Kiya and her "fuzz"

One of the things I love about my daughter, Kiya, is that she is definitely unique. She is herself. She is quirky, and funny, and sweet, opinionated, stubborn, lovable and she knows what she wants! These are qualities in her I hope to maintain...I'm just hoping I don't impose any of my insecurities on her. I love her exactly the way she is.

One of her more "unusual" tendencies, which is often commented on, is her fascination with fuzz. Fuzz aka feathers, or anything soft. In the direst of circumstances she will resort to lint, or even cat fur to replace the fuzz. People often ask me (and I do mean OFTEN) how I got her into the fuzz, but like I said, she is her own girl. She knows what she wants.

The boa I bought her before it was dismantled systematically by Kiya

It all started when she was younger (and yes I know she is only 2 but go with me on this one). One day my mom bought Kiya these dress up shoes, because she loves dressing up. They had a string of "fuzz" or feathers across the foot. Kiya just ripped the fuzz off and walked around carrying it EVERYWHERE. Finally it got kind of dingy and gross, so I bought her a boa thinking she would love it. She just ripped pieces of it until she had what she wanted. She seems to want a small amount that she can hold in her hand. She moves it around in her hand, and sometimes moves it around while sucking on her thumb.

Notice the fuzz in her hand? I have countless photos of this...you would think she would drop the fuzz when she sleeps, but nope

Her fuzz fascination has evolved now. She now color coordinates her fuzz with her outfits. I have been know to pack "emergency" fuzz and her school has some as well. My mother in law bought her a skirt that had pieces of feathers on it. She ripped all of the feathers off of the skirt one by one so that she could hold them. You can always tell where Kiya is because sometimes she leaves a trail of fuzz. This has led for us to get what we refer to as a "fuzz box".

Kiya knows that whenever she needs fuzz, she can just go into the playroom and get herself a new fuzz. We have had to retire fuzz when it gets gross, and she tends to understand when the fuzz needs to retire. However, she needs to approve that the fuzz is ready to be given its burial. She accidentally flushed some blue fuzz down the toilet one day when she was with my friend Katie and according to Katie, you would think the world had just ended. They ended up walking to the store to get some fresh fuzz.

Again, I did not teach my daughter this fuzz fascination, but I do think it is adorable. It just shows her unique personality...and I love her for it!

Caiden's 1st Taekwondo Tournament

Let me get the usual out of the way. I know that I have been a failure as a blogger lately. But really I have good intentions...I have just been living more :) Still documenting, but haven't spent the time to document on the blog. I may be a little rusty as I haven't blogged in awhile so I thank you in advance for your forgiveness. :)

However, this post is NEWSWORTHY!! My amazing son just had his first Taekwondo tournament yesterday and he did SO WELL!! But before I talk about his success, let me set the story up a bit.

Caiden entered the state tournament with the understanding that this was just for fun, to see what it's all about, and see if he wanted to do this again. (Note: this was EXTREMELY difficult for me as I am ultra competitive and I want him to be the best, however I grew up with a dad who pushed so hard that I stopped doing sports. My dad was also one of those dad screaming on the sidelines, so as a result I am super quiet. I know the kind of a effect that had on me, and I I wanted to spare my kids that - but man it is hard not to get caught up). Since this was his first sports anything, I found it quite stressful. I think I was more nervous and anxious than Caiden was, and I will admit that I had to hold back tears because I was so proud of him.

In preparation for the tournament, Caiden has been practicing Taekwondo a lot. Currently he is a second level green belt, and we have been practicing his sparring and forms quite a bit. Caiden has even been teaching Dave his forms which Caiden absolutely loved. Caiden has also started Jui Jitsu which he LOVES!!

We didn't want him to get too nervous so we revamped the playroom, and reorganized his room before leaving to the tournament. There we met one of Caiden's best friends, Gabe and his family! Dave and Caiden got in one little practice session before the match and then they were off!

Gabe and Caiden before their matches
Kiya supporting her brother :)
Gabe and Caiden comparing notes before their matches
Caiden pre-match
Waiting his turn in his category

The first category was Forms. Each participant did their forms for a panel of judges. At the end they scored the winner. The second category was sparring (Caiden's favorite). Caiden was so jazzed about going that he got all his gear on sans the helmet padding. I guess he just didn't expect that he would get hit in the head. After he quickly put on the padding, Caiden was then matched against his first opponent. He seemed a bit apprehensive in this first match, yet he was able to pull out the win 5 -3. I took a video so as soon as I can figure out how to load it on my computer I will post it :)

Geared up and ready to rumble :)
Caiden's 1st match
Caiden mid match...

When he sat down to wait for his next match, one of his instructors gave him some words of wisdom that must have worked wonders because he was back to the ole' Caiden for his next two matches defeating both opponents 5-0. Caiden did very well, and ended up winning first place in both categories!!! The funny part is I don' t think he even realized it. When he wasn't matched up against someone or doing his forms for the judges he seemed to have his head in the clouds, just chilling. The minute he got on the mat he was focused and ready for battle. It was interesting to watch.

Caiden receiving his medal for 1st place!!!
Caiden's 1st place medals :)
He won first in both categories :)
Caiden, the "serious" competitor
What can I say the boy loves to kick...

I am so proud of Caiden. I didn't expect that he would take first place in both his categories, nor do as well as he did seeing as this was his first tournament. I am happy to see that his hard work paid off and that his nerves didn't get the best of him. He really has been practicing non stop. So if you see me walking down the aisles of the supermarket with a 6 year old boy practicing high kicks, that would be Caiden :p

When I asked him what his favorite part was he said "All of it Mom! It was all so fun!!". Of course we had to celebrate. Papa Jim and Grammie Sue took us all out for dinner and ice cream and pie!!!! It was soo yummy and it meant a lot to have the support of Grammie Sue, Papa Jim, Grandma Susan and Grandpa Lance who all came to cheer on Caiden!! Thank you all :)

Dave, Kiya, Caiden and I
Grandpa Lance and Grandma Susan came out to support Caiden
Papa Jim and Grammie Sue came out to support Caiden

Gabe and Caiden both received medals!! Gabe got 2nd in Forms!!

Statement Cookies

Lately I have been eating a lot of fortune cookies. I mean it can’t hurt to try and improve my luck right?? Well, the last 4 out of 5, no scratch that…ALL of the fortune cookies I have eaten lately have been statements. There is no fortune. Nothing to look forward too…no telling of the future. No piece of paper to look into to say “THIS IS THE GOOD NEWS I NEEDED”. No little bit of mystery and intrigue.

Nope…just a statement. My most recent statement cookie says “visit a park, enjoy what nature has to offer”. Really? I mean how much work would that have taken to turn that into a fortune??? “You will soon visit a park and enjoy what nature has to offer”…See?!! Not hard at all…

Back in the day, I got my friend Mandy all riled up over her statement cookie, and that was YEARS ago…at least then they had SOME fortunes. Now, nothing! I, for one like the fortunes. It was interesting to read. Entertaining, a brief reprieve from the drudgery and day to day and THEEEEEN you can see if they came true. I used to keep a few, in fact I have one posted on my desk right now that says “Don’t give up. The best is yet to come”. This came at a time that I needed the message, but now that I am looking at it again I am noticing that it is a STATEMENT!!!
Years ago, Mandy called and complained to the fortune cookie place. They laughed at her. I laughed at her, but now I feel her pain. This is false advertising. Is it TOO much to ask for a little bit of happiness in our otherwise stressed and overworked days?? A little bit of mystery. We should all band together and rise against this injustice, chanting “WE WANT OUR FORTUNE COOKIES BACK!!!!!!!

But alas I feel we are doomed to have our statement cookies. DOOMED!!! Whew! I just needed to get that off my chest. Now I am getting back to work.

Caiden's 6th Birthday

This year we wanted to do something different for Caiden's birthday, so we decided to go to TWIST R U. It was so much fun, and the parents and grandparents really got into it as well.

Basically it is a gym that is filled with trampolines, rock climbing walls, foam pits, and a zip line. The kids had a great time, and so did the parents. It was awesome. We had the whole gym to ourselves which was JUST perfect!



The fabulous three - Derrick, Gabe and Caiden

We even made sure the adults had time to party and have fun :) What else is cake for if not to entertain kids while you play???

It was nice to spend time with everyone and to see everyone have such fun.








After the fun times, we settled down for some cake and food.

I know that this is a bit delayed, but here was Caiden's 6th birthday - that actually took place in March...but what can I say...I've been a little busy. :)