Long Overdue Update

OK, So I didn't realize how long it has been since I have done any updates on here, so I will try to cover everything. Sorry everything is going to be out of chronological order, it will be more by subject, because it's easier for me to remember that way.

Tae Kwon Do -
*In April we all got to go to Raleigh, NC, for a festival where we all competed against others in forms, breaking and sparring. It was a lot of fun. Latrisa got 3rd, Jason got 2nd, and Jessica got 3rd. Jason and Jessica also competed with the Demo team who unfortunately didn't place, though everyone commented possitively about our demo team over all the other teams. Over all it was a great experience and a well needed vacation. We were able to enjoy lunch with Grand Master Lee and a few students from England and Canada. We got to know them better, and the differences between the training techniques at the different schools. I am happy we are here in North Las Vegas where friendly contact is not only encouraged, but unfriendly contact is discouraged.
*In April we all tested for our next belt rank and passed. Jessica and Jason are now green belts, and I am a yellow belt. I will probably not catch up to them until they are red, or higher, because the time between testing is longer, but that's ok because they can help me. I am in no hurry.

David -
Left for South Carolina in March. He has since found 2 jobs and an apartment. He says he plans on returning to Las Vegas after the summer heat dies down, but making South Carolina his summer home. He is afraid of triple digit temperatures. Not that we blame him.

Art -
His divorce with Deb was finalized in February or March. He Married Linda May 4th. We are happy to welcome her to the family. We know it has been difficult for Deb, and will continue to be for some time, but we also know that Deb wants Art to be happy. Linda is a good person that will bring many good things to the family. We, like Art and Deb do not want to see the family in conflict. Jason and I both having been through divorces ourselves understand the desire to move on, and to not be alone, and we support Art in his disicion. We love Art, Deb and Linda.

Deb -
Deb is a rock to her family. She is such a strong mother, wife and woman. Even though I know she is having a hard time right now, she is loved by so many. The weight of the world may feel like it is on her, but her family and friends will gladly carry that load for her. I love her. She is attending singles functions and working and branching out like she has never done before. We are very proud of her.

Jessica -
Jessica has been accepted into the Gibson magnet school leadership program. She is bummed that it isn't the magnet school that offers drama, but at least she won't be at her home zoned school that doesn't have the best rep (fights, drugs, etc.). She will do great things. She is still doing really good in school. She came home with her latest report card and told me that I would be so mad at her, and I asked her why, she told be it was because she had a "C" on it. I told her I was not angry with her at all... I know she can do better, so she needs to work on it, but at least she doesn't have a "D" or "F" like I did. I am still proud of her. I think she is more disappointed in herself than I could ever be. She is working really hard to bring her grades back up so she can be on the A-B honor roll again.

Jason -
Jason lost his job last month, just before we went to Raleigh, but within a week of returning from Raleigh, he had found another. He is much happier at this office, and they are much happier with him than his last office was. He has a regular work schedule, and doesn't work nights or weekends anymore, which is super nice. Now if the medical insurance is going to be affordable and better than the last place, than this office is going to work out perfect.

Latrisa -
I broke my thumb and wrist a couple months ago, but was healed just in time to go to Raleigh. Or at least healed enough. I still have stiffness and weakness when I do pushups, but other than that I am pretty much back to normal. I am trying to get the house presentable again after part of it flooded last week. We had a plumbing problem that occured while we were out running errands, and we came home to 1 1/2 inches of water in our bathroom and hallway, and it spread into Jessica's room and closet where Bob's (Kevins) stuff was being stored, so all that is being relocated so if anything like this happens again, he has no worries. It also got a bit of our room, the living room, Arts room and closet. The carpets will get to stay, because we had some heroes in our ward come to the rescue with an industrial carpet cleaner, and they will be back to clean the carpets soon. The walls...well, we aren't sure yet. They didn't dry as fast, even with the industrial fan going for days. If the walls have to go, it won't be the whole thing, just the bottom 1/4 in part of the living room, most of the hallway, all of Jessica's closet and maybe the laundry area. But so far it doesn't look like that's necessary. So we will keep praying.

We are still trying to finish the back yard, which has been slow going, since David left much of it unfinished and my wrist/thumb broke. Now we are looking at triple digit temps and I am not going to get much done each day in that kind of heat, but we are still trying. It may not be finished until after the end of summer. Slowly things are getting done, and we are learning lesson after lesson in patience.

We are all healthy, and we are all happy, and that is what is most important. I think that about covers everything. If I forgot something, please let me know and I will add more.

More TKD

On Saturday, February 7, Jessica, Jason and Latrisa got to participate in something totally new to them at tae kwon do. They got to do a break-a-thon. It was so much fun, and Jessica and Jason performed in the Demo for Grand Master Lee who was visiting. Immediately after the demo all 3 tested for their next belt rank and PASSED!! Woo Hoo! It was hard work, but it was fun. I can't add pictures and videos because they got erased from the camera. Jason and Jessica are now High Yellow belts (which means they have a green stripe on their belts) and Latrisa is a High White Belt (yellow stripe on her belt). I can't wait to see what new adventures tkd will bring us. It has been a fun, exciting bonding experience for us so far. It seems to bring us closer together and gives us common goals again.

Backyard Project 2009

We decided on New Years Eve that on New Years Day we would start making some changes to the back yard, and slowly start fixing up the house. In 4 weeks I think we have come a long way, though there is still a long way to go. But here is the progress so far.

Before

After

You can kind of see the old oval garden and where everything used to be in this picture. What a huge difference 4 weeks has made.

Overgrown Trees Before Trimming

After

Our Christmas Tree (now named Tyson

after the guinea pig buried under it)

Notice the pile of dirt in the lower right corner of the picture...

That used to be the big oval garden in the middle of the yard

Our new Fire Pit...the pile of dirt to the left was all

that remained of the oval garden

All signs of oval garden are now gone.

I wonder what will pop up next!?!

The new path begins...

The bricks are outlining the new path, they will be moved,

dug down a little and put back into place.

The trees came down real easy, but the roots were another story.

Where did all the bricks go????


There they are!!! This will be like a raised patio with bricks
built around the fire pit so we can entertain year round.


The new garden for Jessica will have drippers,
like "Tyson" the tree and the fruit tree behind it do now.
But the shape will change just a little bit to
match the flow of the walkway better.

Those are the roots to the trees that were behind the sheds.
They each took anywhere from 4 hours to 2 days to remove.



Once the last stump is removed and the dirt is leveled out,

the small shed will be moved to this corner. This last

stump has taken 3 days so far and I suspect it will be

another day or 2 before it is added to the fire pit.

David's Busted Up Body

A few days ago, someone ran a stop sign right in front of David while he was riding the BRIGHT RED scooter while David was going about 35 mph (full speed for our little scooter). He was returning from a soda run to the gas station about 3 blocks away, and it was dark outside. Luckily Jason and Art both have medical backgrounds and were able to clean out his wounds and immobilize his foot. A word of caution...THESE ARE GRAFFIC PICTURES AND MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR YOUNGER VIEWERS...

You can't really tell from the picture, but the hole in his elbow is about 1/2 inch deep. You can see stuff you shouldn't be able to. Pretty gross. Jason had to cut away dead tissue from around it. I am so proud of Jason for being able to do that kind of stuff.

Yesterday when woke up and his leg from the knee down was completely purple and he could no longer take the pain, he decided it was time to go to the base hospital and have it checked out. It is official. He has 4 hairline fractures in his foot (the doctor was suprised it wasn't broken all the way through), sprained knee and ankle, and torn ligaments and tendons. He is in a knee immobilizer and a stirrup cast on his ankle. They also gave him a shiny new pair of crutches to finish out his new look. Luckily they said that his open wounds were cleaned out good, so they didn't have to go there. He will be spending some time resting before he can get back to the yard.

January Update

Here we are, already another year has gone by, and though times are still tough, we are still together, and still in love, and still working to better our lives. Jason and I were relieved when this last Christmas came and went and he was still employed after being laid off right around the holidays, 2 years in a row. We find comfort in the fact that he is able to find work with some ease.
Jessica is doing really good in school. She was on the A/B honor roll for the first trimester. She has a great teacher that realized early on that she needed different attention and was not a problem child. He is helping her to grow and learn very quickly. In her class the teacher has jobs that students have to apply for. Jessica is already filling out job applications and attending job interviews and being offered paying jobs (class money). It is something I have never seen in a 5th grade classroom before, but the way her teacher does it, keeps the kids so excited. Jessica has found a great friend, Erin, and they hang out every chance they get. They love to have sleep-overs, and are able to help each other in school as well. They are both in the same class, and have different strengths and weaknesses. Their teacher has placed them in seats next to each other, so Erin can help Jessica with her focus, and Jessica can help Erin with her math. It works out great.
I have decided to join tae kwon do with the Jason and Jessica. I have been attending for a whole month now, and I am not quite as sore anymore. It has been really good for my body, and on the days I attend class, I sleep really good. We are trying to make it to North Carolina for the International Tae Kwon Do Festival in April, Jason and Jessica will go for sure, but I will only go if we can come up with the money. Our current project is a "Break-athon". We will break boards to help raise money for the college scholarship program that Black Belt World has. When Jessica is ready for college, if she is still attending BBW, she can apply for a scholarship from them to help out.
We are all testing on February 7th for our next belts. Jason and Jessica for high yellow, and I am testing for high white.