have with one punch to her knuckles. She came home with them purple and bruised, and a warrior smile like no other. I was supposed to take all the Young Women in our ward ice skating last...

My parents gifted us money for Christmas and we used it to take them to the Space Center for a space simulation. Copper has been volunteering there for about 18 months and loves it, so we decided to see what it was about. We did the Falcon Mission.  I was Captain, Copper was 1st Mate; Tim was Tactical and Engineering, Micah was Operations, Kota was Intel, my mom was Sensors, and my dad was Helmsman. Our mission was to take goods to a nearby planet.  We led a convoy and one of the convoy passenger ships betrayed us, stole our cargo, took all of our power, and we nearly lost our lives. Thankfully, the great captain and crew saved the mission and we made it out alive. It was very stressful. And fun. Good times with family! My mom working her station to watch out for any space pirates... Tim did a good job blowing things up and controlling a bunch of things I didn't understand... The back-end crew working hard... Our 1st Mate Copper helping Intel Kota read incoming messages... ...

 Tim and I took off to San Diego a few days after Christmas. The last time we went anywhere without the girls (besides a weekend trip) was 14 years ago, so I guess it was time! I got us a hotel with a kitchen so we could eat a few meals in. We packed food for lunches and the hotel served breakfast. I tried to eat well, since I didn't at all over Christmas. We also found an online "city pass" that let us pick four or so activities for a lower price than buying them all separately. Still, vacations are expensive. I'm grateful for being able to go and enjoy ourselves, and grateful to not have to worry about our girls or animals for a week.  We drove the whole first day. The highlight was stopping at the West's largest gas station. It has everything, including this Sasquatch statue that is about 25 feet.  I think I could be a gas station junkie.  The first full day there we walked all around Balboa Park. I didn't realize how big it is- it's huge and beautiful....